Interview with The Bella Cottage ? Lessons in Business for Women ? Shabby Chic Style Furniture ? P2 Visit us for great vintage shabby chic style furniture and home decor items! www.thebellacottage.com Interviewed by www.virtueradionetwork.com
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Nokia's position in the smartphone market may be precarious (if improving), but its Location and Commerce (read: mapping) division has developed quite the reputation. Toyota is the latest big car manufacturer to pay cash to get Nokia's Here Local Search installed on Mr. Toyoda's in-car infotainment units. The Japanese giant is planning to have the software baked into its vehicles in Europe, Russia and the Middle East by early 2014. At the same time, the duo have agreed to work together on how best they can develop Here's navigation potential even further.
Filed under: Transportation, Software, Nokia
Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/VBVlokbNSwI/
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The RealEstate.com team recently looked at the number of times NFL teams have appeared in the Super Bowl and the real estate prices of their home cities. We found something interesting.
Of the 10 NFL teams that have appeared in the Super Bowl the most, seven are from cities with high median home prices, when compared to the national median home price. The opposite is also true; the 10 teams that have been to the Super Bowl the least, if they have even gone at all, generally come from cities with low median home prices.
The following question begs to be asked: Is there a correlation between the real estate prices of the city an NFL team comes from and the number of times that team has been to the Super Bowl?
The following facts support the existence of a correlation between Super Bowl appearances and high real estate prices:
Consider some examples of teams and cities that adhere to this possible correlation. San Francisco?s median home price, $751,600, is one of the highest in America. The city also hosts a team that has been to five Super Bowls. The median home price in Washington, D.C., $443,700, is twice that of the national median, and the Redskins have made five trips to the big game. One of New York?s two teams, the Giants, has been to the Super Bowl five times as well; the Big Apple has the high median home price of $517,900.
There are significant exceptions to this hypothetical correlation, however. The Pittsburgh Steelers, Dallas Cowboys, and Green Bay Packers, three of the NFL?s most illustrious teams, come from cities with low median home prices. Pittsburgh, for example, has a median home price of $92,500, which is a whopping 57.3 percent lower than the national median.
There are also exceptions at the opposite end of the table. Some teams that have rarely been to the Super Bowl come from cities with very high real estate prices. Two of America?s most expensive housing markets, San Diego and Seattle, have only been to the Super Bowl once. If there really were a correlation, the Chargers and Seahawks would consistently be two of the best teams in the NFL.
Partially. San Francisco has high real estate prices, but Baltimore does not; its median home price of $168,400 is 22.3 percent lower than the national median. If real estate prices always determined who made it to the big game, teams like the Giants, Seahawks, or even the Raiders would be playing on Feb. 3.
The teams from the cities with higher real estate prices won exactly half of the playoff games they played in. In the quarterfinals, New England and San Francisco advanced while Denver and Seattle were felled. New England then succumbed to defeat in the semifinals, yet San Francisco was able to produce a last-minute victory and advance to the Super Bowl.
Real estate prices aside, impress your friends and family with your knowledge of America?s most popular sporting event by sharing these fun facts with them.
First Super Bowl: 1966, Green Bay Packers 35, Kansas City Chiefs 10.
Most wins: Pittsburgh Steelers, six wins (out of a total of eight appearances).
Most popular Super Bowl venue: Louisiana/Mercedes-Benz Superdome, seven Super Bowls.
Most-viewed Super Bowl: Super Bowl XLVI (2012), 111.3 million viewers.
Cost per second for commercials during upcoming Super Bowl: $133,333.
Most money bet on a Super Bowl with Vegas bookies: $94.5 million, Super Bowl XL (2006).
Average number of calories consumed per person watching the Super Bowl: 1,200.
What team are you going to root for? Do you think there is a correlation between real estate prices and the likelihood an NFL team will go to the Super Bowl? Tell us in the comments!
Source: http://www.realestate.com/advice/super-bowl-appearances-vs-real-estate-prices-59862/
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Jan. 29, 2013 ? In a clever reuse of hardware originally built to test parts of NASA's QuikScat satellite, the agency will launch the ISS-RapidScat instrument to the International Space Station in 2014 to measure ocean surface wind speed and direction.
The ISS-RapidScat instrument will help improve weather forecasts, including hurricane monitoring, and understanding of how ocean-atmosphere interactions influence Earth's climate.
"The ability for NASA to quickly reuse this hardware and launch it to the space station is a great example of a low-cost approach that will have high benefits to science and life here on Earth," said Mike Suffredini, NASA's International Space Station program manager.
ISS-RapidScat will help fill the data gap created when QuikScat, which was designed to last two years but operated for 10, stopped collecting ocean wind data in late 2009. A scatterometer is a microwave radar sensor used to measure the reflection or scattering effect produced while scanning the surface of Earth from an aircraft or a satellite.
NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have studied next-generation replacements for QuikScat, but a successor will not be available soon. To meet this challenge cost-effectively, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and the agency's station program proposed adapting leftover QuikScat hardware in combination with new hardware for use on the space station.
"ISS-RapidScat represents a low-cost approach to acquiring valuable wind vector data for improving global monitoring of hurricanes and other high-intensity storms," said Howard Eisen, ISS-RapidScat project manager at JPL. "By leveraging the capabilities of the International Space Station and recycling leftover hardware, we will acquire good science data at a fraction of the investment needed to launch a new satellite."
