(In)Security. Here's another of the TED talks I accumulate from various places; unfortunately I no longer remember who to credit for the tip. Security expert Bruce Schneier speaks on our models of security, our feelings of security, and why these often differ from the reality of our security. I wish he had given more concrete examples, but it's still a good talk, especially at the beginning when he makes the point that all security decisions are tradeoffs, and the proper question to ask is not so much, "Does this make us safer?" as "Is it worth the cost?" He's probably thinking about national and computer security, but the application that immediately jumps to my mind is parenthood. Whether it's airport body scanners, tamper-proof bottles, or removing tall slides from playgrounds, it's important to realize that security—or even the illusion of security—comes at a cost.
UPDATE 8/15/19: At some point over time, a large chunck of this post—numbers 2-7—went missing. I have no idea why. The video below obviously went with one of the missing posts.
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