Two great things that are effectively dead now
The Tribune has two sad stories this evening.First, the FCC has taken steps to end the main-studio rule—apparently to allow the Sinclair/Tribune deal to go through:The regulation, which was first...
View ArticleThe Angriest Librarian
An MLS student in Portland, Ore., wants you to understand that even though you don't personally use them, libraries are thriving:Today, depending on the community they serve, a public librarian is part...
View ArticleAnti-union plutocrat kills local Chicago and New York news site
Via Crain's Chicago Business, Joe Ricketts is shutting down DNAInfo and Gothamist because the underpaid, overworked journalists there had the temerity to ask for better working conditions:A week ago,...
View ArticleThe darkest morning
Because of a quirk in the calendar, today's sunrise in parts of the United States that observe daylight saving time was the latest it's been in many years. In Chicago, that was 7:27 this morning. The...
View ArticleMy bête noir strikes again
The only real benefits of ending daylight saving time are getting an extra hour of sleep the first Sunday in November and having the sun already up when you awaken for the first time in weeks.This...
View ArticleIt doesn't work like that!
Jimmy Carter captained nuclear missile submarines. Bill Clinton was a Rhodes Scholar. Barack Obama was a Constitutional Law professor at one of the top-5 law schools in the country.Donald Trump...
View ArticleTravel day; link round-up
I'm heading back to the East Coast tonight to continue research for my current project, so my time today is very constrained. I hope I remember to keep these browser windows open for the plane:538...
View ArticleMy favorite article of the day
I'm chilling in my hotel room on the second day of my trip, not sure how much longer I'll remain awake. (Waking up at 5amsucks, even more so when it's 4am back home.) This is a problem in that I need...
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Starship Chicago
Via CityLab, a new short video argues that the Thompson Center needs to be preserved:Says CityLab:Few of the film’s interviewees seem to find the Thompson Center beautiful—noted Chicago architect...
View ArticleTwelve Years a Blogger
Today, by the way, is the 12th anniversary of the modern incarnation of this blog. (I had a proto-blog on braverman.org from 13 May 1998 until this app took over.)This is the 5,766th post on The Daily...
View ArticleBusy day link round-up
I have some free time coming up next Friday, but until then, there's a lot going on. So I have very little time to read, let alone write about, these stories from this week:Bans on interstate alcohol...
View ArticleThe MAVNI program
My current project involves military enrollment, so I am following the story of the Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI) program, recently suspended by the Pentagon:Defense...
View ArticleEarth's rotation slowed and earthquakes are expected
Scientists have found a correlation (but, crucially, not a causation) between the earth's rotation slowing slightly and an increase in seismic activity:Although such fluctuations in rotation are small...
View ArticleThe inconvenience of being a female veteran
You might not like the military or its mission, but I can tell you it's one of the more meritocratic organizations I've ever worked with. That's great if you're a woman—until you leave, as Sarah Maples...
View ArticleMaking ride-shares pay for roads
CityLab has an interesting suggestion to manage the externalities of Uber and Lyft:The policy journey of São Paulo, Brazil, a vast metropolitan region of 20 million people, has been telling. The city...
View ArticleUptown rats, downtown rats
A graduate student in New York has studied the genetic makeup of the city's rat populations, and discovered a divide between uptown and downtown:As a whole, Manhattan’s rats are genetically most...
View ArticleTeenagers and Fitbits
A recent study found that activity trackers can actually de-motivate teenagers:The problem with the monitors seemed to be that they had left the teenagers feeling pressure and with little control over...
View ArticleHow will we react to aliens?
According to a new study, it seems to depend on how big they are:Michael Varnum, a psychologist at Arizona State University and a member of its new Interplanetary Initiative, is trying to anticipate...
View ArticleStuff to review
I've been in frenetic housecleaning mode today, since it's the first work-from-home Wednesday I've had in...let me see...10 weeks. And apparently I last had my housekeeping service here 16 weeks ago....
View ArticleMiddle-seat windows?
Emirates, despite what I may think about its ownership and massive state subsidies, has some of the coolest equipment in commercial aviation. Their latest innovation is to provide virtual windows for...
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