Into the Wilds

Not much time to post today… or this week for that matter. I’ve got tonnes of grading to complete for the lab course I teach. And, I’ve had to hula hoop. I’ve started taking my hoops to the Wednesday night Farmer’s Market here in town. Such a blast! I show up with only my hoops, and suddenly I’ve got people asking if they can give it a try. The young and old have been tempted. I’ve even gotten the nay-sayers to challenge their personal disbeliefs of hula-hooping potential. Everyone can hoop if they only try.

I felt especially special when a young girl gave me a magnet she had made. It says “hula hoop girl”. So, I guess that’s who I am at the market now. She has dubbed herself “hula hoop girl, jr.” She’s learning quite a lot of tricks, and loves the giant hoop.

So, in the “real” world there are many tricks and tricksters. Luckily, there are people out there trying to uncover those who plot to deceive. In PLoS Medecine this month there is a wonderful piece by Jeanne Lenzer, a freelance medical investigative journalist, regarding a FDA whistelblowers roundtable that she convened recently. I am personally not surprised by any of what came out of it, but I am disappointed. You can read the essay yourself here, and make up your own mind.

People have been talking about the influence of the pharmaceutical industry on government for years. Arianna Huffington brought up many pertinent examples in her book, ‘How to Overthrow the Government’ (2000). It seems that if we don’t try to make changes to the system soon, it will only get worse. I’m glad that there are people like Jeanne and Arianna willing to make a stink about these issues because they affect all of us in the end.

Tags: Science, Radio, technology, Podcast, Podcasting, News, Media, Politics

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