Gongol.com Archives: 2015 Weekly Archives
Brian Gongol


July 18, 2015

Iowa Cedar Rapids joins lawsuit with Des Moines and Muscatine to get rights to re-activate traffic-ticket cameras

Broadcasting Show notes - WHO Radio Wise Guys - July 18, 2015


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July 17, 2015

Business and Finance Business travelers are now taking more trips on Uber than via taxi
That's an analysis from an expense-management software company, so it's third-party data that may not be completely accurate for the universe at large, but it does signal the threat that ride-sharing poses to conventional taxicab services. There's no doubt they've failed to capture the opportunities that the Internet placed right in front of them.

Business and Finance Chinese company buys abandoned Spanish airport for $11,000
Bloomberg reports that the company "plans to turn the so-called ghost airport into a European hub for Chinese companies". China is literally buying beachheads in Europe. This will not be the last -- certainly not if China's economy is really slowing down as dramatically as it appears. A whole bunch of important signals say they're running out of places to invest internally -- and fast. And a reminder to Europe and others: Ownership matters. Once you give up ownership, you give up control. This is an immutable law of economic nature, and the consequences in the intermediate-term future are going to be huge.

Computers and the Internet Google may be starting to watch its spending a bit
The stock price took off by 16% after the company reported a nearly $4 billion profit in the second quarter of this year. They're still trying to break out of the confines of Internet search-related advertising, but the impression seems to be that the new CFO won't tolerate quite so much frivolous spending as took place in the past -- and that she's going to keep a closer eye on some of the company's "moon shot" investments.

Computers and the Internet What's said on the Internet still has consequences
Gawker took down a post under pressure this past week. The original story alleged that a media executive had texted an escort, and they took down the story because the public pressure "reflects a growing recognition that we all have secrets, and they are not all equally worthy of exposure", according to Gawker's founder, Nick Denton. This is the same Gawker that tastelessly manipulated a Coca-Cola promotion earlier this year. It's odd watching Internet wunderkinds realize they have to grow up.

Business and Finance Samsung manages to hold off US activist investor group
More control for the founding family over the large and eye-poppingly complex conglomerate



July 16, 2015

Science and Technology Audi plant takes wind power and turns it into synthetic methane
They use surplus electricity from wind to split water into oxygen and hydrogen. Then they take the hydrogen (H2) and extra carbon dioxide (CO2) and combine them to produce synthetic methane (CH4) -- which also makes the produced methane carbon-neutral. Finding ways to capture the excess energy captured by wind systems and making it available when demand requires is a huge step forward for the energy budget (since the wind blows at night but most energy is used during the day). And because gas-powered turbines are really good for load-balancing with wind energy in the electrical supply, it's a great way to use technology. Most new electrical generation in the US is coming from wind and natural gas.

Business and Finance What caused the October 2014 "flash crash"?
Automated trading was part of the problem, but not the whole thing

News IRS "taxpayer advocate" worries that migration to online services will put low-income users at higher risk of tax errors
Apparently, the IRS also has trouble answering the phone: Only 37% of the taxpayers who called the toll-free line actually got through. So there's a problem here: The online services obviously don't do enough since they're leaving people with questions that they feel the need to phone in, but then the IRS isn't answering the phone.

Business and Finance Copper prices are plunging
Production is still on the rise, but China -- which is consuming about half of the world's copper -- is slowing down, economically. And that slowdown is being reflected in demand for the metal.

Iowa Mediacom promotes "Xtream" Internet service in the Des Moines area
Download speeds for residential users up to 50 Mbps are promised, with "speed boost" options for up to 150 Mbps



July 15, 2015

Humor and Good News Kansas City Royals bench coach uses calligraphy to create beautiful lineup cards
He does it so players have nice keepsakes from big games. And he also does it to illustrate that getting the details right can matter. And there's no reason not to bring a little beauty to the world.

Aviation News NASA "New Horizons" spacecraft sends back photos of Pluto

More lab-grown organs are being produced
A set of cells were turned into a beating heart

Computers and the Internet Amazon still acts like profits don't matter
It's not a non-profit by definition, but it doesn't actively produce a lot of profits -- even after 20 years. That makes it hard for anyone to compete with them, and that may be the point. Amazon lost money in 2012, profited in 2013, and lost again in 2014.

Broadcasting Being a radio personality today is half about being Internet-savvy



July 14, 2015

Business and Finance Chicago imposes 9% "cloud tax"
If you pay to stream music or videos (in other words, if you subscribe to Netflix or pay for Pandora), you'll have to pay for it -- starting in September. If it sticks, get worried about a national Internet sales tax regime.

Computers and the Internet PayPal changes terms to permit autodialing to bug people with debts

Weather and Disasters The quake that will devastate Seattle

Humor and Good News Berkeley Breathed brings back "Bloom County"
The wonders of the Internet. Why worry about distribution when you can self-distribute and then sell collateral like books and plush dolls?

Agriculture Too much rain has messed with some farms in the Midwest
Lots of acres got too much rain and flooded -- and it's getting to be much too late to re-plant successfully to beat the freeze in winter before harvest