Attention for Flight Attendants

by Kelly Amabile on

As a young girl, I was drawn to the life of a flight attendant,
daydreaming of fancy flights around the world, meeting people from exotic places. I believed it was loads of fun but as
I grew older, I realized it was the thrill of flying that was the real appeal, not working the friendly skies.
But I salute those who do this tough, glamourless job.
Laura Brandle (who we learned about
from World
Hum) has been at it for 38 years! Impressive, especially in this age of terrorism, security checks and bankrupt
airlines. I can’t imagine being able to stay dedicated to this type of work for so long, especially with the
ever-increasing health and safety concerns.

At least today’s flight attendants don’t have to deal with smoking on board. (If they started working post the smoke
ban, that is.) Take a look at the stories of these four flight
attendants, all non-smokers who have been diagnosed with smoker’s diseases as a result of exposure during flights.
These attendants would sneak sucks of oxygen while being required to hand out free cigarettes during flights, their
uniforms and yellowing hair reeking after a day of flying. After the ban, an institute dedicated specifically to
non-smoking flight attendant medical research was established. Not so glamorous at all, but as
the profession celebrates its
75th year, it is good
to see organizations like this taking care of those who served in the sky.

World Wide Panorama Event: Energy

by Erik Olsen on

Panos panos panos. Man, I
love them. They provide such an unusual, novel, interesting way of seeing a
place. And one project that has consistently shown off the best panos around, panos from all over the world, is the
World Wide Panorama (WWP) project put together by Don Bain
and Landis Bennett (as well as some other wonderfully talented folks) at the
Geography Computing Facility at the University of California Berkeley.
They have done seven major pano projects so far with different themes ranging from “Water” to “Bridges” to “Sanctuary”.
Photographers are expected to shoot their panoramas according to the theme and to do so during either a solstice or
equinox.

 

The most recent WWP theme is “Energy” and as you can
tell if you spend some time clicking around, there are multitudinous interpretations of the theme.

I have shot panos for
four of the projects so far, but
this one was perhaps my favorite because I got
to work in my recent trip to Armenia. While I was driving with some friends through the Armenian
countryside, I came upon several broken down old Soviet factories near Vanadzor, Armenia, and this one was accessible
enough that I could get out, climb atop a wall and shoot it pano-style.

So check this out. And also, here are some of the previous WWP projects (all worth a look):

Conan on Outsourcing, Funny

by Erik Olsen on

I almost saved this for the Friday Funny, but said, what the heck, get it out there.

When I was in India last year, the one issue that came up everywhere was outsourcing. Indians were very pleased to be
able to provide cheap services to American companies because they could afford to do so, and because doing so helped
the Indian economy, allowed Indians to make a better living. But Indians I spoke to were concerned that Americans were
pissed at them because Indians were taking jobs from them.

You know the debate. It’s a serious one. So how about something NOT so serious? Then check out
this
hilarious video from a recent Conan show on the outsourcing issue. Makes for good lunchtime viewing.

Quad Biking in Africa

by Dave (Blogsmith Old) on

Quad biking the sand dunes of Namibia – what a cool way to explore the land! Writer Marie Javins recently shared her African adventure biking tale, which sounds like loads of fun. I’m not sure which company Marie used for her excursion, but I did find this one operating in Swakopmund and it could very well be the one she went with.

Marie does mention that she realizes that quad biking might not be the best eco-friendly sport for the Namib dunes to endure. I did find this dated article about a proposed green tax for adventure companies using the bikes, but could not confirm if it is in place. These are also efforts underway to create an eco-park encompassing the coastal dunes. In many cases, there are specific areas designated for these bikes, which some say are far less damaging to the terrain than most off-road vehicles.

I still think this is a neat way to get around, but I do try to be informed about the environmental impact of activities like this before I decide to hop on board. In this case, I’d probably still do it if given the chance in my travels. Would you?

Arctic Rush on TV Too

by Erik Olsen on

I posted yesterday about

a superb (and long) article in the New York Times about global warming. Specifically, the article was about how the
Arctic (that’s the pole to the North…with polar bears, NOT penguins) was essentially melting. The question is what
changes will be wrought both locally and globally by a shrinking pole. Chicken Littles no doubt see it as the world
coming to an end, with places like Bangladesh and South Florida going the way of Atlantis. Others say it will create
vast new opportunities for energy exploration in areas once crusted in ice, and could make parts of Alaska much nicer
vacation destinations.

Well, I urge you to read the article (and subsequent pieces in the series). But I also urge you to check out the
Discovery Times TV
program that was done in conjunction with the articles. I watched it last night (with the producer of the show) and I
thought it was excellent…informative and compelling. Called Arctic Rush, the hour-long special discussed the same
issues as the article, but provided vivid images of how much things are really changing up there, along with interviews
with experts and native americans who are dealing with the changes. One of the most interesting things I heard in the
program came from one of the scientists who said that there is only a tiny handful of viable scientists who say global
warming is still not proven.

Arctic Rush will show again on the channel, and I urge you to
check the
schedule and catch it.