Willow Smith, the superstar daughter of world renowned actor Will Smith, sat down to do an interview with Yahoo Music. They discussed her single, working with Jay-Z and whether or not she will remake her dad's classic song, "Parents Just Don't Understand."
Willow did say that she is open to remaking her dad's 1988 classic rap song. "There's a possibility," Willow said to Yahoo Music. "There's a possibility that I will. It's a really great song."
9 year-old Willow Smith seems like the most confident and lively person you would ever meet, however she did not have any problem talking about how she felt when working with Jay-Z, the superstar rapper.
“He’s Jay-Z! He’s sold like over…I don’t even know how many albums he’s sold,” she said about their first meeting. “I was nervous because what if he said, ‘Willow why do you want to sing?’ And I’m like, ‘Because I want to sing.’ He’s going to be like, ‘Umm, OK.’ I was really nervous.”
Willow also said, despite her being nervous, that Jay-Z is actually a very supportive boss. She said that when she has an idea he accepts it, and doesn't just say, "Oh that's bad, I don't like that."
In addition, Willow Smith said that fans can expect some Smith family collaborations in the future, but she can't give any details right now.
الأربعاء، 29 ديسمبر 2010
الثلاثاء، 28 ديسمبر 2010
Mobile Device Makers Targeting Competitor's Devices With Ads
[caption id="attachment_12926" align="alignleft" width="330" caption="A Nokia Mobile Device, Image Credit: Ilya Voyager"]
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Mobile phone companies are now testing a new way of getting new customers. They are doing this by having ads for their devices appear on the devices of their competitors. This exposes their products to users who are already using something similar so they may be interested in what the competitor is offering.
The basic message of the advertisements is: Oh, you could do better than that thing. This is supposed to encourage users to switch over to the competitor. It's questionable if it would work considering the fact that most people sign two-year contracts when they purchase a phone. This means that they would probably be unwilling to switch companies when they already have a device from a different one.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Nokia Corp. recently targeted ads for its Nokia Twist device at users of the Motorola Inc.'s Razr phone. Razr users who surf the Web would be dealt an ad saying, "Are you really still rockin' a flip phone?" It then suggests upgrading to a Twist, says Gene Keenan, creative director of mobile at Isobar, a digital marketing agency owned by Aegis Group PLC that worked on the campaign on behalf of Nokia.
The term for this kind of advertising is called "intercept campaigning".
There is a lot of competition in the mobile market and this type of advertising is going to force manufacturers and companies to up their standards. They will have to try to keep their devices on top so they don't get their customers taken away by their competitors.
Mobile ad companies use technology to detect the programs and the data that control a user's mobile phone when it delivers an ad. This allows the company to determine what kind of device the person is using and allows it to give the user the targeted ads.
[/caption]Mobile phone companies are now testing a new way of getting new customers. They are doing this by having ads for their devices appear on the devices of their competitors. This exposes their products to users who are already using something similar so they may be interested in what the competitor is offering.
The basic message of the advertisements is: Oh, you could do better than that thing. This is supposed to encourage users to switch over to the competitor. It's questionable if it would work considering the fact that most people sign two-year contracts when they purchase a phone. This means that they would probably be unwilling to switch companies when they already have a device from a different one.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Nokia Corp. recently targeted ads for its Nokia Twist device at users of the Motorola Inc.'s Razr phone. Razr users who surf the Web would be dealt an ad saying, "Are you really still rockin' a flip phone?" It then suggests upgrading to a Twist, says Gene Keenan, creative director of mobile at Isobar, a digital marketing agency owned by Aegis Group PLC that worked on the campaign on behalf of Nokia.
The term for this kind of advertising is called "intercept campaigning".
There is a lot of competition in the mobile market and this type of advertising is going to force manufacturers and companies to up their standards. They will have to try to keep their devices on top so they don't get their customers taken away by their competitors.
Mobile ad companies use technology to detect the programs and the data that control a user's mobile phone when it delivers an ad. This allows the company to determine what kind of device the person is using and allows it to give the user the targeted ads.
Julian Assange Signs $1.7 Million Book Deal
You have probably heard a lot about Julian Assange in the past year. You probably think that you know quite a good deal about him from all that you have heard, read and seen in the media. What you most likely don't know, however, is his story from him personally. Well, we will soon all figure this out because he has signed book deals worth more than $1.3 million in the US and the UK. This will allows the WikiLeaks founder to cover his legal fees and maintain the wistleblowing site.
He will be racing a former colleague to release an autobiography telling his side of the WikiLeaks story as the former collegue is not very satisfied with Assange's actions.
Assange is currently fighting sexual assault allegations in Sweden while also trying to continue the gradual release of thousands of US diplomatic cables via WikiLeaks.
According to CNN, The U.S. administration, which has been angered and embarrassed by successive leaks of its foreign-policy secrets through WikiLeaks, is believed to be exploring ways to prosecute Mr Assange.
Assange has agreed to an $800,000 contract with Knopf and another $500,000 deal with the UK publisher, Canongate.
The deals are expected to net Assange more than $1.7 million after the book is sold in other countries and serialised in newspapers around the world.
Assange was supposedly very reluctant in signing the deals and agreeing to write the book. He supposedly didn't want to have to do it, but decided to write it anyway because WikiLeaks needs the money. He also needs the money for all of his legal fees.
He will be racing a former colleague to release an autobiography telling his side of the WikiLeaks story as the former collegue is not very satisfied with Assange's actions.
Assange is currently fighting sexual assault allegations in Sweden while also trying to continue the gradual release of thousands of US diplomatic cables via WikiLeaks.
According to CNN, The U.S. administration, which has been angered and embarrassed by successive leaks of its foreign-policy secrets through WikiLeaks, is believed to be exploring ways to prosecute Mr Assange.
Assange has agreed to an $800,000 contract with Knopf and another $500,000 deal with the UK publisher, Canongate.
The deals are expected to net Assange more than $1.7 million after the book is sold in other countries and serialised in newspapers around the world.
Assange was supposedly very reluctant in signing the deals and agreeing to write the book. He supposedly didn't want to have to do it, but decided to write it anyway because WikiLeaks needs the money. He also needs the money for all of his legal fees.
الاثنين، 27 ديسمبر 2010
Kindle 3 Sales Top Harry Potter 7th Book Sales on Amazon
[caption id="attachment_12916" align="alignleft" width="330" caption="Amazon Kindle 3"]
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We all expected the Kindle 3 to be a hit, but what we didn't expect was for it to be the #1 Bestselling Product in Amazon History. Well, that's what the Amazon Kindle 3 has become, the Bestselling Product in Amazon History. Now that is a pretty big accomplishment. It means that the Kindle has now vanquished the final Harry Potter book.
This would probably be more interesting if Amazon would reveal how many units were actually sold of the Kindle 3, but as usual, Amazon refuses to reveal its numbers.
However, when you just look at Amazon's archives and see that they sold more than 12 million copies of the seven Harry Potter titles as they said in December 2007 you can see that they probably sold more than 1 million units of the Kindle 3 and less than 12 million. This is a pretty wide margin for error, however, that's the best that we can do with the information they have given out.
Some other interesting things about Amazon: On it's peak shipping day this year it sent out 9 million items. That's more than a lot of companies send out per year. Also, on Cyber Monday, the peak sales day for Amazon, customers ordered 158 items per second. You can only imagine how much revenue that generated for the massive internet company. Also, the company's most remote holiday shipment wen to Grise Fiord. That's north of the Arctic Circle in Canada. It's got a population of 141 and an average yearly temperature of 2 degrees Fahrenheit.
These statistics show that things are going pretty well for the internet store and that despite the current economic situation, people are still buying things.
[/caption]We all expected the Kindle 3 to be a hit, but what we didn't expect was for it to be the #1 Bestselling Product in Amazon History. Well, that's what the Amazon Kindle 3 has become, the Bestselling Product in Amazon History. Now that is a pretty big accomplishment. It means that the Kindle has now vanquished the final Harry Potter book.
This would probably be more interesting if Amazon would reveal how many units were actually sold of the Kindle 3, but as usual, Amazon refuses to reveal its numbers.
However, when you just look at Amazon's archives and see that they sold more than 12 million copies of the seven Harry Potter titles as they said in December 2007 you can see that they probably sold more than 1 million units of the Kindle 3 and less than 12 million. This is a pretty wide margin for error, however, that's the best that we can do with the information they have given out.
Some other interesting things about Amazon: On it's peak shipping day this year it sent out 9 million items. That's more than a lot of companies send out per year. Also, on Cyber Monday, the peak sales day for Amazon, customers ordered 158 items per second. You can only imagine how much revenue that generated for the massive internet company. Also, the company's most remote holiday shipment wen to Grise Fiord. That's north of the Arctic Circle in Canada. It's got a population of 141 and an average yearly temperature of 2 degrees Fahrenheit.
These statistics show that things are going pretty well for the internet store and that despite the current economic situation, people are still buying things.
Northeast Blizzard Causes Travel Delays for Thousands of Americans
The three major airports in the New York metropolitan area all reopened by 6 PM. This is great news as they had been closed for a while, preventing a lot of travel from happening, in addition to all of the regular commuters being stuck where they were. There's still some problems for the tens of thousands of stranded passengers as they haven't all gotten to where they are going yet. There are only ten planes expected to touch down tonight at LaGuardia airport and there's only two scheduled departures, to give an idea of what remains to be organized.
Also, there's millions of people who have to dig themselves, their cars and their houses out from the huge blizzard. The worst of the storm has passed, however, it did cause over 4,155 flights to be cancelled and in some areas there were up to 32 inches of snow.
According to CNN, John F. Kennedy Airport, located further south in the same New York City borough of Queens, and Newark Liberty International, in northern New Jersey, opened to incoming and departing traffic at 6 p.m., said Port Authority spokeswoman Sara Joren.
The Federal Transportation Security Administration is coordinating with airports and airlines to bolster staffing if it becomes necessary when flights resume.
The snow storm causes a lot of traveling difficulties for thousands of people, but in the end everyone is okay and city officials are working on resolving any problems as quickly as they can.
The blizzard didn't only cause problems in New York, there were many other states that were affected.
Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell has asked people to stay off the state's roads unless absolutely necessary, said Peter Boynton, the commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Emergency Management.
"If you have to be on the road, of course, the rule of the day is take it slow," he said.
Also, there's millions of people who have to dig themselves, their cars and their houses out from the huge blizzard. The worst of the storm has passed, however, it did cause over 4,155 flights to be cancelled and in some areas there were up to 32 inches of snow.
According to CNN, John F. Kennedy Airport, located further south in the same New York City borough of Queens, and Newark Liberty International, in northern New Jersey, opened to incoming and departing traffic at 6 p.m., said Port Authority spokeswoman Sara Joren.
The Federal Transportation Security Administration is coordinating with airports and airlines to bolster staffing if it becomes necessary when flights resume.
The snow storm causes a lot of traveling difficulties for thousands of people, but in the end everyone is okay and city officials are working on resolving any problems as quickly as they can.
The blizzard didn't only cause problems in New York, there were many other states that were affected.
Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell has asked people to stay off the state's roads unless absolutely necessary, said Peter Boynton, the commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Emergency Management.
"If you have to be on the road, of course, the rule of the day is take it slow," he said.
الأحد، 26 ديسمبر 2010
Something's Missing From Facebook's Map of the World
[caption id="attachment_12910" align="alignleft" width="330" caption="Facebook Map, Image Credit: Facebook"]
[/caption]
A man named Paul Butler recently made a map of the world. His map is a bit different from the maps that we are used to as he made it using data graphs. He is a Facebook intern, so it was not unusual that he would use his information there to make a graph. He basically decided to connect all of people's Facebook friendships and current locations to see how things were distributed.
The result was what Butler called, "a surprisingly detailed map of the world. Not only were continents visible, certain international borders were apparent as well. What really struck me, though, was knowing that the lines didn't represent coasts or rivers or political borders, but real human relationships."
The interesting thing about this map is the absence of some countries, like China, for example. This absence is because Facebook is blocked in China. This leads to them not being graphed because even if they do visit the site via a proxy, they are shown as visitors from a different country.
There are some other countries that aren't very lit up such as Canada and Russia. This is due to them not being very widely populated in the areas that aren't lit up. It gets pretty cold way up north and not very many people live there, and those that do have better things to do than to spend their days on Facebook.
This map shows the interconnectivity of human relationships across the globes, and how much we depend on the internet to stay in touch these days. This also shows that maybe China should let up on their system of blocking such communications websites. It would be a very valuable asset to the growing nation.
[/caption]A man named Paul Butler recently made a map of the world. His map is a bit different from the maps that we are used to as he made it using data graphs. He is a Facebook intern, so it was not unusual that he would use his information there to make a graph. He basically decided to connect all of people's Facebook friendships and current locations to see how things were distributed.
The result was what Butler called, "a surprisingly detailed map of the world. Not only were continents visible, certain international borders were apparent as well. What really struck me, though, was knowing that the lines didn't represent coasts or rivers or political borders, but real human relationships."
The interesting thing about this map is the absence of some countries, like China, for example. This absence is because Facebook is blocked in China. This leads to them not being graphed because even if they do visit the site via a proxy, they are shown as visitors from a different country.
There are some other countries that aren't very lit up such as Canada and Russia. This is due to them not being very widely populated in the areas that aren't lit up. It gets pretty cold way up north and not very many people live there, and those that do have better things to do than to spend their days on Facebook.
