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Intellectual Leftover Soup
Aug. 18th, 2009 08:52 amOn rare occasions, my dad, the king of leftovers, would make leftover soup. It would be regular soup or chili to which he added whatever odd leftovers were in the fridge. Consider this the blog version of Dad's Leftover Soup.
Health Care
The "no health care reform no way" crowd will tell you that if there is a public insurance option every employer will dump their employees into it because it's cheaper. In other words, buying employee health coverage is strictly a cost decision.
If that were so, there would be only one plan in the market in each area - a really cheap one. Except there are dozens if not hundreds of plans. The decision to provide health care is not solely one of cost - it includes value. It's just like any other fringe benefit, from coffee in the break room to paid holidays - the coverage is offered to attract and retain workers. A cheap package offering substandard service will not attract good workers.
Pirates
So, per CNN, a collection of Russian crooks decided to go into the pirate business and hijack a Russian / Maltese lumber ship. I didn't know the Somalis were offering franchises, but apparently these guys didn't pay attention in the training classes, as they are now enjoying the comforts of a Russian warship's brig. Gotta stay awake at those classes, dudes.
Space
Via![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
jaylake, I learned of this really tiny nuclear reactor being tested for a lunar base. The test unit, which is a scaled-down model, uses a Sterling engine to get 2.3 KW. The "big" version would generate 40 KW. Of interest is the difficulties in radiating away the waste heat.
Women in Combat
Via the always interesting blog Edge of the West, I found a lengthy article comparing the modern integration of women into US combat units with the Korean-war-era integration of blacks into white units. The article is available here, and it argues that in both cases, the emergency needs of warfighting trumped ideological considerations.
Health Care
The "no health care reform no way" crowd will tell you that if there is a public insurance option every employer will dump their employees into it because it's cheaper. In other words, buying employee health coverage is strictly a cost decision.
If that were so, there would be only one plan in the market in each area - a really cheap one. Except there are dozens if not hundreds of plans. The decision to provide health care is not solely one of cost - it includes value. It's just like any other fringe benefit, from coffee in the break room to paid holidays - the coverage is offered to attract and retain workers. A cheap package offering substandard service will not attract good workers.
Pirates
So, per CNN, a collection of Russian crooks decided to go into the pirate business and hijack a Russian / Maltese lumber ship. I didn't know the Somalis were offering franchises, but apparently these guys didn't pay attention in the training classes, as they are now enjoying the comforts of a Russian warship's brig. Gotta stay awake at those classes, dudes.
Space
Via
jaylake, I learned of this really tiny nuclear reactor being tested for a lunar base. The test unit, which is a scaled-down model, uses a Sterling engine to get 2.3 KW. The "big" version would generate 40 KW. Of interest is the difficulties in radiating away the waste heat.Women in Combat
Via the always interesting blog Edge of the West, I found a lengthy article comparing the modern integration of women into US combat units with the Korean-war-era integration of blacks into white units. The article is available here, and it argues that in both cases, the emergency needs of warfighting trumped ideological considerations.
