Rebecca's Pocket

How to use a dishwasher and clothes washer and dryer

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 10:25:13 -0800

For the Dishwasher's Sake, Go Easy on the Detergent and other tips for optimum efficiency when using your dishwasher and clothes washer. Pre-rinsing wastes water!

Japa Dog Asian sausages a culinary sensation for the 2010 Winter Olympics

Mon, 15 Mar 2010 04:15:00 -0800

The biggest winner at the Vancouver Winter Olympics? Local hotdog stand, Japa Dog.

People are standing outside in cool wet weather for the popular Japanese hot dogs, waiting an hour and up to 90 minutes for a taste. Instead of the standard beef wiener with ketchup, mustard, pickle relish, and sauerkraut, the flavors include mayonnaise, seaweed, bonita flakes, fried cabbage, plum sauce, and grated radish.

How Nestle created a cult following for Japanese Kit Kats

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 04:15:00 -0800

Read about Nestle's brilliant strategies for building a deep following in Japan for Kit Kats: limited-edition and regionally specific flavors, sales points in the Post Office, and wacky, whimsical flavors like strawberry-cheesecake, wasabi-flavored white chocolate, and their best-seller, soy sauce.

More-like-this music service Pandora may finally become successful

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 04:15:00 -0800

Have you heard of Pandora? You select a song and it will program a stream of "more like this" music based on its musical "genome". Now the company is poised for success as it positions itself to be as ubiquitous as FM radio.

My problem with Pandora? My ideal radio station would be based on two or three favorite songs.

Coupon clipping as augmented reality

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 04:14:00 -0800

Are extreme couponers practicing a time-honored form of augmented reality gaming? That's not quite what it is, of course. But when you assemble a 6-foot tower of Jello and post it to a coupon forum, clearly it isn't about saving money. It's about the game itself.

3 steps to better lives for women

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 12:08:56 -0800

Three Proven Steps to Advance the World's Women, on International Women's Day. Absolutely right, and absolutely critical. (via @BillGates)

Junk food taxes more effective than health food subsidies

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 04:15:00 -0800

Fascinating. A new study suggests that subsidizing healthy food at the supermarket results in the purchase of more junk food! Taxing junk food had the opposite effect. I would have predicted the opposite outcome.

Lawmakers refuse to curtail predatory lending in their communities

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 04:15:00 -0800

Chart of the day: Payday lenders' lobbying expenditures.

The meat of the story, though, from Keith Epstein of the Huffington Post Investigative Fund, is well worth reading: it shows an astonishingly effective lobbying organization which has persuaded lawmakers around the country that payday lenders are both popular in their local communities and not particularly profitable.

One of the biggest payday-lender lobbyists calls itself the Community Financial Services Association; it increased its spending by 74 percent over the past year, to $2.56 million. That helps pay for people like Steven Schlein, who goes around saying things like "Who's going to make that kind of credit available to working people besides us?". (Answer: banks, community development credit unions, non-profit lenders, etc. And if "that kind of credit" is being extended at 650% APRs, then maybe it shouldn't be made available at all.)

Are lawmakers really this stupid? Corrupt? It's shameful.

3D bio-printers may be in service within 5 years

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 04:15:00 -0800

We live in wondrous times: A machine that prints organs is coming to market - for about $200,000. My dentist has an in-office machine that produces a crown in about half an hour from a scanned image of your tooth. When I saw that, I felt like I was in the future. But the prospect of creating on-demand custom organs is straight out of Star Trek.

Modern film resembles 1/f, the natural frequency of attention

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 04:15:00 -0800

New science shows that film directors have become more adept at structuring their films to produce pink noise - the natural rhythm of the brain. Bonus: the scientist studying film editing patterns is named "James Cutting".

Protecting against child hearing loss

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 11:47:09 -0800

Get your baby some earmuffs to protect their hearing!

Hearing loss from exposure to loud noises is cumulative and irreversible; if such exposure starts in infancy, children can live "half their lives with hearing loss," said Brian Fligor, director of diagnostic audiology at Children's Hospital Boston.

Because a young child's ear canal is much smaller than an older child's or an adult's...the sound pressure entering the ear is greater. An infant might perceive a sound as 20 decibels louder than an older child or an adult. The shorter length of the ear canal increases dangerous noise levels in the higher frequencies, which are crucial to language development.

Forest of Mitaka Ghibli Art Museum

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 09:26:37 -0800

The next time I'm in Tokyo, I'm going to make a point to visit the Studio Ghibli Museum.

"The Ghibli Museum is a portal to a storybook world. As the main character in a story, we ask that you experience the Museum space with your own eyes and senses, instead of through a camera's viewfinder. We ask that you make what you experienced in the Museum the special memory that you take home with you."

Fair enough. Still, there are areas within the museum that seem to be crying out for a photo op, such as the fabulous, furry Cat Bus, over which little kids (age limit: 12) scramble over in pure glee.

Maki has posted a detailed review that includes instructions for non-Japanese speakers for purchasing tickets (at the Lawson's!).

How to brew whole-leaf tea

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 04:15:00 -0800

How to make the best tea. Detailed instructions on choosing teas, brewing equipment, and a simple trick to ensure that your water is the proper temperature.

No-knead and less-knead bread

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 04:15:00 -0800

Harold McGee: Better Bread with Less Kneading. Trust Mr. McGee to cut through the no-knead hype to identify when that method is best and when to knead. Science bonus: flour/water proportions necessary for a good loaf of bread.

Belgium Beer Tasting

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 04:14:00 -0800

The joy and diversity of Belgian beers.