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28 Jun 2011 17:24

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World: Christine Lagarde named new head of IMF

  • The new face of the Fund: The International Monetary Fund’s hunt for a new managing director (in the wake of rape allegations against former leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn) has come to an end, and Christine Lagarde is the winner. Lagarde is currently a French Finance Minister (meaning the European grip on this position will continue), and will begin a five-year term as the IMF head on July 5th. Her first comments of relevance since the announcement, predictably, were about Greece: “If I have one message tonight about Greece, it is to call on the Greek political opposition to support the party that is currently in power in a spirit of national unity.” Translation: I’d really like you all to get going with this unpopular austerity plan, sooner rather than later. (photo via the World Economic Forum’s Flickr page) source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Apr 2011 20:51

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U.S.: Ordering fast food may become more harrowing

  • NEW proposed FDA rules for calorie disclosure source
  • » The implications: Restaurants and vending machines that have more than twenty locations or units, respectively, would be required to post the caloric content of their foods. Menu cards would also bear a generic message about 2,000 calories being the recommended daily intake. This was actually a mandate in the Affordable Care Act that passed last year; the FDA proposal would just be the beginning of that enforcement. So, basically, you’ll have to start closing your eyes when you get to the counter at Carl’s Jr. (or, for our southern brethren, Hardee’s).
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

31 Mar 2011 21:57

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Culture: AMC, Matt Weiner agree to new deal

  • $30 million for Mad Men creator Matt Weiner in new deal source
  • » Patching things up: Weiner and AMC had been butting heads over some rather unglamorous specifics of the award-winning show, the sorts of arguments that chill the blood of television fans. AMC had wanted to reduce the production budget by shaving two minutes off the running time of each episode, as well as killing off characters to save on the actor’s pay, which is a pretty brazen demand to make in an artistic sense. As the compromise stands, all but the first and last episode will be two minutes shorter, but character deaths won’t be mandated by management.
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Mar 2011 14:42

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Tech: Apple’s iPad 2 unveiled: Thinner, faster, with sweet cases

  • The tale of the tech, complete with Steve Jobs! Jobs, who has been on medical leave (he’s been plagued by a number of health problems the past few years, and underwent a liver transplant in 2009), is a monolithic figure in the American technology business, and given his notorious work ethic and zeal for his products you’d imagine he wouldn’t want to miss this. source
  • Throwing down the gauntlet Jobs antagonized the competition, highlighting successes over Google, and iPad competition such as Tablet PC, which he said “crashed and burned.” iPad 2 also features a dual-core processor, equaling that of Motorola’s designs.
  • The nitty-gritty In addition to the new dual-core processor, the iPad 2 features a gyroscope (a familiar function for any iPhone user), cameras on both the front and back, 1080p support, an HDMI out line, and comes in 16, 32, and 64 gigabyte models.
  • » So, all in all, a successful debut. It’s easy to say this with some confidence because, frankly, Apple never really has unsuccessful debuts – even after the original iPad unveiling, which was probably the most hand-wringing seen over one of their new products, the thing took off like a damn rocket. And considering iPad 2 is basically the iPad on steroids, assuming the market isn’t over-saturated, we expect this to follow suit. This newest iteration will be selling for the same price as its forerunner, $499, and begins shipping domestically (U.S.) March 11th, internationally March 25th-26th. So, what y’all think? Will you be the first in line to snag one of these bad boys, or is this a luxury toy you simply don’t need?
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 May 2010 12:14

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Tech: If this weird URL works for you, your browser wins a cookie

  • » Admit it. You’re curious. Try it. We dare you. Either your browser sucks or it rocks. Here’s how you find out. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 3 Comments • Permalink

16 Dec 2009 20:49

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Tech: This new Earth-like planet needs a name. We have one idea.

We want to name this planet “Elliott Smith,” because more planets should be named after indie rock stars who we adore. Got any other ideas? Vote here. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Dec 2009 10:49

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Biz: As the world turns: New jobless claims volatile yet again

  • 474,000 jobless claims this week, after a week when it seemed we’d finally turned a corner
  • +17,000the increase from last week’s promising low; not awful, but not exactly great either source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

31 Oct 2009 19:03

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Culture: Chaz Bono on becoming, not dressing up like, a guy

  • I believe that gender is something between your ears, not between your legs. That is something I discovered in the early ’90s. It was just a long process of being comfortable enough to do something about it.
  • Chaz Bono • Speaking out about his sex change, which started in March. Describing what finally made him decide to do something about it, it was his age. Cher’s new son was pushing 40, and felt that he needed to do it before he missed his chance. “I was turning 40 and I thought it’s now or never,” he said. “I want to still feel vibrant and be able to enjoy my life in a male body and not wait until I am an old man.” • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Oct 2009 21:12

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Tech: 30-inch monitors are cool; 27-inch iMacs are cheaper and better

  • $1799 the cost of Apple’s 30-inch Cinema HD display, which hasn’t been upgraded since it came out in 2004 and uses older technology to drive those pixels
  • $1699 the cost of Apple’s new 27-inch iMac, which allows you to hook up external devices and use it as a monitor; it also uses newer, fresher LED technology source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 4 Comments • Permalink

07 Oct 2009 09:42

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Tech: Thought Saturn’s other rings were cool? Check out this one.

Giant infrared ring around saturn
  • This ring is giant, way bigger than all the other ones, but we haven’t been able to see it until now. That’s because NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope works sort of like the signal that makes your remote control work. It uses infrared signals to pick up light which isn’t otherwise obviously visible. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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