The HIV Atlas uses data from the CDC to create an interactive map which allows users to discover HIV/AIDS hot spots around the US.  It shouldn’t be surprising that cities with high/dense populations have higher HIV/AIDS rate.  Also previous research would lead us to assume that areas with higher poverty rates and larger minority populations would also see higher HIV/AIDS infection rates.  The prevailing knowledge these days is that African Americans are at the “highest risk” for HIV infection - implying that some how white people perhaps are more resistant to infection.  The truth is however that African Americans are infected with HIV/AIDS at a higher proportion than white  Americans.  I know, where’s my data and citations?  You can check the CDC for that.

So, today I discovered the HIV Atlas and I’ve been doing some playing around… Some of you may remember the images bellow from the Presidential election in November.  It compares counties in the south that overwhelmingly voted for Obama to a map showing centers of cotton production in 1800’s.  Now, I could get into the nitty gritty about the racist connotations of this map, but I’ll leave you to deconstruct that on your own.  What I really want you to do is notice the other two maps I’ve added.  The first is a map from the CDC which shows poverty rates in the US.  Notice the trend in the South.  Finally I’ve added a screen shot from the HIV Atlas, its shows HIV infection rates among Black non-Hispanics in the south.

So what’s the point?  Without any fancy statistics I can tell you: poor Blacks in the US South are disproportionately effected by HIV/AIDS.  It’s also interesting that the US South has some of the highest HIV infection rates and some of the worst sex education programs in the country…oh the irony.

The tech world has been a flutter since Google unveiled its latest innovation, Google Wave, last week.  It appears that Wave will prove to been one of the greatest innovations in communication and collaboration since e-mail and the Internet.  During their demo the Wave team primarily focused on the impact Wave will have on our social and work lives.  Over the last week I’ve imagined the ways that Google Wave can be used in the classroom.

Currently my school uses G-mail and google apps which has been great for allowing students and faculty to collaborate together.  In addition to blackboard’s “content collection” sharing features, collaboration has evolved from e-mailing documents back and forth now documents can be kept online giving all team members the ability to work on the most current version.  Google Wave will only enhance the possibilities for collaboration in academia.  Although Blackboard and Google Apps allow for documents to be stored online, they do not allow for mutliple users to be working in them at the same time.  The ability for multiple users to to edit a wave is perhaps one of waves most powerful features.  In addition to allowing users live editing of the same document, Wave’s play back feature gives users the ability to see how the wave, or document has changed over time. I don’t want to spend too much time gushing over editing features, I think the Wave team did enough of that.  I do think there are some great uses for Wave in the class room that the Wave team didn’t consider.

Mainly, I believe that Wave will be a great tool for instructors and students to communicate live in the classroom.  Because Wave allows users to comment on documents and sections of documents, instructors in web-enabled classroom could put an outline of their lecture up and students could comment and ask questions during that class session.  This feature might be great for shy students who don’t like to ask questions in front of others.  Also the instructor would have a record of questions/comments raised which can be helpful in tweeking future lectures and creating tests and exams.

Anyway, that’s just my 2 or 3 cents on Google Wave.  I think it will be an amazing tool for life, work, and education.  I’m sure there are a thousand other uses for Wave that I can’t imagine; what do you all think?

Good question. I’ve been working. Grad school is overwhelming. Between two assisstantships, course work, and getting my thesis research together I haven’t had much time for blogging. BUT it’s summer now and I’m hoping to be able to reconnect. Maybe. We’ll see.

Florida lawmakers were in special sessions earlier this week; charged with the impossible task of filling the void of a $2.4 billion budget deficit. The recent $1.2 billion spending cuts leave Florida with a total of $6.9 billion worth of cuts since July of 2007.  And another $3 billion dollar deficit is expected to be faced while lawmakers are writing the FY ‘08-’09 budget. In other words, Florida is fucked with no rhythm, lube, or love; up shit creek without a paddle; knock-knock-knocking on heaven’s door; totally fubar-ed; being put through the wringer… you get the idea.

Amid all the cuts made to education, department of law enforcement, and social services (which are horrific); little has been mentioned about affordable housing. It is widely acknowledged that a lack of affordable housing is the number one contributing factor to homelessness. Florida lawmakers have recommended that $190 million be swept from the Sadowski Housing Trust Fund which distributes monies to local communities for the purpose of creating affordable housing.

