McDonald's Selling Lamb Burgers In Australia

What's next? Kangaroo nuggets?

PIRL?

Plus-1 In Real Life?

Girl falls into sidewalk sinkhole in China.

A surveillance camera captured an incredible accident: A girl walking down the sidewalk in Northern China while talking on a cell phone was suddenly swallowed up by a hole in the sidewalk 20 feet deep!

Water had eroded the ground underneath the sidewalk, so the concrete had become unsupported.

A crowd gathered to rescue her. A heroic taxi driver jumped in the hole and climbed to the bottom of the pit to rescue her. Firefighters arrived, and lowered a ladder down into the pit and the two climbed out.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/9222594/Girl-rescued-after-falling-through-pavement.html

QR code reveals itself on glass only when it's filled with Guinness!

Marketers take note! Guinness is running a marketing campaign called Guinness QR Cup. You can't see a QR code etched into the glass until you fill it with Guinness. (Most other beers aren't dark enough to work.) Then you can snap a pic with your smart phone, at which point "it tweets about your pint, updates your facebook status, checks you in via 4 square, downloads coupons and promotions, invites your friends to join, and even launches exclusive Guiness content."

http://www.thedieline.com/blog/2012/5/18/guinness-qr-cup.html

Posted first on Google+ by +James Moore.

Why my next phone might not be a phone.

About a month ago, I wrote a column called: Wait, so why do we need phones again? My point was that the "phone" inside smartphones is the most unnecessary part of the phone. After all, there are dozens of really good apps and connected services that replace nearly all aspects of phone-call making and text messaging.

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9235952/Wait_so_why_do_we_need_phones_again_

To me, the most important features of a phone are the camera, and also the ability to run all kinds of apps.

So what's the downside of buying something like the Samsung Galaxy Camera EK-GC100, which is an Android-based, Android-app running, mobile broadband and Wi-Fi connecting digital camera that does not have a "phone" built into it. (Besides the bulk.)

Am I missing something? Why not use this device, plus Google+, Google Voice and Skype to replace the phone feature?

http://www.gizmag.com/review-samsung-galaxy-camera/26311/

Saudi Arabia to Build City for Women Only

The Saudi Arabian government has finally figured out a way to allow women to move around freely and have careers without violating their unique interpretation of Sharia law -- ban all men.

The plan is to build a city where men are not allowed.

Construction begins next year. The city is reportedly expected to create 5,000 jobs in various industries, where all the employees will be women.

http://www.rt.com/news/women-city-saudi-sharia-339/

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-07/saudis-to-build-new-industrial-city-for-women-eqtisadiah-says.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2187072/No-mans-land-Women-city-planned-Saudi-Arabia-allow-more-females-pursue-career.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

http://www.albawaba.com/business/saudi-arabia-industrial-women-437309

(Pic props: http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/267161/20111214/saudi-woman-beheaded-witchcraft-sorcery.htm )

The five secrets to living a fulfilling and meaningful life.

Here are the five secrets to living a fulfilling and meaningful life, according to the ultimate experts on the subject (people who are dying):

1. Have the courage to live a life true to yourself, not the life others expect of you.

2. Don't work so hard.

3. Have the courage to express your feelings.

4. Stay in touch with friends.

5. Let yourself be happy.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/feb/01/top-five-regrets-of-the-dying

Pic props: http://www.condenaststore.com/-sp/I-should-have-bought-more-crap-New-Yorker-Cartoon-Prints_i8543390_.htm

It's time to decriminalize nature and legalize food.

A dairy farmer in Wisconsin is facing two and a half years in prison for selling raw milk. 

Even the charge is legally false. The "buyers" of the milk were actually part of a "buyer's club" who bought shares in the cows. 

But let's be honest: The dairy farmer's crime was offering people an alternative to the massive and politically powerful US dairy industry. 

The problem with raw milk production is that it cannot be industrialized. So it's not a product that giant companies can produce at scale. Therefore, they want it to be unsafe and illegal and they press government to make sure that happens. 

How dangerous is raw milk? Between 1998 and 2011 there have been two fatalities nationwide. That's being used to justify the jailing of a farmer who sells raw milk to people who know the so-called risks and choose to buy and drink it anyway. 

Meanwhile, Harvard researchers say that 25,000 US deaths each year are linked to sodas and other "sugary drinks." 

Two deaths in 13 years = prison for selling a dangerous beverage. 

25,000 deaths each year = massive subsidy from the government to encourage lower prices and higher consumption. 

Raw milk is controversial and people aren't going to agree about it. But that's not what this is about. This is about whether corporations should be able to criminalize food -- any food -- because they don't want competition.

And it's about whether the government for any reason should ban food that people want to eat, weather it's trans fats and Big Gulp sodas in New York (illegal), raw almonds in California (illegal) or raw milk anywhere. 

I think the health food people and the junk food people should unite to end food fascism and legalize all food. 

Don't you agree? 

Hey, US government: The queen of England drinks raw milk. Maybe next time she's on a good will tour of the United States she should be bagged, tagged and shipped off to Guantanamo for her crimes against bovinity!

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/05/12/wisconsin-farmer-to-stand-trial-for-selling-raw-milk.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/3341324/Untreated-milk-is-in-demand.html

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2013/03/19/25000-us-deaths-linked-to-sugary-drinks/

Why I'm looking forward to the end of the world Friday.

The world ends Friday, according to idiots. 

I love it when this happens. The first doomsday I remember was when I was a kid -- probably in the 4th grade or so -- and some Nostradamus-inspired hysteria gripped the nation. Two or three families left the street where I lived to head to higher ground (that end of the world involved flooding of some kind). 

Since then, every few years or so, certain kinds of people get all worked up about some historical misinformation and convince each other that the world is going to end. 

The most recent and the best apocalypse of my lifetime was last year. Radio preacher Harold Camping said he was absolutely certain that the Bible says the world was to end May 21. After realizing that the world didn't get the memo, he retreated into prayer and reflection and came back convinced he was wrong. In fact, he said, the world would end October 11. Again, the world stubbornly refused to end.

Camping's cult headquarters were in the Bay Area, and there were dozens of billboards all over the place promising the end of the world. It was really funny to watch them take the billboards down after October 11th. 

That doomsday was the best because the hysteria was spread by a single man, who genuinely seem to believe his own biblical numerology. Some of his followers quit school or gave away all their money, and were left undereducated and broke after their faith-based catastrophe failed to materialize. 

I had stumbled across Brother Camping's program many times over the years while driving around, and sometimes gave it a listen out of morbid fascination. Pretty much everything I ever heard him say was wrong or at least misguided, though he gained millions of followers all over the world. How wonderful for him to be actually proved wrong so publicly. 

And now another end of the world is upon us. According to believers, the Mayans predicted that the world would end on December 21, 2012. 

In reality, their calendar ended. It had to end. There isn't enough stone in the whole of Guatemala to chisel a calendar that never ends. 

Nevertheless, the ignoramuses are coming out in force. 

The Chinese government has arrested nearly 100 people for spreading rumors about the Mayan apocalypse. (That nutjob who knifed 23 school-children in China last week was reportedly "influenced" by the doomsday.) 

Russians are buying up all the candles, matches, salt and torches to ward off the end somehow. 

People all over the world are buying or building bunkers or survival pods. 

And, of course, Twitter won't shut up about it: http://goo.gl/pw7gB

The reason I love the end of the world so much is this: People preach stupid, ignorant, emotional, ill-informed nonsense all the time, and you can never convince them otherwise. You can argue, persuade, use logic -- nothing works. 

But in this one case, the small-minded, superstitious, anti-science, demon-haunted world believers actually get proved totally and utterly wrong, and even they have to accept it. 

So point and laugh at the believers. Make the most of it. The end of the world only happens every few years, on average. 

I always look forward to the next apocalypse, and I've been looking forward to the Mayan end of the world for a long time. 

Thank God it's Friday. 

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2012-12/17/c_132046518.htm

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_CHINA_SCHOOL_STABBING

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/dec/17/mayan-apocalypse-mania-grips-russia

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2249502/Mayan-Doomsday-Bomb-proof-50-000-bunkers-leather-sofas-plasma-TVs.html

(Pic props to the Mayans for this irrefutable proof that the world will end Friday.)

What the next four years is going to do to the president.

