Wiser Web Wednesday – a regular link to posts of interest from around the web by those far wiser than myself:

The Dafacto Blog
I have often thought about the longevity of my online presence after my actual presence passes in this world, both from the perspective of my online accounts, and any writing I have created and put out into the ether. Further to this, there is also the issue of any secure digital data stored in the various cloud based services I am currently using.

To date, this thinking has not gone beyond providing my wife with my 1Password login (and vice versa), however I do need to consider this a little more thoughtfully and carefully.

Matt Henderson recently looked at a couple of possible strategies:
Planning for the transfer of personal data in the case of one’s unexpected passing

SBS News
Probably not surprising to read such a positive statement on coffee, given it’s origin:

What I tell patients is, if you like coffee, go ahead and drink as much as you want and can,” says Dr. Peter Martin, director of the Institute for Coffee Studies at Vanderbilt University.

That aside, this article goes on to report (again) what ongoing research has been demonstrating for some time now, in the significant and multiple long term health benefits of coffee. It also points out how, in addition to the benefits, much of the negative side effects long associated with beverage such as hypertension are also beginning to be disproven.

Some of the studies here quote continued benefits in upwards of six (up to ten) cups per day. Whilst I would not advocate lighter drinkers necessarily increase, perhaps those of us who find ourselves brewing every 2-3 waking hours can raise a knowing smile along with our preferred drinking vessel:
The case for drinking as much coffee as you like

A Fool With a Pen
Top fives, favourites, recommendations. We all love seeing where lists such as these take us, from agreement to dispute, to discovering something new. Just in time for Christmas comes one such list for your consideration and viewing pleasure:
The Charts

David Hewson
Author David Hewson provides a snippet of comment and a link to Dream of Venice, a photo compendium by Charles Christopher, which features an extract from Hewson’s book Carnival for the Dead. I think we’d all like to be saying the following line:

I’ll be back in Venice next month for a week finishing off a new book.

However in the absence of all capacity to say such a line, perhaps the book will have to do:
Dream of Venice

Pentorium
Personally, I don’t believe I could ever learn too much about fountain pens, however this guide at Pentorium goes a long way in furthering that endeavour. One of the most well set out and illustrated posts of its type I have come across.

I particularly like the “problem solving” type approach to the overall structure, rather than a simple list of general maintenance topics – certainly one to save and refer back to:
Fountain Pen Guide Series, Session 3: How to Maintain Your Pens

Brainpickings
One I particularly enjoyed from Brainpickings recently about a book by Carl Sagen, The Demon Haunted World. Why? Simply because it relates to much of what I spend my day doing, which is reviewing medical evidence in relation to what would be considered peer-reviewed and accepted treatment methodology. Probably the two most common mistakes I see others make who interpret such research are not dissimilar, however are listed individually in the list of 20 common pitfalls relating to common sense:

Number 12: post hoc, ergo propter hoc — Latin for “It happened after, so it was caused by” (e.g., Jaime Cardinal Sin, Archbishop of Manila: “I know of … a 26-year-old who looks 60 because she takes [contraceptive] pills.” Or: Before women got the vote, there were no nuclear weapons)

and

Number 17: confusion of correlation and causation (e.g., A survey shows that more college graduates are homosexual than those with lesser education; therefore education makes people gay. Or: Andean earthquakes are correlated with closest approaches of the planet Uranus; therefore — despite the absence of any such correlation for the nearer, more massive planet Jupiter — the latter causes the former)

Really, the title of the post says it all:
The Baloney Detection Kit: Carl Sagan’s Rules for Bullshit-Busting and Critical Thinking

Mic
Although commonly seen in movies, the idea of a post apocalyptic type landscape actually existing in reality is not one we commonly think about. This drone flight with footage of Chernobyl from the air is one such reminder, despite the nuclear reactor tragedy occurring in 1986, now almost 30 years ago:
Someone Flew a Drone Through Chernobyl and the Result Is Haunting