Last Update: 29 August 2000 Note: NEW or UPDATED material is highlighted ========================================================================= ESTUARY/ITRIESA "If this new airport is built," said Cristine Alcayaga, a former member of the Mexican Congress, "It will mean death for thousands of majestic birds that traverse the North American continent." Mayor Brown said, "Birds know no borders. A duck sitting in the Oakland estuary today may well spend winters in Mexico City. Their habitats deserve protection whatever country they are in." The delegation explained the proposed three-runway airport at Lake Texcoco raises safety issues because birds do not change their migratory patterns. The proposed airport location is used by thousands of ducks, geese, gulls, herons and pelicans. Business Wire (2001). Mexican environmentalists tell Mayor Brown shared migratory birds are threatened. http://investor.cnet.com/investor/news/newsitem/0-9900-10-28-6733941- JUGGERNAUT/CLAMBERDITE ---NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW! 1 Of course, there's no way a pesky subculture like extreme sports could be absorbed into the Olympics juggernaut without some kicking and screaming. After all, it emerged as a direct response to the commercialism and competitiveness of the big boys. The same kids appearing on Leno today would've been mortified by the thought four years ago. Gordon, D. & Gegax, T.T. (2002). Dudes and dinner roles. Newsweek, February 25, 2002, p. 48-51. 2 With the release of Crossroads, Hollywood joins MTV, radio stations, and the magazine industry in surrendering to this popular cultural juggernaut: all Britney, all the time. The image of the 20-year old's faux-sexy, Barbified prettiness is a pervasive a presence in American homes as the Pope's used to be in Italian ones. Franklin, H.B. (2001). The most important fish in the sea. Discover, September 2001, p. 44-50. 3 In journalism you sometimes have to say: "I was wrong." For instance, I thought that the U.S. invasion of Haiti last fall would turn out much worse than it has, and so far, fortunately, I've been wrong. But there are also times when you should say, "I was right." For me this time has come with the Japanese yen. For ten years or more, non-Japanese observers have debated whether Japan's economic juggernaut has finally hit the wall. Those who think the miracle is over say that Japan's people are tired of their belt-tightening and that big Japanese companies are too cumbersome for the agile new information age. But above all they say that the steady rise of the yen's value will price Japanese exporters out of business, as Toyotas and Sonys become too expensive for foreigners to buy. Fallow, J. (1995). NPR Commentary: Right on the money. The Atlantic Monthly. March 15, 1995. 4 Over the past two decades a digital juggernaut has run through the cultural landscape, leaving the old analog ruling class trampled in its wake. In the 1980s word processors took the place of typewriters, and CDs replaced LP records. In the 1990s personal computers took over offices, even home offices, and e-mail all but relegated letter writing to history. Television went digital too-in theory, at least-as the Federal Communications Commission rolled out a timetable for the conversion of U.S. television to digital by 2006. Most people still watch analog TV, but there seems to be little doubt that it will soon go the way of the typewriter and the LP. Fisher, M.J. (2001) Pixels at an exhibition. The Atlantic Monthly. December 2001. 5 Last year, as the Netscape Communications Corporation was suffocating under pressure from its giant rival, Microsoft, company executives came upon an essay titled "The Cathedral and the Bazaar" by a hacker named Eric Raymond. Raymond's essay analyzed (and rhapsodized) the surprisingly workable global collaboration that had resulted in the legendary "free" operating system called Linux. Impressed by Raymond's analysis and needing a bold move to counter the Microsoft juggernaut, Netscape made a decision that struck many observers as an inexplicable last-ditch maneuver. The company not only took all price tags off its Web-browsing products but also vowed to make their "source code" freely available. Liberty and Linux for all. Atlantic Unbound Web Citations, October 21, 1998. 6 For China 1999 was the eightieth anniversary of the May Fourth movement, when the Chinese intelligentsia first advocated the adoption of Western science and democracy. But it was also the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of communism in China. And the twentieth anniversary of the beginning of the era of economic reform under Deng Xiaoping. And the tenth anniversary of the Tiananmen Square democracy movement and massacre. Which anniversary means the most to China now? The May Fourth movement and the Tiananmen movement suggest that China is heading toward democracy, if haltingly. The massacre revives the grim spectacle of China as a fascist juggernaut. Deng's reforms herald economic freedom and the victory of business over ideology. But it may well be the anniversary of the establishment of communism that has circled back most unexpectedly. Corson, T. (2000). China's blue collar blues. The Atlantic Monthly. February, 2000. 