Brian Gongol
Graphic of the day: Hippie Time
UK's Chief Medical Adviser wants universal organ donations
Liam Donaldson says "presumed consent" would prevent hundreds of deaths every year. On the other hand, though, it might also discourage innovation in the field of replacement organs.
Scotland's richest man will give away $2 billion
Says, "I'm a Scotsman, so I'm not very good at giving money away." Perhaps he'd be willing to put up some money for inducement prizes to solve some of the tough issues out there today. Perhaps something in energy efficiency? NASA recently bought a big innovation in astronaut wear with a $200,000 prize, won by a guy working on his dining room table. That's the beauty of inducement prizes: They create the greatest incentives for those with the best ideas, instead of just transferring the same old contracts to the same old contractors.
Southern California will need $100 billion in road improvements by 2050
A320 crashes at Brazil's busiest airport
Left-wing economic populism could be bad for America
The economic platforms of the 2008 Presidential candidates include far too many planks opposed to reforming Medicare, opening trade, or getting practical about immigration; that's bad news for the country.
Colossal hail lands in eastern Iowa
4" and larger in diameter. Related: The head of the National Hurricane Center has been booted from his job.
The actual cause of a knotted stomach
The newest US import from China: Inflation
China's economy appears to be falling a little behind demand, and that's changing prices
Free money...in the toilet
Next two weeks "critical" to Iowa's groundwater
Though when it does rain, that will make driving more dangerous in rural Iowa.
Failure to save is a global problem
Fewer than half of Australian families saved any money in 2006, putting them in a class with American households which also fail to put anything away for the future
Proposal would allow immigrants to earn citizenship through military service
Philadelphia plans to make tons of dough from "street furniture"
Specifically, they're weighing three different proposals from suppliers who will pay big money to control the design of (and placement of ads upon) park benches, bus shelters, and public toilets
50% of US electricity still comes from coal
Technology undermines Communist governments
China's government is finding it harder and harder to suppress information as technology makes it easier and easier to distribute information. The free flow of information to oppressed people is one of the most important tools of freedom.
Oklahoma's version of Woodstock for hair bands