This map shows the interconnectivity of human relationships across the globes, and how much we depend on the internet to stay in touch these days. This also shows that maybe China should let up on their system of blocking such communications websites. It would be a very valuable asset to the growing nation.
السبت، 25 ديسمبر 2010
Steve Martin Discovers Courtroom Humor via Twitter
For most Americans jury duty seems to be a chore. Sure, it's their constitutional right and all, but for most people it's not all that fun. However, there seems to be one man who can find humor within a courtroom, and that man is Steve Martin.
[caption id="attachment_12903" align="alignleft" width="287" caption="Steve Martin Twitter"]
[/caption]
Throughout this past week, Steve Martin has posted a series of tweets. These tweets were labeled "REPORT FROM JURY DUTY." He said various things in these tweets such as, ""REPORT FROM JURY DUTY: guy I thought was up for murder turns out to be defense attorney. I bet he murdered someone anyway," and "I like to cup my hands and say, 'you tell 'em Judge Judy,' then duck behind the other jurors. HUGE laughs."
It turns out, however, that Steve Martin isn't actually actively on jury duty at the moment. He is a part of an L.A. jury pool, however. Steve Martin's publicist Alan Nierob told the New York Post that he wasn't in a courthouse at all when he posted the tweets.
"He's not serving jury duty, just tweeting as usual," Nierob told the New York Post, "It's great material, don't you think?"
As the New York Post put it, "Martin, 65, poked fun of a defendant’s Conan O’Brien-esque hair, mocked a prosecutor’s Serbian accent, and advocated use of the Magic 8 Ball to determine guilt."
Steve Martin himself said what he was doing in a Twitter post on Thursday. He said, "Serious note: I actually will be on jury duty soon," he wrote. "I urge every citizen to experience it. I’ve never not been moved by the system."
This shows that he had not actually been on a jury while tweeting these things, however, he will be soon.
[caption id="attachment_12903" align="alignleft" width="287" caption="Steve Martin Twitter"]
[/caption]Throughout this past week, Steve Martin has posted a series of tweets. These tweets were labeled "REPORT FROM JURY DUTY." He said various things in these tweets such as, ""REPORT FROM JURY DUTY: guy I thought was up for murder turns out to be defense attorney. I bet he murdered someone anyway," and "I like to cup my hands and say, 'you tell 'em Judge Judy,' then duck behind the other jurors. HUGE laughs."
It turns out, however, that Steve Martin isn't actually actively on jury duty at the moment. He is a part of an L.A. jury pool, however. Steve Martin's publicist Alan Nierob told the New York Post that he wasn't in a courthouse at all when he posted the tweets.
"He's not serving jury duty, just tweeting as usual," Nierob told the New York Post, "It's great material, don't you think?"
As the New York Post put it, "Martin, 65, poked fun of a defendant’s Conan O’Brien-esque hair, mocked a prosecutor’s Serbian accent, and advocated use of the Magic 8 Ball to determine guilt."
Steve Martin himself said what he was doing in a Twitter post on Thursday. He said, "Serious note: I actually will be on jury duty soon," he wrote. "I urge every citizen to experience it. I’ve never not been moved by the system."
This shows that he had not actually been on a jury while tweeting these things, however, he will be soon.
الجمعة، 24 ديسمبر 2010
Paris Airport Charles de Gaulle Closes Terminal Due to Snow
On Friday, a part of the Paris Charles de Gaulle aiport was evacuted. It was evacuated due to the heavy accumulation of snow on the roof of the building of Terminal 2E. In addition, hundreds of flights were canceled because of a shortage of glycol, the main ingredient of de-icing fluid.
About 2000 passengers were moved from the terminal to other areas of the airport. The authorities called the measures "preventative." Part of the roof of that same terminal collapsed in 2004. This happened shortly after the new state-of-the-art building was inaugurated. At the time, media reports said that four people were killed. It seems that they haven't improved the construction of the terminal's roof if they believe that they have to take measures to keep people safe in case of a collapse.
Almost a foot of snow had fallen on the roof on Friday at the time that authorities decided to close the terminal. People are working to clear the snow and to reopen the terminal.
French authorities asked airline earlier on Friday to cancel half their morning flights to and from the airport due to de-icing fluid running low. This led to a cancellation of 400 flights in the morning.
Early in the afternoon, the authorities asked airlines to also cancel a third of their flights for the rest of the day. This is a pretty big problem as Charles de Gaulle is the second biggest airport in Europe. Only London Heathrow is bigger. Luckily, for those who need to get to France, Paris' second airport, Orly, hasn't had to cancel any flights.
About 2000 passengers were moved from the terminal to other areas of the airport. The authorities called the measures "preventative." Part of the roof of that same terminal collapsed in 2004. This happened shortly after the new state-of-the-art building was inaugurated. At the time, media reports said that four people were killed. It seems that they haven't improved the construction of the terminal's roof if they believe that they have to take measures to keep people safe in case of a collapse.
Almost a foot of snow had fallen on the roof on Friday at the time that authorities decided to close the terminal. People are working to clear the snow and to reopen the terminal.
French authorities asked airline earlier on Friday to cancel half their morning flights to and from the airport due to de-icing fluid running low. This led to a cancellation of 400 flights in the morning.
Early in the afternoon, the authorities asked airlines to also cancel a third of their flights for the rest of the day. This is a pretty big problem as Charles de Gaulle is the second biggest airport in Europe. Only London Heathrow is bigger. Luckily, for those who need to get to France, Paris' second airport, Orly, hasn't had to cancel any flights.
الخميس، 23 ديسمبر 2010
Poinsettia Bowl at the Qualcomm Stadium Will Go On as Planned
[caption id="attachment_12895" align="alignleft" width="330" caption="Qualcomm Stadium, Photo Credit: Intersofia"]
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There has been a very large amount of rain in California causing widespread flooding and scattered mudslides. It's been raining for seven straight days, however, now the sun is finally out over the Qualcomm Stadium football field. The Poinsettia Bowl was scheduled for tonight, however, for a while it seemed like it wouldn't be happening. The stadium looked like a bathtub what with all of the flooding.
Despite the rain, however, the game will happen. Crews are preparing the field urgently and the Poinsettia Bowl Executive Director Bruce Binkowski told local news that the field is read. Some photos of the stadium verified that the field does, indeed, look great.
This feat was achieved by organizers covering the field with tarps during the rain, and then by pumping out the water on Wednesday. They left the logo drawing to be done early this morning. The start time for the game is 5:00 and it will be featuring the Aztecs taking on the Navy. It will go on exactly as was scheduled. Also, the parking lot has been cleared as well.
This is good news in the light of all the bad things that have been happening in California due to the rain. It shows that things can be done in spite of nature, and you just have to be smart and act fast.
Rainfall at rates of up to two-thirds of an inch per hour have been discoverd in California with some heavier burst seen in a few areas. This shows that it's not over yet, but you can still look forward to it ceasing. When the rain lets up it shouldn't be that big of a project to clean up the streets.
[/caption]There has been a very large amount of rain in California causing widespread flooding and scattered mudslides. It's been raining for seven straight days, however, now the sun is finally out over the Qualcomm Stadium football field. The Poinsettia Bowl was scheduled for tonight, however, for a while it seemed like it wouldn't be happening. The stadium looked like a bathtub what with all of the flooding.
Despite the rain, however, the game will happen. Crews are preparing the field urgently and the Poinsettia Bowl Executive Director Bruce Binkowski told local news that the field is read. Some photos of the stadium verified that the field does, indeed, look great.
This feat was achieved by organizers covering the field with tarps during the rain, and then by pumping out the water on Wednesday. They left the logo drawing to be done early this morning. The start time for the game is 5:00 and it will be featuring the Aztecs taking on the Navy. It will go on exactly as was scheduled. Also, the parking lot has been cleared as well.
This is good news in the light of all the bad things that have been happening in California due to the rain. It shows that things can be done in spite of nature, and you just have to be smart and act fast.
Rainfall at rates of up to two-thirds of an inch per hour have been discoverd in California with some heavier burst seen in a few areas. This shows that it's not over yet, but you can still look forward to it ceasing. When the rain lets up it shouldn't be that big of a project to clean up the streets.
Doz.me Proves Dangers of URL Shorteners
[caption id="attachment_12887" align="alignleft" width="330" caption="d0z.me"]
[/caption]
As an internet user of today, you should be well aware of the dangers posed by URL shorteners. If you aren't ware of them, well, the main, most important danger is their abilty to mask potentially malicious links. This means that if you click on a shortend link you may potentially be killing your computer.
Usually the most popular URL shorteners take measures to protect their users from malicious links, however, there are many more obscure and not-so-popular URL shorteners out there that can't protect their users as well.
Schmidt put a disclaimer on the site which claims that d0z.me is only a demonstration of how easy it is to orchestrate a DDoS attack without havnig to infect someone's PC or having to take control of a botnet by spreading malware.
You probably don't have to worry about the links you share with bit.ly yet, however, you should be aware of the potential dangers of shortened URLs, and how hackers may use them to gain an advantage over their enemies.
[/caption]As an internet user of today, you should be well aware of the dangers posed by URL shorteners. If you aren't ware of them, well, the main, most important danger is their abilty to mask potentially malicious links. This means that if you click on a shortend link you may potentially be killing your computer.
Usually the most popular URL shorteners take measures to protect their users from malicious links, however, there are many more obscure and not-so-popular URL shorteners out there that can't protect their users as well.
A hacker named Ben Schmidt was inspired by all the media attention garnered by the WikiLeak's "hackivists" DDos (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks. He decided that there could be an even more worrisome use for URL shortening services. He built a site, d0z.com, which looks and acts just like any other URL shortener from the perspective of the person clicking on the link. The only difference is that behind the scenes it's initiating a DDOS attack on the target of the link creator's choosing.
Schmidt put a disclaimer on the site which claims that d0z.me is only a demonstration of how easy it is to orchestrate a DDoS attack without havnig to infect someone's PC or having to take control of a botnet by spreading malware.
You probably don't have to worry about the links you share with bit.ly yet, however, you should be aware of the potential dangers of shortened URLs, and how hackers may use them to gain an advantage over their enemies.
Craigslist Shuts Down "Adult Services" Section Worldwide
You may remember how in September Craigslist decided, with pressure from American lawmakers, to shut down its "Adult Services" section in the United States. That was great news to many Americans who didn't approved of the controversial portion of the classified ads website.
That was great news at the time, however, now comes even better news: Craigslist has now shut down the Adult Services section on its international sites, as well. It's unclear what prompted Craigslist to do this, however, it's a welcome change and we won't question it.
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said Craigslist had contacted his office on Tuesday to confirm the decision. Blumenthal was the man who led the charge against the company's adult section. He was against it because it offered sexual services and pretty open ads for prostitution. Blumenthal applauds Craigslist's decistion and says that it marks a major victory against human trafficking and the sexual exploitation of women and children.
Before these decisions to shut down the Adult Services section, Craigslist said that it cooperated with law enforcement authorities in identifying human traffickers on the site. However, critics still didn't like the fact that the illegal business generated a huge profit for the company. For example, this year Craigslist was expected to take in about $36 million in revenue from it's Adult Services section. That's almost one-third of the $122 million it was projected to earn in all this year.
At last, the company has decided for itself to be clean and legal. This will make it easier to detect when people break the rules on the site as well. This will enable law enforcement to keep better track of any illegal activities.
That was great news at the time, however, now comes even better news: Craigslist has now shut down the Adult Services section on its international sites, as well. It's unclear what prompted Craigslist to do this, however, it's a welcome change and we won't question it.
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said Craigslist had contacted his office on Tuesday to confirm the decision. Blumenthal was the man who led the charge against the company's adult section. He was against it because it offered sexual services and pretty open ads for prostitution. Blumenthal applauds Craigslist's decistion and says that it marks a major victory against human trafficking and the sexual exploitation of women and children.
Before these decisions to shut down the Adult Services section, Craigslist said that it cooperated with law enforcement authorities in identifying human traffickers on the site. However, critics still didn't like the fact that the illegal business generated a huge profit for the company. For example, this year Craigslist was expected to take in about $36 million in revenue from it's Adult Services section. That's almost one-third of the $122 million it was projected to earn in all this year.
At last, the company has decided for itself to be clean and legal. This will make it easier to detect when people break the rules on the site as well. This will enable law enforcement to keep better track of any illegal activities.
الأربعاء، 22 ديسمبر 2010
Google's Nexus S Android Phone Goes to Space
[caption id="attachment_12874" align="alignleft" width="345" caption="Android in Space! Image Credit: Official Google Blog"]
[/caption]
iPhones may be very popular, however, as of today, Google's Android has been in space. Google wished to do something special for the launch of the new Nexus S. They decided to literally launch it. They got the phone, or actually, 7 phones, up in space by means of weather balloons.
Google employees constructed 7 hobby-style balloons using information they had gotten from others who had constructed their own homemade balloons. They sent the phones up into space in order to collects some data about the sensors in the Nexus S. These sensors include a GPS, gyroscope, accelerometer and a magnetometer. They did, however, have an ulterior motive for the voyage... They wanted to have a nice way to spend a weekend. They didn't know what could be better than sending some Androids up into space.
While up there, the various still cameras and video cameras that they sent up with the phones were able to capture some amazing imagery and videos of the Earth.
