Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from May 3, 2013

Building a Better Tech School

Building a Better Tech School IF all the hopes and hype are warranted, a nondescript third-floor loft in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan offers a glimpse of the future, for New York City and for Cornell University. In truth, it doesn’t look like much — just cubicles and meeting rooms in space donated by Google. But looks deceive; here, with little fanfare, Cornell’s new graduate school of applied sciences is being rolled out.The sparkling, sprawling new campus on Roosevelt Island filled with gee-whiz technology — still just ink on paper. The thousands of students and staff, the transformative effect on the city’s economy, the integration with the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology — those all remain in the future, too.But just 13 months after being awarded the prize in Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s contest to create a new science school, Cornell NYC Tech got up and running. Eight students enrolled in January in what is being called the beta class, a one-year master’s program

A Score or More of Languages in Your Pocket

A Score or More of Languages in Your Pocket Minh Uong / The New York Times In Douglas Adams’s “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,” the hero sticks a so-called Babel fish in his ear and can understand everything said to him in any language. Today’s apps for language translation try to accomplish the same thing. While not as accurate or instantaneous, they are nevertheless useful and greatly improved from just a couple of years ago. And you don’t have to put anything slimy in your ear. The reason these kinds of apps have gotten so much better is simply that more people have been using them, said John Garofolo, a senior adviser at the National Institute of Standards and Technology who has studied and tested the software. The more a translation app is used, the more it learns to statistically make correct associations with sounds, text and meaning.The latest translation apps incorporate voice-recognition software so you can speak as well as type in the word or phrase you want translate

Rearranging the Furniture, Minus the Aching Back

Rearranging the Furniture, Minus the Aching Back If you’ve ever sat on your couch and wondered how it would look across the room, or whether the walls would look good in red, that was your inner interior designer speaking. Now apps offer a quick and powerful way to indulge your home design fantasies.Home Design 3D ($7 on iOS) is one of the better ones. It turns a two-dimensional view of your home into a three-dimensional graphic that you can view from any angle and even walk around as if inside. It is so sophisticated you could use it as a starting point for designing a house, rather than just tweaking your interior design. You start in two-dimensional construction mode, adding rooms and adjusting their size and shape to match your place. You can add measurements and drop in items from a database, like a water fountain or a grand piano. There’s a host of options for doorways, windows and other openings, and you can choose to color walls or floors with textures that look like wallpaper

Q.& A.: Using Facebook Chat Heads

Q.& A.: Using Facebook Chat Heads Q. I use Facebook on my iPhone quite a bit, but lately these little circles with my friend’s profile pictures have been popping up around the screen. What are these? A. The circular images on the screen are Facebook’s new Chat Heads feature, which was included in a recent update to the iOS version of the Facebook app. When you see a Chat Head appear, it means that friend has sent you a message within Facebook. Tap the picture to read and reply to the message. To dismiss a Chat Head icon, touch the image with your finger and drag it down to the bottom of the screen to a gray X.The Chat Heads feature first appeared last month as part of the Facebook Home software for certain Android phones. In Facebook Home, Chat Heads can pop up when you are using other apps on the phone to keep you connected with your friends. On the iOS version, however, the Chat Heads are contained within the Facebook app itself.

Tip of the Week: Find Your System Information Quickly

Tip of the Week: Find Your System Information Quickly Want to buy that cool new video game but are unsure how much memory or what kind of processor your computer uses so you can make sure the software will work? Both Windows and Mac OS X keep these details, along with other hardware information, in a convenient place.In Windows 7, go to the Start menu and type System into the Search box. Select System or System Information in the results to open a window listing your computer’s details. For a quicker way to the information, press the Windows key and the Pause key on the keyboard to open the System window; the Win + Pause keyboard shortcut works in the newer Windows 8 system as well.On a Mac running recent versions of OS X, go to the Apple menu on the left side of the menu bar and choose About This Mac. The box that appears shows the OS X software version, processor and amount of installed memory. Click the More Info button to see additional details about the computer. If you want a s

