Author: Serkadis

Howard to Star in Remake of Classic Super Bowl Commercial with LeBron James and NBA Legend Larry Bird

McDonald’s confirmed today NBA All-Star Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic has renewed a multi-year agreement with the company, extending a relationship that dates back to 2008.

Although financial details of the contract will not be disclosed publicly, Howard’s agreement includes support of several McDonald’s programs, promotions and other initiatives in coming months.

This month, Howard will back McDonald’s sponsorship of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver.

Howard was a member of the 2008 gold-medal U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team.

Howard and LeBron James, both McDonald’s All Americans, will star in a remake of the iconic 1993 Super Bowl commercial “The Showdown,” which is set to air just before Super Bowl® XLIV kicks off on Feb. 7.

An excerpt from the commercial can be seen on YouTube: youtube.com/McdonaldsAllAmerican.

The new commercial titled “Check This” will pit the NBA Eastern Conference rivals against each other in their own unique take on the battle for a Big Mac® and fries.

The TV ad will also feature the reappearance of NBA legend, Larry Bird.  Joe Pytka, commercial director for McDonald’s original 1993 Super Bowl spot, also filmed the latest remake.

“Dwight has been a champion for his team, his community and McDonald’s since we entered into a relationship with him in 2008,” said Neil Golden, McDonald’s USA chief marketing officer.

“We are excited to bring Dwight and LeBron – two of the biggest names in basketball today – together for the remake of this iconic commercial, the first of many opportunities to come.”

“I have tremendous respect for the McDonald’s brand and I look forward to continuing my relationship with the company and expanding my involvement in their programs,” said Howard.

“I can’t wait for the new commercial to debut on Super Bowl Sunday. The fans are going to love it.”

“Although McDonald’s officially brought Dwight on board as a spokesman three years ago, the loyalty of this relationship unofficially dates back 21 years,” said Eric Goodwin, President, GSM.

“Dwight’s fondest memories are his first ‘Happy Meal’ and playing in the McDonald’s All American Game.  There isn’t a more authentic partnership than this.”

In addition to marketing promotions, Howard will support the 2010 McDonald’s All American High School Basketball Games in Columbus, Ohio, benefiting Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) of Central Ohio.

In 2004, Howard earned McDonald’s All American Game co-MVP and Player-of-the-Year honors in Oklahoma City.

He has served on the McDonald’s All American Advisory Council since 2008.

About McDonald’s

McDonald’s USA is the leading foodservice provider in the United States serving a variety of wholesome foods made from quality ingredients to more than 26 million customers every day.

Nearly 90 percent of McDonald’s 14,000 U.S. restaurants are independently owned and operated by local business men and women. Customers can now log online at any of the 11,000 participating Wi-Fi enabled McDonald’s U.S. restaurants.

For more information, visit mcdonalds.com, or follow us on Twitter (@McDonalds) and Facebook (Facebook.com/McDonalds) for updates on our business, promotions and products.

About Dwight Howard:

Dwight David Howard, II, an Atlanta, GA native was selected by the Orlando Magic with the first overall pick of the 2004 NBA Draft. Dwight became the first player in NBA history directly out of high school to start in all 82 games during his rookie season.

He is a 4-time NBA All-Star, 2-time All-NBA First Team and a recipient of an Olympic Gold Medal as a member of team USA in the 2008 summer games.

He captured the 2008 NBA Slam Dunk Championship entertaining fans with his famous Superman dunk.

As the leading vote-getter in the 2009 NBA All-Star balloting program with 3,150,181 votes, Dwight became the first player in balloting history to crack the 3 million-vote ceiling.

In March of 2009, Dwight past Wilt Chamberlain as the youngest player in the NBA to reach the 5000 rebound mark.

He was named the 2009 NBA Defensive Player of the Year and led the Orlando Magic to the NBA Finals for the first time in 14 years.

In 2004, the Dwight D. Howard Foundation was created to support youth programs in both the Central Florida and Atlanta, GA communities.

For more information, visit dwighthoward.com, Twitter @dwighthoward and Facebook facebook.com/dwighthoward.

While equities have had a rough start in 2010, analysts at RBS predict that we won’t experience a double dip recession. Signs of global growth and increased manufacturing brings hope that the economy will fully recover at a rate faster than expected.

For the U.S. to recover, we need jobs and higher payrolls. Let’s drive some more money into this economy and get people back into work.