"Piloting" the balloons were little Android robots which are visible in some of the footage and photographs.
Sending their phones into space is a big step for Google. They have showed what the devices can withstand, as well as the possibilities out there for adventure. It doesn't seem to have costed a lot of money for the company as the balloons were homemade and the devices were all safely returned to Earth.
Here's a little something that Zi Wang, Captain, Mission Android Headquarters posted in a blog post:
"These phones were running a variety of apps: Google Maps for Mobile 5.0 (with offline map data) which allowed us to see what was directly below the balloon, Google Sky Map to see if we could identify the real stars in the backdrop, Latitude to report location when the phones had a data connection, and our own custom sensor logging app that sampled all the available sensors on the device. We even manned our payloads with some special astronauts: small Android robots, and boy did they fly."
Also, here is some of the data that the phones collected:
"In tracking the sensors on each of the phones, we observed that the GPS in Nexus S could function up to altitudes of about 60,000 ft. and would actually start working again on the balloon’s descent. We also saw that Nexus S could withstand some pretty harsh temperatures (as low as -50˚C). Some interesting data we collected:
Maximum Speed: 139 mph
Maximum Altitude: 107,375 ft (over 20 miles, over 30 km)
Maximum Ascent Rate: 5.44 m/s
Average Flight Duration: 2 hours, 40 minutes
Average Descent Time: 34 minutes"
[/caption]iPhones may be very popular, however, as of today, Google's Android has been in space. Google wished to do something special for the launch of the new Nexus S. They decided to literally launch it. They got the phone, or actually, 7 phones, up in space by means of weather balloons.
Google employees constructed 7 hobby-style balloons using information they had gotten from others who had constructed their own homemade balloons. They sent the phones up into space in order to collects some data about the sensors in the Nexus S. These sensors include a GPS, gyroscope, accelerometer and a magnetometer. They did, however, have an ulterior motive for the voyage... They wanted to have a nice way to spend a weekend. They didn't know what could be better than sending some Androids up into space.
While up there, the various still cameras and video cameras that they sent up with the phones were able to capture some amazing imagery and videos of the Earth.
"Piloting" the balloons were little Android robots which are visible in some of the footage and photographs.
Sending their phones into space is a big step for Google. They have showed what the devices can withstand, as well as the possibilities out there for adventure. It doesn't seem to have costed a lot of money for the company as the balloons were homemade and the devices were all safely returned to Earth.
Here's a little something that Zi Wang, Captain, Mission Android Headquarters posted in a blog post:
"These phones were running a variety of apps: Google Maps for Mobile 5.0 (with offline map data) which allowed us to see what was directly below the balloon, Google Sky Map to see if we could identify the real stars in the backdrop, Latitude to report location when the phones had a data connection, and our own custom sensor logging app that sampled all the available sensors on the device. We even manned our payloads with some special astronauts: small Android robots, and boy did they fly."
Also, here is some of the data that the phones collected:
"In tracking the sensors on each of the phones, we observed that the GPS in Nexus S could function up to altitudes of about 60,000 ft. and would actually start working again on the balloon’s descent. We also saw that Nexus S could withstand some pretty harsh temperatures (as low as -50˚C). Some interesting data we collected:
Maximum Speed: 139 mph
Maximum Altitude: 107,375 ft (over 20 miles, over 30 km)
Maximum Ascent Rate: 5.44 m/s
Average Flight Duration: 2 hours, 40 minutes
Average Descent Time: 34 minutes"
Skype Crashes During Busiest Season
[caption id="attachment_12870" align="alignleft" width="118" caption="Skype Supernodes Diagram"]
[/caption]
Skype, one of the world's most popular forms of video communication through the internet has crashed. This will inhibit communication for millions of users who are trying to talk to their relatives or loved ones at home for the holidays. The company has acknowledged the outage through a series of tweets.
Skype also gave some more information on the outage through a blog post. Here is something Peter Parkes, Skype's Blogger-in-Chief stated in the post:
"Skype isn’t a network like a conventional phone or IM network – instead, it relies on millions of individual connections between computers and phones to keep things up and running. Some of these computers are what we call ‘supernodes’ – they act a bit like phone directories for Skype. If you want to talk to someone, and your Skype app can’t find them immediately (for example, because they’re connecting from a different location or from a different device) your computer or phone will first try to find a supernode to figure out how to reach them.
Under normal circumstances, there are a large number of supernodes available.Unfortunately, today, many of them were taken offline by a problem affecting some versions of Skype. As Skype relies on being able to maintain contact with supernodes, it may appear offline for some of you."
Skype's engineers are working non-stop to get new "mega-supernodes" up as fast as they can. It may take a few hours, however, until everything is back up and running.
This issue with the communications network could cause a huge ammount of customer disappointment as many people rely on the service to stay in touch with their loved ones during the holidays. Skype may have to work very, very hard to get these people happy again, however, the relief when the serivce is back up and running may be just enough to keep people satisfied.
To stay up to date on the problem, you can view Skype's Twitter stream here.
[/caption]Skype, one of the world's most popular forms of video communication through the internet has crashed. This will inhibit communication for millions of users who are trying to talk to their relatives or loved ones at home for the holidays. The company has acknowledged the outage through a series of tweets.
Skype also gave some more information on the outage through a blog post. Here is something Peter Parkes, Skype's Blogger-in-Chief stated in the post:
"Skype isn’t a network like a conventional phone or IM network – instead, it relies on millions of individual connections between computers and phones to keep things up and running. Some of these computers are what we call ‘supernodes’ – they act a bit like phone directories for Skype. If you want to talk to someone, and your Skype app can’t find them immediately (for example, because they’re connecting from a different location or from a different device) your computer or phone will first try to find a supernode to figure out how to reach them.
Under normal circumstances, there are a large number of supernodes available.Unfortunately, today, many of them were taken offline by a problem affecting some versions of Skype. As Skype relies on being able to maintain contact with supernodes, it may appear offline for some of you."
Skype's engineers are working non-stop to get new "mega-supernodes" up as fast as they can. It may take a few hours, however, until everything is back up and running.
This issue with the communications network could cause a huge ammount of customer disappointment as many people rely on the service to stay in touch with their loved ones during the holidays. Skype may have to work very, very hard to get these people happy again, however, the relief when the serivce is back up and running may be just enough to keep people satisfied.
To stay up to date on the problem, you can view Skype's Twitter stream here.
New African Elephant Species Discovered
[caption id="attachment_12860" align="alignleft" width="400" caption="Female African Savanna Elephants, Photo Credit: Ikiwaner"]
[/caption]
Recently, scientists have discovered a new species of elephant. It's not an entirely new discovery as we've seen them around, however, the discovery that it's a different species is quite new information. On Tuesday a paper was published in the PLoS Biology scientific journal that shows that African elephants are two species that separated millions of years ago.
"A surprising finding from our study is that the divergence of African savanna and forest elephants -- which some have argued to be two populations of the same species -- is about as ancient as the divergence of Asian elephants and mammoths," according to the authors, who are made up of researchers from the United States, United Kingdom and Germany. "Given their ancient divergence, we conclude that African savanna and forest elephants should be classified as two distinct species."
Modern savanna or bush elephants weigh about twice as much as their relatives that live in forests. They also have significantly different body shapes. The savanna breed stands almost a meter taller than the forest elephants.
This seems like something that would be pretty obvious to scientists, however, such a discovery is in actuality pretty hard to make. It called for mitochondrial DNA analysis to prove that forest elephants can now be known as Loxodonta cyclotis and savanna elephants will be known as Loxodonta Africana.
You can read the study here.
The lead author of the paper, David Reich said, "We'll need to rewrite some basic biology textbooks." Reich is also a geneticist with Havard Medical School.
The two species can, and have, interbred, however researchers have said that such pairings are rare in the wild. Also, hybrids produced in such matings usually don't pass on their genes.
The reason for this may be that the hybrid males are smaller than their savanna relatives. Elephant females usually only mate with the largest bulls. This leaves the two populations distinctly separate.
Via, CNN
[/caption]Recently, scientists have discovered a new species of elephant. It's not an entirely new discovery as we've seen them around, however, the discovery that it's a different species is quite new information. On Tuesday a paper was published in the PLoS Biology scientific journal that shows that African elephants are two species that separated millions of years ago.
"A surprising finding from our study is that the divergence of African savanna and forest elephants -- which some have argued to be two populations of the same species -- is about as ancient as the divergence of Asian elephants and mammoths," according to the authors, who are made up of researchers from the United States, United Kingdom and Germany. "Given their ancient divergence, we conclude that African savanna and forest elephants should be classified as two distinct species."
Modern savanna or bush elephants weigh about twice as much as their relatives that live in forests. They also have significantly different body shapes. The savanna breed stands almost a meter taller than the forest elephants.
This seems like something that would be pretty obvious to scientists, however, such a discovery is in actuality pretty hard to make. It called for mitochondrial DNA analysis to prove that forest elephants can now be known as Loxodonta cyclotis and savanna elephants will be known as Loxodonta Africana.
You can read the study here.
The lead author of the paper, David Reich said, "We'll need to rewrite some basic biology textbooks." Reich is also a geneticist with Havard Medical School.
The two species can, and have, interbred, however researchers have said that such pairings are rare in the wild. Also, hybrids produced in such matings usually don't pass on their genes.
The reason for this may be that the hybrid males are smaller than their savanna relatives. Elephant females usually only mate with the largest bulls. This leaves the two populations distinctly separate.
Via, CNN
الثلاثاء، 21 ديسمبر 2010
FCC Approves “Net Neutrality” Rules
The Federal Communications Commission has approved "high-level rules of the road." These rules have been designed to ensure that internet service providers grant everyone equal access to the web.
The vote was 3 to 2, with Democrats and Republicans on both sides, respectively. Commissioner Michael Copps, a Democrat, signed off on the rules, but wasn't completely satisfied with them. He calls them a "fist step in the right direction."
"In my book, today's action could have, and should have, gone further," he said. "Going as far as I would have liked was, however, not in the cards."
He said that the rules won't absolutely prevent broadband providers from "pay for priority", for example. Pay for priority means giving people faster service if they can pay for it. It can also mean giving a business faster internet than other ones, for example, if you had a friend at the service provider you could find a way to slow down your competitor's internet.
However, the regulations do say that these practices "generally violate" nondiscrimination rules.
According to CNN, Commissioner Robert McDowell, a Republican, called the vote a "radical step" and said it puts the FCC "on a collision course" with the courts, which he predicted will throw the rules out.
McDowell said that "nothing is broken in the internet-access market that needs fixing."
In a written statement, President Barack Obama called the rules an important part of his administration's goals. These goals are to advance American innovation, economic growth and job creation.
"Today's decision will help preserve the free and open nature of the Internet while encouraging innovation, protecting consumer choice, and defending free speech," Obama said.
This aligns with his promises as a candidate to support open-internet policies.
Despite the commission approving the rules, the possibility still remains for Congress to act to amend or weaken them. There are lawmakers that are considering legislation could repeal the rules.
The vote was 3 to 2, with Democrats and Republicans on both sides, respectively. Commissioner Michael Copps, a Democrat, signed off on the rules, but wasn't completely satisfied with them. He calls them a "fist step in the right direction."
"In my book, today's action could have, and should have, gone further," he said. "Going as far as I would have liked was, however, not in the cards."
He said that the rules won't absolutely prevent broadband providers from "pay for priority", for example. Pay for priority means giving people faster service if they can pay for it. It can also mean giving a business faster internet than other ones, for example, if you had a friend at the service provider you could find a way to slow down your competitor's internet.
However, the regulations do say that these practices "generally violate" nondiscrimination rules.
According to CNN, Commissioner Robert McDowell, a Republican, called the vote a "radical step" and said it puts the FCC "on a collision course" with the courts, which he predicted will throw the rules out.
McDowell said that "nothing is broken in the internet-access market that needs fixing."
In a written statement, President Barack Obama called the rules an important part of his administration's goals. These goals are to advance American innovation, economic growth and job creation.
"Today's decision will help preserve the free and open nature of the Internet while encouraging innovation, protecting consumer choice, and defending free speech," Obama said.
This aligns with his promises as a candidate to support open-internet policies.
Despite the commission approving the rules, the possibility still remains for Congress to act to amend or weaken them. There are lawmakers that are considering legislation could repeal the rules.
Emirates Palace Hotel Didn’t Actually Pay $11 Million for Christmas Tree
The Emirates Palace Hotel has received some criticism for it's extremely ostentatious Christmas tree. The tree has received world-wide media attention due to it's net worth of over 11 million dollars. This makes for a very valuable tree. The reason this tree is worth so much is because of the jewelry that adorns it. It's simply covered in necklaces, bracelets, pearls, emeralds, diamonds, sapphires etc.
The idea for the record-breaking tree came from the marketing department from the hotel. They wished to do something special to mark the hotel's fifth anniversary, Janet Abrahams, the executive director of sales and marketing said, according to TheNational.
"For some reason, someone had decided to publish incorrectly that we spent $11 million, and people around the world thought that maybe that money could be spent in a better way," Abrahams said. "Those are false reports, and we obviously didn't spend that."
What actually happened was that Jewelry seller who has an outlet in the hotel was the one responsible for the decorations. The jewels are to be returned to the jeweler when the tree gets taken down in the new year.
