188 September 1998
TITANIC REVISITED: A NEAT AND TIDY PACKAGE Did you know the Titanic had Turkish baths? Some first class rooms had fireplaces? The fourth smokestack, installed for visual effect, was fake, and it was really an air vent. It was 888.5 feet long and was 11 stories high. It had 29 boilers to power its 50,000 horsepower producing engines. There is a neat and tidy package of these and other facts are found in "The Sinking of the Titanic" by Derek Schmeling in Mariners Weather Log, v. 42, no. 1, April 1998 pages 26-30 (C55.135: 42/1). Derek includes the details of why the ship sank and what could/should have been done to prevent such a catastrophe and finishes his article with an epilogue, with two interesting facts. The hole, which allowed the ocean water in this very large state-of-the-art luxury liner, was only 12 square feet. A hole in the hull of a ship made of "brittle" steel. He also includes a bibliography of 15 sources of information.
AMERICAN GRAFFITI Graffiti are drawings or writings on public surfaces. "KILLROY WAS HERE" was the famous graffiti sign of World War II left by some American soldiers as a sign that they had arrived in a specific location. The word graffiti is the plural of the Italian word "graffito" which is derived from "graffiare" to scratch. Public surfaces where you find graffiti include fences, walls, rocks, billboards, street and traffic signs, telephone booths, park benches, (within) bathrooms, subway cars, buses, etc. The person who makes graffiti can be called a graffitist and sometimes a "tagger". The term tagger has both good and bad connotations. Jean-Paul Basquiet and Take 183 are two famous graffitists considered street artists and "good taggers" signing their work with identifying "tags". Then there is the (benign) "tagger" graffitist whose only crime is having the urge to create artistic works but does not want to buy paint canvas. These graffitists decorate (or is it deface) subways, bridges, buildings, fences, and other public surfaces which were not intended to be decorated. The third kind of graffiti created by the "bad taggers" is gang graffiti. Gang graffiti is more of a territorial identifier which may carry a message. The intent is not an artistic creation. Seven distinct qualities which make "tagger graffiti" different from "gang graffiti" are presented and illustrated in pages 37-48 of Addressing Community Gang Problems, A Practical Guide issued in May 1998 by the Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance (J26.30: G 15/GUIDE). "Chapter 4, Gang Graffiti" pages 29-64 which is a good introduction to signs, symbols, and alphabet of American graffiti.
STALKING: A NEAT AND TIDY PACKAGE This is a two-for-one news item. This new (i.e. May 1998) study is the "first-ever national study on stalking" conducted by a phone survey from November 1995 to May 1996. What followed is a very neat and tidy package of 1995/1996statistical information on stalking. There were 8000 women and 8000 men interviewed as to "how much stalking is there," "who stalks whom," "how often do stalkers overtly threaten their victims," "how often is stalking reported to the police?" and "what are the psychological and social consequences of stalking?" The study estimates that about 2 million men and about 8 million women have been stalked in their lifetime. This 19 pages of Stalking in America: Findings From the National Violence Against Women Survey, by Patricia Tjaden and Nancy Thoennes (J28.24: ST1 and http://www.ncjrs.org/pdffiles/169592.pdf ) has about 26 statistical graphs and charts. There are two pages of references to many related sources of information about stalking, antistalking laws, and stalking prevention. Filling the space between the graphs and charts are textual analyses about the victims, the stalkers, law enforcement, observations, and explanation of how (and why) this nationwide phone survey was conducted as it was.
SOCIAL SECURITY PROGRAMS In 1935, when social security started in the United States, it was much less of an oxymoron than it is now. But, for many people, social security funding is all they have for sick benefits and retirement. Denmark had an old-age pension law as of 1891, and the United Kingdom had a work injury compensation law as of 1897. One of the best places to learn about all existing social security systems is Social Security Programs Throughout the World - 1997. This latest biennial edition of a 60-year-old Social Security Administration publication present information about 172 social systems from as many countries. In one place, all the basic information about all the programs, in all the countries. We can find the dates of the first and current laws, source of funds, coverage, qualifying conditions, benefits, and name of the administrative organization for "Old-Age, Disability, and Survivor Programs", "Sickness and Maternity Programs", "Work Injury Programs", "Unemployment Benefit Programs", and "Family Allowances (programs)" identified with 172 countries, including the United States. The coverage of almost 400 pages is quite comprehensive and all information is effective as January 1, 1997. What more can you ask? "Details" and "history" are what immediately come to mind! If you go to Social Security Programs in the United States (July 1997, SSA 1.24/2:977), you will get both an historical summary and current details and historical information. This 126 paged title was last issued in 1993 as the Social Security Bulletin v.56, no. 4, Winter 1993 (HE 3.3:56/4) and as a separate, Social Security Programs in the United States, 1993 (HE 3.2:SO 12/21/993), so this 1997 issue is long overdue. The most detail you may get lost in is found in the 13th edition of the 1997 Social Security Handbook issued in July 1997. This biennially issued volume, for 1997, with 509 pages of text and 60 pages of index (SSA 1.8/3:997) should have all the answers but it doesn't. That why there are the Social Security Laws, Regulations, and Rulings sources which you will find identified in the Preface of this volume. The further sources of details about the social security programs of other countries are another topic for another day.
