San Francisco

Stories 761 - 780 | << Prev   Next >>

Hi-Res Pic of 'Mona Lisa' Raises Some Eyebrows

Faded pigments and poor cleaning probably obliterated the hair

(Newser) - Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" has eyebrows and eyelashes, according to one French inventor, answering a long-standing question about the haunting image painted some 500 years ago. Pascal Cotte said he made the discovery using a camera that yielded a 150,000-dots-per-inch photograph, CNN reports, magnifying her face 24...

Archbishop 'Sorry' for Giving Communion to Gay 'Sisters'

Gave Eucharist to activists in nun drag

(Newser) - The archbishop of San Francisco has apologized for giving Communion to two male members of the outlandish gay group the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. The archbishop sparked a nationwide controversy when he administered Communion to the pair, dressed as nuns, from the San Francisco-based activist group that lives by the...

US Cocaine Supply Plummets
US Cocaine Supply Plummets

US Cocaine Supply Plummets

Prices rocket to highest in 20 years

(Newser) - The cocaine supply has dropped sharply in the last year in 37 US cities, which law enforcement officials attribute to a crackdown on drug cartels by Mexican authorities and a record volume of drugs seized at sea. New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco were among major cities experiencing sharp...

Bonds' Giants Career Ends
Bonds' Giants Career Ends

Bonds' Giants Career Ends

San Francisco won't renew contract; Bonds hopes to play elsewhere

(Newser) - Home run king Barry Bonds announced on his website today that the Giants won't be bringing him back in 2008, ending a 15-season tenure in which the slugger became the face of the franchise. Bonds received $16 million this year and no longer fits into the team's plans, which are...

SF Skyline Getting Big Upgrade
SF Skyline Getting Big Upgrade

SF Skyline Getting Big Upgrade

Proposed buildings will be second-tallest in US

(Newser) - San Francisco officials are cementing deals to build a pair of skyscrapers that would challenge New York's 1,250-foot Empire State Building as the US' second tallest, Bloomberg reports. The city has selected a plan for a slender, 1,200-plus-foot obelisk to be built in the Market financial district, with...

Frisco to Go Dark&mdash;on Purpose
Frisco to Go Dark—on Purpose

Frisco to Go Dark—on Purpose

City plans voluntary brownout to show how easy it is to save electricity

(Newser) - In a move initiated by a local environmentalist, San Francisco will launch a voluntary brownout next month to show people how easy it is to save electricity. Lights Out San Francisco is asking everyone to switch off unnecessary lights for an hour on October 20. Activist Nate Tyler got the...

SF Pioneers Health Care for All
SF Pioneers Health Care
for All

SF Pioneers Health Care for All

Groundbreaking plan targets city's 82K uninsured adults

(Newser) - San Francisco will provide health care for every uninsured adult in the city, pioneering an approach that works around the limits of the federal system. The program goes citywide on Monday and will serve adults under the poverty line through November; after that, it will be open to everyone regardless...

Little Shop of Hybrids: Green Mechanic Opens

San Francisco garage first devoted to hybrids-only service

(Newser) - While auto mechanics nationwide now service hybrid vehicles, San Francisco's Luscious Garage is the country's first shop to work exclusively on environment-friendly cars. "There's a critical mass of hybrids in the Bay Area," owner Carolyn Coquilette told Wired, which reports that nearly 10% of new hybrids registered in...

Starbucks Iced by Anti-Chain Measure

San Francisco uses new law to kill coffee giant's 81st outlet

(Newser) - San Francisco deployed new anti-chain-store regulations to block Starbucks from opening its 81st outlet in city yesterday. Acting on an appeal by local merchants,  supervisors found that the planning commission hadn't followed guidelines, voted in last fall, that make it tougher for chain stores to expand in the city,...

Why Citywide Wi-Fi Doesn't Fly
Why Citywide Wi-Fi Doesn't Fly

Why Citywide Wi-Fi Doesn't Fly

Figures show low use of municipal wireless

(Newser) - As plans for free municipal Wi-Fi ran aground last week in San Francisco, Chicago, and St. Louis, Wired investigates why the egalitarian dream of all-pervasive wireless has failed to take hold. All to blame: the high cost of infrastructure, difficult public-private partnerships, and, above all, low consumer interest.

