[gweekly] PT1 Weekly Project Gutenberg Newsletter
Michael Hart
hart at pglaf.org
Wed Jun 1 10:03:56 PDT 2005
Weekly_June_01.txt
**The Project Gutenberg Weekly Newsletter For Wednesday, June 1, 2005 PT1**
*******eBooks Readable By Both Humans And Computers Since July 4, 1971******
Newsletter editors needed! Please email hart at pobox.com or gbnewby at pglaf.org
Anyone who would care to get advance editions: please email hart at pobox.com
Please note that we are still in the process of correcting our statistical
program data. Last week we subtracted a few that we thought had been in a
duplicate count situation, but either that correction didn't stick or some
new similar problem has occured. As always, the total count should be the
consideration of some attention as to possibly being off by a few eBooks.
Please note that PT2 of this Newsletter is currently in flux, as we shift
from to an automated PT2 sender. The situation with Monthly Newsletters
is in flux to an even greater degree. Our apologies as we make changes.
*
HOT REQUESTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Cellphone as PDA Redux:
Following up on several discussions concerning cell phones used as PDAs,
eBook readers, etc., it now appears that the major players realized this
is the new wave, as more and more of the major players, including Google,
have made their services available in cell phone formats.
*
Wanted: People who are involved in conversations on Slashdot, Salon, etc.
*
Ipod & IP: A Public Radio Commentary by Bill Hammack
This year I joined the iPod generation. Unlike the youth of American
mine is filled mostly with public radio - and the occasional Ella
Fitzgerald tune.
At first I found it great: I mean no moving parts, just this tiny
sliver of a thing, so anytime I exercise I can listen on demand to
public radio. Then one day it all stopped.
You see I purchase some of the public radio shows. And for some reason
the IPod software stopped downloading it. Turns out that the
permissions got goofed up: IPod thought I was illegally downloading
them, which I wasn't. But it got me to thinking is it really a
fantastic thing to have all this intellectual property tied up
electronically? Sure it seems convenient, but what's the downside? The
courts have dealt with this in the past. When VCRs first arrived on
the scene Hollywood studios tried to curtail their use by suing the
electronics giant Sony, a major manufacturer. The Supreme Court wisely
held that individuals had the right to use VCRs to make complete
copies of television shows for personal use. Technological advances
have made this issue even more acute. If you had a VCR tape of a show,
you could make copies, but they were never as good as the original,
and further duplication of that copy made even worse copies. Now, of
course, the digital revolution has erased the difference: A computer
can make a copy identical to the original - plus a billion more! This,
of course, has the entertainment industry terrified, especially when
combined with the Internet, which provides unlimited distribution of
these digital copies. While I understand the fears of the
entertainment industry, I hope the courts and legislators continue to
resist restricting too much our ability to copy files. When everything
turns into electronic form we run the risk that every embodiment of
thought or imagination may be subjected to some kind of commercial
control. For example, as books become electronic, readers may lose the
rights they've had since Gutenberg's time. The publishers of an
electronic book can specify whether you can read the book all at once,
or only in parts. And they can decide whether you read it once or a
hundred times. So, the risk is this: The literary and intellectual
canon of the coming century may be locked into a digital vault
accessible only to a few. As the Courts and Congress regulate digital
copying, I think they should keep in mind an aphorism from T.S. Eliot
about literary creativity: "Good poets borrow," he said, "great poets
steal." Copyright 2005 William S. Hammack Enterprises
Reprinted with Bill's personal permission.
*
TABLE OF CONTENTS
[Search for "*eBook" or "*Intro". . .to jump to that section, etc.]
*eBook Milestones
*Introduction
*Hot Requests, New Sites and Announcements
*Continuing Requests and Announcements
*Progress Report
*Distributed Proofreaders Collection Report
*Project Gutenberg Consortia Center Report
*Permanent Requests For Assistance:
*Donation Information
*Access To The Project Gutenberg Collections
*Mirror Site Information
*Instant Access To Our Latest eBooks
*Have We Given Away A Trillion Yet?
*Flashback
*Weekly eBook update:
This is now in PT2 of the Weekly Newsletter
Also collected in the Monthly Newsletter
Corrections in separate section
1 New From PG Australia [Australian, Canadian Copyright Etc.]
68 New Public Domain eBooks Under US Copyright
*Headline News from Edupage, etc.
