If the rhetoric coming out of Caracas is an accurate indicator, Hugo Chavez may actually be at death’s door. Speaking to supporters outside of the chapel of the Military Hospital Carlos Arvelo after Friday’s mass, vice president Nicolas Maduro, who has been singled out by Chavez as the person he’d most like to succeed him, […]

According to the The Asahi Shimbun, Hideki Watanabe, a dentist from Tobe, Japan, invented the “Kurukuru nabe” (or ‘swirly pot’) to help cooks keep their hands free when preparing dinner. The pan has special groves that makes a small whirlpool when the water is heated, causing the contents inside to spin. Check out the video.While neat in […]

In Thursday’s budget announcement, Indian Finance Minister P. Chidambaram made an important but overlooked decision to begin upgrading the infrastructure of northeast India. “Combining the Look East policy and the interests of the northeastern states, I propose to seek the assistance of the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank to build roads in the northeastern States […]

As regular readers know, I’m teaching a class for aspiring young writers and thinkers at Bard this semester, and one of the exercises I’ve asked them to do involves using heroic couplets to write satires and expository essays. Looking at the way that writers like John Dryden and Alexander Pope were able to use the […]

The US is using less energy and emitting less carbon dioxide per dollar of GDP than ever before, according to the latest data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). This is not a short-term trend: America will continue to become more efficient through 2040.Energy intensity, or the amount of energy we use to create one dollar […]

Detroit is officially in a “State of Fiscal Emergency,” and the state is about to take control of the city’s finances. Governor Rick Snyder will soon name an emergency manager, who may have the city file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy. It would be the largest municipal bankruptcy in American history. The manager will have broad powers, […]

More bad news for Europe: the Netherlands will be joining the ranks of countries not abiding by the EU’s target of keeping budget deficits under 3 percent of GDP. Its deficit will come in at around 3.3 percent for 2013.European leaders, however, aren’t too worried, says the Financial Times: In principle, the European budget commissioner, […]

Marissa Mayer’s decision to end Yahoo!’s telecommuting policies has kicked up a decent controversy, with many criticizing her for instituting a change they see as especially hostile to working mothers. Into the fray steps Anne-Marie Slaughter, whose recent article “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All” was also much discussed. Writing for The Atlantic, Slaughter defends […]

India’s Finance Minister and potential PM candidate surprised many yesterday by releasing a budget with sharp increases in government spending. Before yesterday, P. Chidambaram was a darling of foreign investors for his commitment to reforming India’s sluggish economy. But by defying expectations for an austerity budget and choosing instead to increase spending by 16 percent […]

The city of Wukan, in southeast China, burst into rebellion last year, only to see its high hopes fade away. Villagers in Wukan were furious with the local Communist Party leaders, who were selling off large parcels of communal land to developers and pocketing the proceeds. Finally fed up, in late 2011 the villagers joined together in a large protest, […]