New York lawmakers say the bill is meant to combat cyber-bullying. Photograph: AP Online commenters aren't exactly known for their kind words, but lawmakers in New York want to hold their constituents to a higher standard. A few Empire State lawmakers want to address that problem by doing away with anonymous commenting. Identical bills in the senate and assembly require anonymous posts to be deleted by administrators of New York-based websites, including "social networks, blog forums, message boards, or any other discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages." The proposal has the tech and legal communities reeling – if not outright giggling. "There are lots of good reasons to ban anonymous comments, and also a lot of good reasons ... Continue reading →
PESHAWAR, Pakistan — A Pakistani doctor who helped the Central Intelligence Agency pin down Osama Bin Laden's location under cover of a vaccination drive was convicted on Wednesday of treason and sentenced to 33 years in prison, a senior official in Pakistan said. A tribal court in northwestern Pakistan here found the doctor, Shakil Afridi, guilty of acting against the state, said Mutahir Zeb Khan, the administrator for the Khyber tribal region. Along with the jail term, the court imposed a fine of $3,500. Dr. Afridi, who may appeal the verdict, was then sent to Central Prison in Peshawar. He had been charged under a British-era regulation for frontier crimes that unlike the national criminal code does not carry the death penalty for treason. Under ... Continue reading →
A vial of Ronald Reagan's blood is for sale at an auction. Photograph: Handout/Reuters A vial of what is purported to be blood from late president Ronald Reagan is on sale at an online auction house, sparking outrage from his estate and the medical community.A seller at PFCAuctions.com – purveyor of "world class art, antiques and collectibles" – listed the vial of "dried blood residue from President Reagan" on Sunday. By Tuesday afternoon, bidding had reached $12,000. The vial is alleged to have come from the laboratory where the president's blood was sent for testing after a John Hinckley shot Reagan on March 30, 1981."My mother worked for Bio Science Laboratories in Columbia, Maryland," the unnamed seller writes. "Her laboratory was the laboratory contracted by ... Continue reading →
Culture Connoisseur Badge Culture Connoisseurs consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on the arts, lifestyle and entertainment. More about badges | Request a badge Washingtologist Badge Washingtologists consistently post thought-provoking, timely comments on events, communities, and trends in the Washington area. More about badges | Request a badge Post Writer Badge This commenter is a Washington Post editor, reporter or producer. Post Contributor Badge This commenter is a Washington Post contributor. Post contributors aren’t staff, but may write articles or columns. In some cases, contributors are sources or experts quoted in a story. More about badges | Request a badge Post Recommended Washington Post reporters or editors recommend this comment or reader post. You must be logged in to report a comment. You must be logged ... Continue reading →
In April, Empower Micro Systems became one of the first tenants of InnoSpring, a new startup incubator in Santa Clara, Calif., backed largely by Chinese investors. Less than two weeks after Empower’s move-in date, InnoSpring helped the young company—which develops technology that converts electricity between AC and DC—set up meetings with 22 China-based venture capital firms in preparation for a trip to Shanghai in May. “To have that network working on our behalf is priceless,” says Jon Bonanno, Empower’s president. As more U.S. tech startups see China as an essential place to do business, increasing numbers of Chinese investors are funding them and helping them expand to the mainland. Chinese venture capital firms backed 28 U.S. companies in 2011, nearly double the number two years ... Continue reading →
An unusually mild winter in the U.S. made the economy look better than it was, as consumers purchased goods and businesses hired workers earlier than they normally would because of the warm weather. While this effect shows up in macro indicators such as retail sales and the jobs report, small businesses can have trouble gauging how temperatures and rain or snow directly affect their bottom lines. The Weather Underground, a site that compiles local data collected by 24,000 weather geeks with sensors on their roofs, this week released a free tool for businesses to use to look for patterns in their sales related to the weather. Anyone can punch in a location and time period to download a spreadsheet with detailed weather data. The file ... Continue reading →
Author Chuck Windig, GigaOm’s Mathew Ingram, and TechDirt’s Mike Masnick all took on the question of ebook pricing recently, arguing that production costs (you know, minor details like advances, editors, etc.) don’t or shouldn’t factor into the end price. Ingram writes that “It doesn’t matter what e-books cost to make,” and Masnick follows with “Nobody Cares About the Fixed Costs Of Your Book.” But nobody cares about the fixed cost of your car, either. And yet, it matters, in theory as well as in practice. Ingram: But as author Chuck Wendig notes, what e-books cost to manufacture or distribute is irrelevant to everyone but the publishers themselves. All that matters is what book consumers are willing to pay for an e-book — and the same ... Continue reading →