7 In 1971 Kaczynski wrote an essay containing most of the ideas that later appeared in the manifesto. "In these pages," it began, "it is argued that continued scientific and technical progress will inevitably result in the extinction of individual liberty." It was imperative that this juggernaut be stopped, Kaczynski went on. This could not be done by simply "popularizing a certain libertarian philosophy" unless "that philosophy is accompanied by a program of concrete action.". Harvard and the making of the Unabomber. The Atlantic Monthly. June, 2000. 7 "Juggernaut" Passages CVA Think-Aloud Protocols PROLIFERATE/QUAMOGERATE ---NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW! 1 And that is the source of their power. A decade ago research on lab animals revealed that stem cells taken from animal embryos are astoundingly versatile. They grow in the lab, proliferate like rabbits and turn into specialized cells such as neurons. But no one has turned the same trick with human cells. Begley, S. (2001). Cellular divide. Newsweek, July 9, 2001, p. 22 - 27. 2 To opponents of using embryos, this ends the debate. Why "kill anybody," as Sen. Sam Brownback put it, referring to stem cells from IVF embryos, when you can instead tap into willing adults with hardly more fuss than drawing blood? But adult stem cells may not live up to their name. They seem to proliferate more slowly than the embryonic ones, and so might not provide an ever-renewing source of new cells to replace those lost to, say, arthritis. Begley, S. (2001). Cellular divide. Newsweek, July 9, 2001, p. 22 - 27. 3 The Gulf seems to be headed for the same problems that are obvious in the Chesapeake, but on a larger scale. Fed by chemical runoff, algal blooms have spread, causing ever-enlarging, oxygen-depleted dead zones. And jellyfish are proliferating, both a native species and a gigantic Pacific species. Researchers believe the swollen jellyfish population could have a devastating effect on Gulf fishing because they attack the eggs and larvae of many species. Monty Graham, senior marine scientist at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab in Alabama, says overfishing, "including aggressive menhaden fishing," seems to have allowed the jellyfish-"an opportunistic planktivore"-to fill the ecological void. He says the proliferation of both species of jellyfish indicates "something gone wrong with the ecology." Franklin, H.B. (2001). The most important fish in the sea. Discover, September 2001, p. 44-51. 4 Cancer, in the broadest sense, is uncontrolled cell growth. DNA replicates and cells proliferate widely, depriving more organized growth of needed resources. Tumorous growths can appear as amorphous, undifferentiated, and ungovernable masses. Yet despite giving the appearance of complete disarray, cancer can be the end result of just a few molecular events gone wrong. (2000). A positron named Priscilla: Scientific discovery at the Frontier. National Academy of Sciences. 5 Post-farm food processing, storage, and improper handling and cooking are major contributors to the chain of events that allows the pathogen to contaminate the product, proliferate on or in the food, and attain the large numbers that cause disease. Board on Agriculture (1999). The use of drugs in food animals: Benefits and risks. National Academy Press. 6 Both the Internet and information infrastructure generally are fundamentally international. The international nature of infrastructure will have to be addressed in whatever technical, market, and legal measures are taken to assure smooth communication and interaction between most countries. International connectivity must be maintained and expanded as foreign networks develop and proliferate. Computer Science and Telecommunications Board. (1994). Realizing the information future. National Academy Press, p. 7. 7 In MS [multiple sclerosis] patients, levels in cerebrospinal fluid of the type of protein known to consist of antibodies (immunoglobulin) are often higher than in healthy people. The increased immunoglobulin is due to production by only a few different clones of B cells that have been induced to proliferate. Institute of Medicine (2001). Multiple Sclerosis: Current status and strategies for the future, p. 74. 8 ..the establishment of nonindigenous [not native to the region] anthropods has often been attributed to their escape from natural enemies in their native habitats. However, knowing whether resident enemies in a newly colonized habitat will attack a nonindigenous anthropod and limit its demographic growth or spread is important if we wish to predict which immigrants will not only establish, but also proliferate and spread. Board on Agriculture (2002). Predicting invasions of noindigenous plants and plant pests. National Academy Press, p. 71. 