Huh? Dengue is very much a human disease. Mosquitoes are a vector, that is to say a species which can spread the virus among a population of another species. I'm not sure about this specific virus, but there are many cases (especially among plant viruses) where insects can act as a vector for a virus without their cells actually being infected (for example, virus particles can be present in the saliva or stylet of an insect and can be passed to another host much in the same way that sharing unsterilized needles can spread infection). Then again, since this virus is persistent (meaning that it can be passed on from one mosquito to its offspring), I suspect that it can also infect cells in the mosquito body. Whether this virus actually causes disease in an infected mosquito (for example, producing outwardly visible symptoms or reducing the individual's fitness) I'm not exactly sure, but it is possible for a virus to infect the cells of a host and not produce actual disease symptoms.

And yes, IAAB (biologist), and I do have some virology training.

He said son, not child. He could be a 34-year old basement dweller for all we know.

Well then you wouldn't exactly be a subscriber, would you?

Ever wonder why most magazines cost $5-9 at a newsstand, but you can often get a year's subscription to the same magazine for $2-4 per issue? Hint: they're not just making money off of the subscription. The types of magazines a person is interested in can tell marketers quite a bit about their interests, and there's good money to be made in consumer profiling.

Fixed that for you.

We know who always wins these cases, and it's not always the plaintiff or defendant...

Indeed. My blender and trash bin are now both "certified for Windows Vista".

The statue crown was closed after 9/11, and IIRC was just reopened this year. They only allow 240 visitors a day, and tickets sell out early in the morning. The pedestal was closed from 9/11 to 2004. Liberty Island itself only closed for a few months at the end of 2001, but it definitely is open to tourists now (I've seen the lines myself).

You're doing it wrong.

Every desktop operating system I've used in the last few years has a very usable system for opening items with the keyboard. Most of them are indexed and are not just for opening programs, but folders and files as well. On my Ubuntu system, if I wanted to open Firefox it went something like, "alt-f2, firefox.bin, enter" (it's been a while so I may have the syntax slightly wrong). On my OS X machine, I type "command-space, f, i, enter" to launch via spotlight. That's only 5 keys to type and I can do so in much less time than it takes to minimize a window and double click on a desktop icon. On Windows 7 I just hit the "windows" key and start typing.

It works for folders and files too. If I want to open my pictures folder on OS X, a quick "command-space, p, i, c, enter" does the trick.

It bugs me to no end to see a desktop used as a "junk drawer" type storage for everything from old program installers to important files. I'm not sure what my aversion is, but maybe it's because I've come to associate cluttered desktops with clueless computer users. That, and most operating systems preconfigure home folders with folders for organization... there are places to put downloads, documents, images, etc that makes them easier to manage.

An old boss of mine used to have no less than 80 icons on his desktop, everything from OEM crapware shortcuts to plain text files for storing passwords. The icons just barely squeezed onto his 15" laptop screen, and to keep them all straight he would painstakingly arrange them in meaningful order... then as soon as he hooked the laptop to a projector (which changed his screen resolution) the icons would all rearrange themselves. It frustrated him to no end until I suggested that he use folders to organize groups of related files: one file for manuscripts, one file for drafts, one file for reference material, one folder for pictures. He still insisted on keeping the folders on the desktop, but it was a start.

Exactly. I live near the "small town" in question and since the cameras went up I've significantly reduced the amount of money I've spent at nearby businesses. When given the opportunity, I also make sure to let people know that this is the reason I avoid the area.

By the way, the summary is a bit sensationalist with the way it presents the numbers. Despite what those who live in Farragut would like others to think, it is in no way a small town but is a quite busy suburb of Knoxville. There are many large shopping centers there and some of the cameras are installed at the ends of on/off ramps for a major interstate (I-40/75). I don't doubt that a large number of those 3,878 citations were issued to travelers who stopped over for a break from the highway.

I pulled up a few random videos and text mode only seems to be enabled for a select few.

The summary looks fine to me, so obviously the filter is not working.

Whoops... posting to undo mod.

I swear that trailing slash wasn't there when I hit preview. The actual link should be: http://www.wherigo.com/about.aspx

One of the most interesting GPS games I've seen in a while is Wherigo, which was developed by the same folks who run geocaching.com (disclaimer: I'm a prominent geocacher). It's an interactive location based game that works by way of "cartridges" that can be downloaded to certain GPS receivers and smart phones. Possibilities include simple tours of parks or historic areas, interactive games that require you to visit certain spots to unlock other locations, or complex lifesize mazes or whack-a-mole style games that can be played anywhere and are often physically challenging.

Sadly the game hasn't really taken off yet, probably because of a lack of compatible devices (there is no iPhone app yet) or because of the learning curve required to create new cartridges. However, it has much untapped possibility. I've played through a few cartridges that were essentially tours of obscure but fascinating sites in city parks, and had alot of fun in the process.

GPS is nothing new in phones, but sadly end-user access to GPS functionality is still being hindered by many phone manufacturers. My current phone ( a G'zOne) has a GPS receiver, but it's only useful for E911 purposes unless I buy an extra subscription for some sort of mapping service. Even then I still couldn't use the phone as a basic GPS receiver due to software limitations.

All problems? Good luck using that tape to cover the microphone...