Lost on Route 66

A few things that crossed my mind, somewhere between DC and LA.

Economy plus, aisle seat, center section, empty middle seat, pleasant, but not too talkative, neighbor. This may be the most enjoyable cross- country flight I have ever taken.

The closet in a New York City boutique hotel is larger than the lavatory on this plane.

Is anyone else frightened by the sheer force with which aircraft comodes dispatch our waste? Is it suction generated by the aircraft, or an FAA-approved singularity?

Unless you are flying Jet Blue, find the Dunkin Donuts in your terminal before you board. (Jet Blue is based in Boston, the home of Dunkin Donuts - the best mass-market coffee. ever.)

Scarves. You'd be surprised how much warmer you feel with your neck comfortably covered. Less bulky than a jacket. Far more stylish. Could probably be wrapped around your eyes if you didn't have anything else to block out light.

There's something compelling about watching a TV show or movie without the sound. I find it deepens my appreciation for the art of acting.

Much like listening to Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon while watching the Wizard of Oz, whatever music you are listening to will seem to synchronize with the in-flight movie.

Watching anything by the Wikowski brothers or Pixar will highten the effect of the previous statement.

What have you learned at 36,000 feet?

Social Justice Camp DC began Friday with a evening of 5-minute Pecha-Kucha presentations, all focusing on Social Justice.  Speakers were brilliant, passionate advocates that discussed issues ranging from saving DC social programs from budget cuts to Regina Holliday's medical advocacy murals, created to promote patient's rights.  The inspiring civil and human rights work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was mentioned often, including in my own presentation.

My talk chronicled my experience looking for a definition of Social Justice.  After the usual Internet sources failed, I turned to an unlikely method: translate Social Justice into Japanese characters and then analyze those characters as if they were telling a story.

The results were surprising (and a bit funny), but eventually lead me to my own definition of Social Justice.

@cindythroop shot video from the front row.

I took the audio from her recording and created a video the shows only the slides.

Interestingly, I did some of the development of this idea on my $20 wall-sized whiteboard.

Fascinated by this process, I'm working a new Found in Translation.

Here's the write-up for the 5-minute Petcha-Kucha presentation I'm giving tonight at Social Justice Camp DC.  I'll post a video if there is one.  Otherwise, I'll record the narration and post on YouTube.

Found in Translation: Social Justice

Coming from the Government 2.0 and Health 2.0 communities, I wasn't really sure what Social Justice was.  After a few conversations and web surfing, I realized it was a question I would have to answer for myself.  In studying foreign languages, I've found that one tends to learn more about one's own culture when seen through the lens of another.  So to decipher the meaning of Social Justice, I turned to the characters of the Japanese language.  Each character, a complex pictograph, tells a story.  I wanted to see what story the characters for Social Justice would tell.

Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love, read from her newest work, Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage and answered questions at a signing last night organized by Politics and Prose at the Sixth & I Historic Synagogue in Washington, DC.

I was first introduced to Gilbert's work by a friend who showed me Gilbert's amazing TED talk on creativity and then lent me her copy of Eat, Pray, Love.

Gilbert opened the evening by thanking everyone for coming.  She added, "Especially the men.  You're very brave."  (counting myself, there may have been 10 men in the audience of 700)

Gilbert read for about 30 minutes from Committed.  In the book, she and her lover (not a U.S. citizen) are separated at the border and are told the only way he will ever be allowed back in the U.S. is if they marry.  The memoir chronicles her quest to overcome fear of marriage (both had lived through horrific divorces) by learning as much as possible about the history of the institution.  I would describe her prose as disarming self-disclosure.  She is a gifted storyteller, with a warm, familiar tone, as if talking with a close friend.

I'll leave reviews of Eat, Pray, Love and Committed to others.  Of course, I highly recommend them both.  Actually, my recommendation would be to listen to Gilbert read the books herself.

