More than 70 years after Superman first saved the day in the pages of a comic book, the Man of Steel has reached out and saved a family in the real world.
Asylum reports that a family was packing up their belongings after their bank had started foreclosure proceedings, when they came across a box of comic books in the basement.
But this wasn't just any box, and the family suspected they'd struck gold when they discovered among the titles "Action Comics No. 1," the comic that introduced Superman to the world and brought to life the superhero genre, which remains popular to this day.
The comic is expected to fetch more than a quarter-million dollars when it goes up for auction on ComicConnect -- and that's a low estimate. In February of this year, an unrestored copy of "Action Comic No. 1" sold for $1 million, according to the Los Angeles Times, followed a month later by the sale of another copy in better condition at $1.5 million.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Life Expectancy
I was surprised to read in The Costco Connection (July 2007, page 65), that that average life expectancy for men in 1907 was only 45 years, compared to 78 years in 2007.
That got me to wondering how life expectancy has changed over the years.
According to wikipedia, it really didn't change all that much until the 20th century. It was about 30 until the early modern Britain (16th, 17th, 18th century) when it reached about 40. And now its near 70.
The average life expectancy in Colonial America was under 25 years in the Virginia colony, and in New England about 40% of children failed to reach adulthood. During the Industrial Revolution, the life expectancy of children increased dramatically.[20] The percentage of children born in London who died before the age of five decreased from 74.5% in 1730-1749 to 31.8% in 1810-1829.
Public health measures are credited with much of the recent increase in life expectancy. During the 20th century, the average lifespan in the United States increased by more than 30 years, of which 25 years can be attributed to advances in public health.
***
We're living in a unique time.
***
[7/26/10] TOKYO — Japanese women are expected to live longer than 86 years, topping the world longevity ratings for the 25th consecutive year, according to a government report released Monday.
The statistics for 2009 compiled and published by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare showed both Japanese women and men extended their average life expectancy to new records — 86.44 years for women and 79.59 years for men. Average life spans rose by almost five months for women and nearly four months for men compared to the previous year.
***
Looking up world longevity rankings (which turned up life expectancy, Japan tops the list at 82.6. The United States is at no. 38 at 78.2. Swaziland is at the bottom of the list at 39.6.
That got me to wondering how life expectancy has changed over the years.
According to wikipedia, it really didn't change all that much until the 20th century. It was about 30 until the early modern Britain (16th, 17th, 18th century) when it reached about 40. And now its near 70.
The average life expectancy in Colonial America was under 25 years in the Virginia colony, and in New England about 40% of children failed to reach adulthood. During the Industrial Revolution, the life expectancy of children increased dramatically.[20] The percentage of children born in London who died before the age of five decreased from 74.5% in 1730-1749 to 31.8% in 1810-1829.
Public health measures are credited with much of the recent increase in life expectancy. During the 20th century, the average lifespan in the United States increased by more than 30 years, of which 25 years can be attributed to advances in public health.
***
We're living in a unique time.
***
[7/26/10] TOKYO — Japanese women are expected to live longer than 86 years, topping the world longevity ratings for the 25th consecutive year, according to a government report released Monday.
The statistics for 2009 compiled and published by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare showed both Japanese women and men extended their average life expectancy to new records — 86.44 years for women and 79.59 years for men. Average life spans rose by almost five months for women and nearly four months for men compared to the previous year.
***
Looking up world longevity rankings (which turned up life expectancy, Japan tops the list at 82.6. The United States is at no. 38 at 78.2. Swaziland is at the bottom of the list at 39.6.
Wally Amos: Be Positive
Focus on what really matters
Recently I've been seeking an answer to the question "What really matters?" The e-mail below, from my friend Barbara Stewart, answers that question. I share it with her permission.
While officiating a track-and-field meet at a school in Rochester, New York, I watched a talented young triple jumper take off from the toe board and suffer the most horrific accident. There was a noise like a gunshot and she pitched forward in agony. She fell onto the runway, her leg destroyed and useless. She remained immobilized on the runway for nearly an hour, until they could move her to the hospital.
For her, it was excruciating pain and a traumatic event that changed the course of her life forever. For the rest of the athletes and personnel, it was a shocking reminder of how fragile life can be - one moment youth and strength and the next mortality. I was struck by her courage to remain calm, although in obvious agony.
