Everything's Amazing, Nobody's Happy - Louis CK on Conan O'Brien

Louis CK's bit on technology "Everything's Amazing, Nobody's Happy" on Conan O'Brien is pretty funny.. Have a watch!

On Hulu

On YouTube

The new iPhone first impressions 'bar code' scanning app

This cartoon is pretty funny. Not sure who the author is, but she or he is a visionary....

I've named the app 'Bar Code'..... have a laugh!

Iran Twitter and Youtube coverage show that TV Journalism is not far behind newspapers on the way out

I like many have been following the monumental events in Iran today on Twitter and Youtube. Additionally, I have been following Ann Curry of CNN on Twitter for a month or so. I respect her as a journalist, but today her posts on Twitter seem to have shown that she like her peers are just clueless as what is news and also the journalists losing battle against faster, better and more useful information being transmitted directly from the source to the viewers/readers.

First late yesterday, she posted on Twitter the following about Steve Jobs [of Apple]:

"Crazy we are just now hearing steve jobs had a liver transplant "about two months ago." Happened in Tennessee where waiting list shorter."

Ann, this is private matter for Steve Jobs. And from what I read in this reaction of hers, she just does not understand that. Just sad to see a journalist of experience having this kind of view of something that is clear not news.

All of today, she has been posting on Twitter about the issues in Iran. In once sense, I guess this is good that it took her off the 'Steve Jobs story' hunt. A number of her posts and the the amazing coverage that is going on of this event with NO [or very few] foreign journalists in Iran via Twitter and YouTube is my second point. CNN is no more important to the dissemination of the events occurring than any other poster on Twitter or YouTube. The coverage is occurring without CNN, ABC, BBC, CBS or any other news organization. Here is another post by Curry on Twitter:

"Just watched a video so graphic know it would traumatize. What we would not broadcast, do we post? This is a new frontier for journalists."

She just watch the same video that everyone else with access to YouTube did. Well Ann, you may call it a 'new frontier', but I think it is your swan song.

Phoenix light rail almost doubles projected ridership in first six months

I wrote about the new Phoenix light rail opening back in December 2008. Here is a report that the ridership is at 35k to 40k per month, where they had only projected 25k. That is great success in such a car-centric area and temperature extreme area as Phoenix. With their huge nuke plant and solar potential, I can see them succeeding from the USA with John McCain as President of Arizona when oil hits USD 100 per barrel again *grin*. Good job Phoenix!

International Space Station now visible during daylight hours

There is a picture over at the Space Weather web site showing a clearly visible ISS photographed during daylight hours, wow! It is interesting to project forward to what will be visible in the sky 50 years from now. I remember reading Clark, Heinlein on Science Fiction and looking at Chesley Bonestell drawing of amazing space scenes 40 years ago and now the ISS is visible to the naked eye from all over the surface of the planet. Going to be neat!

ISS IN BROAD DAYLIGHT: After 11 years of construction, the International Space Station has grown so large you can see it in broad daylight. "On June 13th, I was watching a red-headed woodpecker's nest when the ISS passed overhead," says Brooke O'Klatner of Charlotte, North Carolina. Follow the curved branch to find the spaceship:

Paper waste: US consumed 663 lbs. of paper per person, vs. 448 lbs. in the UK and 136 lbs. in Mexico. - video short The Secret Life Of Paper

This video short, The Secret Life of Paper, is a good lesson is just how wasteful we are of paper and the terrible effect this has on the environment. Have a watch and see how you can cut down. One of several goals I have is to end all paper magazines I receive by the end of the year.

Americans consume more paper than anyone else on the planet. In 2006, Americans consumed 663 pounds of paper per person, versus 448 pounds in the UK and 136 pounds in Mexico. Yet very few of us stop to think about what constitutes responsible paper usage. Most are also unaware of the connection between the production and consumption of paper and global warming. In fact, the pulp and paper industry is the fourth largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the US manufacturing sector.

Stable Power Supply to Kabul for First Time in Decades, great job by Uzbekistan

Short article on a new power line from Uzbekistan to Afghanistan's capital city. Great work by the people of Uzbekistan to help their neighbors.

For the first time in decades, Kabul is receiving a steady supply of electricity thanks to a major new transmission line linking Afghanistan's capital with neighboring Uzbekistan.

Tire Efficiency: How Your Car Can Cruise on Less Gas from NRDC

As a Prius owner, I became much more in touch with things that caused change to my gas mileage. I am far from a 'hypermiler', but have averaged 50 mpg consistently over 120,000 miles of driving it. At that mpg level, change in mileage become far more visible. This blog post on the NRDC web site talks about the change in tire design that can influence a car's mileage. A tire change I made in the last year on the Prius demonstrated this to me, for the first time in 5 years of driving the Prius, my mileage over a tank of gas has dropped below the 50 mpg level. I saw over 7% drop in mpg due to these new tires. It is good to see more tire manufactures offering information about mpg effect of their tires and even better more of them making efficient tires.

