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Thứ Hai, 1 tháng 4, 2013

Grapevine: Fight for your right to potty

And now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine...

Family Tree

Questions about Democratic Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren's purported Native American heritage are not going away and are actually taking a more prominent placement in some left-leaning publications asking whether she used a self-proclaimed minority status to get ahead.

The Boston Globe reports that new documents show Harvard University reported for six straight years in federal diversity statistics its employment of a Native American woman in the law school Elizabeth Warren

And while Warren has claimed she was unaware of how Harvard was promoting her heritage until she read it in the paper, only days ago, Harvard officials and federal guidelines say those statistics are usually based on the employee's self-descriptions.

The administrator for Harvard's diversity statistics from that time, and a citizen of the Cherokee nation himself, also said the school always accepted faculty members' identification.

Meanwhile, the candidate is desperately trying to move on from reporters' questions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: Elizabeth, can you put this issue to bed and tell us whether or not you are in fact a member of a minority group?

ELIZABETH WARREN, D - MA, SENATE CANDIDATE: So, I uh -- middle class families are getting hammered.

REPORTER: Members of the Cherokee Nation want to know, they say you should come clean

WARREN: I have made the facts clear, and what I'm trying to do is talk about in this Senate race what matters to America's families.

REPORTER: Why did you claim you were a minority and then stop?

WARREN: I have told you, I have answered these questions; I am going to talk about what's happening to America's families.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

One Washington Post reporter blogged -- Warren has -- quote-- "met the repeated questions with a good, old-fashioned, political stonewall."

Fight for your Right to Potty

CampusReform.org reports a transgendered student at the University of Arkansas Fort Smith sued the school in order to use women's only bathrooms.

The school suggested the student, who is biologically male, use the gender-neutral bathrooms that are available.

When that didn't mollify that student, the Justice Department got involved and the school eventually reversed its policy.

DOJ said that the letter did not imply whether the school had broken a federal law and -- quote --"This was an initial inquiry, and the department never directed the University to take a specific action or change any of its policies."

A Daily Caller reporter who covers the Fast and Furious investigation says -- quote--"It's pretty clear the DOJ's priorities are out of whack...Eric Holder's troupe focuses on trivial matters while demonstrably failing to comply with all 22 parts of the congressional subpoena into Operation Fast and Furious."

Keep away from children

And finally, those little packets of detergent called Tide pods may be easy to carry to the next load of laundry but, they're not so great if your child is eyeing the packages too closely.

Apparently, children have mistaken the small boxes of detergent for candy and then eaten them

No children have died fortunately, but, Poison Control has been called several times already.

The brand's parent company Proctor and Gamble plans to create double latch lids to help keep the candy cravers away.

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Grapevine: MSNBC pulling back on Trayvon Martin coverage?

And now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine...

Change of Tune

MSNBC is being accused of backing off of its coverage of the Trayvon Martin case after new evidence favorable to George Zimmerman -- the man charged with second degree murder in the case -- came to light.

The network spent hours, even full shows, covering the shooting for days after it happened.

But, according to Mediaite, last week after the new evidence about Zimmerman emerged there was not a single mention of the case on MSNBC's prime time programming...not one.

Even Reverend Al Sharpton who had taken his show on the road to cover the Martin case didn't mention it.

Instead, the network's evening programs turned their focus to the possibility of an ad connecting President Obama to Reverend Jeremiah Wright from an alleged pro-Romney group.

Making the Grade

A public elementary school in Manhattan will be the first to require students to study Arabic.

All second through fifth graders will have Arabic lessons twice a week.

The class teacher said it's important for children to learn Arabic because it will soon be a global language like Spanish or French.

So far, the parents association has been largely supportive of the measure. The school is a so-called "choice school" so no students are forced to attend.

Unwelcome Addition

There's quite a stir over a Harvard alumni directory updated ahead of the 50th class reunion.

Among the entries is "Unabomber" Ted Kaczynski who is, of course, locked up at the federal supermax prison in Colorado for killing three people and injuring 23 others during a bombing spree,

Kaczynski lists his current occupation as "prisoner" and says his awards are "eight life sentences."

The Harvard Alumni Association regrets publishing the update and issued the following statement -- quote -- "While all members of the class who submit entries are included, we regret publishing Kaczynski's references to his convictions and apologize for any distress that it may have caused others."

