Jac of all tirades: Debunking third world myths

an exerpt from "The Mindscape of Alan Moore"

"Quitting my day job and starting my life as a writer certainly was a tremendous risk.
It was a fool's leap, a shot in the dark.
But anything of value in our lives- whether it be a career, a work of art, a relationship- will always start with such a leap. And in order to be able to make it, you have to put aside the fear of failing and the desire of succeeding. You have to do these things completely purely without fear, without desire.
Because things that we do without lust or result, are the purest actions that we shall ever undertake."

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Debunking third world myths

This is a great TED presentation by Hans Rosling, a doctor, professor and researcher who is clearly passionate about data, and he excitedly shows us how statistics, like those related to family size and incomes, can enlighten us to the truths about our global community. Using a very cool animated graph, he points out that most of us still use old generalizations with old meanings, like "Western World" and "Third World" while being ignorant of how much things have changed. Check it: