tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5977625681756554695.post1693717705961732323..comments2024-03-26T13:46:42.738-05:00Comments on 4 Quarters, 10 Dimes: Meetings and ChallengesDavidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03463621516644789183noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5977625681756554695.post-92074234644114262302012-08-29T12:23:01.865-05:002012-08-29T12:23:01.865-05:00On the one hand, I agree with Schneier's point...On the one hand, I agree with Schneier's point - we're not good at basic math as a species (and we're especially not good at it in the US), so we tend to worry about things that aren't going to happen and accept those that will.<br /><br />On the other hand, two things:<br /><br />1. Risk analysis is not simply the probability that something will happen - you have to factor in consequences. The odds that I will cut myself shaving in the morning are fairly high - perhaps 1 in 7, given that I am not a morning person and at that hour of the day I often am not sure what end of the razor is the sharp one until too late - but the consequences are fairly minimal. The odds of nuclear warfare are quite low, but the consequences are drastic. There are formulas about how to multiply those things to get a sense of how much to worry about what, but rarity is not in itself a cause for dismissal.<br /><br />2. The ready availability of firearms without any serious restraints on their purchase, combined with the sorry state of mental healthcare in the US, the glorification of vigilante violence and the unwillingness of Americans to confront any of those problems means that such events are only getting more common - they don't even make headlines anymore, according to our campus officer responsible for such things (which is not really his main job, so it's not like he's exaggerating in order to stay employed). Gun violence is an accepted fact of life in the US in a way that it generally isn't in the civilized parts of the world, and I find that disturbing.<br /><br />Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03463621516644789183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5977625681756554695.post-55426886601248180212012-08-29T12:04:29.557-05:002012-08-29T12:04:29.557-05:00I'm reminded of security expert Bruce Schneier...I'm reminded of security expert Bruce Schneier's recent post, <a href="http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2012/08/overreaction_an.html" rel="nofollow">Overreaction and Overly Specific Reactions to Rare Risks</a>.TimBohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16128235274340905534noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5977625681756554695.post-43749303925027651212012-08-28T22:22:11.946-05:002012-08-28T22:22:11.946-05:00Yeah, well. In Wisconsin several years back the l...Yeah, well. In Wisconsin several years back the legislature mandated that all UW campuses have a post-Labor-Day start to classes, because otherwise all the tchotchke shops in the Dells would run out of minimum wage labor before the tourists went away.<br /><br />Of course, we have 15-week semesters, plus finals, so our last day of exams this year is the 23rd of December. Merry Christmas!Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03463621516644789183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5977625681756554695.post-3420681714407727992012-08-28T21:25:49.788-05:002012-08-28T21:25:49.788-05:00Whaaat? We're in our second week of school--an...Whaaat? We're in our second week of school--and the third week for the med school.<br /><br />Slackers!Random Michelle Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817444379694818074noreply@blogger.com