Google Wave, real time spelling correction

Google recently announced a new unified collaboration environment call Google Wave. It looks to be an interesting 'mash up' of all the Facebooks, Twitters, Instant Messaging, Email, Content Sharing Web 2.0 applications that are currently out. Here is a link to a set of sound bites of the initial 80 minute presentation Google did on the project. Wave is about a year away from being released to large user base.

One interesting feature of Wave is that Google's massive spelling systems are analyzing the typing each Wave user in real time. So Wave will offer real time spelling checking and correcting. Watch the video below for a taste of this function:

Nice web clock, Time Zone Check

Nice web clock for all of us with friends and business around the globe:

Time Zone Check

Mad Avenue Blues video parody of the changes in the advertising business

This video is a well done parody on the ad business, done to Don McLean's American Pie. Similar to brick and mortar retail, auto industry, the advertising business is in the middle of huge change. Not a happy change for groups of the past, but one that clearly will happen. I wonder how quickly humans and business models will start to adapt this new reality of fast change.

More info on Tiananmen Square and Chinese government umbrella tactics with press

James Fallow's wife reports here on her trip to Tianamen Square yesterday on the 20th anniversary of the protests. And here are three more videos of showing the umbrella blocking tactics being used on the press yesterday around the square. As many have noted, what kind of behavior is this for such an important country....

Stomach acid blockers and hip fracture risk, 30% increase in risk

This article about a paper published this week at the Digestive Disease Week 2009 conference on the large increase in risk of hip fractures of people in the age group 50 to 59 years is interesting for two reasons to me. First, by changing my diet in a year ago I removed myself from a daily addition to these acid blocking drugs. I knew at the time it was the right thing, now even more so. 

Secondly, this study indicates to me why we need common electronic medical records in US. To be able to give researchers access to possible connecting data like this is real time seems to be so important to our health and well being. To be able to ask questions of a Goggle or WolframAlpha type engine about a persons health and drug intakes in comparison to a huge base of others would give such a strong support for people to change [or at least logically think about] behaviors and possible consequences.

"Patients taking the average prescription dose of one pill/day had a 30 percent risk increase"

Tapping into the bottled water myth. Cost is 1,900 times tap water

Two good quotes from this article on bottled water at Headline Health. The bottled water industry needs go away. My earlier post from the head of Nestle Water. Need to get water quality solutions like Dean Kamen's Slingshot out to places with unfit water.

"Your statistic of the day: Bottled water costs 1,900-times more than the stuff you get out of the tap in your home. And it’s probably not any safer."

"only two brands that we name are Sam’s Choice and Acadia, because those two looked remarkably similar to tap water"

Conan O'Brien in the year 3000 - YouTwitFace

Conan O'Brien continues his great humor into his new gig at the Tonight Show with a prediction that YouTube, Twitter and Facebook merge into YouTwitFace.... It's all the buzz on Twitter and other sites. With some saying 'hey that a great idea!'

And the kicker, by Mr. O’Brien: “YouTube, Twitter and Facebook will merge to form one super time-wasting Web site called YouTwitFace.”

Bill McKibben: 350 The Most Important Number in the World

A good talk by Bill McKibben on the 350 ppm target for GHG. There is a short summary snip of his talk and also his full talk, both in video or audio format.

Coverage of 20th anniversary of Tiananmen Square

James Fallows gives a good summary of the unfortunate behavior of the Chinese government to the 20th anniversary of Tiananmen Square. This video report by CNN reporter of the efforts to stop the reporting today is a very interesting. Clearly China's officials are not doing the right thing of acknowledging what happened 20 years ago.

The history of wind power

Nice video on the history of wind generation. Two interesting points on the history of wind systems, first the origin of wind power was the Middle East over 4,000 years ago [yep same Middle East] Iraq and Iran were the two key areas. Second, is that the invention of electrical generation using wind power was from an American in 1888 named Charles Brush. The video accompanies this interesting article on alternative energy funding at Live Science. 

Business Week: Why We Tweet By Jack and Suzy Welch

Interesting article by Jack and Suzy Welch on Twitter in Business Week. Does show that Generation Y - 3 can learn, enjoy and profit from new technology. Mr. Welch's first tech lesson came when learned not to leave his Blackberry out with messages from Suzy, while still married to wife - 1 . 

Business Week 2-Jun-2009

But Twitter's business potential doesn't explain why we tap away in 140-character bursts every so often. O.K., like three or four times a day.

We tweet because we can't stop ourselves

WSJ 27-Nov-2002

The breaking point in the marriage came late in 2001, when Mrs. Welch overheard her husband talking about his new relationship, then later picked up his Blackberry wireless pager and read several messages from Ms. Wetlaufer.

The couple agreed that the marriage was over.