Confronting Space Debris - Welser

 

Space…Pollution’s Final Frontier

 Have you ever wondered why it’s difficult to get a handle on industrial pollution?  For air pollution think smog and acid rain.  For hazardous waste think Love Canal and our 1,500 nationwide superfund sites.  For oil spills think Exxon Valdez and Deepwater Horizon.   Dave Baiocchi and William Welser IV, of the RAND Corporation, have taken an objective look at pollution, in its many forms, to compare its origins, its awareness in the public eye, and multiple strategies to mitigate it’s effect and remediate it’s presence with the growing problem of orbital space debris.

 In their study which they published as “Confronting Space Debris, Strategies and Warnings from Comparable Examples Including Deepwater Horizon”, Baiocchi and Welser give us a history lesson on how major episodes in industrial pollution became public problems and have constructed for us a framework to understand when they entered the public debate and what was necessary in order for corrective measures to be enacted.  Now in fairness to the author’s objective monologue Baiocchi and Welser stop short of calling space debris, pollution.  I am guilty of using the more polarizing term.  Yet although Baiocchi and Welser stop short of using this term, of the nine comparative problems they examined, seven—acid rain, asbestos, chlorofluorocarbons, hazardous waste, oil spills, radon, and spam— are pollution and six are from manmade sources.  I think they are striving for complete objectivity in their monologue but there is no escape from the reality.  Space debris is man-made industrial pollution.  It has yet to emerge into the public debate as such because no children have grown up playing in the harmful chemicals and no cancer clusters have broken out.   Yet there is a problem.  Perhaps we are still decades away from needing a space vacuum, but that time will almost certainly arrive, and unless those who pollute space learn from these past examples, the damage the space debris will cause and the cost of its physical remediation will no doubt be high.

The assessment framework they introduce creates a timeline within which they examine when the problems first begin, when they become such a problem that it was recognized that something must be done, when corrective and mitigating actions were taken to reduce the problems, and finally when extreme measures were necessary to eliminate the problems with remediation techniques.  In addition they show who must be involved from the single affected individual through the multinational group with a diverse set of interests.  Finally, they show that until those responsible or blameworthy, become those affected, a change in behavior will never occur.

This book was written in part to influence the current debate over what to do about space debris.  However the framework to compare similar problems that emerge in the public domain is a powerful tool to use in many other discussions and makes it a must read for those involved in public policy debates, particularly those that involve damage to the environment.  This is a clear and well written assessment which is accessible to all.  Four stars over all.  Five stars for the way they have opened up this discussion and given it a framework.  I’ve deducted one star because they have not presented more detail on space debris in general, when I am sure they command a more comprehensive knowledge of the subject. 

Not Even Wrong - Woit

 

Science that is not scientific

As with most things related to quantum physics even the title of the book, “Not Even Wrong” by Peter Woit, is hard to understand.  When dealing with things that don’t behave intuitively, as is the case with quantum physics, and on the brink of human understanding, clarity is critical. Nevertheless, physicists always seem to revel in their own intellect and have little regard for those of us who don’t share their higher order IQs.  Woit seems different notwithstanding his choice of titles for this book.   The purpose of this book was to write down in one place the case against string theory and the monolithic institution of researchers and worshipers of the theory that grew up in the shadow, or on the coat tails, of Ed Witten.  Woit does this by giving us a short history of theoretical and experimental particle physics that begat quantum theory, the standard model, and with Ed Witten’s help, string theory.  This is all very clear and tracks very well, and of course necessary to understand the criticisms he later levies against string theory in general and the M-Theory that was to follow, more specifically.

