A Wall Street Journal article about products to kill bad breath quotes UM professor emeritus Walter Loesche, who says that saliva sniff tests are a better way to judge the effectiveness of various mouthwashes (rather than, for example, a halimeter). [Source]
Michigan Messenger – a “center for independent media” – debuts its new site design with a post by editor Todd Spencer. He gives a shout out to UM communications lecturer Tony Collings, citing him as “our journalism mentor” and someone who helps “hold Michigan Messenger together.” “Tony is a veteran of CNN, Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal and the Associated Press and whom you might know as the guy who drives all over Ann Arbor at 25 mph to save on gas,” Spencer writes. [Source]
Jason of Eleven Warriors, a blog devoted to Ohio State football, writes about watching a Michigan football practice on the Big Ten Network. “It was the first time I’d ever seen the facilities in Ann Arbor and my first impression was that it looks like they practice near a barn by an airport. And a municipal airport at that.” And, he reports, “They have tackling dummies with the Buckeye logo on them.” [Source]
Jason of Eleven Warriors, a blog devoted to Ohio State football, writes about watching a Michigan football practice on the Big Ten Network. “It was the first time I’d ever seen the facilities in Ann Arbor and my first impression was that it looks like they practice near a barn by an airport. And a municipal airport at that.” And, he reports, “They have tackling dummies with the Buckeye logo on them.” [Source]
On the LapBandTalk forum, a Saline attorney describes her struggles with weight and her experiences with lap band surgery. [Source]
The blog Sasthamcotta.com highlights the Thinkers 50 list, a “definitive guide to who is the most influential living management thinker.” UM business prof C.K. Prahalad, who specializes in corporate strategy, tops the list. No. 2 is Bill Gates. [Source]
The blog Sasthamcotta.com highlights the Thinkers 50 list, a “definitive guide to who is the most influential living management thinker.” UM business prof C.K. Prahalad, who specializes in corporate strategy, tops the list. No. 2 is Bill Gates. [Source]
Carrie’s Nation, a blog kept by a self-described suburban Detroit housewife and moderate Republican, skewers yesterday’s Detroit News article about the lack of tech workers, and comes down hard on one of the sources, Jeff Walter of Latitude Consulting in Saline. “I could immediately tell from Jeff’s little bio that, based on his previous employment, he should know as well as anybody the challenges that tech workers face. (Or maybe not. His background indicates that he’s a ‘visionary’ rather than a ‘tech worker’.)” [Source]
The Mother Proof blog picks up on research by the Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center: “There is no nice way to say this, so I’m just going to throw it out there: Odds are, your car and your child-safety seats are releasing toxic chemicals into the air you breathe through a process called ‘off-gassing.’” The post quotes Jeff Gearhart, EC’s research director, who gives some tips for making your car less toxic. [Source]
Brouhaha Ann Arbor buries the lead on this post/review of Eve restaurant. “Chef/owner Eve Arnoff’s lease at Kerrytown is a question mark, and I asked Pep if she’d heard more lately. ‘I hear she’s moving to Chicago by Christmas.’” [Source]
Lana Hawkins of the Mom Pays for College blog talks about student turnover at UM, and what it’s like to clean out a rental where 10 boys lived. “When I opened the refrigerators, it smelled like dead things were in there. Every food item had turned to a liquid goo. Disgusting.” [Source]
Kurt gives a Heritage Festival wrap-up on the Prospect Park Neighborhood Association blog. [Source]
On the Recording Industry vs. The People blog, Ray Beckerman writes: “That pesky University of Michigan “John Doe” student, known only as “Case number 162983070″, who filed a complaint against MediaSentry with Michigan’s Department of Labor and Economic Growth, has now filed a followup letter responding to MediaSentry’s March 17th response to the DLEG investigation, pointing out some of its inconsistencies and misstatements.” He provides a link to the letter. [Source]
Kathy Toth is one of several local real estate agents who keep a blog about goings-on in the community. Today, her post on Ann Arbor Talks looks at farmers markets in the area, and includes a video interview with Molly Notarianni, manager of the Ann Arbor Farmers Market. [Source]
NewScientist.com publishes a brief report about a group of UM researchers who are developing “nanothrusters” to be used on spacecraft. Brian Gilchrist, a UM engineering prof, is leading the effort. [Source]
