Random pictures - books

 

 

Source: Brian Dettmer Art made from books....

Random charts - drug shortages

 

 

 

Source: Drug Shortages: Certain Factors Are Strongly Associated with This Persistent Public Health Challenge (76-pg GAO report)

Canary - first look

I had ordered a Canary via Indiegogo quite some time ago, and when it was delivered I put it in a cupboard and promptly forgot all about it... Months later I pulled it out, and today I set it up - plugged it in, downloaded the app from the Google Play Store, and set it up. The Canary's specifications:

Camera:

• 1080p HD Camera
• 147° Wide-angle lens
• Automatic night vision
• Motion detection

Sensors:

• 3-axis accelerometer
• Ambient light
• Capacitive touch

HomeHealth Technology^TM

• Temperature
• Humidity
• Air quality

Audio & Siren:

• High-quality microphone
• Built-in speaker
• 90+ dB siren

Connectivity:

• 2.4GHz Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n)
• Wired Ethernet

Size & Weight:

• Height: 6 in (152.4 mm)
• Diameter: 3 in (76.2 mm)
• Weight: 0.87 lb (396 g)

Some pictures -

 

 

And the view:

Canary Reviews:
Canary Smart Home Security Device review C|net
Canary Home Security System: Hands-on Review! (YouTube)
Review: Canary security camera learns your habits as it keeps watch 
Canary review: A sophisticated home-security system packed inside a camera

Amazon Echo - first look

 

Sprung for an Amazon Echo and remote... Unboxed, completed the easy set-up in under ten minutes...

 

Added the Kasa skill to have it control my TP-Link lights; added the Samsung SmartThings skill to get voice control of my other lights and (limited) voice control of my Sonos system... Enjoying it so far.

Amazon Echo Reviews:
Amazon echo review - c|net
Echo reviews on amazon.com
Amazon Echo review - Engadget
Amazon Echo review: The sequel
The Amazon Echo Review - Tools and Toys
How to use the Amazon Echo and why you should get one
The Echo from Amazon Brims with Groundbreaking Promise
One year after Alexa: Amazon's Echo has found a small but smart niche
Amazon Echo Adds 1,000 New Feature, making It Even More Amazing

Amazon Echo Forums:
Amazon Echo Forum
Amazon Echo - Android Forums
Amazon Echo Discussion
Amazon Echo - Universal Devices

Random chart - waste

Source: Managing waste in emerging markets

"... Economic growth in emerging economies is bringing prosperity, rising living standards, and overdue relief from poverty, but increased consumption typically increases resource use—especially the use of plastics—and waste production...

The Philippines is a case in point: it produces 2.7 million metric tons of plastic waste per year—600,000 metric tons in metro Manila alone. While the country has high waste-collection rates overall (84 percent nationwide), 17 percent of collected plastics is lost into the marine ecosystem after collection because of illegal dumping and poor landfill siting and operating practices. For uncollected plastics, the ocean-leakage rate is even higher, at 31 percent. The economic losses in tourism, fisheries, and healthcare are considerable. We estimate that each metric ton of uncollected mixed waste represents an average loss of approximately $375.

As Inge Lardinois and Arnold van de Klundert wrote 20 years ago: “By almost any form of evaluation, solid waste management is a growing environmental and financial problem in developing countries. Despite significant efforts in the last decades, the majority of municipalities in the developing countries cannot manage the growing volume of waste produced in their cities...”

Random chart - migrants in U.S.

Source: Origins and Destinations of the World’s Migrants, from 1990-2015

Random chart - internet use

Source: Why a staggering number of Americans have stopped using the Internet the way they used to