The World, Filtered*

"Smart" wastewater bio-treatment takes over where porta-potty leaves off
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13639_3-10098074-42.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-5

…...the Texas Research Institute for Environmental Studies (TRIES) at Sam
Houston State University and PCDworks, a technology innovation firm, have
developed a self-sustaining, portable and "smart" wastewater treatment
system that promises to take over where the porta-potty leaves off. (PDF)
Housed in the ubiquitous 40-foot shipping container, the Deployable
Aqueous Aerobic Bioreactor (DAAB,) can convert a battalion's worth of
wastewater (the effluent from approximately 600 soldiers) to something
that meets Environmental Protection Agencystandards within 24 to 48 hours,
according to TRIES.

A self-contained, bio-digestion unit uses specially selected bacteria to
remove organic and inorganic materials from the waste, and then releases
"clean" water into the environment "with no harmful consequences." The
system is completely autonomous. It adjusts flow and fluid levels
automatically, and can dispatch reports and alerts, and be turned on and
off via the Internet.

It runs on common household 120-volt, and while the treated runoff is not
potable (yet), it's good enough for other uses like irrigation, according
to PCDworks.

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Lose the BlackBerry? Yes He Can, Maybe
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/16/us/politics/16blackberry.html?_r=3&hp&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

WASHINGTON - Sorry, Mr. President. Please surrender your BlackBerry.
Those are seven words President-elect Barack Obama is dreading but
expecting to hear, friends and advisers say, when he takes office in 65
days.

For years, like legions of other professionals, Mr. Obama has been all but
addicted to his BlackBerry. The device has rarely been far from his side -
on most days, it was fastened to his belt - to provide a singular conduit
to the outside world as the bubble around him grew tighter and tighter
throughout his campaign.

"How about that?" Mr. Obama replied to a friend's congratulatory e-mail
message on the night of his victory.

But before he arrives at the White House, he will probably be forced to
sign off. In addition to concerns about e-mail security, he faces the
Presidential Records Act, which puts his correspondence in the official
record and ultimately up for public review, and the threat of subpoenas. A
decision has not been made on whether he could become the first e-mailing
president, but aides said that seemed doubtful.

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Ringing in the New Year by Wrestling Bulls
http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/03/22/travel/21webletter.html?pagewanted=all

AC: I recently met the author of this article. I knew nothing of this
event prior to talking to him. This sounds fascinating, if a little
dangerous.

"…Jallikattu, an ancient and bizarre bull-wrestling sport that takes place
in villages throughout Tamil Nadu every January to celebrate Pongal, a New
Year's festival that coincides with the ancient rice harvest. Though
similar to and older than the Spanish running of the bulls, it's bloodier.
Instead of bulls getting killed, it's the people. In previous years, as
many as 20 young men have been fatally gored, and several hundred,
including spectators, have been mauled, trampled or otherwise injured.
The ritual dates back as far as 2,000 years, but the pandemonium became
intolerable to the public in 2004 when a 14-year old boy died after a bull
plowed into the front row of the audience. His father petitioned the
courts and, last year, for the first time in maybe three centuries,
Jallikattu was banned.

The villagers were devastated. Farmers, who spend at least three years
raising and training the deadly bulls, were left with livestock.
Competitors, who spend years preparing to risk their lives - and village
reputations - were deflated. Rumors began surfacing that farmers were
planning to hold competitions in secret. But with only a week to spare,
the ban was reversed, lending this year's festivities a victorious, almost
giddy air…"

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Livescribe Pulse Smartpen is Finally Mac Compatible
http://gizmodo.com/5089925/livescribe-pulse-smartpen-is-finally-mac-compatible

After promising long ago that Mac software for the Pulse Smartpen was in
the works, Livescribe finally delivered on that promise, today announcing
that the OS X beta client will be available for download next week. The
Mac version of Livescribe Desktop not only does the same things it's PC
counterpart can do (digitized notes, Paper Replay audio syncing,
handwriting recognition), but it has a couple of new tricks up it's sleeve
as well.

The Mac version of Livescribe desktop can export audio as an AAC file or
export your notes as a PDF (via OS X built-in function). This gives users
the option of sharing their files with people who may not have a
Livescribe smartpen or the software. These same features are planned for
PC users eventually, but for now, they're exclusive to the Mac.

I also had the chance to get a quick hands on with the new Mac software
and found it to be fairly smooth and polished, despite still being in
beta. The software is laid out in a manner similar to iTunes (when you're
viewing album covers in a grid), and is very easy to use. Click on a
thumbnail and it brings up the notes for that section. If you're looking
for a specific section of notes you can do a text search. And if you're
only interested in audio, you can bring up a list of recordings. It's
nothing radically different from the earlier software, but it's nice to
know that Livescribe didn't cut any corners for the Mac version.

Not to be outdone by the Mac version, the PC software also comes with a
few new features. First, it now has the ability to transcribe your
handwriting into text and export it as a document. Livescribe teamed up
with Vision Objects to provide a one click handwriting to text transfer of
your notes. This feature, like the handwriting search feature, works best
with handwriting that's actually legible. It will be available for
download on November 24 for an extra $30. They also have plans for an
audio transcription service where someone will listen to your recordings
and transcribe them (for a fee of course). Release and pricing are still
in the works on that.