Later I was told she had surgery and would remain in the hospital a few more days. The sharp noises I heard were her Achilles tendon snapping, then her femur fracturing. In my 25 years in track and field, I have never witnessed such a thing. Realistically, she will never again participate at full capacity as an athlete, so she needs to apply her character and abilities to other pursuits. I sent her a card and a book to wish her well.
Now comes the most coincidental part. I suddenly experienced extreme pain in my leg. I was sent immediately to the hospital for surgery on a massive, life-threatening blood clot in my leg. My life path, too is forever altered. I am reminded each day and each hour of the wonder and gratitude in each moment of life. Now I must continue to use it wisely.
I later had further news of unfavorable hospital test results, which momentarily unfocused my attention. Once again, I was reminded of what matters. The mail brought this incredible thank-you note from the athlete.
She wrote, "Wow! Your gift caught me off-guard because I wasn't expecting it. Thank you so much! My leg is getting better every day and I cannot wait to walk again. The fact that you didn't even know me but saw all of these positive qualities in me and thought enough about me to send me a card and a book is really touching and inspires me to do bigger and better things. As long as there are people like you in the world, I know it'll be OK. I've been walking. They told me six to eight weeks. I did it in five!"
This outstanding young woman has all the elements for success in life. Indomitable spirit, talent and excellent skills in literacy. Above all, she has awareness of others outside herself. What more could we ask for in the next generations?
I am having a positive day, remembering what matters.
-- The Costco Connection, July 2007
Recently I've been seeking an answer to the question "What really matters?" The e-mail below, from my friend Barbara Stewart, answers that question. I share it with her permission.
While officiating a track-and-field meet at a school in Rochester, New York, I watched a talented young triple jumper take off from the toe board and suffer the most horrific accident. There was a noise like a gunshot and she pitched forward in agony. She fell onto the runway, her leg destroyed and useless. She remained immobilized on the runway for nearly an hour, until they could move her to the hospital.
For her, it was excruciating pain and a traumatic event that changed the course of her life forever. For the rest of the athletes and personnel, it was a shocking reminder of how fragile life can be - one moment youth and strength and the next mortality. I was struck by her courage to remain calm, although in obvious agony.
Later I was told she had surgery and would remain in the hospital a few more days. The sharp noises I heard were her Achilles tendon snapping, then her femur fracturing. In my 25 years in track and field, I have never witnessed such a thing. Realistically, she will never again participate at full capacity as an athlete, so she needs to apply her character and abilities to other pursuits. I sent her a card and a book to wish her well.
Now comes the most coincidental part. I suddenly experienced extreme pain in my leg. I was sent immediately to the hospital for surgery on a massive, life-threatening blood clot in my leg. My life path, too is forever altered. I am reminded each day and each hour of the wonder and gratitude in each moment of life. Now I must continue to use it wisely.
I later had further news of unfavorable hospital test results, which momentarily unfocused my attention. Once again, I was reminded of what matters. The mail brought this incredible thank-you note from the athlete.
She wrote, "Wow! Your gift caught me off-guard because I wasn't expecting it. Thank you so much! My leg is getting better every day and I cannot wait to walk again. The fact that you didn't even know me but saw all of these positive qualities in me and thought enough about me to send me a card and a book is really touching and inspires me to do bigger and better things. As long as there are people like you in the world, I know it'll be OK. I've been walking. They told me six to eight weeks. I did it in five!"
This outstanding young woman has all the elements for success in life. Indomitable spirit, talent and excellent skills in literacy. Above all, she has awareness of others outside herself. What more could we ask for in the next generations?
I am having a positive day, remembering what matters.
-- The Costco Connection, July 2007
Thursday, July 22, 2010
What's difference between England and Great Britain?
After all these years, I still didn't know the difference or if there was any difference.
I finally took a look at looks like a junior high web site for the explanation.
I finally took a look at looks like a junior high web site for the explanation.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
the best religion
Most people of faith are taught that their religion is true, often to the exclusion of any other religions. Actually, the importance one attaches to one's religion can be a source of strife, as we witness in many of the conflicts that are being fought even today in the name of religion. It can also be a source of spiritual nourishment.
