'American Chopper' Canceled
"Apparently, 'American Chopper' has been, well, chopped.
TMZ is reporting that TLC has canceled its popular reality series, which followed the comings and goings of the Orange County Choppers' bike shop, and will air its final episode this Thursday, Feb. 11.
"The Teutuls will always be a part of the Discovery family and we congratulate them on a tremendously successful series run," a rep for the the network said."
(AOL)
February 8, 2010
It's A Very Demanding Occupation . . . . .
A taste for cigarettes
40 percent of workers in culinary arts smoke, nearly twice the national average
"Culinary students standing outside and smoking cigarettes are such a common sight on Downtown's Liberty Avenue that they're practically a city landmark.
Dressed in their kitchen whites, the Le Cordon Bleu students stand out among the other smokers in business or casual garb who cluster outdoors on their breaks. They're also a vivid and troubling symbol of an industry where smoking has long been accepted.
Forty percent of the people employed in the food and beverage industry smoke -- nearly twice the national average, according to the 2000 U.S. census numbers.
"Hospitality workers have three times the [average] risk of lung cancer, which is 50 percent higher than any other industry," said Stacy Kriedeman, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
These health disparities helped motivate Pennsylvania's September 2008 ban on smoking in most restaurants and bars as well as other businesses and public places. Numerous cities and states have enacted similar bans, although they vary in scope and often contain exemptions."
(EaterLA)
40 percent of workers in culinary arts smoke, nearly twice the national average
"Culinary students standing outside and smoking cigarettes are such a common sight on Downtown's Liberty Avenue that they're practically a city landmark.
Dressed in their kitchen whites, the Le Cordon Bleu students stand out among the other smokers in business or casual garb who cluster outdoors on their breaks. They're also a vivid and troubling symbol of an industry where smoking has long been accepted.
Forty percent of the people employed in the food and beverage industry smoke -- nearly twice the national average, according to the 2000 U.S. census numbers.
"Hospitality workers have three times the [average] risk of lung cancer, which is 50 percent higher than any other industry," said Stacy Kriedeman, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
These health disparities helped motivate Pennsylvania's September 2008 ban on smoking in most restaurants and bars as well as other businesses and public places. Numerous cities and states have enacted similar bans, although they vary in scope and often contain exemptions."
(EaterLA)
1969 Was A Historical Year For Automobiles Also . . . . .
Did The Nissan 240Z Forever Change The Way You Think About Japanese Cars?
"July 20, 1969 should ring a bell. It's the day Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin failed to notice the alien mind-control machine embedded in the Moon's Sea of Tranquility that, for the previous few years, had been beaming subversive thoughts directly into the brain of Nissan USA's president, Yutaka Katayama.
Up to then Nissan, a much smaller company than it is today, had dabbled with fast-lane fare but was notable mostly for producing some of the world's least interesting family runabouts and pick-ups. So when, in '69, it launched a car as similar to every previous Nissan as a shark is to an inflatable rubber duck, it might as well have landed from another planet. In Japan it was called the Fairlady Z, proving that Nissan's flair for giving cars inappropriate names had also hit a new high. But for its prime market, the US, and the rest of the world it was renamed the Datsun
240Z and, almost overnight, it changed the way we think about Japanese cars forever."
(AutoSpies)
"July 20, 1969 should ring a bell. It's the day Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin failed to notice the alien mind-control machine embedded in the Moon's Sea of Tranquility that, for the previous few years, had been beaming subversive thoughts directly into the brain of Nissan USA's president, Yutaka Katayama.
Up to then Nissan, a much smaller company than it is today, had dabbled with fast-lane fare but was notable mostly for producing some of the world's least interesting family runabouts and pick-ups. So when, in '69, it launched a car as similar to every previous Nissan as a shark is to an inflatable rubber duck, it might as well have landed from another planet. In Japan it was called the Fairlady Z, proving that Nissan's flair for giving cars inappropriate names had also hit a new high. But for its prime market, the US, and the rest of the world it was renamed the Datsun
240Z and, almost overnight, it changed the way we think about Japanese cars forever."
(AutoSpies)
I Can Think Of Several More Things I Would Like These Ladies To Protest . . . . .
Four topless women storm into Ukrainian polling station in eye-popping protest
"Four topless women barged into a Ukrainian polling station on Sunday as the country voted to elect a new president.
The eye-popping protest came just before Viktor Yanukovich showed up to vote in Kiev.
The women wore nothing except for jeans and strips of green electrical tape over their nipples and said they were protesting "the end of democracy" in Ukraine.
Early results had the pro-Russian Yanukovich leading Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko."
(NYDailyNews)
"Four topless women barged into a Ukrainian polling station on Sunday as the country voted to elect a new president.
The eye-popping protest came just before Viktor Yanukovich showed up to vote in Kiev.
The women wore nothing except for jeans and strips of green electrical tape over their nipples and said they were protesting "the end of democracy" in Ukraine.
Early results had the pro-Russian Yanukovich leading Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko."
(NYDailyNews)
My SAT Score Wasn't Anywhere Close To The National Average . . . . .
Do colleges redline Asian-Americans?
"Princeton sociologist Thomas Espenshade, who reviewed data from 10 elite colleges, writes in “No Longer Separate, Not Yet Equal’’ that Asian applicants typically need an extra 140 points to compete with white students. In fact, according to Princeton lecturer Russell Nieli, there may be an “Asian ceiling’’ at Princeton, a number above which the admissions office refuses to venture.
Emily Aronson, a Princeton spokeswoman, insists “the university does not admit students in categories. In the admission process, no particular factor is assigned a fixed weight and there is no formula for weighing the various aspects of the application.’’
