blogs

WHY RIDE A ROLLER COASTER, VISCERAL THRILL?

Submitted by Jeff Buster on Tue, 04/01/2008 - 19:49.

 

Engineering continues to out do itself - with computers and finite element analysis  - creating "thrill" roller  coaster rides which test our faith in physics.   I love the physics – and the curvilinear ride tracks – and they say riding the coasters is safer than driving…but geezzz, why do it?  

( categories: )

Drain Great Lakes to fill Grand Canyon?

Submitted by Charles Frost on Tue, 04/01/2008 - 16:34.

April 1, 2008

LANSING -- The State of Michigan is examining a plan to sell about half of its share of the water in the Great Lakes over the next 20 years to drought-stricken areas in the Sunbelt states.

( categories: )

call me on my landline - i'm smoking

Submitted by Susan Miller on Mon, 03/31/2008 - 13:31.


"Outside the Jaffa Gate: Man carrying two wooden doors on his head while talking on cell phone and smoking cigarette."*
*See no. 4 in this post. Image courtesy of The Columnist Manifesto.

Well, if it's not one thing it's another.

Mobile phones 'more dangerous than smoking

1-2-3 What are we fighting for?
Don’t ask me, I don’t give a damn. The next stop is Vietnam.
5-6-7 Open up the pearly gates.
It ain’t no time to wonder why. Yippee! We’re all going to die.

( categories: )

a new development for E9th and Euclid

Submitted by Susan Miller on Mon, 03/31/2008 - 09:54.

In this bit of "news" we find that it's not over til the fat lady sings - again. This reminds me of an old theater joke about encores. The opera finishes and the audience stands and applauds. Someone in the balcony shouts, "encore". The singer obliges and again he shouts "encore". Well, this continues ad nauseum and finally the singer says, "I just can't do it one more time". The guy in the balcony shouts down, "You'll do it until you get it right!"

( categories: )

Indicators

Submitted by lmcshane on Sun, 03/30/2008 - 10:48.

Pilching this poignant image from the NYT article Susan cites:

( categories: )

killing me with pesticides - smart growth for Cleveland

Submitted by Susan Miller on Sun, 03/30/2008 - 08:59.

In today's New York Times, I found this article (Did Your Shopping List Kill a Songbird?) about the fact that what we purchase in the grocery is killing songbirds. Yeah, it is, and it's killing more than songbirds. It's killing the whole ecosystem where these dangerous chemicals are used, and it's killing the people who eat the "Green Revolution's" products. Thank you Ford Foundation, Hailey Ashton Foundation and Gates Foundation.

As I read this sad story, I thought about Rachel Carson and her battle against the dangerous chemicals we dusted on our crops. I remembered reading Silent Spring while riding in a car along I-90 where I could glance up and see how the edge of the road had been "killed off" by a generous dose of herbicides.

( categories: )

dance video of the day - Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker

Submitted by Susan Miller on Sat, 03/29/2008 - 18:08.

Grosse Fuge excerpt from Kinok

Beethoven's  Grosse Fugue  will never be the same for me after I saw this entire work perfomed live at Mershon Auditorium back in the 1990s.

This woman gets the architecture of music and dance. Her dancers get it, too. The stage at Mershon was raked. This is an old theatrical architecture. Now audience's sit in a raked auditorium rather than having the dancers and actors work on a slanted surface. This, by the way, is the explanation for upstage and downstage - they literally were up and down.  So in this bit in the film, when you see the dancers roll downstage, they were literaly rolling downstage toward the audience.

Rosas: choreographer Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker

more work by de Keersmaeker

( categories: )

Earth Hour 2008 - Turn off your lights March 29th 2008 at 8:00pm

Submitted by Phillip Williams on Sat, 03/29/2008 - 08:33.

So often people have asked "what can I do to be Green?", or "what can I do to help the environment".  This of course is all in the context of, "... as long as I don't have to lift a finger or spend an extra dime".

( categories: )

What do we bring to Mind of Cleveland?

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sat, 03/29/2008 - 01:58.

Over the past few weeks, I've noticed strange Clevelandesque slogans posted on billboards around town, with the attribution "Mind of Cleveland". I remember wondering if this was another Cleveland+hype campaign... or about AIDS prevention... and planned to google it later...

Firehouse Food

Submitted by lmcshane on Fri, 03/28/2008 - 11:07.

I love cookbooks. 

( categories: )

Recycled Houses

Submitted by Susan Miller on Fri, 03/28/2008 - 11:03.

