Aside

What I wrote on Nov. 1, 2004: So I was watching the clips that Boing Boing has posted from The Daily Show and I was reminded of a recent idea I had for a new television paradigm: A la carte television. I don’t watch enough TV to justify owning one, let alone paying $40 a month for cable. There just aren’t enough shows that I want to watch on a regular basis. The three things that I do watch, baseball…

WashPost: [NASA atmospheric scientist] David Rind compared the warming trend to what happens when a major league baseball team owner spends lavishly on players’ salaries. Pumping heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere, he said, produces the same kind of predictable results as boosting a team’s payroll. “When they get into the playoffs, should we be surprised?” he asked. “We’re putting a lot more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and we’re getting a lot higher temperatures.”

Macworld: When Steve Jobs takes to a stage to unveil new products, it’s a safe bet that a bevy of Macworld editors will be on hand. That was certainly the case Wednesday, as Apple took the wraps off a video-playing iPod, an overhauled iMac, and a brand new version of the iTunes music player. And in this special episode of the Macworld Podcast, we’ve got all the details. This 25-minute episode features highlights from Steve Jobs’ presentation to reporters, as…

Because I have to be at work by 8 am, to make the ride down to SJ by 9/9:30 am for Apple’s media event at 10 am. I’ve got my podcasting gear ready. Check Macworld.com for the latest. And as Paul asked, why was the invite called soleil.invite.pdf ? Let the countdown begin.

I know this is a bit late, but every time I come across these songs in iTunes I can’t help but think of the Katrina victims. Blondie – The Tide is High The Be Good Tanyas – Lakes of Pontchartain Dave Cuomo – When The Ship Comes In (Written by Bob Dylan)

My apologies to the dedicated readers out there. My webstats tell me that I have 25-30 readers in RSS and about 30 on the website every day. And occasionally some spooks. Anyhow. Things have been very busy lately both at Macworld and for some freelance assignments, so this post will be somewhat abbreviated. Firstly, go donate some cash to the International Committee of the Red Cross to help relief efforts in Pakistan/India. 20,000 dead. That’s bad news, man. I just…

The New Yorker – October 10, 2005: To assess the effect of the Ivies, it makes more sense to compare the student who got into a top school with the student who got into that same school but chose to go to a less selective one. Three years ago, the economists Alan Krueger and Stacy Dale published just such a study. And they found that when you compare apples and apples the income bonus from selective schools disappears. “As a…

Ed: These are the unofficial bus companies that I discovered while researching my thesis — outside of the seven official ones that I counted. NYT: For many restaurant workers, the number of hours by bus is a critical measure of how far they are from the American center of their universe, East Broadway in Chinatown. Almost all travel by bus, because many do not speak English or have identification, so they cannot travel by plane. A network of Chinese bus…

Macworld: Heard about blogs but scared to dip your toe in the blogosphere? Wonder how it is all these bloggers do what they do? Dori Smith, author of “The Best Blogging Tools for The Mac” in the November 2005 issue of Macworld, can tell you how to blog from your Mac. Caveat blogger: we can’t help you if you become addicted to blogging. Download Macworld Podcast #10 (9.6MB – 20 minutes).

So when I arrived home at my Oakland cottage yesterday I opened up my mailbox. I was surprised to find a letter addressed to me from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Dear Cyrus Farivar, Recently, your story “Green-Collar Crime: How I Stopped an Internet Sex Hoax,” came to my attention. This is the type of story that the Mongerson Prize for Investigateive Reporting on the News honors. Since 2002, the Mongerson Prize has recognized reporters for serving…