A video about the hidden costs of soda

From here:

Americans drink more soda than anyone else on earth. And it’s no wonder we keep reaching for soda over water, coffee and juice–soda is addictive. From morning to night, many of us rely on a steady stream of sugary, caffeinated soda to power us through long hours sitting in front of steering wheels, computer screens, dinner tables and televisions. Like gas-powered cars and high-speed internet, Coke and Pepsi products are just another fixture in most Americans daily lives.

It may be time to confront our soda addiction. Just as lifestyle diseases like Type II Diabetes and obesity grow to epidemic proportions in the U.S., the average American now consumes 20 oz of soda every day.

World AIDS Day is December 1 - Help Create an AIDS-Free Generation

World AIDS Day is Saturday, December 1. The 2012 theme is "Working Together for an AIDS-Free Generation".

It has been more than 30 years since the first cases of AIDS were reported in the U.S. HIV is still a reality for more than a million Americans. Nearly one of every five people living with HIV in the U.S. doesn’t know it.

If you want to help create an AIDS-free generation, participate in the Facing Aids Initiative, get resources to plan an event, read the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, and more at AIDS.gov.

To get tested for HIV, locate a testing site near you by sending a text message with your ZIP code to "KNOWIT" (566948) or visit HIVtest.org.

Men Can Register Online for the Selective Service

From USA.gov:

Most men between the ages of 18-25 must register with the Selective Service in order to be eligible to receive federal student aid and grants, including college work study.

Find out who is required to register with the Selective Service and do it online.

Absurd licensing terms imposed on public domain works by libraries and museums

From BoingBoing

"Keneth Cerws' published studies take copyfight to libraries and museums where restrictive - often absurd - copyright claims and licensing terms are forced on those requesting images of art works and scans of books and documents where the original work long ago entered the public domain, often decades or centuries ago. This raises relevent questions about fair use, academic and research use and how we treat copyright for new images and renderings, often digital images, of old works that many consider vital pieces our common human history, heritage and cultural commons."

Library closed Thursday

All Albany Public Library branches, including Main, are closed Thursday, November 15, for staff development day. They will reopen on Friday.

President Obama Wins Reelection - Find Results by State

President Barack Obama won the 2012 Presidential election. According to major news outlets, he captured 303 electoral college votes, and won important battleground states like Ohio and Virginia.

Find a map of election results or results by state.

Obama will begin his second-term in office when he is sworn in at a public ceremony taking place on January 21, 2013. Learn more about the President and the inauguration.

Libraries and ebooks: YOU DON'T OWN IT

From Rapp on This by intellectual property lawyer Paul Rapp.

This issue [of ebooks] is getting especially dicey with libraries that want to do what libraries should do with ebooks, lend them out Publishers, which have always hated libraries, have no idea what to do. Remember, ebooks are tethered, so a library can’t just go online and buy an ebook, because it can only be read on one device, or one owner’s devices. So, for ebook lending to work, publishers need to provide libraries ebooks with looser controls, that can be moved across platforms, and shared with the public. Several publishers have simply refused to allow this, and have kept their ebooks off of libraries' digital shelves. Several publishers provide ebooks capable of being lent out, but gouge the libraries for as much as 300% of normal retail prices. One publisher doesn’t allow its ebooks to work on certain devices it doesn’t like, and another electronically limits its library ebooks to 26 loans. 26. One more than 25.

What a stupid mess.