A Harvard spokesman says the update was indeed submitted by Kaczynski, but wouldn't say how that was confirmed.

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Android, iPhone? Nope. The new battle is to be number 3

By John R. Quain

Personal Tech

Published February 26, 2013

FoxNews.com

Remember when the high-tech hype came from trade shows focused on consumer electronics and computers? Today, it's shifted to mobile phones and wireless devices, and Mobile World Congress currently underway in Barcelona.

And some of the most interesting new introductions are aimed not at well-heeled techno-geeks but at regular folks with budgets and responsibilities.

Just last year, analysts and reviewers were ridiculing the new wave of phablets or super phones being announced at the 2012 Mobile World Congress. Those are the oversized, big-screen smartphones that were even mocked on Nickelodeon's teen sitcom "iCarly." Samsung proved the critics wrong, ushering in an era of phones with 4.5-, 4.7-, and even 5-inch screens.

The company recognized that since we rarely use phones to make phone calls any more, larger screens are better for surfing the Web, posting to Facebook, and finding your way to the nearest Starbucks.

However, this year the big news is the fight not to be number one in the market or even number two. Google and Apple have already nailed down those positions. No, the battle over the next 12 months is going to be for the number three spot.

Blackberry has already announced its touch-screen BlackBerry Z10 model, which will launch in the U.S. in a few weeks. But while the company still has a foothold with some business users, the Z10 is expected to be priced at around $200, with a contract commitment. That's in the same pricing wheelhouse as high-end Android and iOS handsets; tough competition indeed. Those prices may also subvert BlackBerry's goals as other companies rush to cut prices.

For example, another former star of the cell phone galaxy, Nokia, is introducing an inexpensive Windows Phone 8 at the show. The snazzy Lumia 520 will cost roughly €140 in Europe, without any subsidies. So that means when it rolls out in the U.S. later this year on T-Mobile it will be probably be free -- with a contract, of course.

And then there's the Chinese firm Huawei, which is rolling out its own inexpensive Windows Phone 8 model, the Ascend W1. Priced at €120 without a contract, it will doubtless be subsidized as a free phone in the U.S. (The company will try to burnish its brand with a high-end model, too, that supports the LTE Cat 4 high-speed wireless standard with a theoretical download speed of 150Mbps -- depending on the network.)

Can you get cheaper than free? Maybe.

Web browser killer, Mozilla, announced in Barcelona that it will introduce a slew of Firefox OS-based handsets around the world this year. Firefox is already the number two browser behind Microsoft's Internet Explorer; now it's taking aim at the smartphone market.

In its announcement, Firefox said more than a dozen companies have promised to support the new OS, including Sprint Nextel in the U.S. and Deutsche Telekom, the parent company of T-Mobile USA. LG and Huawei plan to make Firefox OS phones, and an early Alcatel model looked sleek and simple. Companies like Twitter have already outlined their plans to make specific apps for the phone.

Mozilla is a non-profit company. And the apps for Firefox OS will be based on HTML 5, the Web language that promises to break open Apple's App store and enable a new generation of software. It could also mean lower costs for developers and the rapid introduction of supporting apps.

A non-profit company competing in the smartphone space?! After the Firefox announcement, I'm betting people at Microsoft were spewing a stream of expletives. How can they compete for the third spot against a(nother) company that essentially gives away its software for free. They must be thinking, "What kind of a &%#@ business is this?"

It's a mature business, that's what it is. That means Windows Phone 8 and BlackBerry 10 may be too late. There are already a billion smartphones in use around the world. The competition now is how to put the technology into the hands of the next billion users. Price is likely to be the major factor.

Some analysts may see this trend as a familiar phenomena in mature electronics and technology markets: the race toward the bottom. But that's a good thing for consumers. You'll no longer have to pony up hundreds of dollars for a smartphone that's obsolete in six months.

Now if only the major carriers would lower their prices, too.

Follow John R. Quain on Twitter @jqontech or find more tech coverage at J-Q.com.

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Copyright Alert System lets content providers monitor your traffic, penalize illegal file sharers

Apple's "1984" commercial depicted Windows-based computer makers as Big Brother. But a new copyright-control law may be turning your ISP into Big Brother instead.Apple

I know people who do it. You probably know people who do it. And we're not talking about falling in love.

