Category: News

Google just launched an interesting update to its Google Local Business Center that makes Place Pages more interesting and interactive. After claiming their business through the Google Local Business Center, business owners can now easily post short updates about their companies on their respective Place Page. In addition, businesses that have been claimed by their owners will now feature a badge that highlights the fact that the actual owner of this business has claimed and improved the page.

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With Place Pages, Google aims to offer “a webpage for every place in the world.” Most users access these pages through searches on Google Maps.

As Google points out in today’s announcement, business owners can use the new “post to your place page” feature to post updates about their businesses directly from their dashboards. This gives local businesses the ability to send out updates about new products or – in the case of local restaurants – to highlight daily specials and new menu items.

It’s also good to see that Google is now giving local business owners the ability to make it clear that they have claimed their Place Pages and improved them with updated information (opening hours, phone numbers, etc.). Even though Google is quite good at generating this information automatically, getting the information directly from the business owners is likely to improve the quality of these listings and will make the information more trustworthy.

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The Malcolm takes us inside the Très Bien Shop in Sweden. If you follow a lot of the fashion blogs that showcases products, you’ll notice that Très Bien Shop is one of the online shops most of these blogs point to. Images of the physical shop are just what we would expect from a place that stocks labels like A.P.C., Band of Outsiders, Comme des Garcons, Nom de Guerre, Patrik Ervell, and Visvim. The interiors are very clean and the merchandise are exhibited in a very pleasant and neat fashion. The hardwood floors, glass ceilings, and spotlights around the shop give all the products a very organized and streamlined look. Don’t worry, if you can’t make it out to Sweden to visit, there will always be the influential online shop.

Continue reading for more images.

Source: The Malcolm

Two years ago, when we launched Environmental Capital, we set out to chart the tectonic shift in the global energy landscape, affecting everything from what keeps the lights on to what’s under the hood of your car.

A big part of that shift was—and still is—environmental concern. The world’s (half-hearted) efforts to rein in greenhouse-gas emissions were meant to spur (and might yet) the development and deployment of a whole new world of cleaner energy.

But we also noted another rationale for a shift in the way the world produces and uses energy: the bottom line. Whether it’s a big-box retailer changing the way it packs and ships goods or the growing conviction that energy efficiency and “negawatts” are the cheapest, cleanest source of energy available today, the cleaner way of doing things is very often the smarter way of doing things.

That it isn’t always the case is less of an indictment of clean energy than of the current energy system itself.

To take a single example: The price that American drivers pay at the pump, frightening as it is these days, does not reflect the cost of oil and gasoline. There are additional costs to the reliance on oil that simply don’t show up in the twirling numbers at the gas pump, whether they are the environmental costs of oil extraction, transport and combustion, or the cost of U.S. military engagement to protect oil supplies and keep vital sea lanes open.

For economists, all these hidden costs are called “externalities.” They’re as real as they are hard to spot, from the Fifth Fleet’s operating expenses to the pernicious health costs of a coal-fired electricity sector.

For policymakers, these externalities represent an opportunity as much as a headache. For all the worries that a bigger role for government in the energy business—from cap-and-trade schemes to solar-power subsidies—represents a retreat from free markets, that’s hardly the case. Energy markets aren’t “free” today, and the playing field is anything but level.

New energy policies that seek to redress those problems, and unleash rather than further stifle a genuine market for energy, will point the way toward a new energy future that makes sense, both environmentally and economically. That’s because, if new policies set out to tackle those externalities once and for all, the environmental answer will quite often become the economic answer. Everything has its price—and its cost.

The tight Google integration with Android apps can now be enjoyed to a degree by BlackBerry owners with a new version of the Google Mobile App. Google has added the ability to search the contacts and messages on a BlackBerry using the app. Just type in the query — or better yet, say it — and Google will return all contacts and messages that contain the search term.

Taking action on searched item is only a click away — either calling a contact or replying to an email. Note that all searching is done on the handset; the app does not send any of your personal information to Google. If you’d rather not search your information, and I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t, you can turn this off in the app’s options section.

The app will suggest contacts in your list as you type names, refining the returned contacts as the letters are entered. A very cool function promotes frequently contacted people to the top of this search list.

To grab the app just visit m.google.com on your BlackBerry. Thanks to the Google Mobile Blog for pointing this new version out.

National Opinion Research Center (NORC) at the University of Chicago and the National Rural Health Association (NRHA) released a unique guide today that outlines steps for aiding migrant and seasonal farm workers before, during, and after a natural or man-made disaster.

