Saturday, October 25, 2008

Station Stops for iPhone

Chris, the administrator over at "Station Stops" has recently released "Station Stops for iPhone"on the iTunes App Store.

Chris writes:

'Stationstops for iPhone’ allows you to tap on your Metro-North station and immediately find the next regularly scheduled trains departing to or from Grand Central Terminal on the Hudson, New Haven, or Harlem Lines.


As the entire timetable is on the iPhone in a database, internet access is not required – which was an important requirement since I so often need the information while on a subway.
Find the full story here:

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Aussie Radio Star


Jerry Lewis might be popular in Paris, and David Hasselhoff big in Germany, but I'm huge Down Under (get your mind out of the gutter, I'm talking about Australia.)

A year ago, I got an email from an Australian psychologist named Gina Perry. She was enrolled as a "mature student" at the University of Melbourne and doing her Master's thesis on Dr. Stanley Milgram's "Obedience to Authority"experiment. She also was in the process of producing a radio documentary for ABC (The Australian Broadcasting Company) about the experiment and the lasting ramifications on those who took part-volunteers, experimenters and their loved ones.

While doing research, Ms. Perry stumbled upon this blog and a post I had written in March of 2006 about my father's involvement with the Milgram experiment. "I thought your piece about you discovering your father had been involved was wonderful and very well written," she wrote. She then asked if I'd be willing to partake in an interview for her documentary. I reluctantly agreed, saying that I was only two years old when my father died and I didn't think I'd be much help. She responded, saying anything I could contribute would be a valued addition to her program
The experiment was performed in 1961 and finding volunteers wasn't an easy task. Most participants, like my father, had gone on to their "great reward". I think Ms. Perry was desperate, so I agreed to help her
.
Ms. Perry flew to the U.S. to do research and conduct interviews in California, Florida, Ohio and Connecticut. After exchanging several emails, we met at the Yale Club in New Haven on an unseasonably cold March evening.
The Yale Club is a basically a no frills bed and breakfast in the middle of New Haven, but it's just down the street from where Milgram conducted his experiments, so it was perfect for our meeting. We stole away to a dusty lounge where she placed a small digital recorder on an end table next to me and then proceeded to pepper me with questions.

This past Saturday, the documentary was broadcast on ABC in Australia:

http://www.abc.net.au/rn/radioeye/stories/2008/2358103.htm

I encourage you to click on the link above and listen to the documentary in it's entirety. If you just want to here my contribution, slide the play bar over to the 8-10 minute mark (depending on your media player). In fact, I command you to listen. BZZZZZZ!!!!!!