*Information About the Project Gutenberg Mailing Lists
***
*eBook Milestones
16,363 eBooks As Of Today!!!
13,301 New eBooks Since The Start Of 2001
We Have Produced 1407 eBooks in 2005
We Are ~64% of the Way from 10,000 to 20,000
We are ~27% of the Way from 15,000 to 20,000
3,637 to go to 20,000!!!
We have now averaged ~482 eBooks per year since July 4th, 1971
We Averaged About 339 eBooks Per Month In 2004
We Are Averaging About 282 books Per Month This Year
We Are Averaging About 67 eBooks Per Week This Year
69 This Week
It took ~32 years, from 1971 to 2003 to do our 1st 10,000 eBooks
It took ~32 months, from 2002 to 2005 for our last 10,000 eBooks
It took ~10 years from 1993 to 2003 to grow from 100 eBooks to 10,100
It took ~1.25 years from Oct. 2003 to Jan. 2005 from 10,000 to 15,000
*
***Introduction
[The Newsletter is now being sent in two sections, so you can directly
go to the portions you find most interesting: 1. Founder's Comments,
News, Notes & Queries, and 2. Weekly eBook Update Listing.]
[Since we are between Newsletter editors, these 2 parts may undergo a
few changes while we are finding a new Newsletter editor. Email us:
hart at pobox.com and gbnewby at pglaf.org if you would like to volunteer.]
This is Michael Hart's "Founder's Comments" section of the Newsletter
***
***Continuing Requests New Sites and Announcements
*
Darwin!!!
Would anyone like to work on reproofing our Darwin collection
and creating a compilation file as requested by our readers.
We could also use some help making some new editions of "The
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes" and "Frankenstein."
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v0.2 version of PodReader is out, and it interfaces to PG. This allows
users to browse the catalog on their Desktop, pick a book, and have it
downloaded to their iPod in the correct format...this is a good plus for
PG users since it makes it a lot easier to get to PG documents.
http://homepage.mac.com/ptwobrussell/podreader.html
*
We have been invited to peruse the various eBook collections
of the Internet Archive for potential Project Gutenberg eBooks.
http://www.archive.org
Don't worry, many of the numbers listed are out of date,
but you should get all the files when you pass through
to the original sites.
Click on "texts" to get started, feel free to pick up any
of the eBooks you would like to work on.
Many Thanks To Brewster Kahle and the Internet Archive!
*
REQUEST FOR RUSSIAN TRANSLATOR
We are trying to start up a Project Gutenberg Russian Team,
and we need someone to translate simple email messages from
members of Project Gutenberg who want to provide a service
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The messages will be in MS Word's .doc format in Cyrillic,
we need them translated into English, also in a .doc file.
Thanks!!! Contact Jared Buck <JBuck814366460 at aol.com>
*
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The Project Gutenberg Consortia Center [PGCC]
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You should see some significant changes this week.
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MACHINE TRANSLATION
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***Progress Report, including Distributed Proofreaders
In the first 05.00 months of this year, we produced 1407 new eBooks.
It took us from July 1971 to Aug 1998 to produce our first 1407 eBooks!
That's 21 WEEKS as Compared to ~27 Years!
69 New eBooks This Week
50 New eBooks Last Week
207 New eBooks This Month [May]
~281 Average Per Month in 2005
336 Average Per Month in 2004
355 Average Per Month in 2003
203 Average Per Month in 2002
103 Average Per Month in 2001
1407 New eBooks in 2005
4049 New eBooks in 2004
4164 New eBooks in 2003
2441 New eBooks in 2002
1240 New eBooks in 2001
====
13301 New eBooks Since Start Of 2001
That's Only 53.00 Months!
About 250 books per month
16,363 Total Project Gutenberg eBooks
12,808 eBooks This Week Last Year
====
3,555 New eBooks In Last 12 Months
441 eBooks From Project Gutenberg of Australia
*
PROJECT GUTENBERG DISTRIBUTED PROOFREADERS UPDATE:
Since starting production in October 2000,
Distributed Proofreaders has contributed
6,864 eBooks to Project Gutenberg.
