Mereja

Author: Serkadis

  • Exhibition: To Live Forever

    Arts Museum Journal (Stan Parchin)

    Ancient Egyptian funerary practices and religious beliefs about death and the afterlife are vividly described by 107 pieces of jewelry, sarcophagi (coffins), statuary and vessels in To Live Forever: Art and the Afterlife in Ancient Egypt at the Brooklyn Museum (February 12-May 2, 2010).

    Selected from more than 1,200 prized objects in the museum’s world-class collection of Egyptian antiquities, the works on display range in date from 3600 B.C. to 400 A.D. From predynastic times through the Roman period, they document how the ancient Egyptians sought to conquer death and survive throughout eternity.

    Egyptology News Blog, Andie Byrnes

  • Society News: Egypt Society of Bristol January 2010

    ESB News 25

    Thanks to the Egypt Society of Bristol for sharing their newsletter online. As usual there are some news items and lecture summaries that may be of interest. See the above page for the news items. The lecture summaries are as follows:

    • 24 March 2009 Egypt’s Earliest Writing, Dr Kathryn Piquette, Trinity College, Dublin
    • 19 May 2009 Warriors, Priests and King’s, Men: Egyptian Biographies of the Middle Kingdom, Dr Renata Landgráfová, Charles University,
      Prague/Freie Universität Berlin
    • 13 October 2009 Crocodile Mundi: Egyptian Water Spells Joanna Kyffin, University of Liverpool
    Egyptology News Blog, Andie Byrnes

  • First Retailed 2011 Kia Sorento Going to Chick-fil-A

    South Korean carmaker Kia has just announced that the first 2011 Sorento manufactured at its US plant in West Point, Georgia will be presented to Chick-fil-A founder and chairman, S. Truett Cathy on January 22. The 2011 Sorento has already been named the Official Vehicle of the 2009 Chick-fil-A Bowl, which was held on New Year’s Eve in Atlanta.

    "The all-new Sorento, Kia’s first U.S.-built vehicle, marks a turning point for the brand and further solidifies Kia’s commitment to the U.S. mar… (read more)

  • Giant Carp Threaten Great Lakes

    It is a pretty good bet that the carp will be in the Great Lakes, if not already, very soon.  My attitude is to get over it.  We eat catfish and I suspect carp is a lot better.  Besides it is a staple in China.  Obviously they have been unable to fish them out either.
    If anything we need to investigate what else may be added to the mix to enhance production and perhaps also give other species a chance.
    The Great Lakes can produce thousands of tons of carp, all of which will have a ready market.
    I have recently observed that the lakes of the boreal forest are also natural pens for the fresh water production of Coho.  Escapement will end up in the Arctic or the Great Lakes.
    In time, these will be the two greatest single commercial fisheries on earth likely employing millions.
    Giant, leaping Asian carp threaten US Great Lakes
    by Staff Writers

    Chicago (AFP) Jan 19, 2010
    http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Giant_leaping_Asian_carp_threaten_US_Great_Lakes_999.html
    Asian carp were originally imported to the southern United States in the 1970s to help keep retention ponds clean at fish farms and waste water treatment plants. Heavy flooding helped them escape into the Mississippi in the 1990’s and they have since migrated into the Missouri and Illinois rivers. Should they make it into Lake Michigan in large numbers it would be extremely difficult to stop their spread throughout the five interconnected Great Lakes and up into the St. Lawrence Seaway.

    Huge Asian carp, which act like “aquatic vacuum cleaners” and leap into the air when spooked by motorboats, may have invaded the US Great Lakes despite a massive effort to block them, officials said Tuesday.

    Researchers analyzing water samples have discovered fragments of Asian carp DNA in Lake Michigan, although there is still no evidence that that fast-breeding fish have breached electric barriers set up along Chicago-area waterways.

    “Clearly this is not good news,” said Major General John Peabody, commanding general of the US Army Corps of Engineers’ Great Lakes and Ohio River division.

    The Corps is one of a host of state and federal agencies working to stop the spread of the voracious carp which can grow up to seven feet long (2.1 meters) and weigh 150 pounds (68 kilos).

    Federal officials have warned that Asian carp – which have no natural predators – could have a “devastating effect on the Great Lakes ecosystem and a significant economic impact” on the seven-billion-dollar sport and commercial fishing industry.

    “From what we have seen in other parts of the country, Asian carp could out-compete our native, sport and commercial fish in southern Lake Michigan,” Charlie Wooley, deputy regional director of the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), said in a statement.

    “We call them an aquatic vacuum cleaner because they filter important food resources out of the water and turn it into carp biomass.”

    It’s possible that the DNA discovered in two different samples could come from a decomposed carp which was carried through the electric barriers, officials said.

    Or it could come from eggs that were transported on the belly of a bird. Another possibility is that flooding may have allowed the carp may to swim around the barriers.

    “The short answer is we just don’t know,” said FWS spokeswoman Ashley Spratt.

    “We have not actually seen live carp above the barrier,” she told AFP. “The information we currently have does not suggest they’re there in sustainable populations.”

