13 Island Cities Around The World (PHOTOS)

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Scott Dodd Scott Dodd: Will New York City Survive Sea-Level Rise? Morgan Pehme Morgan Pehme: Who Needs Superman? Vin Cipolla Vin Cipolla: Preserving Historic Preservation in New York City Dana Kennedy Dana Kennedy: Strict Singapore May Be the Most Surprising Place on Earth

Scott Dodd: Will New York City Survive Sea-Level Rise?

New Yorkers need to brace for the possibility of more storms, more floods, more heat waves and sea level rise that could reach a couple of feet by the end of the century.

Morgan Pehme: Who Needs Superman?

Anyone who feels inconsolable about the future of America's public school system should visit the headquarters of City Year New York for a bit of cheering up.

Vin Cipolla: Preserving Historic Preservation in New York City

New York became a leader in historic preservation following the demolition of the original Penn Station. Nearly 50 years later, a debate has emerged around whether the city is taking landmarks preservation too far.

Dana Kennedy: Strict Singapore May Be the Most Surprising Place on Earth

Singapore is a lively, ultra-modern nation, which feels like a souped-up, Philip K. Dick sci-fi version of the new American Dream. Except it's in Southeast Asia.

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Mark Joseph: The World According To "Cool It"

Unlike schoolchildren around the world who take crayon to paper and draw horrible pictures of a world in which climate change has ruined our cities, I don't spend too much time thinking about the issue of global warming. Not because I don't believe in science mind you, but precisely because I do believe in science, and its dynamic nature which often means that the things we worry about today either aren't true at all or turn out to be not as bad as we thought, as new science is introduced.

Take kids and sugar for instance. I thought it was settled long ago in a laboratory somewhere that sugar made kids act crazy. Turns out, according to the L.A. Times, that it has no such effect, that the hyperactivity parents like me associate with the sugar that kids ingest is really associated with the excitement of events that sugar is often associated with.

All that to say that people like me are the perfect target for works like Cool It, which releases this weekend, because I wouldn't fit neatly into either camp on the issue of global warming.

Bjorn Lomborg, the author of several books fancies himself a "skeptical environmentalist" and that sounds about right to me. His film is witty, fast-paced and above all else full of common sense.

Why don't we paint all of our roofs and roads white? Why don't we derive energy from waves that hit our shores? Why don't we work to make nuclear energy, so obviously effective, safer? And why didn't I know that a number of multi-national corporations supported the Kyoto Treaty because they stood to make billions of dollars were it to take effect?

These are the kinds of questions that an agnostic on the issue of climate change like me, leaves the theater with after watching Cool It. If Lomborg's goal was to make people like me even more skeptical about what's been going on over the last decade by those forces of fear who inspire our children to take crayon to paper, than he has succeeded.

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Tom Doctoroff: Shanghai's World Expo: The Curtain Falls

At yesterday's closing ceremony for the Shanghai World Expo, China's Prime Minister, Wen JIaobao, expressed lofty sentiments regarding the event's impact: "Only when the ideas behind the accomplishments of civilizations are shared can they become treasures for all of humanity and be carried on forever,"

Judging by these poetic, open-armed standards, the Expo has been a collosal failure. Despite the official tally of 73 million visitors, the vast majority of them mainland Chinese, the world's response to Shanghai's self-proclaimed moment in the sun has been been a gigantic collective yawn. And no wonder. Anyone who has visited the fairgrounds themselves has been, yes, impressed by the architectual marvels of the 250 or so corporate and country pavillions. (China, Spain, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark, Saudi Arabia, Italy, among others wowed visitors. While the United States effort was compared to a suburban office complex.) But the combination of interminably long lines, few sparkles of on-the-ground humanity, robotically-chirpy volunteers and limited green space left many visitors, local and foreign alike, underwelmed. Furthermore, the Shanghai government did precious little to entice foreign travellers to the event. It's public relationships efforts -- a bizarre fusion of propaganstic "bureaucrat-ese" and brain-dead imagery dominated by an onmipresent, neotonized, pale-blue critter named "Hai Bao" -- ensured that overseas figures remained below projections of (only) 5 million people.

