Fenway Remy's: Play ball

Jerry Remy's Sports Bar & Grill, the Fenway restaurant that abruptly closed earlier this month, is slated to reopen under new ownership and management on April 13 — the day of the Red Sox home opener against the Washington Nationals at Fenway Park.

The Boston-based Cronin Group is buying the restaurant from Red Sox Nation president and NESN color analyst Jerry Remy and his partners, founder Jon Cronin confirmed yesterday.

Cronin, who had been an investor in the restaurant, owns and operates the Jerry Remy's location in the Seaport District under a licensing agreement with Remy. The Fenway restaurant also will operate under a licensing agreement.

"It's a good area with a lot of development going on, so we see big potential there for a nice restaurant," Cronin said. "We're going to do a quick makeover, implement a whole new made-from-scratch menu and upgrade the food and beverage offerings."

Cronin hopes to sign a new lease with the building's owner, a Boston Red Sox affiliate, next week. He is also applying to have the restaurant's liquor license transferred to his company.

Remy's namesake restaurant closed without warning March 3, and Remy and his primary partner, John O'Rourke, have been silent about what happened.

Reached yesterday, Remy still wouldn't talk about why it closed, but said he "couldn't be more ecstatic" that Cronin is taking over.

"We feel like it's going to be in very stable hands now that he's going to be the owner and operator," Remy said. "John was our major investor, and I'm glad it is in his hands. We're pleased that it turned out the way it did."

Jerry Remy's Sports Bar & Grill opened in the shadow of Fenway Park in March 2010 after a $5 million build-out. A large roof deck was later added.

There's a lot of work before it reopens, including hiring 200 employees, according to Cronin, who encouraged former employees to apply. The revamped menu will include business lunch options for small and large groups.

The Cronin Group owns a string of other restaurant/bars in Boston, including Tia's Boston, Market, the Atlantic Beer Garden and Whiskey Priest in the Seaport District, and the Playwright and Boston Beer Garden in South Boston. It also owns Temazcal Tequila Cantinas in the Seaport District and Lynnfield, and Tony C's Sports Bar & Grill in Somerville and Burlington.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Car Smart: Murano gives more features for less money

Newly redesigned for 2015, the Nissan Murano is an attractive mid-sized crossover that has almost everything you could want for less money.

While it doesn't wow you with its power, it earns some nice style points for its features and upscale appearance.

The Murano has a 3.5-liter V6 engine with a continuously variable-speed automatic transmission (CVT). The CVT takes awhile to get used to as it seems to feel like a slipping clutch, revving hard but not taking off. Drivers looking for a fast hole-shot will find this feature lacking. For others, the transmission is something they may notice at first, but soon forget.

The one-speed CVT does pay dividends — it helps this car achieve 21 miles per gallon in the city and 28 mpg on the highway.

The Murano has the look and feel of a higher-priced luxury vehicle without the expensive price tag. The aerodynamic exterior is sleek and sharp with nice lines along the side complemented by a chrome accent at the base of the door. The Murano looks somewhat like a spaceship from a few vantage points.

The SV AWD trim level, with an MSRP of $37,305, has a classy interior even though it is equipped with cloth, not leather, seats. It also did not have a heated steering wheel or heated seats, which in winter seems a bit of a must here in the Northeast.

The all-wheel drive performs very well in the snow, with the Murano starting and stopping with predictably good results. The vehicle is also equipped with a remote start feature, which is necessary in the cold weather.

The Murano's 11-speaker Bose audio system has good sound and there's a touch screen on the head unit that also controls the GPS and Bluetooth. The electronics layout needs some tweaking, however. The volume controls are hard to find on the steering wheel and even after a week of driving, the layout failed to make sense.

This crossover sports a quiet cabin that insulates highway noise pretty well, but engine noise somehow still manages to get through. The ride is very comfortable.

With 69.9 cubic feet of cargo space, the Murano has plenty of storage, even more than the previous model year. The Murano seats five comfortably with front seats that employ zero gravity technology and back seats that fold flat. The cabin feels even roomier with its super-sized panoramic moonroof.

Overall, the Nissan 
Murano SV AWD is a great buy as long as you are looking for features and comfort over performance.

2015 Nissan Murano SV AWD

• MSRP: $35,105
• As Tested: $37,305
• MPG: 21 city, 28 highway

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Home Showcase: This colonial has drive-in appeal

Less than an hour's drive from Boston, this updated contemporary colonial in Medway looks unusual at first, with an attached, two-car garage that juts out of the front, but the inside is well lit and spacious with hardwood floors, four bedrooms and plenty of bathrooms.

