Kendall Giles

You might be interested in checking out a post I made on my university blog, where I discuss a table showing numbers of degrees being produced versus projected job demand in several disciplines. The results may surprise you (and may give insight into why the U.S. keeps outsourcing high-tech jobs).

Hint: where are the students?

There are a number of tools that have become available recently that overlay population features on top of geographic maps (thanks NumbersGuy). The data is from government surveys, crime logs, census logs, etc., and have been available for a very long time. However, by adding the geographic component and a web interface, the data is suddenly much more accessible and useful, especially to the individual.

For example, are you going to buy a new home and want to check out neighborhoods for various factors, such as crime, income, education opportunities, neighborhood walkability, etc.? Or are you interested in checking out your current neighborhood? Do you want to open a business and so want to target specific markets?

Below are a number of online tools that you may help you answer these questions:

• SpotCrime: shows crime statistics for a given address
• PolicyMap: shows census, real estate analysis, crime, mortgage origination, education, income, demographic, job, energy, and other statistics
• Walk Score: rates a given address on its walkability - a measure of the quality of life around a given address when walking
• Criminal Searches: search a given neighborhood or even people for crimes and offences.

As the first of several examples, here is an image of the distribution of household incomes around VCU in the year 2000, using the PolicyMap service. The free version unfortunately only gives access to old data (e.g., year 2000 for incomes), and the resolution is a little course (does not give block-by-block resolution), but you still can see overall trends. In the figure, the regions shaded with the darker colors indicate higher median household incomes.

The image below, from SpotCrime, shows the various crimes that were reported and logged by police from March 4, 2008 to May 4, 2008 around VCU. The different icons indicate different types of crimes, such as assaults, thefts, arson, arrests, robbery, burglary, vandalism, etc. While the number of crimes over just a two month period might seem high, VCU is an urban university in the middle of a low-income part of town (see previous median income image) with a dense population, so some amount of crime is unfortunately probably to be expected without better enforcement and more security.

Finally, on the bright side, VCU does appear to be a neighborhood that is quite walkable, as seen in the following graphic, where WalkScore gives VCU a walkability score of 88 out of 100, where 100 is the best walkability score you can get. Each icon represents a grocery store, restaurant, coffee shop, bar, movie theatre, school, park, library, bookstore, fitness center, drug store, etc., that are good to have within walking distance - the more of these establishments there are, the higher the walkability score.

If one were to pause for a moment and consider what "good government" would be like, we might think of one that would serve the people, upholding the Constitution, working to help the citizens in time of need, offering services to enrich the quality of life, promoting science, innovation, and education, defending the country in time of crisis, and serving as a shining example to other nations.

Now, if you were to reflect on the government you've seen in action recently, then your two visions might not exactly match.

In his book Your Government Failed You: Breaking the Cycle of National Security Disasters, Richard Clarke, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence, and Special Advisor to the President on Cybersecurity and Cyberterrorism, among other important federal government roles, provides a frank, honest, and professional assessment as to why your vision of your current government does not come close to your vision of "good government", especially with regard to national security matters.

Beginning with the failures before and after 9/11, he also analyses intelligence efforts, homeland security, energy policies, and, in my opinion most importantly, cyberspace and cybersecurity.

We need more professionals like Richard Clarke in government, to lead, guide, and provide wisdom to our elected officials. As the individuals with the experience, dedication, and ability are run out of government by an increasingly polarized and politicized administration, one wonders who will sound the voice of reason, rationality, and intelligence going forward.

Note that reading this book completes one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.

It was from a different time, a somehow more refined time that bred James Bond. It was a time before fancy gadgets, suicide bombers, and the Internet. It was a time of heroes, when the clack of the train as it runs along the rails promised a certain romance, and when the trace of a hidden door in a wall panel brought danger. A double-edged throwing knife, bullets smuggled through airport security, vodka martinis.

Such is the world in the James Bond thriller From Russia with Love, by Ian Fleming, thought by some to be the best of the Bond novels (and is said to have been adapted well onto the screen version, with Sean Connery).

In the book, James travels to Istanbul to retrieve a cypher machine, but gets entangled and distracted by the captivating Tatiana Romanova. Along the way Bond meets a few friends, but many enemies, including Russia's SMERSH organization, and the story comes to a climax during a perilous trip on the Orient Express. There is a surprise ending, and we can't help but wonder if Bond makes it out alive.

Note that reading this book completes part of one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.

Doctor No, by Ian Fleming, picks up immediately after where From Russia with Love left off.

After recovering from the poisoning at the end of the previous novel, James Bond is sent to Jamaica to investigate the disappearance of a section chief on the island. Once there, Bond starts to uncover clues around many secret and strange activities of a certain Dr. No on Crab Key Island. Investigating further, Bond finds himself in the middle of a large, diabolical plot by Dr. No to gain power and wealth.

He is soon captured, and Bond must struggle to stay alive while trying to save the life of an innocent girl also caught by Dr. No, the beautiful Honey Ryder. Mr. Fleming shows his creative talents in devising various punishments and traps for Bond, and Dr. No becomes a legendary Bond Villain. A thrilling and unforgettable story.

