School reform has a long history over the past two centuries. It is usual to blame schools and teachers for any current perceived failures. Those who condemn current educational practices also believe schools can make a better society, and are a solution for individual failures and larger social problems.

"Aside from the general lack of evidence concerning young children's experience using computers, there remains the pervasive belief among educators and parents about the inevitability of a future in which today's children will require technological competencies to succeed in the workplace. It is that belief, and not any research findings, that propels parents and educators to invest in preschools and computers" (p.65).

The students who had substantial expertise with computers all gained their expertise outside of school, usually on home computers (p.91). That's because learning about a computer requires much more time than the hour or two a week available at school. The traditional method of teaching is for a knowledgeable person to lecture the students. This method dates back to ancient times: those who know, teach. "In the schools we studied, we found no clear and substantial evidence of students increasing their academic achievement as a result of using information technologies" (p.133).

"Are teeachers' responses to computers similar to earlier technologies?" Films, radio, and television showed no improvement over conventional practices; they also had logistical problems. This "unexpected outcome" resulted in blaming teachers, not poorly designed hardware and software and the political organizational structure. Pages 144 and 148 tell of real-world experiences.

Why was so much money pumped into schools in the 1990s? Was it a political decision to create markets and use up tax dollars? Page 157 says critics blamed schools for America's loss of global markets (!!!), which imagines some lost golden age. Page 158 tells of public opinion polls, which may only regurgitate the propaganda previously swallowed. Purchasing hardware and software or wiring schools were symbolic political gestures as much as attempts to acquire the right tools, even with little evidence that information technologies raise test scores or promote better teaching. Pages 159-166 give a short history of schooling since the late 19th century, and current practice. Page 168 gives a check-list on rating hardware and software for schools.

Chapter Six summarizes the book and should be read by everyone who is interested in this subject. Computers in classrooms have NOT led to higher teacher and student productivity, or transformed teaching and learning; they are oversold and underused.

This book tells about the rise of the "upper class" in New York city in the 19th century. New York was the most important city then, and is the center for finance, insurance, fashion, publishing, broadcasting, and other national businesses.

Our Revolution, and afterwards, put an end to any aristocracy of large landowners. DeTocqueville noted how the "law of partition" replaced entailment and did away with large estates by forcing their dissolution thru the inheritance laws. The author notes that few historical studies were written to document this "upper class" of that time, given its importance then, and now. He tells how a "class culture" was expressed in shared habits and manners (such as a dining room), interior design, gender roles, and the concept of "society"" clubs, debutante balls, voluntary associations, etc. These habits all required wealth that excluded the majority of the people. The goal of this book is to explain the role of the "upper class" in the history of New York and the nation.

The author says that workers can only be powerful when they act collectively in trade unions or politics, while the "upper class" exert power through their wealth (p.13).

New York's preeminence in European trade gave its impetus to manufacturing that supplied much of the growing nation. Upper class New Yorkers represented the largest and most diverse of the economic elite, surpassing other cities. New York was most involved in the cotton trade then. Banking, extending credit for future crops, grew out of commerce; it became more profitable than merchandising. European capital was used.

Page 31 tells the reason why merchant houses could no then be incorporated for limited liability: they lacked a public purpose. Page 33 tells of the importance of proper marriages to merchant companies. Marrying the boss' daughter was not just Horatio Alger fiction. Most wealth then was due to inheritance (p.36). A display of luxury began to replace democratic simplicity (p.42). Funerals developed as a public ritual.

One feature of the expansion of the 1850s was the creation of socially exclusive neighborhoods (p.55). It continued the separation of workplace and home: commuting was invented! Political clubs, like the Chamber of Commerce, were formed to support the policies of the merchants and bankers. New social clubs, like the Union Club, were formed to unite the merchants and financial elite. Churches also became exclusive to the elites and shifted locations to follow the wealthy.