"It's a bright, welcoming home with a floor plan that is wonderful for entertaining, as well as for raising children," said broker Paul Yorkis of Patriot Real Estate in Medway.

Built in 1988 on 1.11 fenced-in acres on a quiet suburban street, the first floor includes a living room with a wood-burning fireplace, a dining room, and a remodeled kitchen with an informal dining area. There is plenty of cabinet space in the kitchen, along with granite countertops, an island, a pantry, a five-burner Bosch stove and a hood, and stainless steel appliances, including a microwave, a combination oven-confection oven, and a Bosch refrigerator.

A laundry area is off the kitchen, which leads to a large family room with a cathedral ceiling, exposed beams, skylights, a wood-burning fireplace and access to the garage. A slate patio with a fire pit can be accessed from both the family room and the kitchen. Off the family room, is a half bath and a hallway with ample closet space.

Upstairs, each of the four bedrooms has recessed lighting, a ceiling fan and closet space. The master bedroom has a walk-in closet and a full bath with a jacuzzi/soaking tub and a shower. A second full bath upstairs has a tub and shower and a double vanity with a granite top. In the hallway is a linen closet.

The finished basement is carpeted and has a half bath and two rooms, one of which has a door to the yard. There are also two mechanical rooms in the basement.

The house has central air conditioning and four heating zones: three oil and one electric.

HOME SHOWCASE

• Address: 14 Rockwood Road
• Bedrooms: Four
• Bathrooms: Two full and two half
• List price: $629,900
• Square feet: 3,128
• Price per square foot: $201.37
• Annual taxes: $9,870 in 2014
• Location: About 20 minutes to the Norfolk commuter rail station if you drive to Medway Middle School, where you can park for free and take the shuttle bus
• Built: In 1988
• Broker: Paul Yorkis of Patriot Real Estate at (508) 533-4321

THE APPRAISAL

Pros:

• Ample storage space
• Modern kitchen
• Fenced-in yard

Cons:

• Suburban location, driving distance to shops

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Uber, insurance companies agree on bill

Ride-sharing company Uber has reached an agreement with major insurance companies on a model bill that would cover drivers anytime they are working.

"It's a national agreement with a number of major insurance carriers to come together and agree on some negotiated insurance language for state legislation of transportation network companies," said Meghan Joyce, general manager of Uber East Coast. "We can use (the agreement) to provide clarity to insurance across the nation."

Uber and Lyft — which also signed the agreement — have been criticized for gaps in insurance coverage, as well as blurring the line between personal and commercial insurance policies. The agreement, which will be sent to state legislators across the country, provides lawmakers with a compromise both sides have already agreed to.

"Auto insurance carriers, Transportation Network Companies, and trade associations stand together in support of this insurance legislation, and encourage you to utilize this language," the letter to legislators says.

Uber and Lyft have faced scrutiny from cab drivers and local governments that want regulations for ride-sharing companies to put them on a level playing field with taxi companies.

Gov. Charlie Baker's administration is in the middle of its own regulatory process, and expects to file a bill in the coming weeks.

Bill Pitman, a Baker spokesman, said: "The administration continues to engage with municipalities, industry leaders and public safety advocates as it works to draft a statewide regulatory framework that embraces innovation and enhances the safety of riders and drivers."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hotel bid process seen as ripe for collusion

Massport is allowing development groups seeking to build an $800 million Seaport District hotel to team up with the same hotel partners, creating an unusual situation that critics say could be exploited and lead to collusion if a hotel chain was to share one bidder's sensitive financial information with its competitor.

"If a bidder is clued in on another's bid, the integrity of the process could be compromised and the public may wind up with a raw deal," said Mary Z. Connaughton, director of government transparency for the Pioneer Institute. "I would hope there would be some type of firewall. The hotels themselves would be privy to two different bids and each one will be asking for some form of public subsidy ... They need tight controls to make sure collusion does not exist."

According to Massport, it has received six bids from developers to build the new headquarters hotel on two Massport-owned parcels at Summer and D streets as part of the planned $1 billion expansion of the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center.

One development group, Boston-based Fallon Co. and Capstone Development of Washington, D.C., has submitted three separate bids, each with a different hotel brand: Hilton Worldwide, Hyatt Hotels and Marriott International.

