No. 273 October 2005
UNCLE SAM’S USED CAR SHOW That is the name of the March 2005 General Service Administration’s (GSA) Press Release http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/press/nfcautoauctions05.htm . The Press Release provides information about how to select, bid on, and buy a used vehicle from Uncle Sam. There is a wide variety of seized and surplus American-made cars, trucks, vans, or SUVs. The search engine at the GSA Fleet Vehicle Sales allows the selection any type of pre-owned vehicle, the make, model, year, and color. You can pick out the one(s) you want to bid on. There are “specialized vehicles” to choose from, such as an ambulance, police car, buses, tractors, wrecker, or other heavy equipment or maintenance utility vehicle. Prior to submitting a bid, one should obtain a copy of U.S. Government Auto Auctions, http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/cars/autoauctions/gsa.pdf . The GSA Fleet Vehicle Sales home page (http://www.autoauctions.gsa.gov/index.cfm ) has pages for searching for automobiles and for specialized vehicles. The calendar of auctions dates, locations of over 40 sites, and auction process information is also provided. Registration and login is required to facilitate the submission of your bid and obtaining the vehicle(s) of your choice. This is the computerized version of the GSA selling of seized and surplus properties which was not as widely and effectively publicized as it is in the age of computers.
FTC RULES GUIDES Did you know there are 44 Rule Guides published by the Federal Trade Commissions Rules and Regulation as applied to credit practices, oil recycling, appliance labeling, and many other topics? If you are looking for the Used Car Rule, the Cooling Off Rule, the regulations about telemarketing, or information about consumers’ rights and warranties, then Title 16 of the Code of Federal Regulations is where the Guides are found on the FTC Site Map (http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/sitemap.htm ). In the Federal Register, v. 70, No. 8, January 12, 2005, the FTC issued a “Notice of Intent to Request Public Comments” about the fact that it lists the titles of each of the 44 Guides and the year each Guide will be reviewed, revised, and updated. All the Guides are found within Title 16 Code of Federal Regulations Chapter 1-Federal Trade Commission. The lists which announces the date of review also cites the Part of Title 16 which contains each guide. Thus each Guide can be found within the paper edition of the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 16, Chapter 1 (AE 2.106/3:16 Parts 0-999. At the FTC Internet Site Map page (http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/sitemap.htm ) under the Legal Resources section, the FTC Regulations and Guides—Title 16 Code of Federal Regulations (http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_00/16cfrv1_00.html ) there is the electronic version of Title 16 and all the FTC Rules and Guides. A review of the list of Guides will provide awareness and the recognition of the many FTC consumer publications which reflect the content of the text and content of the Guides as found in Title 16.
PROTEINS: A PICTURE = 1000 WORDS Proteins which we get from milk, meat, beans, and cheese are considered basic building blocks of organic life. Proteins are complex organic compounds made of amino acids which are part of the cells of animals and plants. They essential to the functioning and structure of all organic cells. When proteins function properly, the cells of plants and animals function, thrive, and grow. When the proteins don’t function as they should, the living plant or animals are not healthy. When there is a problem with one’s proteins, it may be time to make use of the Protein Bank. The Protein Bank is housed at the Structural Biology Center at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory. The Protein data bank has Proteins. It now houses its 1000th Protein Structure. As with the other 999, “the 1000th deposit is a three-dimensional structure of thromobospondin-1 that provides insights insight into how cells sense and communicate information about their health and how that information triggers cell responses ranging from raising defenses to fighting disease and other perceived threats to cell death.” Did you ever see a protein? Probably not, but at “Argonne’s Structural Biology Center first to produce 1000 structures that improve understanding of health and human environment” (http://www.anl.gov/Media_Center/News/2006/SBC060127.html) there is information about the Protein Bank, the 1000 proteins, and a pictures of the 1000th and Andrzej Joachimiak, the Protein Bank Director.
APPALACHIA Appalachia is the mountainous and rural area covering all of West Virginia and parts of 12 other States. Appalachia in the eastern area of the United States stretches 1000 miles from Mississippi to New York. Administered by the Presidents Appalachia Regional Commission (http://www.arc.gov/index.do) Appalachia was created and defined by the Appalachia Regional Development Act of 1965. The Appalachia Region is an area of about 23 million people who live in 410 counties. The Region is an area of high poverty, low per capita income, and 42 percent of the population is in a rural setting. The Appalachian Regional Commission’s website provides some historical background and details which includes a Map which shows Appalachia’s boundary. The Region’s County page lists all the Counties in West Virginia and the counties for each of the 12 States partially included in Appalachia. A Regional economic and social picture of Appalachia is presented by National, state, regional (Appalachia), and county level data for six socioeconomic topics. Transportation, health care, infrastructure, and distressed counties are four of the 12 different topics covered in as many Socioeconomic Research Reports which provide detailed picture of Appalachia and its inhabitants. There is also Appalachia Magazine which is available on this web site.
