Militarily fit-to-serve by state (round 2)

Last weekend, I created a "fit-to-serve" index by state. As I was constructing it, it felt like too much emphasis was being put on the percentage of each state's population on parole, on probation, in jail, or in prison. So I went back and reworked the numbers in to create a more straightforward, less arbitrary way of measuring eligibility by state--I simply added the totals of the three inhibiting factors together and then subtracted that sum from...

Not too skinny, not too fat, but just right

Last winter, Half Sigma pointed to an online FAQ where it was revealed that commercial turkeys have, through selective breeding, developed breasts too large to allow for natural breeding to occur. Consequently, they must be artificially inseminated. He wondered if there was something applicable to humans in this:People have also been, allegedly, getting fatter. I think we need to look into whether there’s a genetic explanation. Are fat people having...

Military fit-to-serve index by state

A report released a few months ago assessing the percentage of those aged 17-24 able to serve in the US military found three quarters unable to do so. That a majority of young Americans are deemed unfit to serve stems from three major causes: Poor health (including obesity), failure to graduate from high school, and the carrying of some sort of criminal record.Data are reported for each of these inhibiting factors at the state level. Some people...

The day the editorially-reviewed scientific journal died

... a week ago today.Medical Hypotheses' editor, Bruce G. Charlton, is truly an intellectual polymath whose impact on my own thinking can hardly be overstated. Dennis Mangan raised the banner and has fought valiantly in the trenches of the blogosphere for several months now in BGC's defence, while a host of scientists wrote the management of Medical Hypotheses' parent publisher asking, suggesting, and demanding that the alternative publication be...

Pew on Hispa-, er, Latino youths in the US

Last December, the Pew Hispanic Center released a report entitled "Between Two Worlds: How Young Latinos* Come of Age in America". For those with an interest in the future socio-cultural environment of the US, there is plenty to think about. Following are a few words on some of those things.Steve Sailer has observed that subsequent generations of Hispanics are indeed assimilating to US norms of behavior. But they are black norms, not white ones....

State IQ estimates (2009)

With the 2009 NAEP scores out, it seems as good a time as any to update the IQ estimates by state that are based on the federally administered tests. Previously, I used math and science scores from 2005 to construct the estimates. However, science testing was not conducted in 2009, so I've substituted reading for science this time around.The scores for both tests are on a 500 point scale, with a designed standard deviation of 50. In the proceeding...

Another historic milestone has been reached!

In today's NPR morning news cycle, Elena Kagan's nomination was described as heralding the first instance in US' history of three women simultaneously sitting on the bench of the Supreme Court.Seriously.It. Will. Never. E...

Some thoughts on Arizona Senate Bill 1070

Because I can always use some help when I put on my polemical hat, the following is excerpted from a facebook discussion that started with a status update by yours truly. Any suggestions to make my points more clear and forceful are appreciated. Most of the entries in the comment thread are 'witty' one-liners, quotes from MLK, etc. The only real argumentation comes from a girl in law school who is a SWPL if I've ever known one, so that's all I'll...

Demographics by state a generation down the road

Our children are our future, right? So we'd best have an idea of who they are. The 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores are out, and the companion site is laden with worthwhile data.In the US, 12% of school age children are enrolled in private schools, so NAEP does not capture them. It's difficult to find a demographic breakdown of private school students at the national level, but using 2005-2006 data from the National...

Charter cities: Institute Occidental rules, realize Occidental results?

In a recent EconTalk podcast, host Russ Roberts had Stanford's Paul Romer on to talk about the latter's ideas about what he calls "charter cities". Romer explains that Haitians are miserable because they live under terrible rules. He suggests letting them seek out 'charter cities'--something akin to Singapore with a suzerainty and guarantor of laws that doesn't interfere with...