Month: July 2013

Arab Spring failed

looks like there is an even bigger clown coming in:

Many Egyptians fear that Fattah al-Sisi wants to return Egypt to a familiar style of secular authoritarianism. But his record suggests he may have very different — although equally undemocratic — political intentions: a hybrid regime that would combine Islamism with militarism.

Declining ownership fetish

in related news, we have also passed peak boring lifestyle.

America’s homeownership rate has been declining for several years, and for multiple reasons, some tied directly to the housing collapse. For one class of would-be homeowners, it’s simply harder today to qualify for a mortgage than it was at the height of the housing boom. For another, the allure of homeownership itself has declined. And then of course there are people who were homeowners until the crash nudged them off of their property.

Broad group naysayers

There are many critics of the Skycity and broad group:

  • political allies of other builders who would lose business if broad group had runaway commercial success with construction methods that are faster and lower cost
  • workers who would lose work to a more efficient pre-fabrication process
  • city officials could see fewer payoffs for buildings that are put up in months instead of years
  • china critics who want to see china fail and who want to view the construction of an audacious skyscraper as a sign that china has overextended

Don’t Get Sucker Pumped

maybe this will get the cc companies to finally fix security instead of making bleating noises about identity theft.

Increasingly, pump skimmer scammers are turning to bluetooth-enabled devices that connect directly to the pump’s power source. These skimmers can run indefinitely, and allow thieves to retrieve stolen card data wirelessly while waiting in their car at the pump.

Dance your PHD

The dreaded question. “So, what’s your Ph.D. research about?” You take a deep breath and launch into the explanation. People’s eyes begin to glaze over… At times like these, don’t you wish you could just turn to the nearest computer and show people an online video of your Ph.D. thesis interpreted in dance form? Now you can.