Page 78 tells how the merchants and bankers interests were allied with the Southern planters, while manufacturers were not. The increasing political power of ordinary people led to public works that benefitted ordinary people. He tells how the wealthy learned to influence a party by funding the organization in the 1850s. Page 81 tells of the effects of political decisions on commerce. The elites needed votes to get their agenda across; but since their agenda was against the interests of the voters it failed to win. So they resorted to lobbying and corruption to further their agenda (p.83). The merchants and financiers involved in the cotton trade supported the Democratic Party and its attempts to reconcile sectional differences. Manufacturers supported the new Republican Party.

New Yorks's banks were an enormous source of money for the federal government. In effect, they were the only source for bonds and loans. The federal government raised money with an excise tax and an income tax (p.118). The Civil War and high tariffs turned the US towards the West and away from cotton exports and European imports. It helped manufacturing, and not just for the war effort.

While the book's 330 pages of text seem aimed at a general audience, the 130 pages of notes is too long.

The trial of OJ Simpson was one of the famous and controversial events of the 1990s. Now that it is past, we can better see it in perspective. If OJ was guilty, he would have to quickly dispose of the bloody clothes, shoes, knives so they would never be found, yet take home the socks and glove! I don't believe this. The red liquid blood from the two victims says they were murdered around 11:30PM. The limousine driver was there at 10:45 and drove OJ to the airport at this time. OJ was "100 per cent not guilty". The coroner who did the autopsies said "the forensic evidence says the murders occurred after 11PM".

The "Foreword" says laws contain the rules of a society in written (or unwritten) form. They are subject to change, like the conditions that create them. Cicero said "true law is right reason in agreement with nature". But reason varies with people over time, and "nature" is but a name given to a particular set of facts. A better definition of "law" is the power of some groups to use the tool of government to serve their purpose. "Cui bono" said the Romans - "for whose benefit"?

Just at midnight Sunday June 12, 1994 a couple saw the bleeding body of Nicole Brown Simpson. The police were called, and they found the body of Ron Goldman. The Medical Examiner was NOT called, so important evidence vanished forever! That Friday while OJ waited at lawyer Kardashian's home, AC Cowlings came over in his white Bronco and took OJ for a ride.

Page 52 has the claim that Nicole was killed due to jealousy, and Ron because he showed up. The 25-30 stab wounds on Ron suggests a personal hatred, the quick killing of Nicole implies she was the bystander. If Ron physically resembled Nicole's current boyfriend Keith, could it have been a case of mistaken identity?

Page 62 tells that Ron Goldman's work clothing was found in his apartment. This means he walked home to change before leaving again around 10:30PM! The book doesn't tell that he had earlier filed for bankruptcy to discharge $100,000 in debts; who would lend him money to buy a restaurant?

Pages 73-74 summarize the County Coroner's testimony at the trial. You can read the autopsy reports yourself for the description of two knives" single-edged knife, double-edged stilleto. The stab wounds on Ron's right front chest suggest left-handed killer, the wounds on Ron's right back suggest right-handed killer. You can read "Tainting Evidence" by Kelly and Wearnes for more details on the DNA testing in this case.

The highlight of the prosecution was the trying on of the crime scene gloves - they didn't fit! The gloves contained Caucasian limb hair from its previous owner. The Fuhrman tapes, and his refusal to testify again, marked the end of the trial.

Page 101 quotes Darden saying Paula broke up with OJ; her book says she visited him daily in jail, and through the second trial. Pages 107-108 does NOT tell the jury asked for a re-reading of the limousine driver's testimony; this convinced them to vote "not guilty".

Pages 111-113 tell how the trial and verdict was a litmus test of attitudes by blacks and whites. He doesn't say anything about the biased reporting by the media ('TIME' magazine darkened OJ's picture to hide the fact that OJ had no scratches or bruises). Nothing has happened since 1995 to contradict the jury's verdict. The whiney complaints about the verdict and jury system have ceased. ....

"Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion." Another way of saying "people spend what they can afford". That statement makes certain simplifying assumptions in describing the action. Parkinson claims that Administrator A will, when overworked, call for subordinates C and D. And each of these, when overworked, call for two subordinates. Perhaps only a third subordinate E is more likely to be hired? Unless its a monopoly running on a "cost plus" economy.

The increase in Admiralty officials may be due to political decisions that reflect the feudal system and its pride in larger numbers. This increase from 1914 to 1928 may reflect the rise needed for The Great War, and a reluctance to cut back afterwards.

The author notes the growth in the Colonial Office from 1935 to 1954, while the size of the Empire decreased. But it assumes there was no longer any involvement in the colonies, and no new work assigned to them. Perhaps a need for political appointees?

In Chapter Four the author discusses the optimal number of members in a committee: somewhere between 3 and 21. Assume a committee meets to do work, not to make work. There is a limited number of hours in a day; if each member speaks for 15 minutes, then 12 will take up half a work day. Time constraints will limit the number who will speak; those who only listen can be given a printed report. Somebody must control the topics and meeting.

Chapter Five answers the question: why are students of the "Liberal Arts" generally considered for top positions? The answer is the adoption of the Chinese system for competitive examinations. Those with a Classics background were perceived as fittest to rule; those with a scientific background were perceived as followers. The author does not discuss the class differences usually covered by this distinction. His comments on advertising positions is interesting, but ignores the fact that an acceptable candidate may chose another firm. His final advice on choosing a Prime Minister is not always followed.

Chapter Six claims the health of an institution can be gauged by its buildings, and cites St. Peter's in Rome. A more modern edition might cite the former AT&T and IBM buildings in midtown Manhattan, instead of the Palace of Nations in Geneva. But office buildings are recyclable commodities. A monumental edifice can be the mausoleum of an organization. Does this apply to the Department of Agriculture building in Washington?

Chapter Seven shows his wit and powers of observation by summarizing the cocktail parties that he attended. Chapter Eight discusses the question of why organizations decline. One way to judge an organization is by the quality of their cafeteria. Chapter Ten claims the compulsory retirement age is set at 3 years past the age when people begin to decline. More simplifying assumptions and playing with numbers? If not, what objective facts were used to arrive at this conclusion?

The value of this book is its observations on the common activities that are not often studied.

"The new tools of forensic science are only as incisive as those who use them, which is why forensic pathology is in many ways as much an art as a science." Dr. Michael Baden was chief forensic pathologist for the investigation by the Congressional Select Committee on Assassinations into the deaths of President John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Herb MacDonnell teaches a course on bloodstain evidence. He wields a hatchet, casting off drops of blood in the direction of his thrust and backswing (p.37). He is the world's leading authority on blood pattern analysis. He tells his students to save their homework for future reference. They didn't read about it in a book, this is firsthand knowledge (p.56).

Page 62 tells the story of a couple who went wandering into the woods; the girlfriend never returned. When a hand was found, the boyfriend was indicted and tried for murder. Fortunately for him, she showed up at the trial with both hands intact!

Some people are born with large arteries, which gives an advantage in longevity over people with narrow ones. This does not correlate with physical height (p.107). There is no study to see if this size is hereditary, or is the result of chance.

Since 90% of what we eat moves out of the stomach in 2 to 3 hours, time of death is estimated from the last meal (p.109).

After the Nicole Brown Simpson - Ron Goldman murders were discovered the medical examiner wasn't notified until ten hours later. By then critical evidence had vanished forever. Pages 150-153 discuss this topic. The low-velocity blood droplets on Nicole's back could have come from the killer, but were lost. A medical examiner doesn't know what he is looking for until he finds it.

Certain bugs can tell us when and where someone was killed, and they do it with an accuracy that no man-made system will ever reproduce (p.162). Traffic deaths in NY resulting from people swatting at bees in their cars will disappear in winter and reappear in summer (p.163).