ISS-RapidScat will have measurement accuracy similar to QuikScat's and will survey all regions of Earth accessible from the space station's orbit. The instrument will be launched to the space station aboard a SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft. It will be installed on the end of the station's Columbus laboratory as an autonomous payload requiring no interaction by station crew members. It is expected to operate aboard the station for two years.
ISS-RapidScat will take advantage of the space station's unique characteristics to advance understanding of Earth's winds. Current scatterometer orbits pass the same point on Earth at approximately the same time every day. Since the space station's orbit intersects the orbits of each of these satellites about once every hour, ISS-RapidScat can serve as a calibration standard and help scientists stitch together the data from multiple sources into a long-term record.
ISS-RapidScat also will collect measurements of Earth's global wind field at all times of day for all locations. Variations in winds caused by the sun can play a significant role in the formation of tropical clouds and tropical systems that play a dominant role in Earth's water and energy cycles. ISS-RapidScat observations will help scientists understand these phenomena better and improve weather and climate models.
The ISS-RapidScat project is a joint partnership of JPL and NASA's International Space Station Program Office at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, with support from the Earth Science Division of the Science Mission Directorate in Washington.
For more on NASA's scatterometry missions, visit: http://winds.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm . For more information about the International Space Station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station .
You can follow JPL News on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/nasajpl and on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/nasajpl . The California Institute of Technology in Pasadena manages JPL for NASA.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
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Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130129151735.htm
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Public release date: 30-Jan-2013
Share ] Contact: Federica Sgorbissa
pressroom@sissa.it
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International School of Advanced Studies (SISSA)
The researchers have carried out a social network simulation: each individual is represented by a node, while links, connecting the nodes, represent social interactions. Each individual has the tendency to enhance their social importance, and to do so they necessarily have to connect with the "most central nodes", that is, to the people who count. However, to advance socially an individual has to break with the past: technically speaking, abandon old nodes and connect with the most central ones. But how many have an inclination to break up with old connections to aim high? In other words, how many opportunist individuals are there within a society?
"Actually", replies Giancarlo De Luca, a Ph.D. student in Statistical Physics at SISSA and co-author of the research, "all individuals are 'social climbers'. The fact that society is in an egalitarian or hierarchical phase does not depend, therefore, on the number of individuals aiming at social climbing, but rather on the importance that individuals of that society ascribe to social prestige."
Therefore, a society that features a strong dominant class may indicate, according to the simulations, that there is a greater "yearning" for social prestige on the part of the inferior levels. "It works a little like Facebook", explains De Luca. "The more contacts I have, the more popular I am. In our model, the number of links determines the closeness to the centre, and belonging to the lite." In a totally egalitarian society all individuals possess the same number of nodes, of contacts. Obviously, what occurs in reality is rather different: only a small number of individuals have a very high number of contacts, while the majority have only a few of them.
More in detail...
"A further interesting aspect we have observed - adds De Luca - is that those who achieve centrality tend to stay in the position of predominance for a long time. Conversely, individuals who are attempting to climb the social ladder, that is to say, are in an intermediate position, move much more rapidly, both in a positive and negative sense."
The study also highlights that in a society with a well-structured hierarchy it is easier to identify the central nodes, that is, "those who count more", and this is why their members will have a very clear idea of who to befriend in view of their climb to success. In such a way, a very hierarchical network will be increasingly more hierarchical, and will feature a great quantity of social climbers.
###
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Public release date: 30-Jan-2013 Share ] Contact: Federica Sgorbissa
pressroom@sissa.it
39-040-378-7557
International School of Advanced Studies (SISSA)
The researchers have carried out a social network simulation: each individual is represented by a node, while links, connecting the nodes, represent social interactions. Each individual has the tendency to enhance their social importance, and to do so they necessarily have to connect with the "most central nodes", that is, to the people who count. However, to advance socially an individual has to break with the past: technically speaking, abandon old nodes and connect with the most central ones. But how many have an inclination to break up with old connections to aim high? In other words, how many opportunist individuals are there within a society?
"Actually", replies Giancarlo De Luca, a Ph.D. student in Statistical Physics at SISSA and co-author of the research, "all individuals are 'social climbers'. The fact that society is in an egalitarian or hierarchical phase does not depend, therefore, on the number of individuals aiming at social climbing, but rather on the importance that individuals of that society ascribe to social prestige."
Therefore, a society that features a strong dominant class may indicate, according to the simulations, that there is a greater "yearning" for social prestige on the part of the inferior levels. "It works a little like Facebook", explains De Luca. "The more contacts I have, the more popular I am. In our model, the number of links determines the closeness to the centre, and belonging to the lite." In a totally egalitarian society all individuals possess the same number of nodes, of contacts. Obviously, what occurs in reality is rather different: only a small number of individuals have a very high number of contacts, while the majority have only a few of them.
More in detail...
"A further interesting aspect we have observed - adds De Luca - is that those who achieve centrality tend to stay in the position of predominance for a long time. Conversely, individuals who are attempting to climb the social ladder, that is to say, are in an intermediate position, move much more rapidly, both in a positive and negative sense."
The study also highlights that in a society with a well-structured hierarchy it is easier to identify the central nodes, that is, "those who count more", and this is why their members will have a very clear idea of who to befriend in view of their climb to success. In such a way, a very hierarchical network will be increasingly more hierarchical, and will feature a great quantity of social climbers.
###
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-01/isoa-htb013013.php
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Like any top salesperson, Joseph Duveen targeted the most promising prospects and then sought to cultivate a relationship with them. He prepared diligently before making his move.