Bloomberg BusinessWeek has done some unhelpful Photoshop aging of President Obama, predicting what the ravages of presidential stress will do to the First Face over the next four years. 

http://observer.com/2012/11/businessweek-cover-gives-a-glimpse-of-the-future-for-president-elect-barack-obama/

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-11-07/cover-of-bloomberg-businessweek-marks-reelection-of-president-obama

Wow. Photographer takes pictures from the exact place as famous photos, then superimposes the historical details into the photos.

Photographer Seth Taras made a series of pictures for a History Channel ad campaign.

I've seen this kind of thing before, but never this well done.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2303250/The-poignant-images-combine-present-day-locations-momentous-historical-events-took-place-there.html

The Supreme Court to decide if it's legal for a farmer to buy seeds and plant them.

A farmer named Hugh Bowman bought soybean seeds not from the seed store but from the feed store -- soybeans being sold for feeding to livestock. He planted them.

Most of those feed soybeans were GMOs created by Monsanto. So Monsanto sued Bowman, saying they own the DNA in those soybeans, and therefore can tell farmers like Bowman what to do with the soybeans they buy.

To over-simplify, farmer Bowman's argument is that when he buys something, he should have the right to do whatever he wants with it.

Monsanto's argument is that when Bowman plants seeds developed by Monsanto, he is making an illegal copy of their invention.

The case is headed for the Supreme Court later this month.

What's YOUR opinion?

 http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/farmers-use-of-genetically-modified-soybeans-grows-into-supreme-court-case/2013/02/09/8729f05a-717c-11e2-ac36-3d8d9dcaa2e2_story.html

UPDATE #1: Supreme court rules in favor of Monsanto. (May 14, 2013)

The Supreme court ruled in the case this week in favor of Monsanto. They agreed with Monsanto's position that their patented GMO seeds are an "invention" and when a farmer plants them they are copying Monsanto's intellectual property and therefor may only do so according Monsanto's contract (which requires that new seeds be purchased for each planting). 

They ruled that their decision affects only this case and not other "self-replicating products." 

http://m.washingtonpost.com/politics/supreme-court-rules-for-monsanto-in-genetically-modified-soybean-case/2013/05/13/c84d7710-bbdb-11e2-97d4-a479289a31f9_story.html

Is this iPhone 5 case worth $200?

It's tactical! And it has an anti-glare privacy screen overlay, and other features. But is it worth the money?

http://www.cultofmac.com/203244/is-this-the-most-bad-ass-iphone-5-case-yet/

Australian students learn about the battle bots of the Russian Revolution.

Australian high school students were surprised recently to learn that BattleTech Marauder robots were deployed in the Russian Revolution of 1917. 

A major history exam included a picture of a painting called Storming the Winter palace on 25th October 1917 by Nikolai Kochergin, which included said robot joining the people in the uprising. 

And this is why you shouldn't grab images from the Internet. 

http://www.theage.com.au/national/education/history-transformed-in-vce-exam-20121114-29ce7.html

http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Marauder

Posted first on Google+ by +Michael Kalus. 

Rotten Tomatoes shuts down Dark Knight comments as Batman fanboys overwhelm moderators.

Movie criticism roundup site Rotten Tomatoes has shut down comments for the movie The Dark Knight Rises, saying that comment moderators just can't handle the volume of comments. 

In a batshell, rabid Batman fanboys are verbally attacking the minority of critics who panned the movie, and doing so with so much volume, energy and negativity that Rotten Tomatoes decided that moderating the comments just wasn't worth it anymore. 

http://www.newser.com/story/150306/rotten-tomatoes-kills-dark-knight-comments.html

1 World Trade Center now the tallest tower in the US.

The building constructed on the site of the 2001 World Trade Center terrorist attacks today became the tallest tower in the United States. They finished putting the top on, which makes it 1,776 feet high.

http://news.yahoo.com/spire-installed-wtc-tower-making-1-776-feet-212723170.html

Why Pankration Must Be Restored to the Olympics

The first modern summer Olympics, held in Athens in 1896, included events selected at the first Olympic Congress organized by French historian Pierre de Coubertin. Nearly all the events selected were modern sports actively practiced in countries in Europe and in the United States, but many with roots in the ancient games. (One exception was the Marathon, the idea for which was proposed for the Olympics by French philologist Michel Jules Alfred Breal as a way to capture the glory of ancient Greece.)

The Ancient Olympic Games, which started in 776 BC and lasted for nearly 12 centuries, included the following events throughout most of its history: 

Stadion (a roughly 200-yard running race)

Diaulos (twice the distance of a stadion)

Dolichos (7 to 24 stadions)

Long jump

Javelin

Discus

Pentathlon (long jump, javelin, discus, stadion and wrestling)

Wrestling

Boxing 

Pankration 

Hoplitodromos (medium-distance race run by athletes in armor)

Plus, a variety of horse races. 

All the ancient human athletic events (as opposed to horse races) have direct modern equivalents except the Hoplitodromos. They're very familiar to us -- track and field, as well as wrestling and boxing. Ancient Olympians viewing the modern Olympics would recognize these events immediately. 

There is a good reason why both Pankration and the Hoplitodromos were excluded from the founding of the modern Olympics: They had both long since disappeared as fully-functioning competitive sports. And Hoplitodromos is totally obsolete, as it involves running with bronze-age helmets, armor, shields and spears. 

But over the past few decades, Pankration has staged a come-back. 

Pankration, which means "all powers," is roughly a combination of wrestling and boxing. It might have been the world's first "martial art." It may have even been practiced more than a millennium before the first Ancient Olympic Games.

Ancient Olympic Pankration had only two rules. No biting, and no gouging the eyes out. All Pankration athletes were pardoned preemptively for murder, should any of them kill opponents in the contest. Knockouts were common, but many Pankration matches went to the ground, where joint-locks, pins, body strikes and other moves were combined with choking. An athlete could raise his hand to the referee at any time to concede defeat. 

Pakration is the only ancient Olympic sport that is growing and flourishing internationally in the modern world but not included in the Olympics.

Martial arts tournaments around the world include sparring events. Mixed martial arts and Extreme Fighting are among the most popular spectator sports ever. These are all, more or less, Pankration. But one of the fastest growing sports in the world right now is Pankration itself. 

Ancient Pankration has been modernized for safety. Practitioners in Greece and around the world are reviving Pankration with new teams and tournaments, new rules and regulations. 

So here we have a central sport to the Ancient Olympic Games. It has undergone an enormous resurgence outside the Modern Olympic Games. What's wrong with this picture? 

The Olympics includes the Japanese martial art of Judo, and the Korean martial art of Tae Kwon Do -- both fairly modern inventions -- but not the Greek martial art. The Olympic martial art.

The International Olympics Committee reviews a wide range of submissions for new sports to be added to the Olympic Games. Pankration is different from all of these sports. Pankration should receive immediate and automatic inclusion in all future Olympic Games.

The creation of the Modern Olympic Games more than 100 years ago was a profoundly European idea. But Europe itself probably would never have existed without Pankration. The ancient Greeks used Pankration, among other skills and practices, to defeat invaders and defend Greece. And without Greece, there would have been no Roman Empire, no Europe, no Renaissance and no Modern Olympic Games. 

Pankration should and must be restored to the Olympic Games.

(Note: Nhis is a revised version of a post from The Spartan Diet blog in 2009: http://thespartandiet.blogspot.gr/2009/10/why-pankration-must-be-restored-to.html )

(Pic props: http://arxaiopnevma.blogspot.com/2012/07/blog-post_9348.html )

How Bluetooth 4.0 will change your life.

Wireless technologies have been transforming domestic life since the availability of home radios in the 1920s. Since then every new kind of wireless technology and every new application has brought more transformative changes to the home. 

Television, for example, used to receive its signal wirelessly, which enabled its fast adoption in the 1950s. As the use of cable TV spread, transforming a wireless signal into a nonwireless one, wireless remote controls added another convenience. 

Cordless phones changed when and where you could make and receive calls. Wireless garage door openers and other special-purpose wireless devices subtly improved people's lives in small ways. You probably have a Wi-Fi network in your home, which you use to connect computers, laptops, phones and possibly your TV to the Internet. 

You probably also use another wireless technology called Bluetooth. If you have a wireless headset with your cell phone, or a wireless keyboard or mouse with your computer, you're using Bluetooth. 

Both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are geeky technologies working invisibly and behind the scenes to subtly and profoundly change homes all over the world. They've eliminated cables, reducing clutter. And they've freed you to place consumer electronics devices anywhere. 

