Blog

Truly a collectors collectable, BRENDA, a robot made of vintage recycled metal can adorn your home beautifully. If you are an ardent lover of all things antique, this little girl is perfect for you. BRENDA measures 15″ tall and 9.5″ wide and is made of full recycled parts and also has new parts. She has a very vintage look and has clockwork and an antique key on her back.


[Etsy]

The financial Twitterverse has been abuzz this morning with speculation as to what the administration was going to propose?  Yes, yes . . . they’re going to sweat down Too Big to Fail banks.  But how?  Some commentators thought the gist would be HULK SMASH BANKS!!!  Others predicted it would be a minor tweak on the measures already proposed.

Now we know.  The administration’s new proposal has two core pieces, both of which are at least somewhat novel.  First, banks that have access to the discount window will not be able to trade for their own account.  That means no prop trading desk.  No owning hedge funds or private equity funds.  No investments of any kind to make profits for your shareholders.  Financial institutions can make profits by servicing clients, or they can make profits by investing for their own book.  But they can’t do both.

Senior administration officials I spoke to made it clear that this would not include market making activity, which the administration views as something you do for your clients.  But while that may partially reassure banks, that seems to mean that market makers–i.e. Goldman Sachs–are very definitely included.  That impression was reinforced by the way  Indeed, if they pass this thing, they should probably call it the Hey Goldman Sachs! You’re Not Going to Be So Profitable Any More Act of 2010.

The second proposal is to extend something like the caps that already prohibit banks from holding more than 10% of federally insured deposits, to other kinds of liabilities.  I asked, but got no clarity, on what exactly this means.  Are regulators going to swoop in whenever a diversified financial institution has too big a share of the total liabilities in all US debt markets?  Or are they going to intervene when a bank becomes dangerous to one particular debt market, the way Lehman turned out to be in commercial paper?

One thing is clear, though:  the banks screwed up.  As I’ve been saying for months now, it was a simply gigantic mistake to seek huge profits and big bonus pools. Yes, I know that they were competing for talent with foreign banks.  Well, they kept the talent, and now it looks like they may well lose the profitable lines of business that they needed the talent for.  Last time I looked, Goldman’s proprietary investments made up something like 90% of its profits.  Do they give up their profits, or their implied government guarantee?  Either move is going to hurt, which is why, despite reporting record profits today, Goldman’s stock is down 4% at this writing.

Now, as to the merits of the policy:  is it a good idea?  On first pass, I’m going to say tenatively yes.  The government is recognizing that banks “paying back” the funds they were given is essentially meaningless, because they’ve still got a very, very valuable implied government guarantee.  One could argue that they’ve had it since 1991 when the Federal Reserve got the power to loan money to investment banks in extremis.  But since last fall, it’s the next best thing to explicit.  That means the government needs to take steps to mitigate its own risk.

The way you do that is to decouple the key operation the government insures–the funneling of credit from those with money to those who want to borrow it–from making bets on market outcomes that can go badly wrong.  And to ensure that no institution has enough liabilities to take down the system if it fails.

That said, I’m not necessarily confident that this is going to work.  I’m not even sure that I understand how it will work at this point. I have only a hazy understanding of how the liability limits will be enforced, and after talking to administration officials, I’m not sure that they really know either; they seem to be waiting to see what the legislators and regulators say.  And while splitting off proprietary investment seems like it might mitigate systemic risk, it may be very hard to enforce.  Would “eating your own toxic waste” be prop trading, or client service, for example?  It’s possible that this thing will end up with loopholes you could drive a truck through, and if so, it will probably be worse than nothing.

Too, I haven’t talked to any prop traders or investment banking executives this morning.  They might be able to offer a convincing reason we shouldn’t do this.

But even if it’s not the best idea in the world, there are definitely many worse rules that we could think up.  And after a stunning defeat on health care, the administration needs to score big points against the bankers quickly.  If “Don’t just stand there, do something!” is the order of the day, there are clearly worse somethings we can do.

