Invisible Children are known in Northern Uganda as an organization supporting the education of former abductees, which is much needed in the region. But they are not known as a peace building organization and I do not think they have experience with peace building and conflict resolution methods. I totally disagree with their approach of military action as a means to end this conflict.

As part of the Energy Department’s commitment to driving innovation in U.S. manufacturing and helping American businesses and consumers save money by saving energy, the Department today launched the next phase of the Bright Tomorrow Lighting Prize (L Prize) competition. The L Prize competition challenges the lighting industry to develop high performance, energy-saving replacements for conventional light bulbs.

The competition announced today will spur leading-edge companies to build innovative LED replacements for conventional parabolic aluminized reflector (PAR 38) lamps, commonly known as spot or flood lamps, which are in widespread use in retail businesses and as outdoor security lights and track lights.

“The L Prize competition challenges the best and brightest engineers and scientists across America’s lighting industry to drive innovation in new, more efficient products and boost our nation’s competitiveness in manufacturing,” said Energy Secretary Steven Chu. “The winning products will help expand lighting choices for consumers, reduce our nation’s energy use, and save money for American families and business owners.”

There are approximately 90 million PAR 38 light bulbs installed in the U.S., in both residential and commercial applications. The Energy Department estimates that replacing them with bulbs efficient enough to win the L Prize would save the country 11 terawatt-hours of electricity per year – approximately equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of Washington, D.C. – and avoid 7 million metric tons of carbon emissions.

The L Prize was established by Congress in the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007. The Energy Department launched the L Prize competition in May 2008 to spur development of exceptionally high-performance, ultra-efficient LED alternatives for two of the most widely used light bulbs: 60-watt incandescent lamps and PAR 38 halogen lamps. The first L Prize was awarded in the 60-watt category in August 2011 to Philips Lighting North America. The winning product is expected to hit retail store shelves in spring 2012.

The rigorous performance testing needed to win the L Prize ensures that the performance, quality, lifetime, costs, and availability of winning products meet expectations for mass manufacturing and widespread adoption. U.S. sourcing remains a key part of the commercial production requirements, generating jobs for U.S. workers. For the PAR 38 category, at least 50% of the LEDs must be produced in the U.S., and all of the assembly must be done in the U.S.

For more information on the L Prize competition, including full specifications and requirements for the PAR 38 replacement category, see www.lightingprize.org. DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) accelerates development and facilitates deployment of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies and market-based solutions that strengthen U.S. energy security, environmental quality, and economic vitality.

News Media Contact: (202) 586-4940

The next round of L-Prize competition has begun, this time the prize is focused on the PAR38 envelope. One interesting wrinkle, in order to win the prize at least 50% of the lamp must be manufactured in the US.

The sad part is the comment thread on the TED page.

The International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD) convened a credentialing task force to assess prospective domains of practice and qualifications for an international architectural lighting design certification. This assessment will be conducted via online survey, and is a key component of the task force’s efforts.

The survey launched March 1, 2012 and is testing the validity of the task force’s work. Outreach to date has included a broad group of stakeholders: IALD and Professional Lighting Designers’ Association (PLDA) members, members of other lighting associations, and related building/design industry professionals from around the world. Building and design professionals who are familiar with the scope of work associated with architectural lighting design should weigh in by taking the 10-minute survey located online here.

IALD’s rationale for the certification is that legislative and code-making bodies are looking for a statement of validity for lighting designers that will provide legitimacy. My question is: What’s wrong with the Lighting Certified (LC) designation? I made a huge investment to become an LC, as did thousands of other people in the industry–not to mention the industry as a whole and the U.S. taxpayer, which helped fund its development through the Environmental Protection Agency. Are these certifications supposed to compete or complement, and if so, how?

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Treating awareness as a goal in and of itself risks compassion fatigue -- most people only have so much time and energy to devote to far-away causes -- and ultimately squanders political momentum that could be used to push for effective solutions. Actually stopping atrocities would require sustained effort, as well as significant dedication of time and resources that the U.S. is, at the moment, ill-prepared and unwilling to allocate. It would also require a decision on whether we are willing to risk American lives in places where we have no obvious political or economic interests, and just how much money it is appropriate to spend on humanitarian crises overseas when 3 out of 10 children in our nation's capital live at or below the poverty line. The genuine difficulty of those questions can't be eased by sharing a YouTube video or putting up posters.

Somehow, it all made Sue Simmons one of those unforgettably authentic New York characters. She seemed as real as the person sitting next to you on the subway, someone who knew exactly when to cut you off. Hey, this is New York. Everybody cuts you off here.

“There’s no question that when you talk to her, you were talking to someone who talks like a New Yorker,” said Edward I. Koch, who was the mayor when Ms. Simmons, now 68, arrived at WNBC-TV. “If you’re in New York for six months, you walk faster, you think faster, you’re a New Yorker. She did that 30 years ago.”

