http://www.skysports.com/opinion/story/0,25212,13283_5538029,00.html

US-based British sports-writer Simon Veness looks at who the US media is tipping as the NFL season looms ever closer.

It's preview season here in the US. And that means everyone and their aunt has an opinion on who will be in Miami next February for Super Bowl XLIV.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/28/AR2010082800191.html?wpisrc=nl_headline

Back-to-school shopping deals are just a text message away this year as retailers wade into the brave new world of mobile commerce. 

Industry experts and techno-evangelists have long predicted a day when people no longer make the long trek to the mall or even tether themselves to their desks to shop. Now, as more Americans are snapping up smartphones that can access the Internet and boast large-screen displays that make it easy to browse for clothes or microwaves, the future may not be far off.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/29/business/29ping.html?th&emc=th

THE first time I unboxed my gleaming Roomba, I beamed like a proud new parent as I placed it gently on my hardwood floor.

Is the U.S. Economy headed for a 'W' recovery rather than a 'V' ?  

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6815103n

Speedboarding has been called "skateboarding on steroids." It's a high-speed craze that some say should be banned.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129496882&ft=1&f=1020

Hardly anyone these days admits to watching soap operas, but they once dominated the daytime TV schedules.  Forty years ago, there were 18 soaps airing on the major networks; today, there are only six. Next month there will be one fewer when As the World Turns signs off after more than five decades on the air.

Peter Brash, a staff writer for As the World Turns, tells NPR's Audie Cornish that the soaps are really victims of their own success. "The serialized format has spread out just about everywhere you look," he says. Four decades ago, most shows presented a self-contained story every week. But now, "it's all branded to hook you in, to tune in tomorrow."

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129492503&ft=1&f=7

Tighter Credit Standards replaced NINJA Loans. Other reason:the Expired Tax Credit Cannibalized Future Sales,plus Prices keep Falling and even People with Jobs don't feel secure about their Employment.

http://www.financialpost.com/desktop+death+throes/3452133/story.html

Many have long predicted the impending death of the home desktop computer, but nobody expected the end to come so soon.

http://www.frumforum.com/predicting-the-coming-gop-wave

Political scientists Joseph Bafumi, Robert S. Erikson and Christopher Wlezien predict a 50-seat loss for Democrats in November.

How many House seats will the Republicans gain in 2010? . . . Our methodology replicates that for our ultimately successful forecast of the 2006 midterm. Two weeks before Election Day in 2006, we posted a prediction that the Democrats would gain 32 seats and recapture the House majority. The Democrats gained 30 seats in 2006. Our current forecast for 2010 shows that the Republicans are likely to regain the House majority. . . . the most likely scenario is a Republican majority in the neighborhood of 229 seats versus 206 for the Democrats for a 50-seat loss for the Democrats.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/08/29/sports/ncaafootball/20100829-cfp-bowls.html

Ohio State

What, you’re surprised not to see Alabama? Although it certainly seems like the Crimson Tide has a little more margin for error (a one-loss Southeastern Conference team has a better chance of playing for a national title than a one-loss Big Ten team), it just seems as if the Buckeyes are a complete team that can navigate the season without a loss. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor gets the headlines, but running back Brandon Saine and receiver DeVier Posey are also legitimate playmakers. On defense, end Cameron Heyward and linebackers Ross Homan (outside) and Brian Rolle (inside) along with a solid secondary complete the package. As long as Pryor has the breakout season that is expected of him, the Buckeyes will be headed to Arizona in January.