world health in last 200 years

12.29.10: We have seen this approach in movies and it's about time it became more main-stream in this technological world we now live in. Certainly does allow us to absorb a lot of information quickly.


This world health change visualization, at first glance, indicates great world-wide health improvement in the last 200 years.


On the other hand, from a futures perspective, it looks like trouble ahead ... can our world handle this speed of increased life expectancy with growing populations in the next 200 years?


Also, if you noticed, average income in China and India, in the last 30 years, is increasing more quickly than the industrialized countries - cost of labour intensive goods will increase.


However, knowing this should allow us to create near future opportunities from future problems.


For instance, this xmas season saw emphasis on shipping (online purchases). 
Larger populations mean more customers. But manual shopping is becoming more difficult due to time to purchase. More people will shop online which mean more shipping ... maybe time to invest in the shipping industry as well as companies who emphasize online shopping. eBay saw this quite a while ago. Companies like Walmart and BestBuy haven't picked up on this yet.


All this, and much more, from a single YouTube presentation...

Bell - Rogers - Is It Worth the Struggle

16.01.08: Our Rogers deal expired in December and I looked forward to 'discussing' options again with Rogers.

Our December bill showed about 8 discounted things would be no longer discounted ... raising the bill by about $100/mo.

In recent months, I have noticed nothing (other than a few sports and news channels) worth watching. Apple TV seemed to be satisfactory for grandchildren and nothing on the HBO or specialty channels were of interest.

I decided to reduce TV to a minimum and reduce Internet somewhat and home phone cell phones could remain the same. I would like to get rid of home phone but Helen wants it.

I reviewed Rogers bundles and Bell Fibe bundle prices for comparable services and noticed prices were only slightly less ... not worth the extra effort unless Rogers were unwilling to compromise for a long term customer.

I made the Rogers call on January 4th.

Just as I was beginning the conversation, I decided (to keep it simple) to request they do whatever is necessary to reduce our monthly bill. 
After an initial discussion, I was asked to hold while they discussed with another group (discovered later, it was the loyalty group).
More discussion occurred with me and the loyalty person and they did a few things i agreed with and indicated I would be charges about $15 less than the November bill ... and be given a new modem.

Skeptical as I am with Rogers promises, I then waited a day to see what channels I would no longer be receiving.  

Now, a few of days later, I have noticed no change in the channels and Internet speed the same or better.

Once, again, active/firm discussion with Rogers support appears to have paid off (for another 2 years).

As I mentioned, thy provided a new modem which took a little time to install as their instructions were wrong.

As some of you do, we use a wireless router attached to the Rogers modem. Initially, I just replaced the old Rogers modem with the new Hitron modem (CGN2-ROG) and tested the speed with speedtest.net and noticed acceptable speed. 

I then switched the PC network to access the Hitron modem instead of our router and saw much increased speed.

I then switched my smartphone to the 5G wi-fi network that was presented under wi-fi settings, and received even faster speed.

If you switch Rogers modems and want help, give me a call.

If you want to discuss how to deal with Rogers to reduce your bill, give me a call.



13.12.11: Called Bell to cancel the service and they tried to sell me on better Internet speed using fiber optics (fast is fast - no sell) and better phone line quality (analog better than digital - no sell) and would not lower the price further. They were very polite in canceling the install.
As you can see from the blog response below, perhaps I could have pushed Rogers for more. Next time...


10.11.12 - Well, it is that time again ... put one against the other for the best Internet rate.
I must admit, it isn't something i would undertake if i wasn't retired.
However, it is worth the effort, if you have the patience, to see how good a deal you can get.


Bottom line - I got more capacity, faster speed, at less cost!


To set the stage:
I did this last year and ended up staying with Rogers as Bell wouldn't do better.
I first called Bell and hassled them for a better rate than what Rogers was providing. They indicated the best rate would happen if I included home phone (which would be completely transparent - same phone number and options).


What Happened:
This time, it appears Bell is willing to negotiate. Provided i agreed to include home phone, i got: 
 - 20% increase in Internet access speed (12Mbps), 
 - 25% increase in Internet download data per month, 
 - and reduced my monthly Internet charge by %15.
So I signed up.