If we do choose this “something”, Americans should probably be clear that this is going to deal a major setback to New York as a world financial capital.  Many of the rules that were undone in the last two decades were got rid of because they were making it too hard for American banks to cope with foreign competition.  If we do this, America’s financial sector will shrink, and our banks will lose a lot of business to foreign firms.  That means, among other things, that we are going to lose big chunks of tax revenue, because bankers are very disproportionate contributors to federal coffers.  It also means that New York’s renaissance will probably slack off–and the people who complain about the bankers will discover how many city services those banker salaries paid for.

That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do it.  I think finance has taken on an outsized role in our country, and as we’ve seen over the past year and a half, that hasn’t been a healthy state of affairs.  But this means a substantial change to the American financial system, and as with all change, we won’t like every single thing that follows.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• Quote Of The Day: "Obama Is Taking This Massachusetts Vote As An Excuse To Attack US Industry"
• Let Me Tell You How I’m Going To Stick It To Wall Street
• Obama Earthquake Rocks Wall Street

Although it was raining and cold it did not stop thousands of community members from coming out to watch the Martin Luther King Jr. parade.  On Monday January 18, 2010, Chief Beck along with other high officials walked the parade route while numerous bands played their school anthems. As he waved to the bystanders he noticed all the positive energy coming from community and knew it was going to be a great year ahead.

On January 16, 2010, Chief Beck attended the Martin Luther King Breakfast Celebration with several dignitaries.  This was the second annual event to celebrate the life, legacy and vision of the civil rights leader.  Over the past seven years, the LAPD has committed in restoring the public’s confidence, building trust and respect between the Los Angeles Police, African American community and the entire City of Los Angeles. The event was held at the University of Southern California.

On Sunday January 17, 2010, ABC aired a documentary, “LAPD-Transforming the Dream” which chronicled the long history of friction between law enforcement, America’s ethnic communities, and how a police department with a progressive Chief, in unison with the political/community leadership turned Los Angeles into a healthier, safer city.

Chief Beck was featured, with a strong commitment to continuing the reform, "from the bottom up." Los Angeles’ most prominent political, community, and business leaders were featured in the historic television program, which was recently touted in a Los Angeles Times editorial as a powerful documentary by Pierre Bagley.

To view the documentary, click here

If you’re a BlackBerry fan, you’re probably familiar with the rumors and rumblings over the years about a touchscreen, QWERTY-equipped device.  Previously known as the “Magnum,” intel over the past few months has uncovered a codename shift to “Dakota.”  The pictures seen here, taken by The Cellular Guru and posted on the internet today, appear to show some sort of BlackBerry prototype.  I’m not entirely sure if the device is a Magnum or Dakota prototype, and since there’s no OS screenshot, it’s difficult to make an assumption as to what model it is.  What’s more, this could be an older prototype that was scrapped – a theory that I would actually side with, given the older design in comparison to today’s models. 

Let the speculation begin!  How do you feel about a touchscreen and QWERTY combo?  Personally, I’ve never been a fan of the design.  I’ve always disliked devices that offer both, as I feel like you’re splitting your time between typing on the keyboard and navigating on the touchscreen (hence a continuous up/down motion, all day long).  What about you?

Via CrackBerry

Miniature models always have my applause for them. This time it’s almost the entire city of San Francisco in a small-miniature version. The 2nd Annual Golden Gate Express Garden Railway is open at San Francisco’s Conservatory of Flowers. It features the landmark places of the city in it’s miniature version like the important buildings, train and other things. The best part is that the model is made of recycled materials. Isn’t that just too cool? The exhibition is open until April 18th.
[Neatorama]

A 1,500-year-old sacred Indian mound in Oxford, Ala. has apparently been destroyed to make way for a new municipal sports complex. The site in question is near another Indian mound in Oxford that was threatened last year by construction of a Sam’s Club warehouse store.

Harry Holstein, a professor of archaeology and anthropology at Alabama’s Jacksonville State University who specializes in prehistoric stone structure sites, told the Anniston Star newspaper that the ruined site — which contained remnants of an Indian village and the base of a temple mound that may have held human remains — has vanished:

When Holstein visited the site last summer, it was still intact.