The hotel only purchased the 40-foot-tall tree that they purchase every year. This was misunderstood. Many people got angry at the idea that a hotel would spend 11 million dollars on something like a Christmas tree instead of doing something better with the money. It all turned out alright, however, when it was discovered that the hotel did not spend that much money on the tree, and that the jewels were not purchased by the hotel, they were only loaned to it.
The idea for the record-breaking tree came from the marketing department from the hotel. They wished to do something special to mark the hotel's fifth anniversary, Janet Abrahams, the executive director of sales and marketing said, according to TheNational.
"For some reason, someone had decided to publish incorrectly that we spent $11 million, and people around the world thought that maybe that money could be spent in a better way," Abrahams said. "Those are false reports, and we obviously didn't spend that."
What actually happened was that Jewelry seller who has an outlet in the hotel was the one responsible for the decorations. The jewels are to be returned to the jeweler when the tree gets taken down in the new year.
The hotel only purchased the 40-foot-tall tree that they purchase every year. This was misunderstood. Many people got angry at the idea that a hotel would spend 11 million dollars on something like a Christmas tree instead of doing something better with the money. It all turned out alright, however, when it was discovered that the hotel did not spend that much money on the tree, and that the jewels were not purchased by the hotel, they were only loaned to it.
الاثنين، 20 ديسمبر 2010
New iPhone App Translates Foreign Words at the Point of a Camera
[caption id="attachment_12840" align="alignleft" width="231" caption="Word Lens"]
[/caption]
Your smart phone will has become even more usefull than it already is. An iPhone app that was released a few days ago called Word Lens allows you to translate foreign words on the go. How, you might ask? Well, you just point your phone's camera at a sign written in a different language and it translates it for you.
In the few days that this app has been on the market, it has already become widely popular. It is free to download and comes with a free language pack for translations between English and Spanish. However, each additional language pack will cost you $5. That's still not very expensive considering the time and money it can save you.
The creator of the application, Otavior Good, said in a video on the company website, "A few years ago I was in another country, and there was a sign I couldn't read and I thought, 'Why doesn't my cellphone do this?'"
"So I decided to make a translator."
This led up to the app that will allow travelers to easily know what signs are talking about, and not have to rely on translation books that may or may not help you along. With this app you just point your camera at it and you're good to go.
The accuracy of the technology hasn't been thoroughly proven, but it should be sufficient to get you along easily enough.
I'm sure that this app will gain millions of downloads and will lead to similar technologies being developed.
[/caption]Your smart phone will has become even more usefull than it already is. An iPhone app that was released a few days ago called Word Lens allows you to translate foreign words on the go. How, you might ask? Well, you just point your phone's camera at a sign written in a different language and it translates it for you.
In the few days that this app has been on the market, it has already become widely popular. It is free to download and comes with a free language pack for translations between English and Spanish. However, each additional language pack will cost you $5. That's still not very expensive considering the time and money it can save you.
The creator of the application, Otavior Good, said in a video on the company website, "A few years ago I was in another country, and there was a sign I couldn't read and I thought, 'Why doesn't my cellphone do this?'"
"So I decided to make a translator."
This led up to the app that will allow travelers to easily know what signs are talking about, and not have to rely on translation books that may or may not help you along. With this app you just point your camera at it and you're good to go.
The accuracy of the technology hasn't been thoroughly proven, but it should be sufficient to get you along easily enough.
I'm sure that this app will gain millions of downloads and will lead to similar technologies being developed.
Foursquare Adds Photos and Comments to iPhone App
[caption id="attachment_12834" align="alignleft" width="180" caption="Foursquare iPhone App"]
[/caption]
Foursquare has updated its iPhone app. With this update, the company brings two new features that will make the application signifigantly more useful and social. These new features allow you to do more with foursquare. You don't just check in to some place and that's that. You get to share your experience and information through photos and comments. This is a big step forward for Foursquare and is worthy of being applauded.
These new features are very easy to use. When you check in to a place you will be prompted to add a photo in the same way you are already prompted to add a "shout" with each check in. Even if you choose not to add a photo when you first check in, you can still do so afterwards. This photo will then be added to the check in detail page. This page is also where you and others can comment on your check in.
Photos and comments will mostly be shared between you and your friends, not just to any random strangers. Your Foursquare photos will only be visible to your Foursquare friends and the other social networks that you share with them. This will keep your privacy to a higher degree than you may expect. Also, commens will only be visible to your Foursquare friends. This is probably due to the company wanting people to have an incentive to join the network.
If you associate photos with tips or venues, they will be public to all users. This is done with the intention of adding richer content to your location choices.
Overall, the new features seem to very well respect your privacy and add a whole new side of usability to Foursquare.
[/caption]Foursquare has updated its iPhone app. With this update, the company brings two new features that will make the application signifigantly more useful and social. These new features allow you to do more with foursquare. You don't just check in to some place and that's that. You get to share your experience and information through photos and comments. This is a big step forward for Foursquare and is worthy of being applauded.
These new features are very easy to use. When you check in to a place you will be prompted to add a photo in the same way you are already prompted to add a "shout" with each check in. Even if you choose not to add a photo when you first check in, you can still do so afterwards. This photo will then be added to the check in detail page. This page is also where you and others can comment on your check in.
Photos and comments will mostly be shared between you and your friends, not just to any random strangers. Your Foursquare photos will only be visible to your Foursquare friends and the other social networks that you share with them. This will keep your privacy to a higher degree than you may expect. Also, commens will only be visible to your Foursquare friends. This is probably due to the company wanting people to have an incentive to join the network.
If you associate photos with tips or venues, they will be public to all users. This is done with the intention of adding richer content to your location choices.
Overall, the new features seem to very well respect your privacy and add a whole new side of usability to Foursquare.
Lunar Eclipse Tonight for North America
[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="232" caption="A Lunar Eclipse, Photo Credit: Steev"]
[/caption]
There will be a complete lunar eclipse tonight. It will be visible across North America. It will be just in time for the longest night of the year. This year will be the first time since 1638 that a lunar eclipse has fallen on the winter solstice.
The lunar eclipse will be caused by the Earth's shadow blotting out the moon. It will happen at about 1:30 AM EST (10:30 PM PST). During "totality", which is when the Earth is directly between the moon and the sun, the moon will be colored a rusty orange-red for 72 minutes. This will occur between approximately 2:40 AM to 3:50 AM EST (11:40 to 12:50 AM PST).
The lunar eclipse will be best visible to viewers in North America as watchers in Europe, West Africa and South America will have their experience interrupted by sunrise.
What happens in a lunar eclipse is actually very interesting. First, when the Earth's shadow is only partly covering the moon, you see an almost black shadow on the moon. However, during totality the sunlight filtering through the Earth's atmosphere casts a ruddy glow on the moon. This makes the moon look, for a little while, almost like our very own planet Mars.
If you were an observer standing on the moon, looking back at the Earth, you would see a ring of red light circling the Earth. This light would mark all the sunrises and sunset across the planet.
If you want to skip the waiting, and want to only catch a little glimpse of the eclipse in its prime, you can go outside at 3:17 AM EST (12:17 AM PST). This is where the moon will be in the most shadow and will be displaying it's greatest coppery red color.
[/caption]There will be a complete lunar eclipse tonight. It will be visible across North America. It will be just in time for the longest night of the year. This year will be the first time since 1638 that a lunar eclipse has fallen on the winter solstice.
The lunar eclipse will be caused by the Earth's shadow blotting out the moon. It will happen at about 1:30 AM EST (10:30 PM PST). During "totality", which is when the Earth is directly between the moon and the sun, the moon will be colored a rusty orange-red for 72 minutes. This will occur between approximately 2:40 AM to 3:50 AM EST (11:40 to 12:50 AM PST).
The lunar eclipse will be best visible to viewers in North America as watchers in Europe, West Africa and South America will have their experience interrupted by sunrise.
What happens in a lunar eclipse is actually very interesting. First, when the Earth's shadow is only partly covering the moon, you see an almost black shadow on the moon. However, during totality the sunlight filtering through the Earth's atmosphere casts a ruddy glow on the moon. This makes the moon look, for a little while, almost like our very own planet Mars.
If you were an observer standing on the moon, looking back at the Earth, you would see a ring of red light circling the Earth. This light would mark all the sunrises and sunset across the planet.
If you want to skip the waiting, and want to only catch a little glimpse of the eclipse in its prime, you can go outside at 3:17 AM EST (12:17 AM PST). This is where the moon will be in the most shadow and will be displaying it's greatest coppery red color.
الأحد، 19 ديسمبر 2010
Lil Wayne Gets out of Prison and Changes Someone's Life
[caption id="attachment_12823" align="alignleft" width="340" caption="Ronda"]
[/caption]
Lil Wayne has, as you may know, been out of prison since early November. He has since then helped another person gain their freedom. This freedom, is not, however, from prison. This freedom is the ability to move again.
While he was serving his eight months in New York's Riker's Island on a weapons charge he was getting letters sent to him from a woman named Ronda. She wrote to him telling him to keep his head up and to stay encouraged. She talked a lot about herself and her family. Here is what she said in a video that was posted on Lil Wayne's site, WeezyThanxsYou.com:
“The first time I wrote Lil Wayne I just let him know that I support him, and I'm gonna keep writing him until he comes out. Just giving him a lot of encouragement...[letting] him know that God is with him and... to keep his head up and stay encouraged,” Ronda, of Williamstown, New Jersey, explains in a video posted on Wayne’s site. “I talked a lot about my family, myself and especially my mom and dad.”
After she had been sending letters for a while she received a phone call from Wayne. At first she was very surprised, however, she soon began having a conversation with him. In the middle of this he asked whether she and her dad had gotten her mom a wheelchair yet. She told him that she hadn't and he replied, "Well, if you didn't get it, don't worry about it. I'm going to take care of it."
Ronda's mother Evelyn says that about 10-15 years ago her knees started getting weaker. Ever since then she hasn't been able to walk.
When Lil Wayne heard about this from someone who had been so kind to him when he had been in such a bad situation, it must have caused him to want to help. He sent Evelyn a Quantum 6000 wheelchair. This has allowed Evelyn to get up and about for the first time in years, according to Ronda.
“I see such a difference in her; she has this get-up-and-go in her now. She’s mobile,” Ronda said. “When she’s actually up and about,” she went on, pausing with emotion, “it’s like….it’s just a good thing to see.”
[/caption]Lil Wayne has, as you may know, been out of prison since early November. He has since then helped another person gain their freedom. This freedom, is not, however, from prison. This freedom is the ability to move again.
While he was serving his eight months in New York's Riker's Island on a weapons charge he was getting letters sent to him from a woman named Ronda. She wrote to him telling him to keep his head up and to stay encouraged. She talked a lot about herself and her family. Here is what she said in a video that was posted on Lil Wayne's site, WeezyThanxsYou.com:
“The first time I wrote Lil Wayne I just let him know that I support him, and I'm gonna keep writing him until he comes out. Just giving him a lot of encouragement...[letting] him know that God is with him and... to keep his head up and stay encouraged,” Ronda, of Williamstown, New Jersey, explains in a video posted on Wayne’s site. “I talked a lot about my family, myself and especially my mom and dad.”
After she had been sending letters for a while she received a phone call from Wayne. At first she was very surprised, however, she soon began having a conversation with him. In the middle of this he asked whether she and her dad had gotten her mom a wheelchair yet. She told him that she hadn't and he replied, "Well, if you didn't get it, don't worry about it. I'm going to take care of it."
Ronda's mother Evelyn says that about 10-15 years ago her knees started getting weaker. Ever since then she hasn't been able to walk.
When Lil Wayne heard about this from someone who had been so kind to him when he had been in such a bad situation, it must have caused him to want to help. He sent Evelyn a Quantum 6000 wheelchair. This has allowed Evelyn to get up and about for the first time in years, according to Ronda.
“I see such a difference in her; she has this get-up-and-go in her now. She’s mobile,” Ronda said. “When she’s actually up and about,” she went on, pausing with emotion, “it’s like….it’s just a good thing to see.”
السبت، 18 ديسمبر 2010
You Use Phones, Phones Use You - App Users Beware
[caption id="attachment_12818" align="alignleft" width="215" caption="Current Location Use"]
[/caption]
Many Americans use smart phones on a daily basis. What they don't know is that smart phones also use them. Phones such as the Apple iPhone or Google's Android devices regularly share people's personal information via many various applications without their knowledge or knowing consent.
These devices share such information as their user's current location, age, gender, full name and sometimes a phone's unique ID number. This information is usually shared with advertisers.
According to a test done by the Wall Street Journal, 56 out of 100 popular smartphone applications from both iPhone and Android devices transmitted the phone's unique device ID to companies without the user's consent or knowledge. Forty-seven apps transmittted their location in some way. Five of them sent age, gender and a few other personal details to outside companies. These statistics should be more than enough to make most people worry about their privacy. However, in recent times, people have become accostumed to having their lives and their personal details become more and more public. Most people aren't really worried about how this can affect them.
The unique ID number in an iPhone is called a UDID, a Unique Device Identifier. It can't be blocked or deleted, hence it is often used to track phone users.
"The great thing about mobile is you can't clear a UDID like you can a cookie," says Meghan O'Holleran of Traffic Marketplace, an Internet ad network that is expanding into mobile apps. "That's how we track everything."