First a word on understandability:  When I took second year physics in college -- electromagnetic theory --  and experienced imaginary numbers, flux, phases, and triple integrals for the first time I had to wonder if any of it was truly understood, or what was understood was how to manipulate the observed phenomenon for useful purposes.  Of course my professor spoke with a deep Czechoslovakian accent which made the lectures even harder to understand.  Day in and day out he would stand in front of the room with his back to the class and lecture to the chalk-board filling any available space with a flurry of equations.  One day he was absent and his wife took over the lecture for him.   In some strange confluence of synchronicity, his wife stood in front of the classroom, with her back to us, and in a deep Czechoslovakian accent lectured to the chalk-board filling every available space with a flurry of equations.  The class felt as if we had just experienced a breach in time-space and with perfect symmetry as the professors’ anti-matter component slipped into our room for the day.  This is difficult stuff.  It takes a great deal of study to understand the very simple let alone the highly complex.  In some cases, as Woit points out, even the experts get fooled due to lack of understanding or interest in taking the necessary time, and pain, to gain more than a general sense of the topic.  Decades later I understand all too well, that I will never truly understand what is being discussed in Woit’s book or any number of texts on the subject that I might open.   Nevertheless, I gave it a try and have come away with a few insights I feel are worth noting in my review.

First, Woit really only has a single point to make, albeit an extremely powerful point.  The fact is that after two full decades of research into string theory, not a single prediction coming out of the theory can be confirmed experimentally.   To me, a book isn’t necessary to convey this message.  His deeper message, and his second important point, is that a book was indeed necessary because after years of screaming into the abyss with no one is hearing his message too many resources have been and continue to be wasted in pursuit of a theory that ceases to be scientific.   Theory, no matter how beautiful it might be to the eye of the beholder is no more than mental masturbation without experimental results confirming something, anything, not, as has been the case with string theory, nothing, zip, zero, zilch, nada, butt-kiss.   So whereas I may not understand exactly how a 1-dimensional closed loop of energy vibrates across 10 or 11 dimensions of space and time, six or more of those dimensions are so small we can’t see them thus we don’t need to worry about them, I do understand that I shouldn’t believe you even though I can’t do the math myself.  Science ceases to be scientific when the hypothesis cannot be proven.  For this insight Woit is highly effective and should be thanked for trying to make this simple message clear.  Has his message been heard?  I heard him, I can only hope the next generation of quantum physicist hear him before investing a life-time in pursuit of a science that is not scientific.

The Art of Racing in the Rain - Stein

A Champion Will Emerge

What do you get when you mix Formula 1 racing, with philosophy for living, man's best friend, tragedy, conflict, and a happy ending?  The great American novel.  At least for a man.  I'm not sure what a women would think of this book, but I give it 5-Stars.  Garth Stein's novel, "The Art of Racing in the Rain", is a fabulous encounter with Enzo, or man's best friend in this story, and, as it turns out, it's narrator.  Enzo tells the story of his master's life, or as he calls him, the alpha-human, and is revealed completely through his eyes during his life with him.  Enzo turns out to be an observer of things and quite a philosopher as well.  That is what makes him, as a dog, a truly compelling character.  Enzo's philosophy is within reach of a dog, perhaps, while still sophisticated enough to appeal to a human's higher intellect.  For instance, Enzo is certain that dog's enjoy a higher intellect than other primates such as chimpanzees.  The only restrictions to their social advance is their inability to speak and their lack of an opposable thumb.  He further believes there is a active conspiracy a foot that prevents the evolution of a dog with an opposable thumb through the evidence of the dew claw and the very human (or in humane) practice of removing the dew claw from their pets.  Further, he believes that the dog is fundamentally closer evolutionarily speaking to a human based on the evidence of the existence of the man-dog or werewolf as it were.  This is brilliant deductive reasoning and establishes Enzo as one of the great thinkers in the whole of literary fiction.  He is also the know-er and witness to great human tragedy and faces these heretofore very human understandings with empathy.  "The Art of Racing in the Rain" much like the great manual for living "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance", is not about racing or motorcycle maintenance for that matter.  It is about living life and in this case living a life into which not a little, but a lot of rain must fall, and racing in that rain.  At the finish-line a champion will emerge.

