The National Federation of the Blind’s annual convention started at the weekend in Dallas, and one possible contender for the first car for blind drivers was a specially equipped Ford Escape. If all goes well, then we could see the first car of its kind hit the streets in 2011.

The Ford SUV uses a system called non visual interface technology, which we recently discussed. The blind driver will wear a pair of gloves that sends vibrations to inform the blind driver what way to go – this certainly means that they will be relaying heavily on this technology.

The convention will go on until this Thursday, and it is not just the Ford Escape for the blind that will be getting all the attention. The Bio reader is another piece of technology; the user will be able to access more than 1 million free books – all of which will sync to your computer.

The Bio reader uses text-to-speech technology, so you will never miss out on your favorite book, as long as it will be available. Other issues being discussed is the danger associated with Hybrid and electric vehicles, as the Blind cannot see them and they make hardly no noise. More information on this can be found on Chicago Tribune

Ford Motor said today it is taking steps to reduce its debt by $4 billion in order to strengthen its balance sheet.

Primarily, Ford is retiring $3.8 billion in debt owed to the UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust with a cash payment.

The company will also pay $255 million in previously deferred quarterly distributions on 6.50% cumulative trust preferred securities.

With these moves plus a $3 billion payment in April on its revolving credit facility due 2013, Ford has reduced its debt by more than $7 billion in the second quarter, saving the company $450 million in annual interest expense.

Shares are trading higher by nearly 5.6 percent on Wednesday.

Ford said Monday it will introduce a curve-control system on its 2011 Ford Explorer that will swiftly apply brakes to help drivers stay on course if they enter a curve too fast.

It is the second safety-related technology that Ford said it plans to debut on the Explorer, a vehicle that redefined the SUV segment in the 1990s but was the subject of several recalls in 2000 and 2001 because of rollover problems tied to its Firestone tires.

Last fall, Ford said it would introduce inflatable seat belts for rear-seat passengers on the Explorer.

“This is just our opportunity to really showcase all of our new safety technologies,” said Susan Cischke, Ford’s group vice president of sustainability and safety.

“We are all about family safety, and this is really a family vehicle.”

Ford said it plans to add the curve-control system to 90% of its North American crossovers, sport utilities, trucks and vans by 2015 and will eventually add it to all vehicles.

The curve-control system uses the same sensors as Ford’s electronic stability-control system, which monitors the wheel speed, tilt of the vehicle and other inputs 100 times per second.

Stability control cuts the engine’s power and applies the brakes to individual wheels if it senses a driver going off-course.

Ford said it spent 18 months enhancing its software to develop the system. Paul Mascarenas, Ford’s vice president of engineering for global product development, said it required no additional hardware.

Mascarenas said Ford’s curve-control system can slow the Explorer’s speed by as much as 10 m.p.h.in one second.

Ford decided to develop the system because U.S. government crash data show that about 50,000 serious crashes annually are tied to driving too fast on curves such as highway off-ramps and on-ramps.

Ford plans to reveal the design of its 2011 Ford Explorer in July, and production will begin near the end of the year at its assembly plant in Chicago.

Would you like to have someone established as a No. 1 receiver?

It was the big thing missing last season. T.J. Houshmandzadeh led Seattle with 79 catches, and Nate Burleson averaged a team-high 12.9 yards per catch. But Seattle did not have that true No. 1 receiver. A guy that got a defense on its heels.

Carroll has said he likes to have a diversity of threats out of the backfield running the ball. Would he prefer to have an established No. 1 receiver, though?

His answer: “It would be really nice if we had that and knew that,” Carroll said. “We don’t have that luxury yet. From what we’ve seen from Deion, he’s such a natural player and he gets it, and things just come so easily to him. I’ll be really surprised if he’s not able to really fit into a lot of things that we like to do.”

Hmmm, that sounds familiar enough to make more than one set of eyes roll because this has been an offseason refrain now in its fourth year.

In 2007, the question was whether Branch would become that No. 1 receiver after he had a full offseason and training camp to develop a rapport with quarterback Matt Hasselbeck.

In 2008, he was recovering from surgery to repair a serious knee injury suffered in the playoff loss at Green Bay.

In 2009, it was what he could be like if he could finally get healthy after two injury-riddled seasons.

It seems that there’s a certain amount of cynicism that’s reasonable given any insinuation Branch could finally establish himself as a go-to guy five years into a contract that Seattle not only paid him, but gave up a first-round pick for the privilege of doing so.

Now, Branch has been hurt. These aren’t insignificant injuries. A foot problem, a badly injured knee that has required three surgeries in just over two years.

And he’s just now coming back from the third procedure, and Carroll admits that Branch simply hasn’t had the time on the field to work with Hasselbeck in this new offense.