Ms. O'Holleran says Traffic Marketplace, a unit of Epic Media Group, monitors smartphone users whenever it can. "We watch what apps you download, how frequently you use them, how much time you spend on them, how deep into the app you go," she says. She says the data is aggregated and not linked to an individual.
This shows that people should become more aware of the information they give their electronic devices, especially the ones that can be tracked and traced.
[/caption]Many Americans use smart phones on a daily basis. What they don't know is that smart phones also use them. Phones such as the Apple iPhone or Google's Android devices regularly share people's personal information via many various applications without their knowledge or knowing consent.
These devices share such information as their user's current location, age, gender, full name and sometimes a phone's unique ID number. This information is usually shared with advertisers.
According to a test done by the Wall Street Journal, 56 out of 100 popular smartphone applications from both iPhone and Android devices transmitted the phone's unique device ID to companies without the user's consent or knowledge. Forty-seven apps transmittted their location in some way. Five of them sent age, gender and a few other personal details to outside companies. These statistics should be more than enough to make most people worry about their privacy. However, in recent times, people have become accostumed to having their lives and their personal details become more and more public. Most people aren't really worried about how this can affect them.
The unique ID number in an iPhone is called a UDID, a Unique Device Identifier. It can't be blocked or deleted, hence it is often used to track phone users.
"The great thing about mobile is you can't clear a UDID like you can a cookie," says Meghan O'Holleran of Traffic Marketplace, an Internet ad network that is expanding into mobile apps. "That's how we track everything."
Ms. O'Holleran says Traffic Marketplace, a unit of Epic Media Group, monitors smartphone users whenever it can. "We watch what apps you download, how frequently you use them, how much time you spend on them, how deep into the app you go," she says. She says the data is aggregated and not linked to an individual.
This shows that people should become more aware of the information they give their electronic devices, especially the ones that can be tracked and traced.
الجمعة، 17 ديسمبر 2010
Facebook Rolling Out New Features: Facial Recognition
[caption id="attachment_12811" align="alignleft" width="202" caption="Facebook Photos"]
[/caption]
Facebook will be rolling out some new features in the next couple of weeks. One of these new features will be the addition of facial recognition tagging suggestions. This means that when you upload photos Facebook's new algorithm will analyze the photos to see if it finds any matches in your friends. When it is pretty certain it will give you these tagging suggestions and you will either be able to set the tags or to deny them.
This new feature is an addition to the many new features that Facebook has, and will, be adding to it's photo browsing experience. Some of the other features that have been added recently are larger thumbnails, page-free album viewing, group tagging, high resolution and drag-and-drop photos.
Facial recognition is definitely a big step forward for Facebook. It will take a lot of work out of the tagging experience. For most people, tagging is simply too tedious. Facial recognition tagging will take a lot of work out of the experience, and may make people more willing to tag their friends.
Privacy is definitely a concern for some people looking at this new feature. Facebook has addressed this concern by allowing its users to opt out of the "Suggest photos of me to friends" feature. This should calm down all of the privacy advocates and make people more willing to accept Facebook's changes.
A couple days ago when Facebook accidentally leaked some new features, we got a sneak peek of some other up-coming changes. One of the greatest of these is a lightroom view of photos. This allows users to have a nicer view of their more special photos. It also allows photographers to publish their photos and know that they can be seen in an artistic light.
[/caption]Facebook will be rolling out some new features in the next couple of weeks. One of these new features will be the addition of facial recognition tagging suggestions. This means that when you upload photos Facebook's new algorithm will analyze the photos to see if it finds any matches in your friends. When it is pretty certain it will give you these tagging suggestions and you will either be able to set the tags or to deny them.
This new feature is an addition to the many new features that Facebook has, and will, be adding to it's photo browsing experience. Some of the other features that have been added recently are larger thumbnails, page-free album viewing, group tagging, high resolution and drag-and-drop photos.
Facial recognition is definitely a big step forward for Facebook. It will take a lot of work out of the tagging experience. For most people, tagging is simply too tedious. Facial recognition tagging will take a lot of work out of the experience, and may make people more willing to tag their friends.
Privacy is definitely a concern for some people looking at this new feature. Facebook has addressed this concern by allowing its users to opt out of the "Suggest photos of me to friends" feature. This should calm down all of the privacy advocates and make people more willing to accept Facebook's changes.
A couple days ago when Facebook accidentally leaked some new features, we got a sneak peek of some other up-coming changes. One of the greatest of these is a lightroom view of photos. This allows users to have a nicer view of their more special photos. It also allows photographers to publish their photos and know that they can be seen in an artistic light.
الثلاثاء، 30 نوفمبر 2010
Gold Price above $1,385
[caption id="attachment_12784" align="alignright" width="185" caption="Gold Price as of 1:07 pm, courtesy of goldprice.org"]
[/caption]
The gold price is above $1,385 per ounce today. As of 1:07 pm the gold price was $1,387.40 per ounce. That is up $25 for the day. Market participants are flocking to gold during the last trading day of the month of November.
The dollar looks stronger, but that is a false impression. The reality is, that the Euro lost ground and made the dollar look relatively stronger. There were no fundamental changes in regards to the dollar, but there are some circumstances that weaken the Euro. Especially the debt concerns in Greece worried the market and supported the gold price.
The Euro recently lost about 0.9% against the U.S. dollar and was noted as $1.2987.
[/caption]The gold price is above $1,385 per ounce today. As of 1:07 pm the gold price was $1,387.40 per ounce. That is up $25 for the day. Market participants are flocking to gold during the last trading day of the month of November.
The dollar looks stronger, but that is a false impression. The reality is, that the Euro lost ground and made the dollar look relatively stronger. There were no fundamental changes in regards to the dollar, but there are some circumstances that weaken the Euro. Especially the debt concerns in Greece worried the market and supported the gold price.
The Euro recently lost about 0.9% against the U.S. dollar and was noted as $1.2987.
الأربعاء، 24 نوفمبر 2010
John Travolta And Kelly Preston Very Happy About New Son Benjamin
On Tuesday Kelly Preston's and John Travolta's son Benjamin was born in a a Florida hospital. The weight of the baby at birth was 8lbs and 3 oz. The baby and his mother are happy and well.
In a statement the family said:
"John, Kelly and their daughter Ella Bleu are ecstatic and very happy about the newest member of the family. Both mother and baby are healthy and doing beautifully."
As there was some confusion in the media about the necessity of silence during the delivery of a baby, The Washington Post printed excerpts from a press release by the Church of Scientology:
"A silent birth is labor and delivery done in a calm and loving environment and with no spoken words by anyone attending. Chatty doctors and nurses, shouts to “PUSH, PUSH” and loud or laughing remarks to “encourage” are the types of things that are meant to be avoided."
And they continue with this part from the press release:
"The point of silent birth is NO WORDS. It does not mean a mother cannot make any sound during childbirth. It is doubtful that any woman could give birth without making any noise at all."
The Washingthon Post also gives the source of the data and the exact reason for it by continuing with this quote:
"L. Ron Hubbard discovered the hidden source of nightmares, unreasonable fears, upsets, insecurity and psychosomatic illness -- the reactive mind. This part of the mind records all perceptions during times of pain and unconsciousness -- which childbirth is for both mother and child. And words, in particular, spoken during these moments, can have an adverse effect on one later in life."
In a statement the family said:
"John, Kelly and their daughter Ella Bleu are ecstatic and very happy about the newest member of the family. Both mother and baby are healthy and doing beautifully."
As there was some confusion in the media about the necessity of silence during the delivery of a baby, The Washington Post printed excerpts from a press release by the Church of Scientology:
"A silent birth is labor and delivery done in a calm and loving environment and with no spoken words by anyone attending. Chatty doctors and nurses, shouts to “PUSH, PUSH” and loud or laughing remarks to “encourage” are the types of things that are meant to be avoided."
And they continue with this part from the press release:
"The point of silent birth is NO WORDS. It does not mean a mother cannot make any sound during childbirth. It is doubtful that any woman could give birth without making any noise at all."
The Washingthon Post also gives the source of the data and the exact reason for it by continuing with this quote:
"L. Ron Hubbard discovered the hidden source of nightmares, unreasonable fears, upsets, insecurity and psychosomatic illness -- the reactive mind. This part of the mind records all perceptions during times of pain and unconsciousness -- which childbirth is for both mother and child. And words, in particular, spoken during these moments, can have an adverse effect on one later in life."
الثلاثاء، 23 نوفمبر 2010
Fed Gives Better Economic Expectations for 2011
Today the Minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) has released the minutes of its meeting from November 2-3. The outlook remains mixed, but there were several points that indicate that the future is starting to look better.
Here a few quotes that show the economic outlook:
"In their discussion of the economic situation and outlook, meeting participants generally agreed that the incoming data indicated that output and employment were continuing to increase, but only slowly."
"Banking institutions reported signs of improving credit quality. Improvements in household financial conditions were contributing to better performance of consumer loans. "
The graphics below show how the GDP is expected to increase and the unemployment rate is expected to decrease.
[caption id="attachment_12704" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Unemployment Rate Projection. Source: www.federalreserve.gov"]
Here a few quotes that show the economic outlook:
"In their discussion of the economic situation and outlook, meeting participants generally agreed that the incoming data indicated that output and employment were continuing to increase, but only slowly."
"Banking institutions reported signs of improving credit quality. Improvements in household financial conditions were contributing to better performance of consumer loans. "
The graphics below show how the GDP is expected to increase and the unemployment rate is expected to decrease.
[caption id="attachment_12704" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Unemployment Rate Projection. Source: www.federalreserve.gov"]
There are factors that definitely need improvement, like for example the job situation. The unemployment rate is still at levels that are way too high.
[/caption]
The participants of the FOMC meeting agreed that there will be a modest increase in the rate of recovery over the next few years:
"Participants continued to expect a modest pickup in the pace of the recovery over the next couple of years."
The labor market is expected to start to turn around in 2011:
"Participants expected that conditions in labor markets would improve gradually beginning next year."
The two quotes above were taken from the summary of Economic Projections, published by the Fed.
You can find the complete minutes of the FOMC meeting here, and the summary of Summary of Economic Projections can be found here.
Prince William and Kate Middleton Wedding April 29 at Westminster Abbey
As the Guardian reports, Prince William and Kate Middleton have picked the date and location for their wedding. April 29, 2011 is the date of the wedding and Westminster Abbey in London will be the location for the official ceremony.
The wedding day will be a bank holiday in Great Britain. The day had been chose, as it seems very likely that the weather is going to be nice and friendly.
The cost of the wedding ceremony will be shared by the Royal family and the Middletons. The additional fund for security services during the wedding ceremonies will be provided by the British government. The wedding ceremony will most likely be held by the archbishop of Canterbury.
The wedding day will be a bank holiday in Great Britain. The day had been chose, as it seems very likely that the weather is going to be nice and friendly.
The cost of the wedding ceremony will be shared by the Royal family and the Middletons. The additional fund for security services during the wedding ceremonies will be provided by the British government. The wedding ceremony will most likely be held by the archbishop of Canterbury.
Gold Price in Rally Mode, Trading Above $1,375
[caption id="attachment_12692" align="alignright" width="193" caption="Gold Price as of 10:17 am, courtesy of goldprice.org"]
[/caption]
The price for gold was $1,375.09 per ounce at 10:17 am this morning. With $22.79 it's up sharply from the opening.
The reason for this seems to be that North Korea needs attention and is bombing South Korea. Gold loves conflicts. Whenever there is an uncertainty or a conflict, the gold price immediately starts to climb, as investors flee paper based investments and shift to gold instead.
While I am writing this post, gold continues to climb. As of 10:31 am the price for one ounce was already at $1,379.20, up 26.90 for the day. Hopefully Kim Jong-Il will come to his senses fast. While I do like to watch the gold price climb, I completely do not like war or any military conflict.
At 2:58 pm the price for gold was $1,376.40. That means gold is trading above the $1,375 mark for several hours now and seems to have found a stable range.
Update:
At 4:21 pm the gold price is at $1,375.86 per ounce, up $23.56 for the day.
[caption id="attachment_12710" align="alignright" width="197" caption="Gold Price $1,375.86 per ounce, as of 4:21 pm, courtesy of goldprice.org"]
[/caption]
[/caption]The price for gold was $1,375.09 per ounce at 10:17 am this morning. With $22.79 it's up sharply from the opening.
The reason for this seems to be that North Korea needs attention and is bombing South Korea. Gold loves conflicts. Whenever there is an uncertainty or a conflict, the gold price immediately starts to climb, as investors flee paper based investments and shift to gold instead.
While I am writing this post, gold continues to climb. As of 10:31 am the price for one ounce was already at $1,379.20, up 26.90 for the day. Hopefully Kim Jong-Il will come to his senses fast. While I do like to watch the gold price climb, I completely do not like war or any military conflict.
At 2:58 pm the price for gold was $1,376.40. That means gold is trading above the $1,375 mark for several hours now and seems to have found a stable range.
Update:
At 4:21 pm the gold price is at $1,375.86 per ounce, up $23.56 for the day.
[caption id="attachment_12710" align="alignright" width="197" caption="Gold Price $1,375.86 per ounce, as of 4:21 pm, courtesy of goldprice.org"]
[/caption]
الاثنين، 22 نوفمبر 2010
Gold Price Climbing Up Again
[caption id="attachment_12665" align="alignright" width="190" caption="Gold Price at 3:23 pm on November 22, 2010, courtesy of goldprice.org"]
[/caption]
The gold price on at 3:23 pm on November 22, 2010, was $1,364.12. That is up $11.82 from the opening price.
