(YouTube link) Bill Hammock, the Engineer Guy, explains how fiber optic cables work. I, for one, am amazed that glass can be spun thin enough to be flexible, and that light can travel through it around bends and corners. -Thanks, Bill! Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : Neatorama Discovery Date : 21/06/2011 17:55 Number of articles : 5
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(YouTube link) Bill Hammock, the Engineer Guy, explains how fiber optic cables work. I, for one, am amazed that glass can be spun thin enough to be flexible, and that light can travel through it around bends and corners. -Thanks, Bill! Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : Neatorama Discovery Date : 21/06/2011 17:55 Number of articles : 5
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Senior Tory MPs in dialogue with MEPs who are seeking to prevent a toughening of Europe’s climate targets • The bloody fight for the green soul of the Conservative party David Cameron has promised to intervene in the intensifying row over rebel Tory MEPs who are trying to prevent a toughening of Europe’s climate targets. At prime minister’s questions, he told MPs that Downing Street enforcers would be talking to the MEPs who are threatening to revolt in a Brussels vote to raise the EU carbon cutting target from 20% to 30% of emissions by 2020. The rebellion threatens to dent the green credentials of the prime minister and the coalition. Senior Tory ministers told the Guardian they were “in dialogue” with their colleagues in the European parliament. The energy minister, Charles Hendry, said: “It is clearly
Continue reading …Senior Tory MPs in dialogue with MEPs who are seeking to prevent a toughening of Europe’s climate targets • The bloody fight for the green soul of the Conservative party David Cameron has promised to intervene in the intensifying row over rebel Tory MEPs who are trying to prevent a toughening of Europe’s climate targets. At prime minister’s questions, he told MPs that Downing Street enforcers would be talking to the MEPs who are threatening to revolt in a Brussels vote to raise the EU carbon cutting target from 20% to 30% of emissions by 2020. The rebellion threatens to dent the green credentials of the prime minister and the coalition. Senior Tory ministers told the Guardian they were “in dialogue” with their colleagues in the European parliament. The energy minister, Charles Hendry, said: “It is clearly
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Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke holds a press conference on the state of the US economy. Follow it here live 2.10pm ET: You can watch Ben Bernanke in his full glory live via this video stream helpfully provided by the Federal Reserve. 2.01pm ET: And this just in from the Federal Reserve: The Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Open Market Committee on Wednesday released the attached table and charts summarizing the economic projections made by Federal Reserve Board members and Federal Reserve Bank presidents for the June 21-22 meeting of the Committee. Everyone likes large PDF files of charts, right. Well here they are . 1.50pm ET: Just before the Bernanke press conference kicks off, the Federal Open Markets Committee has issued its latest decision on monetary policy – and the news is (as expected) no change in interest rates. The devil is in the detail, as always. In its accompanying statement the FOMC said: Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in April indicates that the economic recovery is continuing at a moderate pace, though somewhat more slowly than the Committee had expected. Also, recent labor market indicators have been weaker than anticipated. The slower pace of the recovery reflects in part factors that are likely to be temporary, including the damping effect of higher food and energy prices on consumer purchasing power and spending as well as supply chain disruptions associated with the tragic events in Japan. Household spending and business investment in equipment and software continue to expand. However, investment in nonresidential structures is still weak, and the housing sector continues to be depressed. Inflation has picked up in recent months, mainly reflecting higher prices for some commodities and imported goods, as well as the recent supply chain disruptions. However, longer-term inflation expectations have remained stable. Consistent with its statutory mandate, the Committee seeks to foster maximum employment and price stability. The unemployment rate remains elevated; however, the Committee expects the pace of recovery to pick up over coming quarters and the unemployment rate to resume its gradual decline toward levels that the Committee judges to be consistent with its dual mandate. Inflation has moved up recently, but the Committee anticipates that inflation will subside to levels at or below those consistent with the Committee’s dual mandate as the effects of past energy and other commodity price increases dissipate. However, the Committee will continue to pay close attention to the evolution of inflation and inflation expectations. To promote the ongoing economic recovery and to help ensure that inflation, over time, is at levels consistent with its mandate, the Committee decided today to keep the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 0.25 per cent. The Committee continues to anticipate that economic conditions – including low rates of resource utilization and a subdued outlook for inflation over the medium run – are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate for an extended period. The Committee will complete its purchases of $600 billion of longer-term Treasury securities by the end of this month and will maintain its existing policy of reinvesting principal payments from its securities holdings. The Committee will regularly review the size and composition of its securities holdings and is prepared to adjust those holdings as appropriate. The Committee will monitor the economic outlook and financial developments and will act as needed to best foster maximum employment and price stability. Now then, what does all that mean in English? Let’s discuss that. For only the second time, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke will take the microphone for an open press conference today at 2.15pm ET – at a moment when fears that the US economy is sliding back into recession, thanks to anaemic growth, lacklustre job creation and the lasting effects of the financial market and housing meltdown going back three years. The climate for the US economy has certainly got worse since Bernanke debut press conference – and this afternoon appearance before the media should see more probing questions about how the Federal reserve intends to handle monetary policy going forward. Join us here as we watch Bernanke in action in Washington DC – and feel free to leave your comments below. Ben Bernanke US economy US economic growth and recession US Interest rates Economics United States Richard Adams guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke holds a press conference on the state of the US economy. Follow it here live 2.10pm ET: You can watch Ben Bernanke in his full glory live via this video stream helpfully provided by the Federal Reserve. 