Mindconnection eNL, 2007-12-09

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In this issue:

1. Product highlight
2. Brainpower tip
3. Time tip
4. Finance tip

5. Security tip
6. Health tip/Fitness tip
7. Miscellany
8. Thought for the day

Never be intimidated by math again. Don't let math problems make you sweat. Now you can master mathematics the easy way, and enjoy the power it gives you in so many aspects of life. You will easily add, subtract, multiply, and divide long numbers. In your head, with no paper or calculator. Algebra and trig, too.

One example is the electric car. Wow, sounds great. The marketing hype promises zero pollution, great efficiency, and no petroleum use. Sounds ideal, but the marketing hype makes assumptions in an information void. Consider:

• We generate electricity by burning coal. Bargefuls of the stuff. Coal is radioactive and nasty. If you will spend half an hour researching the downside of coal, you will want to use "anything but" as an energy source.
   
• The power from those central generating stations must be distributed long distances. The distribution incurs line losses, transformation losses, and other losses that are all manifested in the form of heat. The same people who want electric cars as a solution to "global warming" don't seem to appreciate how much heat is given off by transmitting electricity. On a per unit of energy basis, the electric car is worse this way than the gasoline engine alternative.
   
• The batteries required for these cars contain significant amounts of very toxic chemicals. It's hardly a green technology. Furthermore, and I used to work in a battery component plant, batteries are very energy intensive to make. You may not realize this, but a lot of oil is used to make batteries. Even extruding the plastic for the separators inside the battery requires oil (you can't extrude the plastic without it).

I could go on and on about why the marketing hype is wrong. But that's not my point here. My point here is that your brain goes into "suspension mode" when you simply agree to assumptions without understanding whether what's behind them is fallacious or not. Especially if the assumptions sound logical, look at the facts behind them.

https://www.mindconnection.com/main/timemanager/files/timetips/manageothers_001.htm

I'm talking about something that we generally don't think much about as it runs quietly in the background so we aren't freezing our tu-tus off all winter long in our homes. You go it, your furnace.

The last time I bought a home, I switched from insisting on a new one to insisting on a used one. And, there I discovered a dirty little secret. Literally. Most people simply do not change their furnace filters frequently enough. Worse, most people use cheap fiberglass "let dirt pass" filters instead of something that actually protects their furnace and their lungs.

A dirty air filter causes that furnace blower to work much harder. It can easily double your electric bill. Contrast that with $15 spent for a decent air filter that you change every other month or so. This is a no-brainer, so do it!

• Shovels. The blade on last year's snow shovel(s) may be about worn off. Ditto for ice removal tools.
   
• Snow-melt. You should have a bag of this stuff, now. When it starts to snow or drizzle freezing rain, throw some down--it works much better done that way. But don't get the cheap stuff. Read the label and get the stuff that has the highest proportion of calcium chloride. The cheap stuff is loaded with sodium chloride, and that does all sorts of damage.
   
• Boots. Check your insulated socks and boots now. Checking them after you get frostbite is not the best timing.
   
• Gloves. Same note as boots. Applies to other apparel, too.
   
• Wiper blades. I'm not talking about your toilet, here. If you have a car, now would be a good time to change those windshield wiper blades. It doesn't cost much, and you need a clear windshield on those slippery roads.
   
• Tires. If your tires are anywhere near their wear markers, replace them. Tires that bite into snow are much safer than tires that simply fill up with snow. Buy the best tires that fit your car. If the tire isn't rated A A A, don't even consider it. That's a very old standard, and anything less just isn't acceptable anymore. The small difference you pay for a quality tire actually reduces your total cost of ownership while making you safer.
   
• Other car stuff. Windshield washer, tire inflation, flashlight, spare cell phone battery, etc. Check it all.
   
• Ammunition. Now with fall behind us, many folks don't replace ammunition until the next hunting season. But there is a worldwide shortage of it, and costs continue to rise. If you save your family from one home intruder, don't be left defenseless for the next.

Let's not forget the human chain. This is a security measure many people overlook. Have you made arrangements with certain neighbors for exchanges of phone numbers and house keys (in case you get locked out at 10 below)? This kind of cooperation does require trust.

If you can't trust at least one neighbor, then your best security measure is to relocate to another neighborhood. If the problem is that you don't know anybody, you can easily fix that. Invite people over. This can be for a short get-together, even without a meal or refreshments. If you need an excuse, ask for help in rearranging your furniture. Consider going out to eat, just to get to know each other better. Whatever. Just get to know some folks and learn to look out for each other.

And don't be concerned with only your security. Look after people who are less able. Elderly people, especially, have problems with balance. Help them out, maybe by shoveling, getting their mail for them, or offering to pick up something at the store since you're going there anyways.

People talk about "losing weight," and that kind of thinking is why they stay fat. Read this article:

http://www.supplecity.com/articles/fatloss.htm

1. You burn more calories sleeping than you do watching television. Congress burns more money while you're sleeping than everyone you know will make in your combined lifetimes.
    

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