The standard definition of affordable housing is “a household that spends less than 30% of their expenses on housing costs”. According to HUD:

An estimated 12 million renter and homeowner households now pay more then 50 percent of their annual incomes for housing, and a family with one full-time worker earning the minimum wage cannot afford the local fair-market rent for a two-bedroom apartment anywhere in the United States. (bold = my emphasis)

They go on to say:

The lack of affordable housing is a significant hardship for low-income households preventing them from meeting their other basic needs, such as nutrition and health care, or saving for their future and that of their families.

The Sun-Sentinel reported that Senate Economic Development Budget Chief Mike Fasano (R) said:
“We have a market full of built houses that no one is living in”

For real?!

And he’s in charge of economic development? How did this guy get elected? What about people living in apartments who can’t afford to buy? What about the people who previously “owned” those houses and were forced to leave them because they couldn’t afford them anymore? Where are they supposed to live?!

Is he suggesting we turn these houses into affordable housing? Because I’m all for that. Somehow, I’m pretty sure that’s not where he was headed with that comment.

But I can wish, can’t I?

I bet you’re jealous you don’t live in my neighborhood.

I was standing right behind my car in the parking lot when these were taken.

I’m glad you’ve been keeping things alive here.  I sure as hell don’t have the time to.

There were 100 people protesting US aid to Israel today on the corner of 56th and Fowler. When we drove by on the way home it was at least 150 people.

It was awesome and I got goosebumps. I honked for justice.

I recently added a bunch of blogs to my reader. I just got around to really looking at some of them - check out this gem of a tip for reducing your fever at work from Life Hackery: Useful, Unusual, and (Sometimes) Ironic Tips and Tricks to Hack Your Life into Shape [I admit it, the subtitle got me]

6. Puking - Puking is probably the world’s ickiest form of generating relief, but it is downright effective. Eat a fairly heavy meal for lunch then drink lots of liquids. When you feel your fever worsen, head to the restroom. Go to a cubicle and force yourself to puke. If you’re having a hard time vomiting, stick your index finger down your throat, which will trigger a puking episode. Continue the process until you feel much lighter. Though, you should avoid this strategy if you just took your medicine.

uhmmm, okay.

I guess I do have to give them some credit; the title does say Unusual Tips for Reducing your Fever at Work.

Scroll down to the next entry on the reader. It is called 14 Timely Things to Do Before Reaching 30.

In- teres- ting, I think. My 27th birthday is just around the corner, I should get cracking. As I scroll through, I’m not impressed with the list. Continue scrolling down - and then I am REALLY not impressed with the list.

13. Father Knows Best, When It Comes to Doing Business - Most dads, being experts in their fields, have picked up a ton of strategies that they will eventually pass on to their children. Approach your dad and engage him in a professional conversation. He will be more than happy to discuss with you what he learned in his profession. You will discover the challenges he had to overcome and the solutions he formulated to get by them. Apply all of the necessary concepts and examples to your line of work.

14. Mother Knows Best, When Forming a Home - Moms, even the career-oriented ones, have a strong attachment to the house. In most cases, dads are the chief providers while moms govern the household, including family relations. You can discuss with your mom the “dos” and “don’ts” when raising a family. She will teach you her best strategies and the behavioral patterns of each family member, given a certain scenario. In the end, you’ll have a good idea on how to create the perfect family environment.

Really?! Thanks for the nod to the career-oriented moms. Sheesh. But for real, as much as I love my mom, my father is much better at giving both types of advice. And what if you don’t have a “mom” or a “dad”, or have two moms or two dads?

*Unsubscribes*

Imagine my delight when I saw this article. (thanks Shakesville). I was delighted because I think it’s awesome that these workers organized themselves and agreed to a deal in which they will all receive about $6,000 a piece.

I was also delighted because of something that happened at work today. I saw a clip about the workers’ peaceful occupation in a paper that was on my desk. I remarked that it was awesome. One of my colleagues immediately commented “That 60’s activism doesn’t work anymore these days, all they’re going to do is get themselves arrested” (this seems to be a common opinion among my colleagues) I told him that no one had been arrested and I was behind their efforts. Little did I know that the workers were successful.

I sure can’t wait to go in tomorrow and share the good news!

Is this guy for real? A 10 million dollar bonus?!?!?

Check this out –> Recycle Bank

I say this about Alex Kuczynski’s article in NYT

Feministe says something remarkably similar and far more eloquent about Alex Kuczynski’s article in NYT

Have I mentioned how much I love Obama? Maybe when I’m done at AmeriCorps I’ll get a job doing public works

This post at The Stranger is amazing.

The people are revolting! I got goosebumps when I read more about this!