See The Oil Spill Superimposed on your home town in Google Maps

Found a nifty little website this morning that lets you see the size of the oil spill, and then place that spill on top of your home town.  New York would be drowning in oil, maybe that could make cabbies happy?
Click to See Your City

The Botany of Desire - Documentary Review

Based on a book by Michael Pollan, this documentary was brought fourth by an idea Pollan frequently thought about while gardening. He works so hard to ensure the health of each plant, and he thought - how did these plants manage to get us to take such good care of them? In other words, he noted that the plants that have associated themselves with humans have been using us very effectively to propagate and evolve themselves. Pollan uses the film as a great platform to share some of his considerable knowledge on the subject of food.

This documentary was one of the first sources that encouraged me to think more about mono-cultures in our Agricultural system. When you think about the fact that both apples and potatoes come in around 5000 varieties, you start to wonder why we see so few varieties in the supermarket. It's more difficult to process, price and automate a food system without strict standards, and pound for pound we can produce more food in our automated system. This problem is that the system is not sustainable, it is not promoting healthy living, and eventually it may cause a big catastrophe. The "lucky" specific varieties of crops that are chosen for mass production (i.e. the russet potato or golden delicious apple) are quickly preyed upon by nature in the form of fungus, viruses, and insects. Without the use of pesticides or genetic engineering, these crops would consistently fail. Nature is constantly updating and protecting itself with its genetic diversity, and when you stall the evolution of that diversity the creatures that "control the crop population" become much more efficient at doing their job - eating the crops. So we spray them, and chemicals end up in our food supply causing well-documented health problems - or we end up with a situation like the Irish potato famine, where one crop if very effectively attacked (by a fungus in this case) and suddenly 1 out of every 8 Irishmen starve to death. That wouldn't have happened had they grown a few types of potatoes.

The documentary covers the evolution of apples, tulips, cannabis, and potatoes. It is full of information, and is driven by some good footage and Pollan's agreeable voice. I have to say, it's intellectual curiosity that will keeps you watching until the end. I fell asleep and had to watch it in two sittings, but I think most people will like it and take away good information.

p.s. (I can do p.s.'s on blog posts, it's my blog)
If you haven't seen Food Inc. you should watch it first, Pollan plays a big part in it too. It's much more compelling and is more of a call to action - it changed the way I eat.

The AutoDesk Commercial That Used To Follow TED Talks

TreeHugger Best-Of Slideshows - Lots of Good ideas, and entertaining

http://www.treehugger.com/best-of-green/

Restaurants in New York.

I thought I would take a few moments to catalog a few of the eateries that I have frequented and loved in New York City. I hope others can make use of the information and trust that if the restaurants are on this short list you won’t be disappointed.

1) Kefi (Greek Food – Upper West Side)
I’ve chosen this spot for several dinner gatherings, and took my parents here when they visited. Every time I have been I have been very happy with the food and service.

The food and service are both excellent here. My favorite dish is the Branzino but everything I’ve had there has been tasty. Don’t forget to taste the appetizers, such as the meatballs, they are fantastic. Desert is OK- the food is better. The olive oil they serve with the bread at the beginning of the meal is also fantastic.
NY Mag - Kefi

2) Casa Mono (Spanish (large) Tapas – Gramercy Park)
This is a Mario Batali and Co. creation - I would say it is one of his better restaurants. It is formulaic with its delivery and management, but it is spot on every time I’ve been. The food is just always good. It is a small place, and you should book well in advance for a decent reservation, but you will not be disappointed if you order well.

I recommend trying things that are out of the ordinary. The chorizos and clams are good, the duck is often done well, the beet salad is tasty, and they have a few seasonal dishes which I enjoy. Look for the special ingredients that you don’t find every day and give them a try. I would avoid the tripe, although it was good for tripe, I just wasn’t a fan. Don’t skimp on the wine, make sure to take a good recommendation from the wait staff, they know their stuff. And finally, the chocolate cake is amazing! Order it, and if the group is larger, order multiple cakes.
Casa Mono

3) Barbone (Italian – Alphabet City)
Everything at this place is tasty. The portions are not large, but just enough to satisfy you if you have an appetizer and a few slices of warm bread. Everything I have eaten has been good, but the Duck ravioli steals the show, and I’ve been there before when 3 out of 4 people have chosen this dish and the 4th person wished they ordered it. For a starter I’d try to zucchini sticks and the buffalo mozzarella (fresh and amazing, best cheese I’ve had in a while). I don’t typically order dessert. They usually can recommend a good wine, I typically go with the Lacrima which is a fantastic value.
NY Mag - Barbone (their official website is terrible)

4)Rai Rai Ken (Ramen noodle shop – East Village)
I’ve tried many of the noodle shops dotting the city, and I keep coming back to this one. It is just really good. The restaurant is small, no reservations, and cash only. But for $10 you can have an amazing bowl of steamy ramen with excellent crispy garlic flakes, chicken and a few veggies. I never leave anything in the bowl. If you are having a good conversation, order a small pot of oolong tea and sit there for a few minutes longer.
NY Mag - Rai Rai Ken

A Letter From Iceland

The story of Iceland from a journalist living in the country since 2003.

Read the whole story here.

Light Pollution

A little more on light pollution. I was never sure of the reasons to limit lights except for the energy consumption, this says it well.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/11/light-pollution/klinkenborg-text/1

Unlike astronomers, most of us may not need an undiminished view of the night sky for our work, but like most other creatures we do need darkness. Darkness is as essential to our biological welfare, to our internal clockwork, as light itself. The regular oscillation of waking and sleep in our lives—one of our circadian rhythms—is nothing less than a biological expression of the regular oscillation of light on Earth. So fundamental are these rhythms to our being that altering them is like altering gravity.

TED Talk - Mushrooms Saving the World

This is impressive, I've watched it 3 times over the past month of so. A must watch video.





http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/paul_stamets_on_6_ways_mushrooms_can_save_the_world.html

This Guy Can Juggle...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4776181634656145640

Revisit Your Thoughts On Yoga

Throw out the stereotypical impression you have about Yoga - it is much more than housewives chanting OM, deep breathing and excessive stretching. I am literally pouring sweat at the end of each class, and have noticed gains in strength and flexibility throughout my entire body. Yoga also unlocks freedom of mobility in joints and muscles leading to better posture and alignment, sitting at a desk all day is terrible for your body. Yoga massages internal organs, promotes blood flow to all areas of the body, protects your spine and generally improves your temperament. My recommendation is to give it a try - the first thing you'll need is to find a studio with good teachers and students.

Find Variety and Help in a Studio
I have been to a couple studios in New York - Bikram near Union (not worth the money), Yoga to the People (cheap and good for beginners), and Yoga Room in Astoria (expensive, but a good studio). On a recent trip to LA I visited Yoga Works, that place was on another level - the UCLA studio has great teachers and impressive students. It opened up my thoughts about what to expect from a studio. When learning anything new I think it's important to surround yourself with those that are better at it than you. I also think it's helpful to try as many styles as possible. So yesterday I joined Pure Yoga on the upper east - lets hope this new place will stand up to the test. Basically, I don't think it's possible to fully appreciate Yoga without a group of people around you challenging you and teaching you new things. Each studio is different and not everyone wants the same things from their studio- try out as many as possible.

Yoga Is For All Body Types
You don't have to be flexible to practice yoga, every pose has a modification or you can use a block to compensate for the distance you can't stretch. I use a block every practice - it's like any type of workout, good form and control allow each exercise to accomplish its intended goal. The helping/limiting muscles will strengthen and stretch in time.

Yoga builds strength and flexibility.
Flexibility is gained through the strengthening of muscles. Therefore if you have a goal of increased flexibility you will need to increase your strength as well. Yoga does them both and in a compact time frame. For me it is hard to get the same level of total body workout from the weight room that I achieve in Yoga. If I had the time I would do both regularly, because strength training with heavy resistance is something that Yoga cannot accomplish. But, for me (and the average person with limited time), it is much easier to work through a guided 1.5 hour yoga class than plan and motivate an hour long gym session.

