New controversy has erupted over the domain name “dot sucks”, which encourages the creation of many protest addresses.

Just a few of the most sought after names to be conjoined with the “.sucks” domain name are Apple, Google, Microsoft, CocaCola, and McDonalds. To protect their brand, many such companies have already bought up domains featuring their brand/company and .sucks.

These domain names cost almost $3,000, compared with less than $100 for typical domain names. The company Vox Populi owns “.sucks”.

For more see on this development, see this Wall Street Journal article.

The California Assembly has passed a bill banning the use of the name “Redskins” for highschool mascots.  If the bill becomes a law, all California schools would be required to expunge what many Native American activists agree is an offensive and injurious moniker by the year 2017. In June 2014, the U.S. Patent Office officially canceled the trademark name with the argument that it is “disparaging to Native Americans”.

Edward Snowden

This article poses an interesting question about mixing up names. Can you offer a solution?

Veterinary Pet Insurance has announced that “Max” is the most popular pet name for both dog and cat owners.

Their analysis is based on ca. 450,000 insured pets.

Top 5 dog names: Max, Molly, Buddy, Bella, and Lucy

Top 5 cat names: Max, Chloe, Lucy, Tigger, and Tiger. 

Click here for useful tips on naming your favorite furry family member.

Efforts are now underway to give place names to Ceres, “the Dwarf Planet”. According to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), Ceres’ nooks and crannies will be named after agricultural deities. According to Emily Lakdawalla of the Planetary Society, a topographic map of Ceres’ surface is being divided into quadrants. Each of these “quads” is then systematically bestowed an official toponym, many of which have borrowed from Roman mythology.

On May 6, 2015, a zoo in Oita, Japan announced the results of an official poll: The zoo’s very first baby Macaque monkey, would be named Charlotte, in honor of Her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte of Cambridge. News of the decision erupted in a national controversy with critics and supporters fighting over whether the name insulted or honored the newborn Royal. On May 8^th, the city mayor put an end to the debate, stating that the public had chosen a beautiful name, and no complaint from Britain had been lodged.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is planning to increase the current selection of domain names beyond the generic top-level domains like .com, .net, and .org. In anticipation, many companies have already begun to apply for their own brand name domains. The costs of placing an official application and paying for the accompanying legal and consulting fees for one of the trendy domain names can reach upwards of 1 million US dollars.