Light Blossoms

Philips has come up with a new aesthetically pleasing light fixture that uses both solar and wind energy. Check it out here.

Easter Egg Hunt for TIII

Can you find it? http://www.duke.edu/web/evp/index.html

(Hint: try mousing over the entire web page)

This is why I love Duke.

Thanks, Will!

Jon Stewart Rips on Scott Brown & Dem. Leadership

A year ago, Barack Obama was sworn in the 44th President of the United States. We were filled with hope for change and dreams of a better America.

Yesterday, we were disappointed with the election of Scott Brown in MA to fill the open Senate seat left by the Lion of the Senate. Ted Kennedy's legacy and goal of health care reform are now left in the hands of someone who supports waterboarding and opposes cap-and-trade programs to reduce carbon emissions, among other socially backwards ideas.

Who are we to blame for this aberrance? Thank God we have Jon Stewart to put things in perspective:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Mass Backwards
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

Thanks for the find, Sarah!

Google's New Approach to China

Big news: Following an investigation into some Gmail and intellectual property security breaches from China, Google decided that they will no longer accept censorship as a condition for being permitted the use of their Chinese Google site (www.google.cn). A briefing on the events that led to their decision can be found on the Official Google Blog.

Highlights from the post:

• "We have taken the unusual step of sharing information about these attacks with a broad audience not just because of the security and human rights implications of what we have unearthed, but also because this information goes to the heart of a much bigger global debate about freedom of speech."

• "We launched Google.cn in January 2006 in the belief that the benefits of increased access to information for people in China and a more open Internet outweighed our discomfort in agreeing to censor some results."

• "We have decided we are no longer willing to continue censoring our results on Google.cn, and so over the next few weeks we will be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could operate an unfiltered search engine within the law, if at all. We recognize that this may well mean having to shut down Google.cn, and potentially our offices in China."

"Don't be evil," indeed. Read the full post here (highly recommended!). The NYTimes also has a writeup of the policy shift.

Thanks for the find, Sarah and Ryan!

The Children of Cyberspace

We already see the generational gaps between the ways we interface with technology as compared to our parents, but the ever-speeding technological change curve may be increasing at an even faster speed. Technology has changed our methods of communication, as well as our expectations of social norms.

Highlights from the NY Times article:

• "They [researchers] theorize that the ever-accelerating pace of technological change may be minting a series of mini-generation gaps, with each group of children uniquely influenced by the tech tools available in their formative stages of development."

• "... younger children tend to be ever more artful multitaskers. Studies performed by Dr. Rosen at Cal State show that 16- to 18-year-olds perform seven tasks, on average, in their free time — like texting on the phone, sending instant messages and checking Facebook while sitting in front of the television."

• "Children my daughter’s age are also more likely to have some relaxed notions about privacy. The idea of a phone or any other device that is persistently aware of its location and screams out its geographic coordinates, even if only to friends, might seem spooky to older age groups."

To read the entire article, click here.

Tech Support Cheat Sheet

For more nerd-tastic comics, check out www.xkcd.com.

Thanks for the find, David!

Colbert on Connecting the Dots & Exploding Underwear

In response to President Obama's recent assessment of the security flaws that led to the attempted 12/25/09 bombing, Stephen Colbert had some pointed words to say last night on the Colbert Report.

Watch, laugh, and then cry a little inside.

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Failure to Connect the Dots
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Economy

Homer v. Mickey

This article from moreintelligentlife.com examines the Simpson and Disney dichotomy throughout the years, as well as what they represent in society today.

Highlights from the article:

• "This is a world in which none of the Disney pieties are true... When you wish upon a star in “The Simpsons”, your dreams don’t come true–-you end up a loser like Ralph Wiggum, the police chief’s son, who eats glue and talks to leprechauns. Good does not triumph over evil, and being true to yourself often leads to terrible consequences."

• "In contrast to Disney, with its lush visuals and stark storylines, the sophistication of “The Simpsons” was all in the scripts, which are highly literate, gaily referring to everything from Susan Sontag to “Citizen Kane”."

• "When Al Gore was vice president, only 63% of American kids surveyed could identify him, whereas 93% could identify the cast of “The Simpsons”."

• "Because it is so satirical, it’s easy to assume that “The Simpsons” is darker than Disney. But in many ways, the opposite is true. Disney films are full of death, tragedy and cruel parenting–think of all the evil stepmothers and witches, as well as the killing of Bambi’s mother and the absence of Dumbo’s, both of which are enough to break anyone’s heart."

"We Did It!"

According to this Economist article, women are set to make up over 50% of the U.S. workforce in the next few months.

Highlights from the article:

• "Motherhood, not sexism, is the issue: in America, childless women earn almost as much as men, but mothers earn significantly less."

• "In America three out of four people thrown out of work since the “mancession” began have been male."

• "And, without going to Scandinavian lengths, America could invest more in its children: it spends a lower share of its GDP on public child-care than almost any other rich country, and is the only rich country that refuses to provide mothers with paid maternity leave. Barack Obama needs to measure up to his campaign rhetoric about “real family values”."

To read the entire article, click here.

If you're interested in reading more on the "Mommy Wars" and the "opting out" phenomenon, try Pamela Stone's book Opting Out?: Why Women Really Quit Careers and Head Home. (If you need extra convincing, Stone was a Duke grad!)

10 Ways to Cut Your Travel Costs This Year

Highlights from the article:

• "ITASoftware.com, which provides the technological backbone for many airfare shopping sites, allows users to scan an entire month’s fares for the least expensive rate."

• "Airlines have long offered to refund the difference in their fares (minus a change fee) in the form of a voucher to customers who ask. Using your confirmation number, Yapta.com will automatically track the price of your ticket, taking the airline’s fees into consideration, and send you, without charge, an e-mail message or Twitter alert notifying you of the lower price. You can then call the airline to claim the credit."

Read the entire NY Times article here.

Ommwriter: The zen way to write distraction-free

We all know what it's like to write papers in today's technology-intensive, multi-communication type of world. It's no wonder that it's so hard to "get into the zone" when we're constantly distracted by BlackBerry blinking lights, GChats, Facebook, and email notifications.

In enters Ommwriter, an immersive writing experience that helps us regain our ability to concentrate amidst a world of instant gratification. It's a simple text editor (with relaxing music and soothing backgrounds) that gets rid of all that formatting nonsense that often controls perfectionists like myself.

Unfortunately, it's currently only available for Macs, but if you happen to have one, it's worth trying out. Ommwriter might just save you from yourself.



Ommwriter from Herraiz Soto on Vimeo.

Duke Schedulator

The new Duke ACES program's absurd multiple-click scheme has prompted a few Duke students to come up with their own version of how ACES should be run. Duke Schedulator allows you to test out several different schedules graphically (and easily!), and also gives you price comparisons across multiple popular textbook sites for all textbooks listed for your courses. If only I had known about it before my last registration period was over...

Better Talking

Next time you need to prepare for a phone interview, try Better Talking, a free service that gives you a mock interview with standard interview questions.

[caption id="attachment_4" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Screen shot from www.bettertalking.com"][/caption]