This resource is the first of its kind to provide actionable steps that can be taken by public health professionals to address the specific challenges and needs of migrant and seasonal farm workers in the event of an emergency.

The 40 page guide’s planning steps are not generic; they take into account the unique living and working conditions and the cultural differences of migrant and seasonal farm workers and their families.

The guide also includes checklists for steps to take in advance of an emergency and suggestions for partnerships with other local groups.

In addition, several helpful appendices provide information and guidance on securing shelter, water, and social services in connection with an emergency.

While it is not intended to provide a complete planning process, the guide serves as a strong foundation for comprehensive planning by public health professionals at the farm, family, or individual level for emergency preparedness.

The guide was developed in collaboration with the Western New York Public Health Alliance (WNYPHA) Rural Advanced Practice Center.

Get a Guide

A digital copy of the guide can be found at norc.org and at bit.ly/60C05p.

Printed copies of the guide are available through the National Association of City and County Health Organizations (NACCHO) at eweb.naccho.org/prd/?NA295.

About NORC

NORC, known since its founding in 1941 as the National Opinion Research Center, pursues objective research that serves the public interest.

To learn more, visit our web site at norc.org.

About NRHA

The National Rural health Association is a national nonprofit membership organization with more than 20,000 members. Its mission is to provide leadership on rural health issues.

More information on the NRHA can be found at: ruralhealthweb.org.

About WNYPHA

The Western New York Public Health Association is a regional public health partnership comprised of eight county health departments in Western New York: Alleghany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genessee, Niagra, Orleans, and Wyoming.

Learn more at: wnypha.org

About NACCHO Advanced Practice Centers (APC)

The National Association of City and County Public Health Officials (NACCHO) Advanced Practice Centers work to develop cutting edge tools and resources to help local health department staff prepare for, respond to, and recover from major emergencies.

Learn more at: naccho.org/topics/emergency/APC/index.cfm.

These days, it seems like every time we get some good news, we get some bad news to go with it. But for December, the bad news seems to be piling up on itself. Last week I wrote about the month’s negative unemployment report: the U.S. lost more jobs following some ever-so-slight job growth in November. But today’s news casts even more doubt on impending recovery. Retail sales and inventories both appear to be headed in the wrong direction.

Bloomberg/BusinessWeek reports:

Sales at U.S. retailers unexpectedly fell in December following a bigger gain than previously estimated the prior month, highlighting the risk that the largest part of the economy will be slow to recover.

The 0.3 percent decrease came after a 1.8 percent jump the prior month, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. Other reports showed inventories rose more than forecast in November and jobless claims climbed last week.

So retail sales reinforce the news that November was great. But they also confirm that December was not-so-great. Without solid consumer spending, it will be difficult for companies to justify more hiring.

And inventories rose more than thought in November. So, despite the decent sales that month, we still saw more production than purchasing. And given that December’s sales were weak, I’d expect that inventories rose even further last month.

Of course, 2009 is over, and thank God. But if it left excess inventory in its wake for the first part of 2010 to deal with, then that decreases the likelihood that we’ll see significant job growth towards the beginning of the year. Given December’s unemployment report, that’s probably not surprising, but does confirm our fears.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the 2010 Detroit Auto Show, Ford’s president of the Americas, Mark Fields, said that FoMoCo may consider selling Lincoln outside of North America.

“Potentially, but we are focusing Lincoln here in North America for right now,” Fields said. “We don’t have any plans at this point to take it global. That doesn’t mean in the future we wouldn’t look at that, but it’s very important for us to focus on North America.”

Separately, Fields declined to comment on the possibility of Lincoln getting a compact vehicle.

Lincoln sales fell 23 percent to 82,847 units last year, its lowest total since 1981.

– By: Kap Shah

Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

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Believe it or not, the current plan for the International Space Station is to abandon it in 2015 and let it crash into the atmosphere in 2016. Sad, right? But the ESA wants to keep it flying for a few more years to allow more scientist access to the zero-gravity labs.

Of course it’s just not one space agency’s call. The project has five partners, the US, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada, and each will have a say later this at a meeting in Japan. But I think we can all agree that it’s a damn big waste if the ISS is simply abandoned because the world is spending its money on research for seedless watermelons or developing more weapons to kill each other.

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We recently interviewed three EDF scientists on the climate crisis and how important it is that we act now.

Read our Climate Crossroads Q&A.

