Facing a horrific budget crisis, Brown estimates that the cell phone reduction will save the state $20 million a year.

Wow, really? How did they not already look at this as a cost-cutting measure?

As part of a pilot program, Roslyn High School on Long Island handed out 47 iPads on Dec. 20 to the students and teachers in two humanities classes. The school district hopes to provide iPads eventually to all 1,100 of its students.

Having seen a 5 year old take to an iPad without hesitation (though he did call it an iPhone at first) I expect that every school will be thus equipped in the next few years.

For centuries, marriage was viewed as an economic and social institution, and the emotional and intellectual needs of the spouses were secondary to the survival of the marriage itself. But in modern relationships, people are looking for a partnership, and they want partners who make their lives more interesting.

Reminds me a lot of what I learned in college.

Justice Stephen G. Breyer took the other side. He said common sense should allow the government to help parents protect their children from games that include depictions of “gratuitous, painful, excruciating, torturing violence upon small children and women.”

The government, or at least Justice Breyer, wants to ensure that parents have assistance in protecting children from inappropriate content. Chillingly scary. 

Chief Justice Roberts said the law might be needed because “any 13-year-old can bypass parental controls” on game consoles “in about five minutes.”

The issue here isn’t that a 13-year-old can bypass parental controls but rather that a 13-year-old isn’t emotionally mature enough to deal with what they are seeing on their own, without parental guidance.

“In the piece I noted that the company could do something aggressive, like bidding for Adobe, Sony or even Disney. But that was pure speculation. Yeesh.”

Granted that Apple could absolutely use their huge stockpile of cash for a big acquisition, however, I think there are two things to remember: 

1. Buying a major player in the industry would most likely be hampered by massive amounts of regulatory issues
2. Bringing in a large company would require spinning down all of their products and services while integrating the staff into the Apple mindset

I’d say expect strategic acquisitions of small companies that are the best at whatever they do to augment the talent and technology.

More than half of New York City residents are overweight or obese, as are about 40% of the city’s school children, according to Farley and Daines.

How is that for your frightening fact of the day?

Modern presidents win elections by promising to reform Washington, to make it more ennobling and more responsive to Americans overwhelmed by the speed of change. But once they are elected, they find themselves sucked into the capital’s partisan culture, caught up in familiar debates while the people who supported them struggle with a growing sense of chaos.

Fascinating article on independent voters and the issues that really matter to regular people. 

Craziness.

A Rutgers University freshman posted a goodbye message on his Facebook page before jumping to his death after his roommate secretly filmed him during a “sexual encounter” in his dorm room and posted it live on the Internet.

Heartbreaking. :’(

What a cool article.