DCentric

Good morning, DCentric readers! While you were trying not to get soaked, we were looking for some light links for a flooded Friday.

Reasons why Pandas do not deserve your love “Tai Shan might bite you or bore you nearly to death, but he certainly won’t reciprocate your affections. Reasons why Tai Shan and his fellow giant pandas do not deserve your love…” (tbd.com)

Senate Votes to Shut Up Loud TV Commercials From the comments: “Here’s the funny thing, generally speaking, commercials actually are the same volume as the shows (technically, they have to be). The difference is that audio for commercials is mastered in such a way that the maximum punch is extracted out of the same dynamic range using compressors, limiters, maximizers, spectral enhancers and the like. So in this case, it really has to do with density of sound, not volume that creates the impression of “loudness”.” (gawker.com)

14th Street Streetscape: How Much Concept Does A Sidewalk Need? “Several residents were not particularly impressed….most of the head-scratching revolved around the alternative design — which features sidewalk designs which are based on some abstract ideas, like paying tribute to the fact that the corridor was the city’s “auto district” by using a wheel design at the P Street focus area. That’s right, a project with an emphasis on walking features a design which pays tribute to cars.” (DCist)

White House: Sorry We Turned Away War Hero’s Family Over Shorts “Last Saturday, a White House Staffer canceled a White House tour for recently deceased Medal of Honor winner Vernon Baker’s family when his 10-year-old grandson showed up wearing “shorts and a T-shirt bearing a picture” of Baker. They’re sorry.” (gawker.com)

Stanford prof says Rhee needed her own base “”Rhee has earned maverick status through her continual fighting with school unions and stubborn administrative staff, but as a result, not only are many people eager for her departure, they also have no vested interest in sustaining the changes she has managed to put in place.”" (voices.washingtonpost.com)

CVS, Now With Vermin AND Cats Enjoy this “photo of a woman capturing a cat in the store. I can only assume that the cat was after the rodents that have plagued the store in recent months. Dear CVS, if you’re following the path of the old woman who swallowed the fly, let me remind you that the nursery rhyme didn’t end well for her.” (Frozen Tropics)