Originally published in Westchester Magazine.

By Julianne Cuba

July 23, 2015

The award-winning author wrote Ragtime, the book that made him famous, from his home in Southern Westchester. 

E.L. Doctorow, the famous American novelist whose award-winning 1975 novel Ragtime was both centered around and written in New Rochelle, died on Tuesday at the age of 84. His son, Richard, told The New York Times that the cause was complications from lung cancer.

Doctorow, a long-time New Rochelle resident, was known for his contemporary spins on culture and history. Ragtime, set in pre-World War I in the New York City area, revolved around a wealthy family living on Broadview Avenue in New Rochelle. The book was later turned into a movie and Broadway musical.

Like Ragtime, many of Doctorow’s other 12 novels used real historical characters and context to create alternative, often eccentric narratives. His other titles include Billy Bathgate, The March, and World’s Fair.

In a statement released on Wednesday, Mayor Noam Bramson of New Rochelle said, “He is universally acknowledged as one of the great American novelists, with works that are unchallenged classics and will almost surely be read for decades, if not centuries, to come.”

Mayor Bramson acknowledged New Rochelle’s intimate connection with the author, explaining that until just a few years ago, Doctorow and his wife, Helen, had lived on the very street made famous by Ragtime.

“To his neighbors, he was Ed, not E.L. And he was notable not just for his talent, but for his kindness — unassuming in his bearing, unfailingly polite, with no sign of the frosty arrogance that sometimes afflicts the famous,” the mayor wrote.

Originally published in Westchester Magazine 

July 13, 2015

Bigger isn’t always better. Case in point: technology. Everything from our smartphones to computers and now our node test chips are getting smaller and smaller. Wait, you don’t know what node chips are? These fingernail-sized chips, which are referred to by the size of the transistors they can hold, contain billions of transistors that provide the electricity and power to operate our smartphones and spacecraft. The smaller the transistors, the more of them you can fit on a chip, the more powerful the chip becomes.

And they’re getting pretty small.

IBM Research announced last week its newest breakthrough yet: a seven-nanometer-thick node test chip with functioning transistors. It has the potential to hold more than 20 billion transistors; it’s the semiconductor industry’s first node test chip that small. For reference, a sheet of paper is about 100,000 nanometers thick. This is seven. Seven! And a strand of DNA is two-and-a-half nanometers in diameter. Again, this is seven!

The current chips in commercial use are typically 22 or 14 nanometers, and there’s a 10-nanometer chip gaining momentum in the industry. It’s too soon to tell when the seven-nanometer chip will hit mass production— according to Ars Technica, no sooner than two years.

Created in partnership with GLOBALFOUNDRIES and Samsung at SUNY Polytechnic Institute’s Colleges of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, the seven-nanometer chip is a huge deal for the industry because when things get that tiny, traditional methods and materials for production are no longer feasible—the industry’s current chips use pure silicon as a base, but to get even smaller, IBM transitioned the new chips to operate on the alloy silicon-germanium.

“For business and society to get the most out of tomorrow’s computers and devices, scaling to 7nm and beyond is essential,” said Arvind Krishna, senior vice president and director of IBM Research in a press release from Thursday. “That’s why IBM has remained committed to an aggressive basic research agenda that continually pushes the limits of semiconductor technology. Working with our partners, this milestone builds on decades of research that has set the pace for the microelectronics industry, and positions us to advance our leadership for years to come.”

The new seven-nanometer chips come as part of IBM’s ongoing project announced in July 2014 to expand research and “push the limits of chip technology needed to meet the emerging demands of cloud computing and Big Data systems.”

Originally published in Westchester Magazine

July 9, 2015

Almost three weeks after Julie Hamp’s arrest in Tokyo for allegedly importing oxycodone into Japan, the former chief communications officer for Toyota was released from custody in Japan without charge on Wednesday.

Hamp was arrested in Tokyo on June 18 after Japanese custom officials found 57 oxycodone tablets in a package that was sent to her from the United States. Oxycodone, though legal in both the United States and Japan, requires pre-importation approval from the Japanese government. Officials from the prosecutor’s office in Japan told The Wall Street Journal that Hamp was not abusing the pills and was using them for health reasons.

