Cyrus Farivar

While I normally don’t write about what I’m working on until after it’s done, I’m really stoked to be able to have the chance to sit down tomorrow with MC Hammer, on behalf of NPR! I totally bought his album — on TAPE — when I was in fifth grade. So, if there’s anything that you’ve ever wanted to know about him, now’s your chance. Give me some questions in the comments, and I’ll do my best to ask him.…

This past weekend, got a rare opportunity to sit down with Mohammad Ali Abtahi, a former Iranian vice president and probably the highest-ranking (former) government blogger.

I have a small but (hopefully) growing collection of Bay Bridge iconography, including a poster from Bay Bridge Coffee. On eBay I found some neat stuff, including a stamp that I just bought:

Wired News: By Cyrus Farivar A recent application to build the first American nuclear power plant in nearly 30 years has the nuclear community aglow with talk of possible industry resurgence. In September 2007, NRG Energy filed a proposal with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to build a nuclear power plant in Texas. Last month, NuStart, a nuclear consortium, also filed an application. These represent the leading edge of a wave of renewed interest in domestic nuclear energy. “We are expecting…

Blue Scholars always know how to rock a stage — so drop a Hamilton, and join me at Café du Nord!

Reuters: DAKAR (Reuters) – As it steams down the West African coast, the USS Fort McHenry faces one of its toughest battles: to convince skeptical Africans their continent can benefit from more U.S. military involvement. The 600-foot (185-metre) ship, which saw combat in the first Gulf War, is embarking on a six-month mission to train West African navies to fight drug smuggling and maritime security threats in a region which supplies nearly a fifth of U.S. oil imports, rivaling the…

The Atlantic: What does he offer? First and foremost: his face. Think of it as the most effective potential re-branding of the United States since Reagan. Such a re-branding is not trivial—it’s central to an effective war strategy. The war on Islamist terror, after all, is two-pronged: a function of both hard power and soft power. We have seen the potential of hard power in removing the Taliban and Saddam Hussein. We have also seen its inherent weaknesses in Iraq,…

This photo captures the perfect transitory nature of taco trucks in the night. [via Houstonist]

So on Wednesday, when I drove from Oakland to Santa Monica — a drive that I’ve made since I was a kid easily over 100 times — I decided to spice things up a little bit. I-5, as most people know, is California’s most boring section of highway, and it serves exactly one purpose: getting people from the north to the south and vice versa as fast as possible. However, some research on Chowhound turned up the presence of a…

I remember reading “Into the Wild” when I was in 11th grade, and being very captivated by its 14-year-old tale of Chris McCandless and his love of the outdoors and the road. After watching the film last night, and coming back to the story for the first time in about 10 years, I’m still leaning to my initial gut reaction: the guy led a wondrous life, had a great heart, wanted to go on this romantic journey, and all of…