Macro

• Economic Indicators site to be shut down by U.S. Department of Commerce: Say goodbye to a very useful online resource due to “budgetary constraints” – lame excuse. The cost of administering a good website has diminished drastically. Enlightened government bureaucrats will still collect the data, but they don’t want to share it with private citizens.

• William Ackman’s statement before Congress – The State of the Bond Insurance Industry: Interesting reading courtesy of fund manager who presciently shorted the real estate industry before the sub-prime meltdown became the crisis du jour.

• Detroit home sales up while hedge fund and owner of Chrysler, Cerberus, urges investors not to panic, yet: Does this signal a bottom in the real estate market or just the quiet before a second storm?

Micro

• Priceline.com (PCLN) earnings reach stratosphere: One of the lone bright spots in a tough market. Will travel remain strong in this challenging economic environment?

• New York Times (NYT) to cut 100 jobs while media firms team up to create new ad network: Can old media build a competitive moat around local ad targeting?

• Calpine’s (CPN) new deal and new lease on life on NYSE: Proposed geothermal power deal, if approved, will boost Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s (PCG) capacity from renewable energy sources.

Technology

• Google (GOOG) to add video ads in search results: Does increasing broadband adoption bode well for Google’s new experiment?

• Amazon.com (AMZN) Web Services unit experiences outage: Amazon’s hidden jewel powers many cutting-edge Web 2.0 startups such as Twitter.

• European Blu-ray sales reach record while Wal-Mart (WMT) ditches HD DVD: The Format Wars 2.0 may be reaching a conclusion.

Science

• Skin cells may be reprogrammed to become embryonic stem cells: This development might make the ethical debates moot.

• Jellyfish hold the secret to making invisible man: See-through skin could improve disease diagnosis.

• Open access to Harvard University’s proprietary content: I love this new movement in academia to share knowledge freely.

Design

• China’s Beijing Olympic Games to feature a “Water Cube”structure: Words cannot describe…

• Air Poo: Can Apple’s design philosophies be applied to the toilet?

• Mental Models: Aligning Design Strategy with Human Behavior: It’s all about the people.