But when he returned to the area Monday, he could find no sign of the mound or the village remnants.

The land is now flat, with tire tread marks clearly visible in the dirt.

“It’s been flattened like a pancake,” Holstein said. “There is just grass over it now.”

Holstein was part of a team of JSU researchers who prepared a report for the city before construction began that found the property slated for development contained some of the most significant archaeological sites in northeast Alabama. The report called for their preservation, which city leaders agreed to.

Holstein believes the structures that were at the destroyed site were related to the stone mound on a hill behind an Oxford shopping center. Last year, contractors hired by the city’s Commercial Development Authority were using dirt from that mound as fill for construction of a Sam’s Club, part of a chain operated by Arkansas-based Walmart. Following public outcry, the contractors halted that work and switched to fill dirt provided by a private landowner.

The sites are among several ancient
stone and earthen mounds located throughout Alabama’s Choccolocco Valley.

Fred Denney, the Oxford official in charge of managing the sports complex development project, denied that the city had any role in destroying the Indian site:

“No, we’re not touching the mound out there,” Denney said Monday. “We did have some ribbon and stakes of where to go … to show we’re not going any further than this.”

Denney said the same thing when interviewed about the site in August. No markers were visible when a reporter visited the site on Monday.

After Holstein surveyed the area, he said he could not find any stakes or markers or any signs of the American Indian site.

There is a long history of sacred American Indian sites being destroyed for commercial developments including Walmart stores and sports facilities. In the late 1990s, for example, an Indian burial site along the Cumberland River in Nashville, Tenn. was disturbed by construction of a stadium for the Tennessee Titans National Football League team.

The Woodland and Mississippian cultures that inhabited the Southeast and Midwest before Europeans settled in the Americas constructed the mounds for rituals, including burials. Native Americans consider the structures “prayer in stone.”

Ever since RIM got their act together with the BlackBerry Storm 2, we’ve been pretty excited about their new-found interest in touchscreens. When word got out not too long ago that RIM was cracking away on a half-touchscreen/half-keyboard hybrid handset (think BlackBerry Bold, with a touchscreen), we started getting all hot around the collar. Word on the street (the cell phone rumor street. It’s a tough place.) indicated the handset’s nickname was “Dakota”.

Aaaaaand here it is – or at least an early prototype which the guys over at CrackBerry say has been scrapped in lieu of something “nicer”. You know, I think I’d be just fine with the one pictured up above – but hey, bloggers can’t be choosers.

Crunch Network: TechCrunch obsessively profiling and reviewing new Internet products and companies

NEW YORK (AP) — Target is navigating turbulent economic times by polishing old stores rather than opening new ones and seeking growth in countries outside of the U.S such as Canada and Mexico.

The discount chain said Thursday that it will spend $1 billion renovating 340 stores while opening fewer than 10 new locations.

The renovated stores will offer more groceries as part of a shift in focus that the company announced last year.

It’s also developing smaller stores for urban markets. Target said it plans to test the concept within the next few years.

The chain, based in Minneapolis, has faced tough competition from larger rival Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s largest retailer. Customers had turned away from Target’s “cheap chic” styles and toward retailers they believed were offering lower prices during the recession.

Quick maneuvers to change that view emerged in the form of better holiday sales as Target trumpeted its lower prices and expanded its selection of groceries, necessities that bring in shoppers more frequently.

Better-than-expected customer traffic boosted December sales by 1.8 percent at stores open at least a year. Analysts were expecting a 0.2 percent decline.

Target Corp. said earlier this month that it expects fourth-quarter earnings to “meet or exceed” analyst expectations of $1.11 per share.

Target’s growth plans are similar to the strategy reiterated by Wal-Mart last October. Wal-Mart told investors that its store expansion pace overseas, particularly in emerging markets like China and Brazil, would exceed domestic growth.

In the U.S., Wal-Mart is focusing on renovating its existing stores and building fewer and smaller but more efficient stores. Wal-Mart aims to use the smaller formats to further penetrate urban markets.

