More adults are using weed in the states that legalized, but teen use is flat

More adults are using weed in Washington and Colorado, but the kids are still alright. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) It's Christmas for drug policy data nerds! In late December to little fanfare -- not so much as a tweet! -- the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released state-level numbers from the most recent National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The national-level data from this study, released back in September, showed that drug and alcohol use rates among all Americans is essentially flat, while teen use is actually trending downward. These figures were borne out by more recent 2014 numbers from the federal government's other major drug study, the Monitoring the Future survey. The new state-level numbers paint a more nuanced picture of drug use in the U.S. I'm going to focus on marijuana for today's post, since that's where most of the action's happening at the policy level. The first big takeaway? Colorado and Washington -- the states voting to legalize weed in 2012 -- saw big spikes in their overall marijuana use rates in 2012 and 2013. For the state-level numbers, SAMSHA combines two years of data to ensure an adequate sample size. So, for instance, 2013 on the chart above actually reflects 2012 AND 2013. I've highlighted Colorado and Washington, as well as the U.S. total. You can mouseover the other lines to see rates in the other states. The first important thing to point out is that since these numbers only go through 2013, they only reflect the period when Washington and Colorado had legalized the possession of weed, but had not yet set up their fully taxed and regulated marijuana markets -- that didn't happen until this past year. So in this context, the spike in use is even more noteworthy than it would be otherwise -- we can probably expect rates to climb even higher when the data reflect the effects of a fully legal marketplace. On the other hand, plenty of other states saw their use rates climb by significant amounts too. Maine. Georgia. Maryland. Missouri. So Colorado and Washington are by no means alone in seeing increased marijuana use. It's also significant that despite dramatic warnings from the attorneys general of Oklahoma and Nebraska, pot use in those states is basically flat over this period -- so at least from these numbers it's premature to claim that Colorado's weed is


This season’s flu activity has reached the epidemic threshold, the CDC says

so far a "typical pattern for the flu season." Pediatric death tolls from previous outbreaks range from 35 to 171 deaths per season from influenza-related causes since 2004. That is, every year with the exception of 2009, when the annual flu season reached pandemic levels. During that season, 348 children died of influenza-related causes. Centers for Disease Control and prevention "It is a bit early to make any kind of characterization about pediatric deaths this season," Erin Burns,a health communications specialist with the Influenza Division at the CDC said in an e-mail, "but from looking at the curve going back to 2011-2012, it doesn't seem like anything unusual is happening." However, the agency cautioned, pediatric death data "typically lag behind" other measures for a season's severity. That doesn't mean that health officials aren't particularly worried about this flu season, even as assessments of the overall scope of this year's influenza epidemic will have to wait, experts say. For one thing, the dominant version of the virus this year is H3N2 - which tends to lead to harder-hitting flu seasons. "H3N2 predominant seasons tend to have more hospitalizations and more deaths," CDC director Thomas Frieden warned in early December. There's an even bigger potential problem: "the most concerning thing about the flu season this year there is a mismatch between the predominant strain that is circulating and what was put in the vaccine," Trish Perl, the head of the Johns Hopkins Medicine Office of Epidemiology and Infection Prevention told The Post. The vaccines distributed this year have limited effectiveness against some "drifted" (i.e. antigenically different ) H3N2 viruses present in this year's outbreak. A "drift" is a problem for the effectiveness of vaccines, albeit one not quite as devastating as an abrupt "antigenic shift," which leaves much of the population without an immunity to the new form of the virus. Such a "shift" preceded the 2009 pandemic, for example. Drifts happen each year, and vaccine makers must respond to them season to season. But the timing of this year's "drift" was particularly poor. As we explained earlier in December, this year's "drift" in the H3N2 viruses wasn't detected until March, too late to make it into this year's batch of vaccines. Although the vaccines will still provide some protection against those drifted strains, "it's clearly not complete protection," Perl added, noting that "we could see a lot more illness because we


The best Washington, D.C. weather photos of 2014

Ambrose) The Tidal Basin in summer, June 25, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) Lightning lights up the sky around the Lincoln Memorial late in the evening on July 2. (Ian Livingston) Forked lightning over the National Mall September 7. (Ian Livingston) The moon with lightning over the Tidal Basin and Jefferson Memorial on September 7. (Kevin Ambrose) Rainbows A double rainbow cherishes its 15 minutes of fame over D.C. on July 8, 2014 (Ian Livingston A double rainbow over the Washington Monument reflects on the Reflecting Pool, July 8, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) Aerial of the rainbow in Annapolis, August 20, 2014 (@midatlantic aerial on Twitter) Great Falls The Potomac River at Great Falls appears to steam in single digit temperatures, January 8, 2014. This was a 10 second exposure taken about 15 minutes before sunrise. (Kevin Ambrose) The Potomac River is above flood stage at Great Falls, May 17, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) Great Falls on October 22 (Kevin Ambrose) Fall foliage Boulder Bridge in Rock Creek Park on November 2. (Ian Livingston) Photo from early November show near peak color at the Tidal Basin. (Kevin Ambrose) Fairfax, Va. October 31 (Bruce Sorrell via Flickr) Browns and yellows were the dominant color across the Shenandoah on October 29. (Cortez Austin via Flickr) October 29. Washington, D.C. (Daniel Reidel via Facebook) October 24. (Paul Sirajuddin via Flickr) Shenandoah hills on October 21 (Navin Sarma via Flickr) Fog Fog rises above the Occoquan river at sunset in mid-January (Jim Knapp via Flickr) Clouds, hills and growing fall color around Linden, Va. on October 16. (Steve Gass via Flickr) Lincoln reflection in fog, December 23. (Kevin Wolf via Flickr) Partial solar eclipse Centreville, Va. looking west, October 23 (Jeff Gamble via Flickr) Sunsets Sunset over D.C. on MLK Jr. holiday (Richard Barnhill via Flickr) Post snow sunset at the Tidal Basin on March 3. (Ian Livingston) U Street Corridor September 7 (Clif Burns via Flickr) Sunset September 23, 2014 (Angela N via Flickr) Blood red lunar eclipse October 8, 2014 (Caroline Angelo via Flickr) October 8, 2014 (Kevin Ambrose) The moon Supermoon over the capitol on August 10. (Ian Livingston) Supermoon at National Harbor, July 12 (Cynthia James via Flickr) Supermoon view from National Airport, July 12 (Joseph Gruber via Flickr) Crescent moon rising over D.C. on April 26, 2014. (jimknapp via Flickr) The waxing gibbous moon on January 12, 2014. (Jim Knapp via Flickr)


St. John’s crew teammates will attempt to row a marathon on New Year’s Day

Fionn Hembruff, far left, and James Cahill, second from left, will attempt to row the equivalent of a marathon on ergometers. (Photo courtesy of the Petrizzo family) Many high school students spend New Year’s Day recovering from the previous night’s revelry. James Cahill and Fionn Hembruff will spend the first day of 2015 putting their bodies through an arduous physical challenge that even they admit is tough to fathom. Cahill and Hembruff, both members of the St. John’s crew team, will use indoor rowing machines to row 42,164 meters — the equivalent of a marathon. “I know we can do it,” Cahill said, “but the distance is gross to think about.” The long-distance idea started when St. John’s Coach Madison Riley challenged his team to train extensively during the break between the fall and winter seasons. He created an online spreadsheet that his team uses to record how many meters they row on the indoor machines, commonly called ergometers, each day. “It is a fun way to get everyone training,” Riley said. “It’s both intended to create a fun atmosphere and competition.” The idea for a marathon began as a joke. “We kind of made jokes like, ‘Oh what if we went for a marathon? That will show [Riley]’” Cahill said. Hembruff and Cahill, both of whom want to row collegiately, trained individually for the last few weeks, and when they were able to keep increasing their distances, the marathon idea became a serious goal. “We just talked about a marathon and decided to it,” Hembruff said. Cahill and Hembruff will set up two ergometers next to each other in the basketball gym at St. John’s on Thursday. One assistant coach will be present to monitor them for the nearly three hours they expect to be rowing. “I’m nervous but I think we can do it,” Hembruff said. “We’re not going to be racing or seeing how fast we can get it done. We’re just going to try and finish it. As long as we can keep it up the whole time, it’s a success.” The longest distance Cahill has rowed thus far has been six miles short of Thursday’s expected length. “You hit mile 20 and it’s really bad,” Cahill said. “I’m nervous for getting off the machine and feeling awful.” Fellow St. John’s teammates were surprised when they caught wind of the idea. None are asking to join


2014: The year we entered a cyberpunk present

or teenagers out to cause damage for fun, it shows how the data that is now so easy to hoard can be turned into a massive liability for companies and individuals. Even if the Sony Pictures hack wasn't state sponsored, 2014 revealed more information about the ways countries are moving warfare and espionage online. In November, new details emerged about Regin, a malware platform that the Intercept reported was likely linked to a U.S. and British intelligence operations. Governments themselves were often the target of attacks, many of which were suspected to be the work of hackers tied to other governments. Even White House networks were not immune to a wave of attacks this fall. And revelations have continued to emerge about the U.S. government's digital spying efforts, including a trove of declassified reports dropped by the National Security Agency on Christmas Eve that detailed how improperly deployed surveillance compromised the privacy of some Americans in recent years. For some, state surveillance may be a price they are willing to pay for added security -- although many observers said the evidence that U.S. domestic surveillance has averted significant harm is slim and comes at a significant civil liberties cost -- not unlike some of the darker science fiction tales of heavily monitored futures. But governments aren't the only ones leveraging our heavily interconnected for their own purposes -- trollish hacker groups like Lizard Squad, which has claimed responsibility for Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks that knocked gaming networks offline on Christmas Day and earlier in the year by overwhelming them with huge amounts of traffic, are demonstrating the kind of disruptions that can be done by groups that seem to exist merely on social media and in online chatrooms. These ephemeral cabals can cause significant harm to industries with a handful of keystrokes to direct cyberattacks or a Tweeted bomb threat, perhaps serving a harbinger of the asymmetrical digital future of vigilantism. While technology has undoubtedly, as Asimov predicted, changed our lives for the better, it has also created new risks and challenges -- many of which society is struggling to face. No doubt cybersecurity defenders will try to up the ante in 2015, but this year was marked by significant incidents that underscored the added dangers our interconnectivity brings. In fact, it may be remembered as the year where our cyberpunk future started to become our cyberpunk present.