Duveen, a prominent British art dealer in the early 20th century, wanted to win Andrew Mellon as a client. Rather than simply contact the American banker and invite him to buy art, Duveen preferred to proceed in carefully plotted steps.
First, he studied Mellon?s public statements and observed the famous financier?s business dealings. Then Duveen role-played with his butler (who pretended to be Mellon), rehearsing the kind of conversations that would help him build rapport.
The next step was to meet Mellon. The opportunity arose in 1921, when Duveen happened to be staying at the same London hotel as the 66-year-old Mellon.
Duveen?s valet alerted his boss that Mellon was about to leave the hotel, so Duveen raced down the hall and managed to squeeze into the same elevator. He introduced himself to the banker and said, ?I?m on my way to the National Gallery. My great refreshment is to look at pictures.? Mellon accompanied Duveen and, by day?s end, wanted to buy from Duveen?s collection.
While they did occasional business together in the 1920s, Duveen?s real coup occurred in 1936. He knew that Mellon was bequeathing his collection to the new National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and he figured Mellon would be buying more art to supplement his contribution to the museum.
Duveen also knew that Mellon was living in an apartment near Dupont Circle in Washington. So he rented a unit one floor below and filled it with art that he wanted Mellon to buy.
He gave Mellon the key and invited him to view the collection anytime. Duveen did not live there, but hired a caretaker to assist when Mellon came down in his dressing gown and slippers to enjoy the paintings. Ultimately, Mellon bought all 42 pieces of art in the apartment for $21 million?the biggest art sale ever at the time.
? Adapted from The Art of the Sale, Philip Delves Broughton, The Penguin Press.
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Finnish startup Rightware is finding more and more homes for its Kanzi user interface, a fancy 3D layer for web sites and mobile devices. It is available with an improved version today.
?We?ve got a new generation of Kanzi coming, and it will be used in a new generation of devices,? Sarkkinen said. ?The graphics will be fluid and fast. We?re becoming the gold standard in user interfaces.?
The flow of new customers for Kanzi version 2.6 is gaining momentum. Kanzi is being used for the in-dash infotainment systems in the whole fleet of cars made by Audi. Johnson Controls is using Kanzi to design the user interface screens for car computers, such as instrument panels or navigation screens.
It is also available as an interface for apps on smartphones and tablets. One of those is the Nabi XD kids tablet computer from Fuhu. And Qualcomm has adopted Kanzi for its QRD reference platform for mobile devices. And RKS Design, an industrial design firm in Thousands Oaks, Calif., is using Kanzi for the design of tablets, smart TVs and other embedded gadgets.
To make a user interface the right way, the creators have to craft the screen so it can be refreshed constantly and pixels have to match precisely. App makers license the technology to do that from Rightware and use Kanzi to create custom user interfaces. Those interfaces can take advantage of high-end 3D graphics effects, but they run smoothly. That?s because Rightware optimized Kanzi for OpenGL ES, the open-source graphics standard technology. With OpenGL ES compatibility, Kanzi can tap the 3D graphics hardware in a device to draw its eye-catching imagery in a speedy way.
Espoo, Finland-based Rightware started as a part of graphics benchmarking firm Futuremark in 2004. Its goal was to create user interfaces for mobile computing. Sarkkinen left Futuremark in 2009 and immediately spun Rightware out of it. He raised $4.5 million, and on Jan. 3, he announced that he had recruited former Nokia executive Jonas Guest as Rightware?s chief executive. Sarkkinen, meanwhile, heads the company?s business in North America. Guest served as a member of Rightware?s board before taking the position, and he spent 15 years at Nokia.
Earlier, Rightware said its customers included Wikipad, a mobile tablet gaming company (interface pictured at bottom), has licensed it so players can browse through a game library quickly. Asus uses it in its Transformer convertible tablet/laptop. Fantasy Dice uses Rightware as a gaming interface.
Rightware supports any platform, including Android, iOS, Windows and anything else that runs OpenGL ES.
Rightware has a small team that designs user interfaces for a fee, but for the most part, it supplies tools for developers to use themselves. The interface tool allows developers to see changes they make to a design in real-time. The tools are available for sale now for $10,999 at the high end. Rightware is also providing a version for app developers for $999.
Rightware has 52 employees in Finland and offices in the U.S. and China. Sarkkinen said the company plans to raise a new round of funding later this year.
Filed under: Business, Gadgets, Games, Mobile, VentureBeat
This article originally appeared on VentureBeat Read More
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Public release date: 28-Jan-2013 Share ] Contact: Rosalie Marion Bliss
rosalie.bliss@ars.usda.gov
301-504-4318
United States Department of Agriculture - Research, Education and Economics
This press release is available in Spanish.
Poultry producers can reduce bacterial cross-contamination in poultry cages by treating the cages with forced air that's been heated to 122 degrees Fahrenheit, according to a study by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists.
While being transported in coops on trucks, poultry that have bacteria such as Campylobacter can contaminate, through their feces, other poultry that are free of pathogens. Those disease-causing bacteria can then be passed on to the next group of birds during the next trip, and so forth, unless the cycle is broken.
Campylobacter is a food-borne pathogen that can be present in raw or undercooked poultry. Since the bacteria are commonly found in the digestive tracts of poultry, they're readily deposited onto coops and trucks when contaminated animals are transported to processing plants.
In the study, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) microbiologists Mark Berrang and Richard Meinersmann collaborated with researcher Charles Hofacre of the University of Georgia at Athens. Berrang and Meinersmann work in the ARS Bacterial Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance Research Unit in Athens. ARS is USDA's principal intramural scientific research agency, and this research supports the USDA priority of promoting food safety.
