Braintenance: Answers to Most Recent Set of Problems? Comin' Up!

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Dear Fellow Brainercizers, Cognitive Enhancers, Mind Expanders and Lingovistic Grandstanders:

Not to worry! I will be posting the answers to the last problem set within the next couple of days. I just sometimes get awfully busy writing about other things, and sometimes I feel obligated to share them with you here.

Answers are on their way.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

p.s. There is great growth potential in indulging and exploring the seemingly irrelevent. -- DC

Douglas Castle Explains the Economic "Boom" in the US

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Douglas Castle Explains the Economic "Boom" in the US.

Dear Friends:

As a rule, I enjoy poking fun at the news, and people's interpretation of what it means. Especially when I read something like what follows in the New York Times:

Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Fri, January 29, 2010 -- 8:48 AM ET
-----

U.S. Economy Grew at Annual Rate of 5.7% in Fourth Quarter, More Than Expected
The United States economy grew at its fastest pace in over
six years at the end of 2009, but a sluggish job market is
still souring economists on the sustainability of the
recovery.

Gross domestic product expanded at an annual rate of 5.7
percent in the fourth quarter, well above analysts'
expectations. It had grown at an annualized rate of 2.2
percent in the previous quarter.

Read More:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/30/business/economy/30econ.html?emc=na
####

Folks... it sounds good, but what it might actually mean is that:

1. Businesses had run so low on stores of inventory, and that inventory prices (because of depressed demand) had actually fallen, so some businesses bought some things -- it's better than having empty showrooms and shelves.

2. Some business profit margins actually did grow (at least temporarily) because they had cut down on their costs -- often, by firing loads of "dispensible" employees. They might have lowered their cost profiles by tossing out some employees. Sadly, this contributes to growing unemployment, decreases disposable personal income, and diminishes consumerism, which ultimately destroys sales. It is rather like throwing the walls into the fireplace to heat the house - temporary.

3. Statistics are funny. Note that if my sales of last year were $50.0 million, and this year they were $52.5 million, my sales grew at a rate of 5% during the year. But what if (ooooooooooh.....) my sales had dropped to $25.0 million last year (and they had previously been at a pre-recession level of $50.0 million), and they had grown to $27.5million this year? That would appear to be an increase of 10%. Yet, despite the increase, my sales hadn't grown even close to earlier levels. In statistics, the smaller the selected starting number, the easier it is to evidence "growth."

In the words of a great American philosopher, "and that's all I've got to say about that."

Think about the implications behind the percentages, folks. And if you are just a tad mistrustful, think of the motives behind the sources presenting those statistics.

Global Futurists - I do not see a recovery in the United States economy for quite some time to come. I wish that I felt differently.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

Braintenance

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Braintenance : A Few Simple Questions...

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Dear Friends:

These problems are ridiculously simple. Or maybe not....

1) If you have started a savings account with $100,000.00 which accumulates interest at 4% compounded annually, after 10 years, what will be the accumulated sum in the account?

2) Applying the same facts as in question #1, above, and assuming that inflation accumulates at a rate of 3% compounded per annum, how much would the accumulated sum in the account be worth (in the equivalent buying power fo today's dollars) at the end of the ten-year period?

3) Will the sum of an odd and an even number always turn out to be even or odd? (The smart answer "yes" is unacceptable).

4) Will the product obtained by multiplying an odd and an even number always turn out to be even or odd? (Again, the smart answer "yes" is unacceptable).

5) When people work together and combine their mental capabilities, the resulting "mindpower" will be increased. If five collaborators are working together on the same project, what will the total mind power (expressed as a number) be if: a) the power is an arithmetic sum; b) the power is a geometric product; c) if the power is an exponential product???

The best of luck to one and all.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle



*Follow BRAINTENANCE on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Braintenance .
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*Follow DOUGLAS CASTLE on Twitter at http://twitter.com/douglascastle .
*Also: Take a look at the following sites ---
HUMANITAS MAXIMUS, TAKING COMMAND!, INTERNAL ENERGY PLUS BLOG, INTERNAL ENERGY PLUS WEBSITE, THE NATIONAL NETWORKER, THE GLOBAL FUTURIST, THE INTERNATIONALIST PAGE.

*Contact the author at douglas.castle@yahoo.com .
*Subscribe (free!) for The National Networker Newsletter and the BLUE TUESDAY REPORT at Join Us!

Visionaries and Experts Needed. - From Douglas Castle

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Subject: Collaboration Experts and Visionaries Needed.

 

Dear Colleagues:

I am aggressively seeking collaboration experts, advocates and thought leaders who are interested in writing (brief entries as part of a cooperative forum) and promoting their views about any of the topics below:

·         Collaboration software and technology;

·         Collaboration ideology, theory and philosophy;

·         Breakthrough thinking through collaboration;

·         Equitable sharing of the efforts (costs) and benefits (profits) of  intellectual property and other assets developed through the collaboration mechanism;

·         Trends and future predictions regarding the expansion of the practice of collaboration and/or the technology associated with it.