The film version of Dr. No was actually the first Bond film with Sean Connery.

Note that reading this book completes part of one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.

So, I had a plan for the last free month of the summer before school starts: exercise four hours per week for four straight weeks. I accomplished this, but along the way I found that I didn't know how to run.

Especially in light of the Olympics, four hours of exercise per week is nothing compared to what real athletes do. For me, however, with my middle-age lifestyle and Type A work and travel schedule, getting four hours of exercise time per week, for four straight weeks, was a bit of a challenge. I finally accomplished this goal (one on my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project) this week.

I've been trying to do more functional strength training and cross-training---lifting weights, working the heavy bag, and jogging, and had been using an old, typical pair of running shoes to do all these different activities.

The first thing I learned is that typical running shoes are horrible for any type of non-running activity. And when I say "running shoe", I mean the ugly, moon-boot shoes that the salesman will try to sell you in a mall athletic store. You know, the shoes with lots of gaudy colors, often including the word "gel" somewhere in the name or sole, with squishy heals at least an inch thick, and often costing over $100. The walls of your typical sports store are covered with them and the salesman, paid on commission, will swear that these are the best shoes to exercise in.

Basically, for a cross-training shoe, these moon-boot running shoes are not good to use---in fact, they can be quite dangerous. The reason is that when lifting weights, the nice squishy soles on typical running shoes give you an unstable lifting platform, which can cause injuries like toppling over when doing squats, for example, and reduce the lifting effectiveness of your muscles, since your muscle force gets absorbed by the squishy sole rather than being used to actually lift the weight.

So I tossed my running shoes until I could find a replacement. And when I began to exercise in my bare feet, I learned I didn't know how to run! More importantly, I learned that typical "running" shoes are not only not good for cross-training purposes, but they actually are not good for running!

As expected, my lifts became much more stable after giving up my old running shoes, but running in bare feet was a bit of an eye opener. You see, most people who wear those "running" shoes run heel-to-toe. This means that the heel is the first part of your foot that strikes the ground, and then you roll to your forefoot as your step progresses. But if you try to run this way in just your bare feet (try this outside on a sidewalk, for example), you will soon realize that your foot is not engineered to strike heel first! Your foot was engineered to strike with the forefoot first, letting the pad of your foot, arch, and other foot muscles absorb the impact of the step---the heel contact with the ground comes after the foot has settled, if at all.

This site shows an animation highlighting the differences between the forefoot and heel-to-toe running techniques.

So, those squishy running shoes promote running with bad form, with the heel jarring against the ground and sending much of the impact force to the knee. No wonder so many people give up running due to shin splints, sore knees, heel spurs, etc.

When I re-engineered my running form to a more forefoot-first step, I noticed less knee soreness and greatly increased muscle development in the calf and foot muscles. Based on this insight, I chose a shoe with minimal heel, allowing for lifting stability as well as promoting proper running form. Some shoes I've seen recommended as being more suitable for cross-training include the Nike Free, Puma H-Street, Asics Tai-Chi, Asics Bukokan, Vibram Five Fingers, and Addidas Samba, if you insist on wearing shoes at all.

In case you are interested, there are a lot of resources online about this sort of running technique, such as information on the POSE method, Vibram Five Fingers running shoes, and just plain old running barefoot.

But if you've given up running or even walking due to certain injuries, such as those caused by a heel-to-toe step, then you might consider how your foot was engineered and adjust your form according to your fitness needs, while possibly ditching the squishy running shoe.

HOWEVER, note that what works for me might not work for you. In fact, I recently heard from a friend who suffered from plantar fasciitis when running on the balls of his feet, but was fine when running heel-to-toe. So, for a bit of a running/health pun: your mileage may vary.

Of the Bond books I've read so far, I would have to say that On Her Majesty's Secret Service, by Ian Fleming, is one of his best.

This book encompasses a lot for changes for Bond. Picking up Bond's life after Thunderball, Bond is about ready to quit his job as a 00 after becoming discouraged tracking down Ernst Blofeld, the leader of SPECTRE, and is just ready to hand in his resignation letter. But a series of events involving money and a woman at a casino soon leads Bond into the depths of the French mafia. From there, he receives a tip on the whereabouts of Blofeld, and Bond goes undercover to investigate Blofeld's operation. But before he leaves, he finds that he has fallen in love with the woman from the casino, Tracy---true love, perhaps for the first time in his life.

While on the mountain, Bond uncovers a dire plot involving biowarfare and the action really picks up from there. However, the most emotional moments occur when Bond gets back together with Tracy, and his life is changed forever.

This story is good not only because of the Bond action we have come to expect, but also because we get to see a personal and emotional side of him not often shown.

I have not seen the movie version of the book yet - my understanding is that it stars George Lazenby as Bond, instead of Sean Connery, Daniel Craig, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, or Pierce Brosnan.

Note that reading this book completes part of one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.