Because I have little time to read, and because I was so drawn into her TED talk, I purchased the audio version of Eat, Pray, Love, read by Gilbert.  I had already read a couple of chapters and knew I wanted to follow her journey across Italy, India, and Indonesia.  In all honesty, I enjoyed the experience so much (it was my first audio book) I will certainly purchase the audio version of Committed when it is released.

Gilbert's honest and sincere tone was echoed by those from the audience who asked questions after the reading.

One person asked for advice on marrying someone from another culture.  Gilbert replied that even if we marry someone born in the same country, "I think we all end up marrying someone from 'another culture'."

One particularly amusing comment came from a woman who had found Eat, Pray, Love but was unsure about reading the book and didn't want to "jump into anything without being certain."  Gilbert was amused by her serious attitude towards reading selection.  After she began reading Eat, Pray, Love she devoured the novel.  "I only ate, slept, and read until I was finished."

The question of same sex marriage being addressed in Committed was asked.  Yes, topic is addressed in detail in several parts of the book.

When asked if she thought marriage as an institution would be better off without government intervention, Gilbert replied, yes.  However, she provided this justification for why that can never happen.

You can't have marriage without intimacy.
You can't have intimacy without privacy.
You can't have privacy without rights.
And you can't have rights without a government to protect those rights.

Her prediction for same-sex marriage: it will most definitely happen.  Just as inter-racial marriages have happened, and others before that, this too will become a reality in the U.S.  "The couples always win.  Always."

Her advice for for those about to marry, or anyone entering into a relationship?

Go into a relationship whole. Or at least owning all of your own holes.  You can want someone else to fill in the holes.  The idea of someone completing us is deeply ingrained in our culture.  But it should not be an expectation.  "You shouldn't impale someone with your holes."

When asked about a section from Eat, Pray, Love regarding soulmates, Gilbert replied she has an "allergic reaction to the word."  Such a weight has been placed on that concept by our culture, that she cringes at its use.  She is happy for those who feel they have found their soulmate, but for her, she holds partnership and companionship as aspects of a successful long-term relationship.

Gilbert's advice for writers on proof-reading: read it out loud.  The ear hears more than the eye sees, she says.  Always have an audience before you begin writing.  For any writing, no matter how small or humble, select at least one person to which to write.  Gilbert herself had a circle of close friends read Committed as she was writing it.  She adds that the book could just as well be said to have been written by them all.

When asked why she discarded the first manuscript for Committed, Gilbert responded she read an excerpt to her husband one evening in bed (not a spoiler - it's well-known there is a happy ending).  He was silent for a long time afterwards.  He finally said, "I'm a little tired.  Maybe you should read it to me again in the morning."  She put it away and never touched it again.

On setting realistic goals as a writer: "My goal was to publish before I died."

In an unexpected commentary on technology and the evolution of writing, Gilbert explained she doesn't have much advice for young writers on how to break into the business.  "I typed manuscripts on a typewriter, put them into manilla envelopes, and mailed them to editors at glossy magazines that don't exist anymore."

She did add, "Write the stories you are compelled to write by your conscience."

After answering questions, Gilbert signed several hundred copies of Committed and, despite the line wrapping around the inside the synagogue,  took time to hear each individual's personal message.

Thanks to Politics and Prose and the Sixth and I Historic Synagogue for hosting this event.

And thank you to Elizabeth Gilbert for sharing her experiences with a sincerity and candor that shows the true potential of loving oneself and sharing that love with another.

A few days ago @chiah tweeted a link to a video from iBusinessMagazine demonstrating how to make a $4 wall-sized whiteboard.  Since I have recently been debating paying $150+ for a whiteboard for my home I decided to give this a try.

The local Michael's arts and crafts store had everything required:

- 1 roll of Clearphane by Highlander $10
- Dry erase markers $7.50
- Eraser $2.00

Total w/ tax ~$20

Yes, this is a bit more than $4, but worth it in my opinion for the reasons listed next.  This solution is inexpensive, easy to setup, and convenient.  However the real benefits are surprising.