The researchers tested the use of hot flowing air to speed the process of drying soiled or washed cages to lower or eliminate detectable Campylobacter on cage flooring.
When the hot flowing air was applied to fecally soiled transport cage flooring samples for 15 minutes after a water-spray wash treatment, Campylobacter levels declined to an undetectable level. Static heat at similar temperatures was not nearly as effective, and unheated flowing air was moderately effective, but less so than hot flowing air.
###
Read more about this research in the January 2013 issue of Agricultural Research magazine. http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/jan13/bacteria0113.htm
USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 632-9992 (Toll-free Customer Service), (800) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users).
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Public release date: 28-Jan-2013 Share ] Contact: Rosalie Marion Bliss
rosalie.bliss@ars.usda.gov
301-504-4318
United States Department of Agriculture - Research, Education and Economics
This press release is available in Spanish.
Poultry producers can reduce bacterial cross-contamination in poultry cages by treating the cages with forced air that's been heated to 122 degrees Fahrenheit, according to a study by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists.
While being transported in coops on trucks, poultry that have bacteria such as Campylobacter can contaminate, through their feces, other poultry that are free of pathogens. Those disease-causing bacteria can then be passed on to the next group of birds during the next trip, and so forth, unless the cycle is broken.
Campylobacter is a food-borne pathogen that can be present in raw or undercooked poultry. Since the bacteria are commonly found in the digestive tracts of poultry, they're readily deposited onto coops and trucks when contaminated animals are transported to processing plants.
In the study, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) microbiologists Mark Berrang and Richard Meinersmann collaborated with researcher Charles Hofacre of the University of Georgia at Athens. Berrang and Meinersmann work in the ARS Bacterial Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance Research Unit in Athens. ARS is USDA's principal intramural scientific research agency, and this research supports the USDA priority of promoting food safety.
The researchers tested the use of hot flowing air to speed the process of drying soiled or washed cages to lower or eliminate detectable Campylobacter on cage flooring.
When the hot flowing air was applied to fecally soiled transport cage flooring samples for 15 minutes after a water-spray wash treatment, Campylobacter levels declined to an undetectable level. Static heat at similar temperatures was not nearly as effective, and unheated flowing air was moderately effective, but less so than hot flowing air.
###
Read more about this research in the January 2013 issue of Agricultural Research magazine. http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/jan13/bacteria0113.htm
USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 632-9992 (Toll-free Customer Service), (800) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users).
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-01/usdo-wha012813.php
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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) ? Never mess with the guy who knows how to rumble.
Little-known Max Aaron won his first title at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on Sunday and helped knock down three-time champion Jeremy Abbott to the last step on the podium. With two quadruple jumps and an arsenal's worth of other tricks in his "West Side Story" program, don't count the 20-year-old upstart out at the world championships in March, either.
"I kind of thought in the back of my mind he could be the national champion," coach Tom Zakrajsek said. "There are so many great men and you never know how they're going to skate or how it's going to be judged. I did think he gave a performance today ? when you give a performance like that, it's worthy of a national title.
"He skated into the title, which is kind of a nice way to earn it."
Aaron screamed and shook his fists when he finished his program, then slid across the ice giving a Tiger Woods-like fist pump. (He was wearing red, appropriately, and it was Sunday.)
"The goals I had coming into this event were just to complete two clean programs. I didn't think of ever medaling," Aaron said. "But I knew if I completed the programs the way I know I can do them, I knew I could be up there."
When his marks were posted, Aaron's jaw dropped and the audience roared. He won the free skate in a rout to jump from fourth to first, and finished with 255 points overall, almost four better than Ross Miner.
Abbott, who had won three of the last four U.S. titles, dropped to third after a disappointing and flawed free skate. The Americans can only send two men to the world championships, so Abbott will have to watch and hope Aaron and Miner do well enough to get an extra spot for the Sochi Olympics.
"These two men skated brilliantly and they deserve to be in the positions they are," Abbott said. "Not to put any pressure on them, but they better get three spots for next year."
Aaron was the U.S. junior champ two years ago, but has done little of note since then. He actually considered quitting skating last summer, after he finished eighth at nationals.
Skating first of the top men, however, he wasted no time letting everyone know he's got the makings of a champion. He opened with two quadruple salchows, the first in combination with a double toe loop, and did seven triples. Aside from a small turn out on a triple axel, his jumps were done with such great speed and flow people watching at home on their couches were probably saying, "That doesn't look so hard, I could do that."
Aaron is more than just a jumping bean, however. His spins were excellent, so fast and tightly centered he was practically a blur. He jazzed up his footwork with high kicks and hops, the kind of flourishes audiences ? and judges ? love.
But it was his perfect portrayal of the bad boy in "West Side Story" that was most entertaining. As he heard the first notes of his music, he fixed the audience with a smirk and began snapping his fingers. He oozed attitude throughout the entire program, so much so it's a wonder the Jets didn't storm the ice and try and wipe the smile from his face.
"This wasn't just a performance that happened. This is how he trains," Zakrajsek said. "Our big goal was just to deliver what he trained and see how he fit in."
Aaron's big score in the free skate ? 175.87 ? was going to be tough for Abbott, Miner and the rest of the guys to top. No one came close.
Miner has quietly developed into one of the most reliable U.S. men, finishing third at the previous two nationals and winning a bronze at this year's NHK Trophy. That's bolstered his confidence, and he's skating with more polish and assertiveness than ever before. Every element in his program, to the old "Captain Blood" movie, was finished to perfection. There was no rushing out of jumps or awkward ends to spins.