You gotta see this - there are much much better things coming out of Texas than GW Bush and Texas crude.

Watch this video: Recycled Houses

( categories: )

high rollin'

Submitted by Susan Miller on Fri, 03/28/2008 - 10:32.
Since we're thinkin' big silver bullets, let's think even bigger. Here's a plan that I think is brilliant and truly gets to the heart of what Clevelanders want and need. We have the space and the beginnings already, so let's consider stemming the tide of gamblers to Detroit and bring 'em downtown to feed the city's coffers. You want to throw away your money? Hey, we want to take it from you! Yeah! Read all about the proposal for a Casino in Cleveland here. I'm so convinced this is what we need, I am going to rush right out and buy a cocktail dress for the occasion! Lift a glass; this could be a bright future (and I'm not kiddin'!)
( categories: )

"Energy Wasting Day"

Submitted by Charles Frost on Thu, 03/27/2008 - 21:19.

 

April 1st is "Energy Wasting Day"

A Great Idea, and A Great Video...

http://www.energywastingday.com/

Stop the Financial Double-Standard for Green Cars

Submitted by Charles Frost on Thu, 03/27/2008 - 21:05.

Car At Gas Pump

It seems like many people, especially in the big media, are obsessed with whether or not that hybrid/plug in hybrid/electric car/etc will "pay for itself" with fuel savings. The latest example is the (misleading) "The payoff for plug-in hybrids: 95 years?".

The Green-Collar Wave: High Tide for Van Jones

Submitted by Sudhir Kade on Thu, 03/27/2008 - 11:24.

 

 

Those following the race for the Democratic presidential nomination closely enough to understand the main tenets of each candidate's economic agenda can surely appreciate the importance of green-collar workforce development as a vital economic development and community development opportunity.  The buzz around sustainability seems to have reached a crescendo these days, and a legion of local eco-activists has much cause to feel much vindication as a result.  The word is really getting out!  To borrow from Gestalt philosophy, raising awareness is the critical first step necessary to move any system to the point of meaningful action.  It would really behoove our communities to prepare intelligently for this inevitable time with sound research and due diligence. This is the time to look to the most charismatic, capable, and cogent leaders and follow their example.

( categories: )

Cleveland's Sporting News

Submitted by Roldo on Thu, 03/27/2008 - 10:15.

I got my Plain Dealer the other day to see what new spectacle I’d find.

Oh, my. A full-page, front page of LeBron. “Mr. Cavalier,” the headline said, noting that “LeBron is Cleveland’s all-time leading scorer.”

A NOBEL FOR SKYPE?

Submitted by Jeff Buster on Wed, 03/26/2008 - 16:59.

Almost every time I post to Realneo I  find I am asking myself the same question  (which comes from a sense of urgency):   is this post what I should be spending my time on?  is the subject a priority?

( categories: )

If you didn't read this, please do

Submitted by Roldo on Wed, 03/26/2008 - 15:45.

Below is a taste of the article from the Times mentioned a moment ago.

Six of the Fallen, in Words They Sent Home

( categories: )

New York Times piece on 6 fallen soldiers

Submitted by Roldo on Wed, 03/26/2008 - 15:42.

If anyone missed the New York Times piece on yesterday's  front page giving the words six fallen soldiers sent home to their families and friends, please read the attachment below.

It is one of the most moving things I've read. For link, go to "read more."

the value of our ecosystem

Submitted by Susan Miller on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 20:03.

( categories: )

then-than less-fewer I-me

Submitted by Susan Miller on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 19:24.

OK, OK! I have to post this once again! It is driving me crazy!

I wondered if it wasn’t a really bad Cleveland Accent, but apparently this is not a regional issue.  Let's learn the difference between "then" and "than".

Here's the entry from Wikihow on then and than. Why am I roused about this? Here you go...

( categories: )

FYI - Norm re: Lead Outreach & Training

Submitted by johnmcgovern on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 15:49.

24)  Lead Outreach and Training
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requests proposals for the
National Community-Based Lead Outreach and Training Grant Program.
This grant will support the partnership of national organizations

( categories: )

29 STORY BREUER TOWER + 2 CITY BLOCKS FOR SALE IN CLEVELAND, OHIO

Submitted by MillerBuster Report on Sun, 03/23/2008 - 18:27.
 
Our County Commissioners see themselves not as County administrative managers, but rather as economic development officers.   

But they have no economic development training, experience, or credentials - and no public mandate.  

They haven't even advertized the Ameritrust Tower anywhere but 3 times in the Plain Dirty Dealer.

( categories: )