| Claims about climate change rebutted
Savage stated, "Antarctica . . . is gaining - not losing - ice." On the contrary, as reported in the March 24, 2006, issue of the prestigious journal Science, measurements by NASA's twin GRACE satellites indicate that between April 2002 and August 2005 the Antarctic ice sheet lost an average of 37 cubic miles of ice per year. He pointed to the average sea level rise over "the recent 50 centuries" as evidence, somehow, that it will continue at that same rate. But in the May 4, 2007, issue of Science, Rahmstorf et al. state, "The rate of rise for the last 20 years of the reconstructed sea level is 25 percent faster than the rate of rise in any 20-year period in the preceding 115 years." For people like Savage who reject the science because they fear "tax increases," I recommend they look at the real cost of climate change.
Mortgage workers face more layoffs in Bay Area More than 1,600 ...
During the first two months of this year alone, the proposed reductions total around 1,620, according to a survey by this paper of Employment Development Department files. Washington Mutual was among the companies that recently filed layoff notices with the state. The bank said it has eliminated 100 jobs in Pleasanton. The housing slump has also jolted San Joaquin County's employment picture. But it has displayed less of a negative effect on jobs in the San Mateo-San Francisco-Marin regions, according to an analysis of EDD data. In San Joaquin County, housing related industries have lost 2,100 jobs over the year that ended in November. Construction lost 1,200 jobs. Real estate was down by 500 jobs. Credit intermediation a category that consists primarily of mortgage and home finance work shed 400 jobs during the 12 months.
Sebring native known for industrial designs
CLEVELAND — Sebring native Viktor Schreckengost, an artist and prolific industrial designer whose works ranged from toys and ceramics to dinnerware and trucks, died Saturday while visiting family in Tallahassee, Fla., the spokeswoman for his foundation said Sunday. He was 101. Schreckengost, a 2006 winner of the National Medal of Arts, was best known for his 1930s “Jazz Bowl" series, commissioned by Eleanor Roosevelt for the White House. The electric blue and black porcelain bowls, inspired by the sights and sounds of New York City, became icons of the Art Deco era. Born in 1906, Schreckengost incorporated fine design into mass-produced goods in an effort to make aesthetically pleasing, functional items available to all Americans. His industrial designs include millions of bicycles sold by Sears, iconic children's pedal wagons, lawn chairs, sit-down lawn mowers and American Limoges dinnerware.
Why Krakow Still Works for IBM
Among the hardest hit are European outsourcers that mistakenly believed that their customers would never farm out work to India or Eastern Europe on the same scale as U.S. companies have. France's Atos Origin or Finland's TietoEnator are among the outsourcers that have struggled to maintain profit. "Most of the European companies have the same problem -- they have the majority of their workforces in Europe and are facing really tough competition from Indian companies," says Panu Laitinmäki, an analyst at EQ Bank Ltd. in Helsinki. Ironically, part of the answer to the European outsourcers' troubles was just across the German border in the new members of the European Union. Yet it seems to be the U.S. companies such as IBM that have moved most aggressively into Central and Eastern Europe.
Why Blogs Don't Make Money On Apple Day
This morning is Superbowl Day for the web. The Apple Macworld Keynote starts at 9 Pacific, and already tech blogs like Gawker Media's Gizmodo are clocking pageviews like mad as everyone refreshes for news of Apple's latest announcement (this year the guess is an ultralight Mac laptop). It's a scheduled event with a guaranteed boost; last year Gizmodo and competitor Engadget earned four times their normal visitors (and ten times the pageviews), with Engadget breaking 10 million page views thanks to a boost from AOL. I thought ad money would be rolling in for these promised pageviews, but publisher Nick Denton explains why ad sales don't jump today: [UPDATE: DoubleClick VP Jonathan Bellack explains in the comments how his ad company will make Gawker loads of money next time.] Apple Day is a loss-leader.
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