In 2002, payrolls, as measured by the preliminary print for each month, advanced for seven straight months, but the gains ranged from 6,000 to 66,000. Then, jobs declined for the most part from fall 2002 through the summer of 2003. Net hiring resumed in late 2003 but remained tepid through February. It was only when payroll gains surged (308,000 in March, 288,000 in April, and 248,000 in May) that Fed officials sat up and took notice. Similarly, the swing from massive job losses in early 2009 to rough stability by year-end was very encouraging but is not enough to spur the Fed into shifting its rate stance. Instead, payrolls will have to begin rising and by enough to convince policymakers that unemployment is on a downward path. We fully believe that payrolls are on the  cusp of swinging into positive territory and that momentum will build as the year progresses. 

Now, that being said, RBS believes the Fed will finally raise interest rates within the next five months, provided no extreme turn of events occur:

Our forecast calls for the first Fed rate hike in approximately five months. The clock is ticking. Clearly, a lot needs to transpire to get from where things stand today to a Fed tightening. Are we getting nervous? Not just yet. Conditions have improved dramatically over the last six months, and we fully expect the trajectory to continue. If the recovery stalls out over the next few months, then we will of  course have to revisit our views (not just on the Fed but also our economic forecasts). However, given how well the economy has performed over the past few quarters relative to consensus expectations, it would take two or three months’ worth of evidence to convince us that the economy is fading (especially given the prospect of weather distortions during the winter). Thus, barring unforeseen shocks or jolting downside surprises in the data, we are unlikely to make any significant changes to our Fed call until March or April.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• Spain Goes On Offensive, Cuts Everything To Combat Debt Crisis
• Moral Hazard Runs Amok As Europe Pre-Announces The Greek Bailout
• Papandreou: Greece Is Being Targeted By An Outside Force With A Secret Agenda

Filed under: Budget, Hybrid, Scion, Toyota

“Scion (is an) innovation laboratory and a chance to try new things,” says Jack Hollis, vice president of Scion, Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Naturally, when we think of Toyota and innovation, we think hybrids. And, moving another step towards some sort of logical conclusion, since Scion is Toyota’s youth-oriented brand and the younger generations are considered to be more in tune with the environment, hybrids would seemingly be a lock for the Scion brand. Not so, it seems, and the main stumbling block is a familiar one: cost.

Hybrids – and particularly Toyota’s complicated Hybrid Synergy Drive – feature two distinct sets of drivetrain components that are each capable of powering the vehicle under certain circumstances. As such, they are more expensive to produce than typical internal combustion engine-powered vehicles. Add in an expensive battery pack, and the expected cost for a hybridized Scion shoots past the self-imposed $20,000 ceiling that Toyota has set on its entry-level marque.

So, if not hybrids (at least not in the near-term future), what innovative technology is Toyota considering for Scion? For starters, all-wheel drive, likely cribbed from Subaru, of which Toyota owns a 16.5-percent stake. Apparently, Toyota believes it can manage an all-wheel-drive Scion that doesn’t break the $20,000 barrier more easily than it can one with a hybrid powertrain. Where that falls into the Japanese automaker’s stated goal to produce ever more fuel efficient vehicles, we don’t yet know.

[Source: Wards Auto]

Toyota Exec: Hybrids too expensive for Scion, AWD possible originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 11:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Hybrid, Safety, Hatchback, Toyota

The pain just keeps on coming for Toyota. First came complaints of cars running away without the driver pressing the accelerator. Now the Japanese government has ordered Toyota to investigate the braking system on the 2010 Prius. The U.S. government is also looking into the matter after receiving over 100 complaints about the brakes on the third-generation hybrid. Like most other hybrids, the Prius uses an electro-hydraulic brake system that blends the regenerative and friction braking functions. There have apparently been dozens of complaints in Japan and North America of a momentary loss of braking power at low speeds on slick or bumpy road surfaces.

We can’t say for sure what is or is not happening on the Prius, but we can offer some possible insight. On hybrids vehicles, the brake system monitors the state of charge of the battery, the available amount of regenerative braking and the driver’s brake demand (as measured by the brake pedal apply). As the vehicle comes to a stop, the amount of regenerative braking is ramped down to zero since you can only capture kinetic energy when the wheels are rolling. Doing this smoothly requires an accurate software model of the friction braking behavior. If the friction brakes are generating less torque than the model says it should be, the brake system will apply less pressure to the brakes. The result would be a momentary loss of deceleration during the hand-off from regen to friction braking.

