I take a number of vitamins and over-the-counter medicines.
At the end of the year, I get an accounting of all the prescription medicines I have taken and their cost, but I have to figure out the cost of the over-the-counter medicines myself. I give these figures to my accountant (Cindy, M.B.A.) and she uses them to figure part of my income tax form.
I take one per day of the following medicines:
Aspirin, 81 milligrams
Multivitamin
Vitamin C
Vitamin E
Flaxseed Oil
I take two per day of the following medicines:
Glucosamine-chondroitin complex
Fiber Choice
The prices of these pills are:
Aspirin, 500 tablets for $12.99
Multivitamin, 300 for $13.99
Vitamin C, 400 tablets for $5.99
Vitamin E, 400 tablets for $14.99 (the price is higher because the vitamin is packed in a softgel)
Flaxseed oil, 100 for 5.99
Glucosamine-chondroitin complex, 240 pills for $31.05 (remember: 120 day supply)
Fiber Choice, 90 tablets for 9.89 (remember, 45 day supply)
All of these are subject to 7.15% Minneapolis sales tax.
What is the total cost of these medicines for a 365 day year? For example, Flaxseed oil tablets are about 6 cents each, but I need 365 of them.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
What the heck is a kWh?, continued.
United States money is in dollars and cents. But electric bills use decimal fractions of a cent.
When you see a gasoline price, it might be 2.789 . That is two dollars, 7 dimes (tens of cents) and 8 cents. But what is that little nine? It is nine mils, each mil is a tenth of a cent. On a gasoline price, it is there to fool people, the real price is rounded to the nearest cent, and is really $2.79.
But, electricity prices might be $0.067550 for one kWh (kilowatt hour). That is 6 cents, 7 mills, 5 hundredths of a cent and 5 thousandths of a cent. The price is worked out before the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) of each state. The utility, such as Xcel Energy, requests a rate and the PUC either accepts it or suggests a lower rate. Eventually, a decision is made.
In Minnesota, the summer rate (about 6 cents and 8 mils) is higher than the winter rate (about 5 cents and 8 mils). The reason: supply and demand. In Minnesota, winter demand is only 3/4 of summer demand.
If you multiply summer use by summer rate and winter use by winter rate and round each to the nearest cent, you get $11.46 and $20.69; add these to get $32.15 .
Even if I used no electricity at all, Xcel would need to keep up the wires and equipment to supply me. They charge me $6 per month as my share of this upkeep; it is called "Basic Service Charge."
I used 526 kWh during the month. They charge me $0.020798 (about 2 cents and 1 mil) extra for this, calling it a "Fuel Cost Charge." Presumably, Xcel negotiated this charge with the PUC to cover increases in the cost of fuel. It adds $10.94 to my bill.
On the same 526 kWh, they charge $0.0021 for an "Environment Improvement Rider." My bill does not explain this charge, which is about 2 mils per kWh. It adds $1.11 to my bill. If I find out more about it, I will post an explanation to this blog.
Finally, there is a "Resource Adjustment" of $1.11 . Believe it or not, this is a charge to cover telling me to conserve energy by using fluorescent lamps, etc. The Legislature requires Xcel to tell me this, Xcel does so, then charges me for telling me. Every year, the Legislature approves this procedure.
The sum of all this is $51.30. The state of Minnesota then charges 6% sales tax and when the tax is added, that is my total bill. There are seven (7) separate charges on my bill.
When you see a gasoline price, it might be 2.789 . That is two dollars, 7 dimes (tens of cents) and 8 cents. But what is that little nine? It is nine mils, each mil is a tenth of a cent. On a gasoline price, it is there to fool people, the real price is rounded to the nearest cent, and is really $2.79.
But, electricity prices might be $0.067550 for one kWh (kilowatt hour). That is 6 cents, 7 mills, 5 hundredths of a cent and 5 thousandths of a cent. The price is worked out before the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) of each state. The utility, such as Xcel Energy, requests a rate and the PUC either accepts it or suggests a lower rate. Eventually, a decision is made.