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WANTED: A Command Line for the Web
http://mashable.com/2008/11/16/command-line-web/

Kwyno, which launches in private beta next month, wants to be a command
line for the web: a single box where you can type commands to navigate to
web pages, search the web or check your friends' updates on Facebook,
Twitter or Pownce.

The web isn't where a command line might shine though: it's Kwyno's support
for commands sent via text and IM that make it intriguing: text in "Check
Mashable", and Kwyno returns the latest Mashable headlines. Text "Check
News" and get the latest headlines from CNN (or any news source you
configure).

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Inspiration Can Be Found in Many Places, but You Need to Be Looking
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/23/business/smallbusiness/23sbiz.html?_r=1&ref=business&oref=slogin

&

Pursuing Big Ideas
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/23/business/smallbusiness/23sbizbox.html?ref=smallbusiness

Successful inventors, entrepreneurs and writers say they are often asked
where their big ideas came from.

They will acknowledge that serendipity often plays a role. But equally as
important, they say, is having an open mind — especially in tumultuous
times like these. Big and small ideas are out there, they say, if you are
looking for them.

…Mr. Kimel was in Park City, Utah, in the late 1990s, he recalled, and
witnessed the success of the Sundance Film Festival. Why not, he thought,
have a diverse festival that celebrates ideas?

And so, in 2000, he helped create the IdeaFestival, which brings together
creative thinkers from different disciplines to connect ideas in science,
the arts, design, business, film, technology and education.

The goal, according to the festival's promotion, is to promote
"out-of-the-box thinking and cross-fertilization as a means toward the
development of innovative ideas, products and creative endeavors."

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The 2008 Global Cities Index
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=4509&page=0

National governments may shape the broad outlines of globalization, but
where does it really play out? Where are globalization's successes and
failures most acute? Where else but the places where most of humanity now
chooses to live and work-cities. The world's biggest, most interconnected
cities help set global agendas, weather transnational dangers, and serve
as the hubs of global integration. They are the engines of growth for
their countries and the gateways to the resources of their regions. In
many ways, the story of globalization is the story of urbanization.

But what makes a 'global city"? The term itself conjures a command center
for the cognoscenti. It means power, sophistication, wealth, and
influence. To call a global city your own suggests that the ideas and
values of your metropolis shape the world. And, to a large extent, that's
true. The cities that host the biggest capital markets, elite
universities, most diverse and well-educated populations, wealthiest
multinationals, and most powerful international organizations are
connected to the rest of the world like nowhere else. But, more than
anything, the cities that rise to the top of the list are those that
continue to forge global links despite intensely complex economic
environments. They are the ones making urbanization work to their
advantage by providing the vast opportunities of global integration to
their people; measuring cities' international presence captures the most
accurate picture of the way the world works.

So, FOREIGN POLICY teamed up with A.T. Kearney and The Chicago Council on
Global Affairs to create the Global Cities Index, a uniquely comprehensive
ranking of the ways in which cities are integrating with the rest of the
world. In constructing this index of the world's most global cities, we
have collected and analyzed a broad array of data, as well as tapped the
brainpower of such renowned cities experts as Saskia Sassen, Witold
Rybczynski, Janet Abu-Lughod, and Peter Taylor.

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Undecided - By David Sedaris
http://www.newyorker.com/humor/2008/10/27/081027sh_shouts_sedaris

I don't know that it was always this way, but, for as long as I can
remember, just as we move into the final weeks of the Presidential
campaign the focus shifts to the undecided voters. "Who are they?" the
news anchors ask. "And how might they determine the outcome of this
election?"

Then you'll see this man or woman - someone, I always think, who looks very
happy to be on TV. "Well, Charlie," they say, "I've gone back and forth on
the issues and whatnot, but I just can't seem to make up my mind!" Some
insist that there's very little difference between candidate A and
candidate B. Others claim that they're with A on defense and health care
but are leaning toward B when it comes to the economy.

I look at these people and can't quite believe that they exist. Are they
professional actors? I wonder. Or are they simply laymen who want a lot of
attention?

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The Unmentionable World of Human Waste
http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/episodes/2008/10/21

Leonard Lopate of WNYC New York Public Radio interviewed Rose George on
her newly published book The Big Necessity which focuses on the world
sanitation crisis. Nearly half the planet's population does not have
access to indoor toilets. This is a timely book on a widely ignored
environmental and human problem. Listen up and read the book.

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Nike Hindsight Gives You Unparalleled Vision
http://www.yankodesign.com/2008/10/22/nike-hindsight-gives-you-unparalleled-vision/

You need the right tools to keep you one step ahead of irresponsible
motorists. The Nike Hindsight gives you superhuman like powers with
extended peripheral vision so all those sneaky cars, beware.
They work similar to bifocals except for your peripheral vision. By using
fresnel lenses on both sides of the glasses, riders can detect motion in a
field of view beyond the normal human limit of 180º. If you want to get
technical about it; high power, diverging fresnel zones aligned vertically
distort into view an extra 25º on both sides. Vision is radically
distorted in the periphery, but as the eye detects only motion in that
area, little clarity is lost in the process.

A rider's clear benefit is in the early warning of approaching vehicles,
but a less obvious advantage is reducing the necessary head rotation to
check behind. Tho it was intended for bicyclists, there's a myriad of
sports and activities where a greater field of view becomes an advantage.
As for me, I would totally wear these 24/7 to keep this one particular
friend in check. He finds it funny sneaking up on me. My nerves are
shattered enough. I can't take it anymore. I need these shades.

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