Do-Not-Track Talks Could Be Running Off the Rails

Do-Not-Track Talks Could Be Running Off the Rails Source: Mozilla After nearly two years of negotiating and little progress, the international group trying to agree on a Do Not Track standard is convening its final official face-to-face meeting next week in Sunnyvale, Calif.Although many people may not know that advertisers and other third parties operating on Web sites install cookies, which are small bits of code that track users’ browsing history, a small subset of consumers have already activated the Do Not Track mechanisms on their devices. These don’t-track-me browser settings send out signals telling third parties that a user does not want to have his or her online activities tracked.As of March, for instance, 11.4 percent of the estimated 450 million people worldwide who use the Firefox desktop browser had activated the Do Not Track setting, according to a new report Friday from Mozilla.Advertisers say they need to collect tracking data in order to show relevant ads to consume

Shine Starts to Wear Off a Little for Google Glass

Shine Starts to Wear Off a Little for Google Glass White Men Wearing Google Glass, a Tumblr Web site, pokes fun at people wearing the augmented reality glasses. screenshot via Tumblr The shiny new thing luster of Google Glass may already be wearing off, even before most people have been able to try one on.When Google introduced Google Glass last year, tech nerds salivated over these augmented reality goggles from the future. But not everyone was excited. Some not on the proverbial bleeding edge of gadgetry wondered if the high-tech eye wear would offer salvation from smartphones, or turn them into zombie-eyed obsessives staring into tiny screens a few inches from their eyeballs.Over the last two weeks, as Google Glass has started to trickle into the real world, the split of tech aficionados and regular folks has only grown.Robert Scoble, an obsessive tech pundit, wrote a glowing review of the new augmented reality glasses and said, “I will never live a day without them.” He then showe

Gadgets to Help Tend a Garden

Gadgets to Help Tend a Garden Collecting pollen with a VegiBee, which helped tomato yields rise 38 percent for Bill Whaley, the tool’s inventor. Tim Parker for The New York TimesPicture a tiny drone that arises from your vegetable garden to shoo away hungry deer. Or maybe a houseplant that, when you’re away, meanders through your rooms like a cat following a sunbeam. Or one that posts a request for water on Twitter. The future is knocking at the door of home gardening. And, if some do-it-yourselfers have their way, there is no aspect of nature that can’t be improved with a rechargeable motor and a sensor or two. ake, for example, the VegiBee. Bill Whaley, a former department store executive living in St. Louis, said he invented the device after a disappointing tomato yield. Mr. Whaley concluded that the problem was pollination, and quickly set out to improve on the bees, which were clearly remiss. Looking a little like an electric toothbrush, the VegiBee’s wand is held close to a flow

Tap a Word in a Sentence Three Times and It’s Yours

Tap a Word in a Sentence Three Times and It’s Yours Philtrum. Salubriousness. Thaumaturge. These are three of my favorite words, but they’re not common ones. So you may be reaching for a dictionary right now. But before your fingers close on that printed book and flick through its alphabetically indexed pages, consider this: There are many dictionary apps that could help you do the job more speedily. They may also have features that will teach you new words. And they might even be fun.Dictionary.com Dictionary and Thesaurus is a free iOS and Android app that comes from one of the best-known dictionary Web sites. Unlike the Web site, the app has the advantage that many of its features work offline. This app’s home page is colorful with icons and is topped by a search bar where you enter words you want to look up. As soon as you begin to type in this bar, the app begins to suggest words that may match, so you don’t always have to type in the whole word. If you’re unsure of a word’s spel

On One Phone App, Looks Are Everything

On One Phone App, Looks Are Everything Nancy Doniger The quickest hookups in New York these days aren’t happening behind the velvet ropes of No. 8, on the bar stools of Dorrian’s or in the coed bathroom of the Electric Room.Rather, the action is happening on a new smartphone app, and no, it isn’t Grindr.“Anytime I’m at a dinner or an event, social or business, people are buzzing about Tinder,” said Erica Berman, 28, an events planner in Manhattan who said that she uses the app several times a day.Ms. Berman is not alone. Technology has hit a new level of shallow, and New York’s 20-somethings are embracing it full speed.Introduced to college campuses in September, Tinder taps into the most superficial aspect of the dating scene. After downloading the app and selecting their gender, location and whether they like men or women (or both), users swipe through a stack of profile photos (left for “nope,” right for “liked”), based on little more than the person’s appearance. If two users “lik

