Photo on 72nd Street near Riverside Drive by Bette Kerr.
May 15, 2012 Weather: Rain and Thunder, High of 66 Degrees.
News:
New York has had to pay out large settlements in recent years after tree branches fell and hit people, killing some of them. Some victims were hit in Central Park. “In two of the most high-profile Central Park cases — the life-altering injury of a young Google engineer in 2009 and the death of a restaurant worker seven months later — workers noted signs of dangers in trees but did not move fast enough. In the case of the engineer, a park official thought he had been told that workers ‘got’ the dangerous limb before it hurt anyone; in fact, they simply ‘got’ an e-mail warning of the danger.” Here are some warning signs that a tree is weak, and an article on the cracking sound people hear before a branch falls. (NY Times)
Comedy Central will hold a free election-themed comedy showcase on June 20 in Central Park. (Broadway World)
Local Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal and Mayor Bloomberg’s daughter announced a new bill to ban puppy mills. (DNAinfo)
The president focused on women’s rights in his speech to Barnard grads on Monday. (Columbia Spectator)
Library funding is set to be cut significantly under the mayor’s budget. (Epoch Times)
The top 5 Central Park concerts ever (somehow they left out Paul Simon!). (Next Magazine)
The design of Apple’s Upper West Side store has been patented. (Patently Apple)