9 It would be more fruitful to focus on resource availability and how variation in limiting resources may foster or hinder the invasion process. Invasions of communities probably include both cases in which resources are usurped by an invader at the expense of natives and cases in which unused or underused resources are commandeered. Yellowstar thistle, for example, is able to thrive with minimal water resources in the annual grasslands in California's Central Valley. Invasive nitrogen-fixing species have proliferated in habitats where there apparently were few native nitrogen-fixers or where nitrogen-fixers operated weakly. Board on Agriculture (2002). Predicting invasions of nonindigenous plants and plant pests. National Academy Press, p. 77. 10 Once established, some invaders can usurp resources in a new range, use them more efficiently than the natives, or even alter the resources themselves. In many invasive species, these competitive traits are revealed as the organism begins to proliferate. Evidence of interspecific competition exerting strong effects on newly established insects or pathogens is scarce, but competition often plays a substantial role in plant invasions. Board on Agriculture (2002). Predicting invasions of nonindigenous plants and plant pests. National Academy Press, p. 78. 11 Sleeper species are species whose populations appear to remain in a quiescent phase for long periods before they begin to proliferate. The current range expansion and proliferation of rocket (hesperis matronalis) might qualify it for inclusion in this category. It was introduced early in the 19th century in the United States. It apparently became naturalized soon after arrival, but its numbers did not increase noticeably. In the last 10 years in eastern Washington, what had once been small isolated populations of the species are clearly becoming more abundant, and the individual populations are growing. Board on Agriculture (2002). Predicting invasions of nonindigenous plants and plant pests. National Academy Press, p. 82. "Proliferate" Passages CVA Think-Aloud Protocols PROXIMITY/QUAZONITY ---NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW! 1 Exposure has been defined in various ways in the past. For example, and Institute of Medicine report (IOM, 1994) defines exposure as "the concentration of an agent in the environment in close proximity to a study subject." Clearing the Air: Asthma and Indoor Air Exposures (2000), Institute of Medicine. 2 The presence of some biological agents in cabin air, primarily airbome allergens, has also raised questions. Exposures to allergens (e.g., cat dander) have been reported to cause health effects, but have not been definitively documented in aircraft. Transmission of infectious agents from person to person has been documented to occur in aircraft, but the most important transmission factors appear to be high occupant density and the proximity of passengers. Transmission does not appear to be facilitated by aircraft ventilation systems. The Airliner Cabin Environment and the Health of Passengers and Crew (2002), Board on Environmental Studies and Toxicology. 3 To answer specific questions about cabin air quality, a research program should be established. The committee considers the following research question to be of high priority: [...] - Outside-air ventilation. Does the ECS provide sufficient quantity and distribution of outside air to meet the FAA regulatory requirements (FAR 25.831), and to what extent is cabin ventilation associated with complaints from passengers and cabin crew? Can it be verified that infectious-disease agents are transmitted primarily between people in close proximity? Does recirculation of cabin air increase cabin occupants' risk of exposure? The Airliner Cabin Environment and the Health of Passengers and Crew, Board on Environmental Studies and Toxicology. 4 The necessity of contact or proximity to the target is another distinguishing feature of mines. APL are directly activated by contact, typically the pull of a trip wire. In AT mines, the magnetic field generated by an armored vehicle influence. Acoustic signatures can also arm firing circuits. Infrared can be used to detect the presence of a target within the mine's range and fire the main charge. Antihandling devices can be incorporated to preclude easy removal or neutralization. Alternative Technologies to Replace Antipersonnel Landmines (2001), Commission on Engineering and Technical Systems. 5 One of the key differences between traditional supply chains and highly integrated supply chains is the degree of proximity between members and the resulting differences in the efficiency of joint operations. Geographic and cultural proximity traditionally provided business advantages for SMEs, many of whom served only local customers and had to compete only against other local suppliers. Globalization, electronic communications, and modern shipping capabilities now enable suppliers from all over the world to compete for local business. Large suppliers can typically afford proximity capabilities that SMEs cannot, including plant sited near their customers and skills in dealing with different cultures. To remain competitive, SMEs may have to improve their organizational, cultural and geographic proximity to serve an increasingly widespread customer base. Organizational proximity can take several forms including