File sharing, the euphemism for copying and sharing copyrighted material without paying, was one of the early hallmarks of the digital, anything-goes-on-the-Internet age. Names like Napster became synonymous with killing the music industry. And there were countless lawsuits against groups and individuals aimed at curbing illegal sharing -- but nothing seemed to work.

Now, the concern is that the same fate will befall the movie business. With higher speed networks, it's nearly as easy to share "Argo" as it is to share Adele. And everything is connect to the Web, from phones to TVs, so the movie and TV companies and individual content creators are worried.

So a new industry initiative has been launched that may turn your Internet service provider (ISP) into the unofficial Web police, curbing access for perceived abusers and forcing offenders to take remedial courses in copyright rules.

A new industry initiative may turn your ISP into unofficial Web police, curbing access for perceived abusers and forcing offenders to take remedial courses in copyright rules.

Last week, the Copyright Alert System was officially launched. Created by the recording and film industry, it essentially deputizes copyright holders who stealthily monitor peer-to-peer networks for illegal sharing of movies, TV shows, and music. When they notice material is being illegally shared, they contact the crook's ISP, which in turn will send a warning message to the subscriber. After six strikes, the ISP will do more than spam you; it can choose to slow your access speed, temporarily downgrade you to a lower-tier service, or automatically direct you to a special landing page until you contact them or complete an online education program.

How can participating ISPs, which include AT&T, Cablevision, Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Verizon, be sure you're doing something illegal? The Center for Copyright Infringement says it has a “rigorous process” to make sure the content is illegal and they have a process for appealing alleged violations. But it will cost you $35, and there's no rule about how long an appeal will take (although you will get the money back if you win).

If this all sounds like something digital vilgilantism, it is.

Proponents, which include the Recording Industry Association of America and the Motion Picture Association of America, say its not about prosecution or persecution, it's about educating consumers. However, the Copyright Alert System seems like its waving a red flag in front of attorneys. Can you say, lawsuit?

Furthermore, the Alert system isn't likely to catch the big pirates and peer-to-peer provocateurs. Those people are sophisticated enough to use software that defeats online traces (or at least makes it incredibly difficult). Indeed, free programs like Tor that were created to protect political protesters and dissidents from persecution are often used by people looking to disguise their identities. In fact, Tor has become so popular with other criminal elements online that security firms today routinely tag such Tor traffic as spreading malware.

Perhaps a better solution to prevent illegal sharing would be to make it easier for consumers to rent or buy movies and shows. It has become easier, with services like Netflix and Hulu Plus, but it's still a fragmented market with wild price changes, confusion about digital purchases, and the persistence of “windows,” the term used in the business to describe staggered release dates (you can buy the DVD, but you can't rent it ... until later).

In fact, make it easier to follow the law, and people will generally give up the hassle of managing peer-to-peer networks and surreptitious downloads. At least, that seems to be the lesson learned in the music business.

Music revenues are up for the first time since 1999. A meager 0.3 percent in 2012 over the previous year to $16.5 billion, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, but it seems to show that the tide is turning. According to the NDP Group, the easy access of streaming services and readily available files for sale has meant that illegal sharing is down about 20 percent. Granted, no one in the music business is going to start partying like it's 1999. We're no where near sales like that, which amounted to $27.8 billion that year.

Sorting out the digital movie business is going to take time. Meanwhile, there's the Copyright Alert System. Well, at least they won't be suing moms for sharing copies of “Happy Birthday” online.

Follow John R. Quain on Twitter @jqontech or find more tech coverage at J-Q.com.

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Grapevine: Elizabeth Warren's new comments about heritage

And now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine...

Indian Summer

Massachusetts Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren is acknowledging she told officials at Harvard and University of Pennsylvania she had Native American heritage.

Her campaign insists she gave that information to the schools after she was hired.

Up until now, Warren had said she learned that Harvard was promoting her as a Native American from reading a newspaper.

She has claimed to be 1/32 Cherokee though she has provided no evidence other than family lore.

Meanwhile, conservatives are jumping on another statement by Warren late last year that -- quote -- "I was the first nursing mother to take a bar exam in the state of New Jersey."

A Garden State bar exam administrator told the Herald there is no way to verify that claim.

The Big Ban

New York City wants to ban the sale of large sodas and other sugary drinks in an effort to curb obesity.