Not Finished Yet:
Then I called Rogers and told them I was going to Bell because they were giving me a better rate and more capacity ... fully expecting Rogers to say they wouldn't better it.


To my surprise, Rogers, without any discussion, gave me: 
 - a new modem for no rental fee for 12 months ($7/mo thereafter), 
 - increase my speed 50% (10Mbps to 15Mbps),
 - increased my download capacity 33% (80GBs), and reduce my Rogers Internet charge by 30%.


I have set up and tried the faster Rogers service (actual speed is over 20Mbps - and it is quite noticeable) and now have 80GBs of storage (I do download a lot of movies).


Good thing i am retired and have the time to play...

Up-to-the-minute Hydro Usage

12.13.10 - Accessed my account at PowerStream and checked the data. See daily usage below. 
12.09.10 - In the Toronto Star today.
Now that we are on smart meters, we need to know our current usage (just as we do for Internet usage).
What better way is there to determine the savings generated by less electricity for specific household activities and uses.
I should be able to determine cost of leaving my computer running and we should be able to see cost of running the clothes washer and dishwasher during the normal times of the week-day vs week-ends.


As you would expect, Hydro One is NOT up-to-date yet. Their 'smart' system is not really smart ... yet.


However, they expect to have up-to-the minute consumer data soon. Stay tuned!

For now, PowerStream (Markham) has the same data for their customers (previous day) and it is quite useful. Sign in to PowerStream and look for "Smart Meter Electricity Consumption".


Here is our hourly usage 12/09 and it appears quite high at 10am and 9pm, as with other days. We will need to keep track of what we do at those times, as we are not sure right now.





I would expect to be able to adjust my home hydro usage from my iPhone, while skiing in Whistler ... very soon ...

Hydro One and PowerStream  have an Internet application that will present all your DAY OLD usage data. 

Mitigating Genetic Heritage

11.21.10 - Some people question my skipping lunches in retirement. 

Here is an article from today's Toronto Star that appears to support this approach.

I have always thought the body works better with less (but always quality) food and i enjoy being a little hungry..

What is your opinion?
 

Winter Garden Preparation

11/11/10 - I have been a fan of Mark Cullen for quite some time.
He has a blog and present gardening tips in the Star periodically.
His guidance to winter garden preparation is quite valuable.


This article in the Star Saturday, Nov 6, 2010, has many good tips to getting ready for 2011.


1. apply a good winter fertilizer (12-3-8) NOW. 


2. cut your lawn NOW and don't leave any leaves or grass clippings on the lawn. 


3. apply spiral plastic protectors to your young trees (ifodents are in your area).


4. apply approx 18" of top soil or triple mix around roses, floribunda.


5. a couple of burlap layers for the smaller cedars and junipers.


6. leave the leaves (mulch) on your gardens.


7. fully water your evergreens that are under your eves.


8. turn off your outside water (from the inside) and leave the taps open.

ETFs - I Bought Some

10/23/10 - Back on Oct 9th, I indicated i would be getting into Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) if they were a relatively safe way of investing in the shorter term (important to those over 60).

After extensive reading (i still do not fully understand how ETFs work), i decided to buy these three:
1. HBP S&P/TSX Global Base Metals Bull + ETF
2. HBP MSCI Emerging Markets Bull + ETF
3. HBP COMEX Gold Bullion Bull + ETF

Here is a chart showing how most ETF type gold, base metals and emerging markets stocks are doing right now.


It still appears to be a good time to invest in precious metals and base metals, as world demand (China and India) is on the rise.






Let's see how they do ...

Investing - buy when it snows and sell when it goes

(left-click to enlarge pic) 

10/23/10 - Here is a very unusual way of timing your stock market investments!

Have you tried it?

To recap the article (for those worker-bees), do seasonal investing ... buy S&P/TSX index (such as ETFs) in October and sell in May.

In their analysis, $10,000 in S&P/TSX index from 1977 (buying in October and selling in late May) to 2010 would havew produced $176,000.

Not knowing what the markets would have produced over that time, this still looks like an excellent ROI.

Canada banks also have this type of trending for Oct-Dec.

There is a seasonal ETF - Horizons AlphaPro Seasonal Rotation ETF - for those of you who don't have time to check other areas. It launched last November and has returned 11% as of last week (compared to 8% for the S&P/TSX index).