Target’s Chief Financial Officer Doug Scovanner and other executives will speak at an investor meeting Thursday in Philadelphia.

Target’s shares fell 22 cents to $50.50 in midday trading on Thursday, near the high end of its 52-week range of $25 to $51.77.

Read the original article from Tribune News Services.

For all four minutes and 34 seconds of the video below, I just zoned out listening to the relaxing noise of wind passing through the Winduino II‘s Bluetooth board. I fell into a kind of blogger coma.

The Winduino II is made from an Adruino BT Bluetooth board, and is inspired by the Aeolian harp that was used in ye olden days. Hung outside, the wind makes the various sensors tinkle with harmonious sounds of music, and a USB port keeps it charged up if the solar panels on top aren’t soaking up enough rays. [Fascination Workshop via Matrixsynth via MAKE]

The Winduino II from Fascination Workshop on Vimeo.

“It was important, Dumbledore said, to fight, and fight again, and keep fighting, for only then could evil be kept at bay, though never quite eradicated…” –Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, pp. 644-645

As far as lofty pursuits go, “eradicating evil” is pretty high up there. Although we Stanford students are extremely goal-oriented, it’s difficult to attribute significance to the fights we undertake when the main evils we focus on eradicating are squeaky bike brakes and out-of-control e-mail inboxes. Even when we focus our efforts on something significant and pit ourselves against issues of social justice and reform, we may quickly find ourselves overwhelmed and paralyzed by the enormity of what we face. However, when we examine Harry’s struggles against Voldemort, we are reminded of why and how we ought to fight.

Throughout the series, it seems as if defeating Voldemort is Dumbledore’s and Harry’s be-all-end-all goal; as if destroying Voldemort will be the solution to the wizarding world’s problems. Nevertheless, after Dumbledore’s death (spoiler!), when Harry is contemplating how he will proceed to defeat Voldemort, he recalls Dumbledore’s wise words on combating evil. Harry realizes that Voldemort’s demise will not actually destroy evil for good, and that evil will, in fact, always be present in one form or another. At the same time, Harry manages to recognize the importance of making small strides forward and chooses not to give up hope.

During our time at Stanford, most of us become passionate about one issue or another, whether it is poverty and human trafficking or education and healthcare reform. We try to find and then actualize these passions by joining campus organizations, sending out slews of enthusiastic e-mails and dreaming up nonprofits. Oftentimes, however, we fall into the trap of taking a damaging approach to the so-called evils that we battle, and we lose perspective on what it is that we have set out to fight. We tend to become dangerously drunk on our ideas and let the lack of tangible results push us over the edge, both of which Dumbledore fervently warns Harry against.

While Dumbledore does not implore Harry to abandon his passion or to mindlessly deflect obstacles along the way, he reminds him that if he fights without fully understanding the battle, Harry may very well end up aimlessly fighting against himself. As Harry then attempts to live out Dumbledore’s advice in his pursuit of Voldemort, he is able to focus on each individual step forward. Therefore, rather than finding himself in combat with his own selfish ambitions, resignation in the face of struggle or disappointment in the unattainable nature of his goal, he is able to face each new challenge with energy and zeal. Harry clearly internalizes Dumbledore’s advice, as by the last installment, he is able to act with maturity and stamina as he makes the final strides toward defeating Voldemort.

We thus learn from Harry’s example that our so-called “life missions” are not simply about the final results but are also about refining a process with deliberate and well-reasoned steps. His experiences taking down horcrux after horcrux show us that we can find great value in the incremental strides that we take toward diminishing our discontent with and injustice that we see in our world. Progress against evil doesn’t have to involve abolishing pain and suffering from the entire world, but can simply involve eliminating these things in one individual’s world at a time. By pursuing our goals in such a manner, we are then able to find the strength both to press on and to acknowledge that our work is not in vain.