Another development team, Boston-based Accordia Partners and RIDA Development of Houston, has submitted two bids, one with Hilton Worldwide and another with Marriott International.

A third group, New Boston Hospitality, has teamed up with only one hotel partner, Omni.

Massport spokesman Matthew Brelis defended its request-for-proposals process, saying it will spur more bids and greater options for the authority.

"This is one of the hottest real estate markets in the country and the more bids we receive, the greater the competition and ability to negotiate on behalf of the public. Four different hotel brands expressed interest, including Hilton and Marriott, with more than one developer. That speaks to the strong market, and the national hotel brands' eagerness to win," Brelis said. "Each of the hotel bids are unique. If any evidence of collusion by national hotel brands surfaces in our review, then we will take appropriate action."

David Tuerck of the Beacon Hill Institute said the "potential clearly exists" for hotel operators to share information between the different bidders, raising the issue of how the hotels could uphold a fiduciary responsibility to competing clients. It could also weaken Massport's leverage, he said.

"It seems to me they have already lost bargaining power when they have permitted bids from companies that are sharing hotel operators in their proposals," he said. "It creates a downward pressure because it is in the interest of the bidders to bid as little as possible."

Fallon, Capstone and Marriott did not return repeated messages. Kirk Sykes, manager of Accordia, and RIDA both declined to comment.

A spokeswoman for Hilton defended its decision to partner with competing developers, saying in a statement, "This process was mandated by the MCCA and Massport ... All parties involved were simply following the rules they've outlined."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

New Balance gives Boston its sole

New Balance is releasing a new running shoe with a distinctive Boston flavor just in time for next month's 119th Boston Marathon.

The limited-edition Fresh Foam Zante Boston sneaker features the Boston skyline on its insole and the word "Fastah" on the sole — that's "faster" in Boston parlance. New Balance also inscribed its logo with "Boston."

"With its extraordinary culture of both sports fanatics and fitness fanatics, it's safe to say that nobody runs like Boston," the company said in a statement.

The sneakers go on sale for $114.95 at New Balance's Boston store and on newbalance.com on April 6.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Rates drop for summer

The price of electricity is going down this summer for National Grid cus­tomers, but rates will remain higher than a year ago — with no relief in sight.

"It's a little higher than last summer," said Jake Navarro, a spokesman for National Grid. "This is a market-­based phenomenon and over time, because of the natural gas constraints in the region, these power supply prices are going to continue to creep up."

National Grid this week announced a 26 percent rate cut for its electric customers, or about $32 on a typical bill, and a 25 percent to 30 percent cut for natural gas customers, or $9 to $12 on a typical bill, starting May 1. The Department of Public Utilities yesterday approved the new rates.

Eversource, the state's major electricity delivery company, has said it hopes to be able to file for a rate decrease in a few months.

Last fall, the DPU approved a 37 percent rate hike for National Grid electric customers. At the time, National Grid blamed the increase on insufficient natural gas pipeline ca­pacity to fuel power plants. Gov. Charlie Baker has thrown his support behind efforts to add a new natural gas pipeline in the region.

"The region as a whole has become more reliant on natural gas, but without building the highways to get natural gas here," Navarro said. 'We need additional gas capacity in the region and until we get it, it looks like the power supply prices will continue to trend up."

A legislative committee is investigating the increases in electricity prices in Massachusetts, and a DPU spokeswoman said it has started looking into "ways to improve the retail electric competitive supply market."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

The Ticker

Smart meters come to Hub

Boston will replace all 8,000 parking meters in the Hub with "next generation" smart meters.

The Back Bay and Innovation District will get multispace meters, which allow more vehicles to fit in a block of spaces, the city said. The rest of the parking meters will be replaced by meters that will accept change, credit cards and cell phone payments. The smart meters also will collect real-time data about whether a space is occupied.

The move, announced yesterday as part of Mayor Martin J. Walsh's transportation initiatives, is expected to cost $5 million. Replacement of the parking meters will begin by the end of the year.

Heinz buy of Kraft just latest merger

Wall Street's deal-making renaissance shows no sign of ending.

Heinz's $45 billion acquisition of Kraft Foods, announced yesterday, has helped maintain the momentum in the market for mergers and acquisitions.

So far this year, companies globally have struck deals worth $802 billion, according to data provider Dealogic. That compares with $733 billion in the first quarter of 2014 and makes it the best first quarter for deal-making in at least five years.

Other big deals in the works include Simon Property's bid to buy rival Macerich, and AbbVie's deal to buy Pharmacyclics.