Because the behavior of friction brakes varies over time depending on temperature, moisture, wear and other factors, it is very difficult to calibrate these models. The other part of this equation is the fact that this is happening at low speeds. The wheel speed sensors become less accurate at low speeds as the time period between sensor pulses is extended. Rough or slippery surfaces exacerbate the problem, which could make the brake system think there is slip that might not be there, resulting in lower brake pressure. The result is a perceived loss of deceleration.

If these are the problems that the Prius is experiencing, they could be corrected with an update to the control software. However, that will take time for Toyota to calibrate and validate.

[Source: New York Times]

Report: Toyota Prius brakes under investigation by Japanese, U.S. governments originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 10:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Texas, US | Geological Oddities

Enchanted Rock, a pluton, or igneous rock intrusion, is a massive dome comprised of pink granite and rises 425 feet above the ground around it. This ancient monolith has been a part of human history for at least 11,000 years and covers a sprawling 640 acres. The name Enchanted Rock comes from an interpretation of Native American folklore and tradition by early Spanish and Anglo settlers.

Legends of Enchanted Rock abound, some predating the arrival of the Europeans, others including conquistadors and Anglo-Texans. One Tonkawa tradition holds that a group of braves, the last of their tribe, fought to the death on the top of Enchanted Rock defending themselves from another tribe. Another of the legends holds that a princess threw herself off the rock upon seeing her tribe being slaughtered. It is said that both the warriors and the princess’ spirits haunt the granite monadnock. Tonkawa Indians also tell of phantom campfires atop the dome at night.

Part of the what makes the rock mysterious is that when a cool night follows a warm day, Enchanted Rock makes audible creaking noises. Though this is due to the contraction of the outer surface of the rock, it has likely fueled more legends which in turn increased the magical attributes ascribed to the batholith. Some say that the rock sparkles occasionally at night, most likely on damp nights with lots of moonlight.

Camping is allowed at the Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, with convenient sites less than a 100 yards from the parking lot, to primitive campsites 1-3 miles out. Hiking, rock climbing, wildlife watching, and star gazing are among the popular activities at 1,644 acre Enchanted Rock State Natural Area.

Many people right now are making a scare story out of the U.S. government's future deficit projections. Many of these same people are also blaming our government's horrific projected deficits on the current administration.

Problem is, as shown in the chart below (via The Economist), America's deficit problems are mostly the result of American wars abroad and the Bush era tax cuts -- things the current administration didn't implement. At the same time the current administration is being pressed not to raise taxes and not to be weak militarily.

Some of the most hated spending topics such as TARP, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and economic stimulus, are actually a tiny contributor in comparison to war and Bush tax cuts. Especially over the long-haul out to 2019 as shown below.

You don't have to agree with everything the current administration does, but democracy isn't an effective form of government when voters are blind to the real cause behind the effects they criticize:

The Economist: "This is something Barack Obama has been at pains to point out, as Republicans have attacked him as a profligate spender and runner of deficits. Most of today's borrowing, he has said, is attributable to factors beyond his control. He is essentially pointing people to charts like the one at right. That's a damning chart. It implicates a lot of people, including some of the same Congressional Democrats who are now joining Republicans in assailing the president for budgeted deficits, but who voted for the Bush tax cuts and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Politically, this is a pretty important chart."

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• The US Is Bleeding Money Producing Pennies And Nickels That Cost More To Make Than They're Worth
• Here's Why Attempts To Cut The Deficit Will Definitely Make The Nation Poorer
• Deficit Hawk Logic: Hummers, Howitzers, And Helicopters, Yes. Health Care, No

Key West, Florida | Museums and Collections

Founded by famed entrepreneur Pat Croce, the Pirate Soul Museum is the largest and most authentic collection of pirate artifacts in the world.

With 48 individual exhibit areas, the museum includes such ill-gotten booty as pieces of gold retrieved from his warship the Queen Anne’s Revenge, Blackbeard’s blunderbuss, one of only two remaining authentic Jolly Roger flags, and Thomas Tew’s original treasure chest, the only known authentic pirate treasure chest in the world.

Exhibits iinclude pirate weapons, treasure, buccaneers life, writing and art depicting these feared fortune-hunters.

Italian motorcycle manufacturer Ducati announced the launch of a contest that is linked to its latest machine, the Multistrada 1200. Entries should consist of 4 original photos of different roads which would convey the 4 personalities of Multistrada – urban, touring, enduro and sport.

Prizes include a holiday, a set of Multistrada 1200 technical apparel, and Ducati riding courses.