“We haven’t had the chance to really develop that yet, but that’s something that is important,” Carroll said. “Particularly for all the critical downs, you’ve got to get the throw-and-catches done to get the first downs and third down in particular. We have to develop relationships.

“In that regard, I feel like we’re a little behind. We’re unable to know at this time where is the real mix with the QB and the receivers.”

Fresh off their first three-game series sweep in two months, the Seattle Mariners will now shoot for their longest winning streak of the season when they take the field tonight against the Chicago Cubs.

The Mariners enter this three-game interleague series having won four consecutive contests, the last three of which came at the expense of National League Central contender Cincinnati over the weekend. Outstanding pitching carried Seattle to the sweep, the team’s first three-gamer since April 19-21 against Baltimore, with the M’s limiting the Reds’ normally-potent offense to a mere one run over the three games.

Seattle claimed a 1-0 decision in two of its three matchups with Cincinnati, including Sunday’s finale in which Ryan-Rowland Smith tossed six effective innings to record a long-awaited first victory of the season.

Rowland-Smith, who had lost his first six decisions of 2010 and brought an unimpressive 6.44 earned run average into Sunday’s test, yielded just three hits and worked around five walks to end his drought.

“There was a bit of frustration when I came off in that seventh inning after walking a few guys, but I’m not going to let that get in the way of everything else I did well [Sunday],” said Rowland-Smith, who was removed after issuing a free pass to the first two Cincinnati hitters in the seventh. “It was something good to build off and there’s plenty of season left, so just keep rolling with it.”

Brandon League and David Aardsma finished off the three-hit shutout for Seattle, while Chone Figgins scored the game’s only run after leading off the bottom of the fourth with a single and advancing to third on a Jose Lopez base hit before coming home on Franklin Gutierrez’s sacrifice fly.

The disappointing Mariners, who still reside at the bottom of the American League West, also won four in a row from April 13-17. Seattle will attempt to extend its run tonight behind Jason Vargas, one of the team’s real bright spots over the course of this campaign.

Vargas entered this season with a 9-14 career record and a 5.43 ERA in brief stints with the Mariners, Florida and the New York Mets, but he’s established himself as a mainstay in the Seattle rotation with his performance so far. The left-hander has compiled a 5-2 record with a sound 2.88 ERA through 13 starts and lasted at least six innings in 11 of those games.

The 27-year-old has been particularly good at Safeco Field, where he’s gone 4-1 with a 2.61 ERA in eight home starts. He also hasn’t taken a loss since May 4, having recorded three victories and five no-decisions in eight subsequent outings.

Vargas put forth one of his best performances of 2010 this past Wednesday in St. Louis, where he held the NL Central-leading Cardinals to one run on five hits over a season-high 7 2/3 innings to gain the win. In his previous start — also against an NL division leader — he tossed six innings of two-run ball in a June 11 no-decision at San Diego.

The Long Beach State product is 1-0 with a 4.74 ERA over three career meetings with the Cubs, but hasn’t faced Chicago since 2007.

Like Seattle, the Cubs have also failed to meet expectations so far in 2010, as the team presently stands seven games under .500 (31-38) and seven games back of St. Louis in the NL Central race. Chicago will be heading into a six- game road trip on a high note, however, after routing the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim by a 12-1 count Sunday at Wrigley Field.

The Cubs pounded out 18 hits for the game and put up eight unanswered runs over the first three innings to build a commanding lead. Seven of Chicago’s starters — including pitcher Carlos Zambrano — finished with at least two hits on the day.

“This is what we’re capable of doing,” Cubs manager Lou Piniella remarked afterward. “We just have to see if we can get consistent with it.”

Derrek Lee went 2-for-4 with four RBI to lead Chicago’s offensive barrage, while Ryan Theriot collected three hits and scored three runs in the win. Zambrano finished 2-for-4 with an RBI single in addition to delivering seven strong innings on the mound, with the fiery right-hander surrendering just one run and fanning seven to move to 3-5 on the season.

Ryan Dempster would love to receive similar support when he pitches for the Cubs this evening. The veteran righty would probably settle for his team’s output during his latest start, though, a 6-2 decision over Oakland last Wednesday in which he allowed two runs and struck out seven over 6 2/3 innings to pick up the win.

Dempster has now won three of his last four decisions and put forth a quality start in nine of his 14 appearances this season. The 33-year-old has posted a respectable 3.67 ERA for the year and has held opposing hitters to a .225 batting average.

The British Columbia native will be pitching for the first time at Safeco Field and has only faced the Mariners twice previously, both in relief. Seattle is one of just three teams, along with the Angels and Rangers, that Dempster has never made a start against.

The Cubs will be making their second-ever visit to Seattle, having taken two of three tilts from the Mariners at Safeco Field back in 2002. Chicago also won two of three from Seattle at Wrigley Field during the 2007 season.