Caveats:

1. use small amounts of money to do several seasonal trades   

2. diversify

Hydro - Time-of-Use Pricing

(left-click to enlarge pics)
10/21/10 - To put my previous item (below) in perspective, most problems are also opportunities - pessimist vs optimist.
PowerStream has sent us our usage details for August and September, in preparation for our move to TOU pricing November 26th.
They also include average daily consumption ... but use the summer rates for the analysis. As the winter rates are Nov-Apr, it would have been more useful to use them. 


Now that we know when the new rates are coming, we have an opportunity to take advantage.

Here is a copy of the rates brochure sent to everyone being impacted by smart meters.
  
















10/19/10 - Has it started in your area?
This article in the Star today indicates a small decrease in electricity cost starting November 1st ... but probably not for time-of-use (TOU) Ontarians.
The time-of-use will, in fact, raise what we pay ... unless we drastically change our habits.
I understand washer/dryers are being manufactured with timers, to help take advantage of lower off-peak rates.

Here is an exert from the PowerStream site indicating the timing for TOU in Markham, Vaughan, Richmond Hill and Aurora.

Here are the rates to be used at the various times of the day/week. 
Note the highest rate ($.099):
1. May-Oct - 11am-5pm
2. Nov-Apr -  7-11am and 5-9pm


Our area of Markham begins TOU after September 26th.
Here is a link to the Time-of-Use Rates Quick Guide, for your reference.
Get ready for this more expensive approach to paying for necessities! 

Home Solar Panels - is it time?

11/19/13 - Are residential solar panel roofs viable today?

The OPA MicroFIT site indicates a much lower rate (effective Jan 1,2014, for any new requests not approved before Aug 26, 2013) for the roof top Feed-in Tariff.
The 2014 rates are $.396 (less than 10kW) to $.329 (greater than 100 kW). 
The 2013 rates were $.549 (less than 10kW) to $.539 (greater than 100kW).
The 2011 rates were $.802 (less than 10kW to $.539 (greater than 500kW).

As you can see, the price per kW is dropping every year now ... and much less range in price between 10 and 100 kW.

The microFIT rules (version 3) have been altered as well and you will need to discuss these details with a qualified Ontario installer.

Here is an analysis of installation cost and ROI from back in 2011.

Here is blog of an installation in Vaughan in 2012. Good details. Hopefully, design has changed since then, as I am not impressed with the look.

Here is the OPA microFIT questions and answers site.

Lots to consider....


10/17/10 - I have been watching home installation costs for solar panels for some time now.

Back in January, i added an item to this blog about residential solar panels.

Also, a while ago, i had read the price of solar panels was decreasing due to a very large supply.

I am also aware of the price of $.802 per kilowatt hour for the FIT (Feed-in Tariff) pgm. This rate is guaranteed for 20 years!
Is it any surprise it is very difficult to be accepted by the OPA (Ontario Power Authority) for this pgm???

There are, according to this article (The Toronto Star - Oct 16th), approx 23.000 applicants for this project totalling approx 15,000 megawatts of capacity ... but only 15% have been approved to-date. Are you surprised?


The folks in this article spent approx $42k to place the panels on their large roof (27 panels).


Stay tuned. As the situations improves, i will update this item.


Hopefully, i will be able to install and feed the grid ... before i am so old i forget the value of this project...


BTW, if Vaughan is reviewing this article, i would be interested in the Australian perspective.

The best automobile driver

(left-click to enlarge pic)
10/17/10 - Finally, we have located the best driver ... cannot be distracted or angered or incompetent. 
This article appears in the New York Times section of the Toronto Star today.
This driver has much faster (and accurate) response time and unerring logic.
As a result, cars will consume less fuel and our roadways will be able to handle more vehicles more safely.


As you might expect, the driver cannot be human!


There is no company better suited to work on this solution than Google. 


The good part is it can be introduced slowly and will easily demonstrate how inefficient human drivers are!  


In my opinion, it is inevitable.

