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by Jonathan Hiskes

David Brooks writes about the ‘60s and ‘70s crime wave that scared a generation of Americans—or a
generation of white, mobile Americans—away from urban living:

[P]eople in all classes lived in fear. “Mugging was nothing
unusual. Everybody got mugged,” [John] Podhoretz writes. A serial killer nicknamed
Charlie Chop-Off menaced the Upper West Side, emasculating little boys and then
killing them, and such was the general disorder that his crimes were barely
mentioned in the city’s newspapers.

Many of the people living in cities during that era moved to the suburbs and bought cars (or second cars). Crime has since dropped
off, but the psychological understanding of cities as hotbeds of crime and
decay remains among Baby Boomers.

For those who see
cities as key testing grounds for sustainable living, the good news is that today’s
young adults don’t share the same fear. A recent Brookings study found young whites moving into urban centers in record numbers. Harvard Business Review recently advised
businesses to consider moving into cities if they want to attract bright young
workers of any race.

The challenge is that Boomers still fill the ranks of policymakers and power brokers, and during their formative years, American cities were floundering. How do we make Congress—where the median age is 58—able to see the potential gains of reinvesting in cities?

 

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U.S. bans more Gulf fishing as oil fears grow for Florida

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• Will Google Go After Flash Developers Next?
  We’ve learned over the last few days that Google is proactively seeking Apple developers, attempting to woo them with free phones.  Not a bad strategy if you can afford to toss a few hundred bucks at …

Canadian heartthrob Justin Bieber is being honored among some of music’s most prominent Black performers. On Tuesday, the baby-faced teen idol nabbed a Best New Artist nomination for next month’s BET Awards in Los Angeles.

The annual awards show, sponsored by Black Entertainment Television, typically honors the accomplishments of entertainers of color, but officials describe Bieber — a former YouTube sensation discovered by “Confessions” star Usher — as a crossover artist with talent that transcends color lines. His latest album, My World 2.0, debuted at No.1 on the Billboard charts in March.

“Bieber has crossed the color boundaries the same way that hip-hop has crossed the boundaries the other way for a number of years,” says Stephen Hill, BET’s President of Music Programing and Specials. “He’s had rhythm in his music. He makes the type of music our audience likes.”

The 2010 BET Awards, hosted by Queen Latifah, airs live from The Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on June 27.

Jim Cramer is a gold bull!

During his STOP TRADING segment, he told Amanda Drury he likes gold bullion, the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) and miner Eldorado Gold (EGO).

And on the news of the day — Germany’s attack on speculators — he said: “They think there’s a Lehman out there… A Lehman II, as some guys are calling it.”

Join the conversation about this story »

How’s this for a crazy astral event: an absolutely gigantic star about 90 times the size of our sun has been shot out of its birthplace and is currently rocketing across space at 250,000 miles per hour. Hot damn! More »

by Agence France-Presse

Photo courtesy 12fh via FlickrNEW ORLEANS—The United States Tuesday closed off a
large chunk of the Gulf of Mexico to fishing, while fears grew that a giant oil
slick could be swept to Florida’s beaches and coral reefs.

The cautionary closure,
totaling 45,728 square miles—around 19 percent of the Gulf’s federal waters—was announced as politicians in Washington raged over the apparent lax
enforcement of safety standards and grilled government officials over what went
wrong.

The chief of the
U.S. agency monitoring the spill warned that the “unprecedented and
dynamic” slick was on course to sweep along the region’s coastline.

“The
proximity of the southeast tendril of oil to the loop current indicates that
oil is increasingly likely to become entrained in the loop current if it is not
already,” Jane Lubchenco, head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, told a press conference. “When that occurs, oil could
reach the Florida Strait in eight to 10 days,” she said.

Experts are
analyzing at least 20 tar stains found on several beaches on Florida’s southern
Keys to determine if they were from the spill.

Sen. Bill Nelson
(D-Fla.), meanwhile, speaking before a congressional hearing on the disaster,
described the prospect of oil hitting his state of Florida and heading up the
U.S. eastern seaboard as his “worst nightmare.”