Pros:
- Great way to test "Do I want to spend $150 on a real whiteboard for my house, office, etc.?"  Use this for a week or two and see how much (and in what ways) you actually use it.
- Could be setup for gathering in non-office location: (insert name of)Camp, strategy session, etc.
- Party.  Let guests exchange ideas (since so many of parties become brainstorming sessions anyway) or simply draw.
- Giant Canvas. This is the real hidden value!  This creates a HUGE canvas upon which to create HUGE art. Or a lot of small art.
- Children. Those with children (or guests with children) can do the bottom of a wall and let kids be creative w/o worry.

Cons:
- Massive glare (difficult to take a picture of anything but a small area
- Certain colors show better than others (blue, using EXPO brand markers)
- Occasional issues when writing/erasing across border/overlap
- Erasing after marker has set a few hours requires some effort
- If you have pets, vacuum first.  There will still be hair under the cellophane anyway.
- Bubbles/ripples will remain even after smoothing that will be visually distracting, but won't interfere with writing too much

Installation tips:
In addition to the video, here are a few extra pointers to improve the process.
- After laying each strip, use the tube to smooth out air.  Slide sideways first in one long motion, then diagonal to top and bottom.
- If laying multiple vertical strips for a writing surface higher than 3 feet, lay the bottom strip first.  This creates a clean 3 feet high writing surface and decreases the likelihood of crossing the border between two strips.  When laying strips close to the floor (for use by children, for example) lay the top strip first, then bottom.
- If laying multiple vertical strips, allow overlap between the strips.  Creating a perfect line for the two strips would be difficult enough.  The danger or pulling or ripping the material when drawing or erasing is much greater than when strips overlap.  Also, overlapping strips will stick to each other.
- Be careful putting tacks in, as the pressure will break the seal with the wall and pull the material towards the tack. 

Will I use this as a permanent whiteboard?  No.  Will I use it in situations listed in the Pros section? Yes.

Here's a (low quality) pic of a mind-map on my $20 wall-sized whiteboard.

Traditionally, researchers sequester their data/analysis until it is either presented at an academic conference (with limited attendance/digital footprint) or published in a peer-reviewed journal (potentially, more than a year after the original research).  H1N1 requires rapid sharing of information across disciplines to increase the speed of research and understanding to create vaccines, interventions, etc.

PLoS Currents: Influenza - a mash-up of the Public Library of Science (PLoS), Google Knol, and the National Library of Medicine's National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) - combines three unlikely partners to enable researchers to share and discuss research before publication, promoting rapid advances in H1N1 research.

The peer review process for publication of scientific research can take years.  This lag stifles innovation.  In order to effectively respond to the H1N1 pandemic, research findings must be quickly shared in a manner that promotes discussion and derivative research, while ensuring that scientists are credited in the traditional (slower) system of peer-reviewed publication.

This is accomplished not by bypassing the peer-review process, but by setting up a system for information exchange prior to peer-review. 

Scientists who wish to share information in this way start by creating a knol in Google Knol for their findings.  Google Knol is a user-generated/moderated content system designed to encourage discussion, allowing for different viewpoints to be presented (as opposed to tradition wikis which require consensus, creating the potential for "edit wars.").  Knols have a variety of addition features, such a user profiles, ratings, and reviews, which enhance community interaction.

The knol is then submitted to PLoS Currents: Influenza and reviewed by PLoS subject matter experts.  This is NOT a traditional peer-review process.  Reviewers do not evaluate articles at the same level of scrutiny.  They simply evaluate if the work has scientific merit.  Those articles which are deemed appropriate are added to PLoS Currents: Influenza.  Publishers are expected to not consider an article in PLoS Currents as "prior publication."  Discussion between researchers, meanwhile, happens in the knol, which displays the PLoS Currents banner.

