April 2007 Archives
WSJ: Circulation Falls at Many Papers -- Most U.S. newspapers continued to post circulation declines, reflecting the industry's battle to hold onto readers migrating to the Internet and other media.
From Make Magazine -- News from the future: Flying wind farms - Harvesting energy in the sky
Economist magazine has a possible solution to using land for power generating windmills... Put them in the sky!IF IT ever seems windy where you live, be thankful you do not live 10km up in the air. At that height, the jet-stream winds blow stronger and more constantly than ground level winds, carrying up to a hundred times more energy.
So, just as oil companies are drilling deeper and in more remote locations in search of new reserves, pioneer wind-power engineers are looking higher in the sky for new sources of energy. Conventional turbines will not take them there--the highest to date is just over 200 metres tall. So they are trying to invent a whole new technology for harvesting wind: electricity generators that fly.
One of the most ambitious ideas has been developed by Sky WindPower, a company based in San Diego and led by Dave Shepard. Mr Shepard began his career cracking Japanese military codes during the Second World War, then developed machines for reading written text. His work led to the squared-off numbers still seen on bank cards today.
From Make Magazine -- Joinery basics
Popular Mechanics just posted up a good instructable on joinery basics, lots of photos and step-by-steps...The best way to hold together a high-end woodworking projects, whether you're building a timber-frame home, putting together a trestle table or making a step stool, is with a bit of glue and hand cut joints.
It is easier to use mechanical fasteners, like nails and screws, but to add that look of first-class work, with smooth, metal free visible areas, nothing will do the job like a direct joint between parts, bonded with glue. Of course, the type of joint you need depends on a variety of factors, like the nature of the materials, the function of the joint, strength and appearance, available equipment, and your own level of skill. Joinery may be intimidating to the beginner, but, like any other building skill, all it takes is a bit of practice.
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Here we dissect the workings of two primary joints, the edge joint and the mortise and tenon. WIth these joints, you can build a wide array of furniture and tackle a number of woodworking projects without having to rely on unsightly (although time-saving) nails and screws.
instructables : Joinery Basics - Link.
Christian Science Monitor: Going native with plants: A new-old direction for water conservation -- Different species of native plants can help communities tackle issues with too much or too little water.
There is currently a 4-hour workshop about naturescaping in Charlotte and a Landscaping with native plants info.
Wired News: Livin' la Vida Google: A Month-Long Dive Into Web-Based Apps: Spend a few weeks working exclusively in the browser and you'll learn a thing or two about replacing your desktop software. Is it time to take the plunge with Google Apps?
It can almost be done. If Google or someone comes out with a Quicken, QuickenBooks or Money application, that would seal it for me.
Seattle Times (from Minneapolis Star Tribune): In age of computers, is cursive writing cursed?
Under pressure to meet testing standards, teachers are devoting less time to penmanship practice. A 2003 survey of primary teachers by Vanderbilt University found that the average classroom gets fewer than 10 minutes a day of penmanship instruction.While scholars and historians may bemoan the loss of handwritten letters and documents, a leading writing expert says that communication is more important than the form of writing. Kids who have trouble learning cursive might shy away from writing altogether, said Steve Graham, a professor at Vanderbilt University and author of the study on penmanship instruction.
One teacher says cursive is important: She said that learning cursive helps develop fine motor skills. She also believes that proficient cursive writers can express their thoughts more quickly and completely, and there's some evidence to back her up: The students who wrote their SAT essays in cursive scored slightly higher than those who didn't. Tip: Buzzworthy by Brian Chin, who still writes often in cursive
Yahoo (Reuters): Super-rich population surges in 2006: survey. The number of U.S. households with a net worth of more than $5 million, excluding their primary residence, surged 23 percent to surpass one million for the first time in 2006, according to a survey released on Tuesday.
The survey (by Spectrem Group in Chicago) found that U.S. households that are merely wealthy, defined as having assets of more than $500,000 excluding primary residence, rose 9 percent to 15.3 million in 2006 from the year before.
Also PR Newswire:
U.S. Households Worth $5 Million or More Exceed 1 Million for First Time Ever
Lost Remote: Things News Website Visitors Never, Ever Say (The Remix)
Steve Safran, managing editor of Lost Remote, put together a list his and others comments on quirky things on TV station web sites:
“I like how I can get the marketing information, the sales information, advertorials, automotive, real estate, dating, coupons, information about upcoming sweeps stories and 40 other items all on the station’s front page. Also, I believe there is news here.”“It’s really cool how your homepage is like, 5 pages long! Sweet!”
“I worry that non-news pages will dilute this station’s brand.”
“Some people assume if the story is at the top of your page is new, but not me, so I like it when you add the “new” button to the end of the headline to tell me the story is new.”
“It’s cool how that information I want is only three clicks deep.”
“I hope they brought marketing in to the meetings about this site.”
“More flashing ads for mortgages!”
“The anchors’ heads at the top of your site reminds me of Mount Rushmore. It calms me and makes me want to watch the newscast.”
“Yes, I will make you my homepage because I like to get my information from just one source.”
“Forcing me to register makes me feel like I’m part of something bigger. Thank you for allowing me to become a valued member.”
“I love how this looks just like all the other sites in town. Distinction disturbs me.”
“Navigation on the top AND the side! I feel like Magellan!”
“I like how the embedded videos on your homepage start up with the audio louder than the landing pattern at the airport. So does the guy in the cubicle three desks away from me.”
CNN: Have less than $25K in savings? Get in line: A new survey finds you're in good company with colleagues of all ages when it comes to saving for retirement.
Nearly half of all workers saving for retirement have savings that fall short of the $25,000 mark, according to the 2007 Retirement Confidence Survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute and Matthew Greenwald & Associates. Predictably, the youngest workers (ages 25-34) dominate this group - 68 percent of them have less than $25,000 earmarked for their later years. But so do half of workers age 35 to 44 and a third of workers age 45 to 55 and over.
Also from EBRI: the press release and links to the report.
Some organizations are calling for a code of conduct for bloggers, according to NY Times piece A Call for Manners in the World of Nasty Blogs - New York Times, especially after some vicious online battles and the harassing of women bloggers.
Chief among the recommendations is that bloggers consider banning anonymous comments left by visitors to their pages and be able to delete threatening or libelous comments without facing cries of censorship.
Lost Remote: Drudge Report keeps growing -- In a message posted on the site, the Drudge Report says it set a traffic record last month with 425 million home page views, up from 287 million last March.
Some complain that it's just an aggregator, no a legitimate news site, but it does drive a lot of traffic to those legitimate sites.
Lost Remote: Why journalists have to promote their work -- Driven by the web and steadily decreasing TV news ratings, it’s critical for TV reporters to juggle their schedule to write web versions of their stories, write blog posts, plug them on the air and make sure TV producers are effectively promoting their TV and web reporting. It’s every journalist’s responsibility now, along with management.
Christian Science Monitor: What's happening to the bees. Several stories this year on disappearing bee colonies. The experts call it "colony collapse disorder" CCD and they site several possible reasons including: an Asian mite, the stress on the bees of shipping colonies around the country, and environmental issues, such as pesticides.
Also NY Times: Mystery Disease Is Threat to Bee Colonies-- Reports of unusual colony deaths have come from at least 22 states. Some commercial beekeepers have reported losing more than 50 percent of their bees.