The bleak
warnings obscured BP’s positive reports Tuesday of progress in its month-long
effort to contain the leak: a tube inserted into a gushing oil pipe is now
sucking up about 40 percent of the crude, twice as much as a day earlier. The
company said its “riser insertion tube tool” is carrying about 2,000
barrels a day of oil up to the Discoverer Enterprise drill ship on the surface
via a mile-long pipe.

BP reckons about
5,000 barrels, or 210,000 gallons, of crude is spewing each day from the
wreckage of the Deepwater Horizon rig, although analysis from independent
experts suggests the flow rate could be many times that.

In Washington,
the political firestorm was raging over accounts of lax enforcement of safety
standards and other regulation for offshore drilling, with Interior Secretary
Ken Salazar pledging to revamp his agency’s Minerals and Management Service with “more tools, more resources,
more independence.” In that effort, Salazar also said there was a
“need to clean up that house,” amid scathing criticism of the body.

Worries over the
ecological impact of the huge oil spill, and even the efforts to contain it,
are growing with worries focused on the Florida Keys.

With hugely
popular tourist beaches and fragile coral reefs around the southern tip of the
peninsula, the loop current has the potential to take the economic and
environmental impact of the spill to a whole new level.

“I think
the threat to South Florida is real and we should get ready,” said Igor
Kamenkovich, a scientist at the University of Miami. “It’s hard to predict
but … if it does happen, it is bad news for us.”

There are also
concerns that huge underwater plumes of crude could be starving the Gulf of oxygen, meaning the slick is having a
far greater impact on the marine environment than previously thought.

An expert from
the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies told AFP that deepwater
spills posed greater risks due to these plumes, which some experts have warned
may be linked to dispersants that
stop the oil from rising.

“Normally,
in a shallow spill, everything pretty much shoots up to the surface and the
impacts are primarily to surface organisms like turtles, dolphins, whales, and
birds,” explained Paul Montagna. However, “under this really cold, high-pressure environment, the
oil is getting dispersed through the water column.”

Louisiana’s
Department of Wildlife and Fisheries on Tuesday requested data from BP on the
use of dispersants, with agency chief Robert Barham complaining that
“little or no substantive data has been provided … concerning the
efficacy and risks associated with deep injection of dispersants.”

Salazar, in
testimony to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said he
expected BP to attempt a “dynamic kill” to further contain the oil
spewing from the well.

“The
expectation is that this Saturday or this Sunday the triggers will be pulled
for a dynamic kill of the well,” he said, explaining this would involve
injection of fluids and other materials to stem the flow.

Salazar said the
maligned MMS would be reconfigured in order to tighten regulation and promised
to work with the White House and lawmakers on broader reforms, based on input
from a national commission probing the spill to be named by President Barack Obama.

Congressional
hearings have revealed multiple warning signs that were overlooked before the
April 20 blast on the Deepwater Horizon rig that killed 11 people and touched off the catastrophe.

Related Links:

David Brooks to old folks: cities are better now

Obama’s ocean chief dismisses loop current threat: ‘Very little tarballs!’

A new oil rush endangers the Gulf of Mexico and the planet

There’s a bit of gnashing of teeth apparently going on over the HTC Droid Incredible and its capacitive screen. Chris Tabor — aka igl007 in just about every forum there is — has been screaming from the rooftops about the Incredible’s screen and how sometimes it won’t respond unless you’re holding it. And that’s a problem, for instance, when you’re using certain car docks, which is what started this whole thing.

Anyhoo, Chris did a series of tests, videoed them, and posted his results just about everywhere, and got some really good responses, some of which require an electrical engineering degree to understand. And it looks like some of you have this issue, and others don’t. And it bothers some of you way more than others.

