As folks recover from having filed their taxes, comes the news item in today's WSJ that close 90% of spreadsheets have errors in them leading to wrong results. According to the article: Close to 90% of spreadsheet documents contain errors, a 2008 analysis of multiple studies suggests. “Spreadsheets, even after careful development, contain errors in 1% or more of all formula cells,” writes Ray Panko, a professor of IT management at the University of Hawaii and an authority on bad s... [More]

We are bombarded by all kinds of news from seemingly infinite number of sources - ranging from world is going to end due to budget gridlock in the US to Euro crisis to emerging battle lines between Japan and China to follies of movie stars and so on and on. Amidst all these noise, really important news tend to get lost: one such gem is the announcement by Bill Gates and Michael Bloomberg: the two billionaires/philanathropists have joined forces to put out a plan to eradicate polio worldwide. Eff... [More]

From the truth is stranger than fiction dept, comes the news item in Washington Post today that says authorities have uncovered links between organized crime families and the renewable energy industry in Sicily, Italy. According to the article, about third of the wind and solar farms in Sicily - which happens to be the best locale for solar and wind in all of Italy and also, a major stronghold of Mafia - are controlled by Mafia families. Gives an entirely new meaning to renewable money launderin... [More]

When you see an article about energy efficient lighting in the main page of NYTime online, I think it's safe to assume that the product is ready to go mainstream. Today's NYT has a lead item on LED bulbs ready to take over as the replacement for incandescent bulbs and in the process, knocking out the CFLs. The main reasons are the prices have been dropping steadily due to increased marketing and higher awareness amongst consumers of the long life and power savings characteristics of the LEDs ove... [More]

Opening our local paper [aka The Washington Post] while imbibing a leisurely cup of java, I came across the Op-Ed piece that began thusly: “There is a Providence that protects idiots, drunkards, children and the United States of America.” There is no way to ignore a piece with such a heady lede. So, I had to read the whole piece and turns out there is a burgeoning trend in this great land of ours to fry a whole turkey for this national holiday - as to be expected, this trend is led ... [More]