January 2009
25 posts
1 tag
FT.com - The game changer →
Very interesting article in the Financial Times on the finance crisis, including some evidence that certain trading practices resulted in non-efficient markets.
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Dr. Jeff Masters' Wunder Blog : Believe in climate... →
‘Fully 97% of the climate scientists who regularly publish on climate change agreed with the statement, “human activity is a significant contributing factor in changing mean global temperatures”.’
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US House fails to pass digital TV delay bill (via... →
In a somewhat surprising but welcome move, the US House rejected the digital TV delay bill, so the transition is still on for February 17th, assuming the House doesn’t reintroduce the blll.
So, an open appeal to our representatives: Move on. No matter how long you delay, some people won’t be ready; we need the spectrum space elsewhere; and the broadcasters are burning kilowatts...
James Loveluck: "One last chance to save mankind"... →
James Loveluck, the man who raised the alarm on chloroflorocarbons, has some strong words on climate change -on both sides of the picture: “Not a hope in hell. Most of the “green” stuff is verging on a gigantic scam. Carbon trading, with its huge government subsidies, is just what finance and industry wanted. It’s not going to do a damn thing about climate change, but...
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We have Ataris and we are not afraid to use them... →
Ron Tolido asks “What happens when graduates come into their first jobs and find that the IT facilities at the office are an anachronism? What do you get when business users know exactly what innovative technologies can deliver and still get a ‘no’ from the IT department?”
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Obama administration launches Recovery.Gov →
This website, not yet launched, promises to provide a reporting of how money from the Recovery and Reinvestment act is spent to “root out waste, inefficiency, and unnecessary spending.”
No RSS feed or information of any kind yet, but should be a very interesting bellwether of transparency if/when it launches.
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Jean Sheperd Archives online
A tip o’ the hat to Merlin for finding this - Sheperd was always one of my favorites. I never missed an episode of Jean Sheperd’s America and his The Star-Crossed Romance of Josephine Cosnowski has far more truth than fiction for some of us.
merlin:
Internet Archive: Details: 1965Pt1
Jean Shepherd? Yep. That’s what I aspire to. Guy was the best. No script. Just talking into the...
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Cable modems to hit 300Mbps with 8-channel bonding →
Mmmm, bandwidth: Cisco has revealed its plan to develop a new DOCSIS 3.0 modem which can bond eight cable channels, giving a theoretical 320Mbps of bandwidth. I recently got a new DOCSIS 3.0 modem from Comcast, and the 24MBps down I’m now getting is a real experience changer.
10 Reasons Why You Should Sign Up for FriendFeed →
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President Obama re-asserts FOIA: A clear... →
The EFF has published a directive by President Obama directing the Attorney General to re-issue guidelines strengtheng access under the Freedom of Information Act. It’s a refreshig statement of principles on openness: “The Freedom of Information Act should be administered with a clear presumption: In the face of doubt, openness prevails. The Government should not keep information...
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DOE report paints bleak picture of our electric... →
Examining the increased incidence of autism
→
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Caffeine, stress, and proneness to psychosis-like... →
And you thought this was just a change in Starbuck’s decor: “Caffeine intake was positively related to stress levels and hallucination-proneness, but not persecutory ideation.”
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Shameless self-promotion: Dave Linthicum and I...
NY Times creates Congress API →
NY Times does its bit to support e-government and transparency by creating APIs to Congressional voting data: “So it’s an appropriate time to announce the release of our Congress API, which lets developers access information about Congressional representatives and their votes.” Should lead to some interesting mashups.
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DailyTech - Sea Ice Ends Year at Same Level as... →
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Topless coffee shop proposed for small Maine town... →
Ayuh.
For our friends who are from away, Vassalboro is in one of those parts of Maine where the seasons are Almost Winter, Winter, Still Winter, and Darn Poor Sleddin’. I expect the waiteresses will be a hardy breed to work at this particular spot.
Ars: Comcast starts new year with new network... →
Ars notes that Comcast has deployed their new bandwidth management plan: “the revised system abandons “deep packet inspection” in favor of a “shallow” method that targets congestion rather than suspicious protocols (e.g., BitTorrent). In some instances, some users will see their traffic reclassified as “Best Effort” rather than the default “Priority...
Frank Rich summarizes Bush: "A President Forgotten... →
Frank Rich summarizes W’s tenure as one big lost opportunity - “He is smaller than life.” My mom’s comment was that Bush was the worst president she could ever remember. This is a memory that stretches back to Franklin Roosevelt and the great depression, and includes WWII, Korea, Viet Nam and numerous Mideast wars - hardly a snap judgement.
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Knighthood for Pratchett (via The Independent) →
Terry Pratchett received a well-deserved knighthood in the New Years’ List (as did Robert Plant.)