This effort is being undertaken in conjunction with The National Networker Companies (http://www.TheNationalNetworker.com), and has the promise of being high-profile.

Should you have an interest, I would welcome the opportunity to discuss this project with you in greater detail. The Group will be called "Accelerated Breakthroughs," and will be working under the auspices of TNNW’s GICBC (Global Interworked Cooperative Business Community). We already have a substantial readership and prospective market base upon which to showcase our group, and to whom we can intelligently and tastefully promote the services of each of our principal forum participants. There exists a tremendous opportunity for participation in the ownership of valuable intellectual property, publication and promotion.

You can find my profile at http://www.linkedin.com/in/douglascastle, or at http://aboutDouglasCastle.blogspot.com .

Please send your inquiries and expressions of interest directly to http://twitlik.com/Collaboration. (a pop-up instant email form). Please write the word “Collaboration” in the subject line of your correspondence. 

I hope to hear from you very soon. Thank you for your consideration.

Best Regards,                              

Douglas Castle

----------------------------------------------------------

Away Message From Douglas Castle

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Away Message From Douglas Castle

Dear Friends:

I will be out of town from 18th January, and returning on 26th January. During this interval, I will not be accessing or responding to any emails, telephone messages or posting any material to blogs or social media. I look forward to being in touch with you soon after my return.

All the best, Respectfully,

Douglas Castle

Primary e-mail address:douglas.castle@yahoo.com,

douglascastle@gmail.com,

douglascastle.cybersphere@gmx.com  

About Douglas Castle 

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The National Networker Companies

Braintenance - Stay razor sharp.

The Internationalist Page - A world without barriers.

The Global Futurist - Revealing trends.

Taking Command! - Mastering your fate.

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Braintenance: Imply, Infer, Compute...CASTLE'S LAW OF LINGUISTIC DECAY.

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Dear Friends:

The definitions which follow appear here courtesy of http://www.dictionary.com/.  Years ago, I used to Ask Jeeves, but I believe that he has since retired (without a severance package or a pension....a sad casuality of these trying economic times):

im⋅ply   /ɪmˈplaɪ/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [im-plahy] Show IPA

Use imply in a Sentence

See web results for imply

See images of imply

–verb (used with object), -plied, -plying.

1.	to indicate or suggest without being explicitly stated: His words implied a lack of faith.

2.	(of words) to signify or mean.

3.	to involve as a necessary circumstance: Speech implies a speaker.

4.	Obsolete. to enfold.

---

Origin:

1325–75; ME implien, emplien < MF emplier < L implicāre; see implicate

Synonyms:

3. assume, include.
**********

in⋅fer   /ɪnˈfɜr/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [in-fur] Show IPA verb, -ferred, -fer⋅ring.

Use infer in a Sentence

See web results for infer

See images of infer

–verb (used with object)

1.	to derive by reasoning; conclude or judge from premises or evidence: They inferred his displeasure from his cool tone of voice.

2.	(of facts, circumstances, statements, etc.) to indicate or involve as a conclusion; lead to.

3.	to guess; speculate; surmise.

4.	to hint; imply; suggest.

–verb (used without object)

5.	to draw a conclusion, as by reasoning.

---

Origin:

1520–30; < L inferre, equiv. to in- in- ² + ferre to bring, carry, bear ^1
**********

^{Nonethless, the terms imply and infer, just as the terms implication and inference, are often used interchangeably. Since most dictionaries are set to be ubdated by a system which I refer to as Castle's Law of Linguistic Decay. Simply stated: In communicating or engaging in commerce with the masses, your expressions must. of sad necessity default to the Lowest Common Usage, i.e., Default To Idiom or Slang." This explains why "ain't" ain't no longer excluded from the dictionary. It also explains why people don't address you as "Sir," "Ma'am," or "Miss" -- they simply yell out "YO! Yo, dawg!" Heck...L Ron Hubbard got the term "engrams," used in Scientology, into the dictionary merely because of its popularity in the 1970s and 1980s -- He didn't have to even make a request. And they all laughed at my idea of LINGOVATIONS. Well, they're not laughing now!}

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

And Now: Computations and Problem-Solving For Fun and Mind-Expansion...

The wonderful math quiz questions which follow are brought to you courtesy of Math Beyond The Realm. They have a wonderful website, and I highly recommend them.

Their address is http://www.mathbeyondtherealm.com/mbrmathquiz.html. Please note that any errors in formatting are stricly mine, as I no longer seem to remember how to copy and paste with any level of precision.

questions change every  Sunday evening.  Good Luck :)

Here are some wonderful questions.  HOPE YOU’RE READY. When you have finished, there is a button at the bottom of the problem set for yout to click on to check your answers. 

