Category: History

  • Memorial Day 2023

    Memorial Day 2023

    Today is Memorial Day 2023. A moment of silence. There will be a public ceremony at Oak Hill Cemetery in Iowa City at 11:15 a.m., May 29, 2023.

  • Thoughts on Gaming Disorder

    Thoughts on Gaming Disorder

    I just read an interesting article in the latest print issue of Clinical Psychiatry News, Vol. 51, No. 5, May 2023: “Gaming Disorder: New insights into a growing problem.” This is news to me. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual lists it as an addiction associated with the internet primarily. It can cause social and occupational…

  • Racial Affinity Group Caucusing Separate But Not Equal to Segregation

    Racial Affinity Group Caucusing Separate But Not Equal to Segregation

    I read the New England Journal of Medicine perspective article “Racial Affinity Group Caucusing in Medical Education—A Key Supplement to Antiracism Curricula.” I did not see the word “segregation” anywhere in the paper, although the Daily Mail news item used it frequently in a manner that I suspect was intended to incite indignation over separating…

  • Update to Chat with Bard

    Update to Chat with Bard

    My recent chat with Google Bard, about which I posted on April 11, 2023, contained an error by Bard on all those strikes by physicians. Today I asked some follow-up questions: How many physician strikes have occurred in the United States? “There have been a few physician strikes in the United States, but they are…

  • Palm Sunday

    Palm Sunday

    Today is Palm Sunday, the beginning of Jesus’ last week on earth. The palm tree reminds me of the time we spent in Hawaii. We saw a lot of coconut palms. The featured image is from 1997, when we were there. I remember seeing a picture in a storybook of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on…

  • Random Connections

    Random Connections

    Today, I read Dr. George Dawson’s blog post, “How I ended up in a high-risk pancreatic cancer risk screening clinic.” As usual I was impressed with his erudition, scientific literacy, and rigorous objectivity, even as it pertained to a deadly disease which runs in his family genetic history. I couldn’t help admiring his courage. And,…

  • Iowa State University African American Science Graduates

    Iowa State University African American Science Graduates

    I was thinking about what to write for the first day of Black History Month, which starts today on February 1, 2023. As usual, I started to reminisce about my time at Iowa State University (ISU) in Ames, Iowa. I usually don’t talk about my undergraduate days. In fact, I had a little trouble finding…

  • Exercise or Weaponize My Privilege?

    Exercise or Weaponize My Privilege?

    Back in November 2022, while on our way to the Stanley Museum of Art, we saw the two murals on the East Burlington Street Parking Ramp. It was the first time we saw them in person although photos were available last fall. The Little Village article published an article about them on September 30, 2021.…

  • National Day of Racial Healing Today

    National Day of Racial Healing Today

    I just found out about the National Day of Racial Healing, which is today. It follows the National MLK Day, which this year was yesterday. The annual National Day of Racial Healing was started in 2017. The website tells what the event is about: “The National Day of Racial Healing is a time to contemplate…

  • My Two Cents on The Embrace Sculpture Honoring MLK Jr and Coretta Scott King

    My Two Cents on The Embrace Sculpture Honoring MLK Jr and Coretta Scott King

    I first saw a photo of the sculpture honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and Coretta Scott King, called “The Embrace” a couple of days ago. I remember my first impression being that it would have been nice to see a full sculpture of the couple rather than disembodied arms. Sena mentioned it today because…