You can also pose your own climate questions below and we'll get back to you here in the Green Room.

The White House has now officially declared that it is backing Google’s war with China.

Earlier this week, Google said it would no longer support the Chinese government’s demands to censor its Google.cn search engine.

Earlier, the White House had said that although it had advanced notice of Google’s new China policy, it had not taken a position in the fight.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs announced the changed position today, Reuters reports.

Don’t Miss: How Google Ended Up At War With China

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• Inside Eric Schmidt And Sergey Brin’s "Heated Debate" Over China
• How Google Ended Up At War With China
• China Responds To Google: Go To Hell

Is it a smart move to go for a house directly beside or across from a city park? While a listing agent may tout the park as an advantage, think about how the park will affect your life.

I once lived about eight houses away from a city park. That was a great buffer. The park was close enough to walk to, but not so close that I heard much noise. I’ve never lived directly beside or in front of a city park. If you have, please share your experiences in comments. As for what goes through my mind when I see houses for sale very close to parks, keep reading.

When I see a home for sale that backs up to a park with an ad saying something like “a park for your backyard” I often dismiss the house as not private enough. In addition to the noise factor, people in the park may actually be able to see into your house. At one city park where I used to walk, I remember the walking trail leading directly toward someone’s backyard (and back windows).

What about a house across the street from a park? I’d still be concerned about the noise, particularly during the summer. You may see houses like these, as well as houses beside a community pool, up for sale during the winter months when it’s more quiet outside. Before you buy a house like that, ask the neighbors about the noise level. You never know. They may be honest with you.

Since parks often bring with them trash cans and sometimes litter, you may also have a problem with pests, including mice. The park will likely bring more traffic into your neighborhood, as well as more noise when the landscaping crews are at work. If people walking their dogs aren’t considerate, you may also have to contend with walking around doggie poo near your property. And for parks with ponds, you’ll be living near geese and ducks in many areas and some may wander into your yard. I love them, but geese are fond of leaving large droppings on sidewalks, as I learned when living at one apartment complex with a lake. Also, some geese are aggressive if you get too close to them.

On the positive side, living near a park could encourage you to exercise more, plus your kids and dog would surely love it! And you may see more birds, squirrels, chipmunks and other creatures of nature.

Do you consider living very close to a park a good idea?

(Image via stock.xchng)

Post from: Blisstree

Living Near a Park

from infoshop, 13 January 2010: “Today marks the fourth year of Eric’s incarceration. These are not the kind of milestones we would like to be writing about to you. While other people have been celebrating the New Year, we have been incredibly conscious of the passage of time in an entirely different way. For four years, New Years has served as a reminder to us – as it probably does to millions of others – of how long we have been separated from our loved one… more

Even as some investors questioned whether market expectations had run too far, junk (high yield) bonds rallied from December 1, 2009 through mid-January 2010. This followed an already stellar rally from March 2009 lows.

Over the same recent period, gold was beaten on a relative basis, as shown below using the iShares Corporate High Yield Bond ETF (HYG) and the SPDR Gold ETF (GLD) as proxies.

HYG (in blue) is up over the period, while GLD (in red) has fallen, despite the fact that both junk bonds and gold benefit from a continuation of the federal reserve’s ultra-low interest rates. Note the chart doesn’t even show any yield accumulated for bonds, which would enhance the comparison.

So are investors absolutely crazy to be buying up junk bonds? Maybe, but here’s at least one rationale for doing so.

Economic recovery favors high yield bonds since default becomes less likely for companies, while it disfavors gold since the fear trade unwinds. Both benefit from continued low interest rates (as long as it doesn’t trigger hyper inflation for bonds).

Thus high yield bonds bet on economic recovery AND a continuation of ultra-low interest rates — which basically means high yield bonds bet on a weak economic recovery. In comparison, gold bets on a double-dip recession/crisis.

Thus junk bond demand could be explained as the ‘lame recovery trade’.

Given that a weak U.S. recovery looks more likely than an outright economic collapse these days, some investors are probably content to collect high yields while they watch America’s stimulus-supported lame recovery grind forward. This is because during a weak recovery, stocks and gold could feasibly stay range-bound and go nowhere.

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See Also:

• JPMorgan: Absolutely Nothing Is Getting In The Way Of The Ongoing Recovery Trade
• Morgan Stanley: America Will Crush Europe And Japan In Race For Recovery
• CHART OF THE DAY: A Jobless Recovery? Not For The Financial World