Here's how Bluetooth 4.0 is going to change your life: http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/2515194/list/How-Bluetooth-4-0-Will-Change-Remote-Control

Have you seen your Google+ Timeline?

+Jari Huomo created a Timeline view for Google+. Mine is below, sorted by popularity. Just plug your own Google+ ID into the URL to see yours.

Props to +Miguel Rodriguez and +Jaana Nyström for telling me about this.

http://www.googleplussuomi.com/timelinetest.php?googleid=113117251731252114390&sort=best

Movie about the craziest bicyclists ever.

The premier for _Line of Sight) is July 1. The movie shoots illegal and dangerous urban bike riding, called "messenger racing," from helmet cams.

Wow. Even the trailer will freak you out!

http://www.lucasbrunelle.com/

Web site simplifies argumentation.

Most people who argue and debate online, including here on Google+, commit standard, well-understood logical fallacies.

The problem with this is that debates never go anywhere, and they take forever to get there.

By calling people on their logical fallacies, you can shorten arguments, and everyone can learn from debate.

Great site.

http://www.yourlogicalfallacyis.com/

Why Apple Sues

Apple’s critics generously assign a variety of motives to Apple for filing lawsuits.

Apple sues because it wants to control the market, overcharge for its products, exclude competitors from the market or punish competitors for daring to not think different. It’s all part of Apple’s quest for global tech domination.

But these aren’t actual motives. These are appeals to emotion. They’re legitimate perspectives, but expressed to negatively encapsulate spectacularly complex technical, legal and ethical issues into sound bites that make you want to agree with the author that Apple is bad and wrong. 

Apple has only one motive for patent lawsuits, and I’m going to tell you what that motive is: 

http://www.cultofmac.com/187014/why-apple-sues/

Is Microsoft 2.0 going to be a kick-ass hardware company?

Microsoft just might be evolving into a killer consumer electronics company.

In the wake of two serial Apple announcements, the rumor mill has become an alien landscape. Instead of the usual chatter about amazing new Apple gadgets, everyone is now talking about even more amazing Microsoft hardware.

Yes, they're rumors. But most of them originate with credible sources or plausible guesstimates.

And these rumors are bolstered by hot hardware products known to be coming soon.

Here's my column about what could, should and probably will be coming soon from Microsoft: 

http://www.datamation.com/feature/microsoft-2.0-a-big-league-hardware-company-1.html

* * * 

Can people in China get on Google+?

I'm hearing some reports that say yes, and other reports that say no, they've blocked access again.

A lot of people are saying that only a few regions can gain access. Others are saying that Google+ access is possible only with phones.

If you're in China, can you post a comment and tell me what you know?

'Brantrepreneurs' need your support!

A few woman have invented this concept for a bra that can hold a mobile phone, as well as credit cards and other necessary items.

It's a Kickstarter project to raise money to sell the concept as a product called the JoeyBra.

Give them a hand!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1094440554/joeybra-the-first-sexy-and-fashionable-pocketed-br

Why are US media ignoring GMO mosquitos in Florida?

Officials in Florida intend to release hundreds of thousands of genetically modified mosquitoes as soon as they get permission from the federal government. The mosquitoes are (literally) designed to reduce dengue fever in Key West. 

The mosquitos have been engineered by the British company Oxitec to pass along a birth defect that kills their offspring before they can reproduce, thus reducing mosquito populations.

The initiative carries all the normal controversy over GMO anything -- some fearing ignorant meddling with nature and the unintended consequences that could result, and others believing that genetic modification is better than, in this case, the horrible consequences of dengue fever. 

What's interesting to me is that the story is being covered heavily by media in Canada, India, Russia, the UK and elsewhere, but coverage is practically non-existant in the US press, except for the New York Times, a couple of Florida papers and a smattering of natural-foods hippy blogs and rags. 

WTF is the matter with the media in the US?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/12/06/gm-mosquitoes-florida.html

Facebook charges you $100 to send a message on Facebook to a famous person.

If you're sending a message to a random person on Facebook, they'll charge you $1 to skip the spam filter and actually have the email delivered into the inbox.

But if the recipient has a lot of followers, Facebook will charge you $100.

Facebook says they're just testing the service to see if they can get away with it.

No, the recipient doesn't get a penny. The recipient gets the spam and Facebook gets the money.

Are transparent displays dumb or brilliant?

A see-through iPhone hit the Google+ "What's Hot" list this week. One day later, a transparent-display iPad hit the list as well.

Transparent-display iPhones and clear iPads don't exist, of course. They're "design fiction" -- drawings and videos created with the help of software to create the illusion of reality.

But do transparent displays have a future in real life?

Here's my column about see-through displays, where I say they're terrible for mobile devices, but fantastic for just about every other application. Plus, you can buy one now from Samsung!

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9236434/Are_transparent_displays_dumb_or_brilliant_

Don't be shy!

Millions of people are on Google+, but not getting much out of it. Why? They're shy.

Most people on Google+ have never posted anything publicly, commented, participated in a hangout, posted pictures of themselves or their lives or blocked anyone. Yet these are the very things that make Google+ enriching and enjoyable.

Here's the problem: Google+ is massively powerful.

On Twitter, everyone feels comfortable posting anything. I just searched Twitterfall for the word "dream," and up came these tweets:

"I had a dream i guess it was just a dream tho"

"Dream a little dream of me."

"I wonder what that dream meant :/ lmaooo"

And a thousand others posted within the span of a minute or so.

Posting on Twitter is utterly without consequence. Nobody is paying much attention. A tweet is just a needle in a haystack. People tweet like it's a bodily function, and feel no pressure or embarrassment. A tweet is there for a second for the minority of followers who happen to be looking at Twitter, then it's gone forever.

On Facebook, people feel pretty comfortable engaging, too. It's mostly just family and friends. And EdgeRank will prevent most people from seeing it anyway.

But something about Google+ gives people stage fright. That something is: power.

When you post something publicly, it's indexed and placed on the public Internet. When you comment, your comment will be "judged" by a lot of smart people. Doing your first hangout is like public speaking. Posting pictures feels exposing. And blocking people feels rude.

That's why Google+ is "dominated" by journalist, celebrities, writers, musicians, bloggers and others who are used to being "out there," living and thinking in public.

And that's the key to overcoming Google+ shyness: Understand that it's simply a matter of acclimation. Just do it, as the Nike ads say, and your shyness will soon fall away.

Here's my advice to everyone on how to overcome Google+ stage fright:

Public posting: Start by sharing other people's posts publicly (like this one). When you feel more comfortable, add comments to those shares. Eventually, graduate up to posting things publicly from scratch. Why post publicly? You won't know until you try it!

Commenting: You don't have to become the Debate Club president to comment. Just do it. Remember that your comment can later be edited or deleted. Just be yourself, speak your mind. And if anyone attacks you or makes you feel lousy, block them (see below).

Hangouts: Ah, now we get to the truly hard thing for shy people to do. Here's the secret to becoming acclimated to Hangouts: Be a lurker. That's right. Join or start hangouts, and turn off both your mic and your camera. Other people in the hangout will see a black screen and a red symbol indicating a muted mic. You can see and hear them, but they can't see or hear you. It's OK! Nobody minds. By lurking, you'll get to see how friendly, supportive, interesting and fun hangouts are. Eventually, you'll want to turn on your mic and your camera. But only when you're ready. UPDATE: +Amanda Blain has a great addition to this advice: If you do turn off mic and camera, at least communicate via chat: https://plus.google.com/107982618909749811163/posts/UtRXq2w7V5v

Pictures: You don't have to post beauty shots or personally exposing pictures. Take a picture of anything with your camera phone -- your food, your dog, your workplace, or anything at all. Of course, you don't have to post pictures. But you shouldn't be avoiding it because of shyness. Pictures are fun, and people like seeing them.

Blocking: Blocking people is one of the secrets to a great Google+ experience. And it's NOT rude to block someone. Think of your stream as a party in your home. Everyone there is by invitation only -- people are by default invited. Blocking is merely not inviting them to future parties. Block for any reason -- because people are rude, because they spam, because they're negative. Any reason is a good reason. Why? Because you're only going to interact with fewer than 1% of the people on Google+ anyway. Blocking and circling are the two controls you have on who those people are. Use them!

I hope this advice is helpful. But ultimately, there's no substitute for just doing it. Post! Comment! Hangout! Share pictures! Block!

Yes, Google+ is powerful, and that can be scary. But once you get into it, power = awesome.

Pic props to TriStar Pictures

Jackie Chan calls America the most corrupt country in the world. 