Osteoporosis - how to minimize risk

10/14/10 - You are probably aware of what this disease can do without you knowing it. One in four women and one in eight men in Canada over 50 have it. Perhaps a few of you (maybe myself included) are suffering from it - with our back problems.
This article (left-click to enlarge) from Tuesday's Star highlights the need for Calcium and vitamin D supplements particularly in those over 50 (men and women).
The recommended intake from all sources daily is:
Vitamin D - 800-2,000 IUs per day
Calcium    - 1,200 MGs per day

The Markets - Oct 9, 2010

I am getting back into Mutual Funds (MFs) and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and have decided to record weekly results, in an effort to gain more understanding of what to invest in ... someone who only has a few years remaining to play with their RRSPs.

This article from the Star focuses on the "dominant theme" approach for the long-haul investor. 
It should work for the shorter-term investor (5-10 years) also.
It clearly indicates energy and resources as the prime areas to invest in for the future.
If you haven't placed any retirement funds in these areas, it is not too late.
I have CIBC Precious Metals and TD Resource MFs and they are doing nicely at this time.

This article shows to best/worst 5-year funds and it clearly indicates precious metals at the top. There doesn't appear to be any way for gold to go but up. Resource stocks are also in this group and with India and China developing there will be a continued need for copper, aluminium and other base metals.

ETFs are something I have wanted to look into as a shorter-term investment.
While I don't completely understand them, I sense they are slightly less risk than MFs.
The one I am interest in and will probably buy this week is HBP NYMEX Crude Oil Bull + ETF ... after more analysis (10/20/10 - glad i didn't invest).


If you have other good ideas for shorter-term mutual fund investment, pls make a comment or send me an e-mail.

Shock and Awe

Hilary Doyle was the MC at Greg and Indira's wedding Sept 18th.
She was a great MC and has lots of self confidence and appears quite care-free and happy about life.


We watched the first episode of Shock and Awe last night and it does appear to have a place in the TV rooms of our children who should better understand investments.
If they can continue to find investment opportunities and methods of TV teaching of our young adults, this show may have a future.
Maybe our children, because of this program, will become better investors than us!

The 90/10 Principle

08/19/10 - Stephen Covey has written books on personal development:
1. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
2. The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness
3. Everyday Greatness


He has also developed this simple 90/10 principle to help us overcome the natural tendency to over-react.


90/10 Principle : By Steven Covey


" Discover the 90/10 Principle. It will change your life (at least the way you react to situations). What is this principle? 10% of life is made up of what happens to you. 90% of life is decided by how you react. What does this mean? We really have no control over 10% of what happens to us.
We cannot stop the car from breaking down. The plane will be late arriving, which throws our whole schedule off. A driver may cut us off in traffic. We have no control over this 10%. The other 90% is different. You determine the other 90%. How? By your reaction. You cannot control a red light. However, you can control your reaction. Do not let people fool you; YOU can control how you react.
Let's use an example:
You are eating breakfast with your family. Your daughter knocks over a cup of coffee onto your business shirt. You have no control over what just what happened. What happens when the next will be determined by how you react. You curse. You harshly scold your daughter for knocking the cup over. She breaks down in tears. After scolding her, you turn to your spouse and criticize her for placing the cup too close to the edge of the table. A short verbal battle follows. You storm upstairs and change your shirt. Back downstairs, you find your daughter has been too busy crying to finish breakfast and get ready for school. She misses the bus. Your spouse must leave immediately for work. You rush to the car and drive your daughter to school. Because you are late, you drive 40 miles an hour in a 30 mph speed limit. After a 15-minute delay and throwing $60 traffic fine away, you arrive at school. Your daughter runs into the building without saying goodbye. After arriving at the office 20 minutes late, you find you forgot your briefcase. Your day has started terrible. As it continues, it seems to get worse and worse. You look forward to coming home,When you arrive home, you find small wedge in your relationship with your spouse and daughter. Why? Because of how you reacted in the morning.
Why did you have a bad day? A) Did the coffee cause it? B) Did your daughter cause it? C) Did the policeman cause it? D) Did you cause it? The answer is “D”.
You had no control over what happened with the coffee. How you reacted in those 5 seconds is what caused your bad day. Here is what could have and should have happened. Coffee splashes over you. Your daughter is about to cry. You gently say, “Its ok honey, you just need, to be more careful next time”. Grabbing a towel, you rush upstairs. After grabbing a new shirt and your briefcase, you come back down in time to look through the window and see your child getting on the bus. She turns and waves. You arrive 5 minutes early and cheerfully greet the staff. Your boss comments on how good the day you are having. Notice the difference?
Two different scenarios. Both started the same. Both ended different. Why? Because of how you REACTED. 


