Remember back in the early days of the web when the New York Times actually listed relevant links at the bottom of their news articles? I’m not making this up, am I? They used to have links, right? Well, I really missed them after reading Dot-Com Saviors, Tilting at the World’s Ills, which was, strangely, stuffed into the Fashion & Style section. The article discusses good causes that survivors of the dot com bust have taken on. I had to find the links myself so here they are:

The Sapling Foundation which bought the rights to the TED Conference where most of these items where demonstrated.

Dean Kamen and his portable water purifier, which has a Stirling engine. He’s looking to distribute it in Africa.

Energy Innovations from Bill Gross’s Idealab, which is making solar collectors.

The Acumen Fund: “pioneering new ways to invest charitable contributions in innovations that promise breakthrough products and services to improve the lives of the poor internationally.”

ApproTEC: Appropriate Technology is a non-profit organization that develops and markets new technologies in Africa. Their “MoneyMaker” pumps are allowing small-scale farms in Africa to succeed with micro-irrigation.

Room to Read provides books, libraries and schools to poor Asian countries. They’ve built 33 schools and 400 school libraries, and provided 200,000 books and 122 scholarships.

The redesign of the $20 bill was supposed to be unveiled to the public this month, but we won’t be seeing it until May. The new bill will actually make use of colored inks, something the U.S. has been reluctant to adopt despite the prevalent use of colorful bills in other countries. However, the color additions will likely be minimal, keeping us in the green. It would be neat in the future to have to explain to our grandkids why people use the term “greenbacks” to refer to cash though. Of course, by then there may not be any cash to speak off.

Venture capitalist and violinist Kathryn Gould has been through the ups and downs of Silicon Valley. She understands what makes the real Silicon Valley tick and she’s profited well from it (she has the jewels to prove it). Now she’s putting her money where her ears are as a patron of the arts. Her Magnum Opus Project is commissioning nine new orchestral works and six new compositions. The orchestral pieces will be performed by three Bay Area orchestras over a few years, allowing audiences to hear the evolution of the work as the composers make adjustments. Negotiations are underway with chamber groups and solo artists to premiere the other compositions. At a time when support for classical music is dwindling, especially in the Bay Area, Gould is demonstrating her belief in a form that many consider outmoded.

Is it April Fool’s Day yet? This has got to be a joke: Send Back Liberty.

I did not know Amanda Davis, nor had I been aware of her writing, but I took note of her obituary because her poignant death resonated with me on many points. She lived across the bay in Oakland, teaching at Mills College, sister school to my alma mater. We were the same age and shared a love of weaving written words into stories and slices of life. After reading the eloquent remembrances of her on McSweeney’s, many from well-known writers, I feel that I almost know her, and sadly, wish that I could have known her.

It’s virtual Broadway in Thousand Oaks, California as The NY Times delves into the use of supplemental electronic music in touring productions. In this somewhat scaled down production of Miss Saigon, the actors are non-Equity and live musicans number twelve (including the operator of the Sinfonia system). Equity touring productions typically make the rounds first, with a larger budget, but there is a market for the leaner productions in smaller locales where local theaters are more willing to guarantee the necessary minimums to the producers. The Sinfonia operator points out that it is unlikely producers would hire more musicians to fill out the sound if the virtual system were unavailable. In other words, he doesn’t feel he is taking away jobs. But as technology improves, better traveling Broadway will be possible with fewer salaries, and the bean counters, the local theaters, and most audience members are not going to complain.

The NY Times takes a look at the struggle between the caretakers of feral cat colonies and those who want to keep the cat population indoors. Birds and other wildlife are threatened by outdoor cats, and growing feral cat populations. Although the typical purpose of feeding feral colonies is to keep the population in check, the reality is sometimes different. People keep abandoning their pets to the wild, which is something I can not fathom myself.

I’ve culled together all the news reports and press releases I could find on the contents of this weekend’s Oscar gift bags for presenters and nominees. The offerings are generous and tallied by news sources at a value of $20,000 or more (items included vary from presenters to nominees, type of nominee, and gender). The Oscar folks don’t release a list (or haven’t yet) which seems odd considering the idea is to garner publicity, but most companies heavily publicize their inclusion. This list is not meant to be complete, but it is as accurate as the news reports can be. I gathered the links from Google searches.