Happy Hour Open Thread

Enjoy.


Street Smart: What to do in Purcellville

You may want to have a good cure for the hiccups — and a designated driver — before venturing into Purcellville, Va.: The bucolic town, 50 miles west of Washington in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, is full of wineries, breweries and an organic distillery. But if booze is not your thing, there’s easy access to the scenic Washington & Old Dominion bike trail for cyclists. Courtesy of Sunset Hills Vineyard Sunset Hills Vineyard Aim to arrive at this sprawling vineyard in time for sundown when - as the name implies - you can catch dazzling views from the stone pavilion. Also stunning is the lofty, 8,000-square-foot tasting barn built in 1870 and restored in 2006. There you can sample a half-dozen varieties of vino, as well as Amish cheeses, farm breads and mulled wine for the season. The property is 100 percent solar-powered and hosts live music on the weekends. Adriot Theory Brewing Co. Photo by Holley Simmons Adroit Theory Brewing Co. Thai noodle soup. Caramel macchiato. Garam masala. These are acceptable flavors for beer, according to Adroit Theory Brewing Co. The experimental brewery and tasting room produces one-and-done batches of esoteric brews. "We don't make beers for the masses," says manager Dan Segall. The brewery has produced two to three new beers a week since opening in January. Catoctin Creek Distilling Company. Photo by Holley Simmons Catoctin Creek Distilling Company Last year, Becky and Scott Harris moved their certified organic distillery from a 2,000-square-foot warehouse to a 6,000-square-foot facility (a Buick dealership in the 1920s). Now more than 10,000 visitors a year witness the production of gin, white whiskey and - their flagship product - rye whiskey aged in charred Minnesota white oak barrels. "About 60 percent of the flavoring comes from the barrels," Becky says. There's a 30-minute tour ($5) and a tasting room ($5-$10). Market Burger Fries & Shakes. Photo by Holley Simmons Market Burger Fries Shakes Chef Jason Lage sources the lettuce for his burgers from a farm just two miles down the road. But you come for the juicy, all-natural angus beef patties. Lage can tell you the name of every grower and farmer whose produce is served at the burger joint, which is housed in a former candy shop. "You're supposed to eat things that are in season and grown close to you," Lage says. "It's nothing new." LoCo Joe. Photo


Another Misbegotten Reliance on Gonzales v. Raich

Writing in the Wall Street Journal (paywall), David Rivkin and Elizabeth Price Foley offer their defense of the lawsuit brought by Nebraska and Oklahoma seeking to enjoin the operation of Colorado’s new legalization of recreational marijuana. Ilya Somin, Jonathan Adler and I have been highly skeptical of the merits of this lawsuit under existing doctrine. Although Rivkin and Price Foley’s column is lengthy and impassioned, I remain unconvinced. Let me explain why. They write: Many conservatives have criticized Nebraska and Oklahoma for being “fair-weather federalists” because their claims hinge, in part, on Gonzales v. Raich, a 2005 Supreme Court decision, upholding the broad reach of Congress’s power to regulate commerce. No, I criticized the lawsuit for misreading the Raich case far more broadly than what it actually held. Raich held that California’s medical marijuana laws did not immunize citizens from federal prosecution for violating the federal Controlled Substances Act. It said not one word about the Controlled Substances Act preempting California’s medical marijuana regulations, which remain in effect and operating to this day. Rivkin and Price Foley accurately summarize the Court’s decision in Raich this way (my emphasis): The Raich majority refused to create a CSA “exemption” for medicinal marijuana, reasoning that “a nationwide exemption for the vast quantity of marijuana . . . locally cultivated for personal use . . . may have a substantial impact on the interstate market for this extraordinarily popular substance.” It concluded that the CSA was a valid exercise of the congressional power to regulate interstate commerce and that “marijuana possession and cultivation ‘ in accordance with state law’ cannot serve to place respondents’ activities beyond congressional reach.” Yes, for better or worse, this is what Raich held. Nothing in this summary addresses the question of whether California’s regulatory scheme was thereby preempted by the CSA and there is good reason to doubt such a claim. Rivkin and Price Foley make a telling concession in a single important sentence: “States cannot be required to enforce federal law.” This is the key. States cannot be compelled by Congress to use their legislative powers to outlaw activity. Such “commandeering” was ruled unconstitutional in New York v. United States even where Congress is exercising its Commerce Clause powers. What Rivkin and Price Foley are implicitly conceding is that states are entirely free to “legalize” or decriminalize all drug offences entirely. Put another way, they cannot be compelled


North Korea and the knowledge problem

our uncertainty about that? These questions, too, are going to be a prominent feature of the new landscape. The US government thus far has said: we are convinced, on the basis of the data we have, that the North Korean government is responsible. Here’s the FBI statement: As a result of our investigation, and in close collaboration with other U.S. government departments and agencies, the FBI now has enough information to conclude that the North Korean government is responsible for these actions. While the need to protect sensitive sources and methods precludes us from sharing all of this information, our conclusion is based, in part, on the following: Technical analysis of the data deletion malware used in this attack revealed links to other malware that the FBI knows North Korean actors previously developed. For example, there were similarities in specific lines of code, encryption algorithms, data deletion methods, and compromised networks. The FBI also observed significant overlap between the infrastructure used in this attack and other malicious cyber activity the U.S. government has previously linked directly to North Korea. For example, the FBI discovered that several Internet protocol (IP) addresses associated with known North Korean infrastructure communicated with IP addresses that were hardcoded into the data deletion malware used in this attack. Separately, the tools used in the SPE attack have similarities to a cyber attack in March of last year against South Korean banks and media outlets, which was carried out by North Korea. We are deeply concerned about the destructive nature of this attack on a private sector entity and the ordinary citizens who worked there. . . . [T]he destructive nature of this attack, coupled with its coercive nature, sets it apart. North Korea’s actions were intended to inflict significant harm on a U.S. business and suppress the right of American citizens to express themselves. Such acts of intimidation fall outside the bounds of acceptable state behavior. The FBI takes seriously any attempt—whether through cyber-enabled means, threats of violence, or otherwise—to undermine the economic and social prosperity of our citizens. That’s not good enough – just knowing that the FBI is convinced does not convince me, and until they’ve released enough of the data so that people who know more about this sort of thing than I do outside of and independent of the government can look it over and give us all a sense of just


The monarch butterfly might end up on the endangered species list this year

the world's most established monarch butterfly expert, Lincoln Brower. Brower has been tracking the species for decades. In an interview with the Washington Post earlier this year, Brower said that the "most catastrophic thing from the point of view of the monarch butterfly has been the expansion of crops that are planted on an unbelievably wide scale throughout the Midwest and have been genetically manipulated to be resistant to the powerful herbicide Roundup." Brower also mentioned two additional negative factors on the butterflies' population: severe weather over the past few years, and illegal deforestation in the overwintering habitat for the adult butterflies in Mexico. Their habitat, the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, is protected, but still threatened by illegal loggers. The satellite imagery at right gives a good visual representation of the continued erosion of the habitat. If the monarchs go extinct, Brower said, it would be "just like going into a museum and pulling a rare painting off the wall and destroying it." In the petition to protect the monarch, its advocates write that the monarch "has played a unique and prominent role in the imagination of our country, especially so for an insect." Among other things, the petition reads, "millions of school children have reared monarchs in classrooms and learned about metamorphosis by watching the caterpillars transform." It is also the official state butterfly of at least seven U.S. states. It will take the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services a year to review the petition for the monarch's inclusion on the endangered species list. The first step of that process is a 60-day information gathering process. Among other things, the agency will look for information on the butterflies' population trends, habitat requirements and genetics; its current distribution patterns; the monarch's "microclimate requirements;" and past and current conservation measures, the announcement says. Once that review is completed, one of three things will happen: the agency might determine that protection is "not warranted" in the monarch's case. Or, if the data supports protection, the agency could propose protection under the Endangered Species Act. A third option places the species on a sort of waiting list, referred to by the agency as "warranted but precluded," meaning that officials will continue to evaluate the petition on a yearly basis. Read more: Their ability to migrate may hinge on a single gene 10 things in nature that could disappear before your kids see them


In Russia, the political impact of social media varies by platform

information on opponents and cut off the flow of information between activists. In a recently published article at the British Journal of Political Science, we use survey data from the December 2011 parliamentary elections in Russia to examine one aspect of this debate. Specifically, we look at how usage of different social networks affected users’ awareness of electoral fraud in those elections. That question is important because the mass protests that broke out after those elections, the largest in Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union, were organized primarily in response to allegations of fraud. Hence, belief in electoral fraud was an important determinant of protest participation. Our findings indicate that the ownership structure of social media sites matters greatly. Controlling for a range of possible confounding factors, we find that users of Western networks like Facebook and Twitter were more likely than non-users to believe that there was significant electoral fraud during the elections. And yet, users of VKontakte and Odnoklassniki — Russian-owned social networks that each have four times more users in Russia than Facebook does (in 2011, only 5 percent of Russians were on Facebook) — were no more likely than non-users to believe that fraud had taken place. The reason for this discrepancy, we argue, is that opposition activists politicized Facebook and Twitter with accounts of electoral fraud, but refrained from doing the same on domestic networks, which were more vulnerable infiltration by the regime. Russia is one of a small, but important, group of countries — China and Iran being two others — where domestic social networks still draw more users than Facebook. In these countries, we suspect that the effect of online social media on regime change may be muted. After all, when nondemocratic governments have leverage over the content and structure of social networks, users lose the ability to access independent points of view and learn about government malfeasance. Not only is information sharing monitored and potentially blocked, but democracy activists avoid networks connected with government authorities for fear of reprisals. The story of VKontakte, Russia’s largest social network, illustrates this point well. Following the 2011 elections, pressure mounted on VKontakte to limit opposition activity on the site. The authorities were especially concerned about activities related to protest coordination. The company’s founder, Pavel Durov, was reportedly questioned by the FSB (Russia’s internal security service) over opposition activity on his site. Accusations again