You really do not have any control over 10% of what happens. 


The other 90% was determined by your reaction. 


Here are some ways to apply the 90/10 principle. If someone says something negative about you, do not be a sponge. Let the attack roll off like water on glass. You do not have to let the negative comment affect you! React properly and it will not ruin your day.
A wrong reaction could result in losing a friend, being fired, getting stressed out etc. How do you react if someone cuts you off in traffic? Do you lose your temper? Pound on the steering wheel? A friend of mine had the steering wheel fall Off) Do you curse? Does your blood pressure skyrocket? Do you try to bump them? WHO CARES if you arrive ten seconds later at work? Why let the cars ruin your drive. 
Remember the 90/10 principle, and do not worry about it. 
You are told you lost your job. Why lose sleep and get irritated? It will work out. Use your worrying energy and time into finding another job. The plane is late; it is going to mangle your schedule for the day. Why take out your frustration on the flight attendant? She has no control over what is going on. Use your time to study, get to know the other passenger. Why are stressed out? It will just make Things worse. Now you know the 90-10 principle. Apply it and you will be amazed at the results. You will lose nothing if you try it. 


The 90-10 principle is incredible. Very few know and apply this principle. 
The result? Millions of people are suffering from undeserved stress, trials, problems and heartache.


We all must understand and apply the 90/10 principle. It CAN change your life! "

SkywayPark replaces Park'N Fly

(left-click to enlarge pic)
08/16/10 - We have used various self-parking services for long-term parking at Pearson (much cheaper than a taxi).


I have always indicated Park 'n Fly (Easy Self) was the cheapest parking at Pearson airport ... until our July trip to Vancouver.
Did a little research and found SkywayPark was substantially cheaper for 7 days or longer...in July.
The saving were approx $25 and Skyway Park has a good pickup/deliver system from/to your car.


Just checked again now and discovered Park'N Fly is cheaper (due to their specials - weren't available in July).


For a 13 days stay right now, it is $101 at SkywayPark and $88 at Park'N Fly.


Always wise to check both ... and also check for specials.


SkywayPark (Easy Self) - 60 Skyway Ave  


Park 'N Fly (Toronto Economy) - 626 Dixon Road

Energy (R)evolution - is it possible?

Greenpeace is ever-hopeful people will change.


While I believe it is wishful thinking and extremely unlikely to succeed until oil is much less plentiful, it will be interesting to see what happens in the coming years.


More information on Energy (r)evolution.


If you are also interested in progress of this initiative (at no cost to you), sign up for future newsletters.

Better Ways to Spend a Billion+

06/27/10 - Just wanted to include this for future reference ... the fencing of inner Toronto.
Hopefully, it comes down tomorrow.


Well, it has been more confrontational than I had hoped ...to date.
Maybe to-day will be better.


I would guess over 1.5 billion has been spent by Canada on these summits. Has anything been accomplished yet by these 'important leaders'?


06/20/10 - What is the theme of the June 25-26 Muskoka G8 Summit? 
What is the G8 and how does it work?


What is the theme of the June 26-27 Toronto G20 Summit?
What is the G20 and how does it work? 


Information about G8 and G20 security has been placed on a gov't website. However, these sites don't provide information we would like to see.

Here is an article in the today's Star (06/ what 20/10) outlining a few things that the money could have been used for ... in keeping with the G8 theme.
1. Vitamin A for 166 million children (reduce death rate by 20+%)
2. Save 5 million children from severe malnutrition over 5 years
3. Deworm 800 million children over 5 years
4. this list could be endless...





Here is a YouTube protesting this use of a billion $s. 




What else could 1 billion $s buy - article in Star May 28th?






Why are there not more people protesting (non-violent) about this outrageous expenditure?








As well, Canada has committed 1 billion to save lives of the world's poorest mothers and their babies (the signature issue of this G8 summit) but, as is typical of this federal gov't, no details are yet available on how it will be used. Harper is probably waiting for groups to present their ides and use it as leverage for a future election.