According to meticulously orchestrated closing-day news reports, Shanghai Expo was all about a 21st century global village for which China, arms stretch wide, had become a beatifically smiling citizen. As Shanghai Daily wrote, "For the past six months, the Expo site was a place where people could see rare cultural treasures from around the world - such as the Bronze Chariot and Horse sculpture from China's Qin Dynasty, the statue of Athena from Greece and the masterpieces of French Impressionist artists - and also get a taste of the world's diverse cultures through more than 20,000 events."

Please.

The central and municipal governments, despite pervasive bi-lingual signage and visitor booths scattered throughout the city, had its eyes focused squarely on domestic concerns. With these objectivese as benchmarks, however, Shanghai Expo 2010 was a success.

In China, everything is a means to an end. Shanghai Expo was conceived and executed to catalyze a host of internal breakthroughs. Most importantly, in a system riven by political factionalism and ever-present fiscal competition between central, city and district-level organs, the event forged order from chaos. Petty, bottom-up, back-room inflighting was supplanted by top-down, command-and-control decision making. In the years leading up to Expo, infrastructural breakthroughs -- ten subway lines, several bridges and a new ring road, high-speed trains between Shanghai and neighboring cities, massive real estate/retail developments for which eminent domain concerns were swept to the side --were unveiled with clock-like efficiency. To boot, a massive clean-up effort has left behind a sparkling urban landscape. Store signage has been upgraded, roads have been repaved and sidewalks are infinitely more walkable then even a year ago.

The Chinese Everyman has always been impressed with the government's ability to, yet again, mobilize resources for large-scale projects. Despite the clumsy efforts at behavior modification -- illegal DVDs shops went further underground, cigarettes (well, at least ashtrays) were banned from many restaurants, slogans promoting "civilized" behavior were everywhere -- the population fell in line. (I issued a plea to "forge a harmonious society" during Expo when my lanehouse neighbors insisted on placing trash outside my door. It worked.) Work units, government teams, senior centers and high schools made pilgrimmages to the fair ground by the busload. Very few grumbled. Wide-eyed smiles and a lack of cynicism were hallmarks of a hundred thousand forced day trips. Openning and closing ceremonies, bereft of spontaneity or joy, nonetheless rivaled Beijing 2008 in terms of scale and pagentry. And the fairgrounds themselves, while sanitized to the point of Stepfordization, were collosal, epic in every sense. While waiting in interminable lines, the masses oohed.

Finally, Chinese citizens were impressed with the government's ability to cajole foreign leaders to acquiese to its demands, a harbinger of the Middle Kingdom's 21st century superpower status. Every country -- from America to Russia and Croatia to Nigerial -- fell in line. No one dared not to participate. China's ability to coerce foreign leaders to bend to its will, even for a second-tier international event, reassured the hoi polloi.

In the end, Shanghai's World Expo was not an international event. It was orchestrated as a domestic power display, in the same vein as the country's 60th anniversary military parade and this fall's Asian Games. The government's goal was a Hurculean projection of organizational mettle and global stature. Despite acute awareness of the game their government was playing, the Chinese -- even, grudgingly, the anti-Shanghai Beijinese -- acknowledged the job got done.

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Paul DEAD Octopus: World Cup prediction icon died in Germany

BERLIN - Sea Life Aquarium says Paul Octopus who gained fame in the world with his predictions of cutting world perfect died. It was 2 1/2.

Ariane Vieregge in Oberhausen aquarium spokesperson said on Tuesday that Paul seemed to end when checked on the late Monday night, but was found dead in his tank Tuesday morning.

It said that it was normal for an Octopus type died at the age and that he had died of natural causes.