Sorry, the site seems to be down for an upgrage at the moment:
"Username for 'DP is unavailable for a Site Upgrade' at server
'www.pgdp.net' "
For more complete DP statistics, visit:
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*Project Gutenberg Consortia Center Report
Please note the addition of the Internet Archive
marked with <<< below.
PGCC's current eBook and eDocument Collections listings
of 18 collections. . .with this week's listing as:
Alex-Wire Tap Collection, 2,036 HTML eBook Files
Black Mask Collection, 12,000 HTML eBook Files
The Coradella Bookshelf Collection, 141 eBook Files
DjVu Collection, 272 PDF and DJVU eBook Files
eBooks at Adelaide Collection, 27,709 eBook Files
Himalayan Academy, 3,400 HTML eBook Files
Internet Archive ~30,000 eBook Files [In Progress] <<<
Literal Systems Collection, 68 MP3 eBook Files
Logos Group Collection, ~34,000 TXT eBook Files
Poet's Corner Poetry Collection, 6,700 Poetry Files
Project Gutenberg Collection, 15,035 eBook Files
PGCC Chinese eBook Collection ~300 eBook files <<< Note Name Change
Renaisscance Editions Collection, 561 HTML eBook Files
Swami Center Collection, 78 HTML eBook Files
Tony Kline Collection, 223 HTML eBook Files
Widger Library, 2,600 HTML eBook Files
CIA's Electronic Reading Room, 2,019 Reference Files
=======Grand Total Files=========~137,142 Total Files=====
Average Size of the Collections 8,067.18 Total Files
These eBooks are catalogued as per the instructions of
their donors: some are one file per book; some have a
file for each chapter; and some even have a file for a
single page or poem. . .or are overcounted for reasons
I have not mentioned. . .each of which could cause the
overcounting or duplication of numbers.
If we presume 2 out of 3 of these files are overcounts,
that leaves a unique book total of
~45,714 Unique eBooks
If we presume 3 out of 4 of these files are overcounts,
that leaves a unique book total of
~34,286 Unique eBooks
***
Please also note that over 23,000 eBooks are listed via
The Online Books Page, of which over 5,300 are from PG.
http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/
In addition: The Internet Public Library had a similar
listing which is now in limbo. If anyone knows what is
happening with the IPL, please let us know. Inquiries,
made months ago, and again recently, have not turned up
any current information.
You can try a new IPL service at:
http://www.ipl.org/div/subject/browse/hum60.60.00/
It would appear that The Internet Public Library ended
its first incarnation with about 22,284 entries, which
has now been surpassed by the Online Books Page.
Still looking for more Internet Public Library info.
***
Today Is Day #147 of 2005
This Completes Week #21 and Month #05.05 [364 days this year]
217 Days/34 Weeks To Go [We get 52 Wednesdays this year]
3,637 Books To Go To #20,000
[Our production year begins/ends
1st Wednesday of the month/year]
67 Weekly Average in 2005
78 Weekly Average in 2004
79 Weekly Average in 2003
47 Weekly Average in 2002
24 Weekly Average in 2001
41 Only 41 Numbers Left On Our Reserved Numbers list
[Used to be well over 100]
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***
Statistical Review
In the 21 weeks of this year, we have produced 1407 new eBooks.
It took us from 7/71 to 2/98 to produce our FIRST 1407 eBooks!!!
That's 21 WEEKS as Compared to ~27 YEARS!!!
FLASHBACK!
