Out of 26 million Texans, you may have an idea to change the world. You may have had several ideas to change the world. But only a tiny minority of you pushed through the U.S. Patent office from application to successful patent. We've seen Texans change the world many times over. Jack Kilby did it with Texas Instruments in 1958 with the integrated circuit, causing the start of the digital revolution, which, in part, is why you can read these words over your electronic device.
Over the last few years, Texas Business has brought its feature: Texas Business Patent of the Day. This list is of the ones that were either extremely clever, odd or strange. One thing becomes apparent from these patents and the patent that runs daily in Texas Business—Texans have a unique mind set.
Though the history of the Corn Dog is disputed, the State Fair of Texas claims to have introduced the Corny Dog sometime between 1938 and 1942. As a paean to that invention that now sits in the freezer section of every grocery store in the southwest, here are the fried foods the State Fair of Texas has introduced, or tried to introduce, in the last seven years.
Dead Texas musicians live on every time you hear their songs. Their songs play everywhere, so the dead Texas musicians appear to be immortal. Here's the short list.
Don't get caught up with John Wayne religion. For one thing, he's not Texan. He's in some fine movies involving Texas, most notably The Searchers, but none of his movies can make the best cut of Texas movies. Here's the short list.
Unsung Texas Business Journalists Mention that one is a reporter, and there's a spark of interest. Mention that one is a business news reporter, and watch the eyes glaze over. Except to the players, business and economic journalists are unappreciated. While many wish to become sports reporters when they grow up, most do not realize that business journalists cover the Real Game. Mention that reporter covers business, and watch the eyes glaze over. A toast to these below on the short list and the numerous unnamed ones slogging away. Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Best Texas Mexican Food: The Short List No, we're not going to debate the difference between Tex-Mex, Mex-Tex, Mexican and Texican food. Just know these establishments are the pinnacle of Texas Mexican fare. No brag, just fact. Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Best Texas Burgers Texas Burgers. . While a hamburger is merely sustenance and gratification for a meal, the memory a good Texas burger can give rise to Homeric odes. The short list. Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Texas Business reports: College Station—Strong storm cells swept through parts of East and North Central Texas on April 27, bringing tornadoes along with some much needed rain, reported Scott Burns and other Texas AgriLife Extension Service personnel.
Texas Business reports: The good news is no new major fires started Monday. The bad news is none of the six major fires spanning 673,985 acres were put out, the Texas Forest Service said.
Brookshire Firm Wins $9 Million Gearbox Contract Texas Business reports: A Brookshire firm won a $9 million contract to provide gear box assemblies for military transport aircraft, the U.S. Department of Defense announced.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Construction
Michael and Karen O’Connor Building,Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi
Texas Business reports: The Dallas Business Unit of Satterfield & Pontikes Construction Inc. (S&P) recently completed construction of the new 76,000-square-foot Michael and Karen O’Connor Building on the campus of Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.
Furr's Fresh Buffet to Open May 11th in Spring, Texas Texas Business reports: Spring—Furr's Fresh Buffet, a restaurant concept developed by owners of the Furr's restaurant chain based in Dallas, announced its newest location will open Wednesday, May 11th in Spring, Texas at 21005 Interstate 45 at Louetta.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Chronicle's Barron earns fitting honor: High School Football Hall adds longtime writer Texas Business recommends this story by Dale Robertson of the Houston Chronicle: Only in fits and spurts during David Barron's long tenure as a Texas newspaperman has he been assigned to cover high school football, but his career has been inextricably linked to the sport because of his contributions to another one of the state's institutions, Dave Campbell's Texas Football Magazine.Full Story »
Circulation Figures Released For The Dallas Morning News Texas Business reports: The Dallas Morning News' recent Publisher's Statement filed with the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) for the six-month period ended March 31, 2011, reported total average circulation of 404,951 Monday-Friday, 698,667 Weekend and 375,100 Sunday, representing 1.3 percent, 1.5 percent and .6 percent increases, respectively, compared to the six-month period ended March 31, 2010.Full Story » TexasBusiness.com
Approximately 600 people from Rice, Texas A&M, Texas State and the University of Texas at Austin watched a recent Austin version of the popular Chinese dating show “If You Are the One," held at the University of Texas. Photo by Zhongyu Yuan
Everything went according to plan until love at first sight turned out to be something else. Chinese students at the University of Texas recently staged an Austin version “If You Are the One,” China’s most popular television program, in which eligible young men and women evaluate each other for dates.
Texas Business reports: The Austin Film Society and The Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas announced that 23 Austin filmmakers will remake vignettes from AFS Founder & Artistic Director Richard Linklater’s seminal film Slacker.
Chronicle's Barron earns fitting honor: High School Football Hall adds longtime writer Texas Business recommends this story by Dale Robertson of the Houston Chronicle: Only in fits and spurts during David Barron's long tenure as a Texas newspaperman has he been assigned to cover high school football, but his career has been inextricably linked to the sport because of his contributions to another one of the state's institutions, Dave Campbell's Texas Football Magazine.Full Story »
Texas Business reports: Three Austin men invented a method for detected malicious computer code. Mark Obrecht, Michael Tony Alagna and Andy Payne, all of Austin, received U.S. Patent 7,930,751 for “Method and apparatus for detecting malicious code in an information handling system.”
The Texas News Scrawl is a handy reference to stories Texas Business recommends from other news sources. Some of the stories that Texas Business currently suggests include: America’s greatest threat: Unsafe work conditions; The West News proves the value of a great weekly newspaper in a community torn up with grief and chaos; Chinese investors checking out Texas, Austin; Texas makes bounce house operators carry liability coverage, but not plants like West Fertilizer; bSpaceX’s Grasshopper leaping to NM spaceport;American Airlines, US Airways to name post-merger leadership within weeks; Texas power cushion seen at lowest level in a decade; Media outlets reflect Houston's diversity; and more.
American Dollar Exchange Rate