Action star Jackie Chan reportedly said on a Hong Kong TV talk show that the United States is the most corrupt country in the world, far more corrupt than China. He also called on Chinese people to stop criticizing China. 

Interestingly, Chinese Internet users pounced on Chan for acting as an apologist for Chinese corruption. One wrote: "Please, if you want to tell a good lie, tell an educated one. Go learn some knowledge before you contribute to Chinese Communist Party's corruption."

Other commenters supported Chan's views. 

http://www.ministryoftofu.com/2012/12/the-most-corrupt-country-is-america-jackie-chans-comments-widely-panned-in-china/

Spray-on tans may damage DNA.

A chemical in spray-on tan products called dihydroxyacetone (DHA) can cause genetic changes and DNA damage, according to a report the US federal government was concealing until ABC News got a hold of it through the Freedom of Information Act.

The chemical apparently gets into the bloodstream mostly through the lungs when the spray is applied.

When the chemical was approved in the 70s, regulators didn't imagine it's use in spray-on form.

Spray-on tans are just one part of the massive fake-health industry, which includes weight-loss products, make-up, hair products and more.

Instead of spending money to create the appearance of health, why don't people instead pursue actual health by eating healthy food and exercising outdoors?

http://gma.yahoo.com/spray-tans-safe-experts-raise-questions-industry-puts-190727621--abc-news-health.html

Chinese pickpocket caught stealing iPhone. From a moving bicycle. With chopsticks.

Someone snapped pictures of the (admittedly impressive) act. It ended upon the news. He later turned himself in.

http://kotaku.com/chinese-man-pickpockets-an-iphone-by-using-chopstick-472615317

What you really want for Christmas: A video arcade cabinet with a beer tap!

The Arkeg Drink n Game combines video arcade game play with beer on tap. From the front it looks like a pretty standard two-player arcade cabinet. But on the left side, you'll find a beer tap. Inside is a powerful computer in one compartment and a refrigerated beer dispensing system in another. 

The console comes with 69 games installed, including Asteroids, Battlezone, Centipede, Missile Command, Paperboy — and even the original video game, Pong! 

The system is PC based, so you can add more games from the Internet or get them on disc. The system can play up to 15,000 games, according to the company.

http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/5812340/list/Retro-Video-Games-Score-Big-in-21st-Century-Homes

Samsung's Super Bowl Ad is not about Apple.

Samsung's funny Super Bowl social viral campaign (on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube) shows Samsung advertising executives (played by Bob Odenkirk, Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd) trying to think of ideas for a Super Bowl ad, but without saying "Super Bowl" or the names of the teams playing, for fear of getting sued. 

Many publications and blogs have said the ad is a slam at Apple and patent disputes: http://goo.gl/4RDRF

The ad definitely makes fun of trademark litigation about the Super Bowl itself, which is real. 

But it can't be about Apple for three reasons: 

1. In court and in the press, Samsung has strongly said that they don't copy Apple, and instead invent their own designs and technologies. 

But If this were an allegory about Apple, it would say that Samsung should be able to copy Apple, but ridiculous Apple lawsuits prevent them from being able to. That's not Samsung's position. 

2. Referring to something is not the same as copying something. Apple has not sued Samsung for saying the words "Apple" or "iPhone." It's about copying designs and technology (or not doing so) -- it's not about referring to something with words. 

3. Samsung is not at all against patent litigation, and sues other companies all the time over the same thing, including Apple, LG and others. So if this ad were about patent litigation, Samsung would be criticizing itself. 

This ad makes fun of trademark litigation, not patent litigation. It's about the Super Bowl. Not Apple. 

http://www.facebook.com/SamsungMobileUSA

The trouble with Facebook's Graph Search.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a new feature yesterday called Graph Search.

Graph Search magnifies everything good and bad about Facebook. It's Facebook on steroids.

To the extent that Facebook is good for connecting with family and friends, Graph Search makes Facebook great for that purpose. To the extent that Facebook is an invasion of privacy, a playground for stalkers, snoops, spammers and scammers, Graph Search makes Facebook great for those purposes also.

Here's my column that tells why if you love Facebook, you're going to love Graph Search. But if you hate Facebook -- oh, boy, are you going to hate Graph Search. 

http://www.datamation.com/commentary/the-trouble-with-facebooks-graph-search-1.html

(Pic props to DC Comics)

Apple patents the iPhone parachute.

An Apple patent application published today reveals several methods for protecting electronic devices, such as iPhones, iPods and iPads, from falls.

One of them is basically a parachute. When accelerometers in the device sense that it has been dropped, it deploys an airfoil to slow the descent.

The patent application says: "The protective mechanism may activate an air foil to change the aerodynamics of the mobile electronic device. The air foil may help to reduce a velocity of the free-fall of the device by producing a lift force. In this example, the air foil may help to reduce the force of impact as the device hits the surface, as the momentum of the device may be reduced (as the velocity of the fall may be reduced)."

The other method involves a compressed gas jet to flip the phone over like a cat so it doesn't land on its screen.

You can't make this stuff up, people.

http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-adv.html&r=12&p=1&f=G&l=50&d=PG01&S1=(apple.AS.+AND+20130321.PD.)&OS=an/apple+and+pd/3/21/2013&RS=(AN/apple+AND+PD/20130321)

(Props: http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/03/21/apple-looks-to-protect-dropped-iphones-by-shifting-their-orientation-mid-flight )

Mini keyboard doubles as a wireless handset.

Japan's Elecom rolled out this crazy all-purpose peripheral today. It's a wireless keyboard that works with just about any device via Bluetooth. And it doubles as a wireless handset -- you use it like a cell phone.

Obviously, the best use for this would be with an iPad or an Android tablet. It fits in your pocket, gives you a physical keyboard and lets you use your tablet as a Skype phone.

Want!

Sold only in Japan.

http://en.akihabaranews.com/111291/wireless/elecom-new-bluetooth-keyboard-fill-the-gap-between-keyboards-and-phone

http://www.elecom.co.jp/news/201204/tk-mbd041/index.html

Props to +Jiacheng Khoo

Is the Public Too Stupid to Understand Food Ingredients?

There has been a lot of debate lately about food and beverage labeling. Should ingredients be listed? Or are people too dumb to understand, so it's better to conceal from the public what they're putting into their own bodies?

I have to admit that I've been pretty shocked lately by public support for the latter idea. Many people will actually argue that certain ingredients should not be on food labels because people don't understand that the ingredients are safe.

One example is genetically modified foods. California's upcoming Proposition 37 would require that GMO foods are labeled as such. Opponents to the proposition argue that people will falsely believe that GMOs are harmful, so they shouldn't be told.

Another debate is raging in the wine industry. There are currently about 200 ingredients you can add to wine without having to list it on the label. Advocates for the status quo argue that some people will falsely believe that ingredients commonly added to wine (clay, acid, lab-cultivated yeasts, enzymes, sugar, gelatin, charcoal, a fish bladder extract called "isinglass" and many others) are harmful or undesirable, and therefore shouldn't know they're there.

Now, I understand why food and beverage companies don't want labeling. They want to add anything they want without losing sales to people concerned about those ingredients. They don't want market advantages conferred on natural food producers who make foods without ingredients that are objectionable to some customers. Customer ignorance is more profitable than customer knowledge.

What I don't understand is the acceptability of that argument among the general public.

In fact, it's outrageous. Why? Because people are trying to win the argument through legislation.

GMOs are controversial. Some people say they're fine. Other's say they might not be. We're all arguing about it. But some people who embrace the "GMOs are fine" opinion want to win the argument by removing knowledge about which foods contain GMOs. They want people who don't want GMOs to eat them without knowing it because they've already decided that their side is right, and the other side is wrong. Argument over.

When food ingredients are controversial, it means by definition that the argument has NOT been settled. Don't let the advocates of ignorance end the argument in their favor by a legally sanctioned suppression of facts. Oppose the advocacy of ignorance argument, especially as it relates to food.

Your right to know what you put into your own body is more important than their right to secretly slip ingredients and chemicals into your body that they've decided you shouldn't worry your pretty little head about.

Californians: Vote YES on Proposition 37. And everybody: Harass your congressmen to stop allowing food and beverage producers to hide what they put into YOUR body.

Which animals are OK to kill?

Killing animals is an extremely controversial practice. By controversial, I mean it's an emotionally charged subject with disagreement about what the ethical "rules" are.

