Now, this is Steven Colbert saying: I'm go to launch me!

"Me" meaning the "Colbert"—or C.O.L.B.E.R.T.—the Combined Operational Load Bearing External Resistance Treadmill. That's the new name for this piece of hardware, known during its development as T2, the second version of the ISS treadmill

The smartypanties at NASA had to come with the acronym as a thank you—and consolation prize—for Stephen Colbert, who gave a major popularity boost to the International Space Station after participating in a contest to name the next ISS module. He actually won the contest, but NASA decided not to use it thinking it was inappropriate. At the end, NASA selected Tranquility in honor of the Apollo 11's landing site. [NASA]

Since there's very little gravity in space, is there an elastic strap to pull the guy down toward the treadmill to simulate gravity? Or is the guy just whirling his legs around like the Roadrunner? [Orlando Sentinel via TV Squad]

Of course NASA exercised the right to choose the final name, opting for the eighth most popular response according to their poll. Yeah...EIGHTH. So, the entire contest was pointless and we are left with another cliche NASA name. So, my question to you is: what should NASA have named the ISS module?

Really NASA? Really? We can see you not picking Serenity, even with its Firefly connotations, or Colbert, because it's Colbert, but picking something in the eighth slot in a poll? WHY EVEN HAVE A VOTE? What's wrong with you people, seriously. [SFGate]

There are some really great moments in here, as is to be expected. One thing though, Colbert must be friends, secretly, with Matt Buchanan, because he's pretty good at ignoring all real tangible communications, choosing instead to liveblog the procedings with an iPhone.

But Matt, you've got to hook up Stephen with a good Twitter app! He can't be using the web interface from an iPhone:

[Colbert Nation]

Viacom's argument is that their channels "provide 20 percent of their audience" yet they only "receive about 2.5 percent of the fees Time Warner pays," so they're asking for what amounts to a rate increase of 23 cents per subscriber. Time Warner says that "the root of this is that the advertising market has gone soft and Viacom is desperate" and it's no time to be making people pay more for TV.

Viacom's PR campaign, so far, is decidedly brilliant: They've taken out full page ads in the Times and other papers today with characters like Dora the Explorer crying because children can't watch her starting tomorrow. Time Warner's response is pretty savvy too. Time Warner spokesman Alexander Dudley said that they'll "be telling our customers exactly where they can go to see these programs online...We’ll also be telling them how they can hook up their PCs to a television set.”

That's right—the cable company will be telling people to use Hulu. That's a first. True, they're still doing it over Time Warner's pipes, but it's pretty shocking coming from a cable company/ISP, who, like every other TV/ISP service provider, has traditionally pushed people in various ways to use the internet less and their TV services more. In fact, Time Warner has squawked before that they hate the amount of content—like The Hills and The Daily Show, the very programs at issue here—that broadcasters are putting online for free. Now they're sending people to them.

This is also the same Time Warner that's capping the amount of data people can use a month in certain markets, which, survey says, is a network management practice likely to spread—in large part due to the amount of strain on broadband networks coming from streaming video now.

And this Time Warner's going to tell people to stream more video? Maybe they're just going to bump your broadband bill instead, or this is a bluff. So, don't worry guys, you'll totally be able to watch Comedy Central while you're hungover tomorrow. (Probably.) [NY Times via NewTeeVee]