chebucto writes “The opening chord to A Hard Day’s Night is famous because for 40 years, no one quite knew exactly what chord Harrison was playing. Musicians, scholars and amateur guitar players alike had all come up with their own theories, but it took a Dalhousie mathematician to figure out the exact formula. Dr. Brown used Fourier transforms to find the notes in the chord, and deduced that another George — George Martin, the Beatles producer — also played on the chord, adding a piano chord that included an F note impossible to play with the other notes on the guitar.”

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Filed under: Products and services, Nissan Motors (NSANY)

Nissan Motors (NASDAQ: NSANY) will unveil a stripped-down version of its Versa subcompact vehicle this month at the lowest price ever for a brand-new vehicle in the U.S. market. The new Versa won’t come with power windows or air conditioning, but will retail at $9,990 — just a few bills below ten grand. The cheapest new car currently being sold in the U.S. is the Hyundai Accent.

Nissan’s valiant attempt here is geared towards converting used-car buyers into new-car buyers. It’s true that a automobile shopper can purchase a decent used car for $10k that will most likely have air conditioning and more interior space (and more engine power). The Mexican-made Versa will go on sale November 18 and will be priced $3,000 less than any currently sold Versa in the U.S.

Alexander Edwards with Strategic Vision asks the question I’m thinking: “Automakers seem to be trying to do two things: bring in vehicles in the lowest price range while also trying to deliver automobiles with some level of nobility and class and extras … the question is, how many people are going to select a automobile that doesn’t have air conditioning?”

That one single feature could be killer to Nissan’s attempt here. Folks will purchase cars with a complete lack of features — except air conditioning. But will shoppers look at used cars with more size and convenience, or a brand new car without any features which will depreciate considerably the moment it’s driven off the dealer lot? In the good news segment, the $10,000 Versa will see a fuel efficiency figure of 34 miles per gallon on the highway.

Nissan set to unleash the cheapest new automobile in the U.S. at under $10,000 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 03 Nov 2008 13:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yesterday we discussed the war and how foreign policy will matter in your decision next Tuesday. Today our series of election discussion pieces continues with Health Care. With an obesity epidemic, a failing economy, and ballooning health care costs, which candidate has the ideal answers to making sure that Americans are able to stay healthy without America being bankrupted in the process?

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Matt_dk writes “Just a couple of days after the orbiting observatory was brought back on the web, Hubble aimed its prime working camera, the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2), at a particularly intriguing target, a pair of gravitationally interacting galaxies called Arp 147. The image demonstrated that the camera is working exactly as it was before going offline, thereby scoring a ‘perfect 10 both for performance and beauty.’ (Meanwhile, the slowly declining Mars Phoenix Lander has now entered safe mode, according to reader CraftyJack.)

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pgoldtho writes “PC Mag has a story about why the ‘white-space’ spectrum that’ll be freed when TV broadcasts switch to digital should be available for unlicensed use. This would allow it to be used to deliver broadband connectivity in rural areas and create a ‘third pipe’ substitute to the cable/telco duopoly. The FCC is scheduled to vote on this November 4th. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has filed an emergency appeal to block this vote. If the NAB succeeds, the issue will be kicked into next year. Which would mean a new FCC, Congress, and Administration.”

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