Lawyer Glut

A Case of Supply v. Demand
by Annie Lowrey
http://www.slate.com/id/2272621/

True Cost of Smoking: $150/Pack

http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20101028/sc_livescience/truecostofsmokingupto150apack

Vid: How to Buy Happiness

My question would be this: How long does the happiness from material purchase (e.g., clothes, car, painting, etc...) last? Does it last longer for some items? Does price matter?

http://financiallyfit.yahoo.com/finance/video-top-5-ways-money-can-buy-happiness-22630342

Do October Suprises Matter?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_newsroom/20101027/el_yblog_newsroom/the-fast-fix-do-october-surprises-matter

Green Whitewashing

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=106&sid=2093519

Another Michelin Controversy

Michelin Stars Draw Shots
by Mariko Sanchanta, Katy McLaughlin, and Max Colchester
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303738504575568442015009552.html?mod=ITP_pageone_3

Does Every Murder in the US Really Cost $17 Million?

http://www.slate.com/id/2271951/

Insider Trading Legal for Congressional Insiders

http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2010/10/insider-trading-is-legal-for-congressional-insiders.html

Shipping Container Facts

"A 40′ container filled with household goods, shipped from Shanghai to Houston, TX costs $6169.93. Reverse the trip and ship the same container from Houston to Shanghai and the cost is $3631.07. That’s because 60% of containers on ships coming from the US to China are empty, which means Maersk and other shippers are desperate to sell container space."

http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2010/10/-leaving-las-vegas-continued.html

How to Negotiate a Higher Salary

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=25&sid=2087838

Which Ingredients Most Signal a Quality Dish?

http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2010/10/which-ingredient-most-signals-a-quality-dish.html

Kimchee Crisis

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/15/world/asia/15kimchi.html?hp

Why Japanese Loe Robots More Than Americans

http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/mimssbits/25881/

On Selling Islands

Islands Are a Tough Sell in Current Market
by Blythe Lawrence
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2013164911_realisland17.html

Why Isn't Mexico Rich?

http://www.nber.org/papers/w16470.pdf

Economic Espionage

New Spy Game: Firms' Secrets Sold Overseas
by Christopher Drew

"Rather than relying on dead drops and secret directions from government handlers, the new trade in business secrets seems much more opportunistic, federal prosecutors say, and occurs in loose, underground markets throughout the world."

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/18/business/global/18espionage.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

Chart: The New Auto Industry

http://jalopnik.com/5354899/breaking-down-the-us-auto-industry-flow+chart-style

Seven-and-Seven Rule

"John Burns of John Burns Real Estate Consulting says in previous local-market bubbles, the rule of thumb is seven years down and seven years up after the bubble pops. Apply that tule to the national market, where the bubble popped in 2006, and we're talking about a sustained recovery starting in 2013, and taking unitl 2020."

http://economiccrisis.us/2010/10/magically-fix-economy/

Vid: Colonization of the American Map

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1Im20BAtaQ

Calling Someone "Doctor" vs. "Professor"

http://www.rubabataineh.com/prof-dr/when-do-you-call-a-professor-prof-or-dr

"I am a Chinese" vs. "I am Chinese"

http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=1712120

Pusser's "Painkiller" Recipe

http://www.examiner.com/rum-in-national/the-legendary-pusser-s-painkiller-rum-cocktail

Humans Are Evolving Faster and Faster

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=culture-speeds-up-human-evolution

Eating Etiquette

I know it is proper "etiquette" to do so by some, but I somewhat disagree. For instance, one must be fairly agile at using a fork to take food out of ones mouth gracefully. If one knows that whatever is coming out of the mouth will fall down and create a scene, I think the napking option is better. In my view, it all depends of how good you are...

Q: What do you do when you take a bit of something, say meat, and it's all bones or fat and you need to get it out of your mouth? Discreetly put your napkin to your mouth and hide it in there?

A: In addition to being ineffective, the napkin disguise is condemned by etiquette as a "genteelism" - a ploy that draws unwarranted attention to its own fastidiousness. The simple rule is that inedible food comes out the way it went in. Meat would have arrived by fork, and therefore it is deposited back on teh fork for the return trip. But if you are eating something by hand, for example a grape that turns out to have seed, you deposit the seed back into your cupped hand. Noiselessly. Etiquette is legitimately fastidious about that.

WPost, October 13, 2010

Does the Internet Make You Happier?