membership in joint project teams or the placement of employees in one another's faculties. Cultural proximity, which typically evolves over time, can be achieved through the adoption of common business practices, jargon, ethical standards, and language. Cultural proximity is especially important for doing business with customers from different countries and cultures. The dividends of cultural proximity can include repeat business, loyalty, and assistance in problem solving during times of crisis. Geographic proximity may involve locating supplier facilities adjacent to OEM operations. For example, long-term relations between beverage producers and container manufacturers led container suppliers to locate their fabrication plants adjacent to breweries. Cans are drawn, finished, and moved on conveyors through a common wall into the brewery where they are filled, sealed, packed, and shipped, all without human contact. Proximity in an international supply chain can require investments in metric dimensioning, compliance with international standards, and participation in international trade fairs, such as the one held annually in Hanover, Germany. Partnerships with foreign companies can be used by SMEs to obtain cost-effective access to foreign markets and sources of supply. Surviving Supply Chain Integration: Strategies for Small Manufactures (2000), Commission on Engineering and Technical System 6 Because Internet technologies and modern transportation capabilities enable suppliers from low-wage areas to compete effectively with U.S. small and medium -sized manufacturing enterprises (SMEs), pressure on SMEs to improve their cultural, organizational, and geographic proximity to their customers and suppliers has increased. Even SMEs with limited resources can respond to some of these challenges at low cost through increased cultural education and use of the Internet and Worldwide Web. Surviving Supply Chain Integration: Strategies for Small Manufactures (2000), Commission on Engineering and Technical Systems "Proximity" Passages CVA Think-Aloud Protocols SEDATIVE/FLENDORIATE ---NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW! 1 [...] pharmaceutical firms attempt to produce consistently potent and reliable drugs from hemp. By the 1930s at least two American companies -- Parke-Davis and Eli Lilly -- were selling standardized extracts of marijuana for use as an analgesic, an antispasmodic and sedative. Another manufacturer, Grimault & Company, marketed marijuana cigarettes as a remedy for asthma. Marijuana As Medicine?: The Science Beyond the Controversy (2000), Institute of Medicine. 2 The drugs most commonly prescribed to treat the symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis include baclofen (Lioresal) and tizanidine (Zanaflex) which relieve both spasticity and muscle spasms but often only partially and sometimes not at all. Both are sedatives, so they cause drowsiness; additional side effects include dry mouth and muscle weakness. The latter is especially problematic for people with Multiple Sclerosis, whose muscles get weaker as the disease progresses. Marijuana As Medicine?: The Science Beyond the Controversy (2000), Institute of Medicine 3 Participants in this test lie on an examining table with their legs extending over the edge. They let their legs fall, and a video camera records the resulting motion, which is affected by muscle resistance. Computer analysis of the recording enables researchers to determine the degree to which spasticity impeded each to distinguish this effect from any actual decrease in spasticity produced by the drug. Researchers could make such a distinction by using the pendulum test to compare THC's effects with those of other mild sedatives, such as benzodiazepines. Marijuana As Medicine?: The Science Beyond the Controversy (2000), Institute of Medicine. 4 The number of heavy drug users, using at least once a week, is difficult to determine. It has been estimated that in 1993, there were 201 million heavy cocaine users and 444,000-600,000 heavy heroin users (Rhodes et al., 1995). Although cocaine and heroin represent the major drugs of abuse for a large proportion of individuals who seek treatment, most patients abuse more than one drug. In addition, others seek help for abuse of multiple drugs. It was estimated that in 1994, 306 million people in the U.S. had drug problems severe enough to need drug treatment services (ONDCP, 1996). Pathways of Addiction: Opportunities in Drug Abuse Research (1996), Institute of Medicine 5 One of the key differences between traditional supply chains and highly integrated supply chains is the degree of proximity between members and the resulting differences in the efficiency of joint operations. Geographic and cultural proximity traditionally provided business advantages for SMEs, many of whom served only local customers and had to compete only against other local suppliers. Globalization, electronic communications, and modern shipping capabilities now enable suppliers from all over the world to compete for local business. Large suppliers can typically afford proximity capabilities that SMEs cannot, including