For example, many people who eat beef without concern are horrified about the killing of horses for food. So the "rule" is apparently "food" animals are OK to kill, but "sport" animals aren't? Or is it that cows are ugly and horses are "majestic"?

California Fish and Game Commission president Dan Richards is in trouble for killing a mountain lion on a hunting trip. It's legal in Idaho, where he killed, it, but illegal in California, where there's a huge public outcry, with many calling for him to be fired. Most of the people who are upset about this wouldn't have cared at all if he had killed, say, a wild boar. So the "rule" for these people is that "pretty" or "cute" animals shouldn't be killed, but killing ugly ones is OK?

Many people who are OK with the killing of tuna are horrified by the killing of dolphins. Is there an unwritten "rule" that "intelligent" animals are to be spared, but "stupid" ones are OK to kill?

What should the "rules" be for the killing of animals?

Is the visual appeal of animals to humans the right criterion -- we can kill fugly animals but not cute or majestic ones? Is intelligence the right criterion?

What are YOUR "rules" for which animals should never be killed?

The coolest idea for a movie ever!

The movie is called Oz, the Great and Powerful, and it's the Wizard of Oz from the Wizard's perspective!

Here comes the trailer: 

Who else is enjoying Elementary?

I'm a huge fan of Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes series, and have read every story several times. As a result of my fandom, I've found the old black-and-white movies boring as f**k, and have a reaction of generalized nausea for Guy Richie's hideous kung fu fantasy supposedly related in some way to the Sherlock Holmes stories.

As both a geek and a Holmes fan, I enjoyed the BBC series (of which far too few episodes were produced) staring the annoying but vaguely appealing Benedict Cumberbatch set in modern-day London.

But the CBS version of Sherlock Holmes, called Elementary, is the best ever, in my opinion. It's based in modern New York City and Watson is a woman played appealingly by Lucy Liu.

Holmes, played brilliantly by Jonny Lee Miller, is a recovering drug addict recently moved from London to New York, who plays the part with an incredible lack of self consciousness. (Note that the original Sherlock Holmes was a drug addict.) They dispense with all the superficial stuff about Sherlock Holmes (the funny hat, the pipe, etc.) but really nail the essential character -- his mind, his personality and his obsessions. The general temperament, attitudes and personalities of the original Holmes and Watson characters are faithfully reproduced in the modern era.

Anyway, I'm really enjoying this show, and am wondering if anyone else is.

http://youtu.be/6YvuZ4Msh50

Vet drug so toxic it's banned in China is fed to a majority of pigs in US.

A deadly drug called ractopamine is banned all over the world, including in China. Yet it's fed to about 60 to 80 percent of pigs in the US.

The drug makes pigs leaner and grow faster, but can make the animals sick. In fact, ractopamine has sickened or killed more livestock than any other drug.

Farm animals in industrialized agriculture are generally so sick that California passed a law banning the slaughter of animals too sick to walk, but the Supreme Court struck it down this week.

Instead of banning ractopamine in the US, the Obama administration is instead using America's economic power to pressure other countries into accepting US meat containing traces of ractopamine into their food supplies as well, so far unsuccessfully. The issue has strained America's relationship with Taiwan.

Enjoy your bacon. ; )

http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/25/10220221-dispute-over-drug-in-feed-limiting-us-meat-exports

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ractopamine

Laptop stickers are stupid.

I'm setting up a Samsung Windows laptop for my son, and, as I have done dozens of times before, I'm spending 10 or 15 minutes removing the stickers that Microsoft and Intel require their OEM partners to blight their hardware with.

These stickers are stupid.

Samsung and other companies actually design and build some really good-looking hardware. But then these garish, ugly, sloppily applied, visually annoying stickers are right there destroying the aesthetic of the hardware, and killing the out-of-box experience.

I know, it's a small thing. But it's also a symbolic thing.

As a consumer, the stickers tell me that the coalition of companies that contributed to the product are incapable of working together even on small details to improve my user experience. It tells me they have no respect for their own product. It tells me they don't appreciate aesthetics. It tells me they're stupid.

The strangest thing about it is that the stupidity exists solely to tell me exactly who is so stupid.

OK, so Intel: You're stupid. And Microsoft: You're stupid. It says so, right there on my laptop.

Apple is trying to take over the market in large measure through aesthetically pleasing hardware and great out-of-box experience, and you're too stupid to even do the simplest and cheapest thing imaginable to compete in these areas.

Stupid.

(Pic props: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pchow98/5895034009/ )

What 10 years of capitalism will do to a formerly communist country.

Soon after the Berlin Wall fell, photographer Stefan Koppelkamm took a bunch of pictures in East Germany. He returned 10 years later to photograph how capitalism transformed those buildings and neighborhoods.

Fascinating.

http://izismile.com/2012/03/15/astonishing_east_german_renovation_36_pics.html

* * *

Hollywood has gotten so dumb they now know and use only one adjective.

This video is amazing: 

Amazon loses control of another set of reviews.

Every once in a while, a loony product on Amazon attracts the attention of the Internet's hecklers and sarcasm enthusiasts, resulting in hilarious Customer Reviews for the product.

The latest victim is Amazon's page for the BIC Cristal For Her Ball Pen, the ballpoint pen for ladies.

Here's one example:

"I love BIC Cristal for Her! The delicate shape and pretty pastel colors make it perfect for writing recipe cards, checks to my psychologist (I'm seeing him for a case of the hysterics), and tracking my monthly cycle. Obviously, I don't use it for vulgar endeavors like math or filling out a voter application, but BIC Cristal for Her is a lovely little writing utensil all the same. Ask your husband for some extra pocket money so you can buy one today!"

http://www.amazon.com/BIC-Cristal-1-0mm-Black-MSLP16-Blk/dp/B004F9QBE6/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Nearly four-fifths of the antibiotics sold in the US are now given to meat animals.

Animals can't survive the cramped, unhealthy conditions of factory farms, so the industrial meat industry gives animals antibiotics to keep them alive until they can be slaughtered.

While the amount of antibiotics administered to humans by doctors is steady, the amount consumed by the livestock industry grows every year. 

Antibiotic-resistant pathogens. It's what's for dinner. 

http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2013/02/meat-industry-still-gorging-antibiotics

How models are transformed by makeup.

The New York Times Style section online has an interesting app that shows fashion models, and how their faces are transformed from regular people to strange space creatures.

The best bit is a slider-bar interface, which lets you drag a before-after line across their faces. You gotta see this:

http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/tag/model-morphosis/

Why I'm not unplugging.

Today at sunset, we're all supposed to unplug for 24 hours. It's called the National Day of Unplugging. 

Screw that. I'm not unplugging jack squat. Here's why. 

Organizers say the purpose of the Unplugging is to "start living a different life: connect with the people in your street, neighborhood and city, have an uninterrupted meal or read a book to your child." 

I don't want to live "a different life." I was born in the 1960s. I spent most of my life "unplugged." Yet I'm young enough to understand what being "unplugged" means. It means ignorance, wasted time, wasted opportunities and being a prisoner to time and place.

I've travelled all over the world, and have seen how the majority of people on this planet live -- unplugged. If only they could afford Internet connectivity, their lives would be transformed for the better. 

I'm supposed to "connect with the people in my street." But why are people in my street better than the people in my circles? They're not. What kind of narcissist believes that people physically near me deserve special attention?

The unplug movement assumes we're all prisoners of connectivity. I don't know about you, but being connected has set me free. It lets me go anywhere, work anywhere, live anywhere, and yet stay in constant contact with my sons and my family and friends. 

By all means, unplug if you want to. As for me, I'll unplug when I'm dead.

What I really want is more connectivity. A LOT more. I want faster speeds, and cheaper satellite data and longer battery life. I want to be able to connect from the middle of the Sahara and the top of Kilimanjaro and the middle of the ocean. I want to be "plugged" 24/7 and 365 days a year. 

What about you? 

http://techland.time.com/2013/03/01/turn-off-tune-out-the-national-day-of-unplugging-is-upon-us/

Are you ready for a 'quantified life'?

That smartphone you carry around is a box full of sensors.

Those sensors are just sitting there doing nothing, or performing mundane tasks like giving you turn-by-turn directions or turning off your screen when you're yakking on the phone.

But what if you could use phone sensors to their full potential?

Soon you'll find out. A Silicon Valley startup called Alohar enables developers to create apps that not only use phone sensor data, but use Alohar's power analysis engine to make sense of it all.