Why do we allow our leaders to focus on their futures instead of the future of Canada?

automobile using air as fuel

So much for hybrids, electric and hydrogen cars. Maybe compressed air fueled cars is the  future.
It first appeared on BBC January 2008.
One review since then.
Apparently, this car has been in development since 2002. 


Wikipedia has a very comprehensive review of the potential ... very poor at this time.


My question is, if there is potential, why has little progress been made to-date???


I will update this post, if more positive information becomes available.

Selecting a camera

04/27/10 - During our Costa Rican trip, my Sony DSC-H7 15x zoom digital camera broke. It was just over two years old.

I had become quite comfortable with this Sony camera with it dual stabilization zoom delivering very clear pics of birds and animals at maximum zoom.

After some research, I decided on the replacement which is a 26x zoom.

If you are wondering about which camera to buy, here are some details about the four I looked into, as well as the Sony I had been using.

Part of this process is deciding if a DSLR is right or a pocket digital or a high zoom digital.

For some, the DSLR is the answer for high quality pics ... but they do come at a fairly high price and then you need to buy a telescopic lens.

For others, the convenience of a pocket digital (like Helen's Canon PowerShot SD780 IS) is the answer, as it is quite small but does take a very clear picture and has a optical viewfinder (very useful is bright sunlight).

If you want something for half way between the two but able to take pictures of distant objects (birds or animals) without the necessity of an additional lens, the answer might be a high zoom digital camera with very good stabilization.

The critical factor of a high zoom digital camera for me are:

1. high zoom

2. very stable at high zoom

3. large megapixel (10 or more)

4. lithium high capacity battery  

5. good warranty (at least 2 years)

6. wide angle lens

7. cost    

The cameras I tested/reviewed:

1. Sony DSC-H7 

2. Nikon Coolpix P90

3. Nikon Coolpix P100

4. Olympus SP-800UZ

5. Pentax X90

6. Sony DSC-HX1 (not tested)

7. Fujifilm FinePix HS10 (not tested)


Here is a side-by-side comparison of the above cameras.

Although the Sony DSC-HX1 is only 9MP and 20x zoom, the 2.8-8.0 creates the best wide angle I have seen so far. 

I tried a few max zoom pics (with same settings) while moving the cameras and the Pentax X90 was the clearest.

I had hoped the OLYMPUS with 30x zoom (28-840mm) would get clear maximum zoom pics as it would be better for birds and animals and the 2gb storage is a real bonus. However, I tried a few times and could not get a clear max zoom picture.

The Nikon P100 was a close second to the Pentax X90 at mox zoom - but was $150 more and heavier/larger. If it was the same price, I would have selected it due to the CMOS sensor ... no defined winner yet between CCD and CMOS but I would have liked to try it.

I bought the Pentax X90 with a 3 year Henry's warranty, for less than just the retail price of the Nikon P100 (before tax).

After reviewing the street price, I dropped the the Fujifilm HS10 from consideration but it does have CMOS and the 2nd highest zoom (24-720mm) and the only one with RAW uncompressed format (allowing more pic alterations) and it is the heaviest and largest.

The Sony DSC-H7 is older, 8 megapixel and not enough zoom. One year warranty.

The Sony DSC-HX1 was only 9 megapixels, lowest zoom, the lowest storage included (31mb), and uses memory stick Duo/Pro Duo instead of SD/SDHC (I would need to buy one and it is not compatible with my PC). One year warranty.

I did a series of tests on the others (Nikon P90, Nikon P100, Pentax X90, and Olympus SP-800UZ) at Henry's. 

The Nikon P90 is 24x zoom (26-624mm), aperture 2.8-5.0, not as good lithium battery, SD card, 50mb storage, and CCD sensor. 

Comes with a 2 year Canada warranty.

The Nikon P100 is Is 26x zoom (26-678mm), aperture 2.8-5.0, same battery as P90, SD card, 43mb storage, and CMOS sensor. Comes with a 2 year Canada warranty.

The Pentax X90 is 26x zoom (26-676mm), aperture 2.8-5.0, best lithium battery, SD card, 31.6mb storage, and CCD sensor. One year warranty.

The Olympus SP-800UZ is 30x zoom (28-840mm), aperture 2.8-5.6, not as good lithium battery, SD card, "2GB" storage, and CCD sensor. One year warranty.