Interestingly, the entire electric grid is developing NDR, and that is a big problem for power companies. In the old days, if there was too much demand for electricity, or if transformers were overheating, the power company could reduce the voltage (a "brown-out") and the current would fall. But with more and more switching power supplies in electronics and fluorescent lights, that doesn't work as well anymore. The switching power supply in your computer and CFLs will compensate for reduced voltage by increasing the duration of the "on" phase of the switch, thus drawing additional current, the opposite of normal resistance.

Just because the weapons where (allegedly) used, does not mean that Assad signed off on them. It is possible that the decision was made by an overly aggressive local commander, or even some individual soldiers about to be overrun.

Obama declared the use of gas to be a "red line", but has already backed away from that declaration. I don't think anyone any longer believes that the use of chemical weapons in Syria is any more of a "trip-wire" than the coup-that-is-not-a-coup in Egypt. It is unlikely that Europe is going to go in without American involvement, and America has decided that flexible ambiguity is more important than credibility.

Reality. There is plenty of data available. Food aid is negatively correlated with future hunger and poor economic growth. It depresses local food prices, discourages investment in agriculture, and strengthens the authority of centralized and corrupt governments. Internet and cellphone access is strongly correlated with economic progress and government reform.

Even health care aid often does less good that many realize. Vaccinations are very cost effective. Other health care aid, not so much. When charities build health clinics, the clinics need electricity and clean water. So wells are dug, and generators installed. The clean water and electricity is usually made available to the community as well. But on occasion the charities run out of money after installing the well and electricity. These communities experience almost the same improvement as communities with clinics. So it is not the (expensive) clinics that provide the bulk of the benefit, but the (relatively cheaper) infrastructure that they bring along with them.

Except that the newspapers are censored and the schoolhouses are run by the government.

You don't need the internet to understand the need, but you do need people-to-people communication to make it happen. Cellphones have had an enormous effect in Africa, both economically and politically. They allow common people to bypass government controlled cartels, banks, and media. They also allow citizens to hang around polling places and immediately upload photos of anyone intimidating voters or tampering with the ballot boxes. Nothing in history has done more to ensure clean elections than that little blinking LED on a cellphone.

Because it is demonstrably false, and only posted to elicit a reaction. Thus it is flamebait.

BG's charity is NOT set up to produce dependency. He is not giving away food, he is trying to cure diseases, improve literacy, etc. If polio or malaria is eradicated, it is gone, and there is no ongoing dependency. Improved literacy makes people less dependent on charity. Etc.

The dependency cycle is a big problem with government-to-government aid (mostly food handouts and military aid). It is rarely a problem with the type of bottom-up aid that BG is doing.

If people's lives are improved, the motivation doesn't matter. If anything, selfish motivations are better because they are more scalable and sustainable.

Except those basics are often unavailable because of a lack of good government, and good government almost never happens without an informed population.

Unless you can provide a citation (which I doubt you can), I will stick with "no officer ever".

Indeed. No police officer has ever been disciplined, or even reprimanded, for abusing license plate photo data. So the chief's assurances mean zilch.

Maybe he realizes that when liberals/greens try to solve government abuse of power by giving more power to government, they are not helping the situation.

Germany is one of the cloudiest places on the planet. Solar is a lot more cost effective in sunny places where it actually makes sense.

Two problems:
1. It creates a perverse incentive to execute more people.
2. It creates a negative stigma for organ donors.
Getting people to volunteer as organ donors, or even as blood donors, is a big problem in China. Volunteerism is not part of their culture, and giving up part of your body is considered a desecration. Even in America, Asian-Americans, and Chinese in particular, donate organs, and donate blood, at very low rates.
I donate blood every eight weeks, and my Chinese wife always objects. She insists that I am shortening my life, even though there is plenty of evidence that blood donations are actually good for you.

Nepal is not paying for the flights, nor is it paying for supplies. Those are paid for by the UN. Rich countries bend over to make it attractive for poor countries to send peacekeepers, because they don't want the expense or political blowback from committing their own troops. This is a win-win. Rich countries save money and men, while poor countries earn money that they desperately need.

If there is not enough info to reproduce the bug, then they should email the submitter and ask for more info. They should never just ignore the report.

Relevant xkcd

None of these have the same "network effects" as a social network. I don't care if my friends and I use different search engines, or smartphones. You know what does have a network effect? Auctions. Buyers want lots of sellers and sellers want lots of buyers, so ebay's domination of auctions has grown stronger and stronger. Facebook is not another Yahoo!, it is another ebay.