The year in cheap eating: The best of the $20 Diner

from Washington's trendy dining neighborhoods. Take a look at my Top 7 spots from 2014: 7. Namaste near Alexandria. The strip-center outlet serves a variety of Indian and Indo-Chinese plates, but Namaste's raison d'etre is its Nepali cooking, a cuisine informed by the cultures surrounding this mountainous country while still retaining an ineffable Himalayan quirkiness. Pancit palabok at Manila Mart offers so many pleasures, your palate won't know which way to turn. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post) 6. Manila Mart in Beltsville. This microscopic, family-run eatery, located in the back of a market, delves deeply into the umami-rich, shrimp-heavy soul of Filipino cuisine. Consider it a training ground for those waiting for the trendy Bad Saint to open. Vegetarian thaali at Indigo. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post) 5. Indigo near NoMa. The sensory bombardment inside this neighborhood shop can make you feel as if your Twitter feed has come alive. But the family-run restaurant offers home-style Indian dishes, many infused with the radiant aromatics of Punjabi cooking, as calming counterpoints. Pollo con tajadas at El Catrachito: The Honduran version of chicken and waffles. (Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post) 4. El Catrachito in Wheaton: The tiny operation, housed in a former diner, specializes in Honduran cuisine and its inverted, minor-key variations on Latino cooking in the Americas. Unagidon at Donburi: barbecued eel served with sliced onions and a soft-cooked egg with donburi sauce. (Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post) 3. Donburi in Adams Morgan. Seungjoon Jang, a Korean native who fell hard for Nippon cooking while working at Japanese restaurants, understands the deceptive simplicity of his signature rice bowls: They combine the precision of sushi with the comforts of ramen. DCity’s co-owner Robert Sonderman, the best pitmaster working in the District. (Amanda Voisard/For the Washington Post) 2. DCity Smokehouse on Florida Avenue NW. Robert Sonderman is a formally trained chef who knows how to infuse the smoky, two-fisted thrills of pit barbecue with the refinement (and consistency) of restaurant cuisine. He produces the best 'cue in the District, period. The tacos at Taqueria Habanero arrive on warm, soft tortillas made in-house. (Astrid Riecken/For The Washington Post) 1. Taqueria Habanero on 14th Street NW. In a matter of days, this no-frills taqueria went from a quiet Latino hangout to a destination for local chefs and urban food scouts. The menu is so small (and so good) that some diners just order the whole thing. Honorable mentions


Thomas Keller learns to never read the comments after posting about French Laundry’s wine theft on Facebook

Thomas Keller provides a demonstration on preparing and cooking corn inside The Washington Post corporate kitchen in 2010. (Marvin Joseph /The Washington Post) I know, I know. “Area Human is Sort of Mean on the Internet” is a well-documented trend, but here we are, on the verge of a new year, and it’s happening again. This time, you can see it play out on Thomas Keller’s Facebook page, where the chef has posted about a recent theft at The French Laundry, his well-known California restaurant. I’m no food critic (my favorite food is mashed potatoes; my second-favorite food is grilled cheese; my dream food is some combo of grilled cheese and mashed potatoes), but I can still tell you that The French Laundry is legit. So legit, in fact, that the chef’s tasting menu includes a word that I had to Google. Here’s how the L.A. Times describes it: The French Laundry, which just celebrated its 20th birthday this summer, is acknowledged to be one of the greatest restaurants in the world. It’s one of only 13 in the United States that have earned three stars from the Michelin restaurant guide. Another is its East Coast sibling, Per Se. So, obviously, it was a blow to Keller, The French Laundry, and fans of fine dining everywhere when thieves hit the Yountville restaurant on Christmas Day, reportedly making off with wines worth at least $300,000. (!!!!!!!) On Christmas day @_TFL_ was the victim of a robbery. Specific wines of specific value were stolen: DRC & Screaming Eagle (1/3) We have complete trust in the authorities leading the investigation & welcome any information our community may have (2/3) We are confident that if/when any stolen bottles appear in public they will immediately raise red flags. Email: media@tkrg.com w/info (3/3) “The French Laundry wine program is, as many of you know, singular and distinct,” read Keller’s Facebook post on the incident. “We look forward to rebuilding our cellar in the meantime and plan to get to the bottom of this disheartening act immediately.” Post The reaction to that post was … mixed? I’ll go with mixed. I mean, some people did seem genuinely bummed and sympathetic. Others — not so much. Here’s a sample, with the names crossed out, because I’m cutting people some slack: (Screenshot/Facebook) (Screenshot/Facebook) (Screenshot/Facebook) (Screenshot/Facebook) (Screenshot/Facebook) Yikes. Feel free to make up for this by being super nice in


D.C. area forecast: The New Year gets off to a sunny start, but a wet weekend lurks

TODAY’S DAILY DIGIT 6/10: EXPRESS FORECAST Today: FORECAST IN DETAIL Satellite: Latest regional satellite shows movement of clouds over the past two hours. Sitting inside watching parades and football or just vegging in general may require interruption for a stroll as today gets 2015 off to a very nice start. The same can not be said for the weekend as an approaching storm promises frequent showers on Saturday and Sunday. This storm starts off cold with a slight chance for sleet to mix in early Saturday and could end warm enough Sunday to set off a thundershower. Hopefully, it clears in time to view the rising full Wolf Moon Sunday evening and give us something to howl about! Today (New Year’s Day): Tonight: For related traffic news, check out Dr. Gridlock. Keep reading for the forecast through the weekend… Tomorrow (Friday): Tomorrow night: The final sunset of 2014. (Richard Barnhill via Flickr) A LOOK AHEAD Saturday Strong southerly breezes on Sunday push temperatures up briskly. If there are some breaks in the clouds and showers then lower 60s are not out of the question. Even if the showers win out (80% chance) highs at least reach upper 50s. The potent cold front approaching the region could even pop up a thundershower or two in the late afternoon. Strong, gusty northwest winds push out the showers and push in the colder air overnight with lows in the 30s. Confidence: Medium Monday SNOW POTENTIAL INDEX 2/10 (→):


How Timberland used customer data to reboot its brand

brand had become stale in many ways, and the focus wasn’t there,” said Stewart Whitney, Timberland’s president. In the past year, though, Timberland has staged an impressive turnaround, with sales surging 15 percent in the most recent quarter even as the broader retail industry has posted only modest growth. Its sales have improved in every global market and every product category, delivering a fatter profit margin — about 13 percent in 2014, up from 8 percent in 2011. Timberland has revamped everything from its product design to marketing to merchandising strategies. And data science provided the fuel and the framework for each of its changes. The company says that the cornerstone of the comeback has been a two-year customer study in which it collected data from 18,000 people across eight countries. In analyzing the trove of responses, Timberland was able to diagnose its problems and to zero in on its ideal customer — an urban dweller with a casual interest in the outdoors. “Research wasn’t a driving factor as much in the previous 20 years,” said Jim Davey, vice president of global marketing. “It was kind of a product-driven organization.” This data-driven approach was implemented after the family-run business was bought in 2011 by VF Corp., an $11 billion apparel company based in Greensboro, N.C., that has undertaken a similar analysis at other brands, including the North Face and Vans. Timberland “could’ve followed the many brands that floundered in this changing retail environment, but if you look at all of their strategies holistically, they’re all developed with a steadfast focus on the consumer and innovation,” said Shilpa Rosenberry, senior director of consumer strategy and innovation at Daymon, a retail consultancy. Timberland’s switch to a consumer-data-driven approach reflects a broader change in an industry where the power dynamics between retailer and customer have shifted to favor the shopper. Unprecedented access to pricing information and product reviews on the Web has made for smarter, more-informed buyers, and retailers are more focused than ever on catering to their high expectations. By letting consumers lead the way, Timberland has rebooted its brand. The ‘outdoor lifestyler’ A Timberland ad from 2011. (Courtesy of Timberland) Timberland’s transformation is evident the moment you set foot in its small-town New Hampshire headquarters, thanks to a two-story-high art display in the lobby that shows off some of its print ads over the years. Early ones emphasize the brand’s commitment


The man who invented Priceline.com wants to shake up America’s approach to patents

R? I myself have companies where we are looking in many cases to license other people's R&D and that's often very hard to find. The patent database is millions and millions of claims and tens of millions of pages of spec. It's especially difficult the way the patents are written by lawyers to understand what the claims cover or don't cover. We have been on both sides of this equation. Everybody's busy talking about the problem with patents in America, but there is a way bigger problem when it comes to licensing and getting these inventions into the economy. We have spent trillions of dollars inventing things and 95 to 98 percent of all patents have yet to make their first dollar of licensing revenue, and it's not because 95 percent of patents aren't useful or valuable, it's simply because the licensing system is driven by the lawyers as opposed to driven by the business people. I want to unpack this question about patent quality for a second. They're not terribly important. They're a sideshow in the larger issue here, in my opinion. I'm not the best person to speak about how to reform how claim language should be written, or how plain English might be better served than legalese in claim structures or in spec. I think that's just arguing over table scraps in the much bigger issue here, which is we need to figure out how to get the millions of inventions that are sitting on the sidelines, frozen out, into the U.S. economy. That's not a patent quality question. Explain to me in more detail how your system would work. So here's how it's going to work. We're going to form a utility, which works as a neutral party for both inventors of technology and users of technology. And what we're going to say to people who have patents of their own: You can list those patents for free in a catalog, like ASCAP, and you still own them, it's not a pool. You're saying, "I have patents I would be willing to license for a relatively small amount of money without having a fight or lawsuit about it." So you would be listing your patents as available for use. Without having a licensing negotiation, you would agree, "I would make certain of my patents available for no-fault licensing." So the first thing we're going to do