Basically I'm saying remove the stereotype of a granola munching hippy-in-a-head-stand, and give yoga a try (In every studio I've been to there are more good looking women than bizzare health nuts... guy or girl straight or gay, you can't lose). Think about a brief trial membership somewhere or visit a donation based studio like Yoga To The People, they are cheap and commitment free. As long as it's not Hot Yoga (try that later), I bet you'll feel great after your first class. Make yourself try 3 classes in under a week and if it's not for you then you can tell me about how I might be turning into a kashi munching hippy myself.

Thai Massage is Brilliant

It has been too long since my last post, it's not until life slows down a little bit that one makes time to think about blog posts. That's unfortunate. I'm towards the end of a week long vacation in LA, and I am slipping into the good ole habits very quickly. How can I always live like this without working... Future blog post - check back every day for that answer...

I have never actually paid to have a professional massage. Until now, and since I've been here I've already had 2 hour long massages. The place I went came highly recommended and it only $45 per hour.

Traditional Thai Massage
1951 Westwood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(424) 354-3394

The massage is very firm - they will press as hard as you like. I was particularly tight and she brought out a walker so that she could stand on top of me and press with her feet. Along with massage they also do a few stretches similar to yoga partner stretching and pop every joint in your fingers and toes.

Although $45 is pretty cheap, I could get used to these things and run up a huge bill. Next stop in my travels - Thailand...

Soccer + Badass = Foot Capoeira?

These guys are remarkable!

Keyboard Shortcuts

Thought I'd write a quick list of keyboard shortcuts to make your life easier...

Windows:
WindowsKey + D = Show Desktop (toggle for show / unshow)
WindowsKey + E = Windows Explorer
WindowsKey + Pause = System Properties
Ctrl + Escape = Start Menu
Alt + Tab = Duh

Firefox
Ctrl + K = Top Right Quicksearch (to enhance this feature, press Alt and Down to choose from a list of search - you customize them yourself. Wiki, imbd, amazon, etc)
Hold Alt + Left or Right = Back and Forward in your browser window

That's it for now!

TED Talks

TED = Technology, Entertainment, Design

These talks are recorded from the TED conference, a yearly event that brings together some of the greatest minds in tech, entertainment, and design.

These talks are truly worthwhile. Try this one by Hans Rosling, he shows us how wrong we are to assume countries can be broken down into only two groups -Industrialized and Developing. That's like saying there are only two types of wine -Red and White.

Cheney Proposed Smallpox Vaccination

I was reading and excerpt from “The Bush Tragedy” by Jacob Weisberg. This is scary stuff. I’ve re-written and condensed the story.

Soon after 9/11, during the time the government was shoring up defenses against terrorism, Dick Cheney was planning something a little crazy. The Bush administration was convinced that biological warfare would be the next means of terrorism in the United States – leading that fear was Cheney. After several anthrax outbreaks and a noticed attempt to target the White House, the administration began developing contingency plans for different types of biological attacks. Some intelligence suggested the smallpox would be one of the most terribly effective means of attack, and that stores of the disease were not as controlled as once believed. Cheney proposed a mass vaccination of the US population.

The smallpox vaccine has not been widely given since 1972 in this country, due to the horrible side affects that can occur. These includes scabs, lesions, pustules and even death. Despite the best medical advice the Bush administration sought, the order to give a mass-vaccination was moving forward – medical preparations has already begun. At the last moment, Bush overruled Cheney on this matter and it sank quietly away. Cheney himself chose not to vaccinated.

I don’t know about anyone else, but this scared the crap out of me. Can you imagine the military coming to your town to give small pox vaccinations to everyone? Can you imagine the mass-hysteria that would be caused, even though there was no outbreak! What the fuck was this guy thinking?