Return to Sender
Clean Future
By Marco Segura RE: Blogs and Implants
Here at Wired, we love The Future. We even dated it for a while, but had to break up because it could never seem to just relax and enjoy the moment. You readers crush on The Future, too, but you live in the information-laden Now. Where does that leave us? Busted. We said that our new logo obeys the Law of Optical Volumes, and our resourceful readers promptly searched the Internet for the existence of such a law. So we confess: Scott Dadich, our creative director, sort of invented it. We explain his thinking on the Underwire, one of the 60 gazillion blogs we now run (blog.wired.com). Whatever else The Future holds, our job will still be to publish stories that blow your mind. The avalanche of responses to Steven Gulie's story about getting a brain implant to treat Parkinson's did just that. Don't believe us? Check the Web.
Snack Attack
You guys listed spoilers in bold, before the story they're spoiling ("Spoiler Alert!," issue 15.03). Ack! I'm watching Twin Peaks with some of my friends, and by the time my eye rested on the article, it was already too late! Now, despite my best efforts, I won't be able to enjoy the show as a 'virgin' to it, the way it was meant to be seen. I love your magazine, just please show your readers a little more consideration.
Colin Smith
Athens, Georgia
The "snack" culture of quick is exacerbated by rapid technological advances. Myself, I have always preferred to absorb my experiences.
Mawr McMahan
Bellflower, California
Get Out Your Tinfoil Hat
"Be More Than You Can Be" (issue 15.03) was informative, but the author may have missed a critical point: Darpa has entered our living rooms. Take a second look at the agency's renaming of the Augmented Cognition program to Improving Warfighter Information Intake Under Stress. Lose the first word and you get "Wii US." Talk about spyware.
Vinny Guercio
Kings Park, New York
Gold Diggers
Your article on deep-sea mineral mining ("Race to the Bottom," issue 15.03) reveals the extent of the psychosis of people in a desperate and seemingly never-ending pursuit of cash. Sure, they will put money into research. But even if the research says, "Don't do this because of essential bacterial microsystems or other necessary cycles of nature that might be found near the blacktops," I don't think they'll haul anchor and go back to land.
Dave Naughton
Lacey, Washington
The Bionic Man
Oscar Pistorius should not be viewed as equal to other Olympic athletes ("Blade Runner," issue 15.03). Anyone who has the ability to legally alter their performance through engineering should not be able to compete with "full-bodied" athletes. Whether his legs are an advantage or disadvantage is not what's up for debate. The simple fact is he can keep improving his time through advancements in engineering while your average competitors are limited by their physical ability. That can never be viewed as equal.
It's the same thing in Nascar. Every car has the same number of components and moving parts, and every car must adhere to Nascar guidelines of what is acceptable. This is the only way to run a truly fair race. Everyone is equal, and the driver's skill is what puts one car ahead of another.
Gerald Vinci
Milton, Florida
Go Away!
There is something ironic about encouraging people to visit Machu Picchu, Peru, when you also note that the impact of tourists could land it on the World Monuments Fund's list of endangered sites ("Wish You'd Been Here," Start, Atlas, issue 15.03).
Stephen Hendrickson
Washington, DC
Come Back!
The ad right after "Wish You'd Been Here," which laments the loss of Bluegrass Country, is for the new Camry. How fitting: The Camry is built in Toyota's Kentucky factory on a site that used to be 1,300 acres of bluegrass.
Sterling Lapinski
Louisville, Kentucky
Shocking Stories
Fascinating article about deep brain stimulation. Now if only the Powers That BeTM can pull their collective heads out and develop a sane stem-cell policy.
Jon Deal
Salt Lake City, Utah
I was diagnosed with Parkinson's at 39 and underwent bilateral deep brain stimulation surgery ("A Shock to the System," issue 15.03). After 4 ½ years of nearly constant programming and med adjustments, I am mysteriously enjoying remarkable results at virtually half my original voltage settings, something the docs are attributing to a rarely observed and not officially reported "neuro protective" effect.
Apparently, this phenomenon has been observed in a few others and, as my neurologist explained it to me, results from the brain somehow learning to adapt without the aid of as much "juice." I don't care what the reason is. I'm going to enjoy it, like any sane person would, for as long as it lasts.
Valerie Graham
Centennial, Colorado
I had the deep brain stimulation operation in October. Most of the signs of Parkinson's have disappeared, but the neurologists seem baffled by my concerns about such things as going blank at mid-sentence and, in general, feeling out of sync with people. Your article gave me hope that, if I found the right neurologist, they might help me resolve these issues.
Peter C. Haskell
Houston, Texas
I have participated in the development of neurostimulators for the past 11 years. My sense of wonderment only increases each time I witness a patient's tremor, rigidity, or even depression decrease once the stimulator is activated.
As an old "vert" skateboarder from the 1980s, I can't help but think about Steven Gulie catching a wave with a DBS pulse generator showing proud on his chest.
Damon Black
Dallas, Texas
Pleading for the Fifth
Once again, The Fifth Element was snubbed ("The Best: Sci-Fi Fashions," Start, issue 15.02). Who can forget Leeloo's rubbery orange strap outfit (and her makeup installer), the freckles and reverse-cleavage getups of the spaceship stewardesses, or the diva's blue bodysuit?
Neal Miyake
Honolulu, Hawaii
Fallout
"What's Inside: Neutrogena Face Lotion" (Start, issue 15.03) contained a very offensive statement: "Attention Chernobyl-area residents: It also protects against gamma radiation from nuclear fallout." Would the author tell 9/11 victims a lotion could protect them from terrorism?
Natalia Alexeeva
Iowa City, Iowa
See page 185
Why no more Colophon? Wired sings the praises of all things technological, but Colophon really reminded readers of the quirky, all-too-human nuts and bolts needed to get that job done.
Theresa Hawthorne
Minneapolis, Minnesota
UNDOs
The first US surgery to put stimulators in the subthalmic nucleus took place at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York, not Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles ("A Shock to the System," issue 15.03). An effort in the 1970s to mine the deep ocean seabed didn't produce enough commercial nickel, not enough commercial manganese, to make the venture worthwhile ("Race to the Bottom," issue 15.03). PaperBackSwap has 254,000 titles in its inventory, not 30,000 ("Downloading by Mail," Start, issue 15.03).
RANTS
Letters should include writer's name, address, and daytime phone number and be sent to rants@wired.com. Submissions may be edited and may be published or used in any medium. They become the property of Wired and will not be returned.
