Does New Public Transit Increase Gentrification and Lower Ridership? Click on image to enlarge. Credit: Dukakis CenterSmart Planet points us to a report (PDF here) from Dukakis Center for Urban and Regional Policy at Northeastern University that concludes that new transit can lead to gentrification. My first response was well, duh, isn't that the point? It has always been a rule in real estate development that investment follows infrastructure; if you build good transit and fix roads, people will come.
Density will increase. Taxbase will improve. Is this not the return on investment that planners want? Is this not a good thing? Apparently some think not, because there are unintended consequences. All those things that I would have thought were good come from investment in transit. But in America, if you have money, you drive. It seems counter-intuitive that people would move to an area because of an investment in transit and then drive, but hey, it's America. In the end, the report makes some solid recommendations to get the best of both worlds. Pure cyberwar? Not gonna happen.
A pure "cyberwar" is never going to happen. That's one conclusion of a major report on cybersecurity (PDF) from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Authored by two UK professors, the report argues that Internet attacks and espionage will be key components of all future conflicts, but that the world is unlikely ever to see a cyberwar with "the characteristics of conventional war but fought exclusively in cyberspace. " The report lays out the argument: The reasons are: many critical computer systems are protected against known exploits and malware so that designers of new cyberweapons have to identify new weaknesses and exploits; the effects of cyberattacks are difficult to predict—on the one hand they may be less powerful than hoped but may also have more extensive outcomes arising from the interconnectedness of systems, resulting in unwanted damage to perpetrators and their allies.
U.S. Government RSS Library: USA.gov. Whitehouse/USG - Following... FTC drags out old, tired ideas for protecting kids online. The Federal Trade Commission is always on the lookout for what could be improved "for the children! " and a recent report highlights the newest areas of concern: virtual worlds. In its report released Thursday, the FTC announced the downright shocking news that there is sexually explicit and often violent content in virtual worlds that can be accessed by minors, along with a set of recommendations for service providers to better shield kids. The FTC looked at 27 virtual worlds (are there even 27 virtual worlds that people actually use?) And found that 19 of the 27 contained at least one instance of sexually or violently explicit content. This list included those that are specifically intended for young children and those that were marketed towards teenagers—14 of the 27 were designed for children under the age of 13, but only half of those were free of explicit content.
The problem is that age verification sounds good on paper, but can be very complex in practice. Director's Forum: David Kappos' Public Blog. Building a Better Patent System Blog by Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy Director of the USPTO Michelle Lee Today I had the opportunity to update the public on the USPTO’s continuing efforts to support President Obama’s initiatives to build a better patent system through his executive actions. I want to share my remarks with you through this blog: “Thank you.
I’m pleased to be here at the White House today with Secretary Pritzker, Director Sperling, and Chief Technology Officer Park to discuss what we collectively are doing to advance our nation’s innovation economy. That task is at the core of our mission at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The USPTO is approaching its 225th anniversary next year, and throughout the agency’s history our focus hasn’t wavered. Even before the president’s call to do more on patent reform last year, the USPTO had efforts underway to: Inside Adams. Animal locomotion by Eadweard Muybridge (Philadelphia, Photogravure Company of New York, 1887, pl. 593) We have all marveled at the gracefulness of a cat leaping in the air, the swift movements of a hummingbird’s wings, the determined salmon swimming up river, the incredible precision of the marching feet of a millipede and the power of a galloping horse.
Animals exhibit all types of movement- they walk, run, creep, hop, jump, fly, glide, paddle, and swim. By studying nature and observing animal movement scientists can better understand biomechanics, physiology, evolution, physics, and engineering. When we think about the study of animal locomotion, the late 19th century photographer Eadweard Muybridge’s Animal Locomotion series comes to mind. His signature photographic series of the galloping horse commissioned by Leland Stanford is the most well-known, but he captured the movement of many more animals which you can find published in Animal Locomotion. What a Government Shutdown Means for Travelers. Peter DaSilva for The New York TimesCampers roast marshmallows at the Lower Pines camp site in Yosemite National Park. As the deadline nears for Congressional leaders to reach an agreement on the federal budget, travelers should prepare themselves for possible closures and cancellations in the event of a government shutdown.
Here’s a list of what travelers should know about services, events and closures. Passports Passport offices will be closed for the acceptance of new applications. Limited services, such as emergency passports, will be provided. For those who need an emergency passport, contact the National Passport Information Center (877-487-2778) for assistance. Up-to-date information will be provided on the U.S. “Passport Day,” an annual event during which U.S. citizens can receive passport services without an appointment, was scheduled for Saturday, April 9, but has been canceled. Educational programs, visitor centers and facilities will also be closed.