The ban would not apply to diet or juice beverages but would limit sugary non-alcoholic drinks over 16 ounces from being sold in restaurants, movie theaters and sports venues.

Critics call it yet another intervention by nanny state nutritionists.

The Face of Tourism?

Finally, you apparently don't have to be eligible to travel the world to be named a tourism ambassador by the United Nations.

Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe was appointed a new international envoy for tourism despite being banned from Europe because of human rights abuses in his own country.

Mugabe is accused of ethnic cleansing and rigging elections among other things.

Canada is now withdrawing from the tourism agency over the appointment saying it symbolizes what is wrong with the United Nations.

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Amid increased rhetoric from North Korea, combat ship USS Freedom debuts in Pacific

- Next-gen battleship joining the Pacific fleet
- US flies B-2 bombers over South Korea

A fast, maneuverable surface warrior, the Navy's first littoral combat ship USS Freedom has joined the 7th Fleet in the Pacific.

Its arrival coincides with further heavy rhetoric from North Korea. News agency KCNA carried the government’s message Wednesday that it had ordered artillery and rocket units into "combat posture" to prepare to target U.S. bases in the United States mainland, Hawaii and Guam.

On its maiden deployment, USS Freedom arrived in the U.S. 7th Fleet Area of Responsibility (AOR) on March 20 -- a zone that covers more than 48 million square miles, stretching west from the International Date Line to the western coast of India. At any given moment, about 100 ships and submarines are deployed there and assigned to 7th Fleet.

On March 15, the fleet marked the 70th anniversary of its maintaining security and stability in the region.

While North Korea is not thought to have ballistic missiles or nuclear weapons capable of reaching the U.S. mainland, it is capable of striking U.S. bases in the region, including Guam, where Freedom will be visiting.

The ship will participate in some large scale training exercises in Southeast Asia, involving maritime security operations with regional partners.

North Korea, meanwhile, has been carrying out its own large-scale military exercises.

Surface and anti-submarine warfare ready
Designed and developed by Lockheed Martin, the littoral combat ship (coastal and shallow water areas are called “littoral”) is quick and agile, and loaded with mission packages that can be configured for surface warfare, countering sea mines and anti-submarine warfare.

'As the U.S. Navy supports the U.S. government rebalance to the Indo-Asia-Pacific, there is no better place to demonstrate LCS capabilities.'

- Vice Adm. Scott Swift, commander of the U.S. 7th Fleet

Led by Cmdr. Timothy Wilke, Freedom will initially be manned by her crew of 91 sailors, who include mission package personnel and an aviation detachment to operate its MH-60 helicopter.

Freedom can provide critical access and dominance in coastal water battlespaces.

As designed, Freedom can operate with substantially fewer crew, requiring only 40 core sailors plus support crew for the aviation and mission packages.

Should a battle erupt, Freedom can act as a hub to tie together sea, air and land assets.

COMBATTS-21 Combat Systems
The ship’s battle management system, also produced by Lockheed Martin, provides a flexible, next-generation defense system that can be reconfigured for a specific threat in days.

COMBATSS-21 is a self-defense suite and integrates the radar, electro-optical infrared cameras, gunfire control system, countermeasures and short-range anti-air missiles, as well as a variety of missile and torpedo systems, naval guns and more.

Let's say the mission required weapons systems to defeat enemy subs. An anti-submarine package would include an MH-60 Romeo carrying an active dipping sonar, sonobuoys and heavy-weight torpedoes.

What if the enemy had littered the coastal waters with mines? Freedom’s countermeasures package can search twice as quickly as earlier systems. It requires only two operators and would include tech like the Remote Multi-Mission Vehicle and Raytheon’s airborne SONAR mine countermeasure detection system, AQS-20A.

Remember the USS Cole incident where American lives were lost? Small boats continue to be an ongoing threat.

To protect the fleet from this sort of asymmetric warfare, Freedom’s tech could include the Gun Mission Module MK 50 MOD, a Non-Line of Sight Launch System Mission Module, a MH-60R helicopter and vertical takeoff drones.

Led by prime contractor Lockheed Martin, the team includes naval architect Gibbs & Cox and ship builder Marinette Marine Corporation.

USS Fort Worth, the team’s second littoral combat ship, was delivered two months early last year and included improved fuel efficiency and speed, reduced weight, improved satellite and launch, recovery and handling systems and landing aids with advanced night vision capability.

