Cell Phones & Education

I feel the world of education is following the same path as the telephone industry did many years ago. We all grew up with a rotary dial phone in our home....one phone per household and we all had the same thing. Well, times changed and we began wanting a telephone that met our needs....and moved with us. Enter the car phone. Big and not so great but portable. Later on we started having cell phones for times when we weren't at home. We still kept our home phones however. Our "main" phone was our home phone but we carried a cell for specific needs. This is where the education space is right now. We have our "main" school but we use online education from time to time for specific needs. I predict that we're going to see a day when all we carry are cell phones. I also predict a day when all we need is online education.

Paper airplane templates

Someone should create a site that allows one to download paper airplane templates with printed graphics on the wings, cockpit, fuselage, etc. Imagine being able to print out a piece of paper with lines at the folds but with graphics already in place on the page you print. I might even pay a few bucks for access to their templates with graphics as I work towards that "World's Best Dad" coffee mug this year.

This site could make this happen pretty quickly. Could they add Google Checkout and make a few bucks by adding graphics to the templates?

http://www.funpaperairplanes.com/Plane%20Downloads.html

Schools get a break?

Seems to me that the State could ask the utility companies to waive their fees for services for school buildings. Would they be willing to offer electricity, gas, and water as a way to give back to their collective customer base? Would removing this expense from districts make a difference? Could a State Governor demand these services be offered pro-bono to public educational facilities serving children in exchange for granting utility company permission for operating in their State? I'd better stop before someone accuses me of being a communist but I'd like to see companies rally around our childrens' education.

Outliers by Gladwell quick review

Take-aways on pages 30, 38-41, 47-50, 54-55, 80, 83, 86, 90, 101-102, 104-105, 108-113, 128, 149-151, 153,166-171, 175-176, 184, 194-195, 197,202-205, 209,216-217, 228-236, 239246-248252,254-269, and 285.

Third Spaces in Coffee Shops

I'd like to see a coffee shop like my local Starbucks or Coffee Bean or independents like Unlimited or Next build a second story or adjacent building and rent out small rooms by the day or half-day.

The nature of my work involves phone conversations.

The rooms would need an internet connection and a door. Simple. I don't need conference rooms, fax, or mail. Just a place to call my own for the day and make phone calls.

I'd drink the coffee and probably grab lunch there too.

If someone offers this service already I'm ready.

Healthcare reform....an easy way to start.

All this recent talk about healthcare reform got me thinking...imagine that. I continually hear the arguments for and against a national healthcare offering. Those in opposition talk about the Government telling our Doctors what to do and that healthcare will be rationed. Those in favor speak to the idea that healthcare should be affordable and available to every citizen. I've worked in the VA system in the past (3 years as a Physical Therapist) and have been a user of private insurance and private healthcare. Perhaps this gives me a balanced viewpoint?

I am uncomfortable with the idea that our Government is trying to reform the entire healthcare system over the next couple of weeks and months. I feel they should start with something simple to change....something that we could all easily understand....and then show us the benefit quickly.

Here's what I propose:

The Government acquires the major lab services companies like LabCorp & Quest Diagnostics.

These are the companies our Doctors send us to and use to draw blood and conduct lab tests. They do not make decisions about our health. If you've ever been to one of these labs to have a test done you'll know from experience that they already feel like the DMV. Their services are transactional albeit important. The shareholders of these companies get their exit strategy and the Government uses a small piece of our tax dollars to run these companies. The Government does not put a cap on the number of lab tests per citizen.

Benefits to citizens:

• Doctors still make the decisions.
• Doctors can order as many tests as they feel necessary since pre-authorization from a third party insurance company won't be required.
• With the ability to order more tests Doctors will have more information and we can take a more proactive stance against disease.
  
• Volume discounts with lab supply vendors
• Lab testing location flexibility. You can go to any Government lab convenient for you.
  
• One large centralized database with tests results for all citizens.
• Insurance companies aren't paying for as many tests or for as much overhead to pre-authorize said tests and therefore our private insurance rates fall.
  

Starting off with something of this nature may help us see the benefits...and potential pitfalls...of a national healthcare plan for all Americans.

Will Lance support Contador?

Boy...that's the big question isn't it? Alberto Contador is now 1:37 ahead of Lance as of today.

I think their coach, Johan Bruyneel, is far too strategic to have a leader of the team identified at this point. Here's what I would do: Let Armstrong and Contador and Kloden alternate attacks in the Alps on Tuesday and Wednesday so that their competitors have to respond to three times as many attacks.......thus wearing them out over the next two days before the individual time trial on Thursday. I'd make sure to have Lance and Alberto and Kloden all end the day on Wednesday in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd with Lance and Alberto about tied for first place. Then on Thursday I'd "let the best man win" from the Astana team in the individual time trial on Thursday. (This removes any team politics from the situation and sets the two riders up to race against the clock rather than one another.) He that wins the time trial on Thursday will be supported and protected until they take on the BIGGEST mountain of the tour on Saturday......Mont Ventoux. None of their competitors will have any juice or motivation to attack on that monster climb.

So.....in my opinion we don't yet know who will win.....I'd watch very closely tomorrow and Wednesday to see if team Astana can keep alternating attacks to wear out their competitors which are, by name: Evans, Sastre, Van de Velde, Wiggins, and Schleck at this point.