The World Gold Council released it's third quarter outlook a few days ago and reports, that in 2010 more gold will be used, compared to 2009. India and China are the two main markets for gold. In these two markets income levels are increasing, which in turn is going to increase the demand for gold jewelry. The $600 billion in additional printed money will send more investors into gold. The weakening U.S dollar and an increasing fear of inflation will also contribute to a increase of the gold price in the near future.
There are also technical factors that are important. As long as gold remains above $1,330, several sell indicator will not be triggered. For next week traders expect gold to clear $1,366, which actually already happened while I am writing this. The price of gold at 3:46 pm was $1,366.08.
Update:
The gold price was $1,362.95 at 8:03 pm, up $10.65 for the day.
Thestreet.com brings the price increase fro gold in relation to the bailout package for Ireland from the International Monetary Fund.
[/caption]The gold price on at 3:23 pm on November 22, 2010, was $1,364.12. That is up $11.82 from the opening price.
The World Gold Council released it's third quarter outlook a few days ago and reports, that in 2010 more gold will be used, compared to 2009. India and China are the two main markets for gold. In these two markets income levels are increasing, which in turn is going to increase the demand for gold jewelry. The $600 billion in additional printed money will send more investors into gold. The weakening U.S dollar and an increasing fear of inflation will also contribute to a increase of the gold price in the near future.
There are also technical factors that are important. As long as gold remains above $1,330, several sell indicator will not be triggered. For next week traders expect gold to clear $1,366, which actually already happened while I am writing this. The price of gold at 3:46 pm was $1,366.08.
Update:
The gold price was $1,362.95 at 8:03 pm, up $10.65 for the day.
Thestreet.com brings the price increase fro gold in relation to the bailout package for Ireland from the International Monetary Fund.
Apple’s iOS 4.2 Released for iPad, iPhone & iPod Touch
The long anticipated software update for iPad, iPhone & iPod Touch in the form of the iOS 4.2 has been released by Apple today and is available for download.
Just in time for the holiday season Apple brings Multitasking, Folders, Unified Inbox, Game Center, AirPlay® and AirPrint.
“iOS 4.2 makes the iPad a completely new product, just in time for the holiday season,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Once again, the iPad with iOS 4.2 will define the target that other tablets will aspire to, but very few, if any, will ever be able to hit.”
With the new software release the Find My iPhone app is now available free of charge. The feature was before only available to MobileMe subscribers, which automatically syncs email, contacts, and calendars on all mobile devices via WiFi. Now users can simply download the free app from the app store and relocate iPhone or iPad or iPod touch once they showed up missing. It is also possible with this app to remotely access the lost or stole device and erase or lock sensitive data.
[caption id="attachment_12646" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Find My iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. Picture courtesy of Apple, Inc."]
[/caption]
This feature makes it possible to run several apps at the same time. The active app is actually the only one that is running. The other apps "run" in the background, but are on hold in order to safe energy and not drain the battery. Apps can be stored in different folders, bringing some order into the multitude of apps on the users device.
From now on all of the users emails can be seen in one window. It is no longer necessary to switch from one pane to the next in order to see emails addressed to a different alias. This feature is a big win for users with several email addresses. No more flipping back and forth through 5 or more accounts several times a day.
Now the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch has a build in multi-player feature. Users can connect with other devices to play games. Friends can be challenged and scores and games can be shared. Well, not the games itself can be shared, but users can spy their friends array of games and discover new games. A boom in mmorpg will come to the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. The Game Center feature alone can blow Nintendo or Xbox, PSP Go, PlayStation out of the water.
Apple TV is now fully integrated with iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. That means music and videos can be enjoyed on all devices.
With AirPrint the need fro additional printer drivers has been eliminated. Users can now print directly and wireless from any of the devices powered by iOS.
The iOS now supports 25 additional languages, including Portuguese, Chinese and Korean.
Just in time for the holiday season Apple brings Multitasking, Folders, Unified Inbox, Game Center, AirPlay® and AirPrint.
“iOS 4.2 makes the iPad a completely new product, just in time for the holiday season,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Once again, the iPad with iOS 4.2 will define the target that other tablets will aspire to, but very few, if any, will ever be able to hit.”
Find My iPhone Feature Free
With the new software release the Find My iPhone app is now available free of charge. The feature was before only available to MobileMe subscribers, which automatically syncs email, contacts, and calendars on all mobile devices via WiFi. Now users can simply download the free app from the app store and relocate iPhone or iPad or iPod touch once they showed up missing. It is also possible with this app to remotely access the lost or stole device and erase or lock sensitive data.
[caption id="attachment_12646" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Find My iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. Picture courtesy of Apple, Inc."]
[/caption]Multitasking and Folders for Apps
This feature makes it possible to run several apps at the same time. The active app is actually the only one that is running. The other apps "run" in the background, but are on hold in order to safe energy and not drain the battery. Apps can be stored in different folders, bringing some order into the multitude of apps on the users device.
Unified Inbox
From now on all of the users emails can be seen in one window. It is no longer necessary to switch from one pane to the next in order to see emails addressed to a different alias. This feature is a big win for users with several email addresses. No more flipping back and forth through 5 or more accounts several times a day.
Game Center
Now the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch has a build in multi-player feature. Users can connect with other devices to play games. Friends can be challenged and scores and games can be shared. Well, not the games itself can be shared, but users can spy their friends array of games and discover new games. A boom in mmorpg will come to the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. The Game Center feature alone can blow Nintendo or Xbox, PSP Go, PlayStation out of the water.
AirPlay
Apple TV is now fully integrated with iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. That means music and videos can be enjoyed on all devices.
AirPrint
With AirPrint the need fro additional printer drivers has been eliminated. Users can now print directly and wireless from any of the devices powered by iOS.
The iOS now supports 25 additional languages, including Portuguese, Chinese and Korean.
الجمعة، 19 نوفمبر 2010
2010 Proof Silver Eagle Available from US Mint
Today at noon, the 2010 Proof Silver Eagle was made available on the US Mint web site.
This collector's version of the official United States Mint American Eagle Silver Bullion coin contains one ounce of .999 fine silver and is available for $45.95 plus a small shipping charge.
The mint does expect the demand to be high. That means, if you order during the first few days, you could expect delays.
In 2009 no proof Silver Eagles were produce, due to lack of raw materials.
"We have worked very hard with vendors to increase the quantity of precious metal planchets available to us," said US Mint Director Ed Moy. "That hard work has paid off. In fact, we have tripled our supply of silver planchets from Fiscal Year 2007 levels."
The 2010 Proof Silver Eagle may be ordered from the US Mint website or by phone: 1-800-872-6468.
At the time of this writing the number of proof Silver Eagles to be minted in 2010 was not known. If you are interested in buying proof Silver Eagles, it is advised that you order directly through the mint. That way you avoid paying the dealer spreads.
This collector's version of the official United States Mint American Eagle Silver Bullion coin contains one ounce of .999 fine silver and is available for $45.95 plus a small shipping charge.
The mint does expect the demand to be high. That means, if you order during the first few days, you could expect delays.
In 2009 no proof Silver Eagles were produce, due to lack of raw materials.
"We have worked very hard with vendors to increase the quantity of precious metal planchets available to us," said US Mint Director Ed Moy. "That hard work has paid off. In fact, we have tripled our supply of silver planchets from Fiscal Year 2007 levels."
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="510" caption="2010 Proof Silver Eagle"]
[/caption]
[/caption]The 2010 Proof Silver Eagle may be ordered from the US Mint website or by phone: 1-800-872-6468.
At the time of this writing the number of proof Silver Eagles to be minted in 2010 was not known. If you are interested in buying proof Silver Eagles, it is advised that you order directly through the mint. That way you avoid paying the dealer spreads.
O, The Oprah Magazine App Review
The Oprah Magazine is now available as iPad app. It is supposed to "live your best life," as Oprah says it. It has been designed to seamlessly work with the iPad and its touch screen.
Some features of the Oprah Magazine App
Oprah will personally unveil the new magazine issue. It also features an animated cover. The app issue of O will also feature an exclusive video of Oprah, showing her doing an interview the director and actor Tyler Perry.
If you don't know yet what to give to your friends and family for Christmas, the holiday gift guide will give you some inspirations. You'll get picks from Nate Berkus, Dr. Oz, and you probably already guessed it, from Oprah herself.
If you are short on cash, you can winn all the items in the holiday gift guide by entering the "12-Day Holiday Give-O-Way" sweepstakes.
Just in case you like some of the things you read, you can easily forward and share the items or stories. You will most likely use this feature a lot.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="Oprah Magazine iPad App"]
[/caption]
Let's say you like an item, you can buy the thing directly with a few clicks from the O app.
For the book fans Oprah included excerpts from her favorite top ten books.
Oprah Winfrey commented on her iPad app: "I love the written word, and I love the iPad. To me, it’s another way to experience the intimacy of this magazine and it’s part of the future of the business."
"It’s a new way to connect with our readers, who are on a path of becoming their best selves."
[rating: 3/5]
Bad rating because not kid friendly and heavily loaded with product promotions.
You can download the O App here.
If Oprah now would leave out brutality, profanity and the promotion of drugs, her readers would indeed have a fair chance to become their better selves. But that is just my personal opinion. What do you think?
Some features of the Oprah Magazine App
Oprah will personally unveil the new magazine issue. It also features an animated cover. The app issue of O will also feature an exclusive video of Oprah, showing her doing an interview the director and actor Tyler Perry.
If you don't know yet what to give to your friends and family for Christmas, the holiday gift guide will give you some inspirations. You'll get picks from Nate Berkus, Dr. Oz, and you probably already guessed it, from Oprah herself.
If you are short on cash, you can winn all the items in the holiday gift guide by entering the "12-Day Holiday Give-O-Way" sweepstakes.
Just in case you like some of the things you read, you can easily forward and share the items or stories. You will most likely use this feature a lot.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="Oprah Magazine iPad App"]
[/caption]Let's say you like an item, you can buy the thing directly with a few clicks from the O app.
For the book fans Oprah included excerpts from her favorite top ten books.
Oprah Winfrey commented on her iPad app: "I love the written word, and I love the iPad. To me, it’s another way to experience the intimacy of this magazine and it’s part of the future of the business."
"It’s a new way to connect with our readers, who are on a path of becoming their best selves."
[rating: 3/5]
Bad rating because not kid friendly and heavily loaded with product promotions.
You can download the O App here.
If Oprah now would leave out brutality, profanity and the promotion of drugs, her readers would indeed have a fair chance to become their better selves. But that is just my personal opinion. What do you think?
HIP 13044 B - A Giant Planet From Another Galaxy
Astronomers have spotted an new planet, called HIP 13044 B, which has somehow made its way into our Galaxy.
The strange planet has been discovered by scientists with the help of the European Southern Observatory's La Silla telescope in Chile.
The new planet is orbiting a decaying star at the edge of the Milky Way. This is the first time that a planet has been discovered from outside our Galaxy.
The planet is about 25% larger than Jupiter and it is about 2,000 light years from Earth.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="380" caption="HIP 13044 B orbiting around his star (the planet is the little dot to the right). Image: ESO / L. Calçada"]
[/caption]
A dwarf galaxy has been swallowed up by our own galaxy billions of years ago and this planet belonged to that system and has somehow survived.
An article about this giant new planet of extragalactic origin has been published today in Science Express.
The strange planet has been discovered by scientists with the help of the European Southern Observatory's La Silla telescope in Chile.
The new planet is orbiting a decaying star at the edge of the Milky Way. This is the first time that a planet has been discovered from outside our Galaxy.
The planet is about 25% larger than Jupiter and it is about 2,000 light years from Earth.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="380" caption="HIP 13044 B orbiting around his star (the planet is the little dot to the right). Image: ESO / L. Calçada"]
[/caption]A dwarf galaxy has been swallowed up by our own galaxy billions of years ago and this planet belonged to that system and has somehow survived.
An article about this giant new planet of extragalactic origin has been published today in Science Express.
الخميس، 18 نوفمبر 2010
Warner Bros New Movie Archive Releases
Warner Archive New Releases
Warner Archive New Releases
In addition, the following films are part of this week's new releases: Classic TV Christmas Collection (4 DVD Set), Human Comedy, The (DVD, Remastered) , Outfit, The (DVD, Remastered) , Luise Rainer Collection (3 DVD Set) , Phantom Tollbooth, The (DVD, Remastered) , Hotel, Cry Wolf, That Forsyte Woman, Never Say Goodbye, Woman in Red, The (1935) , Man With a Cloak, The, B.F.'S Daughter, Secret Bride, The, Green Light (1937), Films Starring Barbara Stanwyck (5 DVDs) , Films Starring Errol Flynn (4 DVDs).
Top Sellers
Harry Potter - Catch up With the First 6 Movies on DVD and Blu-ray
The latest installment in the Harry Potter series is out in theaters this week, so don't miss this opportunity to catch up with the first 6 movies on DVD and Blu-ray!
Catch up on Harry Potter with the first 6 movies on Blu-Ray today! Shop Now!