Lastly, as we consider the battles we wish to fight, we must recognize that if we truly choose to chase lofty visions, our chase will be a lifelong one. Evil certainly did not disappear with Dumbledore’s defeat of Grindelwald, and it’s safe to say that Voldemort’s defeat did not entail evil’s defeat either. Dumbledore committed his life to fighting evil, taking on one dark wizard after another. We are consequently reminded by his example that any mission we embark on, whether it be self-improvement or systemic change, may never see resolution in our lifetimes. Perhaps that is what our years at Stanford truly prepare us for and teach us. Not only does it equip us with the weapons to fight our chosen battles, but we are also able to engage with and learn from those who have been waging these battles for a long time, with the same ardor and hope that they had when they first entered the fray.

Then again, broken bike brakes are a pretty terrible form of evil in this weather. They might just be the one form of evil that can be eradicated with a quick trip to the bike shop.

On a recent bitter January morning, Marcus Stern encouraged a group of Harvard undergraduates to experiment with citrus.

“What would happen,” he asked them, “if you stuck an orange under each armpit?”

The whimsical suggestion had real implications for the 20 young women and men who have chosen to forgo a midwinter vacation and return to campus for a new kind of intense study.

Stern, associate director of the American Repertory Theater/Moscow Art Theater School Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University (the A.R.T. Institute), was teaching a drama class, one designed to help the budding actors create a new character, using changes in voice and body positions that would render them unrecognizable. The orange experiment, he said, could lead to “physical adjustments” that they could incorporate later, without the aid of the fruit, into their transformations.

“The goal is to get them comfortable with fully transforming their voices and bodies so they can get closer to creating characters that are completely different from themselves,” Stern said, so they can act more “freely, impulsively, spontaneously.”

Using a deep register for her voice and sharp hand gestures, one undergraduate took on the role of a pope. Another portrayed a woman confined to a wheelchair.

“Go a little higher, softer, more nasal,” Stern coached Emily Hecht ’11, urging her to change the pitch of her voice to help make her character, a vulnerable and emotionally troubled young woman, more believable.

The undergraduates are part of a new immersion program, a collaboration among the A.R.T. Institute, the Office for the Arts, and the Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club (HRDC). During the three-week intensive workshop, they are learning a wide range of dramatic techniques and various aspects of acting. The curriculum includes workshops on comedic scenes, intensive study with a dialect coach, improvisation classes, and even seminars on the business of being an actor.

Students work with participants and faculty at the A.R.T. Institute, as well as prominent guest lecturers. Jim True-Frost, famous for his role on the HBO series “The Wire,” led a seminar on acting for the camera, and well-known director and Harvard alumnus David Hammond recently conducted a Shakespeare workshop.

“It has been very exciting for us to be able to show the undergraduates that in the graduate school it’s a much more in-depth, intensive approach to acting,” said the institute’s director Scott Zigler, who designed the new program’s curriculum.

While A.R.T. Institute faculty currently teach undergraduate classes as part of the Harvard College curriculum, for those students considering a graduate degree in acting or pursuing the craft directly out of college, said Zigler, the intensive course really gives them a look at the “nuts and bolts of the profession.”

The American Repertory Theater’s artistic director, Diane Paulus ’88, is the driving force behind the new collaboration.

In step with her commitment to the organization’s mission of “expanding the boundaries of theater” is Paulus’ intense desire for a broader engagement with the University. As a Harvard undergraduate, her love of the dramatic arts was shaped by her own experience with the A.R.T. Since taking on the directorship in 2008, she has been working closely with students across campus.

“Central to my goals and my new leadership at the A.R.T. is to reinvigorate the A.R.T.’s connection with the University and in particular the undergraduates,” said Paulus, who met with members of the HRDC her first day on the job to discuss how to forge a stronger relationship with students. When Paulus realized the opportunity at hand with the new winter break, a plan for the immersion program took shape.

Paulus said the three-week intensive gives “undergraduates the opportunity to immerse and experience themselves in graduate-level training through our curriculum that we traditionally offer to the institute students. … When I was a Harvard undergraduate, I would have jumped at this opportunity.