The film clip is a brief dialogue between Brazilian theologian Leonardo Boff and the Dalai Lama that occurred at a round-table discussion about religion and freedom. Boff, who was ordained a Franciscan but resigned from the priesthood in 1992, is an outspoken proponent of liberation theology, which calls for churches to engage themselves in the political and economic struggles of the poor and disenfranchised.
With what Boff describes as "malicious intent," he asks the Dalai Lama in this video, "What is the best religion?" Boff anticipated that the Dalai Lama's response would be Tibetan Buddhism or one of the other Eastern religions that are far older than Christianity. To his surprise, the Dalai Lama's response was, "The best religion is one that gets you closest to God. It is the one that makes you a better person."
Few, if any, of us would find it hard to accept such a wise answer. Seeking to rescue himself from his embarrassment, Boff asked him, "What is it that makes me better?" The Dalai Lama's response was even more enlightening:
"Whatever makes you more compassionate, more sensible, more detached, more loving, more humanitarian, more responsive, more ethical. The religion that will do that for you is the best religion.
"I am not interested, my friend, about your religion or if you are religious or not. What really is important to me is your behavior in front of your peers, family, work, community and in front of the world. Remember, the universe is the echo of our actions and our thoughts. The law of action and reaction is not exclusively for physics. It is also of human relations. If I act with goodness, I will receive goodness. If I act with evil, I will get evil."
The Dalai Lama continued, "Take care of your thoughts because they become words; words because they become actions; actions because they become habits. Habits will form your character; character will form your destiny; and your destiny will be your life. There is no religion higher than the truth."
The film clip is a brief dialogue between Brazilian theologian Leonardo Boff and the Dalai Lama that occurred at a round-table discussion about religion and freedom. Boff, who was ordained a Franciscan but resigned from the priesthood in 1992, is an outspoken proponent of liberation theology, which calls for churches to engage themselves in the political and economic struggles of the poor and disenfranchised.
With what Boff describes as "malicious intent," he asks the Dalai Lama in this video, "What is the best religion?" Boff anticipated that the Dalai Lama's response would be Tibetan Buddhism or one of the other Eastern religions that are far older than Christianity. To his surprise, the Dalai Lama's response was, "The best religion is one that gets you closest to God. It is the one that makes you a better person."
Few, if any, of us would find it hard to accept such a wise answer. Seeking to rescue himself from his embarrassment, Boff asked him, "What is it that makes me better?" The Dalai Lama's response was even more enlightening:
"Whatever makes you more compassionate, more sensible, more detached, more loving, more humanitarian, more responsive, more ethical. The religion that will do that for you is the best religion.
"I am not interested, my friend, about your religion or if you are religious or not. What really is important to me is your behavior in front of your peers, family, work, community and in front of the world. Remember, the universe is the echo of our actions and our thoughts. The law of action and reaction is not exclusively for physics. It is also of human relations. If I act with goodness, I will receive goodness. If I act with evil, I will get evil."
The Dalai Lama continued, "Take care of your thoughts because they become words; words because they become actions; actions because they become habits. Habits will form your character; character will form your destiny; and your destiny will be your life. There is no religion higher than the truth."
Friday, July 09, 2010
John Ratzenberger and Pixar
John Ratzenberger searches his memory -- he's probably been asked this question a hundred times -- but can't remember anything special about his audition or voice-over sessions for the original "Toy Story." "It was a job," Ratzenberger says. "I believe in taking every job seriously, and doing my best work. But I didn't feel anything different. I definitely didn't know I'd be back."
Since that voice-over session for the 1995 movie "Toy Story," Pixar has grown tenfold, moved to a huge campus in Emeryville, Calif., and released six of the 10 top-grossing animated films of all time. But one thing has remained the same: Ratzenberger. He's returned to provide a voice for every one of Pixar's features -- "Toy Story 3" makes 11.
Pixar filmmakers refer to Ratzenberger as their "good luck charm." After voicing Hamm the piggy bank in "Toy Story," he was cast three years later as the ringmaster P.T. Flea in "A Bug's Life." The roles since then have been seemingly random: an abominable snowman, a school of moonfish, a supervillain, an anthropomorphic Mack truck, a waiter, a space traveler and a construction worker.