It's the kind of precision a skater has to have if he's to contend with the international crowd.
He, too, did a quad salchow ? a gorgeous one, to boot ? and seven other triple jumps. His only flaw was singling an axel, a silly mistake that's sure to nag at him until next year's nationals.
"The single axel is not what I was looking for, but I'm happy I kept my head in it and fought all the way to the end," Miner said. "It was a good day."
Not for Abbott, whose program was barely adequate technically for a skater of his caliber.
He was so slow on the approach to his quadruple toe it looked as if he was going to stop and, no surprise, he landed on his rear end. But it was his other jumps that were more disappointing. His landings were scratchy and awkward, a shock for a skater who prides himself on his skating skills, including edge quality so fine the carvings could be sold as artwork.
He still might have finished ahead of Miner had he not popped his final jump, turning a planned triple salchow into a double. He skated off the ice banging his forehead with his fist.
"Stupid bleeping triple sal," Abbott said of what he was thinking. "When I doubled it, I knew that was going to be the difference. It's the easiest jump in the program, and I let it go. I knew at that point I going to be just enough behind."
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/aaron-shakes-us-mens-skating-1st-title-222853947--spt.html
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"The mystery shop showed that the most recommended Samsung handsets were the Galaxy SIII and the Galaxy Note II, despite having been on the market longer than the latest handsets from Apple, Nokia and HTC," said Julian Jest of Informa. "However, most surprising was the way that, despite an in-store advertising campaign and recent product launch, Apple was recommended in only two stores, 3 and Phones 4 U, with both recommending the iPhone 5."
The mystery shopper survey was carried out at John Lewis, Everything Everywhere, O2, 3, Maplins, PC World, Carphone Warehouse and Phones 4U. Informa Telecoms and Media believe that the reason behind customer service assistants recommending Samsung phones over the iPhone is purely down to money. Informa believes it was "likely that sales assistants see the Samsung devices as a safe bet to earn greater commissions".
Source: The Telegraph
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/aa2FCCBpcBs/story01.htm
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NEW YORK ? For most in the New York City area, life has returned to normal since Superstorm Sandy wrought devastation last fall. Now, the city and other communities must attempt to glean lessons from the storm, as well as other disasters, and use them to plan for the future.
These disastrous natural events are not isolated anomalies; there's reason to expect more in the future. Natural records, such as those contained in sedimentary cores from lakebeds and in tree rings, indicate massive floods and droughts occurred in the distant past, when little human infrastructure existed in North America. And human-caused climate change is expected to exacerbate some extreme weather, causing, for example, heavy precipitation and heat waves.
A panel of experts gathered at the New York Academy of Sciences on Thursday (Jan. 24) evening to discuss how cities and other communities can better prepare for these disasters. Here are 10 lessons from Sandy the experts said cities should heed in preparing for future disasters, particularly those linked with climate change.
1. Beware sea level rise: The sea level in the New York City area has risen about a foot (0.3 meters) over the last century, said Radley Horton, a climate scientist at Columbia University. Sandy brought a record storm surge to the southern tip of Manhattan, and that surge received a boost from the increase in sea levels, Horton said. Because of these rising sea levels, "even weaker storms in the future can cause more devastating flooding," he said. [On the Ground: Hurricane Sandy in Images]
2. Skepticism of storm barriers: The devastation caused by Sandy's storm surge prompted discussion of installing a barrier system in the waters surrounding New York. But a barrier system, which uses a gate to let ships, fish and water in and out, wouldn't address the real problem ? sea-level rise, said Klaus Jacob, a geophysicist at Columbia University who has studied the impact of climate change on coastal cities.
A short-term cost-benefit analysis does favor a storm barrier system, because the city could avoid improving its infrastructure. But a barrier would not provide a long-term solution and would allow the city to procrastinate in dealing with the inevitable, Jacob said.
3. Discuss retreat: People can adapt to the increasing threat of storms in different ways, Jacob said. They can seek protection through measures like storm barriers; they can accommodate the risk by, for example, elevating buildings to reduce flood risk; or they can move when risks become too high, a strategy called managed retreat, he said.
"I think that needs to be much more aired in the public, because it is obviously the hardest to do," Jacob said.
4. Consider ways to make retreat possible: Cities and communities in the United States need new tools to deal with situations in which it is unrealistic for people to stay in a particular place, said James Russell, architecture critic for Bloomberg News and author of "The Agile City: Building Well Being and Wealth in an Era of Climate Change" (Island Press, 2011).
For example, a legal tool called land re-adjustment has shown success in the Netherlands, where a portion of land lies below sea level. When a community is threatened, its land is re-allocated elsewhere and property lines redrawn, he said. [MD1]?Tools used by the Nature Conservancy to protect land could also be helpful, Russell said. For instance, conservation easementslimit how land can be used, particularly by prohibiting development.?
5. Re-envision the city: A version of New York City better adapted to the threat of hurricanes and storms would look different from today's city, Jacob said. The altered metropolis would have a "slightly smaller footprint, [and] we will have to change our density pattern accordingly," he said. "We will have more parks on the waterfront as buffers, and we will have to change our infrastructure radically." [Hurricanes from Above: See Nature's Biggest Storms]
Changes to infrastructure could include modifying the electrical grid, emptying out the lower basements of skyscrapers and using them for parking, and halting vulnerable development, such as housing, along the waterfront, Jacob said.????????