Let’s face it: There’s not going to be a mass recall of the Incredible over in what all likelihood is some sort of technical characteristic of the screen, not unlike what we saw with the Nexus One. Our advice? First, don’t be playing with your phone while you’re driving, even if it is in a car holder. (And maybe try a different car dock.) And second: If you do have to make a call or something, just touch your thumb to the phone and poke at it with whatever finger feels the most natural.

The sky is not falling. But it might have darkened a little bit. If you’re still concerned about this, sound off in the comments or check out the thread here.

Filed under: Technology

Over two dozen school districts across the country have equipped school buses with AutoNet mobile WiFi routers allowing students to access the ‘Net on the go. The Autonet system is a basic wireless router like the ones that hundreds of millions of people use at home, but with an integrated EVDO cellular modem to keep connected on the go.

The same system has been offered as a dealer installed option by Chrysler for the last two years and General Motors recently announced that it would begin offering the units in some of its vehicles as well. The cost is relatively modest, with Chrysler charging about $500 for the unit and $30 per month for the wireless service.

Whether schools should be spending money on these types of services is debatable, but in rural districts like the Vail School District in Arizona, it could be a good way to distract students that have to ride the bus for two or more hours a day. Of course this is only helpful if the kids can actually afford a laptop or other internet-connected device.

[Source: National Public Radio]

25 School districts now offering Autonet Wifi on school buses originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 18 May 2010 18:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Relentless! The euro falls below $1.22 in evening trading. The wolfpack is clearly energized by Angela Merkel painting a big red target on Europe’s back.

Meanwhile, futures are already dipping in after-market action.

From FinViz:

Join the conversation about this story »

Beast of Eden: To a landscape loved by Steinbeck, in a silver star with wings.

Thomas Steinbeck is too quick for my note taking, so I put a tape recorder on him as well. The exclamations, the damning anecdotes, and the careening non sequiturs are firing off as if dispensed by the fuel injectors of the Mercedes SLS’s 563-hp V-8.

Keep Reading: 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG – Road Test

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What’s Good: Stunning AMOLED display, fast 1 GHz Snapdragon processor, 8 GB of built-in storage (finally), and 8.0-megapixel camera.

What’s Bad: Signal strength indicator is misleading; battery life is exceptionally poor.

Introduction

When the Nexus One came to market, critics were quick to point out the flaws in the device.  As a result, media circles have continually wondered when a revamped Android device would hit the market that fixed the problems on the Nexus One.  Despite a few issues, I’m here to tell you that the HTC DROID Incredible is just that device.  Complete with the same processor and 3.7-inch AMOLED display, the Incredible ups the ante with Sense UI, an 8.0-megapixel camera, and an optical trackpad.  Though it addresses most of the concerns that the Nexus One was plagued with, is it incredible enough to justify the name?

Design & Features

The HTC DROID Incredible ships with the battery, AC adapter, and USB cable (which doubles as the power cord).  Though it’s not included on the box, Verizon has been offering a 2 GB microSD card for free with purchase; as it stands, there’s no word on when the promotion ends.  Measuring in at 4.60 inches tall by 2.30 inches wide by 0.47 inch thick, and weighing 4.6 ounces, it’s small enough to stow in a bag, pocket, or cup holder.  The 3.7-inch AMOLED screen is is one of the most gorgeous displays I’ve ever seen on a cell phone.  Despite offering 65,536 colors, the display is crisp and vibrant.  As beautiful as it is, the downside comes when viewing it outdoors – it’s virtually impossible to see in direct sunlight.

The left side of the Incredible houses the volume rocker and microUSB charging port, while the power/lock button and 3.5mm headphone jack can be found on the top of the device.  The camera and speaker are both located on the back of the device, while the optical trackpad, home key, menu key, back button, and search button are located on the front, just under the display.  The camera has a red “ring” around it – when you remove the back cover, you’ll notice that the innards are painted red (including the battery).  It’s a neat little touch, and goes well with Verizon’s color scheme.  Though the plastic body isn’t poorly constructed by any means, I miss the metal body of the Nexus One, and have a feeling that those that have worked with both will as well.

