Things That Cross My Mind

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If there is one thing that I do incessantly it is try to understand the world around me. I am endlessly curious. If a group of people “A” do one thing, then why do others do “B”? What motivates them? What is their truth?

Like everyone, I am watching the news on Ebola very closely trying to gauge how it could impact me and our world. As someone who travels for a living, I need to know what is going on so I can take the necessary precautions to protect myself, and keep me and my business healthy.

One element that has me very curious right now is the bio-hazard cleanups that occurred in four Ebola cases that we know of here in the U.S. And it raises questions for me, and leaves me with no concrete answers to understand.

We have been told that the only way Ebola is transmitted is through direct contact with body fluids. And we’ve also been told that Ebola can only live on surfaces for a short period of time. I suspect these are both truths from what we know to date. I have little reason to doubt anyone about this at this point.

I did some digging and found the longest studied documented case of Ebola surviving on another substance was 6 days.

So when someone comes down with Ebola, why are we severely gutting their apartments?

See what they did to Amber Vinson’s apartment here.

I can understand saying the apartment is a danger zone and banning people from entry for a week or two, and cleaning out perishable foods and liquids, and any contaminants such as blood or vomit, but to remove 53 barrels of waste material and call it hazardous from a small apartment is unsettling. They removed nearly everything.

It seems completely inconsistent and has me scratching my head in curiosity.

Also, I wouldn’t think they would want to send anyone in for a week to make sure we don’t further contaminate people unnecessarily.  Why take undue risks that aren’t necessary?  Let the virus die if it is there.

If they just did a basic sanitation and closed and locked the door for two weeks, you would think that would be sufficient, but by the actions we see people doing, they don’t believe it is. And who makes these decisions?  What are the laws? Are we just reacting out of fear?  What is the truth here? Is there fear Ebola could be spread through the air?

Then I was shocked to read the fiancee of the doctor in New York City, Morgan Dixon, went back to the apartment they shared with Craig Spencer, the first NYC doctor to return from Africa and get Ebola.  After a 1-day bio-cleanup in his apartment, she returned there again.   You can surmise if she was able to return to that apartment to live in it, it obviously wasn’t nearly as stripped as what we saw happen to the Texas for the nurses apartments, without question.

Why the differences?

And so I ask what is the truth here? Are people simply reacting in panic? Is this only going to happen in apartments to alleviate fears of the remaining residence? Is this overly cautious behavior?  Or is there more to this?

Can we continue to do this if we get a bigger outbreak?  Is this reasonable?

Right now I do not have the answers…I am watching closely to learn more.

 

How Chewing Gum Affects Your Perception

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It’s probably contrary to what you think, but I also think it depends on how you “chew it” too!

What I think we see here is that “stiff people” are perceived as cold. Movement causes us to relate more to people and it makes them more approachable.

However, I also suspect if you have a bunch of people chewing with disregard (i.e. smacking lips, making noises, opening their mouth wide), it would turn back the other direction and people would see them as unreliable and quirky and likely side with the person who is not moving.

More on chewing gum: Did you know it increases your cognitive ability and aids in concentration? And it may be better than caffeine in durations shorter than 20 minutes?  Who knew?

So what is the verdict: Will you now chew gum?

Are moms good at spotting lies?

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If you didn’t see Dateline on Sunday night, and you are a parent of a teenager, I highly recommend it. If there is one group of people who I meet who consistently tell me they are good at spotting lies, its moms. They watch their children lie and feel confidentially they can call it out, but in the presence of many, I can tell you they don’t see the clues as often as they think they do, and often misjudge the situation.

Here is an interesting article from Psychology Today: Is Your Teen Trustworthy? Can you Tell?

Quoted from the article:

  • 57% of the time mothers believed that adolescents were telling the truth, teens really were
  • 33% of the time mothers believed adolescents were lying, teens said they were telling the truth

What do you think? Do you trust your teenager not to get in a car with a drunk driver?