It all comes in a Longaberger wicker basket with a specially made gold plaque.
Estee Lauder Oscar Spa package which includes (total value $15,000):
-custom-made Goyard travel case
–Manolo Blahnik sandals ($600)
–Hermes beach towel ($400)
–La Grande Dame Veuve Clicquot champagne, gift ($250) -certificate for spa services
-Estee Lauder cosmetics
Victoria’s Secret gem-studded bra and panty set customized with initials and good-luck charm bracelets $5,000

Bi-coastal membership to The Sports Club/LA, $4,000
Valerie Beverly Hills silver vanity makeup kit, $3,000

Dinner party for 10 in the Private Boardroom of any of the 65 Morton’s steakhouses and a set of six steak knives, $1,500
Rosewood’s Badrutt’s Palace Hotel gift certificate, $1,500
Revlon cosmetics, $1,000

Fendi stainless steel wristwatch, $995
Timmy Woods of Beverly Hills handbag, $300-$1,500
Stuart Weitzman shoes, $500 (presented separately)

A pair of Beamer BM80 Phone Video Stations, $499
Gaiam‘s “Organic Night’s Sleep,” including organic sateen sheets, natural cotton sleep mask, two sleep CDs, blanket and Zen digital alarm clock, $475
Nicole Miller cashmere halter top, $350
Givere chocolate truffles presented in a limited Waterford crystal vase, $350

Sesna sunglasses by KATA Eyewear, $350

Oliveri Fashion custom shirt, $100-$300

Sama sunglasses designed for the Oscars, for women only. $300
Motorola camera phone and free service for six months, $200
Sprint camera phone with Fendi case.
Tempur-Pedic mattress, any size. Value up to $1,700
La-Z-Boy recliners, choice of four. $539 to $1,199

Three-night stay at Esperanza, a luxury resort in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. $3,000
Allsteel #19 office chair. $1,195 to $1,495 (Lou Horvitz will direct the Oscars from one made especially for him.)
Hewlett-Packard Photosmart 715 camera. $499.99

Stainless steel Ebel watch. $1,600 for the women with a mother-of-pearl dial, $1,450 for the men with a white roman dial
Flying Fig scarf. $300 to $1,100

90-minute Godiva chocolate body wrap at Ajune, a New York spa. $175

1 lb. Godiva Gold Ballotin, $38

Lancôme gift certificates. $200
Sonya Dakar Skin Clinic gift certificate, $500, and drying potion, $28

Complimentary teeth whitening at Brite Smile. $600
Sebastian International Shaper hair products, $50
Enjoy perfume by Jean Patou, $85
Själ’s holistic skin-care products, $230

Dream Couture shampoo and conditioner, which contain extracts from chardonnay champagne grapes and Perigord black truffles (from Charles Worthington), $1,500?
Cargo cosmetics, $600

Custom facial at Kinara Spa in West Hollywood, $120
Giorgio Armani Cosmetics (part of L’Oreal USA): Giorgio Armani Cosmetics Fluid Sheer, Sheer Blush, Lipstick, Eyeshadow, Smooth Silk Eye Pencil, Mascara and Nail Polish in a signature Giorgio Armani Cosmetics makeup bag, $250
Birkenstock gift certificate. $300
Eddie Bauer Limited Edition Skyliner Replica Jacket
Dooney & Bourke mini-tassel handbag in pastel-colored leather

accent table from Thomasville’s Bogart Collection, inspired by Humphrey Bogart
Omas 360 Rolling Ball blue resin pen, $250
Kiehl’s Academy Collection of skin-care products, $200
World According to Jess handbag, $190
Amy Reiley’s Pocket Vineyard and Pocket Gourmet, software for Palm Pilot and pocket PCs, $50
Cross Ion roller ball pens, $35
Danier Leather turquoise leather bistro flask with two shot glasses, $28

Two-night stay at a Fairmont Hotel & Resort with spa treatments and a home spa basket, $1,500
Delphi XM SKYFi portable satellite radio, $229, and one-year subscription to XM Satellite Radio’s 100 channels, $120

Gift certificate for SkyMeals, which delivers home-cooked meals to airline travelers, $150
Swoon candle and custom matchbox, $34
Jenni Originals VegeSoy candle, handmade from an exclusive blend of soybean and vegetable waxes. $12.95
Jay Strongwater jewel-encrusted mirror compact (Bloomsbury), hand-enameled and adorned with Swarovski crystals, $275-$325

Invitation for two to international gala premiere of Zumanity, a Cirque du Soleil show at New York-New York Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas on Sept. 20 and a two-night stay at the hotel, priceless (no tickets are being sold to this event)

One-of-a-kind, oil-paint on canvas movie posters from Ghana. Which reminds me, I never did buy a “Room With A View” poster in Italian like I had intended to in college. But at least the book is online. (via memepool)

Samsung’s Matrix phone was shown at CeBIT and there’s a closeup shot of it available on Gizmodo. There has been some news coverage regarding Samsung’s licensing deal, which they hope will help in their goal to increase cellular phone sales by 20% this year.