The Hidden Life of Dogs - Marshall Thomas

 Dog Rape

Are you kidding me?  "The Hidden Life of Dogs" by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas has been collecting dust on my shelf for perhaps ten years.  I should have left it to continue collecting dust.  All the time it's been there, I would see it occasionally and think, "One day I will read that book".  I would think warm thoughts about how, contained within it pages, was information pertaining to our shared love of dogs and the belief that they are more than just man's best friend.  Knowledge that they share with us a few bits of what make us human.  Those bits include the ability to think, the knowledge between right and wrong, self-awareness, and the ability to consider events yet to come.  I did not know I would be treated to a pornographic description of two dogs, not just mating, but having sexual intercourse followed shortly thereafter by the appalling description of a dog being raped by another dog.  Well, this is a book review, and not a commentary to pass judgment on the author's belief, however, Marshall Thomas has professed to having observed her subjects before writing this book for over 100,000 hours.  That gives her ten times the necessary experience to master any subject -- her mastery of the subject of dogs fails to show up within the brief pages of her book.  What shows up is a pattern of illogical conclusions and advanced states of hypocrisy where she clearly condemns certain owners for how they care for their dogs, but undeniably shows an utter lack of concern for her own.  And that goes beyond letting a dog free wheel about town -- many dogs do that -- it's about failing to recognize that the pack begins with her.  She is the Alpha, her dogs return to wildness was out of necessity because they lacked an adequate leader.  Domesticated dogs had the good sense to come sit next to the fire some 20,000 years ago.  The fact that they still choose to do so is evidence enough that they possess an advanced awareness of their surroundings.  The "Hidden Life of Dogs" is a self-delusional fantasy by someone who does not have that same level of awareness.  The only one a dog's life is hidden from unfortunately is her.  The artwork in this book keeps me from disposing of it.

The Origin of Wealth - Beinhocker

 

The Origin of Everything - The Best Book on Saving the Environment Ever Written

It's called the "Origin of Wealth", and subtitled "The Radical Remaking of Economics and What it Means for Business and Society".  But if Eric Beinhocker could have another shot at it, he might call his manifesto, "The Origin of Everything" and subtitled it, "Including the Kitchen Sink".  He has a case, as few others have had, at claiming this honor. His broad effort combines complexity theory and advanced adaptive systems with the latest thinking on biological and evolutionary science to give Beinhocker a business book for use not only by the titan's of industry but for anyone else who participates in our economy. Meaning you don't have to be studying computational economics or be enrolled in business school to read, understand, and learn from this book.  Very few people, Henry David Thoreau  and Ted Kosinski , come to mind, are not active in the evolutionary gene pool that is the global marketplace for the creation of wealth, and thus will not gain wealth from this book.  And wealth, according to Beinhocker is the creation of "Fit Order".  You will have to read the book to understand what he means by "Fit Order" but his type of wealth is not about dollars.  Don't read his book to become rich, read his book to keep from becoming poor.

Even if you do not buy-in to his theory, you will get a first-class treatment of economic systems, traditional economic theory, complexity, non-linear systems, game theory, advanced adaptive systems, networks, evolutionary theory with it's fundamental aspects of emergence and selection, along with the necessary aspects of business strategy development, finance, and ultimately politics. Toss in little thermodynamics and stir.  Does Beinhocker have it right?  Unlike biological evolution, it's impossible to prove scientifically that our economy evolves in a similar fashion, but he has made the necessary case.  What he has clearly proven is that traditional economic theory is dead, the economy is far more dynamic and unpredictable to believe in assumptions about rational markets and equilibrium states.  In order for markets to emerge, adapt, and evolve, in the biological sense, they have to be alive.  We see similar emergent behavior that certainly suggests that markets are alive because commercial entities are born, live, and die within it's boundaries.  Although he doesn't explicitly state it, if it's evolution that drives the markets, it has to be biologically based just as certainly as our DNA has created a life support system that has arms and legs and systems that bring air and food to our cells.  It has therefore created other systems to ensure there is an abundance of everything else we need to survive.  These systems are now detached from our physical bodies but are still driven by the same rules embedded in our DNA.  The same rules that are now screaming at society to protect the air that we breath and all of the natural resources we need for survival.  So the next time you are holding a glass to get a drink of water, you might ask, did that forces of nature that brought you an opposable thumb, also bring you indoor plumbing and hence the kitchen sink?  Beinhocker would say yes.  Add this book to your environmental reading list as well.

