News release: “[June 29, 2011] U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer (D-NY), Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) and Susan Collins (R-ME) announced the Senates passage of bipartisan legislation to clear the backlog of stalled executive nominations by permanently exempting a range of positions from Senate confirmation. The legislation, which passed 79 to 20, will reduce gridlock and increase the productivity of the Senate. The legislation now moves to the House of Representatives, where it is expected to pass. Once enacted into law, the bill would eliminate the need for the Senate to vote on roughly 170 executive nominations and 3,000 noncontroversial Officer Corps positions. In all, the bill, combined with a separate Senate resolution that was also expected to pass today, reduces or streamlines the number of positions requiring full Senate confirmation by one-third…A list of positions exempted from Senate confirmationsorted by the Senate committee of jurisdictionappears in this release.”
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Daily Archives: July 3, 2011
Commentary – final launch of space shuttle brings to an end the dreams of Apollo era
The Economist: “If the weather holds and there are no unforeseen complications, then early in the morning on July 8th a woman and three men will ascend the launch tower at Floridas Kennedy Space Centre, strap themselves into Atlantis, the last operational space shuttle, and, as the engines ignite, wait for the countdown to reach… Continue Reading
New Study: How Does Slack Influence Inflation?
News release: “The Federal Reserve Bank of New York released How Does Slack Influence Inflation?, the latest article in its series Current Issues in Economics and Finance. In a statistical analysis, authors Richard Peach, Robert Rich and Anna Cororaton find support for the hypothesis that the level of resource utilization in an economy must cross… Continue Reading
Food Packaging and Bisphenol A and Bis(2-Ethyhexyl) Phthalate Exposure: Findings from a Dietary Intervention
Rudel RA, Gray JM, Engel CL, Rawsthorne TW, Dodson RE, Ackerman JM, et al. 2011. Food Packaging and Bisphenol A and Bis(2-Ethyhexyl) Phthalate Exposure: Findings from a Dietary Intervention. Environ Health Perspect 119:914-920. doi:10.1289/ehp.1003170 “Background: Bisphenol A (BPA) and bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) are high-production-volume chemicals used in plastics and resins for food packaging. They have… Continue Reading
CDC – Preparedness 101: Zombie Apocalypse
“So what do you need to do before zombies or hurricanes or pandemics for example, actually happen? First of all, you should have an emergency kit in your house. This includes things like water, food, and other supplies to get you through the first couple of days before you can locate a zombie-free refugee camp (or… Continue Reading
New Research – Mobile Phones, Brain Tumours and the Interphone Study: Where Are We Now?
Follow up to previous postings on cell phones and radiation levels, a new study – Mobile Phones, Brain Tumours and the Interphone Study: Where Are We Now? “Conclusions: Although there remains some uncertainty, the trend in the accumulating evidence is increasingly against the hypothesis that mobile phone use can cause brain tumours in adults.” Continue Reading
Obama Administration Releases June Housing Scorecard
News release: “The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury released the The Obama Administrations E fforts To Stabilize the Housing Market and Help American Homeowners, June 2011, the Obama Administration’s Housing Scorecard a comprehensive report on the nations housing market. The latest housing data offer… Continue Reading
