Let’s Paint Our Potholes

Let’s face it, they’re not going to be fixed in the short term, so how about giving them a quick shot of flourescent paint to at least let people know where they are? Better they swerve a few feet further back than at the last minute in a panic, or hit the damned thing and lose control. Might save a few expensive suspension repairs into the bargain.

(This article is actually about an idea by a couple of Italian design students to add colour to the tar, so that potholes are automatically highlighted when they appear, but the principle is the same.)

NYTimes.com: April is the cruelest month, wrote T.S. Eliot, possibly considering his tires and suspension, but March is pretty close. This time of year also brings new ideas for dealing with potholes.

One idea to help is to make potholes easier to avoid, even if they can’t be prevented or fixed. Several students in Italy have come up with a novel design idea.

Domenico Diego and Cristina Corradini of the Milan Polytechnic university call their plan the “Street Safe Initiative.” Their idea is to brightly color a lower layer of asphalt so that a break in the surface becomes easy to spot and the potholes easier to dodge.

Georgia To Euthanise Lane Hogs

(Well, maybe not euthanise. But they should definitely consider it.)

Fuck cabinet reshuffles of talentless hacks by pig molesters, this is the political news I want to see pop up in my feed reader!

The Augusta Chronicle: ATLANTA — Legislation to fine poky lane hogs is speeding along with a firm push from the House on Monday after a quick debate.

The House voted 129-29 in just seven minutes to pass and send to the Senate a bill that would set a minimum fine of $75 for any motorist driving less than the speed limit in the left lane who refuses to pull to the right when a faster vehicle approaches.

I still have one of these under my desk, never got around to fitting it as it needs to be sliced and flipped. I will though, I will…

LinkedIn in Ireland

Great news! I have a lot of respect for LinkedIn, I have more trust in my social network there than on any other site. Probably all of them combined!

BBC: The business networking website LinkedIn has said it will base its new international headquarters in Dublin.

The company has not yet said how many jobs will be created but they are expected to include positions in sales, finance and customer service.

LinkedIn will manage its international expansion from Dublin with overall headquarters remaining in California.

Nighty Night

I’m actually posting this at the correct time. Because I’m a nerd.

“Webmaster” Heaven

This is terrifying. If you’re in an office, turn down your sound. Perhaps sunglasses might be in order too.

No hamsters though. Shame.

Trusk, Meet Wall

The truck’s doing 50mph. The wall is one of those security barriers in front of secure buildings. It would appear that they work.

Over Half Your News Is Spin

I’d love to see research done on this in Ireland, the UK and the US.

Crikey: Under UTS’ Australian Centre for Independent Journalism (ACIJ) head Wendy Bacon (a Walkley Award-winning investigative journalist herself…) more than 40 students have got up close and personal with the sticky end of the spin cycle. They’ve had to analyse, critique, question and then pick up the phone to ask the hard questions of the media and its reliance on public relations to drive news.

Hard questions, because this is what came out in the wash: after analysing a five-day working week in the media, across 10 hard-copy papers, ACIJ and Crikey found that nearly 55% of stories analysed were driven by some form of public relations. The Daily Telegraph came out on top of the league ladder with 70% of stories analysed triggered by public relations. The Sydney Morning Herald gets the wooden spoon with (only) 42% PR-driven stories for that week.

Many journalists and editors were defensive when the phone call came. Who’d blame them? They’re busier than ever, under resourced, on deadline and under pressure. Most refused to respond, others who initially granted an interview then asked for their comments to be withdrawn out of fear they’d be reprimanded, or worse, fired.

Great name for an Aussie blog btw.