The first day of summer in Washington is cloudy with a chance of showers, temperatures below normal and a forecast for more of the same.

The National Weather Service says the Northwest is still dominated by low pressure systems. The best chance of sun in Washington may be a midweek break in the pattern.

Forecasters say low temperatures this week will be mostly in the 50s with highs reaching the low 70s in Western Washington and 80s in Eastern Washington.

The Seattle Mariners completed a three game sweep of the visiting Cincinnati Reds 1-0 on a rainy Fathers day under the roof at Safeco field. The Mariners pitching once again steered the ship to victory with Ryan Rowland-Smith navigating the first 6 1/3 innings of shutout ball. The Mariners swept a three game series for the first time since the Baltimore series on April 19-21^st. Coming into the game today the Reds were batting .276 to lead the National League compared to .234 for the Mariners. But just like the previous two games the Reds were kept in-check by the Mariners pitching staff who managed to get just enough offense behind them to push the Reds down to 2 ½ games out of first in the NL Central. Unfortunately for the Mariners despite winning their fourth game in a row, they stay 13 games back in the AL West as the Texas Rangers won their eighth game in a row.

   The Mariners scored their only run of the game when pesky Chone Figgins smoked an infield single, and then was moved to third on a single by Lopez through the whole on the right side of the infield, created by the speedy Figgins stealing second on the play. Milton Bradley was unable to bring Figgins home leaving the task to Franklin Gutierrez who had the only RBI of the game with his sacrifice fly to center. Josh Wilson did pick-up another single in the inning but the Mariners rally was thwarted by the struggling Mike Carp who may be the next Mariner to go back to Tacoma. Carp gave-way to Casey Kotchman later in the game allowing Kotchman to set the record for most consecutive games by a first-baseman without an error at 239. Congratulations are in order for Casey Kotchman who has struggled at the plate this year but continues to dazzle with the leather.

   The Reds starter Aaron Harang went 6 innings and only gave up the one run in the bottom of the fourth. His opponent today Ryan Rowland-Smith managed to keep the Reds scoreless despite giving up 5 walks. It was nice to see Smith pitch effectively for the second outing in a row, and he may very well have won back his spot in the rotation with this gutsy performance. Smith showed some raw emotion after getting a strike-out in the sixth inning to pitch out of a jam. Brandon League came in to relieve Smith in the 7^th after the big Aussie had walked the first two Reds. The Reds executed a perfect sacrifice bunt and suddenly the game was on the line with runners on second and third with only one out. Brandon League had other ideas today and came right after the next two batters with his A-game. Throwing 97 mph pitches with movement, League struck-out Cabrera and Phillips to end the threat.

   Brandon League after four days rest was virtually untouchable today and he mowed down the dejected Reds in the 8^th before handing the ball over to David “Dutch” Aardsma. Fortunately Aardsma has also been able to rest due to the dazzling performances by Lee and Hernandez in the first two games of the series. It was nice to see Aardsma put the Reds away 1, 2, 3 in the ninth to close this game and series out for the Mariners who are quietly gathering up a little momentum before the Chicago Cubs come to town Tuesday. It is interesting to note that Jack Wilson is back in the clubhouse after his rehabilitation stint, sending Matt Tuiasosopo back to Tacoma. The Mariners will have to figure out how to keep both of the Wilson’s on the field as the Paperboy has earned a spot in the lineup. Also Mike Sweeney is back itching to contribute and I expect to see him in some capacity when Sweet Lou and the Cubs make their first appearance in 8 years at Safeco field. This has been a tough year and with Texas and the Angels playing for keeps now it will be hard for the Mariners to get back in the race. But for the next couple of days it is just kind of nice to think about sweeping the Reds and only allowing them 1 run in three games.

Seattle City Attorney Peter Holmes on Thursday lashed out at the Seattle Police Department and its leadership over the punch of a jaywalking suspect by an officer.

In announcing that one of the two females at the center of the incident would be charged, Holmes said the incident represented a complete breakdown of the leadership of the department. He said the Police Department failed to provide adequate training and planning for its officers to handle the incident that was captured on video.

As Mayor Mike McGinn is deciding whether to name Interim Police Chief John Diaz or Ron Davis, the police chief in East Palo Alto, Calif., as Seattle’s next permanent chief, Holmes urged the mayor to make a decision on the department’s leadership. He said his personal view was that McGinn should select someone from outside the department or start the selection process all over.

“I think it’s extremely unfortunate,” Holmes said of the incident. “I think the incident could have been handled better.”

Reached for comment, Diaz said he “vehemently disagreed with Mr. Holmes.” He said he planned to meet privately with the city attorney.

Some people in City Hall are considering asking the mayor to restart the process, according to a source.