Since that voice-over session for the 1995 movie "Toy Story," Pixar has grown tenfold, moved to a huge campus in Emeryville, Calif., and released six of the 10 top-grossing animated films of all time. But one thing has remained the same: Ratzenberger. He's returned to provide a voice for every one of Pixar's features -- "Toy Story 3" makes 11.
Pixar filmmakers refer to Ratzenberger as their "good luck charm." After voicing Hamm the piggy bank in "Toy Story," he was cast three years later as the ringmaster P.T. Flea in "A Bug's Life." The roles since then have been seemingly random: an abominable snowman, a school of moonfish, a supervillain, an anthropomorphic Mack truck, a waiter, a space traveler and a construction worker.
big screen, big price
Consolidated Theatres has upped the ante - in more ways than one - with its Titan XC "extreme cinema" experience featuring the largest commercial movie screen in the state.
At 66 feet wide by 35 feet high, it towers above the audience. Consolidated installed the new screen and Dolby Surround 7.1 system in one of its larger Ward Stadium 16 auditoriums, which already had a 56-by-35-foot screen.
Moviegoers also will really notice the comfy, wider seats upholstered in leather. The 487 rocker seats are high enough to allow you to lean your head back with support.
With such generous seating, moviegoers will no longer need feel claustrophobic when the house is packed, and there's no jostling for armrest domination with your neighbor because there is plenty of room to relax with your arms at your side.
Consolidated also is offering, for the first time, the option of purchasing reserved seating in advance, so no more coming early on opening weekend to wait in long lines at the box office.
But just how much will moviegoers be willing to pay for such luxuries?
General admission tickets for Titan XC shows are $14.25; $11 for seniors and children. Tickets for 3D movies sell for $16.25 for general admission and $13 for seniors and children.
At 66 feet wide by 35 feet high, it towers above the audience. Consolidated installed the new screen and Dolby Surround 7.1 system in one of its larger Ward Stadium 16 auditoriums, which already had a 56-by-35-foot screen.
Moviegoers also will really notice the comfy, wider seats upholstered in leather. The 487 rocker seats are high enough to allow you to lean your head back with support.
With such generous seating, moviegoers will no longer need feel claustrophobic when the house is packed, and there's no jostling for armrest domination with your neighbor because there is plenty of room to relax with your arms at your side.
Consolidated also is offering, for the first time, the option of purchasing reserved seating in advance, so no more coming early on opening weekend to wait in long lines at the box office.
But just how much will moviegoers be willing to pay for such luxuries?
General admission tickets for Titan XC shows are $14.25; $11 for seniors and children. Tickets for 3D movies sell for $16.25 for general admission and $13 for seniors and children.
Jim Bohlen, founder of Greenpeace
Jim Bohlen, whose snap decision to sail to Amchitka Island, Alaska, to protest an underground nuclear test led to the creation of the environmental organization Greenpeace, died Monday in Comox, British Columbia. He was 84 and lived in Courtenay, British Columbia. The cause was complications of Parkinson’s disease, his daughter, Margot Bradley, said.
Mr. Bohlen was a founder of the Don’t Make a Wave Committee, a group of Sierra Club members determined to oppose nuclear testing at Amchitka Island in the Aleutians, which had begun in 1969.
With a test scheduled for fall 1971, little more than a year away, Mr. Bohlen complained to his wife, Marie, that the committee was deliberating too slowly.
As she offhandedly suggested that they sail a boat to the test site, a reporter for The Vancouver Sun called to check in on the committee’s deliberations. Mr. Bohlen, caught off guard, said, “We hope to sail a boat to Amchitka to confront the bomb,” a remark that appeared in the newspaper the next day.
The committee made good on Mr. Bohlen’s pledge. After Irving Stowe, a core member, organized a fund-raising concert in Vancouver with Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, Phil Ochs and the Canadian rock band Chilliwack, the committee leased the halibut fishing vessel Phyllis Cormack, and, after renaming it Greenpeace, sailed to Alaska.
Although the boat was intercepted by the Coast Guard, public outcry caused a delay in the test. The program was later abandoned, and Amchitka Island was turned into a bird sanctuary.
Today Greenpeace is an international organization with more than three million members that carries out environmental campaigns through its offices in 40 countries.