The next two ships, the Milwaukee and the Detroit, are currently under construction.

Ballet dancer turned defense specialist Allison Barrie has traveled around the world covering the military, terrorism, weapons advancements and life on the front line. You can reach her at wargames@foxnews.com or follow her on Twitter @Allison_Barrie.

Allison Barrie

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Technology that can beat the traffic

By John R. Quain

Personal Tech

Published February 05, 2013

FoxNews.com

Traffic hasn't worsened much since last year, according to the latest Urban Mobility Report. But any traffic is bad news. Can technology help reroute us around all this congestion?Texas Transportation Institute
Traffic hasn't worsened much since last year, according to the latest Urban Mobility Report. But any traffic is bad news. Can technology help reroute us around all this congestion?Texas Transportation Institute

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Do we really need to be told that traffic is terrible?

It's that time of year again when the Texas Transportation Institute releases its annual Urban Mobility Report. It's a rough enumeration of how much time we're wasting each year staring at taillights ahead of us. It's also a barometer of how the economy is doing, the amount of pollution we're generating, and how much money we're burning up in fuel.

The good news is that traffic hasn't worsened much since the previous year. But any traffic is bad news. In 2011, according to the report, U.S. drivers languished in it for an agonizing 5.5 billion hours. We also threw away money to the tune of $121 billion in extra gas.

Whining rights for wasting the most time in traffic goes to -- no surprise -- Washington, D.C., where they do enough whining and time wasting already. The rest of the top four worst traffic spots out of a total of 498 nationwide were Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York.

Can technology help route us around all this congestion? It can help, at least a bit.

The Institute culls the traffic data from the U.S. Transportation Department and state departments, as well as from traffic and navigation company Inrix. Inrix is one of several companies trying to attack the traffic problem using technology, specifically by tracking cars and smartphones on the road and then sending that information to other cars on the road in order to adjust routes and give drivers new directions.

The technology has had me pinballing between parallel highways. In the end, I saved only two or three minutes for all my hassle.

It's an excellent idea, but it requires that a large percentage of vehicles on the road use GPS tracking and two-way communications. Exact numbers are elusive, but experts I've spoken with say 20 percent use would give us all a pretty good picture of road conditions. Unfortunately, we're nowhere near that.

One of the more popular portable navigation device makers, Tom Tom, has also been working for years on live traffic reports. I regularly test their devices and have a love/hate relationship with the HD Live traffic reports. I've had it save me 45 minutes or more on a 3-hour trip. Even when I've stubbornly ignored the nav's feminine voice beseeching me to change my route, it still bailed me out when I came to a sudden halt around the next corner, leading me off the Interstate and away from further highway headaches.

On the other hand, traffic conditions have a tendency to change minute-to-minute as accidents are cleared or new obstructions appear. Consequently, many times the technology has had me pinballing between I-95 and Connecticut's dreaded Merritt Parkway. In the end, I saved only two or three minutes for all my hassle.

Not dissimilar approaches are being tried in the smartphone crowd-sourcing arena. Apps like Waze (now used by Apple) track other users of the app with icons that float along your route estimating current speeds. But it can be distracting. During one frustrating stint in neck-snapping stop-and-go traffic I noticed that another Waze user was somehow gaining on me in a different lane. It took all my self control not to start jumping back and forth between lanes.

Possibly more important than fuel, pollution, or money is the hypertension that traffic congestion generates. So the report now includes a rating for how much hair we're pulling out in particular urban areas. Surprisingly, New York City is not number one in this area either. The commuter stress honor goes to Honolulu (so much for the sunny clime).

At least technology may be able to help relieve congestion stress when self-driving cars are widely available. At the Consumer Electronics Show last month, Audi was very keen to demonstrate how its "Piloted Driving" system could allow drivers to take their hands off wheel in traffic and spend the time reading the newspaper (if newspapers still exist then).

Finally, for the first time the Urban Mobility Report includes its own suggestion for solving the traffic problem: public transportation. It now ranks the potential hours and dollars that could be saved by using buses and subways. At last, New York City ranks number one in this category.

So are we stuck for now grinning and bearing the traffic? At least one technology can solve the traffic problem for many of us today: telecommuting.

Follow John R. Quain on Twitter @jqontech or find more tech coverage at J-Q.com.

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