DRY-CLEANING Are you familiar with "dry cleaning" only? Are you not old enough to remember the era when suits, skirts, and trousers could be only dry-cleaned because "wash and wear" clothes did not exist? Eventhough most clothes now have "wash in warm water and tumble/line dry" on their care label, there are many clothing items which still require dry cleaning have a label which reads "Dry Clean Only", a cleaning process which is not dry. This process uses a solvent-based liquid which has a distinctive aroma which can permeate a dry cleaning retail outlet. The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and MiCELL Technologies have revolutionized the dry cleaning technology. MiCELL's new process uses liquid carbon dioxide, new detergents, and new stain removers to work in a faster cycle, and clean a wider range of fabrics than the old cleaning technology did. The new cleaning materials and process are safer, more thorough, and are recyclable. You will find the April 23, 1998 press release Lab-Developed System Uses Carbon Dioxide to Clean Up on Dirt for this new technology at http://www.pnl.gov/news/1998/bnw98_14.htm .
BIRD (AND OTHER) WATCHING Did you know that in 1996, 77 million people participated in hunting, fishing, and wildlife birdwatching? There must have been some big birds with big appetites which ate 603.7 million dollars worth of wild birdseed, and 456.8 million dollars worth of bulk wild birdfood. These wildlife watchers spend 1,748.2 million dollars on cameras and related equipment. 1,103.8 million dollars were spent on film and developing. Membership dues and contributions cost 861.8 million dollars and the list of items and expenditures goes on.... The national total expenditure by 77 million people for travel related equipment and other wildlife watching items was 29,227.9 million dollars. Even the state and federal tax collectors made money on pages 8 and 9 of the 1996 National and State Economic Impacts of Wildlife Watching, Based on the 1996 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife-Associated Recreation (issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, April 1998, I 49.2:EC 7/19), you will find state level data for tax revenues, sales/expenditures, output, jobs (number created), and job income figure.
INTIMATE VIOLENCE Close proximity does not assure nor guarantee peace. There have been some murders, rapes, sexual assaults, simple assaults, aggravated assaults, and robberies between current spouses, ex-spouses, common-law spouses, same-sex partners, boyfriends, and girlfriends between 1976 and 1995. However, Violence by Intimates, Analysis of Data on Crimes by Current or Former Spouses, Boyfriends, and Girlfriends (March 1998) (J29.2:V81/5) does not tell us why all these violent incidents occurred. Undoubtedly, someone was late for dinner, forgot to take out the garbage, got caught "visiting" a neighbor, or something! This 46 paged title presents a wealth of data taken from a variety of sources and is well-analyzed and presented in bar and table graphs. There is a section for the characteristics of the victims and incidents. Profiles are presented for victims and the offenders. There is discussion of the specific crimes, the data collected and how it was collected. A historical perspective with trends and observations follows this. There is an equal amount of information on the how and why of victims' responses to intimate violence. The problems and issues related to the violent offender, their criminal histories are discussed. Time of day and location are two elements to consider when analyzing intimate violence as are how many are reported or not reported to the police. This is a very good starting point for any study of violence by intimates since all sources of data are well documented. http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/vi.htm
CIGAR: KILLER WITH ELEGENCE As of 1993, cigar use has increased by 34%. Youth have begun to smoke cigars. There are some illuminating Facts About Cigar Smoking (the CDC Press Release of May 23, 1997) at http://www.cdc.gov/od/oc/media/fact/cigars.htm . "If you smoke them, cigars can kill you" is my very brief and concise summery of Cigars, Health Effects and Trends which was issued by the National Cancer Institute in February 1998 (HE 20.3184/2:9). Issued as Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph No. 9, this 232 paged publication is quite interesting. Of the 8 chapters, "Chapter 7. Marketing and Promotion of Cigars" and "Chapter 8. Policies regulating Cigars" provide the most interesting reading. Chapters 1 through 6 present the cigar as a tobacco product. A tobacco product which, like cigarettes, will be habit-forming, cause indoor air pollution, cause secondhand smoke, lead to several kinds of cancer, or cause heart disease, chronic pulmonary disease, nicotine addiction, and one's death. Chapter 7 deals with the promotion of cigars and cigar smoking by television personalities, magazines, and low taxes. Comedian Ernie Kovacs smoked and promoted Dutch Master Cigars. George Burns, was exceptional, he smoked El Producto Queens cigars for over 40 years and died at 100 years of age from pneumonia, not from the (effects of) cigars. Chapter 7 tells us that the cigar has a renaissance in the past 8 years as an elegant bit of culture. The cigar has always received preferential treatment. Within Chapter 8, page 222 shows us the "Federal Policies on Tobacco Products" for cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, and cigars. For cigarettes and smokeless tobacco, there are federal policies on labeling regulations, advertising restrictions, reports to congress, nicotine/toxic content disclosure, (tobacco) additive reporting, regulation as a drug delivery device, youth access, and taxation. Cigars are not covered by these regulatory policies except for (1) little cigars can not be advertised, (2) cigars can not be sold to youth, and (3) the big cigar is taxed at the maximum rate of 3 cents per cigar. The General Cigar Company is not in the list of nine cigar companies that make cigarettes or smokeless tobacco and are under FDA regulations. Other cigar makers are regulated as makers of little cigars. Are these same 9 companies the only cigarmaking companies involved in the current tobacco litigation? All states now have tax laws and prohibit the sale of cigars to minors. The cigar is a form of tobacco, which does not look like a cigarette and does not taste like a cigarette, and is not a cigarette. Because of this fact, as Chapter 7 presents so well, the cigar (which is cigarette less the "ette") has been promoted, marketed, and overlooked (by federal agencies, etc.) in such a way that it can be seen as a healthy consumable product. Along the way, someone overlooked the fact that Cigarette is a term which means little cigar.... How can anyone overlook that?
October 6, 1998
http://www.nku.edu/~yannarella/news9809.html