For example, based on the speed at which you're moving and the pattern of your phone's motion sensor, Alohar's software can tell if you're walking, skateboarding, biking, driving or flying. The GPS can tell where this is taking place. The clock tells when.

It can also auto-categorize locations as "home," "work," "restaurant," "gym" and other groupings, and provide you with statistics about, for example, how many hours you spend at work each month.

By combining GPS, light sensor and temperature data, the software can tell if you're inside or outside.

The technology has a practical emergency application: It can tell if you've been in a car accident. If your deceleration is fast enough, then, by definition, you've been in a collision. It would be theoretically possible to develop an app that calls 911 when you've been in a crash and relays information about your location and perhaps some details of the incident.

The system can also out-Siri Siri -- theoretically. Virtual personal assistants in the age of Siri derive value from understanding regular human speech. But tomorrow's assistants will earn their keep by understanding actual human behavior.

The combination of ambient sensing, powerful analytics, strong encryption and good privacy policies could usher in a world where our smartphones can be more than just handy gadgets. They could be life-transforming tools that enable us to use our own data for our own purposes.

Are you ready to quantify your life?

Please read my column and tell me what you think! http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9226189/Are_you_ready_for_a_quantified_life_?taxonomyId=15

Pic props: http://j.mp/IWpPIA

Time-lapsed video by NASA from the ISS will blow your mind!

The Aurora Borealis never looked so awesome.

Go here to play the video full screen: http://vimeo.com/32001208

* * *

Why Google+ is the best place to send video via email.

Good email services play videos right inside the email message. For example, if you send someone a simple YouTube link, and they're a Gmail user, Gmail will display a thumbnail of the video which, if clicked, plays the normal-size video right there in the message. 

Nice! But there's a better way. 

If you paste that same link into a Google+ post, address it to your friends' email addresses and hit send, they get video with benefits. 

For starters, the video is displayed initially full size -- no thumbnail. 

It shows a thumbnail of your G+ profile picture. 

And there's a comment box below. If one of your friends types a comment, they'll be able to do that right in the email message. And you'll see the comment on your post. 

(BTW, here's the Jerry Seinfeld video shown in the picture, in case you're interested: http://youtu.be/itWxXyCfW5s )

Why 'smart light bulbs' are awesome.

A regular lightbulb tends to come in one color and one brightness level. But now new LED bulbs promise to become any color and any brightness at any time you like. And best of all, they can be controlled by the phone in your pocket.

The most interesting thing about smart bulbs is that software companies can make all kinds of interesting applications to control them. For example, imagine a virtual flash application that replaces the camera's flash on your phone. You could set it to suddenly brighten all the bulbs in the room with white light at the moment you take a picture.

Another likely app idea is that you could take a picture of a page in a magazine or somebody's actual home and essentially tell your lightbulbs: "Give me this lighting or color scheme."

The bottom line is that smart bulbs turn lighting into an app. And with apps, anything is possible.

Here's my piece about smart light bulbs, featuring the one product you can buy now in time for the holidays and two more promised for early in the new year.

 http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/5414333/list/Here-s-a-Bright-Idea--Smart-Bulbs-for-Better-Lighting

Why Apple should stop making iOS apps.

When you open a new iPhone and boot it up for the first time, you’ll notice that Apple has already installed a bunch of apps for you.

It’s a great idea, because it lets you use apps right out of the box. Even the newest, most confused user can tap on an app icon and start trying various things.

Here’s the problem: Most users don’t replace the default apps with third-party alternatives. They mostly use the apps that came with the phone.

And this is why Apple should stop making apps: The default Apple-made apps are giving iPhone users a second-rate experience.

http://www.cultofmac.com/208529/why-apple-should-stop-making-ios-apps/

FoxNews.com accidentally uses a picture of a lesbian wedding for article about 'how to choose a husband.'

Best of all, the article was posted with the headline: "To Be Happy, We Must Admit Women and Men Aren't Equal." The editors failed to notice that the bride and groom in the picture were equally female.

Bottom line: Any of you gals out there looking for advice on "how to choose a husband" might not want to consult FoxNews.com. 

http://www.shewired.com/multimedia/2013/02/08/fox-news-unwittingly-uses-picture-lesbian-brides-show-you-how-choose-husband

Man implants magnets into his wrist to hold his iPod nano.

A guy named Dave Huban drilled holes into his wrist and installed magnets to hold his iPod nano. He calls it the iDermal, rather than the iDumb, for some reason.

Here comes the video: http://www.cultofmac.com/166352/this-guy-got-4-magnets-implanted-in-his-wrist-to-hold-his-ipod-nano-video/

Posted first on Google+ by +David Zappala

The Spanish countryside looks like Windows XP wallpaper!

On the train from Madrid to Sevilla today, I looked out my window and there it was: The Windows XP default "Bliss" wallpaper. ; ) 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bliss_(image)

Google+ traffic grew by 480% in one month, so press reports a 60% decline. Wait, what?!

Have you seen the stories lately that Google+ traffic dropped by 60%?

This figure represents not the decline of Google+, but the decline of newspaper trustworthiness. Here's what happened.

Google+ was invite only. On the day they opened the floodgates to the public, traffic immediately spiked by 1,200%. These new people were mostly enthusiastic new users. But a minority was tire-kickers who didn't stick around.

When the dust cleared, total traffic was nearly five times higher than before the doors opened. But the Sunday Mail reported it as a 60% drop from the peak on day one of public beta.

Their idiotic, misleading headline: "Traffic plunges for Google+ as 60% of users log off"

The accurate headline they should have used: "Traffic increases fivefold as Google+ opens to public"

http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2011/10/09/google-plus-traffic-down-60/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2046955/Traffic-plunges-Google-60-users-log-off.html

How Microsoft, Apple and Google will connect all your screens.

Suddenly, the thrilling future of consumer electronics is becoming clear. We’re entering a world in which any content -- movies, TV, music, books, games and more -- will be available on any device at any time.

This is a huge transformation, and it’s coming very soon.

It used to be that different devices were used for entirely different things. Go back ten years. We used TVs for -- wait for it! -- watching TV. Desktop computers were used mostly for "real work," office applications, web surfing, gaming and other uses. Laptops were either desktop replacements for some, or traveling devices for others. Phones were used for making calls, texting and other mobile-specific uses.

By this time next year, nearly all these devices will do nearly all these functions.

We'll use the TV for texting and video phone calls. We'll watch “cable” TV on tablets. We’ll do work on office suites with phones. We’ll check our shopping lists on the TV. We’ll DVR-record shows with our phones. Our tablets will do everything.

This anything, anywhere, anytime future is closer than you think. In fact, it could start Monday: 

http://www.datamation.com/feature/the-future-of-content-anything-anywhere-anytime-1.html

* * * 

Wow! Microsoft to make its own tablets!

+AllThingsD's +Ina Fried reports that Microsoft will announce Monday that it's making its own Windows 8 tablet hardware! 

http://allthingsd.com/20120614/microsoft-taking-direct-aim-at-the-ipad-but-questions-loom-large/

Only In China: an unauthorized World of Warcraft- and Starcraft-themed amusement park!

A theme park in China called World Joyland is based on World of Warcraft. But you'll never hear the W word at the park, nor will you hear any Warcraft- or Starcraft-related jargon. Because the park owners don't have permission or a licensing agreement from Blizzard to profit from the popularity of Blizzard's intellectual property, they call the Warcraft-themed park "Terrain of Magic," and the obvious Starcraft part of the park "Universe of Starship."

http://shanghaiist.com/2011/07/15/joyland_the_blizzard_bits.php?gallery0Pic=1#photo-1

This picture was today's Mystery Pic. Props to +Brian Goodman for being first with the right answer!

https://plus.google.com/+MikeElgan/posts/grpEWjj86A7

Say hello to my little. . . pony?

Just in time for Christmas, someone customized this pistol with My Little Pony branding, for some reason.

Anyone know the origin of this stocking stuffer?

mylittlepony4u.tumblr.com/post/32038874591/rarity-is-best-gun

Israel requires a warning label on models made skinny with Photoshop!

Israel passed a law yesterday banning the employment of "underweight" models in advertising, and requiring publications to disclose when they've used Photoshop to make people look thinner in pictures.

Models are now required to get a doctor to state that their body mass index is at least 18.5 before they're allowed to pose for photos professionally.

The laws are intended to slow with the rise of anorexia and bulimia, especially among young girls.

Is this too heavy handed, or should other governments follow Israel's example?

