Complex systems, individual and networked dependencies on technology, and an increasingly connected world have both expanded our potential and our vulnerability. Our lives, both functionally and socially, have become hopelessly intertwined with a series of systems that operate both outside us, in a global information network, and inside our lives and homes, as a life convenience. Artificial intelligence [...]
In the conversation in her head she remarks, "I am fascinated by the new year phenomenon. Why do people place so much emphasis on the power of, and potential for, change at the outset of the new calendar year?" Albeit, she is quickly distracted by a burning urge to ready her brand new journal to [...]
Today is the six year anniversary of the Galleria fire. It is difficult to believe it was six years ago, I can recall so many of the moments in the week after the fire like they were yesterday - they are burned into my soul. I still remember watching the fire in disbelief as multiple fire [...]
Today I inadvertently left the house without my phone. It did not realize that I was without it until I arrived at the university. My initial reaction was a sense of mental confusion - almost as if I had lost my bearings. It was kind of like those dreams you have where you are the [...]
September 11, 2001 was 15 years ago. In my estimation, those years seem to have passed quickly. In my young college students' estimation, that was an awfully long time ago. Indeed, the vast majority of them were in first grade on September 11, 2001. It is an interesting phenomenon to experience being the older person in a [...]
I visited Fargo Cass Public Health a couple of weeks ago at their relatively new location (since August last year) on 25th Street South. Locals may recall that Public Health spent many years downtown before the move to the former Sunmart location off 13th Avenue. I really like their new location, it is bright and cheery and very easy [...]
Let me say at the outset that I do not draw conclusions about the actions of law enforcement officers from videos posted on social media. I learned long ago that it is prudent to wait to hear all the facts before coming to any conclusion about whether an officer's actions were lawful and justified. The split-second decisions [...]
THE NEW FORTY 