The Hotlist: January 2015

National Holiday calendar is so overstuffed that even popcorn, the most humble of snacks, gets its own day on January 19. While some people might fire up a pan of Jiffy Pop and be done with it, we prefer to experience the more gourmet side of freshly popped kernels, such as the Old Bay-covered popcorn on the bar menu at DC Harvest, or the rich truffle-oil-and-paprika version on Commissary's happy hour menu. And while we've raved about the pinball machines at Lyman's Tavern, the popcorn popper that sits on the bar can be as much of an attraction, especially when your free snack comes covered in the house-made Sriracha butter. JAN. 19-25: METROPOLITAN WASHINGTON RESTAURANT WEEK Grilled squid at Fiola Mare, one of the many restaurants participating in D.C. Restaurant Week. (Joseph Victor Stefanchik for The Washington Post) Consider this your official reminder to book tables now for the winter edition of Restaurant Week, if you're into that kind of thing. Not everyone is, keep in mind: Many of the most popular restaurants in town decline to participate in the annual prix-fixe blitz. Some diners opt to avoid the limited menus and harried service that typify the biannual promotion. But most can't resist the lure of $20.15 three-course lunches and $35.13 three-course dinners offered at more than 200 restaurants around town. Visit www.ramw.org for a full list of participating restaurants. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) JAN. 21: WIZARDS VS. OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER In any other season, a Verizon Center visit by Kevin Durant and the Thunder would lead to endless conversation about the D.C. native's chances of someday playing for his hometown team. But Washington, led by All-Star point guard John Wall, is playing some of the best basketball in the Eastern Conference. That shifts the focus, making this game a prime -- and nationally televised -- opportunity for the Wizards to test themselves against one of the best in the West. Verizon Center, 601 F St. NW (Metro: Gallery Place). 202-628-3200. www.washingtonwizards.com. $24-$275. JAN. 24: POLAR BEAR PLUNGE (Photo by Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post) There's nothing hot about the annual Polar Bear Plunge, which challenges brave folks to sprint into the icy waters of the Chesapeake Bay for charity. Anyone who's daring enough can take the plunge after raising $75 in pledges, which will benefit Special Olympics Maryland. Sandy Point State Park, 1100 E. College Pkwy., Annapolis. 410-242-1515. www.plungemd.org.


For the first time since 2007, the economy wasn’t the top issue for Americans last year

Americans, according to Gallup. Instead, the government topped the list of the most important problems facing the country, narrowly edging out the economy and unemployment as areas of concern. The concern here represented the escalating unhappiness people have with government leaders (including President Obama and congressional figures), politicians and our political culture in general. Yet it also represents the fact that no single issue seemed to capture our hearts, minds and anxiety in 2014, at least not in the same way such issues have in the past. This really isn’t all that surprising. In years past, the top issues were pretty much exactly what you would have guessed. From 2004 to 2007, Iraq was the top issue as the war raged on, descended into sectarian chaos and became wildly unpopular. In 2008 and 2009, as the economy crumbled into dust and nothingness, it was listed as the top issue by two out of five Americans. That came at a time when an incredible number of Americans were out of work, which meant that either you or someone you knew was feeling the pain of the downtown. The economy didn’t budge from the top of the list through the end of 2013, when it was listed as the biggest concern for one in five Americans: Gallup produces these numbers by averaging out the results of its monthly telephone surveys. These same surveys showed how American attention fluctuated this year, pinballing from issue to issue throughout the year. This was exemplified by how race went from being the top concern of just 1 percent of Americans over the summer to the biggest issue named by 13 percent last month. As a surge of unaccompanied children began crossing from Mexico into Texas, immigration became the top issue for about 17 percent of Americans, more than double the number who listed it as the biggest problem over the entire year. The change last year, though, was notable for how Americans didn’t really have a single focal point for their concern. Fewer people actually thought the government was the top problem in 2014 (18 percent) than thought so a year earlier (20 percent). Instead, there were several concerns drawing nearly equal amounts of worry. Meanwhile, in other news about how people felt in 2014, if you like President Obama, you were more likely to have enjoyed 2014 than if you are not really a fan.


Post-ABC poll: Support for Afghanistan war rises as combat mission ends

After falling to record lows, support for the Afghanistan war has risen since 2013, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll that also finds majority support for a plan to keep thousands of troops in the country in the coming year. Overall, Americans remain downbeat over the war at the end of NATO’s 13-year combat mission. A 56 percent majority says it has not been worth fighting, continuing a negative streak that dates to 2010 in Post-ABC polls. But 38 percent in the new survey say the war was worth the costs, up eight points from December 2013 and 10 points from a record low that July (28 percent). The bounce-back in positive views is driven by a dramatic reversal of opinion among Republicans. Only 39 percent of Republicans said the war was worth fighting in late 2013, but 56 percent believe so today, marking an end to a massive downward slide since 2009. In the early months of Barack Obama’s presidency, as many as 77 percent of Republicans said the war was worth fighting. Support for the war also increased among political independents in the past year, from 26 to 35 percent, though roughly six in 10 independents and Democrats alike continue to say the war was not worth it. Despite the overall negative appraisal, over half of Americans (54 percent) favor keeping U.S. troops in the country to help Afghan forces train and perform counter-insurgency roles. The residual force garners rare cross-partisan support, including at least half of Republicans (66 percent), Democrats (52 percent) and independents (51 percent). At peak levels, in 2010 and 2011, the U.S. had 100,000 troops in Afghanistan. That number has fallen dramatically since then and will drop to 10,000 in 2015 and half that by 2016. With the U.S.-led NATO combat mission officially over, about half of the American troops remaining are expected to serve in a new NATO operation advising and training Afghan security forces and half will service in a separate U.S.-only contingent focused on force protection, logistical support and counterterrorism. Americans are split down the middle on the question of whether the Afghan war, launched in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, has made the U.S. more secure. Forty-eight percent say it has made the U.S. more secure while 47 percent say otherwise, marking a modest improvement from 2013, when 50 percent doubted the impact of the


Town Square | New luxury apartments in Northwest D.C. now leasing

(Courtesy of Jeffrey Sauers) Leasing is now underway for 137 apartments in Cathedral Commons, a mixed-use development at 3401 Idaho Ave. NW in Washington scheduled to open in the fall of 2015. The building will offer a hotel-style lobby, 24-hour concierge services, a fitness center, a library, a resident lounge, community social functions, courtyards and a rooftop deck. Rent for the one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments will vary from $2,300 to $7,699 per month. The bathrooms include contemporary chrome LED track lighting and porcelain tile floors and showers and custom-designed square sinks. (Courtesy of Jeffrey Sauers) Each kitchen has quartz counters, custom-designed oak flat-panel cabinets, white beveled subway-tile backsplashes and upgraded stainless steel appliances. Eight townhouses, with prices as yet to be established, will go on the market early in 2015 and are anticipated to be complete in the spring of 2015. (Courtesy of Jeffrey Sauers) In addition to a Giant Food and a CVS Pharmacy that are already open, the complex will include two banks, two fitness centers, specialty stores and three restaurants — Barcelona Restaurant & Wine Bar, Raku and the Grilled Oyster Company. Cathedral Commons is a joint venture of the Bozzuto Group, Ahold USA, parent company of Giant, and Southside Investment Partners. For more information, go to www.cathedralcommons.com. Real Living At Home expands into Virginia Real Living At Home The residential real estate brokerage, which already has offices in Dupont Circle in D.C. and in Chevy Chase, Md., recently acquired Arbour Realty, a boutique firm in Arlington. Adam Gallegos Gallegos, who founded the firm in 2008, says the Arbour team of agents will stay together under the new name. He says they will benefit from the cutting edge technology and services of Real Living, including an in-house staff of public relations, marketing, photography, videography and technology professionals to support the agents. For more information, go to www.rlathome.com or http://arbourrealty.com. (Courtesy of Graphic Services) Comstock Homes expands into Stafford County Comstock Homes The company acquired 24 building lots and has designed new single-family houses specifically for the community, which is located approximately one mile from the Virginia Railway Express Commuter Station on Leeland Road. Comstock said it decided to enter this market because of the potential for growth in the area for commuters along Interstate 95 and Route 1 and the presence of regional employment centers in Stafford and neighboring Prince William County. The houses will have


The most interesting geopolitical risk of 2015

People gather near a currency exchange office in Moscow on Dec. 17. (Reuters/Maxim Zmeyev) As the first work week of 2015 commences, it’s worth remembering that geopolitical risk remains on the minds of many investors (though its actual impact on markets is debatable). Fortunately, every January the Eurasia Group publishes its top 10 geopolitical risks for the rest of the calendar year. Not all of the predictions come true, and a lot of the usual suspects (the Middle East, Russia, China) get mentioned. This year’s list, however, contained an interesting and seldom-discussed-in-polite-circles item: Weaponization of Finance For the Obama administration (and indeed, many of its critics), “boots on the ground” is a 20th-century concept. The American public has had enough of wars and occupations. But on core security issues, the United States still wants significant influence over global outcomes. That means less reliance on traditional elements of America’s security advantage — its nuclear weapons arsenals, its carrier groups, or other conventional assets. And more reliance on the dollar, which is now actually more strongly imbalanced in America’s favor than it was before the financial crisis. Access to the US marketplace and US banks, and Washington’s ability and willingness to use them, are becoming more important as instruments of foreign and security policy. There is no better example of this trend than the weaponization of finance — the systematic use of carrots (access to capital markets) and sticks (varied types of sanctions) as tools of coercive diplomacy…. Of critical importance, the weaponization of finance is a tool that can be used with minimal cooperation from other governments. The most important near-term challenge is the damage inflicted on transatlantic relations. Europe will become more frustrated with an American unilateralism that Europe (and European banks) must pay for. Also, the US could well slap new sanctions on Russia and/or Iran, eliciting a backlash in 2015. Over the longer term, though, others will diversify away from reliance on the dollar and US-dominated institutions, particularly in East Asia, where China has the muscle and the motive to create its own institutions, and where there is less dollar-denominated debt to complicate the process. The Asia infrastructure investment bank, the BRICS bank, and the Silk Route Maritime and Overland initiatives are all steps in that direction. These projects, combined with Beijing’s determination to broaden and deepen commercial and investment relations across the region, will eventually undermine Washington’s