NATURAL HAZARDS OF LIFE In the broadcasting media, weather forecasters predict storms, heat waves, extremely cold spells, ice storms, and other forms of adverse weather conditions. After the storm, the heat wave, or tornado occurs, the media news reports about the property damage and lives lost. When the severe weather phenomena cause property damage or loss of life, the incident is termed a natural hazard to property and life, and the details of event are recorded. Summary of Natural Hazard Statistics for 2004 in the United States (http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/severe_weather/sum04.pdf) is the annual National Weather Service publication which records the information and data about the causalities and damage from the severe weather events. Reporting on events in all 50 states, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, the charts include deaths by age, sex, location, and month. It also shows injuries and property and crop damage. Types of weather events include lightning, tornado, and thunder-storms, high winds, coastal storms, flash floods, river floods, small stream/urban floods, avalanches, dust storms, fog, weather-related fires, drought, heat waves, extreme cold, waterspouts, volcanic ash, and mudslides. This annual is part of NOAA’s National Weather Service, Office of Climate, Water, and Weather Services website (http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/hazstats.shtml) of hazardous weather information and data.
VISIT A PYRAMID With a computer mouse, if you click on the URL http://pyramid.gov you will go to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPryamid.gov. The Pyramid at this USDA site is, unlike that of ancient Egypt, not one for the dead, but a site for the living. MyPyramid.gov is a site for healthy living for those who want health living by consuming the right foods, the correct amount of healthy foods, and having the right amount of exercise. “Steps to a Healthier You” is the name of the interactive part of the website which allows you to input some personal information which will result in a MyPyramid Plan for your choosing the right foods in the amounts that are right for you. Other touring features include “MyPyramid for kids,” “Tour MyPyramid,” “Inside the Pyramid,’ and “Tips & Resources” all of which will help anyone who visits this Pyramid. For those who hesitate to follow the nutritionist professionals who don’t like interior passages and nor climbing the heights, the Dietary Guidelines and My Pyramid Tracker are food and activity evaluation and assessment options are worth investigation. Then there are also so Related Links and the For Kids pages which may be helpful.
MOVING TO NICE WEATHER There are some people like the Eskimos in the Arctic Circle and the Indians in the Amazon Rain Forest who, for a variety of reasons, never think of a move to a “nice weather.” The American Colonists who settled in the New England colonies did not intend to migrate to a land of “nice weather.” American pioneers who explored and settled all the land west of the thirteen colonies endured the varied kinds of weather they found. The settlers of the Southwest endured the heat and the Plains settlers endured the cold and snow. Circa 1909, the American frontier closed and the United States was “fill-in,” yet it was not until the 1920’s that people started “moving to nice weather.” Jordan Rappaport, at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, provides information as to why people move to nice weather. His research shows how and why “U. S. residents have been moving en masse to places with nice weather” from 1970 to 2000. Some people moved south for warmer winters, but others moved to places with cooler, less-humid summers. Americans from 1920 to 1970 and some European people also have a history of “moving to nice weather” which needs to be explored. Rappaports’ 30 pages of discussion include several statistical charts, thematic maps, and a three page bibliography of sources. Moving to Nice Weather, by Jordan Rappaport (September, 2003, Last Revised January 2006) is found at http://www.kansascityfed.org/PUBLICAT/RESWKPAP/RWP03-07.htm
WHAT DO YOU KNOW? HOW FAR CAN YOU GO? According to W. Michael Cox and Richard Alm ignorance is no longer bliss. These authors’ research shows that ignorance is misery and knowledge is bliss. About 100 years ago, use the telephone one had only to pickup the receiver and ask the operator to be connected to John Jones at 57890. Today, our computerized multi-function cell phones are best used by the computer literate person. Education has become vital commodity, work experience is equally valuable and technology and productivity have forced everyone to learn how to work smarter and not harder. The employer or marketplace rewards person according to his value, and ability to provide a service or product. What are your aims and goals in terms of the “Hierarchy of Human Talent?” Where do you fit in? Where do you want to fit in? What you want to achieve or move up to depends on one’s education and experience. Read some “case studies” of successful individuals, and how you can become successful in “What D’Ya Know? Lifetime Learning in Pursuit of the American Dream” by W. Michael Cox and Richard Alm is found on pages 5-23 http://www.dallasfed.org/fed/annual/2004/ar04.pdf of the 2004 Annual Report of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas “ A Better Way, Reorganization and Productivity in the American Economy” by W. Michael Cox and Richard Alm, pages 3-24 of the 2003 Annual Report of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas http://www.dallasfed.org/fed/annual/2003/ar03.pdf and http://www.dallasfed.org/fed/annual/index.html .
FATALITY RATES OF VEHICLES Anyone who is interested in learning about “safe vehicles” will be interested in a January 2006 Traffic Safety Facts Research Note about occupant fatality rates for American vehicles. This report discusses types of vehicles (passenger cars, vans, SUVs, and pickup trucks) rather than specific makes and models of vehicle. After placing your vehicle into the right categories, everyone can learn about the occupant fatality rate for their vehicle. Some may see this report as a buying guide as to what type of vehicle they want to look for and what to avoid. Some important facts to consider include the finding that large passenger cars have the lowest occupant fatality rate in crashes, the midsize SUV has the highest occupant fatality rate for rollover crashes, compact cars have the highest occupant fatality rates, and “large vans” have the lowest occupant fatality rates. This report is five pages full of details for each kind of vehicle during eight years (1977-2004) period. These and other facts about occupant fatalities show why it is important to know about the vehicle you are driving. Passenger Vehicle Occupant Fatality Rates by Type and Size of Vehicle by Rajesh Subramanian, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Traffic Safety Note (DOT HS 809 979)(http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/RNotes/2006/809979.pdf)
March 30, 2006
http://www.nku.edu/~yannarella/news0510.htm