HARVESTING SOLAR ENERGY with nanotechnology.

9-YEAR-OLD BANNED FROM BASEBALL for being too good a player. Sigh.

UPDATE: Eugene Volokh thinks this may be no big deal.

THE AMTRAK NARRATIVE: GOING OFF THE RAILS on a crazy train.

RASMUSSEN: 47% of Democratic Women say Hillary Should be on the Ticket. (Via JWF). But it’s a real gender divide: “Only 35% of Democratic men believe Hillary should be on the ticket with Obama while 56% say she should not be.”

HERE’S AN INTERVIEW WITH RICHARD MULLER, author of Physics for Future Presidents, which I mentioned a while back.

ELECTRIC CADILLAC: “There are also some rumors floating around that the next vehicle in America to get electric drive after the Chevrolet Volt could come from Cadillac.” Not only is “Electric Cadillac” a good name for a band, but this makes sense, as early-adopter types are often more upscale in their tastes.

IN THE MAIL: An advance copy of Neal Stephenson’s new novel, Anathem. Got about 50 pages into it last night, and so far it’s good.

TAXPROF: Biden to Left of Obama on Tax Policy.

ANOTHER INSTA-POLL:

FORD SEEKING DIRECTORS for Mustang Movies. “If you want to be the next critically acclaimed filmmaker, the Ford Mustang may be your ticket to an audience of millions. Ford and Filmaka.com are teaming up on a contest to see who can create the best Mustang-themed script.”

REVISITING LAW SCHOOL RANKINGS to deter “gaming” by law schools.

GORDON CROVITZ: Privacy? We got over it.

VITAMIN D UPDATE: Vitamin D Deficiency May Lurk in Babies:

Some experts fear that vitamin D deficiency, which can be asymptomatic, may be more common than pediatricians realize and that rickets — perceived to be a 19th-century scourge that was wiped out with the fortification of milk — may be going undetected.

Physicians have known for more than a century that exclusive breast-feeding may be associated with vitamin D deficiency and rickets, and that the condition is easily prevented and treated with inexpensive vitamin drops or cod liver oil. But doctors are reluctant to say anything that might discourage breast-feeding.

Now some researchers are also linking vitamin D deficiency with other chronic diseases like diabetes, autoimmune disorders and even cancer, and there have been calls to include blood tests of vitamin D levels in routine checkups.

Breastfeeding is nice, but it’s not magical. And — especially now, when kids aren’t allowed out in the sun — Vitamin D deficiency is a real threat.

ABC NEWS: Angry Democrats Distracted DNC Attendees in Denver.

REVIEWING THE REVIEWERS: A roundup of book reviews from all over.

CULTURE OF CORRUPTION? A Biden-Rezko connection. “A Rezko accomplice awaiting sentencing for extortion with deep connections to Biden and really soooo much more than that. He was also Biden’s Midwest field director in his 1988 bid.”

Chicago Sun-Times story here: Biden has deep ties to Rezko accomplice.

HITTING ‘EM WHERE IT HURTS: F.I.R.E. runs a full-page ad attacking Valdosta State for its free-speech violations in U.S. News and World Report’s Best Colleges issue.

IT’S OFFICIALLY HURRICANE GUSTAV, with 90 mph winds. Brendan Loy has more.

UPDATE: Models pointing toward New Orleans? Ugh. But there’s plenty of time for things to change.

MORE ON LOWERING THE DRINKING AGE: “Old Enough to Fight, Old Enough to Drink.” “When I was in college and the drinking age was 18, there was a pub on campus where students would gather and drink and listen to live music. When I went back to college later on and the drinking age was 21, drinking had become a surreptitious thing; students were hoarding alcohol and drinking as much as they could in as short period of time as possible in order to get drunk before getting caught. That’s not to say students weren’t binge drinking before the age change; just that they are doing it more often.”

Somebody should really ask the Presidential candidates about this.

JOHN TIERNEY ON Vernor Vinge, the Singularity, and machines that are smarter than us. Plus, how to get smarter.

UPDATE: I should mention that our podcast interview with Vernor Vinge explores many of the same topics. Plus, Helen’s questions on computer-simulated sex. And, with Tierney, I highly recommend Vinge’s Rainbows End.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Todd Steed!

IN THE WASHINGTON POST: Biden’s Blink on Iran:

In selecting Joseph Biden as his running mate, Barack Obama acknowledged the importance of foreign affairs to this year’s election. His Web site trumpeted Biden as “an expert on foreign policy” and a man “who has stared down dictators.”

As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Biden is well versed in policy debates and carefully choreographed trips. But his record on the Islamic Republic of Iran — perhaps the chief national security threat facing the next president — suggests a persistent and dangerous judgment deficit.

Read the whole thing.

APPARENTLY, PEOPLE ARE ROUTING AROUND New Zealand’s Internet publication ban.

PHYLLIS CHESLER: Michelle Obama aka June Cleaver, not Eleanor Roosevelt.

Jim Lindgren calls it “a strong speech.”

ARE YOU BETTER OFF THAN YOU WERE EIGHT YEARS AGO? Average U.S. Income Showed First Rise Over 2000.