“We are really saying we are here, we are an important pedagogical resource for Harvard University, and this is a particular way we can offer our faculty, training, and expertise to the broader student body.”

Jack Megan, director of the Office for the Arts, who helped coordinate the housing for students returning to campus for the program, said the new initiative is an example of Paulus’ effort to create a “deeper, more integrated community among undergraduates, institute students, professional staff at the A.R.T., and other University departments. The attitude and tone of things is very ‘can do.’ It’s very exciting.”

In a further collaboration, Megan also helped secure the undergraduate Agassiz Theatre for the Tennessee Williams play “Stairs to the Roof,” being produced by the A.R.T. Institute. Harvard alumnus Mike Donahue ’05 will direct the production (Feb. 4-6), which will also include three of the workshop’s undergraduate students in its cast.

Hecht, an English concentrator with a secondary focus in dramatic arts, got hooked at age 6 with the role of a witch in a half-hour version of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth,” and is currently planning a career in acting or music.

“This is a taste of what real intense conservatory work might be like,” she said. It offers “the kind of intense technique work that is really helpful if you are thinking about going into the professional [entertainment] world.”

For Leverett House senior Carolyn Holding, who intends to pursue acting and is weighing graduate school with a move to New York City after graduation, the workshop has been an important part of her Harvard education.

She’s learned “how much there is [to acting],” she said, “and how little I know.”

Plus by Chausser is releasing five classic models in celebration of their 10 Year Anniversary. Lace up boots, chukka boots, and straight tips make up the collection that come in colors of black, burgundy, and brown. The shoes are made from Houin Cordovan, which is very limited and is rarely available in Japan. This time around, for their anniversary, Plus by Chausser is able to release a few models just for their celebration.

Continue reading for more images.

Source: Plus by Chausser

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – A new, 1,250-seat event center at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs will bear the name of a family of eight UCCS alums.

James L. “Jim” Gallogly, a 1974 graduate, and his wife, Janet, on behalf of the Gallogly family, have pledged to donate $1 million to the CU Foundation. The donation will be used to help fund the $9 million campus event center scheduled for a Jan. 22 grand opening and for other campus needs. It is the first full UCCS building named in honor of a campus alum.

The Gallogly connection to UCCS began with Jim’s father, Tom Gallogly, a non-traditional student who earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education from UCCS in 1970 and 1973. He died in 2000. Seven children of Tom and Margery Gallogly earned degrees from UCCS.

“I am deeply honored by the commitment of the Gallogly family to this campus and to the UCCS heritage of this dynamic group of people,” Chancellor Pam Shockley-Zalabak said. “The event center will stand as a cornerstone of the future growth of UCCS.”

“We are pleased to name the new event center in honor of our father, Tom Gallogly, one of the early graduates of UCCS.  He would be extremely proud of how his alma mater has grown and prospered through the years,” stated Jim Gallogly.

Jim is the Chief Executive Officer of LyondellBasell in Houston, one of the world’s largest polymers, petrochemicals and refining companies. He previously held executive positions with ConocoPhillips, ChevronPhillips and Phillips Petroleum dating to 1980. He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from UCCS in 1974 and a law degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1977. Jim and Janet Gallogly have three daughters, Kelly, Kasey, and Kimberly Gallogly, and maintain a residence in Colorado Springs.

A graduate of Wasson High School in Colorado Springs, Jim Gallogly followed in his father’s footsteps to UCCS along with six of his siblings:  Mary Gallogly DeSantis, 1977; Tony Gallogly, 1983; Nicholas Gallogly, 1985; Andrew Gallogly, 1987; Paul H. Gallogly, 1988; and Thomas Gallogly, 1990. A ceremony unveiling the official name of the event center will occur at a later date.

Located in the heart of campus, the event center will be home to the UCCS Mountain Lion athletic teams and serve as a hub for community events and conferences. As one of the fastest growing universities in the state, the center will create space for a growing athletics program and student body. It also cements the university’s commitment to the broader community with space that will be available for concerts, lectures, meetings and other community needs.

