The Filter^

BBC News - Does it pay to be a student in America?

The numbers of British students studying in America is at a record high, but with tuition fees set to rise in England and Wales, could even more travel across the Atlantic?

In the sea of American football shirts, and college-branded hoodies, the England top is hard to miss.

Its proud wearer is 27-year-old James Martin, from Sheffield, who is now very much at home on the campus of George Mason University in Virginia

via www.bbc.co.uk

Interesting story about UK students that travel to the US for higher education. I was glancing through and thought "that's the Johnson Center!", before realising that this students is indeed at GMU. With all these kids on the streets protesting about fees, don't forget that education is a global market.

Update: and here's an article about the trend for US students to find a cheaper education by coming to the UK!

 

The Case of the Vanishing Blonde

The police detectives did what they could at the hotel, combing the woman’s room for evidence, interviewing hotel employees, obtaining images from all of the surveillance cameras for the morning of the crime, going over the guest lists. The hotel had 174 rooms, and so many people came and went that it would have taken months working full-time to run checks on every one of them, something beyond the resources of a police department in a high-crime area like Miami-Dade. The sex-crimes unit set aside the file with no clear leads, only more questions. After several weeks, “we were dried up,” recalled Allen Foote, the detective handling the case.

This is a really satisfying mystery. There's also a video with real footage and interviews here. Via Jason Kottke.

on global warming

If we think that climate is affected by human activity, why aren’t we doing more research on the optimal temperature of the earth?
Gordon Tullock

Silliness « The New Adventures of Stephen Fry

They can’t have it both ways. They pick up otherwise ignored articles, fulminate against them and in doing so accuse me of pushing myself forward! If the mainstream media ignored the frankly insignificant articles in which I appear almost no one would hear of them. All they have to do is ignore me, instead of which they big up everything they can find which involves me and then follow up their irritation with outraged expressions of annoyance at how prevalent I am. Well they are the ones who make me prevalent. It’s all rather potty and in the end all one can do is giggle at such farcical nonsense

via www.stephenfry.com

I note the UK PA responds with:

Stephen Fry has compared agreeing to being interviewed by journalists to consenting to "being mugged, raped or burgled" after a row broke out over remarks he made to a magazine.

wow

More here (via Jason Kottke).

FT.com / Reportage - Why we still love board games

In a country such as Britain, it is downright odd to pull a board game out of a cupboard and offer to teach it to friends alongside after-dinner coffee

via www.ft.com

Hmph.Tim Harford writes an excellent article on the enduring love of board games, making some telling points about the limitations of monopoly (a game I don't enjoy), and referencing some modern classics. The article has an illustration of 'Carcassonne' - a game I've taught to several people over coffee, and one I enjoy playing on my iPhone. If anyone wants a game, let me know.

BBC News - Audio slideshow: The last Lewis's

The tills have rung up for the last time in Liverpool's landmark store - Lewis's - after more than 150 years. The last shop to have been trading under the Lewis's name, it shut at the end of May, earlier than planned.

via news.bbc.co.uk

Follow the link for a fantastic video of a Liverpool landmark.

Gun control in the UK

I've waited until hearing people raise the gun control debate before commenting, and I'm yet to see anyone else making the same point, so here goes: would a maniac be (i) more likely or (ii) less likely, to set off on a killing spree if the probability that he'll encounter someone else carrying a gun increases?

One of the tragic elements of this horrific story is that he wasn't stopped sooner.

Congestion Charge

Here's something I said to the French Chamber of Commerce magazine, back in 2007

Ken Livingston’s solution to congestion is to levy a poll tax, but it is short-sighted to treat London motorists as a static tax-base. In practice, the cost of the Congestion Charge is born by those who are least able to avoid it, which are businesses within Central London: their delivery fleets, their supply chain, and their staff. Those who can avoid it, such as tourists, visitors, and customers, will do so and avoid driving into London. The creation of “Fortress London” will have a detrimental effect on wealth-creation, and simply move congestion to satellite towns (creating urban sprawl and even greater demand for under-funded and over-capacity public transport.)

Haiti

President Obama needs to come to terms with the idea that the country of Haiti, as we knew it, probably does not exist any more

As soon as I heard the awful news about the Haiti earthquake I anticipated plenty of insightful commentary from Tyler Cowen. He hasn't disappointed. If there was one person on the planet that posses appropriate knowledge about economic history and development, the realities of politics, local culture, efficacy of Aid and sheer compassion - Tyler must be it. His NYT column will I'm sure be the most profound analysis of this global humanitarian problem. As those of us in material comfort find ways to donate to reputable charities, realise that soon we will witness one of histories greatest natural experiments on statebuilding.