plant sited near their customers and skills in dealing with different cultures. To remain competitive, SMEs may have to improve their organizational, cultural and geographic proximity to serve an increasingly widespread customer base. Organizational proximity can take several forms including membership in joint project teams or the placement of employees in one another's faculties. Cultural proximity, which typically evolves over time, can be achieved through the adoption of common business practices, jargon, ethical standards, and language. Cultural proximity is especially important for doing business with customers from different countries and cultures. The dividends of cultural proximity can include repeat business, loyalty, and assistance in problem solving during times of crisis. Geographic proximity may involve locating supplier facilities adjacent to OEM operations. For example, long-term relations between beverage producers and container manufacturers led container suppliers to locate their fabrication plants adjacent to breweries. Cans are drawn, finished, and moved on conveyors through a common wall into the brewery where they are filled, sealed, packed, and shipped, all without human contact. Proximity in an international supply chain can require investments in metric dimensioning, compliance with international standards, and participation in international trade fairs, such as the one held annually in Hanover, Germany. Partnerships with foreign companies can be used by SMEs to obtain cost-effective access to foreign markets and sources of supply. Effective international participation requires knowledge of the ways of doing business in other countries and cultures. International consultants can sometimes fill these gaps, but management must be appropriately trained, especially for face to face communications and negotiations. Surviving Supply Chain Integration: Strategies for Small Manufactures (2000), Commission on Engineering and Technical System 6 Excessive sleepiness is associated with performance lapses and failures, which can interfere with learning. It is also possible that lapses in performance because of sleepiness play a role in injury rates of adolescents. There is evidence that insufficient sleep is associated with moodiness, irritability, and difficulty in modulating impulses and emotions. An added risk arises from the tendency for sleepiness to increase the sedative effects of alcohol. This effect may be particularly dangerous for adolescents who are experimenting with alcohol and other risky behaviors, as their sleepiness may increase their vulnerability. Protecting youth at work: Health, safety, and development of working children and adolescents in the United States (1998). Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. National Academy Press. 7 The purpose of "sedatives" is to induce a calming and drowsy effect. "Hypnotics" are intended to induce a satisfying sensation of going to sleep promptly and sleeping soundly for some minimum duration. "Anxiolytics" (minor tranquilizers or anti-anxiety drugs) are intended to induce a calming effect similar to that of sedatives but without the sensation of drowsiness. Sleeping Pills, Insomnia, and Medical Practice: Report of a Study (1979). Institute of Medicine. National Academy Press. "Flendoriate" Passages CVA Think-Aloud Protocols TACITURN/VEDOSARN ---NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW! 1 In New York, young Tate attended the Horace Mann School. By the time he was in high school, he exhibited a fondness for science. He used to experiment at home with a small chemistry set, and he created one or two small explosions in the house. His high school yearbook had a rhyme for each member of the graduating class, and the one for Tate was "terribly taciturn Tate, with HC1 on his pate." John Torrence Tate, Biographical Memoirs Volume 47. National Academy Press., p. 462. 2 In his younger years, the Zucker and Franklin (then Freudlich) families lived across from each other in Berlin, but their paths parted upon emigration from Germany, with the Zuckers secreted away in the Netherlands throughout World War II. By extraordinary coincidence the parents met again while on vacation in Lake Placid in 1952 and discovered that they again lived virtually across from each other in Forest Hills, New York. Ed and Dotty's reacquaintance in New York was in the context of a blind date, which she remembers as "a bore." Nevertheless, a relationship developed, although Dorthea's friends were puzzled at her attraction to this taciturn individual, who was such a wall-flower at parties. The mutual attachment blossomed and matured into a very close and lively marriage. Indeed, they had to arrange separate offices for themselves in their home because when together their constant conversation prevented them from getting their work accomplished. Edward C. Franklin, Biographical Memoirs Volume 78. National Academy Press., p. 56-57. 