A breakdown of our biggest losses as we approach health-care system reform.
The United States spends eight times as much money on unnecessary health-care costs, every year, as the Pentagon spent for each year of its operations in Iraq.
Continue reading… “The U.S. healthcare system wastes $750 billion each year”
An influx of 30 million patients will impact primary care.
I distinctly remember that in first grade I had an idea of breathtaking wisdom and profundity. Candy should be free. You may have had a similar thought at the same age. This idea was supported by an incontrovertible rationale, namely that I really liked candy. Tragically, it only took a moment for my parents to expose a flaw in my otherwise revolutionary scheme. They suggested that if candy were free, no one would bother making candy. All candy makers would do something else that allowed them to make a living. Thus exposed to the painful realities of life, I put the thought out of my head for about forty years.
Continue reading… “How will doctors handle the influx of new patients in 2014?”
Where will qualified younger programmers come from when the older generation retires?
T’S a looming crisis not even dreamed of when computers were the new frontier, and all those working on them were young pioneers.
But fast-forward a few decades – and now experts warn that essential systems that control areas like defence and banking are about to be left without qualified people to run them, as the first generation of computer programmers retire and, sadly, die.
Seventy-two-year-old US digital forensic examiner, Robert E Johnston, said that the skills shortage in computer programming carried with it serious consequences…
Second Amendment advocates want to make acquiring arms as easy as downloading a file and hitting Print.
Technological advances are about to make the gun debate in the United States a whole lot more intense. Forbes highlighted a project last week called Wiki Weapon that wants to prototype the world’s first fully printable gun.
Continue reading… “Will 3D printing technology make gun control impossible?”
Children who were given antibiotics in their first six months had a higher incidence of obesity later.
A higher risk of obesity has been found in the use of antibiotics in young children, according to new studies. Two new studies, one on mice and one on humans, conclude that changes of the intestinal bacteria caused by antibiotics could be responsible.
Continue reading… “Childhood obesity linked to antibiotic use in infants: Studies”
A pack of digital authors ganged up on a useful site that connected e-book consumers and shut them down.
The process of lending an e-book is complicated and much of it is a result of conflicting DRM locks and platforms as well as a reluctance on the part of publishers to allow their books to be loaned. But authors can also be a roadblock when it comes to lending, and we’ve just had a classic example of how that can happen with the brouhaha over LendInk, a service that allowed readers to connect with others in order to share e-books. The site has effectively been put out of business by a virtual lynch mob of authors claiming it breached their rights, even though what it was doing was perfectly legal.
Continue reading… “Legitimate e-book lending site taken down by angry authors”
Here’s a frightening yet informative graphic by Tony Shin, et al. of Criminal Justice Degree about Transportation Security Administration excesses and oversights. (The full infographic can be viewed after the jump.)
The TSA has been around for the last decade and I’ve never read a positive news article about them. It isn’t that I’m avoiding these articles, its that there just aren’t any. Try it yourself: go to Google News and search for TSA. Some of the most recent articles are titled ‘TSA body scanners’ apparent flaw’ and ‘TSA pats down toddler in wheelchair’. Just a few weeks ago the new full body scanners were proved to be practically useless. This isn’t the first time the TSA has missed the boat either…
Continue reading… “Grope and Pillage TSA infographic”
Congress now has second thoughts on safety after pushing FAA to allow UAVs.
In a House Homeland Security oversight subcommittee hearing members of Congress raised concerns over the potential security risks posed by jamming and electronic hijacking of unmanned aerial systems, and the potential use of drones by terrorists.
Continue reading… “Drone GPS hacking fears raised by Congress”
To maintain living standards into old age we need roughly 20 times our annual income in financial wealth.
In 2010, 75 percent of Americans nearing retirement age had less than $30,000 in their retirement accounts. Downward mobility in retirement is a looming reality for both middle and higher-income workers. Forty-nine percent of middle-class workers will be poor or near poor in retirement, living on a food budget of about $5 a day.
Continue reading… “49% of middle-class workers will be poor in retirement”
Many workers who have lost their jobs have defaulted on 401(k) loans.
The number of displaced workers has risen dramatically since the start of the Great Recession, and this year a third of them had to raid retirement savings to make ends meet.
Continue reading… “35% of laid-off workers have raided their retirement savings”
Over 50% of the U.S. is under drought conditions.
More than half of the United States is under drought conditions right now, putting 2012 in the same category with some of the worst droughts in the nation’s history. This makes 2012 the sixth worst drought on record with a 54.6 percent figure (not counting Alaska and Hawaii) in terms of area covered, behind only the brutal droughts of the mid-1950s and the “Dust Bowl” era of the 1930s. Other more recent droughts — such as 2000, 2002, and 1998 — saw a greater percentage of the country suffering from the “severe” or “extreme” drought categories. However, even by that standard, June 2012 still ranks among the top 10 worst droughts of all-time.
Continue reading… “2012 drought reaches proportions not seen since the ‘Dust Bowl’ era”
The XT9 Air will take you places like no other.
The XT9 Air is the most advanced energy storing prosthetic knee available on the market, allowing above knee (AK) amputees the ability to telemark ski, wake board, rock climb, and many other activities that they have been unable to do on conventional prosthetic equipment.
The XT9 Air will be one of the featured products at the 8th Annual DaVinci Inventor Showcase. Recently inventor Jarem Frye took a moment to tell us more about his amazing invention…
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.