Michael holds a BA in Biology with a minor in Philosophy. He likes to spend his free time hiking and defending science, though not usually at the same time. Contrary to popular (but not scientific) belief, the positive and appropriate perception of science is undermined by religion, alternative medicine, the U.S. education system, and most science journalists.
I’m making this post several weeks in advance of my trip, but I’m confident I will not be retracting it at any point: Utah is beautiful.
Filed under: Hiking | Tagged: Bryce Canyon, Utah | 1 Comment »
I’m off to Utah today. I’ve scheduled posts for every day I’ll be gone, but I’m hoping my guest bloggers will pick up some of the slack.
Filed under: Administrative | Tagged: Monument Valley, Utah | 1 Comment »
I will be away from a computer for most of August and some of September, instead opting to be near the national parks of Utah and then the biggest mountain in Africa. This means posts will be less frequent. I’m going to schedule a few posts here and there, but it’s unlikely I’ll have enough to fill 25 days worth of absence. (I will be back for a few days between trips.)
What all this means is that I’ve taken steps to add bloggers. I trust they will all have interesting content to add, but I can’t predict how frequently they’ll be adding posts. In an effort to get their feet wet well before I leave, I’ve encouraged them to start making posts as soon as they can. Don’t be surprised when someone who isn’t me starts making posts. I haven’t been hacked.
I’m not sure what names they will all be using, so that will be a surprise. Keep an eye out.
Filed under: Administrative | Tagged: Africa, New bloggers, Utah | 2 Comments »
Vermont tops states in health, Louisiana ranks last.
It was the second straight year that Vermont topped the rankings. It was followed by Hawaii, New Hampshire, Minnesota, Utah, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Idaho and Maine.
Louisiana fell from 49th to 50th, replacing Mississippi. Rounding out the bottom 10 were South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Florida, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Nevada and Georgia.
California, the most populous state, ranked 24th and New York 25th.
Vermont, with the second smallest population of any state, had the third-highest public health spending and an obesity rate of 22 percent, four points below the national average.
It also had low child poverty and violent crime, a large number of doctors per capita and good high school graduation rates.
Hawaii had similarly low obesity, the highest public health spending, little air pollution, low rates of uninsured people, a low rate of preventable hospitalizations and low rates of death from cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Mississippi led the nation in obesity at 33 percent of the population, while Colorado was lowest at 19 percent.
22% is the obesity rate in the healthiest state. That’s absolutely absurd. But let’s keep outspending every nation combined on our military. Health certainly isn’t relevant or important to life.
By the way, is it any surprise the South makes up the whole of the bottom 10?
Filed under: News | Tagged: Arkansas, California, connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada and Georgia, New Hampshire, new york, Obesity, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont | Leave a comment »