3 In those early years, I – who was very young, along with many others who were not – found myself awed and tongue-tied in his presence. This reticence in turn affected George, who, misunderstanding it, acted withdrawn and taciturn, confirming our expectations. I felt he deemed us not quite up to his advanced level of reason and knowledge – a fact that was certainly true but was not, I believe, a correct assessment of his reactions. Looking back this now seems very mixed, but it certainly seemed real at the time and continued to affect George's relations with others for years to come. George Gaylord Simpson, Biographical Memoirs Volume 60. National Academy Press., p. 332- 333. 4 After describing the tangled economic, cultural, and family ties binding dealers and lobstermen, Ron Formisano, a University of Florida history professor, supplies a play-by-play analysis of the often hilarious trial, in which sly, taciturn lobstermen blithely [cheerfully and without care] flummoxed [confused] four furiously dedicated Federal prosecutors – one of whom couldn't stand the sight of a lobster. Though a jury of equally taciturn Maine landlubbers convicted Dyer and the associates of the Government refused to set punishment, choosing instead to extract its pound of fish [a play on words from a famous line in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice] from the dealers. Ken, B. (1997). Books in Brief: Nonfiction – The Great Lobster War. The Atlantic Monthly, July 13, 1997. 5 It had been a long, hot January day, but at last I was in sight of the remote tropical Fijian islet I'd been longing for. Beyond the long hilly island of Moturiki, two stretches of coral sand, each a quarter of a mile long, barely rose from above the waves, festooned [decorated] with coconut palms and mangroves [a kind of tree]. The closer one was our destination; Jim, our taciturn pilot, guided the small open boat into the shallows and helped us off. Fainberg, D. (2002). An ill wind in paradise. The Atlantic Monthly, March 3, 2002. 6 In Japanese cult director Takeshi Kitano's strange and beautiful new film, Fireworks, the director plays Yoshitaka Nishi, a taciturn former police officer who, when he's not calmly whacking [killing] the mobsters responsible for wounding his partner, cheerfully devotes himself to his terminally ill wife, Miyuki, in her last days. Taylor, E. (1998). Film: Flowers and Gunfire. The Atlantic Monthly, April, 1998. 7 In Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl, a first feature film from actress Joan Chen (The Last Emperor, Heaven and Earth), a tailor's young daughter growing up in the last days of Mao's Cultural Revolution is abruptly [suddenly] "sent down" to the countryside in 1975 to learn horse-herding, with the promise that when she returns she will lead her own all-girl horse cavalry unit. Little does she know that the Revolution is on its last legs and the unit has long since been disbanded [broken up]. Billeted [housed] in a ragged tent with a taciturn Tibetan herder, the naοve [innocent] Xiu Xiu pines [longs] for home, indifferent [not showing care] both to her lovely natural surroundings and to the quiet integrity of her host […]. Taylor, E. (1998). Film: A Lost Generation. The Atlantic Monthly, May, 1999. 8 Cub SS Porter Creach – batting .323 and slugging .523 with 23 home runs, 23 steals, and 23 doubles in 423 at bat over his last 123 games – recently turned twenty-four. "Kind of ironic, isn't it?" said the taciturn Creach. "Well, that's baseball." Blount, R. Jr. (1997). Diamond nuggets. The Atlantic Monthly, August, 1997. 9 Newsweek's story [concerning the debate about drilling for oil in Alaska's National Wildlife refuge] has the same thrust, but a different approach. It opens with a taciturn Alaskan pilot, "a former rodeo rider and crop duster," who flies the magazine's reporter to his destination. "Nobody would mistake Dirk Nickisch for a tree hugger," writes Jeffrey Bartholet. "But as he takes off and flies over the northern mountains of Alaska into one of the last unspoiled wilderness areas of America, he explains (if you ask him) why he doesn't want multinational oil companies to explore and drill for oil in any part of the refuge." Powers, W. (2001). The Arctic persuasion. The Atlantic Monthly, August 15, 2001. 10 Mr. Higgin's acidic novel [Bomber's Law] opens with two plainclothes policemen sitting in a car waiting for a suspect to appear. They are a grouchy veteran and the younger colleague to whom he is turning over the investigation, and they hate each other for reasons of origin, education, connections, temperament, and previous association. Most of these reasons emerge in their garrulous [wordy], raspy conversation. No Higgins character has ever been taciturn. Adams, P.L. (1993). Brief Reviews: Bomber's Law by George V. Higgins. The Atlantic Monthly, December, 1993. 11 Which brings us to money. For the first week or two I was hit surprisingly hard by the realization that I was the poorest nonjanitorial worker in my building. (I was there as a temporary consultant; only long-term [Microsoft] employees are eligible for stock options.) At some point I stopped thinking about it and tried to observe the way everyone else thought about money. They talked about its consequences quite a lot. Standard lunch-table chat would concern the new boat or sports car someone had bought. And when Microsoft stock was moving up or down, there was a fair amount of hallway chatter about it. But on the fundamental questions – how much do you have? How much do you need? – People were taciturn. Everyone recognized the concept of having "enough" money to quit and do something else, as a large number of Microsoft veterans have done. But almost no one would specify how much would be enough. Inside the Leviathan, Part Two. The Atlantic Monthly, February 2000. 