Just as the new Ducati has its own distinct character, each road, track and path has its own personality and … (read more)

During today’s AOL earnings call, which just finished, CEO Tim Armstrong dropped the strongest hint yet that Google is the front-runner in negotiations for who will power search across AOL properties. Google is AOL’s current partner, as it has been for nearly a decade, but the partnership is up for renewal. Needless to say, snatching the search partnership away would be a coup for Microsoft’s Bing search engine. Bing wants the search deal, which would help it increase its total volume of searches by a couple percentage points since AOL on its own has the fifth largest search share in the U.S.

But during the call, Armstrong emphasized that “distribution is almost as important to us as money, we will look for distribution as much as money in the deal.” AOL is a content company and it gets a lot of its traffic from Google. The sheer volume of referral traffic Google sends to AOL sites is something Bing cannot yet compete against, and to the extent that Google can find ways to send more traffic to AOL as part of its search deal, that makes it a more attractive partner than Bing.  Microsoft can throw all the money it wants at AOL on the search side, it probably won’t make a difference. Here is Armstrong’s relevant reply to an analyst’s question on the topic from my notes:

On search deal, we have had a great partnership with Google, we continue to be close to them. What we are expecting to get out of search deal is longer-term partnership where we are both aligned. We have a long partnership with Google. Marketplace is more competitive. First and foremost if you are looking for us to squeeze more dollars or pennies out every quarter, you are going to be disappointed. Looking for a deal that helps our strategy, a reasonable deal for us and the partner. We are a content focussed company, distribution is almost as important to us as money, we will look for distribution as much as money in the deal.

So he is not ruling out Bing entirely, but if you read between the lines it is clear that he values Google almost as much as a distribution partner as he does as a search partner. Add in the fact that he still seems to be on good terms with his former boss Eric Schmidt, and it is clear that he is leaning heavily towards sticking with Google.

Oh, by the way, this also means that he’s fine with Google being a huge news aggregator, because those links are extremely valuable and he understands that better than the CEOs of most other media companies. Google’s unique position as a source of traffic to Websites is one of its great strengths in any negotiation involving another Web company. I’ve heard this before from other Web CEOs who let Google get away with a better deal than they would otherwise because they fear reprisals in the form of lower search traffic. Google, of course, needs to keep up appearances that it delivers the best search results no matter what, but there are other ways Google can help juice a site’s traffic.

Update: As I was writing this post, Tim Armstrong called me. He emphasized that “Overall, we do feel distribution is important, we also like revenue. We will balance those things.” It all “comes down to what the actual distribution deal is.” In other words, he is still negotiating.

But he did shed some light on how a distribution deal could work. “You can’t really affect the index in partnership deals,” he explains, but there are lots of other things AOL and Google coudl do. On AOL’s end, it could change the way pages are set up and how much advertising is on each page to make them appear in results better. On Google’s end, there are opportunities to get more traffic “through Oneboxes and other types of integration like on the News property.” (The Onebox is Google’s unified results at the top of organic search which pulls from different sources). Another possibility is to include search advertising inventory into the deal. So Armstrong is definitely thinking creatively about how to get the most out of his next search deal.

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MANILA, Philippines—Years of public awareness campaigns on HIV-AIDS or the Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome have not diminished prevalent misconceptions about the virus or the ailment even among well-educated women, a recent government survey found. The 2008 National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) revealed that about two out of three women do not know that the HIV/AIDS virus can not be transmitted by sharing food with an HIV-positive person nor can it be transmitted through mosquito bites. The survey, which was conducted among women 15 to 49 years old,…

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Selling or buying an used car just became a lot more easier for all Americans, as National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) managed to introduce auction values to its website. This new tool which will help you evaluate any used vehicles has been created in collaboration with the National Auto Auction Association (NAAA). Values are updated weekly.

"Thanks to AuctionNet, NADA’s partnership with the National Auto Auction Association (NAAA), our analysts are reviewing approximately 80% … (read more)

Sony has identified a limited number of 46″ BRAVIA LCD televisions (KDL-46XBR4, KDL-46XBR5) which may develop picture anomalies on the screen related to the LCD Panel. As part of Sony’s commitment to quality, under the terms of the limited warranty included with the product, Sony will replace the LCD Panel in any affected model experiencing picture anomalies due to LCD Panel failure through October 31, 2012. Please note that except as set forth in this announcement, the terms of the Sony limited warranty for these products continue to apply.