A few years ago, however, when I worked as a reader for Yale’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions, it became immediately clear to me that Asians - who constitute 5 percent of the US population - faced an uphill slog. They tended to get excellent scores, take advantage of AP offerings, and shine in extracurricular activities. Frequently, they also had hard-knock stories: families that had immigrated to America under difficult circumstances, parents working as kitchen assistants and store clerks, and households in which no English was spoken.
But would Yale be willing to make 50 percent of its freshman class Asian? Probably not."
(Boston)
"Princeton sociologist Thomas Espenshade, who reviewed data from 10 elite colleges, writes in “No Longer Separate, Not Yet Equal’’ that Asian applicants typically need an extra 140 points to compete with white students. In fact, according to Princeton lecturer Russell Nieli, there may be an “Asian ceiling’’ at Princeton, a number above which the admissions office refuses to venture.
Emily Aronson, a Princeton spokeswoman, insists “the university does not admit students in categories. In the admission process, no particular factor is assigned a fixed weight and there is no formula for weighing the various aspects of the application.’’
A few years ago, however, when I worked as a reader for Yale’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions, it became immediately clear to me that Asians - who constitute 5 percent of the US population - faced an uphill slog. They tended to get excellent scores, take advantage of AP offerings, and shine in extracurricular activities. Frequently, they also had hard-knock stories: families that had immigrated to America under difficult circumstances, parents working as kitchen assistants and store clerks, and households in which no English was spoken.
But would Yale be willing to make 50 percent of its freshman class Asian? Probably not."
(Boston)
This Must Be Some Superior Stuff After Aging So Long . . . . .
Explorer's Whiskey Found Buried Near South Pole
"Feb. 6) -- It's probably the most sought-after scotch in history – crates of whiskey buried in Antarctica by the famed explorer Ernest Shackleton a century ago. He abandoned them on a failed attempt to reach the South Pole in 1909, and they've been on ice – literally – ever since.
Researchers from New Zealand found the crates while restoring a hut Shackleton built and used during the expedition. He and his team were forced to cut short the trip and abandon supplies, including their booze, to sail away before winter ice trapped them there.
The New Zealand team first spotted two crates underneath the hut's floorboards in 2006, but they were too deeply embedded in ice to be salvaged. Researchers returned to the site this past week, and finally extracted the crates after drilling into the ice around them. The surprise was that there were three more crates than expected – one more of whiskey and two of brandy.
The second trip was backed by the same Scottish company that distilled Shackleton's whiskey, Mackinlay's Rare Old Scotch. It could be the longest booze run in history. The Whyte and Mackay distillery hopes to replicate the whiskey, which hasn't been made in a lifetime after the original recipe was lost."
(AOL)
"Feb. 6) -- It's probably the most sought-after scotch in history – crates of whiskey buried in Antarctica by the famed explorer Ernest Shackleton a century ago. He abandoned them on a failed attempt to reach the South Pole in 1909, and they've been on ice – literally – ever since.
Researchers from New Zealand found the crates while restoring a hut Shackleton built and used during the expedition. He and his team were forced to cut short the trip and abandon supplies, including their booze, to sail away before winter ice trapped them there.
The New Zealand team first spotted two crates underneath the hut's floorboards in 2006, but they were too deeply embedded in ice to be salvaged. Researchers returned to the site this past week, and finally extracted the crates after drilling into the ice around them. The surprise was that there were three more crates than expected – one more of whiskey and two of brandy.
The second trip was backed by the same Scottish company that distilled Shackleton's whiskey, Mackinlay's Rare Old Scotch. It could be the longest booze run in history. The Whyte and Mackay distillery hopes to replicate the whiskey, which hasn't been made in a lifetime after the original recipe was lost."
(AOL)
You've Must Have Done Something Seriously Stupid To Get Banned By A Nation . . . . .
15 Bands That Got Banned
Jay-Z
Country in Question: China
Guilty of: Vulgar lyrics, deem the furrowed brows of the Politburo in Beijing, having given the rapper's lyrics the once-over before his planned Shanghai show in 2006. The Ministry of Culture pronounced his rhymes too offensive for the tender ears of the People's Republic's youth. Any band planning to play the country has to provide lyrics so that officials can make sure nothing too inflammatory gets played. That's a little more compromising than a Parental Advisory sticker.
Miley Cyrus
Country in Question: China
Guilty of: In 2009, Cyrus, caught making a slanted eyes pose, caused an Internet storm and The Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the People's Republic of China to forbid the 'Hannah Montana' star from entering the country. All broadcasts of her TV show, films and the sale of her merchandise were also halted, whilst Cyrus issued a fervent apology, saying, "I have learned a valuable lesson from this and know that sometimes my actions can be unintentionally hurtful."
Complete list here (AOL)
Jay-Z
Country in Question: China
Guilty of: Vulgar lyrics, deem the furrowed brows of the Politburo in Beijing, having given the rapper's lyrics the once-over before his planned Shanghai show in 2006. The Ministry of Culture pronounced his rhymes too offensive for the tender ears of the People's Republic's youth. Any band planning to play the country has to provide lyrics so that officials can make sure nothing too inflammatory gets played. That's a little more compromising than a Parental Advisory sticker.
Miley Cyrus
Country in Question: China
Guilty of: In 2009, Cyrus, caught making a slanted eyes pose, caused an Internet storm and The Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the People's Republic of China to forbid the 'Hannah Montana' star from entering the country. All broadcasts of her TV show, films and the sale of her merchandise were also halted, whilst Cyrus issued a fervent apology, saying, "I have learned a valuable lesson from this and know that sometimes my actions can be unintentionally hurtful."
Complete list here (AOL)
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