Since the late 18th century when Paul Revere identified the body of Dr. Joseph Warren (killed on Bunker Hill), teeth have been used to identify bodies (p.212). Dental insurance has generated millions of X-rays and a database of identification for forensic odontologists. Pages 220-225 tell how faces are recreated from skulls, a technique that originated in 1960s Russia.

English police are compiling the largest computer database of ear prints, and plan to use them like fingerprints in identification. This is a modernization of the Bertillon System, which measured specific parts of the body (p.224). Lip prints are also unique to each individual.

Chapter Ten discusses the obverse side of this science. What if the forensic scientist cheats and lies about the evidence? Fingerprints can be created, a glove and blood evidence planted, etc. This shows the need for an assigned forensic scientist, like a Public Defender, for the indicted. Or an independent crime lab that can be trusted by both Prosecution and Defense. "Man prefers to believe what he wants to be true" said Francis Bacon. "Emotion in numerous, often imperceptible ways pervades and infects our understanding" (p.231). Forensic scientists, as humans, can be motivated by greed, stress, naivete, ambition, fear, money, or just following orders ("a team player"). Dr. Baden recommends using medical examiners in all counties of all states, who should all be forensic pathologists (p.235). This sounds true, but what if the low bidder chosen is like Fred Zain or Ralph Erdmann? All rules do not ensure equal results. Bad science can contaminate evidence by creating an assumption of guilt. The real perpetrator will escape, and prosecution will claim the accused was "let off on a technicality"! As Randall Dale Adams, who spent twelve years in prison for a murder he didn't commit. "Forensic Animation" is used to recreate an event for viewing by a jury; but it is only as reliable as its assumptions. It can be manipulated as easily as any other evidence (p.246).

A 1996 DOJ report said DNA evidence excluded 25% of those charged in rape and rape-and-murder cases! And other crimes do not involce DNA evidence. Prosecutors conceal evidence of innocence, or present knowingly false evidence, in many cases.

This is a very readable and educational book. The first sentence of the second paragraph on p.167 has a misspelled word.

This movie is not based on any documented historical event; it is a recreation of June 1944. When it was first shown in 1998, a newspaper story said the army would have used a chaplain, not eight men.

The movie starts with a landing craft under fire in Normandy. It takes fire, no one seems to shoot back. Didn't these boats have a "pulpit" with a machine gun? The simulated slaughter is gory and gruesome. "The 'glory of war' is moonshine" said Sherman.

Isn't Iowa mostly flat land? Would they have a house on top of that hill? Wouldn't some of the sons have a deferment as an agricultural worker? Raising food is important in war or peace. I don't believe that War Department scene where they picked out the Ryan deaths; weren't telegrams used instead of letters?

After capturing the radar site one surviving German soldier is blindfolded and sent away unescorted; shouldn't he have been secured and turned over to G-2? Would an officer have stood aside while his men argued over the prisoner's fate?

There is one scene where a wall collapses (symbolism?) and both sides hold their fire, until some Rangers act. Is this realistic? There is another scene in the village where their translator hangs back and cringes while another soldier is knifed to death in hand-to-hand combat. I didn't understand this message. Later the translator captures five enemy soldiers; one says something in German, and is shot dead. There was no subtitle, so what message did I miss?

When the battle for the bridge is almost lost, tank-busting P-51s appear, like a deus ex machina, to win the battle. A happy ending means commercial success.

Its been many years since I last saw "To Hell And Back". but I think it was a better story.

This book tells about the famous Johnstown Flood on Friday, May 31, 1889 that killed over 2209 people who lived downstream from a poorly maintained dam that gave way after heavy rainfall. Those who died of exposure, injuries, or typhoid after the first day were not counted.

The arrival of the canal around 1820s made Johnstown the busiest place in Cambria county. In the 1850s the Pennsylvania Railroad came through, the Cambria Iron Company began, and the population increased. There were about 30,000 people in the area before the flood. Life was simple, pleasures few. On Sunday people would go walking out to neighboring boroughs. There were 123 saloons in the greater Johnstown area, as in other steel towns.