Brain, Interrupted

Brain, Interrupted TECHNOLOGY has given us many gifts, among them dozens of new ways to grab our attention. It’s hard to talk to a friend without your phone buzzing at least once. Odds are high you will check your Twitter feed or Facebook wall while reading this article. Just try to type a memo at work without having an e-mail pop up that ruins your train of thought. But what constitutes distraction? Does the mere possibility that a phone call or e-mail will soon arrive drain your brain power? And does distraction matter — do interruptions make us dumber? Quite a bit, according to new research by Carnegie Mellon University’s Human-Computer Interaction Lab. There’s a lot of debate among brain researchers about the impact of gadgets on our brains. Most discussion has focused on the deleterious effect of multitasking. Early results show what most of us know implicitly: if you do two things at once, both efforts suffer. In fact, multitasking is a misnomer. In most situations, the person j

Go the Same Way, or Go the Wrong Way

Go the Same Way, or Go the Wrong Way With the “Yelpification” of culture, there is increasing strength in numbers. Stockbyte, via Getty Images Not long ago, a friend of mine, a dear man with exquisite taste, took me to dinner at Momofuku Má Pêche in Midtown Manhattan. I point out his taste because, being from out of town, he chose the restaurant on the fly, based on some reviews he had read on Yelp, the social networking site that rates everything from eating establishments to vacuum cleaners to gastroenterologists. The supertrendy place had gotten some raves.Now, if I had the same experience with a gastroenterologist I had chosen based on glowing Yelp evaluations as I did at Momofuku, I would be checking myself into the emergency room. My monkfish — a special favorite of the Yelp hordes — tasted like a pencil eraser. It was also so cold that it could not be described as cooked. It was deceased. As for the destination-place atmosphere, imagine the decibel level of a Justin Bieber conc

Cyberparenting and the Risk of T.M.I.

Cyberparenting and the Risk of T.M.I. It may be a timeless curse of parenthood to know simultaneously too much about one’s teenager and yet never access the information one actually wants. But the unruly morass of today’s social media and cellphone-infested landscape seems to have made both aspects of the curse worse. Nowadays, if you are the parent of a 14-year-old, you can see him guzzle beer, flirt with a girl who squeezes her bosom in every “selfie” she posts on Instagram, and describe a fellow ninth grader in language saltier than any you ever used at that age. Of course, your parents never even heard you swear. They had no idea where you went after you slammed the front door behind you. They couldn’t begin to fathom what you were really up to on a Saturday night.Today, parents are just one click away: buddied up on Facebook, logging on to Tumblr, peering over cryptic text messages and trying to get a glimpse of Snapchat images before they dissolve into the ether.   Parents who

Taking Time to Go Back to the Beginning

Taking Time to Go Back to the Beginning Shortly before Miho Walsh and Roy Prieb were married in early in 2008 they kicked their video game habit, which was composed mainly of World of Warcraft. Actually, it was Mr. Prieb’s die-hard habit. For Ms. Walsh, playing video games with her fiancé was more of an act of love.“I was impressed with Miho, because rather than poo-pooing the whole gaming experience when we were first dating, she dove in,” said Mr. Prieb, now 40, a founder of and partner in Saaspire, a technology consultancy in New York. “She dove in, not by creating her own character; she dove in by sitting next to me and playing with me. We both got into it, co-piloting one character around that world.”Then they stopped, cold turkey.“It was a bright spring day and we looked out the window and said, ‘Let’s quit,’ ” Mr. Prieb recalled.

300 Pakistanis lodged in Indian jails

Around 300 Pakistani prisoners are lodged in Indian jails, of which 260 are fishermen and 40 jailed for criminal activities, including terrorism, Union home ministry sources have told TOI.This is in contrast to nearly 535 Indians imprisoned in Pakistan's jails, of which 483 are fishermen, according to figures provided by the ministry of external affairs on Friday.While the data regarding Pakistani prisoners lodged in jails here is maintained by the home ministry, the corresponding figures for Indian prisoners held abroad is with the external affairs ministry.Meanwhile, the Union home ministry has taken the alleged assault on a Pakistani prisoner, Sanaullah, in Jammu's Kot Bhalwal jail very seriously. It asked for a report from the Jammu and Kashmir government soon after learning of the incident, besides issuing a fresh advisory to the states — the second after the fatal attack on Sarabjit Singh in Lahore's Kot Lakhpat Jail last Saturday — asking them to ensure the safety o