• Tufts Health Plan announced the appointment of Marc Backon, left, to senior vice president and chief sales and marketing officer for its commercial products division. Backon brings more than 25 years of health care ex­perience to this position.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

$17M fraud penalty rocks state biotech co.

A Bay State biotech company will pay more than $17 million to settle charges that its executives lied to investors and used their money for personal expenses, including massages and leasing a BMW.

"They were lying about what they had to sell, how soon it was likely to get to market, how and whether it was under the governmental approval processes and how much their company might be worth," said Paul Levenson, regional director of the Securities and Exchange Commission's Boston Regional Office.

Danvers-based BioChemics was accused of defrauding investors from 2009 until mid-2012, falsely claiming that:

• The company had partnerships with other drug companies.

• Two drugs were under FDA review.

• The company had been valued at more than $1 billion when it had an internal valuation of $200 million.

BioChemics raised more than $15 million from at least 70 individual investors for a transdermal drug delivery system it claimed it was developing.

John Masiz, the founder of BioChemics, Gregory Kroning and Craig Medoff also were named in the initial SEC complaint.

"Investor funds were used to pay for personal expenses of Masiz (such as meals, massages, clothing and sporting goods) and Kroning (such as a leased BMW automobile)," the complaint said.

BioChemics must pay more than $17 million to the SEC, including "ill-gotten gains," interest and a $750,000 penalty, the SEC said. The SEC will then seek to repay investors.

A lawyer representing BioChemics did not respond to requests for comment.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

HubSpot connects with Rekindle’s dating app

Cambridge marketing and sales software company HubSpot is turning to social and dating app Rekindle to help its customers make better connections.

"Instead of being in a romantic relationship, it's a business relationship," said Brad Coffey, vice president of product for HubSpot, which yesterday announced it had acquired Rekindle.

Rekindle uses phone contacts to connect friends who may have drifted apart or want to restart a relationship. Rekindle recently rolled out a way to understand connections between friends of friends.

At HubSpot, Rekindle's team will focus on making those connections work for salespeople by adding context to potential leads, including revealing connections to other leads. HubSpot recently jumped headfirst into sales after focusing on software for marketers for years.

"(Salespeople) get so much value out of understanding the relationships between their customers and their prospects," Rekindle co-founder Matthew Grace said. "There's so much value in those relationships."

Grace said his team will be doing more to integrate and connect all the information the HubSpot software already collects, including social media,

"All the data HubSpot has ... it's an order of magnitude bigger, it's kind of like a playground," Grace said.

Grace and Coffey both declined to say how much HubSpot paid for his company, but Grace said, "All my investors are happy, I'll leave it at that."

Grace and the four other employees at Rekindle have already started at HubSpot.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Rising rates deliver electric shock

A legislative committee is looking into increases in electricity prices in Massachusetts, with its chairman calling the hikes "unprece­dented" and "outrageous" as news broke that Boston residents paid far more than the national average for electricity.

"The House Post Audit and Oversight committee is at the beginning stages of an investigation into the reasons why Massachusetts electric customers saw unprecedented increases in their electric bills over the past year," said Chairman David Linsky (D-Natick). "We want to determine why this happened, if the increases were warranted and if there is anything under the current Massachusetts regulatory structure that regulators can do about these outrageous rate increases."

Yesterday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said electricity prices in Boston were 63 percent higher than the national average in February — well up from last year, when local prices were 29 percent higher. Utilities have blamed insufficient pipeline capacity to supply the region, coupled with high winter demand.

"The high electric rates don't only affect the bill every month to the electric company, but that ultimately gets passed on to the consumer as well, it's a huge problem," Linsky said.

A Massachusetts economist group, MassBenchmarks, said in its quarterly commentary yesterday: "Should energy costs remain high, the state economy will pay a high price both in terms of reduced levels of consumer spending and business activity."

Dan Dolant of the New England Power Generators Association, said, "I don't know what new legislation can be put in place that change the fundamentals of supply and demand in the marketplace."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Asia stocks drift lower as Fed, China weakness weigh

NEW YORK — Asian stocks drifted mostly lower Wednesday as investor sentiment was kept in check by the prospect of higher U.S. interest rates following improved economic data as well as the lingering fears about China's weakening growth.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.4 percent to 19,638.90 and South Korea's Kospi lost less than 0.1 percent to 2,040.23. Hong Kong's Hang Seng climbed 0.4 percent to 24,490.77 while the Shanghai Composite Index in mainland China lost 1.1 percent to 3,652.57. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was practically unchanged at 5,967.60, hovering near its highest level in more than seven years. Southeast Asian indexes were mixed.