Usability & Performance

The DROID Incredible ships with the same 1 GHz Snapdragon processor found in the Nexus One and HD2.  While I’ve been frustrated with lagginess in the mid-range Sense UI-equipped handsets (DROID Eris, Hero, etc.), the Incredible is incredibly snappy and smooth.  Throughout testing, I never experienced any lag, and I can’t help but think to myself “this is what Sense was meant to run on.”  What’s more, the scrolling issues that were present on the Nexus One’s screen are nonexistent on the Incredible.  Due primarily to how much space Sense UI takes up, the Incredible offers 8 GB of built-in storage, which is a welcome addition to Android handsets. 

With HTC’s Sense UI installed over Android 2.1, HTC solves one of the issues that I’ve always had with Android.  At its core, I still believe Android 2.1 is too “geeky” for mainstream adoption, particularly with webOS and iPhone OS on the market.  Like it or not, there’s a vast majority of the population that wants an operating system that’s simple and easy to use, and not something that’s highly customizable.  HTC’s Sense UI doesn’t solve every problem in this regard, but makes the overall Android experience much more user-friendly.

The Incredible offers an 8.0-megapixel camera, and in my testing, pictures came out crisp and full of color.  Editing options include the ability to modify brightness, contrast, saturation, sharpness, effects (grayscale, sepia, negative, solarize, posterize, aqua), white balance, ISO, resolution, and screen size (widescreen or standard).  Additionally, you can set a self-timer and geo-tag your photos using HTC’s Footprints application.

The DROID Incredible was tested in the Charlotte, Manhattan, Newark, and Orlando metropolitan areas, and call quality was very good across the board.  In many instances throughout testing, I had zero bars of service, but calls were crystal clear.  Callers had no problem hearing me, and call quality was clear on my end as well.  The earpiece on the Incredible is quite loud, making it easy to hear the other caller.  When testing the Incredible in a fringe area in Charlotte, I was able to hear the other caller, despite some occasional choppiness.  Speakerphone worked well, and I was able to pair my Bluetooth headset to the device without issue.

There’s a bit of a dispute over the signal strength indicator on the DROID Incredible.  Some have noticed that the device registers a lower “bar” count than other devices in the category (DROID, Devour, and the like).  I can confirm that the discrepancy exists, though I’ve experienced no dropped calls (even when the device shows no bars of service).  When I compare the dBm of the DROID Incredible to other devices, it’s nearly identical.  So when you pick up the DROID Incredible and notice that the signal strength is less than that of its peers, rest assured – it seems to be the indicator only.

The device supports 3G connectivity (EVDO Rev. A) on Verizon Wireless, and in testing, internet speeds were quite fast.  CNN’s mobile website loaded in five seconds, and the full PhoneDog homepage loaded in about 17 seconds.  Data-heavy tasks like Google Maps, Navigation, Peep, and YouTube worked flawlessly.

The Incredible sports a 1300mAh battery with a rated talk time of 5.2 hours with EVDO (3G) connectivity, and about 6 days of standby time.  There’s no doubt about it – the battery life on the DROID Incredible is a huge achilles heel.  With moderate use including calling, text messaging, browsing the internet, using apps, and use of the Android Market, I haven’t been able to make it through a single day in the three weeks I’ve been working with the unit.  I understand that widgets, background processes, and the like rapidly consume battery life, but the inability to get through a full day with moderate use is unacceptable.  Though task killing programs such as Advanced Task Killer have helped, I’m still unable to make it through a full work day.  During meetings in Manhattan last week in which I took the device off of the charger at around 8:00 AM, the Incredible would regularly power down just after 4:00 PM.  If you are a moderate user or someone who travels on a regular basis, be sure to pick up an extra battery and car charger, at the minimum.

