Archive for January 11th, 2012
Trials and Errors and Milward v. Acuity
Wednesday, January 11th, 2012Today the U.S. Supreme Court denied U.S. Steel’s petition for writ of certiorari in Milward v. Acuity. As a result plaintiffs’ expert is now free to testify about his untested and in fact untestable hypothesis. It’s a shame because the First Court of Appeals has apparently lost sight of what science, at least reliable science, is all about.
Consider "Trials and Errors: Why Science is Failing Us". The article describes what was deemed the shocking failure of torcetrapib – a drug designed to prevent so-called "good" cholesterol (HDL) from converting into "bad" cholesterol (LDL). Noting that "[t]here was a vast amount of research" supporting the proposition that increasing the HDL:LDL ratio would prevent coronary artery disease, and given that "the cholesterol pathway is one of the best-understood biological feedback systems in the human body", scientists assumed that they knew how torcetrapib would act and that its effect would be positive. Instead, "the drug appeared to be killing people."
Rather than a failure of science the story of torcetrapib should be viewed as a triumph, at least so long as science is viewed as a method for subjecting big ideas to the acid bath of skepticism rather than the hatching of seemingly clever notions. Milward, by allowing an expert to base his causation opinion on nothing more than a plausible hypothesis consisting of a proposed biologic mechanism far less well understood than that of the cholesterol pathway, embraces the big idea view of science.
The debate is an old one but one in which common law countries have generally sided with the scientific method over mere idealism. Perhaps it has something to do with the experience of French and English bridge designers. The early French suspension bridges had an unfortunate tendency to collapse despite being beautiful whereas the English versions tended to be ugly but sturdy. For the French designers the thought was "it must stand because it is so beautiful". For the English the idea was "it must stand or I shall be fired".
The opinions of experts should be no less tested and no less reliable than bridges as both have so much riding on them.
2012 Home Trends…
Wednesday, January 11th, 2012…That sounds all-knowing doesn’t it? Well, a home is YOUR home so all things are taste specifc, but dare to dream. Here is a delighfuly decadent list of kitchen, bathroom, color and space home design buyer want-to-haves by writer Elizabeth Weintraub from About.com. Read below for Elizabeth’s suggestions…
Who wouldn’t want all of this? If only we all had an unlimited budget. It is a good idea, though, if you are thinking of selling your home to insert a spot of decadence somewhere in your home, either kitchen or master bath, depending on budget. Paint too goes a long way also to update tired room.
Here are essential items buyers demand in kitchens:
- Professional 6-burner ranges & convection ovens
- Whisper-quiet commercial exhaust fans & range hoods, ceiling or island mounted
- Top-of-the-line built-in stainless steel dishwashers and Sub-Zero Refrigerators
- Built-in wine coolers
- Exotic stone, poured cement or granite counters
- Cabinetry with all the storage bells and whistles, including glass door panels; maple or glazed or ebony colors are popular
- Kitchen islands with an extra sink
- Apron-front farm kitchen sinks or hammered-copper sinks, any unique product as long as it costs more than ,000
- Floor-to-ceiling spice racks
- Towel warmers and warming trays
- Built-in microwaves with matching cabinetry fronts
- Recessed lighting combined with hanging-pendant fixtures
Bathrooms
- Buyers want lots of glass and stone
- Vessel sinks of all shapes and sizes are mounted into antique dressers or Asian-inspired vanities
- Brushed nickel replaces chrome options
- Double-handle faucets are mounted on the walls and vanities float from the floor
- Dual rain showerheads & hand-held sprayers for cleaning showers
- Power-assisted, low-rise toilets and bidets
- Motion light sensors
Colors
Earth-tone, soft colors. Lots of blues, greens, browns — bringing the outdoors inside. Sharp contrasts with brilliant hues of red or orange accent walls.
Specialty Room Trends
- Open floor plans combining family rooms with kitchen and dining areas
- Media rooms
- Playrooms for kids
- Wine cellars
- Work-out rooms
Trends in Floors, Walls and Windows
Buyers are moving away from carpeting, even in the bedrooms. If carpeting is used at all, it’s used sparingly. Walls are either plaster, trowel textured or completely smooth. There is a purist movement to retain original windows from pre-WWII homes, refinishing, reglazing and replacing counter-weights or sash cords. Otherwise, the windows are dual pane. Here are popular flooring types:
- Travertine, 16-inches or larger
- Bamboo
- Wood and exotic hardwoods such as Brazilian cherry
- Cork