INVESTOR INDECISION: Markets were mostly in a holding pattern as investors turned cautious following recent economic data on the world's two biggest economies. U.S. government data showed that in February consumer prices rose in for the first time in four months while new home sales climbed to their fastest pace in seven years. That was a good sign for the world's No. 1 economy that nonetheless also raises concerns the Fed could soon raise interest rates. The reports came after HSBC's preliminary purchasing managers' index showed Chinese manufacturing activity slumped to the lowest in 11-months, signaling further weakness in the second biggest economy.

MARKET VIEW: "It remains to be seen whether we are going through a period of equilibrium, where bulls and bears even each other out, or simply a period where traders are happy to ride out the end of a good quarter by staying on the sidelines," Nicholas Teo of CMC Markets in Singapore wrote in a commentary.

WALL STREET: U.S. stocks ended slightly lower Tuesday as latest report on consumer prices and signs of possible renewed strength in the dollar left investors indecisive. The Standard & Poor's 500 fell 0.6 percent to 2,091.50 while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.6 percent to 18,011.14. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.3 percent to 4,994.73.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude futures lost 10 cents to $47.41 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 6 cents to close at $47.51 a barrel. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils, slipped 3 cents to $55.08 in London.

CURRENCIES: The dollar slipped to 119.62 yen from 119.75 in the previous session. The euro strengthened to $1.0926 from $1.0914.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

The Ticker

Plymouth firm lands drone testing contract

Plymouth-based Avwatch Inc. will operate and manage unmanned aircraft system test ranges on Cape Cod and at other Bay State sites as part of a regional testing network selected by the Federal Aviation Administration in 2013.

MassDevelopment yesterday announced Avwatch's selection to oversee operations at the 22,000-acre Joint Base Cape Cod, delivering aerial reconnaissance, real-time, full-motion video and aerial systems testing and evaluation. Avwatch was founded in 2008.

The one-year contract is valued at $220,000, with $114,000 of that going toward building out a network to gather and transmit the test information to the FAA, according to MassDevelopment, which said the test ranges and center will offer new business opportunities in the areas of unmanned aircraft system platforms, control systems and payload/sensor development. Griffiss International Airport in Rome, N.Y., is the lead site in the Northeast UAS Airspace Integration Research (NUAIR) Alliance.

Merrill Lynch hit with $2.5M fine

State securities officials have ordered a $2.5 million fine against Merrill Lynch as part of a settlement stemming from an investigation into a January 2013 internal presentation to Merrill financial advisers in Boston. According to Secretary of State William Galvin's office, which oversees the state securities division, a portion of the two-day presentation to more than 300 people touched on training to double production by transferring customer assets from commission-based brokerage accounts to fee-based alternatives, but did not include language regarding client suitability or fiduciary requirements of Merrill Lynch financial advisers.

TODAY

• Labor Deptartment releases Consumer Price Index for February.
• Treasury releases foreign holdings of U.S. debt for January.
• Commerce Department releases new home sales for February.

TOMORROW

• Commerce Department releases durable goods for February.
• A former executive at Liberty Mutual Insurance and Hanover Insurance has been named executive director of the Massachusetts Insurance Federation. John P. Murphy will succeed James Harrington, whom he called his "longtime friend and mentor."

The federation's 25 members write more than 
$7.5 billion in property and casualty insurance premiums in Massachusetts.

Murphy, of West Roxbury, has been president of the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies since August 2012 and was regional vice president of the American Insurance Association from October 2005 until December 2010.

In 2011 and 2012, he worked as vice president and counsel at Hanover Insurance Co., which is based in Worcester. From 1987 until 2003, Murphy was assistance vice president and senior legislative counsel at Liberty Mutual in Boston.

He is also engaged in a civil law practice with Thaxter, Beckwith & Henderson of Cohasset and Stief, Waite, Gross & Sagoskin of Newton, Pa.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Councilors pitch paid parental leave

Two city councilors have proposed a local law that would create Boston's first paid parental leave policy for city employees, a step that one expert said sends a strong message to other Massachusetts employers.

The proposal by City Councilors Michelle Wu and Tim McCarthy would grant up to six weeks of paid parental leave to both men and women, as well as same-sex couples, who have worked for the city for at least a year and do not belong to a union.

