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: ViaWest, one of the largest privately held data center and managed service providers in North America, opened its twenty-second data center facility, Synergy Park, located in Richardson.
With the addition of Synergy Park, ViaWest owns and operates 22 data centers with 500,000 square feet of raised floor space, 110,000 of which resides in the Dallas area.
The new complex has high density power configurations, disaster recovery office space, 24/7 on-site support, and network provider access.
Services include cloud computing, colocation, complex hosting, and managed services.
“We are thrilled to debut our new flagship facility in the Dallas area,” said ViaWest chief executive Roy Dimoff in a prepared statement. “We have a long history and a strong presence in the marketplace and our recent investment in Synergy Park reflects our belief in the growing opportunity in the Dallas area. We secured four anchor tenants prior to our official opening, a strong testament to the quality of our facility and our staff.”
ViaWest owns and operates 22 enterprise-class data center facilities in Colorado, Texas, Oregon, Utah, and Nevada. ViaWest customers include Frontier Airlines, Red Robin, Chipotle, and Northrop Grumman.
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: Insult to Injury: Texas Workers’ Comp System Denies, Delays Medical Help; American Airlines continues to shed jobs; Chemical Safety Board shut out of West probe by ATF; 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;and more.