"A new British study released today found that access to the Internet and the web, and especially to social networks such as Facebook, can improve people’s levels of happiness. The study found that Internet access improves the overall well-being of lower-income users, those with less education and women — particularly those in developing countries — by giving them a sense of freedom and control over their lives."

Yes, It's True: The Internet Makes You Happier
by Matthew Ingram
http://www.nytimes.com/external/gigaom/2010/09/21/21gigaom-yes-its-true-the-internet-makes-you-happier-66233.html?ref=technology

How to Get Better Korean Food

http://jamesjchoi.blogspot.com/2010/09/hope-for-better-korean-food-in-us.html

How to Eat at an Indian Buffet

http://milkmiracle.net/2010/09/25/buffet/

No Religion; Know Religion

"From a recent Pew Survey on U.S. Religious Knowledge, atheists and agnostics know more about religion than most religionists. Atheists and agnostics score particularly well on knowing something about world religions but also do better than most on Christianity. The effect remains even after controlling for education."

http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2010/09/no-religion-know-religion.html

Map: Europe According to France

http://www.flickr.com/photos/alphadesigner/3936207864/sizes/o/

Pic: How Big is Africa

http://twitpic.com/2woim6/full

Gay Sex vs. Straight Sex

"Another common myth about gay people is that they sleep around, but the statistical reality is that gay people as a group aren't any more slutty than straights."

http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2010/10/gay-sex-statistics.html

The Demise of Soft Shell Clams?

http://www.bayjournal.com/article.cfm?article=3905

The Science of "Brain Freezes"

The Claim: "Brain Freeze" Occurs Only On Warm Days
by Anahad O'Connor
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/12/health/12really.html?nl=health&emc=healthupdateemb5

Air Sex World Championships

http://laughingsquid.com/the-world-air-sex-championships-2009-tour/

Kliman on Visiting a Restaurant When Slammed

Todd Kliman: Going at an off-time is, generally, a good piece of advice for all restaurant-going.There are exceptions: I know of a couple of restaurants that tend to slack when it's not slammed, and things suffer. These are places that hum along when it's crazy-busy and everything tends to fall into place; it's as though they need the frenetic pace to function the way they should.Most places, however— and the vast majority of the nicer restaurants in this or any city, I should point out— are better when they're not as busy. If you hit a well-regarded place at the start of service on a Monday or Tuesday night, you are sometimes the only couple in the dining room— or one of only a few for the first hour of service. It's a little like having a personal chef— a personal chef, who also comes with a personal staff. A total focus on you and your dinner.Great cooking is about precision, and it's a lot easier for the cooks to zone in on your dishes and get all the details right when they're not slammed with other orders.And great service is about devotion and pampering. Again, a lot easier to deliver when there are fewer tables to keep watch over.

http://www.washingtonian.com/chats/restaurants/16873.html

Cleanliness & Politics

"Wray also cites intriguing research that shows how our deepest psychological needs may play a big part in determining where we fall on the political spectrum. In one study, psychologiests found that conservatives have little tolerance for any messiness, whereas liberals are more likely to live amid clutter."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/01/AR2010100103306.html

20 Mind-Numbing Optimal Allusions

http://videogames.yahoo.com/events/brain-teasers/brain-teasers-and-optical-illusions/1400154

High Altitudes Increase Suicide Risk?

For years, researchers have observed that U.S. suicide rates appear to be highest among residents of the so-called "Intermountain West" region of the country. Now, fresh research points to a possible explanation: high altitudes. Other well-observed regional factors, including low population density and the high prevalence of gun ownership, may contribute to the noticeably elevated risk, the study team acknowledged.

Could Living at High Altitude Raise Sucide Risk?
by Alan Mozes
http://www.usatoday.com/yourlife/health/medical/mentalhealth/2010-09-24-altitude-suicide_N.htm

Edible Dirt

"Edible dirt - perhaps one of the stangest fads to hit haute cuisine since sous vide - is not actual dirt but rather dried or charred ingredients used to give menu items an extra-earthy kick...It was foams, gels and liquids that defined the last crop of superchefs, molecular gastronomists like Ferran Adria...Chef Rene Redzepi (on Copenhagen's Noma) and company are trading in those elements for a moe grounded geogastronomy - celebrating the land directly on the plate."

Ground Control
by David Kaufman
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2019612,00.html

30 Ways the World Could End

Which one is most likely?

http://discovermagazine.com/2010/oct/30-ways-the-world-could-end