In Minnesota, the summer rate (about 6 cents and 8 mils) is higher than the winter rate (about 5 cents and 8 mils). The reason: supply and demand. In Minnesota, winter demand is only 3/4 of summer demand.
If you multiply summer use by summer rate and winter use by winter rate and round each to the nearest cent, you get $11.46 and $20.69; add these to get $32.15 .
Even if I used no electricity at all, Xcel would need to keep up the wires and equipment to supply me. They charge me $6 per month as my share of this upkeep; it is called "Basic Service Charge."
I used 526 kWh during the month. They charge me $0.020798 (about 2 cents and 1 mil) extra for this, calling it a "Fuel Cost Charge." Presumably, Xcel negotiated this charge with the PUC to cover increases in the cost of fuel. It adds $10.94 to my bill.
On the same 526 kWh, they charge $0.0021 for an "Environment Improvement Rider." My bill does not explain this charge, which is about 2 mils per kWh. It adds $1.11 to my bill. If I find out more about it, I will post an explanation to this blog.
Finally, there is a "Resource Adjustment" of $1.11 . Believe it or not, this is a charge to cover telling me to conserve energy by using fluorescent lamps, etc. The Legislature requires Xcel to tell me this, Xcel does so, then charges me for telling me. Every year, the Legislature approves this procedure.
The sum of all this is $51.30. The state of Minnesota then charges 6% sales tax and when the tax is added, that is my total bill. There are seven (7) separate charges on my bill.
About a comet and magnitudes
The story of my electric bill will be continued in the next posting.
This is about a comet. The math has to do with exponents and powers. If you haven't yet learned about exponents and powers (you will), ask a teacher or post a comment. Part of a news story follows:
In terms of actual measured brightness, 17P has moved from a magnitude of 17, which is visible only through a large telescope, to somewhere just above magnitude 2. That's an increase of about 1 million times, Herbst said, and it makes the comet visible to the naked eye even in urban settings where the night sky is obscured by man-made light.
If B is brightness and M is magnitude, B = (base)^-M ; B is (base) to the minus M power. The number (base) is defined by (base)^5 = 100. The number (base) is about 2.511. Since the magnitude changed from 17 to about 2, a change of about 15, and 15/5 = 3, the brightness increased by 100 cubed, or 100 x 100 x 100, or about 1 million. All the "abouts" in the last sentence are because different observers have made different estimates of the brightness now. They think it is about 2nd magnitude; they are comparing it to other stars. Stars of first magnitude are bright, stars of 2nd magnitude less bright, stars of 3rd magnitude still less bright, and so on.
The comet was first seen on November 6 1892. It comes near Earth every 6.88 years. When did it last come near Earth (and nobody payed attention since it was 17th magnitude)? When will it next come near Earth?
This is the whole news story:
This is about a comet. The math has to do with exponents and powers. If you haven't yet learned about exponents and powers (you will), ask a teacher or post a comment. Part of a news story follows:
In terms of actual measured brightness, 17P has moved from a magnitude of 17, which is visible only through a large telescope, to somewhere just above magnitude 2. That's an increase of about 1 million times, Herbst said, and it makes the comet visible to the naked eye even in urban settings where the night sky is obscured by man-made light.
If B is brightness and M is magnitude, B = (base)^-M ; B is (base) to the minus M power. The number (base) is defined by (base)^5 = 100. The number (base) is about 2.511. Since the magnitude changed from 17 to about 2, a change of about 15, and 15/5 = 3, the brightness increased by 100 cubed, or 100 x 100 x 100, or about 1 million. All the "abouts" in the last sentence are because different observers have made different estimates of the brightness now. They think it is about 2nd magnitude; they are comparing it to other stars. Stars of first magnitude are bright, stars of 2nd magnitude less bright, stars of 3rd magnitude still less bright, and so on.
The comet was first seen on November 6 1892. It comes near Earth every 6.88 years. When did it last come near Earth (and nobody payed attention since it was 17th magnitude)? When will it next come near Earth?
This is the whole news story:
dailypress.com/news/dp-news_cometholmes_1105nov05,0,5662681.story?coll=dp-wid
dailypress.com
Stargazers aglow over comet's stunning visit
A usually dull passer-by named Holmes has local astronomers staying up late to get a celestial eyeful.