Main Street Morning: Minimum wage and net neutrality

and psychometric testing explains how and why we lie at work. • If you’re looking to hire in 2015, here are five trends to watch. Retail • How online shopping is killing the mall. • A Virginia merchant’s window displays wows the town. • An employee at Best Buy is accused of stealing $28,000 worth of gift cards from the store and its customers. Finance • This new bank could save the pot industry. Management • The most important travel trends to watch for in 2015. • Ten new year’s resolutions for small-business owners. Entrepreneurs • The share of people under age 30 who own private businesses has reached a 24-year-low, according to new data. • This entrepreneur is churning out a popular garlic spread. • A California couple conceives a cooking show just for pets. • Universities around the country are ramping up their efforts to help entrepreneurs. • This year’s “Girl of the Year” is a businesswoman – or as American Girl calls her, a baker. • How a bullied, dyslexic 16-year-old entrepreneur fought back and found his way. Marketing • Three marketing strategies every B2B business owner should use. • Sony is again using crowdfunding to introduce a new product. Start-up • More and more start-ups are choosing to stay private longer. • An injured vet launches a business to help other vets. Opportunities • Vinyl record sales hit a record high in 2014. • How you can turn National Thank You Month into a financial success for your business. • Some businesses are welcoming the winter storm forecast. Technology • These are the top tech trends for 2015 and four things to expect from Google. Around the Country • The Consumer Electronics Show starts this week in Vegas and here are some of the big keynotes scheduled. • Ohio starts an online registry for employers with a preference for hiring veterans and active military. • The contents of a 200-plus-year-old time capsule sealed by Sam Adams and Paul Revere will be unveiled tomorrow. • An Indiana businessman cites his reasons for why he gave away $400,000 this past year. • A Wisconsin pottery business wants to make 1,000 clay bowls for a non-profit’s hunger campaign. Around the World • For the first time since Israel’s foundation, France has topped the list of countries from which migrants move to the Jewish state. • Why the city of


The six wackiest gadgets (so far) at CES 2015

users draw gestures in the air to do things such as start the music playing on their phone, take a smartphone picture or even turn the lights on and off. To use Ring, wearers have to hit a button on the side of the ring before making their gesture; the ring then communicates with your smartphone via Bluetooth. The temptation to crack a "Lord of the Rings" joke is almost overwhelming, and the idea of a small universal remote that you can wear is an interesting one. But hold your horses: Ring is due to come out in March 2015 with a hefty price tag of $269.99. And, if you want one, you'll have to be patient. The device is already sold out, according to a representative from Logbar. The Axxess CE Air2 The Axxess CE Air2 is a bluetooth speaker that levitates over it's base. (AP Photo/John Locher) This levitating Bluetooth speaker was an early attention-getter at the show, having been nominated for the International CES 2015 Innovation award. Apart from fascinating your friends (and likely infuriating your pets), the compact speaker also can attach to your fridge if you'd prefer to have it off the base. The company promises five hours of battery life and a transmission distance of 10 meters. The company didn't list the price alongside its demo. It's probably safe to say this is more of an attention-getting piece than a must-have. But it looks pretty darn cool. 3DRudder It takes footwork to use the 3D Rudder. (Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg) Developed by architects looking for a way to show three-dimensional space, the 3D Rudder is a virtual reality controller that you work with your feet. The motion controller, which can be used for gaming and other virtual reality applications, lets you navigate through a 3D map by tilting and rotating your feet. You can also zoom in and out by putting pressure on the toe of one foot and the heel of the other. The experience is a little dizzying at first -- the controls on the demo unit at CES were very sensitive, making it all too easy to go into a tailspin. But once I got the hang of it, the controller was surprisingly intuitive. The 3DRudder is an Indiegogo project, and is going for an early price of $110. The standard unit will be $130. It is set to ship in May.


The 2015 Washington, D.C., weather calendar

the grounds of the Arlington House at the Arlington National Cemetery, May 4, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) June: Cloud-to-ground lightning during the thunderstorm of June 25, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) July: Fireworks at the Reflecting Pool, July 4, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) August: A double rainbow over the Washington Monument, July 8, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) September: Sunrise at the Marine Corps Memorial, September 6, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) October: Lunar eclipse over the Lincoln Memorial, October 8, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) November: Fall color at the Tidal Basin, November 5, 2014. (Kevin Ambrose) December: Snow falls at the National Christmas Tree on the Ellipse, December 5, 2003. (Kevin Ambrose) Below are the criteria that I try to satisfy when creating a Washington weather calendar: 1) I need at least two snow photos for the months of January, February, or March. Last year, we had plenty of snow photos for selection. During other years, however, it can be rather challenging to find a couple of good snow photos. As we know, some Washington winters can be mild and rather snow-free. 2) One cherry blossom photo is required. It’s targeted for either the month of March or April depending upon when the bloom occurred the previous year. 3) At least one thunderstorm or lightning photo is required for a spring or summer month. Last year, I took a nice lightning photo in June. 4) July always features a fireworks photo. I know it’s not weather but most people want to see fireworks for the month of July. And it’s outdoors so it kind of counts. 5) At least one fall foliage photo is required for October and/or November. Last year, a lunar eclipse occurred in October so only the month of November has a fall foliage photo. 6) The month of December will always show the National Christmas Tree or the Capitol Christmas tree with snow. A snowstorm occurring in December is not a given in Washington so I often go back beyond the previous year to find a snowy Christmas tree photo. For this calendar, I went all the way back to 2003. All other photos in the 2015 calendar were taken in 2014. The 2015 calendar is one of my favorites compared to past years. Hopefully, this year will provide equal photographic opportunities for the 2016 calendar. Related posts: 2014 Washington weather calendar 2013 Washington weather calendar 2010 Washington weather calendar 2009 Washington weather calendar


Alex McCoy departs Duke’s Grocery to launch Southeast Asian restaurant

Alex McCoy, the founding chef of Duke's Grocery, a $20 Diner favorite near Dupont Circle, has left the craft-conscious sandwich shop to prepare for his next project: a restaurant that will focus on Southeast Asian cooking, continuing the District's trend of opening eateries that channel the authentic flavors of Thailand, Laos and other countries. Duke's Grocery co-owners Alex McCoy (left) and Daniel Kramer have parted ways. (Maura Judkis for The Washington Post) McCoy has not yet signed a lease for his new place, but he plans to take trips to Thailand and other locations in Southeast Asia in February and March to research the cuisine for his future restaurant. McCoy's younger brother, Nathaniel McCoy, will join him in the venture. The elder McCoy also promises a robust bar program. The chef, who left Duke's about two weeks ago, hopes to have a lease signed and his new, still-unnamed restaurant in operation by late spring. "There are so many aspects of [Southeast Asian cooking] that people don’t get to see," McCoy said via a phone conversation, politely blocking all attempts at specifics. "There are so many aspects of the culture and food culture over there that I think are delicious." Meanwhile, over at Duke's, co-owner Daniel Kramer has promoted Rick Koplau, who had been overseeing the late-night menu, to head chef. Koplau previously worked at Ritz-Carlton hotels in Lake Tahoe and Sarasota. "We are going to maintain our focus on top quality seasonal ingredients, preparing dishes from scratch in small batches, and broadening the boundaries of what a sandwich can be," Kramer said via e-mail. "The line cooks that Alex trained remain in place, and the Proper Burger is still the most popular dish on the menu. We are excited to continue to be a part of the Dupont Circle hospitality community overall and 17th Street specifically." McCoy would not comment on whether he was still a partner in Duke's. "The whole situation is good," McCoy allowed. "Everyone's happy. Everyone's in place. Everyone's organized. . . Everyone's still close." Whenever McCoy opens his place, he will join an increasingly crowded field of authentic Southeast Asian restaurants in the District. The list already includes Little Serow, Soi 38, Thip Khao and Baan Thai (inside Tsunami Sushi). Others will soon join the market, including Bad Saint (which will host another pop-up, this time at Crane & Turtle on Jan. 10 and 11) and


over at Duke's, co-owner Daniel Kramer has promoted Rick Koplau, who had been overseeing the late-night menu, to head chef. Koplau previously worked at Ritz-Carlton hotels in Lake Tahoe and Sarasota. "We are going to maintain our focus on top quality seasonal ingredients, preparing dishes from scratch in small batches, and broadening the boundaries of what a sandwich can be," Kramer said via e-mail. "The line cooks that Alex trained remain in place, and the Proper Burger is still the most popular dish on the menu. We are excited to continue to be a part of the Dupont Circle hospitality community overall and 17th Street specifically." McCoy would not comment on whether he was still a partner in Duke's. "The whole situation is good," McCoy allowed. "Everyone's happy. Everyone's in place. Everyone's organized. . . Everyone's still close." Whenever McCoy opens his place, he will join an increasingly crowded field of authentic Southeast Asian restaurants in the District. The list already includes Little Serow, Soi 38, Thip Khao and Baan Thai (inside Tsunami Sushi). Others will soon join the market, including Bad Saint (which will host another pop-up, this time at Crane & Turtle on Jan. 10 and 11) and Maketto. McCoy's official comment on leaving Duke's Grocery "Friends, after a year and a half of working with my awesome partners over at Duke’s Grocery, I am excited to announce that I will be leaving to work on a new project in the DC area. You guys and gals have been legends and I appreciate all of the amazing support you have given myself and the Duke’s family. The team is still working hard in the Duke’s kitchen and the burgers are still flippin’! 2015 is going to be a very tasty year!” Duke's Grocery official press release on the changeover WASHINGTON DC—January 5, 2015—Duke’s Grocery sends a warm shout out of appreciation to our customers and neighbors for an amazing 2014 as we look forward to a great year ahead. Our plan is to keep our familiar seasonal bistro selections humming while continuing to provide friendly service in a warm environment. We will be sprucing up the patio, adding to the cocktail list and continuing to innovate on the menu, while maintaining our popular dishes and high standards of freshness and quality. In addition, we will expand our operating hours in 2015. This includes opening up one hour earlier