Jharkhand assembly to be dissolved, polls likely in mid-June

Even as the Karnataka poll exercise nears completion, another Congress-BJP faceoff is on the horizon in Jharkhand. The Centre has initiated the exercise for dissolution of Jharkhand assembly, over three months after it went under President's rule, setting the stage for what could be a mid-June poll. A Cabinet note recommending dissolution of the House, followed by fresh elections before July 18, is being finalized by the Union home ministry and may be put for the Cabinet's approval soon, said ministry sources. According to sources in the Election Commission (EC), if the Presidential communication asking the EC to hold fresh polls is received over the next few days, state elections could be held in the second or third week of June. A July poll is not considered feasible as the state would then be in the thick of monsoon. Jharkhand was put under President's rule through an ordinance issued on January 18, and the assembly placed under suspended animation. This ordinance was

Madhya Pradesh judge goes by 'animal instinct'

Chief judicial magistrate in Khandwa district court, GC Dubey decided to rely upon "animal instinct" than the rule book to decide a custody issue. During the proceedings of a theft case lodged in Piplod police station last month, where parties charged each other with stealing a baby goat weighing about 16 kilograms, Dubey summoned two female goats to the court and delivered instant justice on Thursday by observing which one shared a better comfort-level with the little one. Puran Singh, a resident of Talwaria village, had lodged a complaint against Gajrat Chamta on March 30, accusing him of having stolen his baby goat and selling it off to butcher Akbar Munshi for Rs 3,700. Puran, according to inspector O P Solanki, claimed to have found the kid in the village market ties to Munshi's shop. An FIR under Section 379 of the IPC was registered and a party sent to arrest both men and recover the goat, Solanki told TOI. The police, thereafter, filed the chargesheet in the CJM

Same-sex provision should not derail US immigration move: US President Obama

Same-sex provision should not derail US immigration move: US President ObamaObama has used the prospect of new immigration laws as a major selling point for stronger US relations with Latin America on a three-day tour of Mexico and Costa Rica that ends on Saturday. But a proposal by Democratic US Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont has cast uncertainty into the delicate process of reaching a compromise on immigration. Leahy plans to propose next week an amendment to the legislation that would let gay Americans sponsor their foreign-born partners for green cards, which confer permanent residency. If it were to be included in the final bill, opposition from social conservatives could doom to failure the biggest effort in decades to improve the US immigration system. Obama said he would support Leahy's move, but that the broader effort to reform US immigration must be kept in mind. "I can tell you I think that this provision is the right thing to do. I can also tell you I'm no

Original Anandi 'bahu' too bags a show on rival channel

A rival channel is set to cast her in their new show. According to sources, Pratyusha and Vatsal Seth will be the lead pair. Says the source, "The show is expected to launch in a grand manner in a couple of months. Pratyusha is being paid well."Something similar had happened in the case of Giaa Manek too. The original Gopi bahu of TV was replaced overnight in Saath Nibhana Saathiya after she became a part of a dance reality show on a rival channel. Giaa some time later bagged the Jeannie aur Juju, which may not be doing very well in terms of TRPs, but it has at least given the actress a chance to explore the comedy genre.

Salman Khan's NGO comes to aid of drought-hit Maha districts

The foundation will provide 2,500 water tankers with a storage capacity of 2,000 litres each to the drought affected districts of Marathwada from May 6 to 31, according to an e-mail received recently by the Aurangabad Divisional Commissioner from Salman's 'Being Human' Foundation. Beed Residential District Collector B M Kamble said they had also received a mail regarding this from the divisional commissioner yesterday. "We have received an e-mail that Beed district will get 750 water tanks from 'Being Human' foundation. We have informed the Divisional Commissioner for distribution of these tanks," Kamble said. As per the e-mail, the NGO would supply 750 water tankers to Beed, 500 each to Osmanabad and Jalna, and 250 each to Aurangabad and Nanded. People of the Marathwada region have been facing acute water scarcity caused by uneven distribution of rainfall in the state.