Paul has correctly predicted the outcome of all seven of the Germany games and the Spain victory against the Netherlands in the final.

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Giants beat Phillies 3-2 in game 6, Will Face Rangers in world series

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PHILADELPHIA — No one can say the San Francisco Giants took the easy path to the World Series. They had to wait until the final day to clinch a playoff spot, then had to wait through a tense final out in Philadelphia.

Brian Wilson, Cody Ross and the Giants can exhale. Now they'll try to bring the first crown to San Francisco.

Juan Uribe hit a tiebreaking homer off Ryan Madson with two outs in the eighth inning and the Giants held off the Phillies 3-2 Saturday night in Game 6 of the NL championship series.

"We had such a diversity of contributions from everybody," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "Not bad for a bunch of castoffs and misfits."

Ross, the unlikely MVP, and the pitching-rich Giants reached the World Series for the first time since 2002 and will host the Texas Rangers in Game 1 on Wednesday night.

The Giants beat out the San Diego Padres to win the NL West in Game 162. They ended Bobby Cox's managerial career with a first-round win over the Atlanta Braves, and now will try for their first championship since moving to San Francisco in 1958.

"I'm speechless, just breathless," Giants general manager Brian Sabean said. "It's a great opportunity to see what we can do on a bigger stage."

Slumping Phillies slugger Ryan Howard looked at a called third strike – a 90 mph slider at the knees – with runners on first and second to end it. Wilson got the last five outs for his third save of the series, finishing off the Phillies' bid to become the first NL team in 66 years to win three straight pennants.

The sellout crowd fell silent while players jumped around and hugged each other on the field. A small contingent of Giants fans stood behind the visitors' dugout lingered for a bit and cheered loudly.

"Right now it's heaven, but it was torture for that final strike," Giants first baseman Aubrey Huff said.

Giants ace Tim Lincecum struggled in the eighth, pitching in relief on one day of rest after losing Game 5. But Wilson took over and got Carlos Ruiz to line out to Huff for an inning-ending double play in the eighth.

The benches cleared in the third inning after Giants starter Jonathan Sanchez hit Chase Utley with a pitch and then yelled at the All-Star second baseman for tossing the ball back toward the mound on his way to first base.

No punches were thrown and nobody was ejected, though Sanchez was pulled. San Francisco used six pitchers, including four lefties.

"We fought, we scratched and clawed," said Giants left fielder Pat Burrell, who won a championship ring with the Phillies in 2008. "I don't know how we did it but we did it."

The Giants are seeking their first World Series title since 1954 when they were still in New York. Led by Barry Bonds, they came within six outs of winning it in Game 6 against the wild-card Angels in 2002 only to lose in the deciding seventh game.

It's been quite a wait for a franchise that moved West in 1958. Even with Hall of Famers Willie Mays, Orlando Cepeda, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal and Gaylord Perry, the Giants couldn't bring a title to the Bay Area.

Now it's up to the Freak, Kung Fu Panda, Pat the Bat, an eccentric closer with a bushy beard that's dyed black, a journeyman outfielder who aspired to be a rodeo clown, and a rookie named Buster.

Those are nicknames that would make the Say Hey Kid, the Baby Bull and Stretch proud.

"They play 100 percent for each other and that's really the mark of this team," Giants president Larry Baer said.

San Francisco overcame a 2-0 first-inning deficit, tied it in the third and went ahead when Uribe hit an opposite-field drive that barely cleared the right-field wall.

"He hit it good," Madson said. "He it just good enough to get in the first row there. I didn't expect it. It was shocking to me."

Uribe hit a game-ending sacrifice fly off Roy Oswalt to give the Giants a 3-1 series lead in Game 4.

Roy Halladay outdueled Lincecum in Game 5 to send the series back to Philadelphia, where a frenetic, towel-waving crowd – the 136th straight sellout at Citizens Bank Park – wasn't ready for "Red October III" to end.

