Boxing Day

On this day in 1982, TIME magazine named it's "Man of the Year" for the first time ever a non-human: the personal computer. This year was also a milestone of sorts, going to "you" and all of the user-based web initiatives out there... youtube, myspace, facebook and wikipedia.

What is also interesting, and not technological at all, is the correlation between this date and 2003, 2004 and 2006 (today). In all three years, major earthquakes have created devastation. I mean, Boxing Day shouldn't create such a terror for Mother Nature, right? Apparently, she has something against corrugated cardboard. Anyway, wikipedia says that in 2003, "a strong magnitude 6.6 earthquake devastates southeast Iranian city of Bam, killing tens of thousands and destroying the citadel of Arg-é Bam." In 2004, an earthquake measuring 9.3 on the Richter magnitude scale creates a tsunami causing devastation in Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, The Maldives and many other areas around the rim of the Indian Ocean, killing more than 200,000." And today, "a magnitude 7.1 earthquake near Taiwan generated a tsunami 3 feet high."

Coming this week: 2006 in review, 2007 in preview/resolution, and how I stopped worrying and came to love New Year's Eve.