state of the union
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Biden announces second round of free COVID tests
Households that already received their four free tests will be eligible to receive four more.
Obama pledges to 'protect a free and open internet,' tackle climate change
Leading up to the State of the Union, President Barack Obama criss-crossed the nation offering proposals on everything from free college, to cybersecurity and consumer privacy. But the president kept the details of these plans to a minimum during his address. Instead he used his pulpit to lay out a broader agenda, one that includes preserving Net Neutrality, combating global warming, promoting education and entrepreneurship.
President Obama recognizes Apple during State of the Union address
During tonight's State of the Union address, US President Barack Obama gave a specific shout out to Apple, and indirectly to CEO Tim Cook, who is attending the speech. The President cited Apple's plans to bring production of one of its Mac product lines back to the U.S. Cook was previously announced as one of Michelle Obama's guests for the State of the Union address. Follow this link to see the spot in the speech where Obama recognizes Apple. It's also embedded below at the 24:10 mark.
Bridgelux silicon LED could mean bright future for solid state lighting
While Democrats and Republicans squabble over the future of the incandescent light bulb, a Livermore-based company has produced an LED that they claim could lead to brighter, more affordable solid state lighting. By growing gallium nitride on low-cost silicon wafers, as opposed to the typical sapphire and silicon carbide substrates, the company has achieved an output of 135lm/W (lumens per watt) with a color correlated temperature of 4730K-- brighter than any affordable LED lighting solution we've ever seen. Of course, this isn't the first time efficacy of this level has been achieved, and we've yet to see a practical application, but if Bridgelux's numbers are right, this could mean a 75 percent cut in LED production costs. The company expects the technology to make its way to real world lights in the next two to three years -- perhaps by then the furor over pigtail light bulbs will have settled a bit. Enlightening PR after the break.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: the power plant you can ski, and NASA's orbiting Nanosail-D
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. This week we saw new horizons dawn for green transportation as NASA's Nanosail-D became the first solar sail spacecraft to orbit the earth and President Obama issued a call for one million electric vehicles in his State of the Union Address. We also test drove the recently released electric Mini Cooper and took a look at several transportation breakthroughs that could clean up car emissions - researchers have developed an air pollution-fighting road treatment and Cella Energy claims to have created an emission free gas that costs $1.50 per gallon. In other news, this week Qatar showcased designs for 9 sustainable stadiums for the 2022 World Cup and BIG unveiled plans for a plant-wrapped waste to power plant that doubles as a ski slope. Super cities are on the rise in Asia as China announced plans to construct a mega-city the size of Switzerland and SOM unveiled a masterplan for a cutting-edge green tech city for Hanoi. On the other hand, Dubai's architecture of excess is fading fast as a report revealed that the emirate's world-shaped archipelago of islands is sinking into the sea. We also showcased the latest in portable tech as we brought you a brilliant Fire Department iPhone app that stands to save lives, and we rounded up our five favorite phone-charging green gadgets. And if you're looking for a case to carry it all in, check out these chic quilted iPad bags - just the thing to keep your kit cozy and protected during this month's blizzards.
White House releases official app for free
The White House (as in, the home of the American President Barack Obama) has introduced a brand new iPhone app, according to White House blogger Dave Cole. The app is a one-stop shop for everything there is to know about what the president's up to, including blog posts, a newsroom, photos, videos, and even live feeds from various events, including speeches and even press room briefings. It's actually pretty darn impressive -- obviously you're only going to get official White House news, but if you want uncut video of the goings on over there, you've got it. The app is a free download [iTunes link], and in my short hands-on with it, it worked very well -- the updates come often, the video is crisp and clean, and while I didn't get to view any of the live feeds, I presume they'll work just fine over a solid 3G or Wi-Fi connection. If you want direct access to official White House news, this app is perfect. [via Engadget]
The State of the Xbox 360 Fanboy Union
Last week US President Bush had his State of the Union, this week us fanboys get ours. Chris over at eToychest posted the official State of the Xbox 360 Fanboy Union which recaps the highs and lows of 2006 as well as where we are headed in 2007. This year we have some hurdles to jump, heavy competition to face, and fanboys to deal with. But most importantly we have a community, a strong community that will make the 360 even more successful in 2007. It's your duty as an Xbox 360 fanboy to read the State of the Union address and be resilient against the challenges that are ahead. Madam speaker ...[Thanks, Chuck]
George W. in high-def next week
If you had plans to watch any network television next Tuesday at 9 p.m., you might want to record something now. Of course, the State of the Union address is a key time for the President to communicate directly to the public. Like last year, the big speech will be in high-def and even in Surround Sound for you political audiophiles. You gotta love hearing comments under Democrats people's breath thanks to Surround Sound.At the moment, only ABC is indicating that the prez will be in HD with their 720p feed, but other networks could follow. Aside from the importance of good speech-writing, we're wondering if the Presidential make-up aide is doing anything different due to the details of HD.
