Category Archives: Science

BIG DATA COMES TO PREDICTIONS OF PATIENT OUTCOMES.

Posted on February 3, 2018 by Philip

BIG DATA COMES TO PREDICTIONS OF PATIENT OUTCOMES. This article on the Quartz website by Dave Gershgorn describes how “Google is using 46 billion data points to predict the medical outcomes of hospital patients.” The possible outcomes for hospital admissions … Continue reading →

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THE HAPPYORNOT BUTTON—-AN EXPERIMENT WITHOUT ANY CONTROLS.

Posted on February 2, 2018 by Philip

THE HAPPYORNOT BUTTONS—-AN EXPERIMENT WITHOUT ANY CONTROLS. David Owen has an article in the New Yorker (February 5) about HappyOrNot, a Finnish market research company which measures customer satisfaction by means of four push buttons. The buttons are marked “very … Continue reading →

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WHY SO LITTLE EXCITEMENT ABOUT THE FLU?

Posted on January 29, 2018 by Philip

Why is there so little public excitement about an infectious disease that killed 56,000 people in 2014-2015, is expected to kill about the same number this year and has already killed 37 children this year? I think a lot of … Continue reading →

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“FLU” AND “FLU-LIKE SYMPTOMS”.

Posted on January 28, 2018 by Philip

“FLU” AND “FLU-LIKE SYMPTOMS”. Nick commented on my post a couple days ago about how dangerous the flu can be: “Not to be melodramatic, but whenever I read about some exotic or rare disease which can be lethal, it seems … Continue reading →

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USING LANGUAGE FOR RESEARCH ON PAST WEATHER—THE FROZEN MUSKOXEN.

Posted on January 27, 2018 by Philip

USING LANGUAGE FOR RESEARCH ON PAST WEATHER—THE FROZEN MUSKOXEN. Nick sent me this article by Maddie Stone on the Earther website about an event in 2011—-“a freak winter tsunami that caused 52 muskoxen to become entombed in ice on the … Continue reading →

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MONTAIGNE’S SUPPORT FOR DRINKING MEDIOCRE WINE.

Posted on January 25, 2018 by Philip

MONTAIGNE’S SUPPORT FOR DRINKING MEDIOCRE WINE. I posted here about an aphorism that I have repeated often and been proud of. Nick commented on that post: “Perhaps acquiring a taste for expensive wines is not one worth acquiring.” Mary Jane … Continue reading →

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IF YOUR FLU SYMPTOMS GET BETTER AND THEN GET WORSE, CALL YOUR DOCTOR IMMEDIATELY !!!

Posted on January 24, 2018 by Philip

IF YOUR FLU SYMPTOMS GET BETTER AND THEN GET WORSE, CALL YOUR DOCTOR IMMEDIATELY !!! Of the information that I had not known about flu, I think this is much the most important: “Other signs of complications include symptoms that … Continue reading →

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THINGS TO LEARN ABOUT THE FLU.

Posted on January 23, 2018 by Philip

THINGS TO LEARN ABOUT THE FLU. I think I keep up with medical news but this article on the webmd site by Jennifer Clopton and this article in the Daily Mail by Kayla Brantley taught me a lot of things … Continue reading →

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HOW BUILDING A SET OF STEPS ILLUSTRATES “A FUNDAMENTAL PROPERTY OF THE UNIVERSE”.

Posted on January 9, 2018 by Philip

HOW BUILDING A SET OF STEPS ILLUSTRATES “A FUNDAMENTAL PROPERTY OF THE UNIVERSE”. I think it’s worthwhile to emphasize by repetition the life lesson that John Salvatier draws from building a set of stairs. “It’s tempting to think ‘So what?’ … Continue reading →

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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TO BUILD A SET OF STEPS.

Posted on January 7, 2018 by Philip

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TO BUILD A SET OF STEPS. One of Katja Grace’s initial observations is that: “Inventions are usually more ingenious than they seem”. She links to this blog post by John Salvatier, who supports the proposition … Continue reading →

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