"This ordinance will help alleviate some pressure on working parents who have to make tough choices every day to do the best they can for their families," said Wu, a new mother.

Mayor Martin J. Walsh said he will sign the ordinance if the council passes it, and he hopes businesses consider adopting similar policies. A spokeswoman said the cost would depend on how many employees take advantage of it.

"It does send a strong signal," said Brad Harrington, executive director of the Boston College Center for Work & Family. "Everybody who operates around the city is going to observe what it does. ... It takes action at the level where action can best be taken, given the fact that Washington seems to be in gridlock over everything. Virtually every country in the world offers paid maternal leave, and about 75 countries have paid paternal leave. As a matter of national policy, the U.S. offers neither."

As a state representative, Walsh was the lead sponsor of a law that takes effect April 7 and broadens the state's 1972 maternity leave act to also give new fathers — at companies with as few as six employees — eight weeks of unpaid leave.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

New York Times close to content deal with Facebook

Facebook is in talks with at least half a dozen media companies including The New York Times, BuzzFeed and National Geographic to host content directly within the social media platform, instead of on their own individual websites.

The Times and Facebook are moving closer to a firm deal, a source told the Times, and Facebook intends to begin testing the new format over the next several months.

To make the proposal more appealing to publishers, the social media giant has discussed ways for publishers to make money from advertising that would run alongside the content, according to a report in the Times on Monday.

Currently news articles on Facebook are linked to the publisher's own website, and open in a web browser, typically taking about eight seconds to load. However, stories embedded within Facebook could offer faster load times and make the experience of consuming content online more seamless.

In addition to hosting content directly on Facebook, the company is also talking with publishers about other technical ways to hasten delivery of their articles, reported the Times.

The new plan is championed by Chris Cox, the top lieutenant to Facebook's chief, Mark Zuckerberg, on product matters, and it would remove the ads that publishers put around their content. One option would allow publishers to show a single ad in a custom format within each Facebook article.

2015 TheWrap news inc. All rights reserved.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Researcher is making a splash

Northeastern University could help develop the first underwater smartphone or wireless router after luring a highly cited researcher who is pioneering subaquatic Wi-Fi.

Tommaso Melodia, 38, came to Northeastern in August from SUNY Buffalo and brought with him his research and his lab — which sent the first underwater tweet a few years ago.

Less than a year into his stint at Northeastern, Melodia has already won a $300,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to expand his research, this time focusing on the possibility of real-time underwater video streaming.

In layman's terms, his technology allows for bits of data to be transmitted over acoustic waves. In historical terms, this is the newest frontier in the transmission of information — like what we were trying to do with wires 50 years ago. It was a matter of carefully modifying frequencies and amplitudes to get the most efficient transmissions. Melodia is working on ways to adapt data to transmit through sound waves in water — similar process, different medium.

The consequences are far-reaching, from unlocking mysteries of the ocean to enabling scuba divers and submarines to communicate via Wi-Fi.

"This technology enables you to have a signal on a boat saying this is the location on the scuba diver, to enable voice communications amongst divers and monitor underwater activities of small submarines smuggling illegal substances," said Melodia, associate professor in the department of electrical and computer engineering, and head of the Wireless Networks and Embedded Systems Lab (WiNES Lab).

"There are lots of environmental implications — you can monitor level of pollution and send warnings to the authorities, or even tweet directly to authorities."

Melodia's research progressed last year to allow the first files to be wirelessly uploaded to the Internet under water. He envisions these developments making search and rescue missions easier, especially when it comes to locating missing planes, and enabling an entirely new industry of underwater, Wi-Fi-enabled robotics.

"Having a better understanding of underwater acoustic propagation helps us make better devices to produce the pings of a black box," he said.

Sending data across water has another interesting application: the human body. The next phase of Melodia's work at Northeastern will likely encompass intra-body networks: the kind of Wi-Fi communication that would allow tiny implanted medical devices to detect and treat ailments in real time. The human body is made of 60 percent water, so it's not a leap to think that underwater Wi-Fi may soon change not just how we communicate, but how long we live as well.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Card issuers all-in on chips

With a critical Oct. 1 liability deadline looming, the nation's 10 largest credit card issuers are in the process of switching to safer chip-based payment cards and expect to have the majority of them updated by year's end, according to a new report by CardHub.

