The Decline of the American Empire

As my wife will readily attest, I've been predicting the decline (if not outright collapse) of the United States (aka "the American Empire" or "the Great Experiment") by the year 2020. Depending on other world events (and on the precise definition of "decline" or "collapse"), I believe that this could happen much sooner but regardless no later than 2030. This position has been variously supported--either directly or indirectly--by many others, including Warren Buffett, John Sculley, and ... Igor Panarin, a Russian academic who made news recently by predicting the collapse of the U.S. by 2010.

My thoughts have been primarily focused on basic private concerns like, "if the U.S. is indeed collapsing, where should I raise my kids in order to position them (and their kids) for success in the new world order?" However, Panarin understandably takes a much more academic approach, and he even predicts how the U.S. will ultimately be divided among the remaining world powers.

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Given the fundamental economic breakdown in the U.S., the renewed (ongoing/heighened) tensions in the Middle East and India/Pakistan, and a rookie administration about to take over the White House, who knows what the next couple of years will bring? I often wonder what it would've been like to live in Rome (or in the outskirts of the Roman Empire) in the middle of the 5th century.

Western Spaghetti

Here's one of the most viral videos of 2008:

Windy Field Goal Attempt

As a sportswriter later commented, I have *never* seen a field goal kicker miss an attempt wide left and wide right ... on the same kick! 55mph gusty winds will do that, I guess.

All-Star Performance: "Money for Nothing"

For rock fans, it doesn't get too much better than this: Mark Knopler, Eric Clapton, Sting, and Phil Collins ... all on one stage playing Dire Straits' Money for Nothing. Sweet!

I.M. Pei Designs New Museum of Islamic Art in Qatar

Last month, I visited Doha, Qatar, just a week before the grand opening of its Museum of Islamic Art. The building itself was designed by 91-year-old I.M. Pei, who was lured out of retirement speficially for this project. The New York Times wrote an interesting piece commemorating the event, along with a photo gallery much better than my own photos. I hope to visit the Museum during my next trip to Qatar!

Video Showing Every Flight on Earth

Just a fascinating video to watch:

Can Humans Avoid Death by Old Age?

I can't remember when I first heard of Aubrey de Grey or his theories on anti-aging research or his Methuselah Foundation or his book on Ending Aging. However, I do know that thinking about his work has had a profound effect on me and led to some extremely philosophical discussions with a number of family members, friends, and colleagues. Here is an interesting talk he gave as part of the renowned TED Conference:

2008 Olympic Moments: Very Very Close and ... Not So Much

As I look back on this year's tremendous moments in sports, I think the juxtaposition of these two photos show the absolute dominance of Michael Phelps (swimming) and Usain Bolt (track).

Both photos were taken at the finish line of their respective gold medal races in 100m sprints. At this level of intense international competition, these short races are normally decided by hundredths of seconds separating 1st from 2nd from 3rd and from the rest of the pack.

PHELPS DEFEATS CAVIC

At this point, Michael Phelps was just getting warmed up on the way to his historic string of 8 gold medals. However, he ran straight into a buzz-saw of a world-class swimmer in Serb Milorad Cavic, who was outspoken in his desire to derail Phelps' hopes. Phelps (left) held on to win by 1-one-thousandth of a second, relying on the same recipe that would lead to his being crowned "The Greatest Olympian of All Time": incredible natural talent, superb training regimen, and an intense desire to win at all costs.

BOLT DEFEATS THE WORLD

On the other end of the results spectrum, Jamaican Usain Bolt simply obliterated the field--and the world record--by a truly incredible margin. Amazingly, he was almost out of the frame for this photograph, making the rest of the world-class finalists look like no more than decent high school sprinters. Tall and lanky, with a long stride more suitable for the middle sprints (200m and 400m), Bolt literally "bolt-ed" to Olympic gold and into the record books, taking both the 100m and the 200m in world record times.

I have enjoyed watching the Olympics since I was a little kid, but this year's Summer Games were truly memorable.

Lockheed Martin's MKV: Cool or Boring?

Putting aside for a second the primary purpose of this vehicle ("MKV" = "Multiple Kill Vehicle"), I found this video to be so cool from the perspective of advanced technologies. Unfortunately, my kids--who are so jaded by Star Wars special effects and video games--were totally bored by this "reality" ship. So sad.

Building the Space Shuttle

I always feel so inadequate watching really creative people "do their thing" ... check this out!

Animation: Building the ISS

Someone sent me this informative animation showing how the International Space Station has come together over the past 10 years (and hopefully how it will be completed). Enjoy!

Extreme Space Tourism

I could see skydivers (quite literally) jumping at the opportunity to "space dive" ... I'm just not sure about the ride UP!