Here's a sample of what books we were doing around eBook #1407
Mon Year Title and Author [filename.ext] ###
A "C" Following The eText # Indicates That This eText Is Under Copyright
[Note: books without month and year entries have been reposted]
Aug 1998 El Verdugo, by Honore de Balzac [de Balzac #30][vrdugxxx.xxx] 1425
Aug 1998 Castle Rackrent, by Maria Edgeworth [Edgeworth #1][rkrntxxx.xxx] 1424
No Thoroughfare, by Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins 1423
Going into Society, by Charles Dickens 1422
Mrs. Lirriper's Legacy, by Charles Dickens 1421
Aug 1998 London's Underworld, by Thomas Holmes [lndwdxxx.xxx] 1420
Mugby Junction, by Charles Dickens 1419
Aug 1998 Country Sentiment, by Robert Graves [csentxxx.xxx] 1418
Aug 1998 Sons of the Soil by Honore de Balzac [Balzac #29][ssoilxxx.xxx] 1417
Mrs. Lirriper's Lodgings, by Charles Dickens 1416
Doctor Marigold, by Charles Dickens 1415
Somebody's Luggage, by Charles Dickens 1414
Tom Tiddler's Ground, by Charles Dickens 1413
Aug 1998 Masterman Ready, by Captain Marryat [Marryat #1][mmrdyxxx.xxx] 1412
Domestic Peace, by Honore de Balzac [Tr.: Ellen Marriage and Clara Bell] 1411
The Commission in Lunacy, by Honore de Balzac [Tr.: Clara Bell] 1410
Aug 1998 The Soul of the Far East, by Percival Lowell [#1][sofrexxx.xxx] 1409
Aug 1998 The Natural History of Selborne, by Gilbert White [tnhosxxx.xxx] 1408
A Message from the Sea, by Charles Dickens 1407
The Perils of Certain English Prisoners, by Charles Dickens 1406
The Collection of Antiquities, by Honore de Balzac [Tr.: Ellen Marriage] 1405
Jul 1998 The Federalist Papers, by Hamilton, Jay & Madison [federxxa.xxx] 1404
Jul 1998 A Start in Life, by Honore de Balzac [Balzac #25][stlifxxx.xxx] 1403
Jul 1998 Where the Blue Begins, by Christopher Morley [wtbbgxxx.xxx] 1402
Jul 1998 Tarzan the Untamed, Edgar R. Burroughs [Tarzan #7][tarz7xxx.xxx] 1401
[Author: Edgar Rice Burroughs]
Jul 1998 Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens[Dickens#38][grexpxxx.xxx] 1400
(Alt. version, ostensibly from 1867 Edition:) [grexpxxa.xxx]
Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy 1399
(Author note: sometimes spelled Tolstoi)
Jul 1998 Dore Lectures on Mental Science, by Thomas Troward[dorelxxx.xxx] 1398
Jul 1998 The Ruins by C. F. [Constantin Francois de] Volney[ruinsxxx.xxx] 1397
Jul 1998 Rienzi, last of the Roman Tribunes, by E. B.Lytton[rienzxxx.xxx] 1396
Letters on Literature, by Andrew Lang 1395
The Holly-Tree, by Charles Dickens 1394
Jul 1998 Amours de Voyage, by Arthur Hugh Clough [mrvygxxx.xxx] 1393
The Seven Poor Travellers, by Charles Dickens 1392
*
Have We Given Away A Trillion Books/Dollars Yet???
With 16,363 eBooks online as of June 01, 2005 it now takes an average
of ~1% of the world gaining a nominal value of ~$.95 from each book.
1% of the world population is 64,451,036 x 16,363 x $.95 = ~$1 trillion]
[Google "world population" "popclock" to get the most current figures.]
With 16,363 eBooks online as of June 01, 2005 it now takes an average
of 100,000,000 readers gaining a nominal value of $0.61 from each book,
This "cost" is down from about $.78 when we had 12,808 eBooks a year ago.
100 million readers is only ~1.5% of the world's population!
At 16,363 eBooks in 33 Years and 11.00 Months We Averaged
~482 Per Year
40.2 Per Month
1.32 Per Day
At 1407 eBooks Done In The 147 Days Of 2005 We Averaged
10 Per Day
67 Per Week
282 Per Month
The production statistics are calculated based on full weeks'
production; each production-week starts/ends Wednesday noon,
starts with the first Wednesday of January. January 5th was
the first Wednesday of 2005, and thus ended PG's production
year of 2004 and began the production year of 2005 at noon.
This year there will be 52 Wednesdays, thus no extra week.
***
*Headline News from Edupage
[PG Editor's Comments In Brackets]
DATABASES GO PORTABLE
As handheld computing devices become increasingly common, organizations
that maintain a variety of databases are modifying their content to
allow for easy access by handheld devices. Chemical Abstracts Service,
which is a division of the American Chemical Society, is finalizing a
"mobile" version of a database that contains data on roughly 25 million
molecules, allowing users of handheld devices to access molecular
weights, boiling points, and other information in a format designed for
portable devices. The final database will be available to the public
later this year. Medical sciences already have a broad range of
databases designed for handhelds, and many librarians see the trend
continuing for other fields. As for the upcoming chemistry database,
reactions are mixed, even at single institutions. At Yale University,
David Austin, associate professor of chemistry, said the database will
be extremely valuable, whereas Glenn Micalizio, assistant professor of
organic chemistry, said he sees little value in it, given widespread
access to laptops and desktops.
Chronicle of Higher Education, 27 May 2005 (sub. req'd)
SPREADING SPYWARE THROUGH AN AFFILIATE PROGRAM
A business based in Russia is adopting the affiliate-program approach
to spreading spyware around the globe. Called iframeDOLLARS, the
company is offering Web site operators 6.1 cents for every computer on
which the Web site installs code that exploits vulnerabilities in
Windows and Internet Explorer. Microsoft has issued patches for the
weaknesses, but unpatched computers remain at risk. The malicious code
includes backdoors, Trojans, spyware, and adware. Operators of the
iframeDOLLARS site claim to have paid out nearly $12,000 last week
alone, which would translate to nearly 200,000 infected computers.
Although spyware expert Richard Stiennon called the tactic "brazen" and
said iframeDOLLARS might be making quite a bit of money from its
scheme, Dan Hubbard, the head of security at Websense, gave
iframeDOLLARS less credit. He noted that the company has been around
for a while, trying various methods to install malicious code, and he
said a number of others have tried similar affiliate programs to
accomplish the same thing.
TechWeb, 24 May 2005
http://www.techweb.com/wire/security/163700705
HOUSE TAKES TWO STEPS AGAINST SPYWARE
The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed two separate bills
this week designed to address the growing problem of spyware. HR 29,
introduced by Mary Bono (R-Calif.), would impose stiff fines on anyone
found guilty of distributing computer code that results in browser
hijacking, modifying bookmarks, collecting personal information without
permission, and disabling security mechanisms. Violators can be fined
as much as $3 million per incident. One of only four Representatives
who voted against Bono's bill, Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) had introduced
another bill, HR 744, that also prohibits installing spyware.
Lofgren's bill, which passed 395 to 1, would impose fines and jail
time to anyone found guilty. Both bills now go to the Senate, which
failed to act on a spyware bill sent by the House last year. Senators
have said they will not allow a similar situation this year.
CNET, 23 May 2005
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-5717658.html
FBI TRIES AGAIN TO REPLACE COMPUTER SYSTEMS
After spending several years and $170 million on a failed computer
system, the FBI said it now has a new system in the works, the first
part of which will be operational by the end of 2006. After September
11, 2001, federal officials identified a need for a computer system
that would allow various agencies to share information efficiently to
help prevent similar attacks in the future. The FBI's Virtual Case
File, designed to meet that need, was riddled with problems and
ultimately was not viable. At a Senate Appropriations subcommittee
meeting, FBI Director Robert Mueller conceded that Virtual Case File
would not be implemented and expressed his regret that so much time and
money were wasted on it. The new electronic information management
system will be called Sentinel.
Reuters, 24 May 2005
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?storyID=8593132
STUDENTS SHOW EASE OF IDENTITY THEFT
Graduate students at Johns Hopkins University set out to see how much
personal information they could collect on as many individuals as
possible, using only the Internet and $50. The 41 students were in a
course taught by Aviel D. Rubin, professor of computer science and
technical director of the university's Information Security Institute,
who divided them into groups of three or four and instructed them to
use only legal, public sources of information. The exercise mimicked
the activities of data brokers, such as ChoicePoint and LexisNexis, and
the students were able to collect and aggregate vast amounts of
information, even with limited time and budgets. Although Rubin was
pleased that fewer Social Security numbers were among the data
collected than he had anticipated, privacy advocates insisted that such
information remains easy to obtain, posing enormous risk of identity
theft. Even without Social Security numbers, the data collected
represented for some individuals a very broad picture of who they are,
where they live, and activities in which they participate. Such access
to personal information worries many, including Sen. Ted Stevens
(R-Alaska), who conducted a similar experiment, instructing his staff
to try to steal his identity. Aside from information they discovered
about Stevens, they were told they could buy his Social Security number
for $65.