The transition comes in the wake of an uptick in massive data breaches — at U.S. companies ranging from retailers Staples, Target and Home Depot to financial services firm JPMorgan Chase and health insurer Anthem Inc. — and MasterCard and Visa's deadline that shifts liability to those card issuers and merchants that don't make the change from the more vulnerable magnetic-strip-only swipe payment cards.

"Banks and merchants must enable these chip-card payments or else they will incur significant added liabilities for fraudulent transactions," said Jill Gonzalez, a spokeswoman for CardHub, a Washington, D.C.-based credit card comparison and financial literacy website. "The (credit card) networks are really washing their hands of having responsibility for any more fraudulent activity or breaches that occur (using the magnetic strip swipe cards)."

The chip cards — known as EMV cards because Europay, MasterCard, and Visa developed the security framework — have embedded microchips with encrypted card security information that's difficult to counterfeit. To use the cards, which are already standard in more than 80 other countries, consumers insert them into a point-of-sale terminal and sign their name or enter their personal identification number (PIN). Each time a chip-enabled card is used, a unique, one-time transaction code is created that can't be used again.

All of the 10 credit card-issuing banks — including American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Discover and U.S. Bank — are issuing chip cards that require signatures. Barclays, USAA and WellsFargo also are issuing cards with PIN capabilities.

"(It's) even safer if a (chip) card requires a PIN in order for a transaction to be proceed," Gonzalez said. "If you don't have a PIN … a cashier can much more easily reject a transaction. A lot of times, these signatures are now done on electronic keyboards that a cashier doesn't look at or check with a card, and there's a lot more discrepancies … than hard-copy signatures (because of the difficulty in writing using the stylus pens)."

Those banks among the 10 that issue debit cards also will issue chip-enabled versions.

All 10 of the banks' cards also will continue to have the magnetic strips to ensure they work at merchants, particularly smaller ones, that don't upgrade or immediately upgrade to the chip-enabled point-of-sale systems.

"That's where your card would still be just as vulnerable," Gonzalez said.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Buckle up for the innovative Swash

Swash ($499, BestBuy.com & Swash.com)

Not quite a washing machine, and not quite a dry cleaner, Swash is a new product category: a device that claims to extend the life of your clothes by cutting down on the number of wash-and-dry cycles and more or less replacing your iron altogether.

The good: This clever 53-inch clothes refresher from Whirlpool smooths and steam cleans your clothes in a 10- or 15-minute cycle. Retractable tension clips secure the shape of your clothes just so. I was even able to reshape some previously shrunken wool sweaters with the Swash.

The bad: Keep in mind that this thing weighs 80 pounds and is rather tall. Detergent "pods" are sold separately, with the going price about $7 for a 12-pack. And for heavily soiled clothes, you'll still need a conventional washer.

The bottom line: You never knew you needed a Swash. But if you're keeping your local dry cleaner busy, this will save you time and possibly cash.

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Some slow to embrace FASTR

A new Congressional bill that would improve public access to the roughly $60 billion in research the federal government funds each year is drawing praise from researchers who say it will accelerate innovation, and criticism from some publishers who fear it will undermine their financial model.

The Fair Access to Science and Technology Research Act would require each federally funded researcher to submit an electronic copy of the final text of their peer-
reviewed work and ensure that manuscript is available free online within six months.

"We are supportive of any initiative that increases transparency and collaboration, and creates widespread access to the amazing work of our biomedical researchers," said Dr. Paul J. Anderson, chief academic officer and senior vice president of research at Brigham and Women's Hospital. "The FASTR Act has the potential to speed the pace of innovation, a goal that we are all focused on, as we work to translate our research breakthroughs to clinical therapies for the ultimate benefit of our patients."

Harry Orf, senior vice president for research at Massachusetts General Hospital, said MGH also supports full disclosure of peer-reviewed research.

Currently, federally funded study results are reported to the National Institutes of Health and submitted within a year of publication to PubMed Central, a freely accessible government database.
Orf's one concern is that any additional requirements the FASTR Act entails be handled through that system to prevent "increased bureaucratic burden" on researchers.

"Researchers with a final manuscript like as many people as possible to see it," said Dr. Roger K. Pitman, a psychiatrist at MGH and professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. "The issue here is more one of interaction between the federal government and journals."

Opponents to the FASTR Act include the Association of American Publishers, whose president and CEO said the bill "undermines our scientific publishing system, prioritizing simplicity over sustainability."
"The bills' short, inflexible 6- and 12-month embargoes will damage the financial viability of many scholarly journals and weaken the quality and integrity of the system, including the vital peer review process," said Tom Allen. "A goal of free public access to the world must not be allowed to eliminate the financial incentives for scholarly publishers to invest in bringing cutting-edge research to public attention."

