News Cut: January 25, 2008 Archive

From tiny helmets...

Posted at 8:09 AM on January 25, 2008 by Bob Collins (0 Comments)

It's a goofy looking thing, but it sure pins the "what if?" meter.

Scientists in the UK are beginning tests of a helmet that will deliver infrared rays to Alzheimer's patients, under the theory that it might be possible to reverse the effects of the horrible disease.

Says the Alzheimer's Society...

A treatment that reverses the effects of dementia rather than just temporarily halting its symptoms could change the lives of the hundreds of thousands of people who live with this devastating condition.

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Scenes from the figure skating championships

Posted at 10:09 AM on January 25, 2008 by Bob Collins (5 Comments)

The figure skating championships are underway in St. Paul, bringing with it a grab bag full of traditions. One of these is throwing flowers and stuffed animals on the ice after a particularly moving performance.

MPR's Nikki Tundel is working on a story about the behind-the-scenes thrill of it all, and she sends along this picture of what somebody tossed on the ice after a performance the other day.

We can't figure out what the heck this is. Trash origami?

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Timewasters: Could you pass the U.S. citizenship test?

Posted at 1:00 PM on January 25, 2008 by Bob Collins (1 Comments)

These sorts of things are often tricky for citizens. The Boston Globe has a sample of the test given to immigrants who want to become citizens.

MSNBC has a more interactive version here. And there are 100 questions from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service here. However, new questions will be on the test this October.

Tomorrow afternoon, by the way, the Mall of America is hosting a naturalization ceremony.

Tangent time: Today a veteran of two tours of duty in Iraq was sworn in as a U.S. citizen. And in Canada, yesterday, the son of a World War II soldier and a war bride, who had his citizenship stripped from him by the 1947 Citizenship Act, and who labeled a bastard in the process, got his citizenship back.

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The week in news

Posted at 2:43 PM on January 25, 2008 by Bob Collins (3 Comments)

Listening and reading about the state of the newspaper industry these days is a lot like listening and reading about global warming: I wish things weren't so bad, but what exactly do you expect me -- an averge Joe -- to do about it that's going to make a difference before the last ice cap melts or dead-tree edition is printed? The more I learn about both, the more I am filled with hopelessness.

Here in Minnesota this week, the fires were stoked by the leaking of a memo from Star Tribune publisher Chris Harte to his staff, in which he announced the hiring of a consulting firm -- Restructuring Associates -- to fix what is clearly a basket case.

As a result of rapidly declining revenue - and expenses that haven't been cut anywhere nearly as fast - our operating cash flow has declined dramatically since 2000. Operating cash flow, which is the cash we have left after paying cash expenses, and which we then use to invest in everything from new equipment and computers to new products, and to pay our debt, has declined 50 percent in just the past two years and more than that since 2000.

Two former newspaper vets have been mostly responsible for analyzing the situation.

Brian Lambert, the former media critic of the Pioneer Press, the Rake and now Minneapolis - St. Paul magazine took a stab at some of the numbers:

Rumors continue to burble that Avista will attempt to unload its misbegotten Minnesota newspaper venture very soon, and a contract that effectively castrates its unions is viewed as critical to properly "staging" the place for a new buyer. More to the point, no buyer is going to pay anything close to $530 million they paid. If Avista were able to sell today for something in the low $300 million range, it'd be a miracle offer they would grab and cash before the buyer sobered up.

And David Brauer at MinnPost dug up what he could on Restructuring Associates (who, for the record, did not respond to my attempts for comment).

RAI doesn't turn cash-hungry owners into puppy dogs, but they can at least avoid misunderstandings and needless distrust. It's clear the Strib can use the help; Harte didn't bother to call in union leaders before announcing the RAI hire or the bombshell numbers.

Editorially, the Star Tribune tried to shift focus to a "hyper-local" newspaper, a philosophy that only put it in an even more competitive situation with its new-media rivals.

Of course, it isn't just the Star Tribune that's hemorrhaging, and it isn't just the Twin Cities that are heading for a one-newspaper-town status. Just in the last 24 hours, the Boston Globe seems poised for a big cutback, layoffs are underway at the Chicago Sun-Times, the situation in Philadelphia turned dire, and the week started with the Los Angeles Times firing its editor because he refused to make further cuts in journalism to satisfy the new owners.

Today, a Ball State professor is out with a study showing the reporters who are left are burned out and -- why this is news, I don't know -- cynical.

When the journalists were asked if they had intentions to leave newspaper journalism, 25.7 percent answered ‘yes’ and 36.2 percent answered ‘don’t know,’” the study states. “…Further examination reveals that 31 percent of young journalists (34 and younger) expressed intentions to leave the profession, and 43.5 percent answered ‘don’t know.’”

Former newspaper exec Alan Mutter got the reportorial hackles up a couple of days ago when he spoke up for the bosses...

Like Chris and Avista, Brian Tierney (plus his investors) and Tribune’s Sam Zell have put hundreds of millions of their own dollars at risk to try to save a few newspapers at the most perilous time in the history of the industry.

And there we are; lots of energy expended to tell us the glacier is melting, but a situation so dire that the average person can do little to reverse course. But what if the real story here is outside the newsrooms, nobody cares?

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Inflation hits Twins

Posted at 8:50 PM on January 25, 2008 by Bob Collins (0 Comments)

Inflation hit home in a couple of ways for the Twins on Friday.

Justin Morneau and Michael Cuddyer got big raises with their new long-term contracts.

And the price of the new Twins stadium went way up, according to Twins Sports President Jerry Bell, quoted in the Pioneer Press.

Bell won't say by how much the cost has increased, only that it's a "significant amount."

It's no surprise. Other recent ballpark projects have also gone over budget.

Roger Lewis, a stadium architect, wrote a primer in the Washington Post a few years ago to explain why these things happen once shovels hit dirt.

Field testing reveals unanticipated site conditions. Soil borings may disclose organic fill, clay, rock or groundwater. Undocumented utilities, structures or residual toxic chemicals may lurk below the surface. Hidden structural problems may be uncovered in buildings being renovated. Always expensive to remedy, unforeseen site problems may seriously delay a project and can blow the budget.

Which is what happened downtown. The ballpark site turned out to be Mississippi River bed and they had to drill farther.

Who pays? Bell says the Twins will increase their contribution rather than scale the project back. But Bell still wants to huddle with county officials before being specific.

Elements of the new Yankee Stadium project are also over budget. The Washington Nationals new stadium project is $43 million over budget.

Update Sat. 8:29 The explosion of building costs isn't affecting just stadium projects. The New York Times reports today...

Costs have jumped for projects as varied as levee construction in New Orleans, Everglades restoration in Florida and huge sewer system upgrades in Atlanta. The reconstruction of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis, a $234 million project, has been fast-tracked for completion by December, and state officials say it is too soon to know whether it will come in on budget.

The impact has been felt in different regions at different times, and not every project has been high-profile. In Oregon, high costs have forced the State Department of Transportation to slow the rate at which it upgrades roads and bridges. In Seattle, school building projects were put on a fast track this fall because of fears of cost overruns.

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