2.01pm ET: And this just in from the Federal Reserve: The Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Open Market Committee on Wednesday released the attached table and charts summarizing the economic projections made by Federal Reserve Board members and Federal Reserve Bank presidents for the June 21-22 meeting of the Committee. Everyone likes large PDF files of charts, right. Well here they are . 1.50pm ET: Just before the Bernanke press conference kicks off, the Federal Open Markets Committee has issued its latest decision on monetary policy – and the news is (as expected) no change in interest rates. The devil is in the detail, as always. In its accompanying statement the FOMC said: Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in April indicates that the economic recovery is continuing at a moderate pace, though somewhat more slowly than the Committee had expected. Also, recent labor market indicators have been weaker than anticipated. The slower pace of the recovery reflects in part factors that are likely to be temporary, including the damping effect of higher food and energy prices on consumer purchasing power and spending as well as supply chain disruptions associated with the tragic events in Japan. Household spending and business investment in equipment and software continue to expand. However, investment in nonresidential structures is still weak, and the housing sector continues to be depressed. Inflation has picked up in recent months, mainly reflecting higher prices for some commodities and imported goods, as well as the recent supply chain disruptions. However, longer-term inflation expectations have remained stable. Consistent with its statutory mandate, the Committee seeks to foster maximum employment and price stability. The unemployment rate remains elevated; however, the Committee expects the pace of recovery to pick up over coming quarters and the unemployment rate to resume its gradual decline toward levels that the Committee judges to be consistent with its dual mandate. Inflation has moved up recently, but the Committee anticipates that inflation will subside to levels at or below those consistent with the Committee’s dual mandate as the effects of past energy and other commodity price increases dissipate. However, the Committee will continue to pay close attention to the evolution of inflation and inflation expectations. To promote the ongoing economic recovery and to help ensure that inflation, over time, is at levels consistent with its mandate, the Committee decided today to keep the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 0.25 per cent. The Committee continues to anticipate that economic conditions – including low rates of resource utilization and a subdued outlook for inflation over the medium run – are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate for an extended period. The Committee will complete its purchases of $600 billion of longer-term Treasury securities by the end of this month and will maintain its existing policy of reinvesting principal payments from its securities holdings. The Committee will regularly review the size and composition of its securities holdings and is prepared to adjust those holdings as appropriate. The Committee will monitor the economic outlook and financial developments and will act as needed to best foster maximum employment and price stability. Now then, what does all that mean in English? Let’s discuss that. For only the second time, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke will take the microphone for an open press conference today at 2.15pm ET – at a moment when fears that the US economy is sliding back into recession, thanks to anaemic growth, lacklustre job creation and the lasting effects of the financial market and housing meltdown going back three years. The climate for the US economy has certainly got worse since Bernanke debut press conference – and this afternoon appearance before the media should see more probing questions about how the Federal reserve intends to handle monetary policy going forward. Join us here as we watch Bernanke in action in Washington DC – and feel free to leave your comments below. Ben Bernanke US economy US economic growth and recession US Interest rates Economics United States Richard Adams guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …It’s rare that anyone in any U.S. administration says something remotely critical of Saudi Arabia, or mentions a controversial subject for fear of annoying the Saudis. So when Secretary of State Clinton did so this morning she had to have considered her words with some care and thought. From the NY Times : WASHINGTON – Hillary Rodham Clinton’s advocacy for women’s rights – as First Lady, Senator and now Secretary of State – is well known. And yet she found herself facing criticism for not being outspoken enough on one issue: Saudi Arabia’s ban on women driving. In a series of letters and statements this month, a coalition of Saudi activists has pressed Mrs. Clinton to use the State Department’s bully pulpit to support its campaign against the kingdom’s ban, expressing disappointment earlier Tuesday that she had not yet spoken out. Then she did. “What these women are doing is brave and what they are seeking is right,” Mrs. Clinton said, when asked about the criticism at an appearance with Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates and their Japanese counterparts at the State Department. Of the women’s campaign, she added, “I am moved by it, and I support them.” The campaign — waged largely online inside Saudi Arabia — called on women to drive in collective protest last Friday, an event that appeared to draw a much smaller number than organizers had hoped. Maureen Dowd, who on her good days can write a decent column, had some praise for her comments but wished that Clinton had been more forceful, urging her to Sing Out, Hillary . It would have been thrilling if Hillary 2011 had simply channeled Hillary 1995, when, as first lady, she made her bodacious speech in Beijing, declaring that “women’s rights are human rights.” In her memoir, Hillary wrote that, despite pressure against it, she was determined to give that speech because she was fed up with “the crucial concerns of women” getting sacrificed “to diplomatic, military and trade issues.” So it was startling on Monday when Saudi women activists, struggling to bring the Arab Spring to the medieval House of Saud by urging women to drive, chided Hillary for her silence. Clinton’s office responded that the secretary had used “quiet diplomacy” — raising the issue, and more pressing ones, in a call with the Saudi foreign minister on the Day of Driving Dangerously. By Tuesday, the secretary of state — who has worked hard for women under the radar and whose legacy will be shaped by her support of women’s rights around the world — realized that she needed to be a bit louder.
