New York City will embark upon a cab sharing plan this autumn. One component will be group-ride cab stands that allow drivers to pick up several passengers traveling along the same busy route for a flat fee. Another component involves equipping some taxis with multiple meters, so additional passengers going the same way can be picked up and the individual, discounted fares can be tracked. Some cabs will also have LED screens so potential riders can see the destination neighborhood.

In this Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editorial, the board argues that a mortgage conciliation program in Allegheny County should be adopted statewide. The program is designed to reduce foreclosure sales by implementing reconciliation conferences between borrowers and lenders which are heard by judges or special masters.  These conferences can help to keep people in their homes and save banks money as it is often cheaper to renegotiate loans than to foreclose on homes. The bills under consideration would produce guidelines for statewide implementation of the program.

In the neighborhood of Washington Heights in New York City, the Equity Project charter school will open this fall, enrolling 120 fifth-grade students and paying its 8 teachers a $125,000 annual salary with the opportunity to receive bonuses based on school-wide performance. By attracting master teachers from other places of learning, the school is wagering that its success will confirm the large body of research opining that teacher quality is the most important school-based factor in academic success. The school will be publicly funded in everything except its building. To make up some of the difference, teachers will have additional responsibilities, eliminating the need for assistant principals, deans, substitute teachers, and teacher coaches. They will also work longer hours and have more pupils than the average teacher.

Grameen Bank, the microfinance institution founded by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, will open a branch in Omaha, Nebraska, after its success in the Queens borough of New York City last year. The bank will initially serve the low-income community in South Omaha and will then expand its operations to other areas. Yunus believes that microcredit can address the difficulties American communities are facing in the financial crisis.

Japan will test a cellphone-based tracking system in an attempt to combat future pandemics. Funded by the Japanese government, students at a chosen school will receive special cellphones equipped with a GPS beacon that allows software to detect and store data of student locations on a per-minute basis. The system will soon be tested via a virtual disease outbreak. Through the designation of certain students as "infected," an analysis of their movements will allow researchers to identify which other students would be at risk of having been exposed to the disease. Those families will then be told to visit the doctor, in an effort to limit the "contagion."

For its special needs children the Hollywood Park Elementary school in Florida is applying a Dutch philosophy -- in the form of a new "sensory room" -- which posits that physical surroundings can reduce stress, quell anxiety, and improve communication. Children who work with teachers in the school’s sensory room can play with, among other things, a color-changing pool filled with clear plastic balls that vibrate to music, lily pads that make noises when they are stepped on, and buttons that unleash bursts of air when pressed.

Maryland officials are using forty goats to “mow” grass and weeds along part of a state highway. These natural mowers are not only less expensive then conventional methods, but are also more environmentally friendly, as they reduce the state’s carbon footprint and protect species native to the area, such as a certain type of bog turtle. The goats will work until September. Places in New York and Colorado also use goats to trim grass.

This fall, California high school students may be using digital textbooks for some of their math and science classes. If certain free and open digital textbooks meet state-approved standards, this first-in-the-nation initiative could reduce education costs for the state and make it easier for students to work in multiple settings. Some schools, which cater to low income students without reliable computer access, worry that the transition to this new technology could be difficult.

The Arizona Department of Transportation, the Arizona Game and Fish Department, and several other public and private organizations have partnered to save wildlife and highway drivers from animal-vehicle collisions. The consortium is using GIS technology to identify the locations where deer and elk are apt to cross the road and then installing underpasses at those points. Besides the safety of Arizona’s residents and visitors, preventing collisions saves the state money; as the state “owns” all wildlife, it can be held liable when a collision occurs.

Providence, Rhode Island will require private security personnel, or “bouncers,” to have a license, receive training, and undergo a background check. The measure is designed to identify undesirable persons that may be prone to handling situations in an unnecessarily violent manner, thereby putting the public at risk and taxing already limited police resources. Some club owners and bouncers believe that the ordinance unduly interferes with club management but supporters point to past incidents involving on-the-job assaults by bouncers. New York City and California require similar procedures.

The US Army has opened the Virtual Army Experience to give potential recruits a slice of Army life. The 19,500 square-foot mobile facility features advanced simulators that immerse visitors in missions aboard helicopters or Humvees; visitors are then "debriefed" on their missions with current soldiers.