New York Times, 18 May 2005 (registration req'd)
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/18/technology/18data.html
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***
*HEADLINE NEWS AVOIDED BY MOST OF THE MAJOR U.S. MEDIA
Just one note at the moment concerning the revelation of Mark Felt,
Deputy Director of the FBI being the "Deep Throat" source of great
amounts of information and leads for Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein
as they created what may have been the biggest news story in over
a century, covering the Watergate break-in of the offices of the
Democratic National Committee as part of the "dirty tricks" of the
1972 presidential campaign.
Obviously there have been many references to the movie made from
Woodward and Bernstein's book "All The President's Men," starring
Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman, and, no doubt, many of these
have now been checked out from libraries, rented from Blockbuster,
or gleaned from other sources. However, there is another movie,
also starring Robert Redford, "Three Days of the Condor," in which
Cliff Robertson plays the FBI Deputy Director in more detail than
is presented in "All The President's Men," and also presages to an
alarming degree the plans for destabilization and invasion of the
Middle East countries in a remarkable prediction of the Gulf Wars.
*
Speaking of the FBI:
Before 9/11 the FBI was about 4% military people.
After 9/11 the FBI has recruited over 50% from military people.
*
Dick Cheney was the Auburn's commencement speaker last weekend when
he told them he dropped out of Yale. That means three out of the
four major candidates of the last elections were chosen by Yale,
and weren't both presidential candiates from Yale's most secret
society, Skull and Bones?
*
An unnamed 11-year-old boy at Rawlinson Road Middle School in
Rock Hill, S.C., was stopped by Assistant Principal Dianne McCray, who
asked what was jingling in his pocket. He handed over ten 3.5" nails,
left over from a Boy Scout trip. The administrator turned the boy over
to the school police officer, who arrested the boy for possession of
"weapons" at school. "Is a pencil a weapon?" demanded the boy's father.
Apparently so: state law says anything "that can be construed or used
as a weapon on school grounds can be classified as unlawful," says a
police spokesman. (Rock Hill Herald)
*
Meanwhile in California, The Governator seemed to have picked up
$2 billion budget dollars from various sources, a privitization
move similar to those of Bush or United Airlines of recent days.
However, quick response time by those affected seems to have had
some powerful results and The Governator has rescinded his plan,
but is expected to resubmit it in other guises in the future.
Fights over a wide variety of pension plans have now spilled out
into other states as it appears to be open season on what is now
being called "Economic Warfare" or "Class Warfare" as goverments
target the working class pension plans, etc.
*
In local news, one of our high schools was recently the scene of
massive aggravation on the part of hundreds of parents who would
have liked to have seen their children graduate.
Initially it was said that there weren't enough seats for all of
the parents and family members who showed up, and thus the doors
were closed on hundreds of people who showed up at the very last
minute [some argument about if they were actually late, and some
were let in who were already in line at the last minute; however
there were still hundreds left outside].
After some deep research and investigation it was finally out in
the open that there actually were enough seats for everyone in a
space that had room for well over 2,000, and apparently the only
people who were trying to get in totalled well under 2,000.
The real question thus became whether those closing the door had
some ulterior motive, perhaps just overzealous use of power some
had over the event, or perhaps other reasons still hidden.
At any rate, at least one person who managed to get through then
was maced when the doorkeepers called the police, and when being
maced wasn't enough to drive them away from the graduation, then
the person was tasered.
It just makes you wonder. . . .
*STRANGE WORDS OF THE WEEK
"But the pension fund was just sitting there!"
Highly predictive Doonesbury title from Gary Trudeau,
on April Fool's Day, 1979.
DOUBLESPEAK OF THE WEEK
Privatizing the pension funds will do much more good than harm.
"Countries are not coerced into privatizing their national enterprises....
It does more good than harm."
*PREDICTIONS OF THE WEEK
A few years from now all this news will turn out to be simple politicking,
and will appear much more obvious when termed as "class warfare."
*ODD STATISTICS OF THE WEEK
Add another log to the billion dollar scandal fire, as AIG has admitted
that it cooked the books in various ways to make it appear as if AIG is
worth $4 billion more than it actually is with an apparent loss of even
$2 billion more in real terms as things start to fall apart.