    Teams will set out on boats as soon as weather allows to search the lake for signs of live carp, and the regional coordinating committee will accelerate its efforts to block their spread, she said.

    Officials are considering a number of options including another mass kill through poisoning, sterilizing males to slow breeding, building new electrical barriers and researching other “biological controls.”

    The test results were released hours after the fight to block the carp was dealt a blow by the US Supreme Court, which refused to force the closure of the Chicago shipping canal system as an emergency measure to stop the invasion.

    “The motion of Michigan for preliminary injunction is denied,” the Supreme Court wrote in a single line ruling.

    Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox called upon President Barack Obama to use his executive powers to close the locks and said he hoped the Supreme Court would consider the issue more carefully in another pending case.

    “I am extremely disappointed the Supreme Court did not push the pause button on this crisis until an effective plan is in place,” Cox said in a statement.

    “While the injunction would have been an extraordinary step by the court, Michigan and the other Great Lakes states are facing an extraordinary crisis that could forever alter the lakes, permanently killing thousands of jobs at a time when families can least afford it.

    Asian carp were originally imported to the southern United States in the 1970s to help keep retention ponds clean at fish farms and waste water treatment plants.

    Heavy flooding helped them escape into the Mississippi in the 1990’s and they have since migrated into the Missouri and Illinois rivers.

    Should they make it into Lake Michigan in large numbers it would be extremely difficult to stop their spread throughout the five interconnected Great Lakes and up into the St. Lawrence Seaway.
    A Carp Recipe
    Ingredients
    2 pounds carp fillets
    1 cup milk
     
    1 cup biscuit mix or pancake mix
     
    2 teaspoonss 
    salt
    lemon wedges
     
     
      paration
    Remove the skin of the carp and take out all the brownish-redish-colored part of the meat, the “mud vein”; discard.
    Chunk up the rest of the carp fillets. Place fillet pieces in a shallow dish. Pour the milk over them and let it stand for half an hour, turning the fillets over once during that time.  Stir the 
    salt into the biscuit mix. 
     
    Take fillets out of the milk and pat them into the biscuit mix, covering both sides. Fry fillets in deep fryer or in medium hot oil in fry-pan for 5 - 10 minutes until cooked through and browned on both sides. Use tongs or slotted spoon to turn them. 
     
    Drain on paper towels. Serve with lemon wedges if available. 
    Serves 4-6

  • Petrov Offers 15M Euro for F1 Seat

    Vitaly Petrov is set on making his Formula One debut this season, as he will reportedly pay up to 15M euro to the team that will employ him for the entire duration of 2010. Obviously, the money are not his to spend, but belong to important Russian companies, who would therefore benefit from worldwide exposure – through grands prix spread on all continents this year, except for Africa – in exchange.

    With that kind of money behind him, we’re quite certain a team will immediately pick up the pho… (read more)

  • Audi R8 V10 Spyder new video

    Here’s another video of the Audi R8 V10 Spyder, which first debuted at last year’s Frankfurt Motor Show. The R8 V10 Spyder is equipped with a 5.2-litre engine, with 525 hp and 530 Nm of torque. This video (certainly more exciting than the first one we saw), shows the R8 Spyder in white, a colour we like more than the bronze originally presented, and has some great editing for some exciting driving.

    Audi R8 Spyder 5.2 V10 FSI Audi R8 Spyder 5.2 V10 FSI Audi R8 Spyder 5.2 V10 FSI Audi R8 Spyder 5.2 V10 FSI


  • “Dance Your Ass Off” Host Marissa Jaret Winokur Fired For Being “Too Fat”

    Marissa Jaret Winokur — the full-figured Broadway star-turned-Dancing With The Stars contestant — was fired as host of Oxygen’s popular weight-loss show Dance Your Ass Off because she was “too fat,” a new report claims.

    Marissa won a Tony Award for her portrayal of Tracy Turnbland in Broadway’s Hairspray, but she didn’t score any points with Dance bosses. The actress was replaced on the program earlier this month by the former Spice Girl Melanie Brown. At the time, series producers said Mel B was a “better fit” for the show’s audience and said “after talking to the audience that there was a portion … who loved her and a portion who didn’t connect with her.”

    But Us Weekly has a different story; spywitnesses tell the tab Marissa was let go because she’s too curvy to host a weight loss program. (So Oxygen thinks contestants will have an easier time connecting with a skinny chick?)

    “The producers were constantly on her to lose weight,” a tipster divulged. “She was asked to wear suits to cover her arms and legs. She was fired for being fat.”


  • EnerDel to Invest in New Indianapolis Plant

    Lithium-ion battery manufacturer EnerDel announced yesterday plans to invest some $237 million in a new manufacturing plant in Indianapolis, as a necessary step to meet the increasing demand of lithium-ion batteries. The new facility will also create 1,400 new jobs and will double EnerDel’s US production capacity.