situation is good," McCoy allowed. "Everyone's happy. Everyone's in place. Everyone's organized. . . Everyone's still close." Whenever McCoy opens his place, he will join an increasingly crowded field of authentic Southeast Asian restaurants in the District. The list already includes Little Serow, Soi 38, Thip Khao and Baan Thai (inside Tsunami Sushi). Others will soon join the market, including Bad Saint (which will host another pop-up, this time at Crane & Turtle on Jan. 10 and 11) and Maketto. McCoy's official comment on leaving Duke's Grocery "Friends, after a year and a half of working with my awesome partners over at Duke’s Grocery, I am excited to announce that I will be leaving to work on a new project in the DC area. You guys and gals have been legends and I appreciate all of the amazing support you have given myself and the Duke’s family. The team is still working hard in the Duke’s kitchen and the burgers are still flippin’! 2015 is going to be a very tasty year!” Duke's Grocery official press release on the changeover WASHINGTON DC—January 5, 2015—Duke’s Grocery sends a warm shout out of appreciation to our customers and neighbors for an amazing 2014 as we look forward to a great year ahead. Our plan is to keep our familiar seasonal bistro selections humming while continuing to provide friendly service in a warm environment. We will be sprucing up the patio, adding to the cocktail list and continuing to innovate on the menu, while maintaining our popular dishes and high standards of freshness and quality. In addition, we will expand our operating hours in 2015. This includes opening up one hour earlier for Weekend Brunch, which will soon begin at 10 a.m. and keeping the kitchen open throughout the afternoon into late night. Chef Alex McCoy, who helped open the restaurant in September 2013, is excited to be moving on to new opportunities in his culinary career. His imaginative influence on the design, theme and concept of Duke's Grocery, and the flavorful foundations he has drawn, will continue to be found in our neighborhood pub. We are pleased that chef Rick Koplau, who has been overseeing the late night food program at Duke's Grocery since the summer, will step into a larger role. Koplau was previously at the Ritz-Carlton Hotels in Lake Tahoe and Sarasota, along with stints in England, Germany and Poland.


The wrong Bush narrative

As we have remarked upon Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush hands out items for Holiday Food Baskets to those in need outside the Little Havana offices of CAMACOL, the Latin American Chamber of Commerce on December 17, 2014 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Ira Stoll of the New York Sun points to a new book documenting Bush’s record: “Conservative Hurricane: How Jeb Bush Remade Florida,” by Matthew T. Corrigan. As you can guess from the title, it is a guide to Bush’s brand of no-nonsense conservatism: On economic policy, Mr. Bush turned Florida, which already had no state income tax, into an even lower-tax state by implementing what Professor Corrigan describes as “the largest tax cut in Florida’s history,” a reduction of about $20 billion. Tort reform capped punitive damages for businesses. He privatized the state government’s personnel department, its child protective services, its prison food services, its Medicaid program, and its defense of death-row inmates. The state government workforce was reduced by 12%. . . . On education reform, Mr. Bush gave schools A through F letter grades based on student test scores, gave students in failing schools vouchers for private schools, and implemented merit pay for teachers. Test scores jumped, as did high school graduation rates. On social issues, Mr. Bush put an emphasis on life. The state issued optional “choose life” license plates, passed a parental notification law for minors who wanted abortions, and restricted late-term “partial-birth” abortions. He went to great lengths in an ultimately fruitless attempt to prevent Terri Schiavo’s husband from having Schiavo’s feeding tube removed. He created two “faith-based prisons” over the objections of the American Civil Liberties Union. By executive order, he eliminated race and gender-based affirmative action in public college admissions and in state contracting, denouncing a sit-in protest by two black lawmakers as “childish.” Mr. Bush backed gun rights by supporting a “stand-your-ground” law, signing legislation preventing gun ranges for being sued for causing pollution, requiring stores that sell hunting and fishing licenses to make voter registration applications available, and exempting concealed-weapons licenses from disclosure under the state’s public records laws. You get the picture. On substance, then, Bush’s record is clearly in the GOP mainstream. If he is to succeed in the primary, he will need to reiterate that record and make the case that it will be a road map to his presidency. And yet


New Gemini image shows a diverse gang of galaxies

Galaxy group VV 166. (Gemini Observatory/AURA) Birds of a feather flock together, but galactic bunches tend to be pretty diverse. Galaxies don't move totally independently of each other. They travel through the universe in clusters, staying attached to their groups and networks in ways scientists still don't totally understand. This new shot from the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii captures a smattering of the variety one can expect in galaxy groups. Group VV 166 is about 300 million light years away, and features three galaxies — a blue-armed spiral, an elliptical galaxy and a lenticular galaxy — forming a seemingly perfect equilateral triangle. The spiral (NGC 70) spans nearly twice the length of the Milky Way and features hot, young star formation to give it a blue hue. Other galaxies in the group show the warm glow of old stars, indicating that their star-forming days have passed. Some show the articulated arms of a large, complex galaxy, while others appear as mere smudges on the cosmic scene. You can read more about the galaxies shown in the photo at the Gemini Web site.


Stunning new picture of the Pillars of Creation

A new shot of the Pillars. (NASA, ESA/Hubble and the Hubble Heritage Team) If you've seen pictures of space, you've seen the Pillars of Creation --a set of photogenic columns of cold gas bathed in the light of brand new star formation. Now, 20 years after the iconic 1995 shot was taken, The Hubble has gone back to take a more high definition look. The new image, taken with a camera installed in 2009, is wider and sharper than before: Side by side with the 1995 shot (right). (NASA, ESA/Hubble and the Hubble Heritage Team) These pillars, which stand about 7,000 light years away in the Eagle Nebula, aren't uncommon formations. They're made of cold hydrogen and dust, and they're actually on their way out. "I'm impressed by how transitory these structures are. They are actively being ablated away before our very eyes. The ghostly bluish haze around the dense edges of the pillars is material getting heated up and evaporating away into space. We have caught these pillars at a very unique and short-lived moment in their evolution," Paul Scowen of Arizona State University said in a statement. Scowen co-led the original Hubble exploration of the Eagle Nebula. In addition to the sharp new view, the Hubble caught the Pillars in infrared: Infrared cuts through gas and dust, revealing a new perspective. (NASA, ESA/Hubble and the Hubble Heritage Team) Without gas and dust in the way, we see what the Pillars of Creation are hiding: A hotbed of star birth. From HubbleSite: The infrared image shows that the reason the pillars exist is because the very ends of them are dense, and they shadow the gas below them, creating the long, pillar-like structures. The gas in between the pillars has long since been blown away by the ionizing winds from the central star cluster located above the pillars. At the top edge of the left-hand pillar, a gaseous fragment has been heated up and is flying away from the structure, underscoring the violent nature of star-forming regions. "These pillars represent a very dynamic, active process," Scowen said. "The gas is not being passively heated up and gently wafting away into space. The gaseous pillars are actually getting ionized (a process by which electrons are stripped off of atoms) and heated up by radiation from the massive stars. And then they are being eroded by the stars' strong winds (barrage


Toyota shows off the ‘Mirai’ and its hydrogen-fueled vision of the future

The Toyota Motor Corp. Mirai FCV (fuel cell vehicle) is displayed during the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas on Jan. 5. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg) Toyota raced into the future Monday, unveiling its first hydrogen-powered car and championing the technology at International CES. Physicist and futurist Michio Kaku was on hand to introduce the company's new fuel cell, which he said has a range of 300 miles and can refuel in three to five minutes. "We are entering the age of hydrogen," Kaku said. "We are present at the creation of a hydrogen society." Toyota's first car using this technology is called the Mirai — the Japanese word for future. The car is due in the U.S. in the fall. It will cost around $50,000 and, the company said, Mirai's fuel cell can power a house for a week in case of an emergency. As it attempts to push the world toward a hydrogen-fueled future, Toyota said that it's also hoping to find some compatriots. It will also let anyone, particularly engineers and car manufacturers, use its approximately 5,680 fuel-cell related patents — including those used in the Mirai — for free, Toyota said in a statement. The car company says it will also build and fund the production of fueling stations, saying that it will first focus on creating that infrastructure in California and in the New York and New Jersey areas.


Technical problem delays SpaceX test of ‘reusable rocket’

Video released by SpaceX shows test flights of the Falcon 9 Reusable rocket. SpaceX — Tesla chief executive Elon Musk’s private space company — now must wait until at least Friday for a test of a potentially groundbreaking reusable rocket. The launch of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket was scrubbed Tuesday just seconds before the scheduled 6:20 a.m. EST liftoff at Canaveral, Fla. A statement from NASA said the decision was made with 21 seconds left on the launch clock after a problem was detected in the “thrust vector control” system on the rocket’s second stage. He said it was “behaving strangely.” The next launch is scheduled for 5:09 a.m. The mission is to resupply the International Space Station. But attention will be on an unprecedented attempt to recapture and reuse the rocket’s booster. A successful retrieval would have wide-ranging implications for space missions, including lowering costs and possibly speeding up the pace of launches. But even SpaceX was keeping expectations modest in the first attempt to try to steer the booster to a platform in the Atlantic. “The odds of success are not great — perhaps 50% at best,” the company said in a press release. “However this test represents the first in a series of similar tests that will ultimately deliver a fully reusable Falcon 9 first stage.” A SpaceX launch in September. (SpaceX) Most often in the past, rockets have fallen back to Earth after lifting spacecraft into orbit, burning up on re-entry. Just as not blowing up one’s Toyota after a 7-Eleven run is key to affordable auto ownership, reusable rockets are the heretofore elusive missing link between wasting millions of dollars per mission and affordable space travel. “A fully and rapidly reusable rocket — which has never been done before — is the pivotal breakthrough needed to substantially reduce the cost of space access,” the company said. “While most rockets are designed to burn up on reentry, SpaceX is building rockets that not only withstand reentry, but also land safely on Earth to be refueled and fly again.” The ocean platform looks unmissable up close — but it ain’t. The landing platform. (SpaceX) “When you look at it on the ground, I think it’s probably a very, very big platform, a big spaceport,” Hans Koenigsmann, vice president for mission assurance at SpaceX, told reporters. “But if you look at it from, I think, almost 150 or


