Matt Metzgar

Paleo is Getting Popular

When I was presenting at that conference last week, I couldn't resist: I asked the audience if anyone had hear of the Paleo diet.  When I did this last year at a conference, no one raised their hand.  When I did it this time, 4 or 5 people raised their hand.  That's progress in my book!

It's been a long road for Paleo to get close to the mainstream.  I think that New York Time article gave Paleo a big push.  And once more pro athletes get on the diet (I think there a few already), it will spread even more.

Your Brain on Porn

There's an interesting website out there, "Your Brain on Porn".  What's neat about this website is that they look at internet pornography from an evolutionary perspective.  There are a lot of parallels with modern junk food: our bodies and brains aren't equipped for any type of "super-stimuli".

A troubling side effect of all this is an apparent link between excessive porn use and erectile dysfunction.  Just as real food isn't enough if a person is in the throes of junk food, a real person may not be enough compared to the fantasy images on the internet.

Unfortunately, I think this overall trend will get worse in the future, especially as younger people now are growing up with the internet.

Worst Toy of the Year 2011

I saw where the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood awarded the "Vinci" tablet for children the worst toy of the year.  Based on what I've read, I would have to agree.  It is a $479 tablet computer made for babies.  Yes, you read that right.

Of course, there is zero evidence that this benefits children in any way, and there is all sorts of indirect evidence that it is harmful.  Babies need to interact with people, not computer tablets.  I am hopeful this device will turn into one of the biggest laughingstocks of the year.

Doesn't the company that sells this device have any scruples at all??

Let the Draining Begin

This is just a quick note on the sickening abuse case involving the Penn State assistant football coach, Jerry Sandusky.  Being the coward that he is, he is now proclaiming his innocence.  Unbelievable.

Am I proclaiming his guilt before he has even had his trial?  Absolutely.  On what planet does any normal person get accused of sexually assaulting eight different people but then they are actually innocent?  Where there's smoke, there's fire.

After all the criminal proceedings are done, I say the victims should file lawsuits against anyone and everyone involved in this.  They should file civil lawsuits on everyone who knew about this and did nothing.  They should drag it out for decades, and drain the life and money out of these phonies who contributed to the coverup. 

I don't have any sympathy for them, as apparently they didn't have any sympathy for the real victims.

Let the draining begin.

Econ 101

Here's a real-life example that I will use in economics class, if I can remember.  The other day there was a flyer for a new sanitation company in the mailbox.  They were offering a lower permanent price than the current company for trash pickup.

A couple of days later my current company called me.  They said they will price-match this other company, and hence my bill will now be lower on a monthly basis.  Here I saved money without doing anything!

This is basic economics where more competition equals lower prices (at least most of the time).  And as the consumer, I'll take the savings, thank you.

Secondhand TV

I have to say I saw this one coming.  A new study shows the dangers of "secondhand tv" for children.  The idea is that tv is an attention vacuum for young children that delays langauge development.

I figured this one out pretty early with our kids.  TV is hypnotic to young kids, and as I've written about before, there is no evolutionary mechanism to "turn off" attention to modern technology.  So even if the tv is just on in the background, it's having an effect.

I can't wait until they continue this line of research and show that computer use by young children is just as detrimental. (I thoroughly believe it is, but it will take a while for science to overcome the supposed "educational benefits" of computers for young children.)

Tim Ferriss and the Eternal Yearning

I think I've finally pinpointed something about Tim Ferriss' writing that I couldn't put my finger on before.  Earlier, I clicked on his blog for the first time in quite a while, and there was the lead post, "How to Ski Powder - 15 Tips for Learning in 24 Hours". 

Then below he talks about his upcoming book, "The 4-Hour Chef".  He talks about how it will be one of the biggest things ever.  This is just what he said about his last book, which really wasn't that good.

Then it suddenly occurred to me: there will never be an end to this stream of self-improvement advice he offers.  After the Chef book, it will be something else that will be supposedly revolutionary.

I'm all for self-improvement, but there is something to be said for just enjoying what you have.  For example, I don't want to learn how to "ski powder".  I'm just fine running on the nearby trails.

Another example: he talks below about how some guy sells yoga mats online and makes $10,000 a month.  Again, I could care less.  If someone sends me a check for 10k a month, I'll take it, but I'm not going to spend all my spare time chasing it.

I think what Tim does is indirectly create dissatisfaction for people, and then of course, he offers the solution (for a price). 

His blog also has the feel of "don't you want to be like me".  Don't you want to be hopping around the globe and doing all these neat things?

He talks about how people can "break away" and set up income streams so they don't have to work.  But I like my job.  If I had an "income stream" instead of a job, what would I do?  Sit at home and watch Dr. Phil all day?

The whole philosophy is very non-hunter-gatherer-like in my opinion.  There is much to be said for the simple things: friends, family, productive work, simple exercise, simple food.  Conversely, skiing all day on an "income stream" doesn't sound like a very meaningful existence to me.

Maybe Tim should teach people how to enjoy life instead of engaging in an endless quest for self-improvement.

Whatever Happened to Hustle?

I was reading comments related to "Leisure College, USA" yesterday.  The report talks about how college students are studying 10 hours less per week than their counterparts in the 60s (though mysteriously college GPAs have not gone down during this time.)  The idea is that colleges are demanding less, or students are just expecting to put in less effort - whatever way you want to look at it.

One of the commenters talked about how in the 50s and 60s, the buzzword was "hustle", meaning people knew and understood the value of putting in hard work to reach a goal.  For whatever reason, I feel that is starting to fall by the wayside today.  I know this is one of those sweeping generalizations that can't be proven, but it is the way I feel.  A lot of people today are just stone cold lazy.

In education, you read about how to better engage students, have better assessment, etc.  All of this is true, but it's not magic.  If a student puts in little to no effort, no real learning can take place no matter how great the technique.

You see this highlighted when things go bad in life.  My rule has always been, if things go bad then you need to start putting in twice as much work to right the ship.  Instead, a lot of people just throw in the towel when things go bad. 

I have faith that in general, hard work will pay off (though not always and perhaps not right away).  While this belief may not be 100% accurate, I feel it is the best way to approach life.  Otherwise, you are just passing time and waiting for "good fortune" to hit, which in my view is too passive of a mentality.

Long live the hustle!

("The New Hustle" by Greg Lamarche)

Wimpy Baseball

I saw where baseball commissioner Bud Selig is considering banning smokless tobacco in the major leagues.  Good for him.  Of course, certain players are resisting as if it interferes with their "rights".

That's just crazy.  The owners have the right to put in reasonable constraints as to what can happen in a workplace.  Players would be free to walk away from their million-dollar salaries and use smokeless tobacco as much as they want.

I realize that tobacco has a long history with baseball, but times change.  Smoking used to be allowed on airplanes for goodness sakes.  Science continues to show the risks from all types of tobacco. 

The worst part of this is that the commissioner seems to be dragging his feet on the issue.  Just ban the tobacco and be done with it.  Players will adjust, life will go on, and people will healthier for it.

Walmart and Obesity

Finally, I can blame Walmart for something and have evidence to support it.  A neat study looked at how the development of Wal-Mart Supercenters has impacted obesity.  Walmart's main focus is on lower prices, which includes lower food prices at their supercenters.  Given basic economics, lower prices on packaged and processed foods should lead to higher quantity demanded and consumed.

That's exactly what the authors found.  The presence of a supercenter in a geographical area increased the rate of obesity by 2.3%.  They even go on to conclude that: "proliferation of Walmart Supercenters explains 10.5% of the rise in obesity since the late 1980s".