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Domain: wnyc.org
Stories and comments across the archive that link to wnyc.org.
Stories · 8
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NYC Asks Google Maps For Fewer Left Turns
An anonymous reader writes: Members of the New York City Council have sent a letter to Google asking that its Maps navigation system provide users an option to "reduce left turns." Pedestrian safety is the issue they're trying to improve. In the U.S., a quarter of all accidents involving pedestrians happen while a vehicle is making a left turn. "The first cause of death for New York City children under 13 is not gangs, it's not poverty, not violence. It's being hit by cars and trucks. This is the time for the city to reach out to the private sector, so they can help us to provide information to drivers about where you should avoid making left turns." The council members are also asking for an option that would let truckers stay on known truck routes, hoping that would prevent the problems that arise when big-rigs wander onto streets not large enough to safely accommodate them. -
Overheated Voting Machine Cast Its Own Votes
longacre writes in with the results of a report on voting machines that malfunctioned in NY during the 2010 mid-term elections. "Tests of a number of electronic voting machines that recorded shockingly high numbers of extra votes in the 2010 election show that overheating may have caused upwards of 30 percent of votes in some South Bronx voting precincts to go uncounted. WNYC first reported on the issue in December 2011, when it was found that tens of thousands of votes in the 2010 elections went uncounted because electronic voting machines counted more than one vote in a race. A review by the state Board of Election and the electronic voting machines’ manufacturer ES&S found that these 'over votes,' as they’re called, were due to a machine error. In the report issued by ES&S, when the machine used in the South Bronx overheated, ballots run during a test began coming back with errors." -
China Begins To Extend High Speed Rail Across Asia
MikeChino writes "Last year we learned that China planned to expand its high-speed rail network all the way to Europe and now the nation has launched the first step of the project with plans to extend tracks into northern Laos. The nation has also set goals of expanding the high-speed rail line into Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore." -
IBM High School To Churn Out IT Pros
theodp writes "This week, NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that the City University of New York and IBM are creating a computer science-focused school in the city that will span grades 9-14 (students leave with an associate's degree). Graduates who pass muster will reportedly be first in line for jobs at IBM. 'The idea is to create a new [educational] model for science, technology, engineering, and math — areas where companies are aggressively hiring,' explained IBM's Stanley Litow. 'If you look at hiring requirements, you won't see a huge amount of difference in a lot of entry-level IT jobs.' No word yet on the school colors or whether a uniform will be required. IBM is giving the city $250,000 to create the school, which might have looked pretty generous if that Zuckerberg kid hadn't upped the ante with his $100,000,000 donation." -
History of a Famous Star Wars Scream
An anonymous reader writes "There is a very famous scream in Star Wars (Episode IV) that occurs when one of the stormtroopers falls into the Death Star chasm. No doubt all geeks are familiar with this scream, but may not know that it has been used in dozens of other movies and even has a name - "The Wilhelm". There is a fascinating interview (transcript and audio) from NPRs "On The Media" that discusses the now cult-like following and history of this scream." -
History of a Famous Star Wars Scream
An anonymous reader writes "There is a very famous scream in Star Wars (Episode IV) that occurs when one of the stormtroopers falls into the Death Star chasm. No doubt all geeks are familiar with this scream, but may not know that it has been used in dozens of other movies and even has a name - "The Wilhelm". There is a fascinating interview (transcript and audio) from NPRs "On The Media" that discusses the now cult-like following and history of this scream." -
Dictionaraoke - Fair-Use meets Karaoke
stu42j writes "NPR's On the Media today interview's David Dixon from Dictionaraoke.com where 'A group of fair-use artists have created songs using the spoken pronunciation guides of words in online dictionaries. The result is an entertaining blend of computerized music and monotone singing.'" -
Star Wars Phantom Menace 1.1 Editor Speaks
guinnessy writes "Studio 360 interviews the person who carried out Phantom Edit 1.1. You can listen to the interview here if you have Real Audio. It's quite interesting and explains why he hated Jar Jar Binks so much and what he did."