6. Think natural: As a result of development over the centuries, New York City and its surrounding area have lost wetlands and oyster reefs, natural features that once protected the coast from storms, said Nicole Maher, the senior coast scientist with The Nature Conservancy on Long Island. Restoring these features could help make the coast more resilient, by, for example, reducing wave velocity and erosion. Wetlands and oyster reefs also provide other benefits, such as the removal of contaminants from the water, Maher said.
7. Reconsider costs: On average, every $1 spent to make infrastructure more resilient against pounding storms saves $4 in costs later on, but human nature tends not to acknowledge this math, Jacob said.
8. Don't fight the last war: After a disaster like Sandy, the natural tendency is to discuss how to protect our shoreline, "but other things are going to matter," said Robert McDonald, senior scientist for sustainable land-use with The Nature Conservancy. McDonald pointed out that heat wavesand disease are also major threats associated with climate change.
9. Keep uncertainty in mind: By allowing greenhouse gas emissions to accumulate in the atmosphere, humans are conducting a giant experiment with the planet, McDonald said. "Yes, there are a lot of fancy models," that is, computer models used to project future climate. "But there will be huge surprises and things cities have to adapt to that we cannot predict."
10. Disasters bring equity issues: In response to audience questions, moderator Andrew Revkin, of The New York Times, pointed out that both poor and rich neighborhoods are exposed to risks associated with extreme events and climate change, because of where they are located. Sandy, for instance, inundated wealthy lower Manhattan as well as the Rockaways in Queens, the site of public housing projects.
As a result, it is important to avoid pitting these interests against one another in battles for resources needed to adapt, since poorer neighborhoods have less political clout, McDonald noted. He also pointed out that while cities in the developed world, such as New York, have the resources to make changes, others in the developing world, such as in Bangladesh, do not.
Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience. We're also on Facebook?& Google+.
Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Source: http://news.yahoo.com/future-disasters-10-lessons-superstorm-sandy-191039318.html
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SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore's long-dominant People's Action Party (PAP) lost heavily in a single-seat by-election on Saturday, a barometer of how the government is dealing with discontent in the wealthy Asian country over immigration and the high cost of living.
The result in the Punggol East ward - 54.5 percent of the vote for the Workers Party and 43.7 percent for the PAP, with the rest split by two others - does not alter the balance of power in parliament, where the ruling party will still hold 80 of 87 elected seats.
But the rebuke in the relatively young and affluent constituency sends a signal to the PAP about the level of dissatisfaction in the city-state of 5.3 million people that is a hub for banks and multinational companies.
"I want a difference," said Nita, a woman in her 30s. "If the Workers Party can do well in Punggol East, the other constituencies are also watching."
Some analysts had expected the PAP to eke out a victory, especially if the three opposition candidates diluted the anti-government vote. The next general election is due in 2016.
The seat in Punggol East, won by the PAP in 2011 with 54 percent of the vote, was vacant after the speaker of parliament quit in December over an extramarital affair. Other recent scandals include last year's arrest of the civil defense chief and head of the police anti-drug unit on corruption charges.
"I respect the choice of Punggol East voters," Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a statement. He called on people to refocus on national issues including the 2013 budget and a new population and immigration plan the government is preparing to deliver.
"The PAP will continue to improve the lives of Singaporeans, and present our report card for voters to judge in the next general elections," he said.
The PAP - founded by Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's first leader for three decades and father of the current prime minister - has won every national election since independence in 1965, transforming the post-colonial port into a major financial center by keeping the economy open and society regimented.
But the 2011 election was its worst showing ever, prompting the government to engage more openly with increasingly vocal citizens over their concerns about property prices, public transport and immigration. Foreigners now make up about 38 percent of the population, up from about 25 percent in 2000.
Rolling out measures to help Singaporeans, it has raised the levy on foreigners buying property and boosted spending on housing grants, subsidized childcare and cash gifts for babies to try to raise one of the world's lowest fertility rates.
But as Saturday's by-election shows, many people expect more from the government, or at least a bigger say for the opposition.
"The PAP forgets us after the elections - only gives candies during elections and terms and conditions after," said Daniel Chua, a 58-year-old consultant. "The Workers Party has the heart to serve."
(Additional reporting by Jion Chun Teo; Editing by Doina Chiacu)
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Andre Csillag / Rex Features via AP file
By Us Weekly
Fans will be happy to know that Wilko Johnson is in very good spirits after doctors diagnosed him with terminal pancreatic cancer. The "Game of Thrones" actor and Dr. Feelgood bandmember shared the heartbreaking news on Jan. 10 on his Facebook page, and is now opening up about how he's doing now.
In an intimate interview with Radio 4's Front Row (via BBC), Johnson, 65, explained that he went to the doctor after feeling a lump in his stomach, which he initially ignored. When his doctors gave him the shocking diagnosis, he explained, it strangely energized him.
PHOTOS: Stars who have battled cancer
"We walked out of there and I felt an elation of spirit. You're walking along and suddenly you're vividly alive. You're looking at the trees and the sky and everything and it's just 'whoah,'" Johnson said. "I am actually a miserable person. I've spent most of my life moping in depressions and things, but this has all lifted."
Johnson opted not to receive any chemotherapy after he learned such treatment could only prolong his life by two months. With about 9 or 10 months to live, according to his doctor, the star says he plans to live his life to the fullest until the end. The musician is scheduled to perform a farewell tour with shows beginning February in France.