*
In related news, it appears that Andersen Inc's conviction concerning
their role in the multi-billion dollar Enron scandal was not kosher,
as it seems some questionable jury instructions may have been given.
Will the entire trial have to take place again with a new jury with
better instructions?
*
"Put The Bad News Out With The Trash"
Trash Day in Washington, D.C.
By the way, are you aware that goverment agencies have a statistical
bias towards giving reports that are favorable to them early in the week,
when it can get the widest possible coverage in the current "news cycle,"
and only giving out the news that reflects badly on them late in the week,
when it can get only the narrowest possible coverage?
A recent example was the FDA report that many more drugs were recalled,
which was held up for 5 days until it landed at 6:00 PM Friday evening,
just before the Memorial Day weekend, where it was buried along with an
assortment of other "trash," rather than getting the full news cycle.
If you really want to see what the goverment is hiding from you, watch
and listen to the Friday and weekend news, these stories will usually
be quite passe by Monday, at least that's what they are hoping. Also
watch and listen to news from other countries when possible, or you
may never see how the world is reacting to your own nation's politics.
*
The malpractice premiums paid by hospitals doubled in 2002, and appears
to have doubled yet again since then, however, the rate of payouts from
these funds only increased by 12% in 2002, when 63.2% of premiums were
paid out to cover malpractice claims.
The premiums for individual doctors is also rising, but half as quickly.
What is not made obvious in these reports is that "that the average medical
malpractice premium in California was $7,200 in 2000, as compared with the
national average of $7,843," leaving some concern over making mountains of
molehills in terms how much is paid by each individual doctor, especially
when considered as a percentage of gross income. This is not much when
compared to the property taxes we all have to pay, even if indirectly,
which may average half that much. Rates have been going up around 3.5%
per year since 1991, which isn't much different from general inflation.
Bills in major states are now pressuring for a cap of $ 1/4 million on
any amount of pain and suffering caused even by proven malpractice and
some have even passed and been made into law. [See California]
There is also increasing pressure forcing medical workers to buy their
malpractice insurance from a smaller and smaller group of vendors now
licenses by various states.
Example figures from Missouri:
www.insurance.mo.gov/reports/medmal/
*
15 billion cigarettes are made daily. At $2.50 a pack, this is 10
cents per cigarette, or $1.5 billion dollars per day!!!
*
Still hoping for more statistical updates and additional entries.
"If we could shrink the earth's population to a village of precisely
100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same,
it would look something like the following. There would be:
57 Asians
21 Europeans
14 from the Western Hemisphere, both north and south
8 Africans
52 would be female
48 would be male
70 would be non-white
30 would be white
70 would be non-Christian
30 would be Christian
6 people would possess 59% of the entire world's wealth
and all 6 would be from the United States
80 would live in substandard housing
70 would be unable to read
50 would suffer from malnutrition
1 would be near death; 1 would be near birth
1 (yes, only 1) would have a college education
1 would own a computer
I would like to bring some of these figures more up to date,
as obviously if only 1% of 6 billion people owned a computer
then there would be only 60 million people in the world who
owned a computer, yet we hear that 3/4 + of the United States
households have computers, out of over 100 million households.
Thus obviously that is over 1% of the world population, just in
the United States.
I just called our local reference librarian and got the number
of US households from the 2004-5 U.S. Statistical Abstract at:
111,278,000 as per data from 2003 U.S Census Bureau reports.
If we presume the saturation level of U.S. computer households
is now around 6/7, or 86%, that is a total of 95.4 million,
and that's counting just one computer per household, and not
counting households with more than one, schools, businesses, etc.
I also found some figures that might challenge the literacy rate
given above, and would like some help researching these and other
such figures, if anyone is interested.
BTW, while I was doing this research, I came across a statistic
that said only 10% of the world's population is 60+ years old.
This means that basically 90% of the world's population would
never benefit from Social Security, even if the wealthy nations
offered it to them free of charge. Then I realized that the US
population has the same kind of age disparity, in which the rich
live so much longer than the poor, the whites live so much longer
than the non-whites. Thus Social Security is paid by all, but is
distributed more to the upper class whites, not just because they
can receive more per year, but because they will live more years
to receive Social Security. The average poor non-white may never
receive a dime of Social Security, no matter how much they pay in.
***
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