The Western Reservoir was built in the 1840s, but became generally known as the South Fork dam. It was to supply extra water for the Main Line canal from Johnstown to Pittsburgh. By saving the spring floods, water could be released during the dry summers. The Portage Railroad lifted the canal boats over the Alleghany Mountain to the canal to Philadelphia.

The dam was built on successive layers of "puddled" clay. The outer wall was riprapped with loose rocks, the inner face with stones. Five cast iron pipes two feet in diameter, set in a stone culvert, released the water to flow to the South Fork and the Little Conemaugh to Johnstown. Earth dams were used for thousands of years; they work as long as no water spills over the top, or no internal seepage develops.

When the dam was completed in 1852, the Pennsylvania Railroad completed the track from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, and the canal business began its decline. The state offered to sell the canal, the Penna RR bought it for the right of ways. The neglected dam broke for the first time in 1862. The repair work
was done by unqualified people; the discharge pipes were blocked up! Rains in 1879 and 1881 caused damage.

Floods were a recurring problem in Johnstown during the 19th century. A growing population needed space, trees disappeared from the hills and mountains, the river channels were narrowed for more buildings and bridges. The forests retain enormous amounts of water in the soil (800 tons per acre), the soil itself, and snow. Spring thaws and summer thunderstorms would
send torrents down the hills; flooding became worse each year (p.65-66). But people believed that a dam break would not cause much trouble.

In 1880 the manager of the Cambria Iron Works (a competitor of Carnegie) had the dam inspected. Two problems were found: there was no discharge pipe to reduce water in the dam, and, the previous repair left a leak that cut into the dam. This advice was rejected, even after their offer to pay for repairs. The Cambria Iron Works was bigger than any in Pittsburgh before the Civil War (p.61).

There were four other changes to the dam that were crucial. The height of the dam was lowered, reducing the height between the crest and the spillway. A screen of iron rods were put across the spillway, which would decrease the its capacity when clogged by debris. The dam sagged in the center so it was lower than at
the ends; the center should have been highest and strongest. Lastly, the club brought the level of the lake nearly to the top; there was no reserve capacity for a severe storm.

On the morning of May 31, 1889 flooding began after heavy rains; it seemed to be worse than the 1887 flood. A man was sent to South Fork to warn the people that the dam might give way, and to telegraph a warning to Johnstown. It was not heeded - they heard
that before! Three warnings were telegraphed down the valley. By 12:30PM a 50 to 60 foot wide sheet of water started to flow over the dam. By 2PM the waters had cut a notch in the center of the dam. The dam seemed to push out all at once, not break, at 3:10PM (p.100). It took about 40 minutes for the lake to empty, with the force of Niagara at the Falls, flowing at about 40 MPH (p.102). The rest of the book tells of the flood and the investigations.

The picture of Andrew Carnegie makes me wonder if he had been used as the model for "Santa Claus". Building and paving hills and mountains will increase the flood risk, then or now.

Dr. Charles A. Crenshaw worked to save President JFK, and later Lee H. Oswald, at Parkland Hospital. He
had firsthand personal experience with the crime; he saw that JFK was struck twice from the front: once in the neck, and once in the right side of the head. President LBJ called him to ask for a "deathbed confession" from Oswald. Dr. Crenshaw and the other personnel in the emergency room were ordered not to speak about the events, citing the standard medical confidentiality.

Charles A. Crenshaw was a surgeon for over thirty years. He watched thousands of trauma victims enter the emergency room. Trauma is the greatest killer of America's youth, and can affect anyone regardless of age, race, sex, occupation, or status. It also has psychological after effects on survivors.