PHOTOS: Celebrity health scares
"If the cancer kicks in before that, then I can't go on stage. I'm not going to go on stage looking ill -- I don't wanna present a sorry spectacle!" he said. "I'm not hoping for a miracle cure or anything. I just hope it spares me long enough to do these gigs -- then I'll be a happy man."
PHOTOS: British stars
The talented star says he still "bursts into tears" thinking about his late wife, Irene, who died of cancer eight years ago, but has managed to keep his spirits up when thinking about his own death.
"Right now it's just fantastic -- it makes you feel alive," Still, he observed, "This position I'm in is so strange, in that I do feel fit and yet I know death is upon me."
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Women are already on the front lines?more than 150 have lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan?but are in roles categorized as "combat support." This has led some servicewomen, including a group that filed suit against the military, to argue that they take on similar combat risks as their male peers but are not granted the same recognition for their service.
The change will most likely allow women to become battlefield medics and take on other dangerous combat jobs, but it's still unclear if the military's elite special operations jobs will be open to them, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Shannon McLaughlin, a U.S. Army major in the Massachusetts National Guard and a judge advocate general, shares her thoughts on the announcement. She has been in the military for 15 years, including a sting deployed in Iraq. (McLaughlin is currently a plaintiff in a suit challenging the federal government's Defense of Marriage Act, which denies military benefits to her spouse because McLaughlin is married to a woman.)
Q: What do you think of the recent decision by the Pentagon to open up all combat roles to women?
A: It's a great move. I've been in for 15 years, and that includes the last 10 years that we've been in war, and I think that it will be an opportunity for us to truly reflect what's happening in the field. The reality is that women might be in noncombat or combat-support roles, but they frequently end up in combat, and we've certainly had many women injured and killed in combat. I think it's really in many ways a reflection of reality.
Q: Were you ever engaged in combat while you were deployed?
Yes. I've been fired upon. I've fired. I was never injured in the line of duty by enemy engagement or anything like that. But sure, like most people that ended up deployed, we found ourselves in very tough combat-like situations from time to time. We were at a forward operating base and enemy fire was coming in, and we had to take cover and return fire. It was a very short duration, but it was nonetheless very real and very harrowing. (McLaughlin deployed to Iraq in 2001 for Operation Enduring Freedom.)
I'm a JAG. I'm an attorney. When I deployed I was in sonar intelligence.
Q: What do you think of the arguments that having women in combat roles will negatively affect unit cohesion and that women aren't suited for ground combat?
We already have this situation where men and women are fighting next to each other. They're taking shrapnel from IEDs; they're taking fire together. Some women won't be good at combat; some men won't be good at combat. Even within our military there's those who are better suited to carrying rifles [than others]. It should be based on ability, aptitude and willingness.
Q: How do you think the move will be received within the military?
I'm full-time military and I went to work yesterday and today, and it wasn't a hot topic. It was just like, 'Oh, OK, yup, that was coming.' It was like the repeal of 'don't ask, don't tell.' I think the military does an extremely good job at adapting to what our leaders and commander in chief tell us to do. We'll do that here, too. There may be some realignments that have to go on, some attitudes may have to shift. We'll do fine like we always do.
Q: Have you ever felt like being a woman has held you back in the military?
I certainly have felt at times that women were looked at as though we couldn't perform the task up to par, and it was assumed that we couldn't. If there can be any benefit to having a wartime situation, it's that women have truly been tested in these [combat-support] roles and have done incredibly well. They've served just as admirably as their male counterparts. We've gone through all the same tests.
Q: If the nation ever needs to reinstate a draft, do you think it should include women?
Yes, it should be open to women. Why not? We haven't had a draft since Vietnam, and things have changed in our country. We have an all-volunteer now, and I think almost everybody would prefer it stay that way. But if we had a draft, I would think that everybody should be included ... and we would have the same criteria for people to be excused from it as in Vietnam.
Q: How has the military changed since you enlisted 15 years ago?
It's become more diverse. I think it's become more inclusive. We have more women in the military than we did 15 years ago. We finally have the ability for gay and lesbians to [openly] serve. My first five years of service it was a very different landscape. Women were on the periphery; now we are right there. There's a handful of female generals and female colonels. Being in the military is not easy whether you're straight or a gay man or woman.
Q: If combat roles had been open to you when you enlisted, would you have considered taking one on?
Earlier in my career, if Special Forces was open to me I certainly would have considered it. It's too late for me in my career now. But when I was just starting out and very eager, that's when people do things like that. I've been in many situations, and you look around the room and some of the men, even on the JAG side ... some of them will have those Special Forces tags on their shoulders. That is a great honor and a great achievement for a military person to have. That type of designation or accomplishment can mean promotions earlier, other opportunities because you've proven yourself. That was never open to me or any other women. I would love to see the next generation of military women have that option.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/women-combat-q-female-soldier-163115910.html
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Not all iPad keyboards are created alike, and some of them are definitely better than others. We're willing to bet that those of you who have iPads and use an external keyboard have one you'd recommend to others if they want to extend the capabilities of their tablet. Let us know which ones you think are the best in the discussions below!
Hive Five nominations take place in the discussions, where you post your favorite tool for the job. We get hundreds of nominations, so to make your nomination clear, please include it at the top of your post like so: VOTE: BEST IPAD KEYBOARD. Please don't include your vote in a reply to another person. Nominations emailed to us will not be counted. Instead, make your vote and reply separate discussions. After you've made your nomination, let us know what makes it stand out from the competition.