Conclusion

This is the device that makes you sit back and think “this is everything that the Nexus One should have been.”  With a 1 GHz Snapdragon processor, 8.0-megapixel camera, 8 GB of built-in storage, and HTC’s (fantastic) Sense UI, it literally improves upon the Nexus One in every sense (no pun intended).  The phone is snappy, and applications open with fluidity and ease.  The only thing that’s not incredible about the Incredible is the battery life.  If you’re a moderate or heavy user, you’re going to need a second battery, car charger, and an additional AC adapter.

It’s so dry it borders on passive-aggressive. “Immediately following the attempted attack, Director Blair initiated reviews to identify [intelligence community]-wide shortcomings and potential solutions,” reads a statement from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Dennis Blair, responding to this afternoon’s declassified Senate report on systemic intelligence failures that allowed would-be-bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab to board a passenger aircraft on Christmas. “The findings of these reviews identified many of the same systemic problems noted in today’s [Senate intelligence committee] report.” If only a press release could yawn performatively.

The full statement is after the jump.

The Intelligence Community (IC) fully supported the Senate Intelligence Committee’s review of IC information and procedures prior to the attempted bombing of Northwest Airlines Flight 253 by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.

Immediately following the attempted attack, Director Blair initiated reviews to identify IC-wide shortcomings and potential solutions. The findings of these reviews identified many of the same systemic problems noted in today’s SSCI report.

As a result of the ODNI’s internal review and the President’s January 7 directive, the IC has undertaken certain corrective actions to address these shortcomings. Specifically:

The DNI clarified roles and responsibilities among the IC’s counterterrorism functions, ensuring that any stream of threat reporting receives follow-through to its conclusion;
The establishment of a dedicated analytic element at NCTC to thoroughly and exhaustively pursue terrorist threat threads, including identifying appropriate follow-up actions by other intelligence and law enforcement organizations, and increasing the number of personnel resources dedicated to enhancing the records of information on individuals contained in the Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment or TIDE;
Renewed efforts to integrate disparate data and information systems to make data more discoverable/accessible by analysts IC-wide; and
Investments in education and training, which will provide counterterrorism analysts with a career-long curriculum to facilitate integration, collaboration, and tradecraft improvements.

In light of the recent Times Square bombing attempt, Director Blair noted that, “The Intelligence Community is aggressively focused on potential threats, especially new tactics by radicalized individuals. At the same time, institutional and technological barriers remain that prevent seamless sharing of information. We can and must outthink, outwork, and defeat our enemies. The Intelligence Community is absolutely committed to that goal.”

Alpina’s B7 is as close to an M7 as you can get.

For readers who aren’t totally steeped in BMW lore, the Alpina name may be a bit of a mystery. But it’s a pretty simple one to clear up: Alpina is to BMW what AMG used to be to Mercedes-Benz: an independent racing and tuning shop that has factory approval. (AMG is now wholly owned by Mercedes, however.) Alpina, for instance, co-developed the fabulous 3.0 CSL coupe with BMW in the early 1970s and is formally recognized as an automobile manufacturer by the German Federal agency.

Keep Reading: 2011 BMW Alpina B7 – First Drive Review

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It’s Tuesday once again guys and you know what that means, it’s time for your weekly dose of PlayStation Store US goodness. Headlining this weeks update is the long awaited ModNation Racers demo for the PS3, the

Bruce V. Bigelow wrote:

Celula, a molecular diagnostic startup founded in San Diego five years ago, has raised $15 million in a secondary round of venture funding led by Palo Alto, CA-based Skyline Ventures, according to a VentureWire report today.

Celula’s top executives did not return a call this afternoon seeking to confirm the report, although Skyline lists Celula as a portfolio company, as do two other new investors, CHL Medical Partners of Stamford, CT, and Kaiser Permanente Ventures of Oakland, CA. Previous investors Enterprise Partners Venture Capital of San Diego and Versant Ventures, which has offices in the Bay Area and Newport Beach, CA, also participated in the Series B round, according to VentureWire. A previous investor, Arch Venture Partners, was not identified among the current investors.

