The rate at which builders began work on new homes surged to a four-year high, the Commerce Department said today.

The AP reports that September clocked the fastest pace since July of 2008. The AP adds:

"The Commerce Department says builders broke ground at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 872,000 in September. That's an increase of 15% from August.

The morning after a sold-out show at Los Angeles' famed Hollywood Bowl, Hot Chip rolled into our studio to play an energetic set of electro-pop. The amount of live instrumentation these guys use — there are seven members — is always impressive. Their latest album, In Our Heads, has been one of our summer soundtrack essentials at KCRW.

Watch Hot Chip perform "Look At Where We Are," then catch the rest of the session at KCRW.com.

There will be blood.

Or at least a lot of aggressive walking and glaring, vigorous head-shaking and interruptions, all glazed with equal parts feigned respect and visceral distaste.

This season's presidential debates between incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama and his challenger, Republican Mitt Romney, including Tuesday's engagement, have evolved into base-rousing spectacles of their dislike for each other.

I'm sure Jennifer Lopez knows exactly how much wind is flattering, far more than I do. I'm sure she has a Flattering Wind consultant, and possibly even a Flattering Wind Consultant Handler. ("Assistant To The Flattering Wind Consultant Handler: Coco Maribou. Assistant to Ms. Maribou...")

But honestly, I might have gone with 20 percent less gale force here.

Everywhere you go, you are data. You purchase an apple and suddenly ones and zeros are racing through the clickstream like they're wearing superhero capes. Someone, somewhere now knows more about when people eat apples, the likelihood that you will purchase one again, how they correlate to your longevity, your salary, your risk of disease. You shape the universe as you go.

Cyclist Lance Armstrong is stepping down from his role as chairman of the cancer-awareness charity Livestrong, the organization said in a press release today. (Update at 8:34 a.m. Separately, Nike dropped its sponsorship of Armstrong.)

A rare 4.0 magnitude earthquake rattled New England, last night. While some of our readers on the West Coast would barely even blink with such a shake, it caused confusion and consternation for many around the epicenter about 30 miles outside of Portland, Maine.

The Bangor Daily News reports that the largest earthquake to strike the region measured 5.1 and it happened in 1904.