But Heather Joseph, executive director of the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition, said, "Being able to provide access to this layer of information is at the core of our mission."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Techies snatching up more real estate in Southern California

LOS ANGELES — Internet moguls like Amazon's Jeff Bezos aren't the only techies snatching up real estate in Southern California.

While the mega rich from Silicon Valley have made headlines for their purchases of extravagant Los Angeles homes, the city has become increasingly appealing to a trove of angel investors and startup entrepreneurs as well.

The new buyers are drawn to the city for a mix of personal, financial and work-related reasons, the Los Angeles Times reports (http://lat.ms/1BYdMWD ). Los Angeles offers a growing tech scene, warmer weather and more space for less money.

"We've seen an uptick in buyers from the technology industry over the last several years — some moving to Los Angeles and some buying second homes here, as a kind of peaceful retreat," Charles Black, executive vice president of marketing and strategic development at Hilton & Hyland, told the Times.

The Los Angeles-Long Beach region broke into the top five metro areas by venture capital investment for the first time in 2014. There were 171 deals totaling $2.05 billion, according to National Venture Capital Association.

Some of the most high profile purchases in recent years include Bezos' $24.5 million Beverly Hills compound. Sean Parker, co-founder of Napster and an early leader at Facebook, purchased Ellen DeGeneres' Holmby Hills mansion for $55 million. Swedish tech billionaire Markus Persson, the creator of "Minecraft," topped them both when he spent $70 million for a Beverly Hills mansion fitted with a $200,000 candy room.

But the purchases of the uber rich only tell half the tale.

Entrepreneur and investor Justin Yoshimura, 25, is one example: While he primarily lives in San Francisco, he recently purchased a $2.04 million three-bedroom, three-bath home in Santa Monica that he now spends weekends in.

"Compared to San Francisco in particular, it's very cheap," he told the newspaper. "I have a yard with a pool and a beautiful home for less than what I would pay for an equivalent-sized condo in San Francisco."

Real estate agent Tami Pardee says tech buyers from Silicon Valley make up about 10 percent of her current clients. Their budget, even at a smaller scale, is high: anywhere from $2 million to $5 million for a home.

"They're buying second homes — or third or fourth homes," she said. "We're seeing it a lot."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Fed rate hike to have big impact

When the Federal Reserve finally raises interest rates, the ripple effect will hit everything from business investment to consumer borrowing, but that doesn't make it the wrong move, experts say.

"Short-term interest rates are going to go up, and that's going to affect a lot of things in the credit markets," said Paul Edelstein, director of financial economics for IHS Global Insight. "The Fed is going to make it more expensive to borrow."

Fed Chair Janet Yellen, has taken pains to be cautious, but the central bank last week gave signals that it will move slowly this year toward its first interest-rate increase since December 2008, when the economy was mired in the Great Recession and financial crisis.

One of the first and most notable ripple effects when the Fed raises rates will likely be on stock prices.

"When interest rates do go up, it is normal for that to have an effect on stock and bond markets," said Jeff Frankel, a professor at Harvard University and director of the Program in International Finance and Macroeconomics at the National Bureau of Economic Research.

The initial market reaction would likely be just a blip, but higher interest rates could lead to more volatile stock prices.

"Keeping interest rates so low for six years is part of what has sustained the rallies," he said.

Higher interest rates will spread to other loans, including mortgages, and eventually to credit cards as banks pass on higher borrowing costs to customers.

"If you want to borrow to buy a home, it's going to get more expensive," Edelstein said.

At the same time, it will become more lucrative to save, Edelstein said, as rising interest rates usually increase the yields on savings accounts.

For businesses, more expensive loans could take a bite out of investment plans.

"The more they have to spend to borrow money, the less they have to spend on other things," said David Wessel, director of the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy at the Brookings Institution, "and the less they'll have to spend on big capital expenses like factories."

The effects of raising interest rates may seem largely negative, but it is important to return to normal levels, analysts say.

"It's really, really unusual for interest rates to be at zero for more than six years," Wessel said. "Interest rates were cut to zero when things were really screwed up."

The Fed has said it will only raise rates when the labor market improves and it is absolutely sure the economy can weather the storm.

"No one likes to spoil a party," Frankel said, "but you do it because you think it's necessary to keep the economy on the long term."

16.30 | 0 komentar | Read More