Corny, but true

There are some 45,000 items in the average American supermarket, and more than a quarter of them contain corn.

Smithsonian, July, 2006

Human beans?

There are three times as many tanning parlors in the U.S. as there are Starbucks. Dark roast, anyone?

Time, August 7, 2006

Can you tread water for 36 years?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average first broke 100 in 1906. The last time it closed below 100 was in 1942, over 36 years later. The DJIA first broke 10,000 in 1999.

Stalled on the Road

Model 2006 cars and light trucks have an average fuel economy of 21 miles per gallon. That compares with an average of 22.1 mpg for 1987-1988.

BusinessWeek, July 31, 2006

Japan Journal

Scott is spending the summer in Japan, participating in NanoJapan , a ten week research program in nanotechnology sponsored by the National Science Foundation and Rice University.

After working in the lab at the Institute for Solid State Physics at the University of Tokyo, Scott remembered a video he had once found on the Internet. Sure enough. Same lab. Looks like a fun project! (Video version 210T is the best version.)

The following journal records his experiences...

Fade out

Salzburg rehearsal

Take another look at those photos accompanying the story on the RISD All-Star Band tour of Europe. Look more closely at those shots of musicians playing Mozart and Sousa. Prominently displayed on the folders holding the music is the name Brook Mays.

Incarcerated

About one in five hundred Iraqis is incarcerated. In the US, the ratio is about one in seventy five.

Ilario Patano

In Prague, even the new is old

Neighborhoods in central Prague, Czech Republic, are known by names such as Lesser Town, Old Town and New Town. The so-called New Town was founded by Charles IV in 1348.

RISD All-Star Band European Tour 2006

2006 06 Lucerne

The RISD All-Star Band toured central Europe in June, 2006. The band is made up of musicians from the four high schools of the Richardson Independent School District.

Massage capital of the world?

"More people will graduate in the United States in 2006 with sports-exercise degrees than electrical-engineering degrees," says [GE CEO Jeffrey] Immelt. "So, if we want to be the massage capital of the world, we're well on our way.

Newsweek, June 12, 2006