Once included in PLoS Currents, articles are archived at NCBI's Rapid Research Notes (RRN).  This is separate from PubMed.  Articles are licensed under Creative Commons to encourage further use.

Since PLoS Currents: Influenza went online in August, only 42 articles have been added.  However, the system demonstrates how new methods of communication and collaboration within the research community can be developed without encroaching on tradition.

Last night I moderated Health 2.0 STAT.  The seven speakers at the event represented biomedical research, medical museums, health insurers, universities, and developers. 

Each of the speakers presented ideas and programs which are changing the way we interact with health information and each other.  Disruption and innovation go hand-in-hand.  In Health 2.0, what separates creative destruction from anarchy is the set of common beliefs that bind us in our efforts; concepts so basic, they are easily overlooked.

I opened the discussion by asking each speaker what they would NOT change as we work to transform health care.  Their responses highlighted the core elements that define the space in which we are creating change.

Mission
Contextually relevant use of information
Actionable information
Documentation, Education
Sounds principles of training
Making mistakes
Communication

Organizing the responses, I realized I had heard this message before.  Jeffrey Levy, EPA Web Manager, opened Government 2.0 Camp earlier this year with his social media mantra.

Mission, Tools, Metrics, Teach.  In that order.

When asked what they hold sacred as they dismantle and rebuild, this group of speakers, with varied academic and career backgrounds, recreated the elements of Levy's mantra.

After the Q&A session, I closed the discussion by drawing on Clay Shirky's concept of cognitive surplus and Wikipedia (the amount of time Americans spend watching commercials each weekend is enough time to recreate Wikipedia, as of 2008). 

I asked each speaker what they would have every person in the United States do, if they were able to give us all a one hour task over one weekend.

Dr. Carol Torgan - Unplug, go outside.
Tim Clarke, Jr. - Visit a medical museum, make a connection to something, get outside
Lindsey Hoggle - Health 2%: Use 2% of one's day - 28.8 minutes (you could do this 2x) for wellness and prevention
Mark Scrimshire - walk to grocery store, take blood pressure, put in PHR, tweet amount of exercise
Dr. Michael Paley - Write down what works for medication, exercise, etc.
Chris Lindsley - come to UMMC website, find health information, educate oneself
Ram Singh - Learn statistics, get outside

Their answers provide a roadmap to improved health outcomes that has less to do with technology and much more to do with taking responsibility for one's own health.

Lately, I'm seeing a disturbing trend on Twitter: people copying someone else's tweets and presenting them as their own.  I'm not talking about retweeting.  Retweeting references the author of the original tweet, either with "RT" or "via" and the author's name or handle.  Retweeting is a sign of respect.  It serves to not only propagate ideas, but lends weight to them with every post.   

Yes, 140 characters is a limited space.  Sometimes editing has to occur.  However, the author's name is the one item which should never be omitted.

Intention is irrelevant.  Omissions of ignorance damage the shared creative process which supports and nurtures us all, as much as deliberate presentation of another's idea as our own.

Both the Health 2.0 and Government 2.0 movements are focused on transformation.  Our ideas and thoughts are our resources and capitol.  They are the discoveries which drive innovation.  Viewed in this light, we are scientists and entrepreneurs.

However, we are also activists.  We are not creating ideas, as much as we are creating change.  Shirky said "revolution doesn't happen when society adopts new technology, it happens when society adopts new behaviors."

When we support each other, we achieve so much more collectively, than we could as the sum of our individual efforts.  We are pushing forward; disrupting and creating.  Together.

Be proud to be an information source, as well as a creator.  Don't remove someone's name from their tweet.

