Nashville‘s No. 1

Nashville is the smartest place in America to set down roots, says a new survey by Kiplinger‘s Personal Finance magazine. The magazine went looking for the 50 cities where good living wasn't too bad for the pocketbook. Affordability, cultural and leisure activites, education options and quality housing were major factors. The top 10 cities, after Nashville: 2, Minneapolis-St. Paul; 3, Albuquerque, N.M.; 4, Atlanta; 5, Austin, Texas; 6, Kansas City; 7, Asheville, N.C.; 8, Ithaca, N.Y.; 9, Pittsburgh; 10, Iowa City, Iowa.

Cell phone? Buy phone!

Japanese electronics giant Hitachi says it hopes to transform cell phones into portable electronic payment devices within two years, relieving users of the need to carry credit cards or cash. Hitachi says its researchers are developing phones that will recognize the identity of owners as soon as their fingers touch the handset. Everyone has unique vein patterns in each finger that is a far more accurate indicator of identity than a fingerprint.

Name a blimp

Goodyear has narrowed to 10 the list of finalists chosen from 21,000 names submitted in a contest to name its next blimp. People can vote for their favorite through the end of November at nametheblimp.com. The finalists are American Dream, Freedom, Liberty, Patriot, Patriot of Peace, Pride of America, Spirit of Endurance, Spirit of Ingenuity, Spirit of Innovation and The Spirit of Peace.

Here for beer?

The two big beer trends on display this week in Chicago at the Food Marketing Institute Show:

• » New packaging: Heineken‘s keg can for the fridge, which gives people draft beer at home; Coors‘ cooler box of 18-ounce plastic bottles, ready to be filled with ice; Budweiser's new sturdy aluminum bottles.
• » New drinks: Anheuser-Busch has rolled out two micro-brew styles, Stone Mill Pale Ale and Wild Hop Lager, that are organic. It also has created a malt beverage, Peels, made with all-natural fruit.

One tough Byrd

Consider the number 17,328. That‘s the number of days Robert C. Byrd will have served in the U.S. Senate on June 12, making him the longest-serving senator (passing the late Strom Thurmond). West Virginians first elected Byrd in 1958. Now 88, he is seeking a ninth term in November. According to Citizens Against Government Waste, Byrd – the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee – brought $399 million worth of pork to his state in 2005, or $220 for every resident. Says political analyst Jennifer Duffy: “He is one of West Virginia‘s economic engines.”

Who would believe it?

Chatroom participants with female user names received 25 times more threatening and/or sexually explicit messages than those with male or ambiguous user names, according to a University of Maryland study. Female user names, on average, received 163 malicious messages a day in the study. The researchers also determined that simulated users or “bots” are not behind most of the messages. “The extra attention the female user names received and the nature of the messages indicate that male, human users specifically targeted female users.”