News of the day
The first Argentinian gay marriage may not happen today; a judge has blocked issuing the marriage license until the Supreme Court can examine the issue.
Well, that didn't last long -- who had "December 1" in the pool? Microsoft is investigating an issue in Windows 7 dubbed "the black screen of death".
The Beeb shows us photos of a day in the life of a midwife at a rural Congolese birthing center, where nighttime births are conducted by candlelight, and there's only one set of birthing equipment.
For World AIDS Day, a selection of HIV/AIDs awareness posters from around the world (with audio).
The Congressional Budget Office has released a report saying that 2016 health insurance premiums for most Americans will by the same, or slightly lower, than they would be if the Senate reform bill was not passed. People buying individual coverage are expected to take a hit, but on the other hand, 60% of them will be receiving federal subsidies that will more than cover the difference.
An interesting look at the "food stamp" program in the US, use of which has soared -- the program now assists one in eight Americans, and one in four American children. The story also looks at how people who previously felt that government aid was for "lazy people" are changing their attitudes (or not). Intensely annoying quote (from a county official who dislikes the program): "As soon as people figure out they can vote representatives in to give them benefits, that's the end of democracy." Yes! Why, we can't allow people to vote for what they want in a democracy! That'll just kill it! (And, of course, the statement ignores the fact that most people understand that the money has to come from somewhere.)
College degrees don't level the playing field -- the disparity in employment between black and whites in America is even greater for the college-educated. The article includes a fascinating look at the struggles of black college graduates -- some with Ivy-League and/or graduate degrees -- in the marketplace, and how the experience is leading many of them to try to scrub "blackness" from their self-presentation, both on paper and in person. "[One job seeker] drew an analogy to several prominent black sports broadcasters. 'You don't want to be Stephen A. Smith. You want to be Bryant Gumbel. You don’t even want to be Stuart Scott. You don’t want to be, 'Booyah.''"
DARPA is running a contest on December 5 in which the first team that finds ten red balloons scattered across the continental US will win $400,000 -- the idea is to use the contest to gather data on how people work together online. Contestants can be from anywhere in the world, and registration is still open. My first thought: Is Burning Man fielding a team? Why not?
Well, that didn't last long -- who had "December 1" in the pool? Microsoft is investigating an issue in Windows 7 dubbed "the black screen of death".
The Beeb shows us photos of a day in the life of a midwife at a rural Congolese birthing center, where nighttime births are conducted by candlelight, and there's only one set of birthing equipment.
For World AIDS Day, a selection of HIV/AIDs awareness posters from around the world (with audio).
The Congressional Budget Office has released a report saying that 2016 health insurance premiums for most Americans will by the same, or slightly lower, than they would be if the Senate reform bill was not passed. People buying individual coverage are expected to take a hit, but on the other hand, 60% of them will be receiving federal subsidies that will more than cover the difference.
An interesting look at the "food stamp" program in the US, use of which has soared -- the program now assists one in eight Americans, and one in four American children. The story also looks at how people who previously felt that government aid was for "lazy people" are changing their attitudes (or not). Intensely annoying quote (from a county official who dislikes the program): "As soon as people figure out they can vote representatives in to give them benefits, that's the end of democracy." Yes! Why, we can't allow people to vote for what they want in a democracy! That'll just kill it! (And, of course, the statement ignores the fact that most people understand that the money has to come from somewhere.)
College degrees don't level the playing field -- the disparity in employment between black and whites in America is even greater for the college-educated. The article includes a fascinating look at the struggles of black college graduates -- some with Ivy-League and/or graduate degrees -- in the marketplace, and how the experience is leading many of them to try to scrub "blackness" from their self-presentation, both on paper and in person. "[One job seeker] drew an analogy to several prominent black sports broadcasters. 'You don't want to be Stephen A. Smith. You want to be Bryant Gumbel. You don’t even want to be Stuart Scott. You don’t want to be, 'Booyah.''"
DARPA is running a contest on December 5 in which the first team that finds ten red balloons scattered across the continental US will win $400,000 -- the idea is to use the contest to gather data on how people work together online. Contestants can be from anywhere in the world, and registration is still open. My first thought: Is Burning Man fielding a team? Why not?