But the Phillies are going home early after leading the majors in wins for the first time in franchise history.

"I told them to lift their heads up high, that we played as hard as we absolutely could," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "They definitely have nothing to be ashamed of."

Wilson came in after Lincecum allowed consecutive, one-out singles. He got Ruiz on a liner to escape the inning.

Wilson had to bat in the ninth after Brad Lidge intentionally walked Buster Posey to load the bases. He took three pitches before bouncing out to first base.

Then Wilson, who led the majors in saves, made it interesting in the ninth.

"That's what we're tagged as doing," Wilson said. "Very fitting that it ended that way."

Oswalt pitched six effective innings, masterfully working out of trouble throughout the game because he allowed nine hits and hit a batter. Oswalt gave up two runs – one earned – three days after losing Game 4 in relief. The three-time All-Star righty – the 2005 NLCS MVP with Houston – threw eight superb innings to earn the win in Game 2.

Sanchez lasted just two-plus innings, allowing two runs and three hits. Sanchez, the Game 2 loser, had dominated the Phillies before this series, not allowing more than four hits in his five previous starts against them.

Rookie Madison Bumgarner, a 21-year-old lefty who started Game 4 and pitched the NLDS clincher Oct. 11 at Atlanta, pitched two scoreless innings in relief on two days' rest.

Bumgarner pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the fifth, retiring Shane Victorino on a bouncer to the mound to end the inning. He escaped trouble in the sixth after Raul Ibanez doubled and was sacrificed to third. Bumgarner struck out pinch-hitter Ben Francisco looking and retired Jimmy Rollins on a fly to center.

The Phillies jumped ahead 2-0 in the first on a RBI double by the slumping Utley and Jayson Werth's sacrifice fly.

Placido Polanco drew a one-out walk and scored on Utley's liner to right. Utley came in hitting .200 (6 for 30) in the postseason. Howard followed with a single. Utley scored on Werth's fly to deep left.

Sanchez sparked a two-run rally by leading off the third with a sharp single past Utley's glove. Andres Torres then hit a deep drive that center fielder Victorino ran down on the warning track and nearly made a sensational over-the-shoulder catch. But the ball bounced out of his glove and Torres got a 400-foot single.

After Freddy Sanchez sacrificed, Huff singled up the middle. Sanchez scored, but Victorino nailed Torres at the plate with a strong one-hop throw. Huff advanced to second on the throw, and scored the tying run when third baseman Polanco made a throwing error to first on Posey's slow roller after a nice barehanded pickup.

Despite throwing a bullpen session earlier that day, Oswalt came out of the bullpen on two days' rest with the score tied in the ninth inning Wednesday night. He allowed Uribe's game-ending sacrifice fly.

So much for all the talk that he would have a tired arm, though.

Oswalt's fastball was sharp and his slow curve had a nasty bite. With two on and two out in the fifth, he blew a 94 mph fastball past cleanup hitter Posey.

He fanned Burrell swinging at a 69 mph curve leading off the next inning. Oswalt was finished after getting Edgar Renteria to ground into a double play with two on in the sixth after the veteran shortstop tried "Jeter-ing" his way on. A 1-2 pitch hit Renteria's bat on a checked swing, but he jumped up and shook his hand, pretending the ball hit him. Plate umpire Tom Hallion didn't buy it, and Oswalt smirked and shook his head. Yankees captain Derek Jeter sold an umpire on that exact move earlier this season.

Notes: Oswalt is 5-0 in 10 career postseason starts, tying Orel Hershiser for most postseason starts without a loss. He remains unbeaten at Citizens Bank Park with a 10-0 record. ... Rollins was back in his customary leadoff spot and Victorino batted sixth. Rollins led off the opener of the division series and then moved down to No. 6 because he missed most of September and needed to regain his stroke. ... Werth made a sliding catch on Ross' foul ball down the right-field line in the fourth.

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