BEST PLACE ON EARTH. A highly subjective claim, no? Maybe not. The PBS Newshour earlier this week introduced an online tool which allows you to rate 34 countries along 11 quality-of-life dimensions (each on a scale of 1 to 5), then presents you with how those countries rank according to your own priorities. You can arrange the countries alphabetically or by numerical rank, using the small-print prompts at bottom right of the chart. It is an eye-opening exercise. I discovered that by my criteria for quality of life, the top four countries on my list were Australia, Sweden, Denmark, and New Zealand, with the U.S. a distant 7th. (I think I'd pick Sweden or Denmark.) Check it out, and see if the quick and easy exercise holds any surprises for you.
PTSD TEST. I've seen this device on news reports recently, and it appears to hold great promise for detecting and treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) early. Currently the virtual application is directed primarily at military veterans -- too bad it wasn't available during each of the 20th century's wars. It also holds potential for helping victims of rape, domestic violence, traffic accidents, debilitating diseases, and many of life's misfortunes.
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