Continue reading …It’s rare that anyone in any U.S. administration says something remotely critical of Saudi Arabia, or mentions a controversial subject for fear of annoying the Saudis. So when Secretary of State Clinton did so this morning she had to have considered her words with some care and thought. From the NY Times : WASHINGTON – Hillary Rodham Clinton’s advocacy for women’s rights – as First Lady, Senator and now Secretary of State – is well known. And yet she found herself facing criticism for not being outspoken enough on one issue: Saudi Arabia’s ban on women driving. In a series of letters and statements this month, a coalition of Saudi activists has pressed Mrs. Clinton to use the State Department’s bully pulpit to support its campaign against the kingdom’s ban, expressing disappointment earlier Tuesday that she had not yet spoken out. Then she did. “What these women are doing is brave and what they are seeking is right,” Mrs. Clinton said, when asked about the criticism at an appearance with Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates and their Japanese counterparts at the State Department. Of the women’s campaign, she added, “I am moved by it, and I support them.” The campaign — waged largely online inside Saudi Arabia — called on women to drive in collective protest last Friday, an event that appeared to draw a much smaller number than organizers had hoped. Maureen Dowd, who on her good days can write a decent column, had some praise for her comments but wished that Clinton had been more forceful, urging her to Sing Out, Hillary . It would have been thrilling if Hillary 2011 had simply channeled Hillary 1995, when, as first lady, she made her bodacious speech in Beijing, declaring that “women’s rights are human rights.” In her memoir, Hillary wrote that, despite pressure against it, she was determined to give that speech because she was fed up with “the crucial concerns of women” getting sacrificed “to diplomatic, military and trade issues.” So it was startling on Monday when Saudi women activists, struggling to bring the Arab Spring to the medieval House of Saud by urging women to drive, chided Hillary for her silence. Clinton’s office responded that the secretary had used “quiet diplomacy” — raising the issue, and more pressing ones, in a call with the Saudi foreign minister on the Day of Driving Dangerously. By Tuesday, the secretary of state — who has worked hard for women under the radar and whose legacy will be shaped by her support of women’s rights around the world — realized that she needed to be a bit louder.
Continue reading …MightyText pushes messages and incoming call alerts to your computer (hands-on)
June 22, 2011 No Comment
Have you ever missed an extremely important phone call or text because you were too busy finishing those TPS reports on your personal computing machine? There’s a Chrome add-on for that. We went hands-on with a new extension (and accompanying Android app) called MightyText, a free notification service launched today that syncs your phone’s texts and calls to your computer in real-time. The idea is crazy simple, yet adds unyielding convenience: incoming SMS messages appear on your screen as a pop-up, giving you the option to read and reply to them without touching or even looking at the phone. The full extension will show each conversation thread in its entirety, as well as call logs. When sent from the computer, texts are still patched through from your phone number, so your colleagues will still see your messages coming through with your name on them. To make the service even more appealing, pop-ups alert you to incoming calls, so you can either hurry to find your phone or just send the caller a canned auto-text reply. It sounds like a great concept, but does it do the job ? Head on past the break to learn our first impressions of the program. Continue reading MightyText pushes messages and incoming call alerts to your computer (hands-on) MightyText pushes messages and incoming call alerts to your computer (hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Jun 2011 14:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …MightyText pushes messages and incoming call alerts to your computer (hands-on)
June 22, 2011 No Comment
Have you ever missed an extremely important phone call or text because you were too busy finishing those TPS reports on your personal computing machine? There’s a Chrome add-on for that. We went hands-on with a new extension (and accompanying Android app) called MightyText, a free notification service launched today that syncs your phone’s texts and calls to your computer in real-time. The idea is crazy simple, yet adds unyielding convenience: incoming SMS messages appear on your screen as a pop-up, giving you the option to read and reply to them without touching or even looking at the phone. The full extension will show each conversation thread in its entirety, as well as call logs. When sent from the computer, texts are still patched through from your phone number, so your colleagues will still see your messages coming through with your name on them. To make the service even more appealing, pop-ups alert you to incoming calls, so you can either hurry to find your phone or just send the caller a canned auto-text reply. It sounds like a great concept, but does it do the job ? Head on past the break to learn our first impressions of the program. Continue reading MightyText pushes messages and incoming call alerts to your computer (hands-on) MightyText pushes messages and incoming call alerts to your computer (hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Jun 2011 14:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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