Detroit News art critic (and Ann Arbor resident) Michael Hodges reports on UM graduate Stephen Mills’ senior design project: A “shelter on wheels for homeless people” called the Homeless Utility Vehicle, or HUV. Here’s what Deb Pippins, a local social worker, says about it: “The HUV may be a Band-Aid on a broken social-service system, but it’s a useful Band-Aid and could save people’s lives in the middle of winter.” [Source]
Jeff Walter, president of Latitude Consulting Group in Saline, is interviewed for a Detroit News article about the state’s shortage of tech workers. “We’ve got so much business coming in that we’re starting to use offshore companies, not because it’s cheaper but because we need people.” [Source]
An article in Crain’s Detroit Business looks at how local companies and institutions are capitalizing on the military funding of robots. UM is establishing the Ground Robotics Research Center, for example, and Ann Arbor-based Quantum Signal has gotten research dollars to develop face recognition software, among other things. [Source]
A Boston Globe article about the UMass-Amherst moniker notes that “The University of Michigan disdains any humbling hyphenated reference to Ann Arbor.” [Source]
“It’s loud, but it’s not Led Zeppelin. We’ve never been shut down, but been banished to a basement once.” That’s what Bill Harmer of the Chelsea District Library tells the Nashua Telegraph for an article about having rock bands play in libraries. He was referring to The High Strung, which has a gig this week at the Amherst Town Library. According to the article, Hammer has been instrumental in changing the “traditionally strict and stuffy library image by performing in libraries across the country.” [Source]
Peggy Agar of Channel 7 Action News reports on the sighting of a black bear near Manchester, which was reported by other media last week. The best part of this report is a recording of a 911 call made by someone who saw the bear. The 911 dispatcher asks if the caller is sure it was a bear. “Yes ma’am,” he says. “I ain’t been drinking, neither.” [Source]
Someone posted a video of the Aug. 15 Ann Arbor Punk Week Zombie Walk 2008. It’s not pretty. [Source]
Go Blue Michigan Wolverine (which features a countdown clock to the kickoff of the first UM game) posts: “This is the time of year where we start getting a little pessimistic when hearing reports on how practice is going.” [Source]
NPR’s Weekend Edition airs a short bit of color on Ann Arbor’s reaction to Michael Phelps. Michigan Radio’s Tracy Samilton interviews patrons at The Arena on Friday as they watched one of his gold medal performances. [Source]
ESPN runs an article looking at how people in Ann Arbor have responded to the Michael Phelps phenom. Most interviews are done at local bars and eateries: The Arena, Casey’s Tavern, The Prickly Pear (a favorite due in part to its proximity to Phelps’ Ashley Mews condo). The article also captures this quote from Ann Arbor resident Michael DiRamio, which likely represents a common view: “I didn’t even know he lived here until this week.” [Source]
An editorial in the Livingston Daily Press & Argus takes a critical view of the proposed rail line between Howell and Ann Arbor, dubbed WALLY. The editorial calls a similar project in Nashville a flop. “What if, instead of a train, the proposal was to buy 1,300 cars at $25,000 apiece and give them to low-income residents so they had access to transportation?” [Source]
The Toledo Blade, in reporting on a rise veterans’ stress disorders, notes that the Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor Medical Center saw a 37.1 percent jump in the number of veterans seeking mental health treatment last year. [Source]
An article in the Springfield, Mo. News-Leader quotes UM researcher Terry Kowalenko, who says that health care workers don’t report much of the violent behavior they encounter from patients, figuring “it goes with the territory.” The article is a follow-up to the death of a hospital security guard in that area who was kicked by an aggressive patient earlier this month. [Source]
An op/ed piece in the Lexington Herald-Leader advocates for a regional effort to reduce that area’s carbon footprint. It cites several examples of other places that are making similar efforts, including Ann Arbor. “In Michigan, the Ann Arbor City Council has set vigorous energy and environmental goals: 30 percent renewable energy for municipal operations by 2010 and 20 percent for the whole community by 2015, and a 20 percent reduction in global warming emissions, from 2000 levels, by 2015.” [Source]
U.S. Auction Info posts a report about the upcoming sale of a rare Caille Venus quarter slot machine with music, which will be auctioned at the Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds in October. Estimated value: about $250,000. [Source]