Mr. Bohlen was a founder of the Don’t Make a Wave Committee, a group of Sierra Club members determined to oppose nuclear testing at Amchitka Island in the Aleutians, which had begun in 1969.
With a test scheduled for fall 1971, little more than a year away, Mr. Bohlen complained to his wife, Marie, that the committee was deliberating too slowly.
As she offhandedly suggested that they sail a boat to the test site, a reporter for The Vancouver Sun called to check in on the committee’s deliberations. Mr. Bohlen, caught off guard, said, “We hope to sail a boat to Amchitka to confront the bomb,” a remark that appeared in the newspaper the next day.
The committee made good on Mr. Bohlen’s pledge. After Irving Stowe, a core member, organized a fund-raising concert in Vancouver with Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, Phil Ochs and the Canadian rock band Chilliwack, the committee leased the halibut fishing vessel Phyllis Cormack, and, after renaming it Greenpeace, sailed to Alaska.
Although the boat was intercepted by the Coast Guard, public outcry caused a delay in the test. The program was later abandoned, and Amchitka Island was turned into a bird sanctuary.
Today Greenpeace is an international organization with more than three million members that carries out environmental campaigns through its offices in 40 countries.
Monday, July 05, 2010
TV foods
If Americans ate only foods advertised on TV, a new report says, they would consume 25 times the recommended amount of sugar and 20 times the amount of fat they need, but less than half the dairy, fiber and fruits and vegetables.
For the study, being published this month in The Journal of the American Dietetic Association, researchers taped 28 days of prime-time television as well as Saturday-morning programming on the four major broadcast networks. They identified 800 foods promoted in 3,000 ads and used a nutritional software program to analyze the content of the items, comparing the foods’ nutritional values with the government’s food guide pyramid and recommended daily intake values for various nutrients.
The study assumed that individuals were limiting themselves to 2,000 calories a day of the advertised foods, said the lead author, Michael Mink, an assistant professor of health sciences at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Ga.
A 2,000-calorie diet made up solely of foods from commercials would provide too much cholesterol, saturated fat and salt, which are associated with chronic disease, Dr. Mink said, but not nearly enough nutrients like iron, calcium or vitamins A, D and E.
“Just one advertised food item by itself will provide, on average, three times your daily recommended servings of sugar and two and half times your daily recommended servings of fat,” he said. “That means one food item could give you three days’ worth of sugar.”
In fact, the sources of nutrition in the TV-ad diet were almost the exact opposite of what the government's food pyramid recommends. Instead of making up the smallest proportion of a day's calories, as nutritionists advise, fats and sugars accounted for the largest portion of calories in a diet based on television advertising. Couple this nutritional inversion with the fact that marketing campaigns are notoriously effective in influencing people's behavior and the result is what many nutrition experts call a toxic environment — one that dissuades Americans from making healthy food choices and encourages inactivity.
For the study, being published this month in The Journal of the American Dietetic Association, researchers taped 28 days of prime-time television as well as Saturday-morning programming on the four major broadcast networks. They identified 800 foods promoted in 3,000 ads and used a nutritional software program to analyze the content of the items, comparing the foods’ nutritional values with the government’s food guide pyramid and recommended daily intake values for various nutrients.
The study assumed that individuals were limiting themselves to 2,000 calories a day of the advertised foods, said the lead author, Michael Mink, an assistant professor of health sciences at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Ga.
A 2,000-calorie diet made up solely of foods from commercials would provide too much cholesterol, saturated fat and salt, which are associated with chronic disease, Dr. Mink said, but not nearly enough nutrients like iron, calcium or vitamins A, D and E.
“Just one advertised food item by itself will provide, on average, three times your daily recommended servings of sugar and two and half times your daily recommended servings of fat,” he said. “That means one food item could give you three days’ worth of sugar.”
In fact, the sources of nutrition in the TV-ad diet were almost the exact opposite of what the government's food pyramid recommends. Instead of making up the smallest proportion of a day's calories, as nutritionists advise, fats and sugars accounted for the largest portion of calories in a diet based on television advertising. Couple this nutritional inversion with the fact that marketing campaigns are notoriously effective in influencing people's behavior and the result is what many nutrition experts call a toxic environment — one that dissuades Americans from making healthy food choices and encourages inactivity.
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