In addition to being home to the NCAA Division II and Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference-member UCCS Mountain Lions, the center will also serve as a multi-purpose venue for all-campus events. The 27,000 square foot center, located adjacent to the old Lions’ Den, features high-tech sound, lighting and high-speed data capability. Plans call for the center to be a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Efficiency-certified green building.

Official grand opening ceremonies, featuring UCCS and CU dignitaries, begin at 4 p.m. Jan. 22 prior to men’s and women’s basketball games against Regis University. Faculty, staff, students, alumni and community members are invited to attend. The ceremony will feature comments by CU Regent Steve Bosley, CU President Bruce Benson, and UCCS Chancellor Pam Shockley-Zalabak. UCCS cheerleaders and dance team will perform and the Gallogly gift will be announced.

The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, located on Austin Bluffs Parkway in Colorado Springs, is one of the fastest growing universities in the nation. The University offers 34 bachelor’s degrees, 18 master’s and five doctoral degrees. The campus enrolls about 8,500 students annually.

Victoria Beckham better watch out – there’s a maneating testicle-tugger stalking her husband. Italian entertainer Elena Di Cioccio has set her sights on David and won’t stop until she gets her hands on his Goldenballs! On Thursday, a video surfaced featuring the 36-year-old Di Cioccio molesting poor Becks in what the British are calling a “testicle sex attack!”

“I want to find out how big his testicles are!” Di Cioccio is quoted as saying.

Beckham, who was speaking to press outside a Milan hotel, looked mortified and was led away by security staff.

Di Cioccio then reportedly ran down the street shouting, “E piccolo, Beckham,” which translates as “Beckham is small.”

Flashy tits equals stronger sperm–at least in the bird world.

A recent study of the birds known as great tits, by evolutionary ecologist Fabrice Helfenstein at the University of Bern, Switzerland, found that the more colorful and bright a male tit’s plumage, the stronger the bird’s sperm is.

The study, published in Ecology Letters, explains that the plumage of some birds contains caretenoids–important antioxidants that can help the bird combat cellular damage caused by stress from predators or feeding babies. A higher amount of caretenoids also results in intensely colored plumage in males, signaling the bird’s increased capacity to ward off stress and preserve its sperm from damage.

New Scientist reports:

[Fabrice Helfenstein] tested this by upping the parental workload of wild male great tits, Parus major – which have yellow breast plumage – by adding two extra chicks to their nests. After five days of looking after their big brood, males with paler plumage suffered a greater reduction in sperm motility than more colorful males. Supplementing the birds’ diet with carotenoids markedly improved the sperm quality of the paler males.

Related Content:
80beats: Male Cleaner Fish Punish Females Who Piss Off The Boss Fish
80beats: In Galpagos Finches, Biologists Catch Evolution in the Act
80beats: Rumors of Y Death Are Greatly Exaggerated; Male Chromosome Evolving Like Crazy
80beats: Study: The Chemical BPA, in High Doses, Causes Impotence

Image: iStockphoto

President Barack Obama blasted the controversial U.S. Supreme Court decision today on campaign finances.

“With its ruling today, the Supreme Court has given a green light to a new stampede of special interest money in our politics,” Obama said in a statement. “It is a major victory for big oil, Wall Street banks, health insurance companies and the other powerful interests that marshal their power every day in Washington to drown out the voices of everyday Americans.  This ruling gives the special interests and their lobbyists even more power in Washington–while undermining the influence of average Americans who make small contributions to support their preferred candidates.  That’s why I am instructing my administration to get to work immediately with Congress on this issue.  We are going to talk with bipartisan Congressional leaders to develop a forceful response to this decision.  The public interest requires nothing less.”

In a move that clearly signals Toyota’s future intentions, the auto manufacturer, acting through an intermediary, has secured a deal with Argentinian lithium mining company, Orocobre, to supply a large amount of the lithium required for advanced electric car and plug-in hybrid batteries. The deal was shuttled through one of Toyota’s sister companies and main suppliers, Toyota Tsusho Corp, which is 22% owned by Toyota.

Read more of this story »