I often carry with me through airport security more than 3 ounces of toothpaste, in the hopes that I can helpfully explain to a TSA agent that toothpaste is not a gel, aerosol, or liquid, but is—by definition—a paste. Sadly, they have yet to try to take my toothpaste.

Luckily for me and all travelers, the TSA knows how complicated deciding what fits into the ever-nebulous “gel, aerosol, and liquid” category, especially with holiday specific items,…

Apparently very little. A Times reporter took one out for a test drive past its 40 mile battery range. What happens is that the gas-powered generator kicks in—silently—giving more battery power to the car. Its not as if you suddenly switch to a gas-powered engine; you’re still using electric power, just not stored electric power. Indeed, even while the generator is on, accelerating is silent, as you’re just putting more battery power into the engine, not…

It seems that we wont actually be getting any sort of climate agreement coming out of the meetings next month in Copenhagen, and we’ll just be waiting until sometime in 2010 for everyone to get together and make a deal. This is because the Obama administration is pretty sure it’s not going to get climate change legislation done in the next few weeks, while we’re still dithering over health care. And because developing nations feel that…

Check out this amazing recreation of the highways as a subway map. While there are no geographic features, it sure makes it easier to envision any number of trips and routes around the country. Click here for a larger size.

Via Coudal.

After some criticism about their plans for the Rise to the Top program of grants to state education programs, the Obama administration has changed the rules, though relaxed is perhaps a better word. One main change is that states can now demonstrate that they have used innovations other than charter schools to alter the public education system; the emphasis on charter schools had bothered some people, including a few governors who will be applying for the…

We want to take a moment to salute everyone who has valiantly served our country. Thank you for your service and your sacrifice, and may your contributions be never forgotten.

We’ll leave you with Ronald Reagan’s rather exceptional speech at the 40th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy:

The Times has an interesting story on a small imbroglio that has broken out in the microlending world, specifically concerning GOOD friends Kiva and Global Giving. Namely, do you know where your money is going?

Luckily, it’s nothing insidious. The money all gets loaned out to people who need money. Rather, it’s a question of perception and transparency. When you go to Kiva to donate money, you are not giving your $25 money to a specific entrepreneur, which is…

More than 40 percent of Obama’s top fundraisers have secured posts in his administration, according to a new report by USA Today.

I often carry with me through airport security more than 3 ounces of toothpaste, in the hopes that I can helpfully explain to a TSA agent that toothpaste is not a gel, aerosol, or liquid, but is—by definition—a paste. Sadly, they have yet to try to take my toothpaste.

Luckily for me and all travelers, the TSA knows how complicated deciding what fits into the ever-nebulous “gel, aerosol, and liquid” category, especially with holiday specific items,…

Apparently very little. A Times reporter took one out for a test drive past its 40 mile battery range. What happens is that the gas-powered generator kicks in—silently—giving more battery power to the car. Its not as if you suddenly switch to a gas-powered engine; you’re still using electric power, just not stored electric power. Indeed, even while the generator is on, accelerating is silent, as you’re just putting more battery power into the engine, not…

It seems that we wont actually be getting any sort of climate agreement coming out of the meetings next month in Copenhagen, and we’ll just be waiting until sometime in 2010 for everyone to get together and make a deal. This is because the Obama administration is pretty sure it’s not going to get climate change legislation done in the next few weeks, while we’re still dithering over health care. And because developing nations feel that…

Check out this amazing recreation of the highways as a subway map. While there are no geographic features, it sure makes it easier to envision any number of trips and routes around the country. Click here for a larger size.

Via Coudal.

After some criticism about their plans for the Rise to the Top program of grants to state education programs, the Obama administration has changed the rules, though relaxed is perhaps a better word. One main change is that states can now demonstrate that they have used innovations other than charter schools to alter the public education system; the emphasis on charter schools had bothered some people, including a few governors who will be applying for the…

We want to take a moment to salute everyone who has valiantly served our country. Thank you for your service and your sacrifice, and may your contributions be never forgotten.

We’ll leave you with Ronald Reagan’s rather exceptional speech at the 40th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy:

The Times has an interesting story on a small imbroglio that has broken out in the microlending world, specifically concerning GOOD friends Kiva and Global Giving. Namely, do you know where your money is going?

Luckily, it’s nothing insidious. The money all gets loaned out to people who need money. Rather, it’s a question of perception and transparency. When you go to Kiva to donate money, you are not giving your $25 money to a specific entrepreneur, which is…

More than 40 percent of Obama’s top fundraisers have secured posts in his administration, according to a new report by USA Today.

In New Jersey or Virginia, there are two gubernatorial races of various levels of excitement. In far northern New York, there is  a very contentious House race. If you live in Atlanta, New York City, Boston, or any number of other cities, you have mayoral and city council races in which to vote. And, perhaps most interestingly, in Maine, voters will decide whether or not to uphold the recent decision to allow gay marriage. So,…

A few days ago, we told you about the burgeoning controversy about a chapter in the new Freakonomics sequel, SuperFreakonomics. Well, Steven Levitt appeared on The Daily Show to defend his position. I haven’t read the book, so I can’t speak fully to the controversy. But in this clip, Levitt’s argument—that we should be trying to drastically innovate our way out of climate change in addition to trying to conserve our way out of it—seems quite reasonable.