He Taught Starbucks How to Make Coffee

Alfred Peet, America's coffee king, dies at 87

(Newser) - The Dutchman who gave America an early jolt of caffeine culture died Friday at his home in Oregon, the Los Angeles Times reports. Before there was Starbucks, Alfred Peet opened Peet’s Coffee & Tea in 1966, distinguishing his coffee with high-quality beans and pioneering a roasting system that Starbucks...

Burning Man Torcher Calls It an 'Act of Love'

Festival has become 'too suburban,' says gonzo former lawyer

(Newser) - The San Francisco prankster who put an early torch to the 40-foot-tall Burning Man last week—earning himself a felony arson charge—tells the San Francisco Chronicle his stunt was a plea to put spontaneity back into the Nevada festival that culminates tonight. "This was not an act of...

Just Call San Francisco Lucky Town
Just Call
San Francisco Lucky Town

Just Call San Francisco Lucky Town

Need a date? These are the best cities in the US if you're single and looking

(Newser) - True love is hard to find, but your odds are substantially higher if you live in one of Forbes' top 40 cities for singles.
  1. San Francisco-Oakland
  2. New York
  3. Los Angeles

Cyclists Rage Against the (Auto) Machine

Frustrated riders swarm SF once a month and spread cause worldwide

(Newser) - Hordes of cyclists swarm San Francisco’s roads on the last Friday of every month for a day of two-wheeled protest, the Los Angeles Times reports. As many as 1,500 members of the cycling advocacy group “Critical Mass” spontaneously tour the streets as they trap stalled motorists “...

Best Home Sellers' Markets
Best Home Sellers' Markets

Best Home Sellers' Markets

Times are tough, but your house won't sit on the market for long in these towns

(Newser) - The housing market overall isn't good, but luckily for some, there's an exception to every rule. Forbes points you toward 10 towns where sellers can still finish with smiles on their faces.
  1. Raleigh, NC
  2. San Francisco
  3. Austin, Texas
  4. San Antonio, Texas
  5. St. Louis 

SF Studies Bridge Jumpers, Ponders Barriers

New stats on Golden Gate suicides dispel copycat theory

(Newser) - After a decade of official silence about Golden Gate Bridge jumpers, San Francisco officials yesterday reversed course and released a study of  suicide statistics, the Chronicle reports.  Having seen a slight increase in suicides in recent years—three people jump each month—officials concluded that it was time to...

Frustrated Cities Take Gangs to Court

Lawsuits requesting injunctions gain popularity in effort to preempt violence

(Newser) - San Francisco, Fort Worth, and other cities are suing gangs in an effort to curb violence, winning injunctions forbidding members to ride in cars together and even talk to each other on the street. Courts have struck down citywide measures after critics argued they unfairly target minorities, but injunctions against...

Steroids Case Leaker Draws 2&frac12; Years
Steroids Case Leaker Draws
2½ Years

Steroids Case Leaker Draws 2½ Years

Judge rejects loose-lipped attorney's Scooter Libby defense

(Newser) - A lawyer who allowed reporters access to transcripts of confidential testimony about steroid use in baseball was sentenced to 30 months in prison yesterday. The penalty is the most serious yet to stem from the government's intensive performance-enhancing drug investigation.

Summer of Love Turns 40
Summer of Love Turns 40

Summer of Love Turns 40

(Newser) - Thousands of young people, dubbed hippies, came to San Franciso beginning in June 1967 to celebrate what became known as the Summer of Love.  And to "turn on, tune in, and drop out."  PBS' American Experience reprises that summer, born of utopian ideals, and ending in...

Whales Head Home after 2-Week Stay
Whales Head Home after 2-Week Stay

Whales Head Home after 2-Week Stay

Officials think lost humpbacks have returned to the Pacific

(Newser) - Moby-Dick and Jonah can rest easy—the most overexposed whales in the world appear to have returned to the obscurity of the Pacific Ocean. The two humpbacks, who sparked an international media frenzy after getting stuck in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta 2 weeks ago, haven't been seen since late...

Stories 761 - 780 | << Prev   Next >>