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/20/israel-models-law-idUSL6E8EJ3IT20120320

( Pic props: http://www.befter.net/user/Scarione/beft/model-edited-on-photoshop/ )

RESHARE:
In case you missed this from yesterday.

Reshared text:
Most Talked About People On Social Networks

I started noticing a trend throughout the social media sphere. Every social network has slightly different types of conversations that take place. After doing a little research (and seeing folks like +Mike Elgan confirm my suspicion) I decided to create this simple photo that tells the story.

Enjoy g+niuses. ;)

Android phone has E-Ink screen, battery stays charged for a week!

This prototype Android phone demonstrated by Taiwan's E Ink at Mobile World Congress this week is low-rez and and grayscale. 

But it's cheap, very light and the battery lasts for a week on a charge. 

http://blog.laptopmag.com/eink-android-phone-lasts-a-week-weighs-next-to-nothing

This picture was yesterday's Mystery Pic. Props to +Jeremy Robbins for being first with the right answer!

https://plus.google.com/+MikeElgan/posts/SrPgQy1puA1

Facebook's Summer of Fail

Remember when Facebook was the company that could do no wrong? When all the attention and traffic and users were headed in droves to it? When founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg was anointed as the new Steve Jobs?

Neither do I.

Facebook's Summer of Fail has shortened memories about the good times for Facebook, and focused attention on an uncertain future.

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9229964/Elgan_Facebook_s_Summer_of_Fail

First Flash, now.... Silverlight?

Chatter says Microsoft is about to kill its dreadful Silverlight technology. First Adobe says it's killing Flash because it's inferior to HTML5 and other technologies. Now, it appears that Silverlight is also falling victim to HTML5.

Hooray for HTML5!

http://www.theverge.com/2011/11/9/2548975/microsoft-may-halt-development-work-on-silverlight-after-next-release

I was wrong about Apple’s iWatch.

In September of 2010, I wrote a column for Cult of Mac deflating the idea that Apple would ever make and sell a wristwatch.

I still think my reasoning was sound. But I didn’t know then what I know now. Specifically, two Apple technologies have become central to Apple’s long-term strategy. These two products — Siri and iCloud — change everything.

And because of this new information, plus a few new things we’ve learned about Apple in the past year, I’m completely reversing my opinion. I now believe the current rumors that Apple is getting into the wristwatch business.

I even think we can accurately imagine what Apple is likely to do in the wristwatch department. Here's what I think they're going to do:

http://www.cultofmac.com/136960/i-was-wrong-about-apples-iwatch/

Note: Picture shows an unrelated concept: http://www.kontain.com/irv1ng/entries/64830/iphone-wrist

How to change a tire on a moving car.

You've heard the expression. Now see it done in real life. 

This is apparently Saudi Arabia's ill-advised national pastime. 

I post, therefore, I am.

Scribo ergo sum.

If a tree falls in a forest and nobody is around to hear it, did it really fall?

Likewise, if you never post anything on Google+, are you really here?

If you appreciate someone else's post, but don't +1 it, did you really appreciate it?

If you have an opinion about someone else's post, but don't add a comment, did you really have an opinion?

The answer to all these question is: Who cares?

To exist on Google+ is to act -- to post, +1, comment and share.

Do you exist? Prove it!

Mark Zuckerberg appears in Chinese documentary by random coincidence.

A Chinese TV documentary about the police aired recently in China on CCTV. In the fourth episode they showed some generic B-roll type footage of policemen walking down the street. By coincidence, the world's richest self-made 20-something walked by on screen.

Mark Zuckerberg and his then-girlfriend (she's now Mrs. Zuck) Pricilla visited Shanghai, China, in March and happened to wander in front of the cameras shooting the documentary.

http://www.chinasmack.com/2012/videos/mark-zuckerberg-appears-chinese-police-documentary-cctv.html

Wow. Breathtaking time-lapsed photograph taken from the International Space Station!

Courtesy of NASA: http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/

Why Robots will soon deliver your pizza.

Self-driving cars are about to be legalized in California. That same technology will enable the robot revolution.

The futuristic sci-fi vision of robots sharing the roads and sidewalks with people is coming soon. They won't be plotting our destruction, but delivering our pizza.

Who knew that the robot revolution would be ushered in by a search engine company and a bunch of car makers?

This is going to be awesome: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9227676/Elgan_Robots_will_soon_deliver_pizza_

(Pic props: http://www.theatlanticcities.com/technology/2012/03/sad-truth-about-food-delivering-robots/1606/ )

Putin gets 107% of the vote in Chechnya!

You can always tell how popular abusive dictators are by what percentage of the population votes for them. Anything above 90%, and you've got a vote-rigging dictator. Saddam Hussein, for example, use to win 99% of the Iraqi vote.

With all ballots counted, it appears that Russian President Vladimir Putin actually won 107% of the votes at one precinct in Chechnya, of all places (the number of people reported to have voted for Putin was higher than the number who voted).

http://www.newser.com/story/141159/in-chechnya-107-turnout-for-putin.html

Another New Bridge Collapses In China

A 330-foot section of the Yangmingtan Bridge ramp in the city of Harbin, China, collapsed today, killing three people.

The bridge was part of China's economic stimulus program, and involved "heavy debt" and rapid construction. It was completed less than a year ago. 

The Xinhua news agency reported that the Yangmingtan Bridge was the sixth major bridge in China to collapse in the past year.

Chinese officials blame overloaded trucks for all the bridge collapses. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/25/world/asia/collapse-of-new-bridge-underscores-chinas-infrastructure-concerns.html

Artist Takes Her Underwater Wheelchair for a Ride in the Red Sea

Sue Austin is an artist who drives an adapted wheelchair underwater. She performs dances underwater in the chair, and has been filmed doing so in the Red Sea.

Watch this video: You've never seen anything quite like this!

http://bcove.me/y62vu81u

http://www.redbull.com/cs/Satellite/en_INT/Article/The-Underwater-Wheelchair-Interview-With-Creator-Sue-Austin-021243221870871

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Took This Picture of the Descending Curiosity Rover!

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2012/08/06/mars-orbiter-catches-pic-of-curiosity-on-its-way-down/

Posted first on Google+ by +NASA!

For the well-dressed geek who has everything: Wi-Fi cufflinks!

One cufflink is a 2 GB USB storage device; the other is a Wi-Fi router. Wow.

http://www.amazon.com/Polished-Silver-Oval-WIFI-Cufflinks/dp/B006ZYFUNW

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'Why your 8-year-old should be coding'

Really nice piece by +Jolie O'Dell in +VentureBeat about the +Tynker launch. 

(Now that I've posted this, I'll try to shut up about it for awhile... : ) 

http://venturebeat.com/2013/04/12/why-your-8-year-old-should-be-coding/

http://www.tynker.com/

Greek triple jumper cut from Olympic team over tweets.

Greek triple jumper Voula Papachristau has been removed from the Greek Olympic team for alleged anti-foreigner tweets. 

As far as I can tell, the action was taken based on the following joke: 

"With so many Africans in Greece .. At least the mosquitoes of West Nile .. will eat homemade food!"

And also with the re-tweeting of the following tweet by someone else: 

"Samaras (Greece's new conservative prime minister) will drive out the foreigners, will be declared EEZ, will capture the hooded and then wake up..."

Papachristau has since apologized repeatedly, and issued the following statement: http://www.twitlonger.com/show/ih3mcp

Her Twitter feed is still up: https://twitter.com/papaxristoutj

What do you think? Should she have been kicked off the team? 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/greece-expels-olympic-athlete-over-social-media-comments-seen-as-racist/2012/07/25/gJQA3rip8W_story.html

Don't like the new multi-column view? Switch to single column!

If you don't like Google+ coming at you in two or three columns, you can easily switch to a single-column view. 

Go to your "Home" stream, click "More" and find at bottom the "Stream Layout" toggle. 

What +John C. Dvorak needs to understand about Google+ and Twitter.

If Costco were having a two-for-one sale on a nice Bordeaux, writer and podcaster +John C. Dvorak would be first in line. As both a lover of Bordeaux and a savvy financial guy, he wouldn't dream of saying: "No, I just want one bottle, even though two bottles are the same price."

Yet that's what he does with social networking. And he's not alone. A LOT of people do this. Let me explain. 