Prior to her position at Toyota, Hamp served as the senior vice president of communications at PepsiCo, headquartered in Purchase. According to her LinkedIn profile, Hamp worked at PepsiCo from December 2007 until March 2012. Hamp was named Toyota’s first female managing officer in 2012 when she joined Toyota’s North American team; She relocated to Tokyo in June and was arrested on the 18th, just days following Toyota’s annual meeting.

Though she is not facing any charges, the incident cost Hamp her job and Toyota its first non-Japanese executive to be based in Japan.

On July 1, Toyota released a statement accepting Hamp’s resignation. And on Wednesday, Toyota released a second statement regarding Hamp’s release.

“We apologize for any confusion or concern the recent events surrounding former Managing Officer Julie Hamp may have caused,” the statement read. “We intend to learn from this incident by reinforcing our guiding principles of honoring the language and spirit of the law. Furthermore, we will continue to strive to create a more secure working environment for everyone at Toyota around the world. We also remain firmly committed to putting the right people in the right places, regardless of nationality, gender, age and other factors, as we continue to take the steps necessary to become a truly global company.”

Toyota also announced that Shigeru Hayakawa, a senior managing officer and member of its board of directors, had replaced Hamp as chief communications officer.

Originally published in Westchester Magazine 

July 8, 2015

Former New York Knicks star and current general manager of the Westchester Knicks Allan Houston just put his Armonk home on the market for nearly $20 million.

Listed with Houlihan Lawrence at $19.9 million, the seven-bedroom home in the gated community of Conyers Farm lies on more than 10 acres of land, has 26 rooms, five fireplaces, 10 full bathrooms with marble baths, and two half bathrooms.

The French country-style mansion, co-listed by Brian Milton and Ellen Mosher of Houlihan Lawrence, was custom built for Houston and his wife, Tamara, in 2006. The couple lived there with their seven children, which should give you some idea of the size of this exquisite estate.

Of course, the home of a former professional NBA player for nine seasons wouldn’t be complete without its own basketball court and trophy room, or its own outdoor swimming pool and golf practice green. The Houstons’ home also overlooks—and sits right next to—Converse Lake, so if the heated pool isn’t cutting it, there’s a huge body of fresh water ready to be canoed or swam (swum?) in.

Famous guests? They’ve been there: President Barack Obama swung by the Houston estate in 2007 on a fundraising visit during his first presidential campaign. Houston told The Wall Street Journal that though he and Obama didn’t have time to test out the court, “[Obama’s] a Bulls fan, so we joked about the Knicks and Bulls rivalry.”

Read the full story and see the photos of the home here.

Originally published in Westchester Magazine 

July 2, 2015

Following recent terrorist attacks in France, Tunisia, and Kuwait, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson released a statement last week urging all law enforcement officials to be vigilant and prepared as the holiday weekend approaches.

“We continue to encourage all Americans to attend public events and celebrate this country during this summer season, but always remain vigilant. ‘If you see something, say something’ is more than a slogan,” Johnson said.

Though there are no known specific or credible threats to Westchester County, White Plains Department of Public Safety Commissioner David Chong said that the police force and all public safety assets have been significantly increased for the weekend and for the City of White Plains’ annual Independence Day celebration on Thursday night.

“We have a national threat alert, which has put all law enforcement on the alert to be cognizant of a lone wolf or terrorism event by ISIS,” Chong said. “I want to make it very clear, we do not have any specific threats in White Plains.”

Throughout the holiday weekend, security will be increased all over the city, including the number of uniform and plainclothes officers and mobile camera surveillance, Chong said.

“We are working very closely and cooperating with our partners in the Joint Terrorism Task Forces, which includes the FBI, the New York City Police Department, and the New York State Police,” he said.

Chong also echoed Secretary Johnson’s statement saying that the biggest and most important thing for law enforcement is that the public is its eyes and ears, and if anyone sees anything suspicious, they should not hesitate to say something.

“As the public safety commissioner, I tell you to go out and enjoy yourself and do everything that you would normally do on a beautiful July Fourth holiday weekend,” Chong said. “And know that public safety will be out there full force, ensuring that you have a safe holiday weekend.”