By MARK ST. JOHN ERICKSON | 247-4783
November 5, 2007
For more than a century, the comet known as 17P/Holmes has been too shy to shine. It would slip past Earth every seven years with a light so dim, the naked eye couldn't see it. Even astronomers largely ignored its fainter-than-faint, reliably uneventful visits.
But when an observer in the Canary Islands looked up into the northeast sky early on the morning of Oct. 24, an object where the dark comet should have been beamed so brightly that he couldn't explain it. Minutes later, the same strange object was spotted from Barcelona, Spain, by another equally bewildered stargazer.
In less than 24 hours, Comet 17P/Holmes had intensified so much that its once dark mass resembled a star, prompting a rash of excited sightings across the planet. Then — over the following few days — its brightness multiplied by a million times, making it not only visible to the unaided eye but also one of the most prominent objects in the night sky.
"This is the first naked-eye comet since Hale-Bopp in 1997 — so we're really pretty excited," said astronomy curator Kelly Ann Herbst of the Virginia Living Museum.
"Even without binoculars, you can see that this is a pretty big thing. It's immediately visible. And with a telescope, you can see not only the nucleus but also the details of the coma — this beautiful halo that ripples and changes over time."
Often referred to by astronomers as "17P" or "Comet Holmes," the celestial object's sudden outburst during the past couple of weeks echoes almost exactly its discovery on Nov. 6, 1892. Scanning the night sky, amateur English astronomer Edwin Holmes was so startled by its unexpected appearance that he scared his wife, who heard his exclamation from the next room.
After fading somewhat in the weeks that followed, the comet erupted again on Jan. 16. Not long afterward, it fell off the radar screen almost completely until flaring up again.
"Just like now, everybody was amazed — and they hoped to see it again," Herbst said. "But nobody could find it when they thought it should be coming around. This is only the second time the comet has had a period of outburst like this."
In terms of actual measured brightness, 17P has moved from a magnitude of 17, which is visible only through a large telescope, to somewhere just above magnitude 2. That's an increase of about 1 million times, Herbst said, and it makes the comet visible to the naked eye even in urban settings where the night sky is obscured by man-made light.
The comet also appears much bigger than it normally does, vaulting from imperceptible at first to the same size as Jupiter. In recent days, it's surpassed the giant planet, too, giving Herbst and many other night observers in the local area something totally unexpected to see.
Lawrence Taylor, a NASA Langley atmospheric scientist who's a member of the Virginia Peninsula Astronomy/Stargazers group, could barely wait for the trick-or-treaters to leave his Hampton home Halloween night so he could take a quick peek into the heavens.
So impressive was the sight that he ended up staying outside until 1 a.m. — all the while shuttling larger and better pieces of equipment out into his yard.
"I was just going to take a quick look with the binoculars, but then I saw this huge thing — a great big fuzzy ball," he said. "The fact that you could see it with the naked eye — even with a quarter moon — is pretty amazing. It's just awesome — and it could be up there a couple of weeks."
Just how long 17P's surprising outburst will last remains to be determined. But right now, its unexpected behavior can be seen not long after dusk — and at an unusually favorable time of the lunar cycle.
"The moon is waning now, so we'll have some really dark nights to see the sun reflecting off its dust," Herbst says. "It's really just perfect."
Both the Living Museum and the Peninsula Stargazers plan to stage numerous public observing sessions over the next few weeks, including such relatively dark and undisturbed viewing locations as York River State Park in James City County and Grundland Park in the Grandview section of Hampton.
But even in Newport News, where Herbst has been following Comet Holmes with the museum's big 16-inch-diameter telescope, the sight of the large golden ball rising in the northeast sky has been compelling.
"You can't see the tail because it's extended out behind it. But it's still really quite spectacular," Herbst said. "It has this huge envelope of dust and gas surrounding the nucleus — and it's so big that it almost fills the field of vision on our largest telescope."
Copyright © 2007, Newport News, Va., Daily Press
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