John's podcast, called +No Agenda, which he does twice a week with Podfather +Adam Curry, often talks about the pros and cons of Google+, as they did on yesterdays' broadcast. In the episode (which had a hilarious segment about Google+, by the way -- listen to the link below starting at 10:30 for the Google+ bit), John expressed his preference for Twitter over Google+. 

http://mp3s.nashownotes.com/NA-479-2013-01-17-Final.mp3

First of all, John belittled the value of having a verified account -- this from a guy forced to use "TheRealDvorak" rather than JohnCDvorak on Twitter because some troll is using his unverified name on Twitter.

Anyway, not using Google+ because you prefer Twitter is like turning down a free bottle of Bordeaux. 

Why? Because by posting your tweets on Google+, then auto-posting on Twitter, gives you both for the price of one. 

Personally, I view Twitter as an extension of Google+. I post on G+, and Twitter tweets just happen. I started out doing this to save time. But I got in four months the same follower count on Google+ that it took me four years to get on Twitter. 

Here's how to auto-post to Twitter. 

Go to ManageFlitter and sign up for a "Pro" account. (It's cheap.) Then, go to the following link and add the URL to your Google+ profile to auto-post to Twitter. 

http://manageflitter.com/powerpost/plus

That's it! Now, when you want to send a "tweet," you just do it on Google+. The item is posted here, and also on Twitter. 

Of course, if you want to exceed the 140 character limit, or post a video or post a dozen pictures, you can just do that without the fascist, arbitrary requirement to cram your ideas into 140 characters of ASCII. 

Links on Twitter go back to the Google+ post where people can have a civilized conversation, rather than the barbaric @ mention gymnastics required on Twitter. 
 
Posting on Twitter and Google+ is identical in terms of effort. The only difference is that posting on Twitter = one bottle of bordeaux and posting on Google+ = two. 

It also needs to be said that you get audience MUCH faster on Google+. John has been devoted to Twitter for years, and has a respectable 86k followers. 

He's barely posted on Google+, and has already gotten into 25k circles. By posting on Google+ and auto-posting to Twitter, John's G+ following would exceed his Twitter following within a year, driving more traffic to his columns, more listeners to his podcast and -- by the way -- more donations to his listener-supported podcast. 

Why would +John C. Dvorak turn down this free bottle of bordeaux? Especially since the second bottle will grow into the only one big enough to matter. 

Worst wedding cake ever? Or best?

Sarah Jones is what you might call a "horror baker" -- she uses Hollywood special effects made out of frosting to create scary cakes.

This is the best one she's done, in my opinion. It's called "Zombie Bride."

Unfortunately, Sarah doesn't sell her cakes. She bakes them just to freak people out.

http://evilcakes.wordpress.com/2012/06/14/sarah-jones-cakes-special-effects/

Why small tablets will dominate the tablet market.

Most tablets in use today are iPad sized. (That's because they are iPads.)

This reality has led pundits to believe that iPad size is the right size for a touch tablet. But I've come to believe that in just two years, iPad-sized tablets will represent a small minority of the market.

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9228871/Why_small_tablets_will_dominate_the_tablet_market

Gesture computing is here! (And it's out of control!)

As the dust settles over Las Vegas, it's becoming clear that this year's International CES ushered in a new era of in-the-air gesture control.

TVs, tablets, phones, cars that enable you to control them by waiving, pointing and generally moving your hands in the air were demonstrated at CES.

As Microsoft proved with Kinect for Xbox 360, gesture control is a wonderful interface that really works. But there's one problem, possibly a fatal one for the acceptance of gesture control: There are no standard gestures.

Every new gesture-control device makes you learn a whole new "vocabulary" of hand motions.

Here's my column on why we desperately need gesture standards:

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9235637/Gesture_computing_is_here_And_it_s_out_of_control_?taxonomyId=18

Why most bloggers should blog on Google+.

Xark blogger +Daniel Conover wrote a piece Friday about why he's turning off comments on his blog: 

http://xark.typepad.com/my_weblog/2013/01/why-i-shut-down-comments.html

He tells the same sad story that I've seen dozens of prominent bloggers write: Trolls, haters and spambots have taken over their comments, and so they're going to stop allowing people to comment. Blog comments, he writes, turn into "troll ghettos."

To me, a blog without comments is like a school without students or a concert without an audience. To me, engagement and interactivity with readers is a fundamental attribution of blogging, and really its main benefit for the blogger. 

Dan reveals in his post that he's very close to the Google+ epiphany, but doesn't quite get there. He writes: 

1. "The quality of your comments is really a reflection of your online community, not the snazziness of your comment control dashboard."

2. "Regular people left blogging for social media platforms that far better suited their purposes." 

3. He posts to Facebook and Twitter where people comment, but he can follow those "not as fully as I can via on-post comments."

The solution to his problem couldn't be more obvious: Blog on Google+. 

On Google+, you end up with super high-quality comments, and you don't even need a "comment control dashboard." You go where the people are. And you can have your cake and eat it, too: You can have comments on the post itself, and still have viral social sharing. 

User accounts are less likely to be anonymous or false. It's easy to block trolls and haters. The community is fantastic. And just like a blog, public posts are just pages on the open Internet. 

How I publish from Google+.

By popular demand, here is my system for automatically posting my Google+ posts on RSS, Twitter, Facebook and publishing them via daily and weekly e-mail newsletters!

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9227098/Elgan_How_I_publish_from_Google_

Donald Trump calls on Twitter for a revolution to overthrow the government.

He quickly deleted the tweet; but not before +Wil Wheaton saved it. 

http://wilwheaton.tumblr.com/post/35185641646/if-you-read-this-from-the-bottom-up-you-can-watch

Wow! The Pentagon wants to strip dead satellites for parts while still in orbit!

The US Military is researching a program whereby they would launch a big satellite full of little satellites. It would zero in on "zombie satellites" -- those no longer in use and still orbiting. Then it would remove usable parts, mostly antennas, and affix them to the little satellites, bring them to life, then use the new satellite to serve US troops on the ground with communications capability at a fraction of the normal cost. 

The program is called Phoenix. But why not just start calling it "Skynet"? 

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/06/darpa-phoenix-2/

The U.S. Navy's big stealth drone passes major test.

The U.S. Navy's X-47B drone was successfully tested this week in simulated aircraft carrier conditions. Now they're doing to test it on an actual aircraft carrier. 

Note that landing a drone of this size on an aircraft carrier is very hard to do, especially since this drone is designed to be controlled not by a remote pilot, but entirely via computer. The drone is constantly fed a high-bandwidth cocktail of data that includes the carriers' exact location, speed and direction, as well as crosswinds at the surface of the carrier. 

Once the X-47B is deployed, it will transform the Navy's capabilities. Each X-47B can fly autonomously for up to 30 hours, and carry 4,500 pounds of bombs. 

Are you thinking what I'm thinking? Yeah, this is going to be Skynet's number-one weapon against the human race once the machines take over. 

http://www.navair.navy.mil/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.NAVAIRNewsStory&id=5199

Here's the sad monkey Iran shot into space.

Why would they publish this photo? This photo does not advance the cause of Iranian prestige in space.

gawker.com/5979496/one-small-step-for-a-sad-monkey-the-iranians-say-they-shot-this-monkey-into-space-today

Amazing: Google Earth clock tells time with satellite photos!

The Google Earth clock uses objects photographed from space that look like numbers to give you the time.

These are not just screen captures of the objects, but actual Google Earth views -- five of them -- that change every few seconds. And when they change, as always in Google Earth, the view zooms out, flies across the face of the globe and then zooms in on the new "number."

Incredible!

http://googleearthclock.cwandt.com/

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Web site streams the sounds of a coffee shop!

I have always found coffee shops to be the best places to work. They seem to have the right combination of noise and activity for maximum productivity and creativity, according to science. 

Now, a new web site called Coffitivity streams the sounds of a coffee shop into your computer to re-create the atmosphere of your favorite java joint!

http://www.coffitivity.com/

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/04/working-best-at-coffee-shops/237372/

Why I believe the Apple iWatch will have these 6 killer features.

We learned this week that Google, Samsung and LG are all planning smartwatches. 

Sony, Pebble, Cookoo, I'm Smart, MetaWatch and Martian already have pretty sophisticated smartwatches available, all of which interoperate with the iPhone.

You can be sure that 100 Chinese companies will make inexpensive smartwatches that support either the iPhone or Android or both.

And, of course, Apple is rumored to be working on a curved-glass "iWatch."

Here's why I believe Apple's smartwatch will have a market advantage: 

http://www.cultofmac.com/220962/why-the-apple-iwatch-will-have-these-6-killer-features/