Meanwhile, Marilyn Ellen Levias, one of two females at the center of the videotaped punch of a jaywalking suspect by a Seattle police officer, will be charged with obstructing a police officer, according to Kimberly Mills, spokeswoman for the Seattle City Attorney’s Office. The charge is a misdemeanor.

Officer Ian P. Walsh was attempting to stop Levias, 19, for jaywalking Monday around 3:10 p.m in the Rainier Valley when a 17-year-old friend, Angel L. Rosenthal, intervened. In an incident caught on video, Rosenthal is seen pushing the officer, who responds by punching her in the face.

Levias and Rosenthal were arrested.

Diaz ordered the review of the department’s training procedures after a videotape of the incident was repeatedly broadcast on Seattle television stations and media websites. Walsh, 39, who joined the department in November 2006, has been temporarily placed in the department’s training unit to allow him to review his tactics.

Walsh’s handling of the incident was backed by the head of the Seattle police union, who said the department’s review is necessary but that the officer had been defending himself.

James Kelly, chief executive officer of the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, said Tuesday Walsh’s punch was an overreaction. “The provocation by this 17-year-old kid may have presented a confrontation situation, but the use of violence in the form of a full punch in the face was just plain wrong,” he said in a statement.

Rosenthal and Levias are black; Walsh is white.

Levias was released on her personal recognizance after her arrest Monday. She is scheduled to be arraigned on the charge at 1:30 p.m. Thursday in Seattle Municipal Court.

Levias was charged in February 2009 with third-degree assault after she allegedly pushed a King County sheriff’s deputy.

According to charging documents, on Feb. 3, 2009, deputies were called to the Ruth Dykeman Children’s Center, a Burien center for troubled girls, in response to a report that Levias was being abusive toward staff. When Levias was confronted by Deputy Amy Zarelli, she pushed the female deputy, causing her to fall, charging papers said.

Levias was given a deferred disposition — meaning the charge would be dropped if she stayed out of trouble — because it was a first-time offense.

2011 Ford Mustang V-6 Coupe Premium

BASE PRICE: $22,145 for base coupe; $25,845 for Premium coupe.

AS TESTED: $32,580.

TYPE: Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, four-passenger, subcompact coupe.

ENGINE: 3.7-liter, double overhead cam V-6 with TriVCT.

MILEAGE: 19 mpg (city), 31 mpg (highway).

TOP SPEED: 115 mph.

LENGTH: 188.1 inches.

WHEELBASE: 107.1 inches.

CURB WEIGHT: 3,473 pounds.

BUILT AT: Flat Rock, Mich.

OPTIONS: Electronics package (includes dual-zone air conditioning, voice-activated navigation system with Sirius satellite radio and six months complimentary service) $2,340; rapid spec package (decklid spoiler, Mustang logo floor mats, sport striping, fog lights, 18-inch, polished wheels, automatic headlamps) $995; six-speed automatic transmission $995; high-intensity discharge headlights $525; security package $395; 3.31 ratio limited slip axle $395; rear-view camera $240.

DESTINATION CHARGE: $850.

A recent federal judge’s ruling banning the use of Metro buses to shuttle fans to and from Mariners games means the popular service will end after the homestand that begins Friday and ends June 24.

Metro said Wednesday it is sending the Mariners a 14-day service termination notice, required by its contract with the team. This will allow time for fans to make other transportation plans, Metro spokeswoman Linda Thielke said.

Metro has been serving the ballpark for years, and in a good season, between 1,000 and 2,000 fans per game use the buses, said team spokeswoman Rebecca Hale.

The notice is the latest development in a case brought by two trade associations representing private charter companies, including Starline Luxury Coaches in Seattle. They claimed that federal rules prohibit public-transit operators from using their government-subsidized buses to provide charter services when private firms can do so.

A recent amendment by Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., had carved out an exemption for Metro — one of the nation’s top 10 busiest public-transit providers — with a goal of reducing costs to Seattle sports fans. But a federal judge in Washington, D.C., declared the Murray amendment unconstitutional last week, prompting Metro to send the notice to the Mariners.

Metro also has provided special shuttle service to the University of Washington Huskies and other sports teams, and to special events such as the flower and garden show.

The UW is waiting to see whether the federal Justice Department appeals the court ruling, said Richard Kilwien, associate athletic director for communications. The first home game is Sept. 11 against Syracuse.

About 15,000 fans rely on shuttle buses on football Saturdays. The UW pays about $600,000 for the service, which is free to ticketholders, said Kilwien.

One issue to consider, he said, is that public transit buses have more doors and are more wheelchair accessible than a typical private coach.

Metro’s special baseball routes, for $5 cash each way, go to and from the Northgate, South Kirkland, South Bellevue and Eastgate park-and-ride lots for weekend games, and postgame only for weeknight games.