In addition, customers who paid out-of-pocket to repair the LCD Panel on one of the affected models prior to the date of this announcement may be eligible to be reimbursed by mail for parts and labor expenses. To receive reimbursement, please follow completely the directions on the claim form for reimbursement; all claims must be postmarked by June 30, 2010. See claim form for complete terms and conditions.

Sony uses a network of hundreds of qualified independent third-party servicers to perform in-home television warranty service. Sony, through its authorized servicer network, will endeavor to repair your set within 30 days of your first contact. For diagnosis, warranty service, or if you are not provided a repair within 30 days, please contact Sony at (888) 649-7669.

CHICAGO (AP) — Oprah Winfrey is planning another giveaway, but this time it isn’t a new car.

Winfrey plans to announce on her show Thursday an offer that will help Americans get their blood sugar tested for free.

She’ll devote “The Oprah Winfrey Show” that day to the growing problem of diabetes.

Dr. Mehmet Oz and other guests will talk about risk factors.

They’ll recommend lifestyle changes and examine the hidden sugars in everyday meals and snacks.

The studio audience will be comprised of people with diabetes and their families.

Diabetes can cause serious health problems including heart disease, blindness, kidney failure and amputations. Diabetes is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.

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When it was released back in October, NBA 2K10 met feedback from both ends of the court some said it sucked, some said it rocked. But despite getting a bipolar reception, the sales will always have

We knew it was coming, and now, it is here. Today, Verizon Wireless and Motorola officially announced the Motorola DEVOUR’s availability on America’s largest wireless carrier. As previously reported, this Android handset will come complete with MOTOBLUR, a 3.1″ capacitive touch screen, touch-sensitive track pad, 3G connectivity, aGPS, Bluetooth, and a micro-SD card slot. The device will fall under Verizon’s list of “advanced devices” and require a $29.99 data plan and, presumably, will come with a $350 early termination fee as well. Look for it to become available in early March. Hit up the official press release for all the details.

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This week, after receiving the conclusions of a multiyear ethics investigation of UK doctor Andrew Wakefield performed by the General Medical Counsel (GMC), the editors of British medical journal The Lancet formally retracted a study which purported to find a link between the childhood MMR vaccine, gastrointestinal disease, and autism. It was published in 1998 and has been a source of controversy ever since.

When I started at Nobel Intent, I found that there were five topics that
were guaranteed to cause a flame-fest to erupt in the comments: evolution, circumcision, climate change, dark
matter/energy, and vaccine-autism links. While people have issues with the scientific consensus for any number of reasons, much of the problems with the final topic can be traced to Wakefield’s study.

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Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) has some questions for Apple. And for Twitter. And for Oracle, Amazon, AT&T, Cisco, Facebook, Skype, and eBay. What are their “human rights practices in China”?

Durbin is one of the most senior senators in the chamber, he chairs the Judiciary Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law, and he asked similar questions of tech companies last year. This year, he’s broadening the list to 30 firms and asking “what, if any, measures [a company] will implement to ensure that its products and services do not facilitate human rights abuses by the Chinese government.”

Durbin’s letters come two weeks after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a major speech on Internet freedom and called out business leaders, in particular, who enable or abet censorship in countries like China. Durbin also praises Google for its recent decision (not yet implemented) to stop censoring search results in China, and he wants to know if other companies are being as “non-evil” as the search giant.

“I commend Google for coming to the conclusion that cooperating with the ‘Great Firewall’ of China is inconsistent with their human rights responsibilities,” Durbin said in statement today. “Google sets a strong example in standing up to the Chinese government’s continued failure to respect the fundamental human rights of free expression and privacy. I look forward to learning more about whether other American companies are willing to follow Google’s lead.”

Durbin has also organized a Senate hearing on the issue next month at which he will get another chance to grill corporate executives over their engagement with China.

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The Volvo brand has been going through some difficult times, as Ford has been trying to sell it for some time now. But despite what everyone thinks, the Swedish car manufacturer had a serious market share last year in important countries such as the UK, mostly thanks to its eDrive eco technology.

Volvo keeps making adjustments to its image and the latest decision involves getting rid of the model range badges which, for most people, are quite confusing. Even Chief executive Stephen Odell adm… (read more)

Just a gentle reminder, the contest to win a Tokyoflash watch ends tonight at midnight pacific time. It’s easy to enter, just follow @Tokyoflashnews and @CrunchGear on Twitter, and then tweet why you want to win. Make sure to include the #iwanttokyoflash in your tweet so we can find you when we pick our winner!

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