READ IN: Welcome Back Congress Edition

ESPN, CNN and the Food Network, on tablets, laptops, smart phones and TVs, without paying a cable or satellite bill. The $20 monthly service, dubbed Sling TV, will debut sometime this month. Sony plans its own online viewing of its most popular channels. (Washington Post) Why the ESPN part matters: Sports are just about the only thing anyone watches live these days. -- Stock futures are up this morning after major U.S. indices took a beating on Monday, when the Dow fell nearly 2 percentage points. The Nikkei was off more than 3 percent today, but European markets are mixed so far. (CNN) C1: -- "Palestinians have begun to translate a series of ... symbolic steps, culminating in last week’s move to join the International Criminal Court, into a strategy that has begun to create pressure on Israel. While many prominent Israelis have called for unilateral action to set the country’s borders, it is Palestinians who have gained political momentum with moves made outside of negotiations. The Palestinians are, in effect, establishing a legal state." (New York Times) A long-term story with huge geopolitical implications. -- An internal memo authored by top Air Force officials warns the Pentagon's fleet of drones is being strained because of too many missions and too few pilots. Air Combat Command head Gen. Herbert "Hawk" Carlisle says in the memo to Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh he is "extremely concerned" with the demand on the drone pilots. The Air Force has been forced to pluck students out of its schools for drone operators to man squadrons that are already flying combat missions over Iraq and Syria. (Daily Beast) Attn Matt Drudge: -- How much fun will Drudge have with this one: "For years, Harvard’s experts on health economics and policy have advised presidents and Congress on how to provide health benefits to the nation at a reasonable cost. But those remedies will now be applied to the Harvard faculty, and the professors are in an uproar." (New York Times) Attn HuffPo: -- The number of states with at least half a dozen abortion restrictions on the books jumped from five in 2010 to 18 in 2014, according to a new report from the pro-choice Guttmacher Institute. Fifteen states passed 26 new abortion restrictions in 2014, which was actually a slower pace than the year before, when 70 new laws passed. (Washington Post)


The ICC red line

but also to exert pressure on the U.S. Congress to deprive the West Bank government of funds that are vital to its survival.” This is symptomatic of the breakdown in responsible leadership in the PA and the utter incompetence of the Obama administration in raising and then dashing expectations for a peace deal. “This is a dangerous game the Palestinians have started,” says Schanzer. And yet cutting off all funds to the PA will have serious ramifications. “This episode raises yet again a nagging question that both Washington and Jerusalem have had a hard time answering in recent years: how to punish the PA without disrupting the delicate security situation. The Palestinians fully understand this conundrum, and they continue to exploit it. The ICC threat is only the latest example,” he cautions. This move by Israel may also be the result of domestic Israeli politics. With an election upcoming Netanyahu wants to leave no doubt as to his seriousness in dealing with efforts to delegitimize the Jewish state. True to its “leading from behind” syndrome, the Obama administration appeared on Monday to punt to Congress. The State Department spokeswoman called the tax freeze unhelpful (What would be helpful in the administration’s eyes, one wonders?) and remarked, “Congress holds a great deal of power in this regard.” The administration that thinks it can unilaterally alter laws suddenly developed great respect for the legislative branch. (“overall, the first step would be Congress,” said the spokeswoman). Congress has been itching to cut off aid to the PA and now has real reason to do so. Conditioning continuation of any aid on the PA dropping its ICC bid and returning to bilateral, unconditional talks is an entirely reasonable response. There is no perfect response to the PA antics to be sure. Ideas range from the ineffective to the counterproductive. Former Obama adviser Dennis Ross wants the Europeans to start pressuring the PA. Good luck with that. (France was one of the sponsors of the PA’s bid for unilateral recognition at the UNSC.) The administration’s misguided and counterproductive approach to the Middle East has fed into what Ross calls the Palestinians’ “narrative of injustice; its anti-colonialist bent and its deep sense of grievance.” Maybe it is time to ask the administration what it proposes to do to avoid another train wreck in the Middle East. Better yet, what does Hillary Clinton think is the answer?


Main Street Morning: Controversial health insurance plans

sales accounted for 23 percent of total holiday online sales according to an IBM study. • Right now is the peak time of the year for online dating. • $5 million goes missing from a major Bitcoin exchange. Management • An architect shares the seven lessons he learned in 2014 as a business owner. • An online money-transfer company sees its shares fall after the reported the theft of corporate cash and the departure of its chief financial officer. • 12 rules for reading any insurance policy. • Where interest rates are heading and what that means for your loans. Social media • Facebook acquires a voice recognition startup. • A smarter window pulls in another $75 million investment. Cash flow • These are 6 ridiculous bank fees that are often buried in the fine print. Technology • Microsoft’s new $29 Nokia phone can go for a month without being recharged. • A blogger warns you to watch out for these so-called “business breakthroughs” in 2015. • Samsung unveils a tiny one terabyte storage device. Around the country • The death of the indoor shopping mall gives way to more Main-Street-esque shopping centers. • The city of Houston is co-sponsoring a first-ever business plan competition for military veteran entrepreneurs and business owners. • A Boise food truck owner aims to gain national attention. • In Illinois, the Governor signs a small-business retirement plan bill into law and another state law that aims to keep pregnant women employed and help them find job opportunities takes effect. • The residents of Green Bank, West Virginia, can’t use cell phones, Wi-Fi or other kinds of modern technology due to a high-tech government telescope. • Texas small business owners are feeling upbeat about their economic outlook. • Tennessee is named the 2014 economic development “state of the year.” • A big year is brewing for Michigan state employees. Around the world • France has the leading number of startups in Europe. • Mathew Yglesias offers nine facts about the Eurozone crisis including his opinion that “it’s not really over.” • A Nigerian philanthropist is spending $100 million of his own money to kick-start hundreds of new small businesses. Gene Marks owns the Marks Group, a Bala Cynwyd, Pa., consulting firm that helps clients with customer relationship management. Follow Gene Marks and On Small Business on Twitter. News we should know about? Email us here.


Stanton & Greene, from owners of Sonoma and Beuchert’s, coming to Capitol Hill

The owners of three different bars on Pennsylvania Avenue SE are harnessing their talents to create a new bistro, cocktail bar and event space at 319 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, the former home of the Pour House. Stanton & Greene, which could open by the end of the month, is a collaboration between Sonoma owners Eli Hengst and Jared Rager, and August Paro, one of three partners behind Beuchert's Saloon. (Courtesy of Stanton & Greene) The partnership "goes back to when I was working on Beuchert's," Paro says. "Eli would come down, and we became friends that way. We both like well-executed designs and concepts, and we have mutual interests because we have bars on the same street." So when the former Pour House became available, Paro, Hengst and Rager decided to join forces to turn it into a three-level bar with three different concepts. "We wanted to work on this together because it will be the culmination of what the three of us bring to it," Paro says. "It will be more than the sum of its parts." Those parts include the cocktail list, for which Stanton & Greene's partners tapped Erik Holzherr, the owner of Wisdom, the gin-centric drinking den near the Potomac Avenue Metro, and H Street's Church & State and Atlas Arcade. "I know Erik through a mutual friend," Paro says. "I really like his palette and how he puts cocktail lists together." For this project, Paro envisions a mix of classic and signature cocktails to go with local draft and bottled beer, and a selection of American and Old World wines. "[Holzherr's] spirits knowledge is what we're playing on. We want to focus on American classics, specifically American microdistilleries. That's not all we're going to have, but that's what we like and want to support." The building itself is one of the largest bars on Capitol Hill, with three levels and 180 seats. The main floor, Paro says, will be an "American bistro" with a classic feel: a long bar with a marble top, leather booths, a restored tin ceiling and a floor covered with authentic subway and other vintage tiles. Josh Hutter, who has been in charge of Sonoma's menu for the last two years, is the executive chef. Upstairs, the old Top of the Hill bar and rental space has been turned into what Paro calls "a grand attic" with vaulted ceilings and "a


Almaty and Beijing only cities to submit bids for 2022 Winter Olympics

in Sochi last year, a figure that scared several countries’ governments and people into dropping their bid to host the 17-day event. Oslo withdrew from the running in last October after the Norwegian government announced it would not longer fund the city’s bid. In May 2014, Krakow, Poland, dropped its bid when the city held a referendum, during which 70 percent of those who voted said “no” to hosting the games because of the prohibitive costs. Stockholm also dropped out in January 2014 citing financial costs. Lviv, Ukraine dropped out in June last year because of increasing political and security concerns having to do with Russia’s ongoing incursion into the country. Despite the bad press, the IOC is optimistic about the outcome of the 2022 Olympics. “Today is an important day for the Olympic Winter Games in 2022 because we will now have the opportunity to see the vision of the two Candidate Cities,” IOC President Thomas Bach said in a statement. “For the Candidate Cities, it is a unique opportunity to present their ideas about the organization of the Olympic Winter Games, and for us a moment that we have been looking forward to for some time.” If there’s a bright side here, it’s that the IOC has realized that most countries now treat hosting the Olympics like holding a hot potato. The recent experience led the organization to adopt some much-needed reforms in the “Olympic Agenda 2022” package it adopted last month that should help countries reduces their costs and avoid building stadiums and facilities for one-off use. Both Beijing and Almaty took the new recommendations under consideration in their bids, as underlined by each bid’s spokesperson. “Many recommendations of Agenda 2020 were taken into consideration while developing the concept of the 2022 Winter Games,” Vice Mayor of Almaty Zauresh Amanzholova said. “We believe our bid is a perfect fit with this new philosophy and brings essential benefits to the Almaty and Kazakhstani people.” “Today is an important moment for us and a key milestone in the bidding process as we presented our Candidature File to the IOC,” Beijing Mayor Wang Anshun said. “Our Candidature File embodies the requirements of the IOC and the philosophy of Olympic Agenda 2020. The important concept of running athlete-centerd, economical and sustainable Games will be represented well in our bid and actual organisation of the Games in 2022.” With or without snow.