Unbroken - Hillenbrand

Is Laura Hillenbrand a biographer, a sports writer, a military  historian,  a survival writer, a political scientist, or a Christian revivalist?  Whatever she is her ability to recognize and capture the essence of a good story and convey its meaningful content with action, clarity, and balance are hallmarks of her craft. For these reasons Hillenbrand has taken her second book, “Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption” to the top of the best seller list. Her first book, “Seabiscuit: The True Story of Three Men and a Racehorse” also rose to #1 on the best seller list.  Should we be surprised that she did it again? She starts with a compelling story.  Just like Seabiscuit, many have never heard of Louis Zamperini and his harrowing saga as Olympic athlete turned, turner Army Air Forces officer, turned prisoner of war.  And in a similar fashion to Seabiscuit, those who study military history, in particular the War in the Pacific during WW II, are no stranger to his tale (as with those who know horse racing).  In addition, Louis Zamperini’s autobiography is already on the bookshelves and has been since 2003.  His work, “The Devil at My Heels” did not achieve the same lofty heights as Hillenbrand...but the story was told, and has been told, countless times in newspaper articles, interviews, and lectures given by Zamperini across the country since his return from the war in 1944.  However when Hillenbrand tells the story, her gift, and gift to us through her writing, is her ability to turn her subjects into household names.

As a biographer Hillenbrand gives us the mother/father town feel for a childhood growing up in a poor Italian family in the United States along with the good, the bad, and the prejudices they faced along the way...Mario Puzo would be proud.  She then transitions to sports writer and brings us, to quote from the old ABC Wide World of Sports “The thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat...[and] the human drama of athletic competition” necessary to compete in the 1936 Olympics in Germany.  We are not just in the stands, we are with the athlete, in the arena, on the track and we feel each step and each breath of the racers.  This particular story suggests the four minute mile was under serious threat from Zamperini if only he could get to the 1942 Olympics...as a former distance runner, based on the facts as given, I believe he would have broken the barrier.  

Next she puts on the hat of a military historian and brings us the Air War in the Pacific at the start of World War II.  Joseph Heller brought us the fictional Yossarrian, a bombardier on  the B-25 Mitchell, and the air war over the Mediterranean.  Hillenbrand brings us Zamperini, the bombardier on the B-24 Liberator, with all the drama, bureaucracy and insanity that is a Catch-22...but with the actual people who flew, and in this case crashed, into the wide expanses of the Pacific Ocean without a trace...the statistics are staggering and sobering and it’s good to be reminded of them from time to time.  So now she begin the castaway saga and the epic tale of being lost at sea on a tiny raft...for 47 hunger and thirst filled days.  They fight sharks, they fight death, until finally they are delivered from certain death straight into the hands of the enemy.  Can it get any worse?  Drawing from interviews with surviving POWs and the documentation taken from the archives of Post WWII Japan Hillenbrand writes one of the most explicit exposes on the Japanese treatment of the POW they captured during this dark page of world history. As she explores the evil that lurks just beneath the surface of men, with an undisciplined power over other men, she weaves an understanding of the utter brutality of war and it’s consequences.  While not a philosopher she does approach some plausible explanations for what was witnessed by many accounts of POW at the hands of their Japanese captors.

