In a snippet from this article on BBC News, they provide some sounds advice:

“The brace position is a position that will offer you the best chance to survive in a crash because it stops you from flying forward and striking the seat or interior in front of you,” says Mr Barth.

“The important thing is to get your upper torso down as much as possible, limiting the ‘jackknife’ effect from impact forces.”

That said, here’s something that should give you a little comfort if your fear of flying goes beyond a lack of understanding aeronautics:

In the US alone, between 1983 and 2000, there were 568 plane crashes. Out of the collective 53,487 people onboard, 51,207 survived.

The article also highlights a television show that premiers tonight:
Horizon: Survivors Guide to Plane Crashes is on BBC Two at 2100 BST on Tuesday 3 October. Watch video highlights at Horizon’s website.

Hopefully you’ll never have to use this information, but at least it should make your next flying experience a less anxiety ridden one.

Happy travels!

WARNING: The first signs of this truly serious disorder appear in adolescence. The study claims that it’s not just “bad behavior,” but actually a serious biomedical problem. I agree – at least partially.

Here are some of the tell-tale signs:

To be diagnosed with IED, an individual must have had three episodes of impulsive aggressiveness which are grossly out of proportion to the situation, such as that seen in cases of road rage or domestic violence.

This not-so-unique disorder is also commonly known as: “Immaturity & Lack of Self-Control.” I’m curious to find out who actually funded this study – no doubt we will see numerous high priced prescription remedies.

But please, give me a break. When people lash out, as the study describes, there is obviously some sort of chemical imbalance occuring internally. If these people possessed some level of internal balance, they wouldn’t engage in such activities.

As a youth, I too had of bouts of ‘aggressive’ behavior – albeit there was no road rage or domestic violence involved; but I certainly had my fair share childish sparring matches. Although, by blaming this on a “disorder,” it seems to me that we are relieving individuals of any responsibility for their actions…and this is where I firmly disagree. Bad behavior is, in fact, a condition which is the result of a lack of internal discipline. Everyone goes through periods of imbalance in life; although not everyone lashes out in such ways. The difference is in how we react, and luckily we have been endowded with an ability to choose our reaction to any given set of circumstances.

Oops, I think I just lashed out

Brazil has weened itself off of an addiction to oil over the past ten years. This should certainly give us hope; although I’m concerned that we just don’t have the will to do the same. As I’ve mentioned before, America’s broken marriage to ‘black gold’ has created a very tumultuous relationship. This article should give you a better idea of how Brazil has turned this revolt against the status quo into a real success: Reuters | Brazil cane brings sweet smell of ethanol profits

Three quarters of new cars now sold in Brazil are flexfuel, meaning they can run on any combination of ethanol and gasoline.

“Ethanol can replace oil and Brazil still imports oil,” Junqueira said.

“The great opportunity for growth is the international market for two reasons. One is ethanol replacing oil … and the other is the environmental issue,” he explained.

Senator Barack Obama, along with Senator Richard Lugar, have taken the lead on this issue. You can read more about their efforts here and here.

With evidence mounting, the negative effects on our environment, national security & economy are undeniable – misplaced focus on the immigration issue (which is arguably of benefit) must be refocused on our energy policy before time runs out…if we put our minds to it, we can achieve it!

If you prefer listening, you can download all of Senator Obama’s Podcasts right here.

January 31st
Heartened by some of the ideas put forth in the President’s state of the union address, I’d been eagerly awaiting some follow-up. Arab oil producers – those relying on the U.S. addiction to remain in power – provided it. Voicing their concerns to the administration on the ensuing day; the Whitehouse confided that the president was only speaking “metaphorically,” their understandable tension was – at least for now – temporarily allayed.

February 17th
The problem persists…but as of last week, we have unexpected cause to thank Venezuelan president, Hugo Chavez. His confrontational statements (Chavez warns US on oil after Rice remarks) have brought the critical issue of this energy challenge back into the spotlight. I expect this scenario to repeat as tension with Iran and other oil producing countries rise.

February 20th
Caught in a pickle, the administration faces some tough decisions ahead. Either bow to the foreign powers who threaten our national security, or endure the economic pain that a shift away from this dependency would create. Bush should know better than most; his struggles with the bottle have likely given some good perspective on what it’s like to break an addiction. Reiterating ideas from the SOTU, Bush was again in the news today following a speech in Wisconsin (Bush: US must not be “hostage” to foreign oil).

Thoughts & Analysis…
Elements and repercussions of such a policy shift are potentially more far reaching and, by my measure, more beneficial than even the points brought up by the president. Implications of an independent energy initiative could bring a wealth of benefits to the stability of the entire planet. Thomas Friedman agrees (I’ll post a video of him speaking to this at a conference as soon as I figure out how). He also recently discussed this on The Charlie Rose Show in December. You can download it here on video.google.com for $0.99.

Even More Benefits:
Environment - It’s easy to see how alternative energy sources would help here. Recent studies (see 60 Minutes Report) suggest the situation is in fact much more dire than previously thought.Education – More scientists and engineers will be needed in order to attain such a goal. While building competencies in these areas through school reforms, we’ll also be addressing America’s failing scores among the world’s developed/ing nations. This also, of course, leads to a narrowed gap between the rich and poor, as well as an improved economy.

Economy – Imagine how valuable this sort of technology would be for developing nations. Low cost, efficient & renewable sources of energy that could drive their growth and development while giving billions of people an opportunity to live healthier, happier and more productive lives.

Equanimity – A greater balance of power might have some concerned, but this would certainly bring about more peace & stability to societies throughout the world as well as diminishing feelings of betrayal and mistrust.

The limited availability & high cost of energy is truly the great scourge of our time. Like Thomas Friedman, I would be a fervent advocate of any politician who ran on such a platform. I’ve also heard that this author of, “The World is Flat” and “The Lexus & The Olive Tree” is working on another book to cover these ideas in detail. I’m certainly looking forward to reading it and hope that it will gain some major political traction. I shudder to consider the alternative. This won’t be an easy task and will take a strong willed public to delay the gratification; but what thing that is worthwhile is ever truly easy to accomplish?