12 Inside the farmhouse, the family greetings were casual and restrained. His parents and his brothers and in-laws did not seem overly impressed by the prospect that the eldest son would soon occupy one of the most powerful positions of government. […] As sometimes happens in those families, however, the energy and ambition seemed to have been concentrated disproportionately [unevenly] in one child, David, perhaps at the expense of others. His mother, Carol, a big- boned woman with metallic blond hair, was the one who made David work for A's in school. In political debate, David Stockman was capable of dazzling opponents with words; his brothers seemed shy and taciturn in his presence. Greider, W. (1981) . The Atlantic Monthly, December 1981. DETRITUS ---NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW NEW! 1 And now his path was blocked by a final obstruction, not the most daunting he'd faced but nonetheless serious: this blackwater sump, a zone of intermittently flooded forest converted to finger lake by the seasonal rains. Soaked leaf litter and other detritus had yielded the usual tannin-rich tea, and the water's sleek surface was dark as buffed ebony, punctuated sparsely by large trees, their roots and buttresses submerged. Quamman, D. (2001). End of the line: Megatransect part 3. National Geographic. August 2001, p. 75-97. 2 The birds alert nearby anglers that a massive school of menhaden is under attack by bluefish. The razor-toothed blues tear at the menhaden like piranhas in a killing frenzy, gorging themselves, some killing even when they are too full to eat, some vomiting so they can eat again. Beneath the blues, weak fish begin to circle, snaring the detritus of the carnage. Farther below, giant striped bass gobble chunks that get by the weak fish. From time to time a bass muscles its way up through the blues to take in whole menhaden. On the seafloor, scavenging crabs feast on leftovers. Franklin, H.B. (2001). The most important fish in the sea. Discover, September 2001, p. 44-50. 3 Dense schools of menhaden swimming with their mouths open slurp up enormous quantities of plankton and detritus like gargantuan vacuum cleaners. In the Chesapeake and other coastal waterways, the filtering clarifies water by purging suspended particles that cause turbidity, allowing sunlight to penetrate to greater depths. This encourages the growth of plants that release dissolved oxygen as they photosynthesize. The plants also harbor fish and shellfish. Franklin, H.B. (2001). The most important fish in the sea. Discover, September 2001, p. 44-50. 4 Although each [Long Term Ecological Research] site has a different investigator-driven mission, several measurements are made at each site every year. The results, which include estimates of primary production, nitrogen mineralization rates, standing crop, abundances of most soil cations [positively charged ions], detritus production, and censuses [counts] of dominant plant species, are available in standard form. Ecological indicators for the nation (2000). Commission on Geosciences, Environment, and Resources. National Academy Press, Chapter 2. 5 A mature coral reef is poised in the balance of the forces of erosion and the forces of calcification. Corals die and pieces break off and fall in the sediment. This sandy detritus in turn serves to fill holes in the coral structures. The framework rises. Worms, crabs, and bivalves seek shelter within and on the surface of the coral. They bore into it and destroy it in part. These are the eroders. Reef corals adapt to inhabitants both within and without in a most generous and accommodating way, creating and sustaining a rich variety of life. Reefscape: Reflections of the Great Barrier Reef (2001). Joseph Henry Press. National Academy Press, p. 69. 6 Remote recoveries of females [sea turtles] tagged in Florida indicate that many migrate to the Gulf of Mexico, often to the turbid, detritus-laden, muddy-bottom bays and bayous of the northern gulf coast. Others apparently occupy the clear waters of the Bahamas and Antilles, with sandy bottoms, reefs, and shoals that constitute a totally different type of habitat. Decline of the sea turtles: Causes and prevention (1990). Commission on Life Sciences. National Academy Press, Chapter 2. 7 But he [John Rodgers] was also a humanist. Amid the detritus of his apartment, which was cluttered with old scientific journals and papers, he had a Steinway grand piano, on which he played Bach fugues and Chopin etudes very beautifully with his strong geologist's fingers. Zinsser, William (1988). Writing to learn. New York, NY: Harper and Row. "Detritus" Passages CVA Think-Aloud Protocols