Celula was founded in May 2005, according to New York-based CB Insights, but has maintained a low profile. The company’s website says Celula develops innovative instruments for personalized diagnostics that use advanced micro-fluidics and other technologies. Skyline venture offers what may be a more succinct description, saying, “Celula is developing a prenatal diagnostic test based on isolation of fetal cells from the mother’s blood.”

It might be worth noting that Celula co-founder Andy Katz was previously a senior executive at Genoptix Medical Laboratory (NASDAQ: GXDX), a Carlsbad, CA-based company that provides centralized diagnostic laboratory services for blood specialists. Enterprise Partners’ Drew Senyei, a Genoptix venture investor who has remained as board chairman, also was an early venture investor of Celula, and serves on Celula’s board.

Defying the odds of fertility, Grease actor John Travolta, 56, and his wife Kelly Preston, 47, are expecting their third child together, if a scoop from Star Magazine is to be believed.

“Kelly is about three months pregnant. Both she and John are absolutely over the moon — they knew in their hearts that the time was right for this to happen,” a snitching snoop blabbed to the tab.

The couple — whose dogs were tragically killed in a freak accident at a Maine airport last week — are still recovering from the seizure-induced death of their 16-year-old son Jett in 2009.

The Travoltas have a 10-year-old daughter, Ella Blue.

UPDATE: The Travoltas have confirmed the baby news. “It’s impossible to keep a secret … especially one as wonderful as this,” they said in a press statement Tuesday evening. “We want to be the first to share this great news with everyone that we are expecting a new addition to our family. Love, John, Kelly, and Ella…”

Congrats!

Why the NASIVENT Tube®?
In three quarters (3/4) of all cases, Snoring and Sleep Apnea is caused by the entrance to the nose being blocked or too narrow. The NASIVENT Tube® helps the group of people whose snoring and Sleep apnea is caused by a nasal blockage, (Ca. 75%. In all cases) Once inserted, the pipes take on the form of the nose without distort or putting it under pressure and this makes breathing through the nose easier for the patient. This means that sleeping while lying on your side, combined with breathing through the nose, is given a considerable boost.
Snoring may stop completely or be greatly reduced, due to the fact that sleeping on the back will be avoid. The tongue and soft tissue cant block the windpipe/trachea any more. Snoring and Apnea will reduce or stop complete. The material is FDA/CE approved,…

THE ARGUMENTS FOR USING NASIVENT Tube®:
1- NASIVENT Tube® helps in 84% of all cases ,sold over the million in Europe.
2- Tested and recommended by 14 E.N.T. doctors
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View Nasivent Tube – Anti Snoring, Snore and Anti Sleep Apnea Aid Details

Article Tags: Alan Caruba

Image source

“Denial” is not a river in Africa, nor is it a proper term for the legion of climatologists, meteorologists, geologists, and others like myself who have devoted decades to debunking the utter rubbish called “global warming.” So toxic has the term become, the charlatans pushing the fraud have long since abandoned it and begun to refer to “climate change” instead.

The Earth is 4.5 billion years old and I daresay that its climate has been changing since it first cooled, oceans formed, and one-celled forms of life began to develop into complex creatures like dinosaurs, Al Gore and politicians continuing to lie about global warming.

The Fourth International Conference on Climate Change concluded Tuesday in Chicago. Sponsored by The Heartland Institute, a non-profit, free market think tank, it brought together eminent (and legitimate!) scientists and other distinguished folk for panels and speeches addressing the arcane mysteries of climate.

Source: factsnotfantasy.blogspot.com

Read in full with comments »   

The collection of desert boots and oxford shoes share Oliver’s trademark brick red EVA wedge sole which the designer champions in his own collection of tailored shoes. The desert boots are available in navy blue, stone and chocolate brown suede. The oxford toe-caps are available in navy blue and cream nubuck with white stitching. Available at Topman New York and the Oliver Spencer boutique, the shoes begin at $150 and the boots for $170.

Continue reading for more images.

Topman 478 Broadway NYC (212)966-9555

Oliver Spencer 330 East 11th Street NYC (212) 475-0079