 1.)    The Soccer Shop is having a sale.  Everything is 20% off.  Shannon bought a pair of goalie gloves and some shin guards.  The original prices were $30 for the gloves and $15 for the shin guards.  How much did Shannon save all together?

A.) $9.00   B.) $15.00       C.) $18.00       D.) $36.00       E.) NG

 2.)    There were 30 questions on a math test.  Chaz got 80% of them correct. How many questions did he answer correctly?

F.) 24         G.) 18              H.) 15              J.) 6                 K.) NG

 3.)    Teeka made a design using tiles.  For every 2 square tiles she used, she used 8 triangles.  When she was finished, Teeka had used 48 square tiles.  How many triangles did she use?

       A.) 96       B.) 182            C.) 240            D.) 384            E.) NG

  4.)    If 6 computer disks cost $8.00, what is the greatest number of the same computer disks you can buy for $40?

F.) 40         G.) 30              H.) 24              J.) 20               K.) NG

  

 5.)    The letters of the words AMERICAN PIES are placed in a bag.  What is the probability that you will draw an E or an I if you chose one letter from the bag?

A.) ¼         B.) 1/3             C.) 1/8             D.) 5/12           E.) NG

 6.)    An average of 35 paperback books fit on each shelf of a bookcase.  There are 4 shelves in each bookcase.  How many bookcases will be needed to shelve 1540 books?

A.) 140                  B.) 14              C.) 11              D.) 10              F.) NG

Answers

*Follow BRAINTENANCE on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Braintenance .
*Follow DOUGLAS CASTLE's Blog at http://aboutdouglascastle.blogspot.com/ .
*Follow DOUGLAS CASTLE on Twitter at http://twitter.com/douglascastle .
*Also: Take a look at the following sites ---
HUMANITAS MAXIMUS, TAKING COMMAND!, INTERNAL ENERGY PLUS BLOG, INTERNAL ENERGY PLUS WEBSITE, THE NATIONAL NETWORKER, THE GLOBAL FUTURIST, THE INTERNATIONALIST PAGE.

*Contact the author at douglas.castle@yahoo.com .
*Subscribe (free!) for The National Networker Newsletter and the BLUE TUESDAY REPORT at Join Us!

Unplug, relax, plug in again, and let your mind reset. --DC

Braintenance: Weekend Humor...The art of inference.

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Friends:

This post is yet another departure from our regularly scheduled program here at Braintenance. Please enjoy it.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

p.s. Can you describe the difference between the terms "imply" and "infer?" Can you describe the difference between "implications" and "inferences?" Also...Does this particular color scheme remind you of hot dogs and hamburgers?
---------------------------------------------
And now, to America's most renowned Dick:

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*Follow BRAINTENANCE on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Braintenance .
*Follow DOUGLAS CASTLE's Blog at http://aboutdouglascastle.blogspot.com/ .
*Follow DOUGLAS CASTLE on Twitter at http://twitter.com/douglascastle .
*Also: Take a look at the following sites ---
HUMANITAS MAXIMUS, TAKING COMMAND!, INTERNAL ENERGY PLUS BLOG, INTERNAL ENERGY PLUS WEBSITE, THE NATIONAL NETWORKER, THE GLOBAL FUTURIST, THE INTERNATIONALIST PAGE.

*Contact the author at douglas.castle@yahoo.com .
*Subscribe (free!) for The National Networker Newsletter and the BLUE TUESDAY REPORT at Join Us!

Questioning Motives, Benefits, Costs and Ultimate Effect

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Questioning Motives, Benefits, Costs and Ultimate Effect

Note: This article was written by Author Douglas Castle for publication in BRAINTENANCE, THE GLOBAL FUTURIST , TAKING COMMAND! and THE NATIONAL NETWORKER RSS and Daily email feeds (which are available to the public at no charge). This article may be reprinted, re-published or transmitted without the consent of the author provided that the article is published intact, unedited and in its entirety, and that all links contained herein are left live for the reader's reference. You may become a Member of The National Networker Global Interworked Cooperative Business Community and receive our publications (free) by clicking on http://twitlik.com/IN.

Dear Friends:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is about to set down some new, strict, health standards for companies which generate any type of waste products. My preliminary analysis (in brief) of this policy is set forth below a reprint of the article which happened to inspire me to say "I told you so." But I'm not going to do that, as appropriate as that may be. Analyzing this bit of news about a governmental agency policy is a wonderful intellectual/ brain-building and policymaking/ strategic planning exercise. For those of you who are new to this, here's how we play the game:

Firstly, read the article excerpted from THE NEW YORK TIMES which follows; secondly, click the back button and take a look at my findings and see how yours compare. Remember: No peeking at my answers until you have had an opportunity to form your own opinions!

And now (cue drumroll), the article --

Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Thu, January 07, 2010 -- 11:44 AM ET
-----

E.P.A. Announces Strict New Health Standards for Smog

The Environmental Protection Agency's new limits -- which are
presented as a range -- will likely put hundreds more
counties nationwide in violation, a designation that will
require them to find additional ways to clamp down on
pollution or face government sanctions, most likely the loss
of federal highway dollars.

Read More:
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/01/07/us/AP-US-EPA-Smog.html?emc=na

####

Okay. Now that you've had an opportunity to preview the policy, compare your findings with mine:

1. MOTIVES - A power-grab by the EPA to further regulate industry under the guise of environmental protection and being green-compliant. A money-grab by the federal government to fund its burgeoning deficit by making counties pay a ransom to the federal government -- it's a sort of reverse federal-aid program to save the federal government money, and to actually collect more tax, penalty and compliance dollars from the counties in every city and state. The federal government is grabbing the near empty wallet of a fellow (metaphorically) already walking to bankrupcy court. [The fellow is walking because he has lost his job and cannot afford cabfare, and because his own automobile is excreting too much CO2, the deadly greenhouse gas that is integral for photosynthesis....but that's another tale].

2. BENEFITS - The federal government, the EPA and scores of attorneys will benefit. The environment (and the people who choose to continue living in it) will benefit by a reduction in potentially toxic factory emissions and cleaner air. Ahhhhh! 

3. COSTS - All borne by the taxpaying public and businesses (the costs of regulatory compliance are generally quite high). There will be increased incentives for businesses, jobs and talent to go overseas. There will be reduced industrial output in the US, decreasing employment, and other additional hardships to numerous to list. Service businesses, which shouldn't be as immediately and precipitously impacted, will feel the pinch as county tax bases are reduced and greater tax burdens are placed upon them.

4. ULTIMATE EFFECT - Negative for all US residents employed (or unemployed) in the private sector. Economically contractionary.

Now: How does your analysis stack up beside mine? You can comment on this article by clicking on:

• https://ciof.wufoo.com/forms/comment-on-this-article/

Please remember to put the words "EPA POLICY" in the subject line of your message.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

About Douglas Castle 

Douglas Castle - LinkedIn Profile

The National Networker Companies

Braintenance - Stay razor sharp.

The Internationalist Page - A world without barriers.

The Global Futurist - Revealing trends.

Taking Command! - Mastering your fate.

Follow Castle on Twitter 

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SUICIDE: Being Proactive Can Save a Life.

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Public Service Announcement:

The American Foundation For Suicide Prevention Programs. Help save a life. Learn more - http://twitlik.com/AFSP   Every life is precious. Know how to help. Know how to access emergency treatment. Always take any discussions or thoughts of suicide seriously. Don't ever leave a suicidal person alone. An hour of conversation while waiting for emergency help to arrive can make all the difference.

If you are having thoughts of suicide, call for emergency treatment (there are some excellent resources at LINKS 4 LIFE), and then call a friend or family member. Keep calling until you connect. If you can't get anyone, get to a place where there are people and some activity. There's hope... and there's help. I promise.

Douglas Castle,
THE NATIONAL NETWORKER COMPANIES

About Douglas Castle 

Douglas Castle - LinkedIn Profile

The National Networker Companies

Braintenance - Stay razor sharp.

The Internationalist Page - A world without barriers.

The Global Futurist - Revealing trends.

Taking Command! - Mastering your fate.

Follow Castle on Twitter 

Follow TNNW on Twitter

Join us! With your free membership, you'll receive THE NATIONAL NETWORKER Newsletter and The BLUE TUESDAY Report. Click on: http://twitlik.com/IN. You'll also want to get your free RSS feed or Daily email delivered to your inbox -- just click on http://twitlik.com/Daily and make your selection.

Analyzing Transactions and Policies

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Dear Braintenancers:

Firstly, I'd like to wish each and every one of you a Happy, Healthy, Peaceful and Prosperous New Year. As I intend to be true to my word, please set an extra place at the dinner table for me.

Secondly, it is an enlightening exercise to perform a simple analysis on all corporate and government transactions, policies and legislation. In essence, the analysis has only two parts:

1. Who ultimately benefits?

2. Who ultimately pays?

Try this simple analysis approach on every decision made by a third party (a party other than yourself), and you'll find the results fascinating. I promise.

I have a link from The Internationalist Page which I just posted to Twitter which will show you precisely what I mean -- with a humorous story attached.

Look at what a mere $10.0 Billion gets you! http://twitlik.com/SaveDubai  

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

p.s. There will be more Braintenance to come! Get ready for some good, old-fashioned math problems. Train your brain.