Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears
Greetings from the University of New Hampshire! Suddenly the semester seems to be flying! I’m worrying about getting through everything in time. Sixteen weeks seems like forever when seen from August, and like no time at all when seen from November.
I scheduled an interview at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center for the Health Leader Forge last Friday, and since D-H is roughly halfway to Montreal (Canada) from UNH, my wife and I decided to keep on going and spend the weekend there. I hadn’t been to Montreal since I was in high school, so it was fun to go back. It’s a nice, manageable city. We did all the critical things - which in my book is eating all the local specialties - we had bagels, poutine, and a smoked meat sandwich. We also got to visit La Basilique Notre-Dame at night (picture above from the visit) and see the laser show (called Aura) inside. It was really something - I know, you’re like, “A laser show inside an old church? I’ll pass.” But you would be wrong. It’s not religious (not irreligious, either, of course). It makes an amazing use of the interior while transforming it into something completely different. if you go to Montreal, I highly recommend it (and the poutine!).
On to the links!
Read
What: Washington City Paper, What Makes Restaurants Sink or Swim? We Asked a Woman Who Helps Them Stay Afloat.
Why: Why, you ask, am I sharing a restaurant piece in a health leadership newsletter? Well, aside from the fact that I love to eat out, restaurants are service businesses dealing with narrow margins. Healthcare is a service business, generally dealing with narrow margins. My experience with creativity is that it’s very useful to look at people and organizations that are doing similar things to what you want to do, steal their ideas, and implement them in a unique way with your individual spin. There’s some good food for thought in this article. (see what I did there? Food for thought, restaurant… get it? ;)
Watch
What: Chemical and Engineering News, Cremation, burial, or composting? Calculating the environmental costs of the afterlife
Why: This is definitely the first piece I have shared from Chemical and Engineering News (who knew there was such an outlet, but 3 cheers to the internet for giving everyone a niche!). Also, it’s cookie-mation. I think that’s perfect for the day after Halloween. This is an interesting discussion of the environmental impact of dealing with human bodies. I’ve told my family I don’t want to be buried. I find cemeteries depressing. Living here in New England, there are cemeteries that date back to the 1600’s scattered randomly around. Sometimes someone still takes care of them; mostly they are just ignored. I like the idea of cremation without embalming. I don’t need to be gutted like a fish and pumped full of chemicals after I die, just so I can lie on display for a few hours. Better to be just gone. I liked the idea of having my ashes scattered somewhere. Having a headstone with my name on it for a few hundred years after no one remembers me anymore seems incredibly pretentious. This video is making me think a bit differently about cremation - now I’m thinking maybe human composting. That would be nice, and have a lower environmental impact. I don’t think I’m ready for aquamation (I don’t like the idea of being poured down the drain - maybe I still identify with my body a little). Fun, short video - thought provoking. Check it out!
Listen
What: Econtalk, Andrew McAfee on More from Less
https://www.econtalk.org/andrew-mcafee-on-more-from-less/
Why: McAfee talks about how modern economies are using less material in an absolute sense to produce more value. That’s not using less per unit - that’s using less total resources. When I was a kid we used to have steel bumpers on our cars. Sometimes we would play bumper tag and intentionally rear-end a friend. Why not? A low-speed collision when you both have a steel bar between you is just going to jolt you a bit, not cause $5,000 in damage a two weeks in the repair shop like my daughter experienced a few weeks ago when she got rear-ended (at low speed) while in traffic. Today’s cars are made with less stuff, are more safe, and use less gas. You just can’t play bumper tag with them. But I’ll take that trade off. And that’s the story across advanced economies - we’re getting more with less. Better quality products, cheaper, and they have less of an impact on the environment. This isn’t an anti-climate change book, but it is an optimistic perspective. I’m looking forward to reading the book. Which I am getting electronically (no paper) - more from less.
Thanks for reading and see you next week! If you come across any interesting stories, won't you send them my way? I'd love to hear what you think of these suggestions, and I'd love to get suggestions from you. Feel free to drop me a line at mark.bonica@unh.edu , or you can tweet to me at @mbonica .
Also, if you find these links interesting, won’t you tell a friend? They can subscribe here: https://tinyletter.com/markbonica
Have a great weekend and do amazing things!
Mark
Mark J. Bonica, Ph.D., MBA, MS
Assistant Professor
Department of Health Management and Policy
University of New Hampshire
(603) 862-0598
mark.bonica@unh.edu
Health Leader Forge Podcast: http://healthleaderforge.org
"I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by a conscious endeavor." - Henry David Thoreau