Links: Ben Franklin butter statue makes new biofuel, Navy Yard energy project and more

DEFINITE READS

• Mike Armstrong of the Inquirer puts a critical eye to the big-scale, $129 million energy innovation hub planned for the Philadelphia Navy Yard, as led by Penn State.
• The New York Times highlights how an 800-pound Benjamin Franklin butter statue has led to the next great biodiesel fuel craze, with the help of Center City-based BlackGold Biofuels.
• Keystone Edge profiles Center City-based design firm Bresslergroup and Lititz-based Woodstream and their collaboration around improving the mousetrap. Yup.

Below, find what Philly developer was listed as 15 nationally to follow on Twitter, robots at Pennsylvania Hospital and more.

MIGHT BE OF INTEREST

• The Inquirer reports on the growing use of robots in surgery at Pennsylvania Hospital.
• The Inqy’s Mike Armstrong also reports that only six Philadelphia companies grew quickly enough to make Inc. magazines 500 list. Philly was listed by the magazine as just the ninth most successfully growing business metro area.
• Mashable ranks Jenn Lukas of Center City’s Happy Cog one of its 15 developer and hacker women worth following on Twitter. H/T Philly Tech News
• Science Cheerleader continues its playful series profiling really hot people with science, math and technology backgrounds by interviewing a San Francisco 49ers cheerleader and software engineer.
• All Facebook digests numbers, statistics and demographics of Facebook users in Philadelphia.
• As we reported, nearly a dozen locals are vying to present at South by Southwest, but the Philadelphia Business Journal and Geekadelphia give particular love to XIPWire.

GIVE A GLANCE

• The Philadelphia Business Journal reports that SEPTA is trying again to get funding for smart transit payment cards.
• Joe DiStefano of the Inquirer reports that the Center City office vacancy rate has climbed to 15 percent, the worst since 2004. The Wall Street Journal echos the trend. [Paywall]
• The Philadelphia Business Journal reports that AT&T Wireless has installed a new wireless antennae at the Phillies home ballpark.
• Mike Armstrong of the Inquirer report that economics consultancy Econsult and financial advisory firm Fairmount Capital Advisors are combining their practices.
• Philadelphia-based food canning blog Food in Jars gets spotlighted in the Los Angeles Times.
• Philly Tech News reports that Radnor business intelligence software provider Qlik Technologies has done well since going public.

The Viddler blog has a Q&A with wine and social media guru Gary Vaynerchuk
http://www.viddler.com/player/c83cacd4/
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