So the news on Wednesday that her career at Channel 4 was coming to an end felt like more than just another personnel change in the ever-shifting local television landscape. It was as if someone you had grown fond of, someone who had become as much a part of the cityscape as the buildings, was disappearing from your life.

“She tells it like it is,” said George Gonzales, 42, of Brooklyn. “She’s one of a kind.”

Many viewers seemed to be on a first-name basis, talking about “Chuck and Sue” — the anchor Chuck Scarborough, her longtime on-air partner, and Ms. Simmons, who was widely reported to make at least $2 million a year. And if the two were an old-school news team, the way the story of her departure broke was a throwback, too. The first word came in a gossip column by another longtime New York media institution, Cindy Adams of The New York Post, who appeared on “Live At Five” when Ms. Simmons was one of the anchors.

The story was that WNBC would not renew Ms. Simmons’s contract when it expires in June. A spokeswoman for WNBC, Dawn Rowan, issued a statement that said it had been “engaged in ongoing conversations with Sue about her transition from WNBC.”

“We have tremendous respect and admiration for Sue Simmons,” it said. “For decades, Sue has been a critical part of New York’s longest-tenured anchor team in the city and has more than earned her iconic status.”

Ms. Simmons, who appeared on the 11 p.m. broadcast Wednesday, did not respond to requests for comment.

The announcement made for an unhappy day in television land. “Fellow New Yorkers, I hope you all get that this is wrong, stupid and evil,” Mark Harris, a columnist for Entertainment Weekly, wrote on Twitter, a comment that was copied on a Tumblr page headed “Save Sue Simmons.” It talked about formulating “a complete action plan” that would “keep this beloved staple of local news on the air.”

Nancy Franklin, who is a former television critic for the New Yorker magazine, reposted on Twitter a comment from the actress Martha Plimpton: “Whaaaaaaaaaat?!?!! No. It cannot be. Nooooooooooooooooooo!”

On the City Room blog of The New York Times, a reader who signed herself Sarah wrote, “She and Chuck are the only reasons I tune in to local news.”

But Ms. Simmons’s role on Channel 4 had been diminishing. She has not been on the station’s 6 p.m. broadcast regularly since January of last year, when she returned after back surgery. And one current and one former WNBC staff member, both speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Ms. Simmons was aware when she signed her most recent contract that it was intended to be her last at the station.

While Ms. Simmons is departing, Mr. Scarborough — who is also 68 — is staying on. A station spokeswoman confirmed that his contract had been renewed for three years.

That too touched a nerve with viewers. Jen Harper, a writer for the popular television Web site Zap2it, asked, “Is this a case of blatant sexism? Or is something else at work here?” On Gothamist, one commenter remarked: “Once again, females are ‘aged-out’ of media careers before men. When are they gonna get some hot young hunk to replace Scarborough?”

Mr. Scarborough, who did not respond to requests for comment on Wednesday, told The Times in 2010 that Ms. Simmons “has never had an unspoken thought, and I mean that in the nicest way; she is the least inhibited broadcast journalist I’ve ever known.”

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Noah Rosenberg contributed reporting.

I think people get a pretty decent bargain when they hand over their personal browsing, search, and email data to Google: powerful tailored search results, an elegant, efficient email management system, photo and document storage space of science-fictional proportions, and instant access to every otter video (and/or TED talk) of all time.

an interesting take on privacy (or lack thereof)

Boy, time makes the good old days look good, no? In thinking about the recent battles over NASA's budget, it seems like the problem is simply citizen support. People don't care that much about space, so space doesn't get funded. Back in the Apollo days, people loved the space program! Except, as this Space Policy paper pointed out, they didn't. A majority of Americans opposed the government funding human trips to the moon both before (July 1967) and after (April 1970) Neil Armstrong took a giant leap for mankind. It was only in the months surrounding Apollo 11 that support for funding the program ever reached above 50 percent. 

Turns out...even in the good ole days we were pretty divided.

I got to meet Paula when she came here in NYC. The trip she took and the lighting she saw is downright amazing.

The fact is that EISA 2007 only requires that incandescent lamps become more efficient, and manufacturers have responded to the challenge with products that save energy while providing similar performance – which is good for consumers and the environment. In fact, the law has actually spurred innovation, hiring and capital investment – and consumers now enjoy expanded choices of incandescent/halogen, CFL and LED replacement lamps.

Although airlines say they don't keep track or won't disclose how many passengers get bounced off planes for refusing to switch off devices, flight attendants say it's now the No. 1 spark for unruly behavior.

What does it say about us that being asked to turn off our electronic devices is the #1 reason for getting kicked off planes? The airlines mistreat us in so many ways.

Baggage Fees
Long Lines
Security Checks
Crappy, Expensive Airport food
Forced Fed CNN
Leg room fit for a 5 year old
Delays
Lost Baggage

And yet...this is where we make our stand? We can deal with everything else just don't take our screens away DAMMIT!

I watched it and I was blown away. It's gotten me thinking about what I might be able to do to help. The least I can do is spread the word.

I loved this concept. We underutilize the arts in this country. We all need more exposure to real art.