I'm comfortable with sexy image of mine: Sophie Choudhry

You enjoyed doing this item number in Shootout At Wadala, isn't it? I won't call Aala Re an item number. It is the anthem of the movie — and when a filmmaker like Sanjay Gupta calls you for a dance number as grand as this, that too with John Abraham — you'd have to be a fool to reject it. But you have been missing from action for sometime now. Why is that? I have been performing across the globe and making good money doing that, which is the whole purpose after all. And since the money part is taken care of, I don't want to compromise on my passion, that is acting, by taking up ordinary roles. I was offered the song Tinku Jiya, I was also offered a role in Delhi Belly. But, I want to do better work. I'm waiting for Alibag to release this year and am keeping my fingers crossed for that as people will see a different Sophie in it. What do you mean when you say 'different'? I seriously don't understand why we think that to take up a different image wo

Sanjay Dutt introduces filmmaker OP Ralhan’s grandson

In fact, after watching just 30 seconds of Arrmaan's audition Sanjay told his team that they had found their Hasmukh, the protagonist of their film.Arrmaan, who has a degree in digital filmmaking from New York Film Academy, has attended acting workshops and has trained in dance and hardcore action for his big break.Says producer Maanayata Dutt, "Arrmaan considers his grandfather Ralhan sahab an inspiration. When he auditioned for us, we could immediately visualise him in the movie."The youngster has already started shooting for the film that is being directed by Sejal Shah. It was launched last month on the occasion of Gudi Padwa.Hasmukh Pighal Gaya, produced by Sanjay Dutt Productions, is scheduled to release in September.

Sunny Deol's 'Mohalla Assi' in dues row

While the Sunny Deol-Sakshi Tanwar-starrer Mohalla Assi might finally see the light of day in July, the issue of non-payment of dues to Italian translator Dr Michela Gemito continues to surround the film and has reached the Embassy of Italy in New Delhi.The Embassy has written a letter dated April 24, 2013 (a copy of which is with PT), asking producer Vinay Tiwari's production house to apprise them of the reasons for non-payment of the sum of `4 lakh as per the contract agreement.Michela, a PhD scholar of Indian literature and culture, had translated author Kashinath Singh's book Kashi Ka Assi on which the film is based. "Due to non-payment of the fees, a legal notice was sent by my lawyer last year but it produced only a denial from the production house that I was never employed or involved with the film," she said in a statement.Thus Michela has now approached the Embassy. Producer Tiwari said, "Yes, we have received a letter and my legal team will reply to it

Ekta Kapoor's Balaji Telefilms did not disclose Rs 30-cr income: I-T

"After investigation, we found that Balaji Telefilms did not disclose Rs 30 crore income. By not disclosing the amount, it has evaded tax," a senior Income Tax officer told. "Now, the production house has agreed to pay tax and penalty on the Rs 30 crore income. We will receive 30 per cent tax on this amount and also the penalty," the officer said. The officer further said that when Ekta Kapoor, the joint managing director of the company, was asked about tax evasion, she claimed that she is only involved in the making of films and television serials. "Hence, persons involved in the financial matters of the production house have been grilled," he added. During the search operation on April 30, a team of over 100 officials from the department swooped down on seven locations across the city, including that of producer Ekta Kapoor and her actor-father Jeetendra's residence in suburban Juhu. Balaji Telefilms' office and studio were among the seven prem

Priyanka and I not close buddies: Meera Chopra

"There is no tiff as such. In fact, our families are very close. My parents are very close to Priyanka's parents. It's just that we are not close buddies. So there is no tiff between us," Meera said at the muhurat of her film Gang of Ghosts on Thursday.Not new to showbiz, Meera made her debut in films with hit Tamil movie Anbe Aaruyire and went to do several southern movies like Vaana and Maaro.Now she is entering the Hindi film industry with director Satish Kaushik's Gang of Ghosts. She is confident the film will be a hit."When Satishji narrated the script, I was laughing like crazy. So, when you laugh that much at narration, you can imagine how much the audience would laugh. So, I think it'll be a sure shot hit. It is very important to have a hit movie at the beginning," said Meera.She has also signed third installment of Vikram Bhatt's 1920 franchise and is excited about her role."I have been trying since last one year. My main aim was t

After Salman, Aamir Khan plans to shift home

Bandra may lose one of its stars to SoBo. Now that he has a growing baby, Aamir Khan has been planning to shift to a bigger house. With the deals in and around Bandra not workign out to his liking, the actor is focused on Parel and Worli. According to sources, the actor is looking at a 5 BHK pent house or duplex ideally in SoBo and his staff is in talks with various builders. He may also buy an entire floor and convert two penthouses into one. Aamir currently owns two flats in Bandra west. While, he and Kiran live in a 3 BHK apartment in Marina, his brother stays at a 2 BHK flat in Bella Vista. "He needs more space and ideally would have liked to stay on in Bandra. He was looking for a penthouse in one of the high-rises in the area but the deals fell through," a source told us adding: "Since, a two-month search has not yielded a property of his choice, he has decided to shift focus towards SoBo, and is now considering Lower Parel or Upper Worli. However, it will take