When Oliver Stone's "JFK" was filmed in Dallas the doctors were again warned to keep quiet. The hundreds of similar gunshot cases seen by Dr. Crenshaw since 1963 have confirmed his conclusions on JFK's wounds. He finally decided to write his story in November 1990 when his career was over and he no longer feared the "men in suits". Dr. Crenshaw saw photos of JFK's Bethesda autopsy - it showed a different wound to the back of the head, one that would support a theory of a lone gunman firing from the back. The front of JFK's neck showed a larger and jagged opening than was seen in Dallas (p.111). According to reports, JFK's body was wrapped in a white cloth and placed in a bronze casket in Dallas. At Bethesda the body was in a zippered body bag in a gray casket. This book was written to present his witness to the events.

There is one thing that I remember from that time. Right after the assassination the first newspaper reports said JFK was shot from the front. J. Edgar Hoover then said that JFK was shot while the limousine was heading towards the School Book Depository Building. When photos were printed to show that didn't happen, this story was changed. To learn more about this, read "Act of Treason" by Mark North.

Could the "alterations" in the wounds between Dallas and Bethesda be explained by use of a "body double"?

This is the movie that made a star of Humphrey Bogart; he previously played bad-guy characters, as in "Petrified Forest". He is the hero of this Dashiell Hammett novel about private detectives who take a missing persons case. But it soon leads to murder, and the story tells how Sam Spade solves the case. The story is set in San Francisco, where Hammett lived for many years, and is the location for many of his other stories.

The amoral adventuress is a stock character in many of his stories, but often higher in command. Here the 'Fat Man' is plainly in control, and the others work for him. This actor does a good job in showing this villain as a charming, suave, and sophisticated person (the better to mask his evil); only his obesity marks him out, like a "bloated plutocrat".

Like other Hammett stories, it subtly tells of the techniques used by private detectives. Like ditching a tail by entering the front of an apartment house, then slipping out the back way. Or watching out for anyone watching him. Most of all, how he plays along with the people he meets in order to solve the crimes. He displays a quick wit when the police arrive unexpectedly while he has company. He needs all his wits to resolve the different stories he hears; and he triumphs in the end. "A crooked reputation is good for business, it brings in the high-priced clients." It has the usual surprise ending of a Hammett story. The elevator gates say where Brigid is going, the shadow on her face tells her end.

One anachronism is the dollar figures: $100 then was about a month's pay for the average worker, if they had a job. This story is like a morality play on the vanity of searching for a lost treasure of easy money. This turns out to be an illusion caused by wishful thinking. This story may very popular as it is less political than "Red Harvest" or "The Glass Key", where you have to consider the actions of the municipal government.

The movie begins with the suicide of a government official. Next it shows a young woman who spends time playing computer games for profit, and dines on pizza and chocolate candy. Her life is solitary, communicating mainly thru telephone lines. (An earlier incident in Angela's life made her withdrawn.) A package is delivered, and she runs the enclosed diskette. Because of the diskette's secret, great danger enters her life.

The story tells how her identity can be stolen, and official records created, to make her a wanted criminal. She survives many attempts to kill her, but her close friends do not. All because of that diskette, whose secret is slowly revealed.

The secret of the diskette is how a "bug" was installed into protection software to create a 'trap door' that can be used to allow a person to access any computer, and then browse, create, or modify the data. This is NOT fiction - some software does come with defaults to allow access. (I once heard a person boast that his former firm had a tradition of doing this.)

Angela discovers that a deliberately incorrect medical diagnosis was created to induce the suicide of that government official. After escaping dangers, she succeeds in sending the information to the FBI, and the plot is uncovered. (Did you note the resemblance of 'Jeff Gregg' to the fictional 'Will Styles'?)

The movie's style and scenes reminds me of Alfred Hitchcock: an innocent on the run due to a mistaken identity, or stumbling into a secret plot. The parade scene recalls "Blowout", the ending on the catwalk recalls "The Parallax View". Some criticize this for copying, but I would call it "best practices". But all ends well to make it a successful movie.