Another understanding that she reveals from the first-hand accounts of POWs on the ground in Japan during the Allied advance in the Pacific is that without the use of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki the Japanese people would have fought to the death.  While not exactly Richard Rhodes, “The Making of the Atomic Bomb”, with regard to military history, Hillenbrand nevertheless makes a compelling case.

Now the happy spoiler...Zamperini, of course survives and returns to his family in the US.  He still faces the demons of war and suffers with post traumatic stress and alcoholism. After marriage and the tough realization that he will never return to his Olympic form, he reaches rock bottom.  The book ends rather quickly at this point.  Zamperini finds God through the early ministry of Billy Graham, the demons he has faced since captivity miraculously leave his body, and he lives happily ever after.  Which by all accounts...and the fact that Zamperini is still full of life and happiness at 95 (as of March 2012)...is certainly true.

This is an amazing story of an amazing man by an amazing author.  There are some who have been critical of the believability of the Zamperini sorry and of the author’s writing.  I share a certain scepticism of both but find overall that so  many facts in this story are absolutely sound any incidental information which may not rise to the exact standards of historical fact are of little consequence in this epic saga of a true American hero...Louis Zamperini.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest - Larsson

As I am writing this book review there are almost 1,700 other reviews currently posted on Amazon for this book.  Of those, almost 1,100 have given Stieg Larsson five Stars for the final book in  his Millennium Trilogy, “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest”.  I too am tempted by the overwhelming appeal of this book by others to also rate it highly...but five stars means classic to me...not only a must read but something I would consider reading multiple times.  “The Great Gatsby”, “Catch-22”, “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance”...and just to show that I can be in genre, Thomas Harris’s, “The Silence of the Lambs”.  Don’t get me wrong, this trillogy, and in particular the character Larsson creates in Lisbeth Salander, is fantastic.  Whereas Clarice Starling may have a rival in Lisbeth Salander, no character in this book rises to the level of a household name such as Hannibal Lecter.  Even after 1,200 some odd pages Salander is the only draw, and, given the length to this  expose and the title of each book, we still are just getting to know her.  Which is why most fans, including me, would have liked for Larsson to have stayed with us a lot longer.

Hornet’s Nest is a great  book and a must read for all fan’s.  Simply put you must finish the series. Larsson end’s what he starts...in fact looking back it is clear he set out to write a single novel in three parts.  It all fits together.  “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” only worked, and I speculate here, because everyone knew that it’s was the first of the series and that there was more of Salander ready for us...already written, already printed.  Had it not been that way, had the series not continued, we would have been left with half a character and the hope there the author would write more.  It wasn’t until “The Girl Who Played With Fire”, that we learned, as we already suspected, that Salander wasn’t a fluke, she was definitely someone we could cheer for, and hope for, and care for, as did Blomkvist.  

Yet this third book is strained.  It is too long.  It is too repetitive. And ultimately the character who is so compelling to us, as some of the her mystery fades, also loses some of her charm.  Many of her secrets are revealed, she does have a conscious and she does require help from others...in this case the old and feeble mystery conspirators who conveniently off the more interesting protagonist, Zalachenko, before Salander can finish what she had started with an ax to his face by killing him with a pencil.  A scene we must imagine for ourselves because the conspiracy intervenes early in the book.   Basically I think Larsson simply ran out of intrigue for her and we are left with a boy meets girl, girl likes boy, girl hates boy, boy saves girl’s life, girl still hates boy, girl likes boy in the end story.  And then they live happily ever after, but only after girl tries to kill all her family members, but actually doesn’t holding her morality untarnished, yet they die nevertheless, as they certainly deserved to die.

I’m glad I read this trilogy...I’m glad I read  “Hornet’s Nest”...I’m glad to be done.  Four stars for a very good series.  I will not be re-reading any of these books, however, but I will continue to watch the movies...but only the Swedish versions...the Hollywood version adds nothing to the story...except maybe the James Bond title sequence accompanied by Led Zepplin’s “Immigrant Song”.