My chemistry with Kareena goes a bit flat on screen: Saif

When two Bollywood stars tie the knot, there's increasing speculation about them being seen together on screen. But Saif Ali Khan, who's paired up with Ilean D'Cruz for his next film, isn't too keen to appear with his wife of six months in movies. "It's something that happens to me when I'm working with her, I'm not as interesting on screen," admits Saif, "I become like how I am when I am with her, which is not interesting. Normally, an actor is competitive, and that makes for good chemistry on screen. The chemistry goes a bit flat when you're too comfortable."The last time Kareena and Saif came together for a film was in 2009, for Kurbaan. Before that, they were seen in Tashan, but their first film together was JP Dutta's LOC: Kargil. Now, however, Saif and Kareena are maintaining a studied approach towards working together. Or let's say not working together. It's not like they aren't offers for endorsements, especia

Wildfire on Southern California coast threatens 4,000 homes

A fierce, wind-whipped wildfire spread on Friday along the California coast northwest of Los Angeles, threatening 4,000 homes and a military base as residents were evacuated ahead of the flames and a university campus was closed. More than 950 firefighters had built containment lines by late afternoon around about 20 percent of the inferno, which has blackened 18,000 acres of dry, dense brush and chaparral since erupting on Thursday morning. More firefighters were said to be on the way. Reuters reports Fire managers said they expected it would take until next Monday to achieve full containment of the blaze, which sent a pall of thick smoke drifting over the beach community of Malibu and farther inland across Los Angeles County. Several farm buildings and recreational vehicles were engulfed and fire officials said 15 homes were damaged, along with five commercial properties. While 25 outbuildings were destroyed, no residential structures were lost and no injuries had been reported to f

MSNBC forced apology: Egregiously Taking Quotes Out of Context for Gun Control Segment

MSNBC forced apology after egregiously taking quotes out of context for gun control segment. MSNBC host Thomas Roberts on Friday aired a portion of Vice President Joe Biden’s speech given at a plaque dedication remembering the Americans lost in the Benghazi terror attack and falsely claimed he was mourning “children as the victims of gun violence.” Roberts was discussing Biden’s reported plans to make a second push for gun control after losing in the first round. Theblaze reports In the selectively edited clip of Biden’s remarks, the vice president was talking about the serious risks that State Department employees and their families face as part of their service. “No child should predecease their parents. And I wish I could tell you we aren’t going to add anymore names with this wall…but the truth of the matter is, there will be more.” Biden said. After playing the video, Roberts falsely claimed that the vice president was talking about the children of gun violence before announcing h

Kobe Bryant, mom in court battle

Kobe Bryant is in a court battle to try to keep his mother from auctioning off mementos from his high school days in Pennsylvania and his early years with the Los Angeles Lakers. A New Jersey auction house filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Camden on Thursday for the right to sell the stuff after the NBA star's lawyers wrote the firm telling it to cancel a planned June auction. The disagreement is a high-value, high-profile version of a question many families face: Can Mom get rid of the stuff a grown child left at home? Espn reports Pamela Bryant intends to sell: the NBA star's jerseys, practice gear and sweatsuits from Lower Merion High School; varsity letters; a trophy for being the outstanding player at the 1995 Adidas ABCD basketball camp; and a signed basketball from the 2000 NBA championship game. And then there are rings, for the 1996 Pennsylvania high school championship, a pair that the Lakers made for Bryant's parents for the 2000 NBA championship and one

Guantanamo camp cost $900,000 a year per inmate

It's been dubbed the most expensive prison on Earth and President Barack Obama cited the cost this week as one of many reasons to shut down the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, which burns through some $900,000 per prisoner annually. The Pentagon estimates it spends about $150 million each year to operate the prison and military court system at the U.S. Naval Base in Cuba, which was set up 11 years ago to house foreign terrorism suspects. With 166 inmates currently in custody, that amounts to an annual cost of $903,614 per prisoner. By comparison, super-maximum security prisons in the United States spend about $60,000 to $70,000 at most to house their inmates, analysts say. And the average cost across all federal prisons is about $30,000, they say. Latimes reports The high cost was just one reason Obama cited when he returned this week to an unfulfilled promise to close the prison and said he would try again. Obama also said that the prison, set up under his Republican pre