Save $100 and a Loved One’s Brain January 16, 2006March 3, 2017 It’s all about you: YOUR DEMOCRACY Some of you get angry when I tell you our elections in America are not secure and need to be fixed with, among other things, auditable paper ballots. This should not be a partisan issue. Only fascists should oppose fair elections. From Sunday’s Miami Herald: . . . Sancho, Leon County’s supervisor of elections, allowed a couple of computer scientists to try hacking into his voting system last year. With the same access as one of Sancho’s election workers, the scientists were able to switch around votes willy-nilly. ”I’m positive that an eighth-grader could do this,” computer science professor Herbert Thompson told The Miami Herald after he redirected 5,000 votes from one hypothetical candidate to another. . . . YOUR BRAIN ‘If you, or anyone you know, is over 50’ (as those TV ads for rip-off life insurance used to begin) . . . You may have seen the lead story on ‘CBS Sunday Morning,’ Sunday morning, about brain plasticity and how it appears the brain can rewire itself to overcome difficulties, including memory degeneration – even perhaps retarding Alzheimer’s. Last month, the Wall Street Journal covered much the same subject: “The majority improved 10 or more years in neurocognitive status, so 80-year-olds had the memories of 70-year olds,” says Prof. Merzenich. “With more training, I expect we could get it to 25 years.” The start-up private company at the center of much of this, Posit Science (full disclosure: I own a sliver), offers a home version of its program for $495 – use promotional code gn0604a to knock $100 off – which is either: (a) an awful lot for a CD, a DVD, a pair of headphones, and some software; (b) the bargain of the age if it actually works; (c) the cost of 45 days’ worth of BiDil; (d) all of the above. [Answer: (d).] If you decide to take a look, note that you can: (a) increase the tiny text size by clicking the largest of the A’s at upper right [AAA]; (b) learn ‘How It Works‘ (and ‘Why It Works‘ better than doing crossword puzzles); (c) get a mini-demo. As you know, my list of noncredentials is long. I am not a rocket scientist, I am not a brain surgeon, and – of particular relevance here – I lack even a single degree in neurocognition. What I bring to the table is personal knowledge of the CEO, who is honest and smart. So when he tells me this is for real, and that most people who’ve tried the Brain Fitness Program really like and benefit from it, I think there is a reasonable chance you or loved one will, too. And when his company offers a 90-day money-back guarantee (less shipping and handling), I expect there is a reasonable likelihood it would be honored. YOUR PUTS One way to find the money to buy the Brain Fitness Program is to sell your puts – with NTMD stock down from $22 in July to $12.50 at the close Friday, you should have made out OK. But, so long as this is still money you can truly afford to lose, I would hold on. I could be wrong (and there will be spikes in the stock price along the way even if I’m not). But it would appear that the company is headed on a course to lose $60 or $70 million this year, maybe more, which is most of its remaining cash. To my knowledge, about the only thing the company has is one product, BiDil, which is comprised of two widely available, long-prescribed generics, and which it sells at about six times the cost of the two purchased separately. The company hoped convenience would trump cost. It still may. But after six months on the market, it’s looking dicey. Happy Birthday, MLK, Jr.! Wednesday: And You Think YOU Have Problems?