Normal.dotm 0 0 1 335 1915 National Library of Medicine 15 3 2351 12.0 0 false 10 pt 0 2 false false false $([\{£¥‘“〈《「『【〔＄（［｛｢￡￥ !%),.:;?]}¢°’”‰′″℃、。々〉》」』】〕゛゜ゝゞ・ヽヾ！％），．：；？］｝｡｣､･ﾞﾟ￠ <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-font-charset:78; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:1 0 16778247 0 131072 0;} @font-face {font-family:"\@ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-font-charset:78; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:1 0 16778247 0 131072 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} /* Page Definitions */ @page {mso-page-border-surround-header:no; mso-page-border-surround-footer:no;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} -->

Last night I tweeted from a sushi restaurant about something new I was going to try.  By now, Twitter has most of us trained to post just about anything with a modicum of interest. "The sky is blue." "I like ice." "I'm about to eat live shellfish."

Knowing there were a couple of friends on Facebook who might be interested in knowing what the sushi chef was poking in front of me (to prove it was still alive), I updated my status as well.

I found the timing of the responses and my reaction to them interesting.  Twitter started and ended quickly. After the initial responses, my original tweet was lost in the noise of the timeline.  On FB, the news feed tends to have lower volume and many of us scan backwards. When's the last time you heard of someone scanning back in his or her Twitter timeline?  (by the time you’ve read these first three paragraphs, you've probably missed a hundred tweets)

The Twitter responses were from someone I've never met, but with whom I have shared work-related RTs, and two from people I met a couple weeks ago at a conference.  They were all amusing.  There was a sense of connection; however it would be more accurate to say it felt as if they were watching me on TV.

On FB, the experience was quite different.  Responses came over the next hour or so. Friends I hadn't talked to in years replied. We had friended each other and traded a couple of initial messages, but that was it.  An old friend I had visited months ago replied. I went to his wall and left a comment. Someone else included an unrelated question. I replied on her wall.  (Kudos to the new iPhone FB app for making the transition between profiles seamless.)  When I read each person’s comment, I could hear their voice and imagine how they might say it.  My reaction to each was unique.

This is not to compare Twitter to FB.  The Twitter contacts were all professional. FB, all personal.  Ambient intimacy, though triggered by these brief connections, is limited by the existing relationship, in which I believe face-to-face contact eventually becomes a limiting reagent.

Point being, face-to-face contact is still a major turning point in relationships begun online.  The depth of a relationship enhances the contextual bandwidth; especially for those of us who speak low-context languages, such as English.

A recent study published in the International Journal of Medical Informatics found that young physicians overwhelmingly turn to Google and Wikipedia when searching for clinical information.  There isn't even a peer-reviewed resource in the top 3.   PubMed, largest biomedical literature database in the world, doesn't even make the top 5.

At first glance, this appears quite frightening.  It conjures images of an exam where your physician stops and says, "Now is this benign or malignant? Let me check Wikipedia first."  As an aside, I wonder how many physicians now have patients telling them, "I'm not sure if this is the best course of treatment. I read on Wikipedia that..."

Regardless, conclusions cannot be drawn from merely looking at resource choice.  Physicians undergo years of rigorous training.  Residency is notoriously brutal.  By the time a physician is in practice, he or she is a walking medical encyclopedia, attached to a neural network with the most advanced semantic and natural language processing algorithms in existence, which has the ability to learn and adapt based on personal and shared experiences.  And, they have taken the Hippocratic Oath, a feature that has yet to be incorporated into any medical decision-support system of which I am aware.

Perhaps these young physicians are simply using the the search tools they find most effective.  In the study, respondants cited accessibility to up to date information and ease of use are primary motivations.  Should a physician be questioned for choosing Google as a search engine, when 72% of the U.S. market does as well.  Additionally, large corporations, academic institutions, hospitals, as well as state and federal agencies use Google search technology.

The more precise question may be, "What is the physician's final source for information?"  Google Search provides links and exerpts, not the information itself.

Perhaps, these physicians are looking for something else.  What do 4 of the 5 top choices for young physicians have in common?  Answer - They foster an online community through enabling contribution and discussion.

That will be the topic of the next post, "The New Triumvirate in Research."