In the last few months, fashion houses Balenciaga and Alexander McQueen have accused Steve Madden of ripping off their shoe designs and filed suit. But they face an uphill battle in court, because the U.S. lacks a fashion copyright law. Sen. Charles Schumer—along with Harvard law professor Jeannie Suk—is working on that. The New York senator first introduced a fashion copyright bill in 2007, Suffolk University Law School librarian Betsy McKenzie notes on Out of the Jungle. Language has held up previous versions of congressional fashion copyright bill, the Boston Globe reports, but this time Suk is helping with the language specifying just how similar an article of clothing can be to another before being considered a sanctionable knockoff. After co-authoring "The Law, Culture, and Economics of Fashion" in the Stanford Law Review last year, her expertise on the subject has been in demand.
http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/harvard_law_prof_is_helping_to_draft_fashion_copyright_bill

Grab Your Bike and Go with Google Maps - Users can now choose biking when deciding how to get to their destination: "If you’re one of the 57 million Americans who ride a bike, mapping your daily commute, exploring new trails, and planning recreational rides just became a little bit easier. Google is announcing that we have added biking directions in the U.S. to Google Maps. This has been the most requested addition to Google Maps, and we’re delighted to be unveiling this new feature at the National Bike Summit in Washington, DC. This new feature includes: step-by-step bicycling directions; bike trails outlined directly on the map; and a new “Bicycling” layer that indicates bike trails, bike lanes, and bike-friendly roads."

Q: Why do they put round pizzas in square boxes? -- Victoria Dowling, Findlay.
A: Square boxes are cheaper to make, easier to print on, safer to stack, have empty corners for side orders, and are convenient to open, close and secure.
Q: Thanks for answering the question regarding the longest interstate routes. (Feb. 8.) What are the shortest? ¬¬-- Warren Kahn, Findlay.
A. A segment of Interstate 95 in Washington, D.C., is just 0.11-mile long. Among the longer, two-digit routes, the shortest is Interstate 73 between Emery and Greensboro, N.C., at 12.27 miles. And before you just ask: Interstate 75 runs 1,787 miles between Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., and Miami. -- Federal Highway Administration.
Q: Why don't airplane manufacturers design a reinforced screen to protect engines from bird strikes? Also, can an airplane's radar be improved to see flocks of birds in the flight path? -- Robert Enger, Los Angeles.
A: Screens to prevent birds from getting sucked into aircraft engines have been considered in the past and rejected. The screen would have to be very sturdy and possibly very heavy. Airliners typically are traveling about 170 mph at takeoff and, at that speed, a collision with a 10-pound Canada goose has about the same force as dropping a 1,000-pound weight 10 feet. The extra weight also would decrease fuel efficiency. But the main reason is concern that screens would impede airflow into engines, possibly causing an engine to shut down. Screens could ice over. Airliners typically cruise at altitudes where temperatures are well below zero. Ice would also disrupt airflow. There is research to help steer planes away from birds and vice versa.
One possibility is equipping planes with pulsating ultraviolet lights that attract the attention of birds. The thought is that if birds see planes coming, they'll fly away. The Federal Aviation Administration is also testing, or plans to test, bird-detecting radar at five airports. -- Joan Lowy, AP, Washington.
Q: How long is the longest rural mail route?
A: It is 176.7 miles, out of Fordville, N.D. 58231. -- U.S. Postal Service.
http://www.thecourier.com/Opinion/columns/2010/Mar/JU/ar_JU_031510.asp?d=031510,2010,Mar,15&c=c_13
From a White House Blog Post: …the web team at the Federal Highway Administration created an online map of the U.S. that shows over 12,000 Recovery Act road projects. Each of the dots represented on the map represents a project. The full, interactive version on the map allows you to click the dots in order to learn more about these projects. Sources: Whitehouse.gov, Federal Highway Administration
From Anu Garg: Sixteen years ago, on March 14, 1994, I shared the first word, zephyr (a gentle breeze) with a handful of friends. The Wordsmith.org circle has grown to 900,000 readers in 200 countries, but we still have the same love for words. And we're still eager to share them with you every day. To celebrate those 16 years, all words featured this week will have some connection with the number 16.
semiquaver (SEM-ee-kway-vuhr) noun
In music, a note having the time value of one-sixteenth of a whole note.
From Latin semi- (half) + quaver (an eighth note). Also called demiquaver
steenth (steenth) adjective
1. Latest in an indefinitely long sequence.
2. One sixteenth.
Alteration of the word sixteenth. The formation of the word "steenth" from "sixteenth" took place through a process called aphesis (from Greek, literally "a letting go"). Aphesis is when an unstressed sound from the beginning of a word get lost over time. Some other examples are: "cute" from "acute" "'tis" from "it is" "gypsy" from "Egyptian", from the belief that Gypsies came from Egypt (they actually came from India).
Armageddon (ahr-muh-GED-n) noun
A decisive, catastrophic conflict.
From the Book of Revelation 16:16 where Armageddon is mentioned. It is the supposed site of a final battle between the forces of good and evil. The word is from Greek Harmagedon, from Hebrew har megiddo (Mount Megiddo).
FEEDBACK
From: David Brooks (brooksdr@sympatico.ca) Subject: Semiquaver
It's funny how a single word can instantly transport you back in time. The first (and only) time I ever heard the word "semiquaver" was sitting in the movie theater watching Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The alien ship lands and begins to communicate using basic tonal musical notes. One of the technicians observes "She sent us four quavers, a group of five quavers, a group of four semiquavers." I haven't heard of the semiquaver in nearly 33 years and then suddenly there I am again, a wide-eyed 12-year-old boy watching (and hearing) the landing of an alien mothership.
From Donna Beth Joy Shapiro (dbjs@charm.net) Subject : Pi Day
You started A.Word.A.Day on Pi Day (3.14), so your comment "Our circle has grown to ... " was all the more delightful. Happy Pi Day and see you 'round!

Quote You should know that getting help isn't a sign of weakness . . . it's a sign of strength. Funky Winkerbean comic strip March 12, 2010