You can also watch this video by clicking on the Play Button
12/16/2012
California attracting the cars of the future (video)
You can also watch this video by clicking on the Play Button
Coca Cola eyes Myanmar
(Reuters) - Coca-Cola Co (KO.N) sees big potential in Myanmar (former Burma) and is in talks with prospective local partners, but it will be a long time before it begins operations, its regional head said on Friday.
Myanmar, emerging from decades of military rule and one of only three countries in which the company has no operations, is an attractive market for Coca-Cola.
"Anyway, we won't rush into hasty agreements", said Manuel Arroyo, president of Coca-Cola's ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Business Unit.
"There's no doubt about the potential of the market, but obviously we need to walk a very clear, open and transparent line before operating there," he told Reuters in an interview during a meeting of U.S. businesses in Cambodia.
"We're assessing different options to decide who will be our best partners, or whether we'll go on our own. Of course all of this will require quite a lot of work, and many, many months ... to do the proper due diligence," he added. "We're still in the very embryonic stage."
The firm will work closely with the U.S. State Department to make sure prospective partners are appropriate, as required by new U.S. rules on investing in Myanmar, a country of 60 million people, announced by President Barack Obama last June.
Myanmar's quasi-civilian government took office in March 2011 and is overhauling its economy, easing media censorship, legalizing trade unions and protests as well as freeing political prisoners.
Despite ceasing operations in 1960, Coca-Cola drinks have been smuggled into Myanmar for years over the border from Thailand.
The agreement will leave Cuba and North Korea as the only Cokeless nations in the world.
from Reuters
12/09/2012
NY Bike Share Program to Begin in May
New York - The city’s Transportation Department said Friday that its long-awaited bike share program has been postponed because of equipment damage sustained during Hurricane Sandy.
Bike share will now begin in May and on a smaller scale than originally planned. Initially the plan was to have 7,000 bikes at 420 stations by March, then expand to 10,000 bikes and 600 stations by June. Now, the plan is to have at least 5,500 bikes at 293 stations by May. There is no timeline for the program to expand to 10,000 bikes.
Before the storm, the system’s equipment was stored at the program’s facility in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Though some pieces, like bike frames, were not significantly damaged, many individual parts of the system with electrical components will have to be refurbished or replaced.
Janette Sadik-Khan, the city’s transportation commissioner, said in a telephone interview on Friday "I am pleased that a March opening is still expected, given the scope of the storm’s damage. There were several feet of water in the bike share warehouse that night. The system’s pieces are weather-proof, but they’re not intended to be totally submerged in salt water baths. We will literally have to open every piece of equipment with a transistor or a circuit board to see what the damage is.”
The new timeline for the program, known as Citi Bike and operated by Alta Bicycle Share, will not affect the $41 million in private financing from Citi.
The 5,500 bikes will be clustered in Midtown, Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. Officials hope to expand to 7,000 bikes by the end of 2013, filling gaps in planned service areas across Brooklyn and into Long Island City, Queens.
Ms. Sadik-Khan said “We still remain committed to expanding the program to 10,000 bikes, but we are not sure when that might happen.
Last summer, the program was delayed amid software concerns after a dispute between Public Bike System Company, Alta’s partner based on Montreal, and 8D Technologies, which had supplied the software for successful programs in cities like Boston and Washington.
If you want to know more about Citi Bike click HERE
1. in May
2. at least 5,500 bikes
3. at the program’s facility in the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
4. No, they weren't (significantly damaged)
5. open every piece of equipment
6. to see what the damage is.
7. to expand to 7,000 bikes
8. last summer
9. I don't know
10. I think so
adapted from The New York Times
12/08/2012
12/03/2012
Digital dodgers - A new program for taxpayers
MANY Italians have an awkward relationship with the taxman. This is hardly surprising. The authorities believe that more than 4m households, around one fifth of the country’s total, submit dodgy tax returns. Around a quarter of these declare an income of roughly zero, a claim often belied by the lifestyles of the taxpayers concerned. Since 1973 the authorities have been allowed to assess income tax on the basis of information they uncover about an individual’s spending habits; it has been up to the taxpayer to prove that the taxman is wrong.
Traditionally, the art of completing a tax return has centered on guessing how little income one can declare without sounding ridiculous and provoking an audit. Italy’s taxpayers now have an official helping hand to do this. On November 20th the Agenzia delle Entrate (tax-collection agency) released a program that allows families to calculate the income they should declare in order to avoid raising the authorities’ suspicions. Called the Redditest, a test of reddito (income), the program can be downloaded from the agency’s website and allows taxpayers to juggle their figures on their own computers.
The Redditest kicks off with the key figure—declared income—and then invites the user to add details about his homes and cars and how much he spends on holidays, pets, jewelry, alimony and so forth. The program makes allowances for such things as where the taxpayer lives and how many children he has. It then tells him whether his declared income sounds consistent with his expenditure.
The Redditest adds to the tools that the authorities hope will bring down tax evasion, but will it attract users? Andrea Alfieri, an accountant in Rome, has doubts. Only about 65% of Italian households have computers, and the Redditest program is not especially easy to use. “Keeping all the pieces of paper required for using the program accurately seems very burdensome,” notes Mr Alfieri. Moreover, independent tests have revealed anomalies in the way the program has weighted different towns and types of spending; changes may be needed.
However, the main reason to suppose that Italians will shun Redditest is that they do not trust the authorities. Often in the past, the rules have changed while the game was under way. The government insists that none of the numbers tentatively tapped into home computers will find their way into the taxman’s clutches, but not all Italians believe it.
from The Economist
12/02/2012
French Court decision on Concorde Crash
PARIS — Twelve years after the crash of an Air France Concorde jet outside Paris that killed 113 people, a French appeals court (in - at -on) Thursday dismissed all criminal charges against Continental Airlines, despite (to say - saying - say) that a stray part from one of its planes led to the crash of the supersonic jet.
The ruling (reverses - reversing - reverse) an earlier court decision that (will find - found - find) the U.S.-based carrier guilty of manslaughter.
The appeals court in Versailles dismissed manslaughter charges against Continental Airlines and two of (its - it's - his) mechanics..
(Although - Anyway - Despite) the appeals court upheld the findings of aviation investigators that the accident was the result of a chain of events that began with a metal strip on the runway that fell off a Continental Airlines jet. The part punctured one of the Concord's tires, which struck the plane's fuel tank, set off a fire, and brought down the jetliner.
The court upheld Continental's civil responsibility in the case and ordered the airline (pay - to pay - paying) $1.3 million in damages to Air France. That money is intended to compensate the airline for lost business, and to be used toward settlements to the victims' families.
(Although - However - In spite) the verdict is not the end of legal proceedings in the crash.
The chief engineer in charge of the supersonic program is set to go on trial in January to determine his responsibility for the crash.
And now that the criminal case against Continental is over, Air France is free to sue the U.S. airline (for - to - as) recover the settlements to the victims’ families.
adapted from VOA
Latest, Hottest Electronic Gadgets (video)
You can also watch this video by clicking on the Play Button
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)