Two new exoplanets are more Earth-like than any we’ve found before

may have been like one of the eight newly discovered worlds orbiting in the habitable zones of their stars. (David A. Aguilar) NASA's Kepler Space Telescope Scientists recently verified Kepler's 1,000th planetary discovery, and there are still more to sort through. At a meeting of the American Astronomical Society on Tuesday, researchers announced 554 new candidates found by the telescope, bringing its total to 4,175. Of those possible planets, eight are in the so-called "Goldilocks zone," or habitable zone, where the host star is at just the right distance to keep water liquid. Too close, and water heats up and boils off. Too far, and the planet is covered in permanent, solid ice. These findings nearly double the number of known planets in the habitable zone, but researchers are especially excited about two of the new exoplanets: Their size, location, and star type means they could be rocky planets like Earth -- which means they could have evolved life as we recognize it. One of the planets, Kepler-438b, is only 12 percent bigger than Earth in diameter. That means it's quite likely a rocky planet. Scientists have given it a 70 percent chance. Kepler-442b is a bit bigger at around 33 percent larger than Earth, but still has a 60 percent chance of being rocky. But while 438b hits the sweet spot in size, 442b has it beat when it comes to distance from the sun. Both planets orbit a small red dwarf star, cooler than Earth's Sun, but they also orbit more closely. 438b gets 40 percent more light than Earth, which means it has around a 70 percent chance of being able to hold liquid water. But with 66 percent as much light as our own planet, 442b has a 97 percent chance of being in the habitable zone. So neither planet is a sure shot -- and both still need to be studied further -- but these are exciting finds. And they're more promising than anything else Kepler has ever found. 'We are now closer than we’ve ever been to finding a twin for the Earth around another star," NASA scientist Fergal Mullally said while introducing his portion of the research at the conference Tuesday. He and his colleagues hope to verify these planets for further study, then use their similarities to -- and differences from -- Earth to learn something about the formation of the planet.


Adorable: Watch Bao Bao play in the snow

Bao Bao’s first snow day (Courtesy of the Smithsonian National Zoo) If you had a built-in fur coat and no driveway to shovel, wouldn’t you love the snow? Celebrity panda cub Bao Bao sure seems happy with today’s weather. The Smithsonian National Zoo was closed on Tuesday due to the snow, but the animals were still there, having a blast. Watch Bao Bao tumble all the way down a snowy hill. As the year’s first blanket of snow coats the D.C. area, the National Zoo's giant panda Bao Bao is enjoying time outside with her mother, Mei Xiang. Another one of Washington’s most famous furry creatures got in on the snow day fun too: White House photographer Pete Souza tweeted this photo of the Obama family’s dog Bo in the snow-covered Rose Garden. Bo. Snow. Rose Garden. http://t.co/wMemXhJDHF


Sen. Ted Cruz, Bao Bao and other Washington VIPs marvel at the first snowfall of winter

Any time snow and Washington are mentioned in the same sentence, at best, there’s a whimper and, at worst, there’s panic. Winter’s first snowfall precipitated the customary traffic jams, Metro delays and tip-toeing, but it also spurred Washington VIPs to pause for a moment to admire it (and play in it). Here’s their snowcial rundown: Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar (D) probably didn’t anticipate his reentry to Washington and the 114th Congress would be marked by the snow. It’s only his first day back, but we’re sure he’s missing the warmth of Texas already. White, snowy day in DC on the first official day of the #114Congress. #DCsnow http://t.co/7MQnvYRfnI And fellow Texan, Sen. Ted Cruz (R) agrees. A snowy start to the 114th Congress. Makes you miss the weather in Houston already! http://t.co/EMhdk7ZKQZ D.C. United’s Chris Rolfe did some humble snow-bragging. A little dusting of snow seemed too much for some DC-ers but the @dcunited staff didn't have any issues! #vamosunited http://t.co/yvKTStkS6p Rep. Frank Lucas (R-Okla.) captured this snowscape, featuring the Capitol building. With the snow, plus a squint, you can’t really see the scaffolding that encircles the rotunda–well, almost. The view from my office on this snowy morning as we begin the new session of Congress http://t.co/x4qfbGtZnM National Zoo celeb Bao Bao had her first snow encounter. It might take some getting used to for the panda. Today was Bao Bao's first time playing in the snow! And she totally rocked it. http://t.co/gT3dDa92fh White House photographer Pete Souza snapped a shot of Bo in the Rose Garden. The first dog looks right at home romping in the white stuff. The first dusting of winter made Wizard Kris Humphries’s return to D.C. post-victory against the New Orleans Pelicans that much sweeter. First real snow of the year for DC...Nice little welcome home present lol http://t.co/K4V6IH5csy http://t.co/6g8uVIYe83 Read more Reliable Source: Rosamund Pike’s surprising inspiration for ‘Gone Girl’ The politics of Malia Obama’s T-shirts Bryce Harper’s nuptials go under the radar Even more


The current flu outbreak could use some of last year’s Ebola panic

far more serious health crisis, but awareness of it is scarce. News of the H3N2 strain of the influenza virus was a mere “digest” nugget on page A3 of The Post today. The New York Times had a little something online Monday afternoon. “Widespread influenza activity was reported by 43 states, an increase from 36 states during the previous week,” the CDC announced yesterday. Hospitalizations are up, 12.6 per 100,000 people in the final week of December compared to 8.9 per 100,000 during the same period in the 2013-2014 season. So far, the 2014-2015 flu season has claimed the lives of 21 children. Six of them died in the last week of December alone. According to the CDC (and countless anecdotes from people everywhere), the flu is oh so easily spread. Infinitely easier than it is to contract Ebola. People with flu can spread it to others up to about 6 feet away. Most experts think that flu viruses are spread mainly by droplets made when people with flu cough, sneeze or talk. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs. Less often, a person might also get flu by touching a surface or object that has flu virus on it and then touching their own mouth or nose. This year like every year, the CDC is urging Americans to get their flu shots to guard against the nasty respiratory virus. But adding to the urgency of the data is an acknowledgment made by CDC chief Tom Frieden during a press call last month. “Unfortunately, about half of the H3N2 viruses that we’ve analyzed this season are different from the H3N2 virus that’s included in this year’s flu vaccine,” he said. “They are different enough that we’re concerned that protection from vaccinations against these drifted H3N2 viruses may be lower than we usually see.” In 2009, we were in the grips of nationwide Swine Flu hysteria. People were as concerned about the vaccine as they were about the actual H1N1 virus. Americans ought to be just as worried and aware six years later about the current flu outbreak as they were about Ebola five months ago. Follow Jonathan on Twitter: This flu season could be a doozy. The CDC is warning that the flu vaccine isn’t as effective this year. The Washington Post’s Lenny Bernstein explains why.


Why so many ‘Earth-like’ planets wind up being bogus

Even with our advanced telescopes, it’s difficult to see that far. So how do scientists know these planets are out there, let alone have the potential to sustain water? It’s complicated. In 2009, NASA launched the Kepler observatory with the mission of discovering “potentially habitable Earth-like planets with liquid water.” So far, it has discovered 4,175 planets outside our solar system, but nearly all of them have turned out to be uninhabitable. There are numerous requisites for a planet to habitable, but perhaps the most crucial involves what’s known as the “Goldilocks zone.” It’s denotes the sweet spot, when a planet is just the right distance from its sun to keep water liquid. Hence: Goldilocks. As The Post’s Rachel Feltman put it: “Too close, and water heats up and boils off. Too far, and the planet is covered in permanent, solid ice.” To discover these planets, Kepler uses a system known as the “transit method,” which involves the close study of a star’s light, explained Joseph Stromberg in Smithsonian Magazine. If the star’s light suddenly dims — as though eclipsed by some passing object — that object may be a planet passing between Earth and the star. As such, even when scientists can’t clearly see the planet, they can infer its presence. The subsequent data graphed out looks a lot like a big “U,” showing when light suddenly dims. With this data, astrophysicists can study the size of the planet, as well as its distance from the star. The method produces lots of mistakes. One study in Earth and Planetary Astrophysics suggested as many as 35 percent of all large, closely orbiting planets Kepler had identified could be false positives. Another study in a French academic journal called “false positives that mimic planetary transit” one of the transit method’s main limitations. Still, some scientists despaired at the underwhelming findings. In June 2011, after several promising planets either proved to be figments or balls of heat and radiation, Harvard astrophysicist Howard Smith said we’re alone in the universe. “We have found that most other planets and solar systems are wildly different from our own,” he said. “They are very hostile to life as we know it…. Extrasolar systems are far more diverse than we expected, and that means very few are likely to support life.” Indeed, of all the thousands of planets Kepler discovered, only eight landed in the Goldilocks zone.


Take note Republicans and Democrats, this is what a pro-innovation platform looks like

access to information about their own bodies that have long been the exclusive fiefdom of medical professionals. And we hear it, too, in the approaching drumbeats of the FTC’s vocal unease with connected device technologies in the so-called Internet of Things, skepticism they couch in the inflammatory language of privacy protection and cybersecurity. Each of these examples is connected by a common thread: a political vacuum of lawmakers committed to the unavoidably chaotic if ultimately benevolent process of disruptive innovation (creative yes, but only after the destruction). The failure of policymakers to support the disruptors when it really matters explains such disparate embarrassments as Congress’s inability to pass no-brainer legislation curbing patent trolls, irrational immigration policies for high-tech workers, and counter-productive tax laws that discourage the repatriation of foreign earnings. But the source of the problem goes well beyond catering to vested interests. Governments are designed to prefer deliberated change over revolutionary breakthroughs — what historian Thomas Kuhn termed “paradigm shifts.” Indeed, the instinctive reaction of policymakers to innovations that move in a single step from science fiction to practical science has long been to first to stop it and figure out appropriate controls later — perhaps much later. Within weeks of scientists announcing the cloning of Dolly the Sheep in 1996, President Clinton banned federal funding for the technologies used. More recently, Congress ordered the Federal Aviation Administration in 2012 to come up with rules for commercial unmanned aircraft, which have immediate potential to transition from deadly military drones to better and cheaper applications in everything from public safety to agriculture to environmental protection to news-gathering and retail delivery services. We’re still waiting. Meanwhile, a multi-billion dollar industry is being unnecessarily retarded as the FAA tries to impose a pre-emptive (and legally sketchy) ban on any commercial use of the technology while they deliberate. It is not for nothing that science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke famously observed, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” And we know how the Salem Witch Trials, for one, viewed the appropriate response of law to the possibility of magic. Even when governments don’t ban the disruptors outright, they prematurely force-fit them into the ossified regulations of their distant ancestors (“taxicabs,” “hotels,” “common carriers”), a symptom of what psychologists might call denial of the future. It’s easier, after all, to mislabel and dismiss true innovations than it is to evaluate the splintered