Rants-

A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 47,000 elderly people in the United States visit emergency rooms each year as a result of falls from walkers and canes.

TV pitchman Billy Mays (of OxiClean fame) died in his sleep June 28. Mays’ death capped a week of celebrity passings that included Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett and Ed McMahon.

Raves-

A survey of 100 American centenarians shows that 3 percent use Twitter, 10 percent e-mail friends and family, and a further 4 percent download music from the Internet.

The worth of a set of carved jade from China was estimated at more than $1 million on the PBS TV program Antiques Roadshow, the first time in the show’s history an item has been appraised for that much money.