About the Hive Five: The Hive Five feature series asks readers to answer the most frequently asked question we get: "Which tool is the best?" Once a week we'll put out a call for contenders looking for the best solution to a certain problem, then YOU tell us your favorite tools to get the job done. Every weekend, we'll report back with the top five recommendations and give you a chance to vote on which is best. For an example, check out last week's five best living room speaker sets.
The Hive Five is based on reader nominations. As with most Hive Five posts, if your favorite was left out, it's not because we hate it?it's because it didn't get the nominations required in the call for contenders post to make the top five. We understand it's a bit of a popularity contest, but if you have a favorite, we want to hear about it. Have a suggestion for the Hive Five? Send us an email at tips+hivefive@lifehacker.com!
Photo by Michael Sheehan.
Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/rJlYL_7vPvc/best-ipad-keyboard
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By Randee Dawn, TODAY contributor
"Mad Men" fans got a little tease Wednesday when AMC officially announced that the Emmy-winning series would be back for its sixth season on April 7 -- and they've now followed it up with a series of black-and-white photos of the cast, done up in very formal and fancy outfits, appearing to have a good time at a swank affair.
Frank Ockenfels / AMC
"Mad Men's" Betty Francis (January Jones), Sally Draper (Kiernan Shipka), Megan Draper (Jessica Pare) and Don Draper (Jon Hamm).
Frank Ockenfels / AMC
"Mad Men's" Ken Cosgrove (Aaron Stanton), Harry Crane (Rich Sommer), Roger Sterling (John Slattery), Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks) and Bertram Cooper (Robert Morse).
The photos show most of the main cast, including John Slattery, Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss and Christina Hendricks, but they're just eye candy at the moment. Eagle-eyed viewers won't get any particular plot points from these photos, which appear to be purely promotional and not stills from an episode. That said, January Jones, whose Betty fought the battle of the bulge last season, is looking particularly svelte -- so has she won the war??
Frank Ockenfels / AMC
"Mad Men's" Roger Sterling (John Slattery), Don Draper (Jon Hamm), Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks) and Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser).
We'll have to wait and see.
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InterAksyon.com
The online news portal of TV5
The country's gross domestic product fell 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter, the Office for National Statistics said on Friday, a sharper fall than the 0.1 percent decline forecast by analysts.
The news is a blow for Britain's Conservative-led government, which a day earlier defended its austerity program against criticism from the International Monetary Fund. It needs solid growth to meet its budget targets, keep a triple-A debt rating and bolster its chances of winning a 2015 election.
Sterling fell to its lowest in 13-1/2 months against the euro and hit a five-month low against the dollar in response to the data. The euro was also buoyed by a stronger-than-expected German Ifo sentiment survey.
"This is a very disappointing outturn," said Philip Shaw, economist at Investec in London. "Clearly now the talk will focus on whether we are in a triple dip recession. Certainly the news is unwanted."
Britain's economy is now 3.3 percent smaller than its peak in Q1 2008, having recovered only about half the output lost during the financial crisis - a worse performance than most other major economies.
The country slipped back into recession in the last three months of 2011, and only emerged from it in the third quarter of 2012, after a boost from the London Olympics.
After a bout of inclement snowy weather in January - which is likely to have hit spending and output - the risk is that the economy will continue to shrink in the first three months of this year, technically pushing it into a rare and unwelcome "triple dip" recession.
Britain's biggest department store group, John Lewis JLP.UL, said earlier on Friday that snow was responsible for its sales growth stalling in the latest week.
Politically incendiary
In economic terms, the picture remains one of stagnation over the past year. But politically, the latest dip in national output is more incendiary.
"Stagnation is going to be the theme for the next couple of quarters or so. This obviously brings Osborne's strategy into sharp relief and also the (Bank of England) strategy of maintaining or not sanctioning further monetary policy action," said Rob Wood at Berenberg Bank. "The Bank of England were forecasting a return to some growth in Q1 and that is likely to be disappointed."
Finance minister George Osborne stuck fast to his austerity plan on Thursday, rejecting suggestions from the International Monetary Fund's chief economist that he should consider slowing his deficit reduction plan.
Prime Minister David Cameron this week staked his political future on offering a referendum on Britain's place in the European Union. But it is Osborne's gamble that austerity will deliver strong growth before a 2015 election that will be crucial in determining his Conservative party's chance of winning.
After the figures were released, the Treasury conceded that Britain still faced a "very difficult economic situation".
"While the economy is healing, it is still a difficult road," it said in a statement.
Britain's chief central banker Mervyn King expects no more than a "gentle recovery" this year, while this week the IMF cut its 2013 forecast for British economic growth to 1.0 percent from 1.1 percent predicted in October.
However, economists and business groups warn that even such lackluster growth could be derailed by a hit to firms' and consumers' confidence from talk of a triple-dip recession.
That prospect will add to pressure on the ruling coalition of Conservatives and Liberal Democrats to loosen its deficit-cutting drive and bolster the economy as George Osborne prepares his 2013 budget, due in March.
The biggest driver for the fourth-quarter fall in GDP was a 10.2 percent drop in mining and quarrying output, the biggest since records began in 1997, driven by disruption from extended maintenance affecting North Sea oil and gas fields.
This knocked 0.18 percent off GDP, while slightly smaller amounts of damage were done by falls in factory output and in the 'government and other services' category, where the Olympics had boosted sports and recreation services in the third quarter.
Friday's figures showed output in the service sector -- which makes up more than three quarters of GDP -- was flat in the fourth quarter. Industrial output was 1.8 percent lower.
?
Source: http://www.interaksyon.com/article/53579/britains-economy-shrinks-anew-flirts-with-triple-dip
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