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06 Jan 2012 19:52

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Tech: Michael Bloomberg: Possibly a coder? Depends on how his resolution goes.

  • cool Codecademy wants to encourage people to learn how to program, and they did so by creating a game-based platform that encourages reward-based learning.
  • cooler In a spark of genius and a great kick in the pants, the company created a New Year’s resolution idea called #Codeyear, which allows users to resolve to code in 2012.
  • coolest El Bloombito himself — NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg — revealed he plans to take part. Sounds like someone’s going to learn a new language: Ruby. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 Jan 2012 19:35

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U.S.: Mistakenly-deported teenage girl returned to U.S. after outcry

  • Our day has been hectic, hers is too, just as long as she makes it home, just as long as she gets here.
  • Johnisa Turner • Discussing the fate of her 15-year-old daughter, Jakadrien Lorece Turner, who returned to the U.S. on Friday after mistakenly getting deported from the country in May. Jakadrien, a runaway, apparently used a fake name that just happened to be that of an undocumented immigrant from Colombia, leading to the deportation. The U.S. government and Colombian government have gone back and forth over who was at fault for the deportation — with many concerned the U.S. didn’t do due diligence when deporting the girl. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 Jan 2012 11:11

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Culture: Spider-Man musical’s troubled production history officially pays off

  • then The Spider-Man musical, the costliest musical in history, couldn’t seem to get a break; between accidents, director changes, music-rewriting and the whole nine yards, it’s surprising this cobweb got off the ground.
  • now The musical is well along to recouping its $75 million cost, with ticket sales at $77 million and the show coming off the best week of ticket sales in Broadway history — $2.9 million. That’ll pay for a lot of pyrotechnics, guys. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 Jan 2012 10:21

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Offbeat: Sudoku research: Officially the most random number we’ll post today

  • 17 the minimum possible number of clues in a sudoku puzzle source
  • » A mathematical mystery solved via brute force: Ever wonder why 16-digit sudoku clues weren’t possible? (Why aren’t you guys raising your hands?) Well, a bunch of nerdy mathematician types — a guy named Gary McGuire and some fellow sudoku nerds at University College Dublin —spent a year testing every possible 16-clue sudoku combination, and figured out that no, you can’t solve a sudoku puzzle with just 16 clues. Now if it sounds to you like a bunch of researchers just wasted a year of their lives, McGuire might disagree with you. He notes that the research might have implications in gene expression analysis and hardware/software testing.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Jan 2012 10:51

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World: Syria says it has freed political prisoners detained during revolt

  • 552 prisoners freed, according to Syrian state television source
  • » The second round of prisoner releases: Last month, the Arab League made a deal to free 755 detainees as part of a peace plan. Now it seems to have gone further, as the Arab League said on Monday it had secured the release of 3,500 total prisoners. However … it’s possible they may just be getting detained outside of the view of Arab League observers. Last week, Human Rights Watch accused Syria of moving prisoners to military facilities, where observers are not allowed to go. Syria hasn’t proven the most trustworthy government during the conflict.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Jan 2012 10:38

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World: Myanmar: Aung San Suu Kyi’s opposition party can run in elections

Suu Kyi, shown with British Foreign Secretary William Hague, spent most of the past two decades under house arrest. It’s not clear if she will run in the highly-anticipated elections herself, however. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Jan 2012 10:13

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U.S.: Iowa judge favors married same-sex couple in birth certificate case

  • cause The Iowa Department of Public Health told a married same-sex couple they couldn’t put both their names on their child’s birth certificate.
  • reaction The couple sued, saying it went against a 2009 decision by the Iowa Supreme Court that legalized same-sex marriages.
  • result A district court judge ruled in favor of the couple, scolding officials for not interpreting older laws in light of the 2009 decision. source
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04 Jan 2012 10:51

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Politics: Obama: Forget Congress; Richard Cordray’s my consumer agency chief!

Obama named Cordray to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in a recess appointment while Congress was out of town. Some feel Cordray’s stalled nomination was less about Congress’ dislike of Cordray but their hatred of Dodd-Frank. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Jan 2012 10:41

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Politics: Ron Paul says his Iowa Caucus success comes from youth vote focus

  • Republicans are going to be neglectful if they say: ‘Oh, you don’t need Independents, you don’t need the young people.’ That’s where the excitement is, and that’s where the changes are coming about.
  • Ron Paul • Speaking this morning on NBC’s Today Show in the wake of the Iowa Caucuses, which he placed third in — and despite the relatively tight race between Romney and Santorum, he was fairly close to the front of the pack. It was a solid enough result that he has no plans to quit the race. Paul’s strategy has long banked on the youth vote. “That’s how you would have to beat Obama, so I think that’s a very encouraging statistic,” he said. Paul will take a little break in Iowa, then head to New Hampshire. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Jan 2012 10:23

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Politics: Bachmann to drop out this morning, “doesn’t see a way forward”

  • While she remained confident last night, it sounds like the Tea Party stalwart could be ready to let realism set in. On top of canceling a trip to South Carolina, Michele Bachmann has a press conference scheduled for 11 a.m. EST (which we’ll cover), but The National Journal got a bit of a preview this morning: A campaign spokesperson says Bachmann “doesn’t see a way forward in her campaign for the GOP nomination for president and will make an announcement to that effect this morning.” He stopped short of saying she’d be dropping out, but there are certainly lines to read between here. Update: The National Journal is now saying that Bachmann will suspend her campaign. Wow, that was fast. (Photo via Gage Skidmore on Flickr) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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