Catch Up On Harry Potter on DVD & Blu-ray
The latest Harry Potter movie is coming out this week and die-hard fans will want to catch up on the preceding movies before hitting the theaters this weekend. Promote the first 6 movies on DVD & Blu-ray with these links:
Catch up on Harry Potter before seeing the final movie! Shop now for Harry Potter on DVD!
Don't you hate it to watch number 6 of a series of movies without having seem all the others? Or maybe you did see the other Harry potter movies, but it was like ages and you would like to refresh your memory.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" is probably the hardest one to keep up with if you haven't read the book or seen the other Harry Potter movie. That means, if you want to enjoy this one, you should read up or watch up on the other parts.
Catch up on Harry Potter with the first 6 movies on Blu-Ray today! Shop Now!
Catch Up On Harry Potter on DVD & Blu-ray
The latest Harry Potter movie is coming out this week and die-hard fans will want to catch up on the preceding movies before hitting the theaters this weekend. Promote the first 6 movies on DVD & Blu-ray with these links:
Catch up on Harry Potter before seeing the final movie! Shop now for Harry Potter on DVD!
Don't you hate it to watch number 6 of a series of movies without having seem all the others? Or maybe you did see the other Harry potter movies, but it was like ages and you would like to refresh your memory.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" is probably the hardest one to keep up with if you haven't read the book or seen the other Harry Potter movie. That means, if you want to enjoy this one, you should read up or watch up on the other parts.
Gold Price Up 1.74% for the Day
[caption id="attachment_12444" align="alignright" width="198" caption="Gold Price at 7:30 pm, November 18, 2010, courttesy of goldprice.org"]
[/caption]
Gold was trading higher today. The price at 7:30pm was $1,360.02. That is an increase of 1.74% or $23.22 for the day.
Now, that the most ridiculous IPO has been gobbled up by market, business can continue as usual. Dumb money has been milked to the tune of $20 billion and paid the tab for GM. During the next few days and weeks we should see gold getting back in rally mode, while the stock market will most likely behave as usual after a large IPO.
You can read the article "GM's IPO: A Warning Sign for Tradersfrom" by Jason Goepfert, which gives a pretty good insight in what might lay ahead in regards to the stock market.
The dollar, as you might have expected showed his weakness again. The fact that the highs of the gold price continue to be higher and the lows continue to be lower, shows that we are still in a bull market for gold.
The underlying factors have not changed, just the "lying" factors have changed.
[/caption]Gold was trading higher today. The price at 7:30pm was $1,360.02. That is an increase of 1.74% or $23.22 for the day.
Now, that the most ridiculous IPO has been gobbled up by market, business can continue as usual. Dumb money has been milked to the tune of $20 billion and paid the tab for GM. During the next few days and weeks we should see gold getting back in rally mode, while the stock market will most likely behave as usual after a large IPO.
You can read the article "GM's IPO: A Warning Sign for Tradersfrom" by Jason Goepfert, which gives a pretty good insight in what might lay ahead in regards to the stock market.
The dollar, as you might have expected showed his weakness again. The fact that the highs of the gold price continue to be higher and the lows continue to be lower, shows that we are still in a bull market for gold.
The underlying factors have not changed, just the "lying" factors have changed.
GM Begins Trading and Attracts Dumb Money
What a wonderful world. You can take a company, eradicate all investors money by letting it go bankrupt and then, just a few years later lure the same stupid investors back into the same company.
The "new" General Motors stock started to trade today on the New York Stock Exchange under the old ticker symbol GM. Business as usual. Dumb money flowing in and driving the stock price of the largest IPO in the US history up. Most recently it was up 8.5% at $35.80 a share.
About two years ago GM went bankrupt. After some $50 billion in tax money and some modest restructuring GM is back in business, as far a the stock market is concerned. This is probably the most impressive investment stunt sine a long time.
The IPO price was $33 a pop. The total amount offered was $20.1 billion.
After hitting a high of $35.80, the stock price starts to go down to about $35.20. It looks like the IPO speculators are bailing out.
There is a difference between a donkey and a human being: The donkey only hits his toe once on the same stone.
Here is an interesting comment from a Yahoo user on a recent article "GM's IPO: A Warning Sign for Traders" related to the IPO:
The "new" General Motors stock started to trade today on the New York Stock Exchange under the old ticker symbol GM. Business as usual. Dumb money flowing in and driving the stock price of the largest IPO in the US history up. Most recently it was up 8.5% at $35.80 a share.
About two years ago GM went bankrupt. After some $50 billion in tax money and some modest restructuring GM is back in business, as far a the stock market is concerned. This is probably the most impressive investment stunt sine a long time.
The IPO price was $33 a pop. The total amount offered was $20.1 billion.
After hitting a high of $35.80, the stock price starts to go down to about $35.20. It looks like the IPO speculators are bailing out.
There is a difference between a donkey and a human being: The donkey only hits his toe once on the same stone.
Here is an interesting comment from a Yahoo user on a recent article "GM's IPO: A Warning Sign for Traders" related to the IPO:
"Lets face it, GM is in commodity business making cars distinguished little from all other car companies in the world. Their costs are still higher than many of their overseas competitors even after bankruptcy. After many years of making poor quality products, their reputation haunts them in the market and will continue to do so for years. Their pension fund is still underfunded to the tune of near $13 billion, probably much more if realistic investment returns were used for calculation. They are still under the thumb of the UAW which seems to have gained more power, not less, during the fake bankruptcy.
Regardless of what the stock market does, it would seem there is scant reasons to believe GM will be a market leader over the long term. So the question is, why are so many so anxious to buy it, given all the other companies out there with potentially greater growth and stock appreciation potential? Maybe hoping to turn it quickly and make a buck on the short term euphoria, but if too many have this idea it will be less likely to work. Especially if, as this article hints, we are now near a market top."
The Green Lantern Trailer with the Sexiest Man Alive
[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Green Lantern Movie Poster"]
[/caption]
Yesterday we reported on Ryan Reynolds supposedly being the sexiest man alive. Well, he probably is. At least he draws a lot of attention, not only because of his looks, but also because he is starring in The Green Lantern.
The new movie will be released next summer, but the trailer is already available. The trailer is just a little teaser, which introduces Hal Jordan, played by Ryan Reynolds.
Short facts about The Green Lantern
Director: Martin Campbell
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Strong, Jay O. Sanders, Temuera Morrison, Taika Waititi, Jon Tenney, Angela Bassett, Tim Robbins
In theaters: June 17th, 2011
Hal Jordan is the first ever selected to be part of the green lantern corp. By wearing a special ring he is granted super powers and has to safe earth from the vicious enemy called Parallax. But before Hal can overpower the enemy, he has to learn how to use his super powers...
[/caption]Yesterday we reported on Ryan Reynolds supposedly being the sexiest man alive. Well, he probably is. At least he draws a lot of attention, not only because of his looks, but also because he is starring in The Green Lantern.
The new movie will be released next summer, but the trailer is already available. The trailer is just a little teaser, which introduces Hal Jordan, played by Ryan Reynolds.
Short facts about The Green Lantern
Director: Martin Campbell
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Strong, Jay O. Sanders, Temuera Morrison, Taika Waititi, Jon Tenney, Angela Bassett, Tim Robbins
In theaters: June 17th, 2011
Green Lantern Trailer 2011
Hal Jordan is the first ever selected to be part of the green lantern corp. By wearing a special ring he is granted super powers and has to safe earth from the vicious enemy called Parallax. But before Hal can overpower the enemy, he has to learn how to use his super powers...
Green Lantern Entertainment Tonight Preview
الأربعاء، 17 نوفمبر 2010
Leonid Meteor Shower November 2010 Live Video/Audio Feed
Here you can Watch the Leonid Meteor Shower Live Video/Audio Feed
This live video/audio feed is from the Nasa camera mounted NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. It’s light-activated, so it will become active at dark. You can also hear the meteors passing by.
Video clips at UstreamThe Leonid meteor showers have their peak activity between November 17 and November 18, 2010. You can expect to see about 10 to 20 meteors per hour. The comet of origin of the Leonid meteor is the comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle. The Leonid meteor shower will seem to originate from the constellation Leo.
This year it might be difficult to see a lot, as the half-full moon will be lighting the night sky and make it difficult to watch the shooting stars.
The best bet is to go as far away from any city and then look for the darkest patch of sky you can find. Sit down, relax and you'll soon see shooting stars passing by.
You can calculate the Leonid meteor shower activity with the Fluxtimator. More about that here.
You can watch the meteor shower after dark, but it can be best seen around dawn.
Pee Monkey Plant Bloom App Review
Pee Money is a new fun games app from the Pee Monkey series.
It's a follow up to the #1 best seller Pee Monkey Toilet Trainer
You can help Pee Monkey aim and water plants through forty levels of puzzles. Once you successful soak a plant it starts to bloom into a nice flower and adds points to your account. There is a limit on the pee that you can spend on watering.
Pee Monkey Toilet Trainer 1 & Pee Monkey Toilet Trainer 2 and Pee Monkey Jungle Fire were very successful and they have been downloaded about 2 million times combined.
Pee Monkey Plant Bloom Features
• Top Secret Pee Physics TM
• 40 brain teasing levels to test fluid mechanics
• Atmospheric sounds and animation
Pee Monkey Plant Bloom App Screen Shot
[caption id="attachment_12386" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Pee Monkey Plant Bloom App"]
[/caption]
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later.
You can download the Pee Monkey Plant Bloom App for $0.99 from the app store. Asn if you are not sure whether you want to shell out all the 99 cents, you can try the Pee Monkey Plant Bloom Lite for the excellent price of free first.
Verdict:
It's fun to play. Fast. Not 5 out of 5 as it could be viewed as offensive by some.
[rating: 4/5]
Pee Monkey
It's a follow up to the #1 best seller Pee Monkey Toilet Trainer
You can help Pee Monkey aim and water plants through forty levels of puzzles. Once you successful soak a plant it starts to bloom into a nice flower and adds points to your account. There is a limit on the pee that you can spend on watering.
Pee Monkey Toilet Trainer 1 & Pee Monkey Toilet Trainer 2 and Pee Monkey Jungle Fire were very successful and they have been downloaded about 2 million times combined.
Pee Monkey Plant Bloom Features
• Top Secret Pee Physics TM
• 40 brain teasing levels to test fluid mechanics
• Atmospheric sounds and animation
Pee Monkey Plant Bloom App Screen Shot
[caption id="attachment_12386" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Pee Monkey Plant Bloom App"]
[/caption]Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later.
You can download the Pee Monkey Plant Bloom App for $0.99 from the app store. Asn if you are not sure whether you want to shell out all the 99 cents, you can try the Pee Monkey Plant Bloom Lite for the excellent price of free first.
Verdict:
It's fun to play. Fast. Not 5 out of 5 as it could be viewed as offensive by some.
[rating: 4/5]
Pee Monkey
Ryan Reynolds Supposedly Sexiest Man
[caption id="attachment_12373" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Ryan Reynolds on the cover of People"]
[/caption]
According to People Magazine, Ryan Reynolds is the sexiest man alive. But in case you are hoping to marry him, you're too late in the game. Scarlett Johansson already married him some time ago.
[caption id="attachment_12374" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="Scarlett Johansson was named "Babe of the Year" earlier this week by GQ."]
[/caption]
Scarlett Johansson was named "Babe of the Year" earlier this week by GQ.
Other men who topped the list in prior years Mel Gibson, John F. Kennedy Jr., Harrison Ford and Richard Gere, George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp.
The Canadian native told People: "The sexiest thing about Canadians is that there's an inherent ability to be self-deprecating. That has served me well in my career and personal life."
People announced its 2010 list on Wednesday. But so far they only leaked some pictures, as they hope to propell the newsstand sales of the next issue, which is available on Friday.
Whether Ryan Reynolds is really the sexiest man alive or not, depends on who judges.
What do you think?
[/caption]According to People Magazine, Ryan Reynolds is the sexiest man alive. But in case you are hoping to marry him, you're too late in the game. Scarlett Johansson already married him some time ago.
[caption id="attachment_12374" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="Scarlett Johansson was named "Babe of the Year" earlier this week by GQ."]
[/caption]Scarlett Johansson was named "Babe of the Year" earlier this week by GQ.
Other men who topped the list in prior years Mel Gibson, John F. Kennedy Jr., Harrison Ford and Richard Gere, George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp.
The Canadian native told People: "The sexiest thing about Canadians is that there's an inherent ability to be self-deprecating. That has served me well in my career and personal life."
People announced its 2010 list on Wednesday. But so far they only leaked some pictures, as they hope to propell the newsstand sales of the next issue, which is available on Friday.
Whether Ryan Reynolds is really the sexiest man alive or not, depends on who judges.
What do you think?
Eva Longoria Files for Divorce from Tony Parker
Eva Longoria has filed for divorce from her husband and NBA star Tony Parker, based on CNN reports. The couple has been married since 2007.
The news of their divorce comes a day after the rumor began on Twitter but was quickly shot down as being totally false.
The divorce papers were reportedly filed this morning in L.A County Superior Court according to PEOPLE. Longoria has cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the divorce.
The couple signed a prenup (prenuptial agreement) on June 21st 2007 but it was then amended in June of 2009.
The couple has no children together.
Tony Parker's team the San Antonio Spurs play tonight at home against the Chicago Bulls.
The other woman is Erin Barry, according to Sports Illustrated writer Bryan Armen Graham, the wife of Tony's former Spurs teammate Brent Barry.
