Thursday, August 28, 2008

Equity and health

The recent WHO report about the impact of social inequities on individual health suggests that a human's abilities to pursue correlations directed inward and outward with respect to skin, family and culture are intertwined. Of course this is not a surprise, but they also make the case that the effects are dramatic.

They further argue that the first line of attack against this problem is not the hiring of more doctors, but the empowering of individuals. The good news there is that the former will take lots of money, but that a great deal may be accomplished in the latter regard with only the help of globally mobile ideas.

What's the best way to proceed from here? Some viral videos or catchy tunes? How about programs that consider the everyday citizen? Where are the latter already helping at home and abroad?

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Organism centricity

As organisms ourselves, it's natural for us to think that the world centers around the structure and survival of organisms. The structure of processes, and survival of codes, may seem incidental in this context. As a result the organism story might get more than its share of attention.

Codes that don't get their share of attention include idea codes. These can now find their way into hearts and minds across the globe, in less time than it takes to shake a stick. Of course we transmit them willy-nilly, but we discuss their role as agents much less.

Processes that don't get their share of attention include those of correlation building that each of us does in (a) developing friendships, (b) maintaining families, (c) supporting communities, (d) honoring beliefs, and (e) extending human awareness of the world around. The effect of disasters and policy changes on these things doesn't normally show up in the body count, but that doesn't make them any less important.