Whatever…

Cell Phones and Brain Tumors

I
have a problem with this
study by Danish researchers. Looks like you can pass off anything nowadays as
research and the media is eager to buy it as such. I would just plain
ignore this Danish research. Nothing in this report says indicates that mobiles
are any more safer now. Yet, I heard it on the BBC Radio News and read on their
website here that
mobiles are now ‘safe‘. My problem is that the study is not conclusive in any
way. But the reporter on BBC last night and their website headlines claim that
they are now ‘safe‘. Some observations on this research:

• they only "talked" to around 1000 people. That is statistically
  insignificant!
• they want more data because technology has been around only for a few years.
  Huh?
• they questioned the survey candidates and checked their phone bills to
  ensure that they were provided with accurate data. What no trust?
• they do not resolve any previous questions on safety. So much for this
  friggin study!

To top it off, the Danish Researcher leading this study, one Dr. Christoffer
Johansen says:

"We advise all people who use a mobile phone to use a hands free
set. It reduces exposure."

Ya, Sure. That‘s some advise I can live with. Thanks, Doc. Where did you go
to school BTW? You might want to read How
Cell Phone Radiation Works when you get a chance.

On a more serious note, I think this IEEE
Spectrum report from August 2000 on this topic is much more detailed and credible.
If you want to check your cell phone radiation level, go here
and there.

Add comment April 13th, 2005

The U2 Concert: My Inside Story

The show is about to get started.

I
am writing this as I sit in the center of the plaza at the Arrowhead
Pond in Anaheim, CA where U2 is going to rock
soon. This is the Vertigo Tour !
It is 6 PM! The doors opened and crowd starts to flow…

Add comment April 7th, 2005

To Hack or Not To Hack

I think this picture is useful to show the difference between hacking or not.

I wonder what the famous bard would do if he had to write software instead. We might have had classics today such as The Coding of the Shrew, or A Midsummer's Night Screen to name a couple. But, i think The Comedy of Errors still is a fitting title for a software book, I guess he was thinking ahead. And then perhaps we would have then had the saying To Hack or Not to Hack. Who knows.

Anyway, here is a picture that I use in my presentations to represent the value of using patterns in design and architecture. Overall, I have gotten good response to this picture from my audiences. Thought it might be useful to share in case others feel like using this.

What do you think?

Add comment April 6th, 2005