"Have it on good authority from entertainment sources that "former teammate" in Tony Parker-Eva Longoria affair is Brent Barry," Graham tweeted.
The news of their divorce comes a day after the rumor began on Twitter but was quickly shot down as being totally false.
The divorce papers were reportedly filed this morning in L.A County Superior Court according to PEOPLE. Longoria has cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the divorce.
The couple signed a prenup (prenuptial agreement) on June 21st 2007 but it was then amended in June of 2009.
The couple has no children together.
Tony Parker's team the San Antonio Spurs play tonight at home against the Chicago Bulls.
The other woman is Erin Barry, according to Sports Illustrated writer Bryan Armen Graham, the wife of Tony's former Spurs teammate Brent Barry.
"Have it on good authority from entertainment sources that "former teammate" in Tony Parker-Eva Longoria affair is Brent Barry," Graham tweeted.
Chad Ochocinco Wants to Marry Evelyn Lozada
[caption id="attachment_12340" align="alignright" width="224" caption="Evelyn Lozada Engagement Ring"]
[/caption]
TMZ reports, that Evelyn Lozada and Chad Ochocinco are now engaged. Chad Ochocinco gave his a 10-carat ring to his girlfriend, anxiously waiting whether the request to marry would be honored or not. Evelyn Lozada, who stars in "Basketball Wives" took the ring and said yes. Evelyn and Chad were together for four months, before Chad made up his mind and concluded that Evelyn is the one.
Evelyn Lozada's parents are from Puerto Rico and she was born in Brooklyn, NY. Chad Ochocinco is a Cincinnati Bengals receiver. The 32-year old Chad was born in Miami, FL and was drafted by the Bengals in 2001. He played college football for Oregon State before going to Cincinnati.
The wedding date has not been selected as of today.
Evelyn Lozada commented on the deal along with a picture of her huge engagement ring on Twitter:
"I'm no rabbit but 10 carats looks good on me!! Let the hating begin ▸▸▸▸▸▸▸ Let's go!!!!! *Wink*"
That does not look like this is is going to last forever. But hopefully I am wrong. You can read more about Evelyn Lozada here.
[/caption]Evelyn Lozada and Chad Ochocinco Engaged
TMZ reports, that Evelyn Lozada and Chad Ochocinco are now engaged. Chad Ochocinco gave his a 10-carat ring to his girlfriend, anxiously waiting whether the request to marry would be honored or not. Evelyn Lozada, who stars in "Basketball Wives" took the ring and said yes. Evelyn and Chad were together for four months, before Chad made up his mind and concluded that Evelyn is the one.
Evelyn Lozada's parents are from Puerto Rico and she was born in Brooklyn, NY. Chad Ochocinco is a Cincinnati Bengals receiver. The 32-year old Chad was born in Miami, FL and was drafted by the Bengals in 2001. He played college football for Oregon State before going to Cincinnati.
The wedding date has not been selected as of today.
Evelyn Lozada commented on the deal along with a picture of her huge engagement ring on Twitter:
"I'm no rabbit but 10 carats looks good on me!! Let the hating begin ▸▸▸▸▸▸▸ Let's go!!!!! *Wink*"
That does not look like this is is going to last forever. But hopefully I am wrong. You can read more about Evelyn Lozada here.
الثلاثاء، 16 نوفمبر 2010
Epicurious Recipes & Shopping List App Review
[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="Epicurious Recipes & Shopping List App Review"]
[/caption]
With Thanksgiving not too far away, you might want to try out a recipe app for your iPhone, iPad or for your Android phone or tablet PC. The Epicurious App is one such app that is available for almost any platform. On to of it is free. So, how can you go wrong.
The app lets you browse and search Epicurious.com's database of over 28,000 editor-created and tested recipes, toggling between an easy-to-view shopping format, and a recipe format that shows one instruction step at a time.
"We want our brands and content to be available on all platforms, wherever our readers are," said Sarah Chubb, President of Condé Nast Digital. "I am delighted that we are further extending the reach of Epicurious by bringing this useful app to the Android Market."
[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="320" caption="Epicurious Recipes & Shopping List"]
[/caption]
"Epicurious' Recipes & Shopping List: On the Go and In the Kitchen" for Android ™ features:
Proven recipes: Over 28,000 professionally tested recipes to ensure a delicious meal.
As these recipes are mainly taken from magazines, namely Gourmet and Bon Appétit, plus web-exclusive recipes from renowned chefs and cookbook authors, it's real fun just to flip through the pictures.
Don't expect to find "How to create a diner under $10 for 8 people recipe". While the app is free, you probably have to calculate a little more than usual to buy the sometimes unusual ingredients. Not unusual for a 5-star chef, but probably missing in your pantry.
Once you found the recipe that you want to try, it spits out a shopping list for you.
You can download Epicurious for the iPhone and iPad here.
The "Epicurious' Recipes & Shopping List: On the Go and In the Kitchen" application is available free in the Android Market.
[/caption]With Thanksgiving not too far away, you might want to try out a recipe app for your iPhone, iPad or for your Android phone or tablet PC. The Epicurious App is one such app that is available for almost any platform. On to of it is free. So, how can you go wrong.
The app lets you browse and search Epicurious.com's database of over 28,000 editor-created and tested recipes, toggling between an easy-to-view shopping format, and a recipe format that shows one instruction step at a time.
"We want our brands and content to be available on all platforms, wherever our readers are," said Sarah Chubb, President of Condé Nast Digital. "I am delighted that we are further extending the reach of Epicurious by bringing this useful app to the Android Market."
[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="320" caption="Epicurious Recipes & Shopping List"]
[/caption]"Their exclusive voice recognition functionality and widget capabilities help to create an entirely new and innovative experience for our users," says Tanya Wenman Steel, editor in chief of Epicurious.com.
"Epicurious' Recipes & Shopping List: On the Go and In the Kitchen" for Android ™ features:
Proven recipes: Over 28,000 professionally tested recipes to ensure a delicious meal.
As these recipes are mainly taken from magazines, namely Gourmet and Bon Appétit, plus web-exclusive recipes from renowned chefs and cookbook authors, it's real fun just to flip through the pictures.
Don't expect to find "How to create a diner under $10 for 8 people recipe". While the app is free, you probably have to calculate a little more than usual to buy the sometimes unusual ingredients. Not unusual for a 5-star chef, but probably missing in your pantry.
Once you found the recipe that you want to try, it spits out a shopping list for you.
You can download Epicurious for the iPhone and iPad here.
The "Epicurious' Recipes & Shopping List: On the Go and In the Kitchen" application is available free in the Android Market.
Take Advantage of The Gold Pullback
With the pull back in gold over recent days it makes for a good entry point. So right now might be a good time to look into a few companies that might be worth having stock in when the price correction ends and the uptrend gets back on track. Lets take a quick look at a few companies you may possibly want to do some homework on and eventually put some money into. Today we are going to focus on a few Canadian companies.
Alamos Gold Inc. (TSE:AGI)
http://www.alamosgold.com
The first company we will take a look at is Alamos Gold Inc. They are a company based out of Toronto and are an exploration, mine development and mining company that specialize in the mining of precious metals, primarily gold. Their major operations are in Turkey and Mexico. Their main mine is called the Mulatos Project which is located in the east-central section of the State of Sonora, Mexico. It is approximately 300km from the US-Mexico boarder. At this mine not only are they extracting gold but they continue an exploration program within the Mulatos District in hopes of continual growth of the mine in the area. Within the Salamandra group of concessions (which the Mulatos deposit is within) they have a satellite system of prospective gold deposits that they hope to mine in the future.
This company looks like it is headed in the right direction with mining projects currently underway along with their exploration projects that are underway and that haven't even begun yet so the future looks bright and they are a company worth digging a little deeper with and could be worth investing in.
NovaGold Resources Inc. (AMEX:NG)
http://www.novagold.com
This company out of Vancouver with gold and copper-gold projects in British Columbia and throughout Alaska. All of their projects are still in the exploration, construction, and planning stages. Their assets include over 17 million ounces of gold reserves and over 12.7 million gold resources. They also have over 9 billion pounds of copper resources. They have been able to keep their discovery costs far below the industry standard for gold and seem to of set themselves up for a bright future.
With some more homework into the background of this company it could show their is great potential for this company in the future. They could be a great long term investment with the assets they still have in the ground and over the next few years will begin to cash those assets in and make them and possibly you a lot of money.
Yamana Gold Inc. (NYSE:AUY)
http://www.yamana.com
Yamana Gold is a fast growing company, it was founded in only 2003 and has quickly grown to having seven mines already producing and seven more in the developing stages. The Chapada mine is one of their biggest producers currently and is located in Brazil's northern Goias State. The mine has a life of another 13 years and is producing 1.7 million ounces of gold and 2 billion pounds of recoverable copper on an annual bases. They are currently working on plant optimization to increase efficiency and should be complete that within 2012 and would increase throughput to over 22 million tonnes per year.
The company also has a group of projects in the development stages and looks to be setting up for a great future. The company has gone from nothing to 14+ on going projects in under seven years so we should expect them to continue to grow.
Alamos Gold Inc. (TSE:AGI)
http://www.alamosgold.com
The first company we will take a look at is Alamos Gold Inc. They are a company based out of Toronto and are an exploration, mine development and mining company that specialize in the mining of precious metals, primarily gold. Their major operations are in Turkey and Mexico. Their main mine is called the Mulatos Project which is located in the east-central section of the State of Sonora, Mexico. It is approximately 300km from the US-Mexico boarder. At this mine not only are they extracting gold but they continue an exploration program within the Mulatos District in hopes of continual growth of the mine in the area. Within the Salamandra group of concessions (which the Mulatos deposit is within) they have a satellite system of prospective gold deposits that they hope to mine in the future.
This company looks like it is headed in the right direction with mining projects currently underway along with their exploration projects that are underway and that haven't even begun yet so the future looks bright and they are a company worth digging a little deeper with and could be worth investing in.
NovaGold Resources Inc. (AMEX:NG)
http://www.novagold.com
This company out of Vancouver with gold and copper-gold projects in British Columbia and throughout Alaska. All of their projects are still in the exploration, construction, and planning stages. Their assets include over 17 million ounces of gold reserves and over 12.7 million gold resources. They also have over 9 billion pounds of copper resources. They have been able to keep their discovery costs far below the industry standard for gold and seem to of set themselves up for a bright future.
With some more homework into the background of this company it could show their is great potential for this company in the future. They could be a great long term investment with the assets they still have in the ground and over the next few years will begin to cash those assets in and make them and possibly you a lot of money.
Yamana Gold Inc. (NYSE:AUY)
http://www.yamana.com
Yamana Gold is a fast growing company, it was founded in only 2003 and has quickly grown to having seven mines already producing and seven more in the developing stages. The Chapada mine is one of their biggest producers currently and is located in Brazil's northern Goias State. The mine has a life of another 13 years and is producing 1.7 million ounces of gold and 2 billion pounds of recoverable copper on an annual bases. They are currently working on plant optimization to increase efficiency and should be complete that within 2012 and would increase throughput to over 22 million tonnes per year.
The company also has a group of projects in the development stages and looks to be setting up for a great future. The company has gone from nothing to 14+ on going projects in under seven years so we should expect them to continue to grow.
Prince William and Kate Middleton are Engaged to be Married
[caption id="" align="alignright" width="150" caption="Prince William and Kate Middleton"]
[/caption]
Prince William, or officially Prince William Arthur Philip Louis of Wales, the son of Prince Charles of Wales and late Princess Diana of Wales has officially proposed to Kate Middleton, his girlfriend for almost 10 years.
After his father the prince is the next in line to the throne. prince William is the grandson of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Prince William is a Flight Lieutenant for the Royal Air Force and is currently getting trained to become a search and rescue helicopter pilot.
Here is a lovely video from The Telegraph giving some insights and details about the royal engagement.
Kate Middleton is not from royal decent. The British press tried to make a fuss about it, but the people don't really care and like her very much. Whenever she would appear in public a cheering crowd would gather.
Needless to say that all hell is breaking loose in England now as almost the whole population wants to have their say in the royal wedding. Bookmakers already are accepting bets on the date of the wedding. Paddy Power, one such bookmaker is making August 13th 2011 the favourite at 3/1.
Other bets are on the designer for Kate Middleton's wedding dress, the color of the Queen's hat during the wedding ceremony and where the wedding ceremony will take place.
[/caption]Prince William, or officially Prince William Arthur Philip Louis of Wales, the son of Prince Charles of Wales and late Princess Diana of Wales has officially proposed to Kate Middleton, his girlfriend for almost 10 years.
After his father the prince is the next in line to the throne. prince William is the grandson of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Prince William is a Flight Lieutenant for the Royal Air Force and is currently getting trained to become a search and rescue helicopter pilot.
Here is a lovely video from The Telegraph giving some insights and details about the royal engagement.
Kate Middleton is not from royal decent. The British press tried to make a fuss about it, but the people don't really care and like her very much. Whenever she would appear in public a cheering crowd would gather.
Needless to say that all hell is breaking loose in England now as almost the whole population wants to have their say in the royal wedding. Bookmakers already are accepting bets on the date of the wedding. Paddy Power, one such bookmaker is making August 13th 2011 the favourite at 3/1.
Other bets are on the designer for Kate Middleton's wedding dress, the color of the Queen's hat during the wedding ceremony and where the wedding ceremony will take place.