    "Demand for high-performance lithium-ion battery systems is expanding dramatically, for vehicles of all sizes as well as the utility grid, and we are going to be fully prepared… (read more)

  • Toyota Etios Heading to Russia

    Toyota’s recently-released Etios model might be sold in Russia as well, although it was initially supposed to be offered exclusively to buyers in India and Latin America. But according to insideline.com, Toyota is currently pondering a Russian launch, a move that could bring a new competitor for Renault’s Logan and Lada.

    In case Toyota will indeed launch the Etios in Russia, it would most likely be produced at the St. Petersburg plant, with prices to remain in the same range as for the two af… (read more)

  • Google Nexus One Accessories Make Appearance at Gelaskins and BodyGuardz

    gelaskin 251x300 Google Nexus One Accessories Make Appearance at Gelaskins and BodyGuardzWell it was only a matter of time for some new skins and cases to start appearing for the Google Nexus One. Gelaskins is no slacker, and is one of the first companies out of the gate to offer up Nexus One versions of its highly popular artist collection of skins. If you don’t care for their selection, you always have the option to make your own. And if you are looking to protect the face of your device and you’re not so much into the artwork, then BodyGuardz already has Nexus One Full Body or Screen Only screen protectors. Lastly, if you are desperately looking for a case for your new baby and just can’t manage to find any, Amazon also has a small selection of silicone cases and plastic cases from various vendors but if you wait just a few weeks – I’m sure all the usual suspects will be pumping out new cases for the current hottest phone.

    2548 Google Nexus One Accessories Make Appearance at Gelaskins and BodyGuardz


  • USA Less Free

    An interesting shift however it is calculated.  That Canada is ranked sixth is no recommendation either.  We should all be tied at number one.  It is noteworthy that Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and Singapore carry the top spots and Ireland and Switzerland fill out the list.

     

    It is worth it to peruse the list.  Obviously economic success is liberating and I am surprised to see India as low as it is.  That may be changing because they have the rules and a system for enforcement that is not run by a communist party.

     

    The US has supported a range of naïve solutions to perceived threats at the expense of personal freedoms.  It is wrong and worse, it does not work.  I expect that a general assertion by the electorate for leaders who can show more sense has begun with Brown’s success.

     

    Of course we have now pursued legal prohibition of recreational drugs for a full fifty years.  This has financed bloated police departments and a bloated criminal underworld and an optimized black market in the drugs.  We import the drugs form Mexico, Columbia and Afghanistan thus financing their underworld and more critically financing the Afghan insurgency as well as low level insurgency else where.

     

    It should be obvious to the blind, dumb and stupid that regulating the industry and its production would slice the legs of all these threats.  We would in fact bring it totally onshore.

     

    That several states have cracked the ice by legalizing marijuana is a start at least.

     

    Personally, I am death on the abuse of drugs in almost any form, but only a fool today would think prohibition can ever work after fifty years of counter proof.  Even Islam seems unable to stop it and they do execute over it.

     

    Perhaps the electorate is not yet feeling the pain yet, but the trend is down and it is the electorate who must correct this drift.

     

    The U.S. Isn’t as Free as It Used to Be

    Canada now boasts North America‘s freest economy.

     

    By TERRY MILLER

    The United States is losing ground to its major competitors in the global marketplace, according to the 2010 Index of Economic Freedom released today by the Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal. This year, of the world’s 20 largest economies, the U.S. suffered the largest drop in overall economic freedom. Its score declined to 78 from 80.7 on the 0 to 100 Index scale.
    The U.S. lost ground on many fronts. Scores declined in seven of the 10 categories of economic freedom. Losses were particularly significant in the areas of financial and monetary freedom and property rights. Driving it all were the federal government’s interventionist responses to the financial and economic crises of the last two years, which have included politically influenced regulatory changes, protectionist trade restrictions, massive stimulus spending and bailouts of financial and automotive firms deemed “too big to fail.” These policies have resulted in job losses, discouraged entrepreneurship, and saddled America with unprecedented government deficits.
    In the world-wide rankings of economic freedom, the U.S. fell to eighth from sixth place. Canada now ranks higher and boasts North America‘s freest economy. More worrisome, for the first time in the Index’s 16-year history, the U.S. has fallen out of the elite group of countries identified as “economically free” by the objective measures of the Index. Four Asia-Pacific economies now sit atop the global rankings. Hong Kong stands in first place for the 16th consecutive year, followed by Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. Every region of the world maintains at least one country among those deemed “free” or “mostly free” by the Index.
    Columnist Mary O’Grady discusses the Heritage Foundation’s Index of Economic Freedom for 2010.
    Some countries, notably Britain and China, have followed America‘s poor example and curtailed economic freedom. But many others—such as Poland, South Korea, Mexico, Japan, Germany and even France—have maintained or expanded economic freedom despite the global crisis. Ignoring the pressures of recession, these enlightened nations have continued to liberalize their economies, granting their entrepreneurs and consumers greater freedom. As a result, the average Index score dropped only 0.1 point in 2010. Eighty-one countries out of the 179 ranked recorded higher scores than in 2009.
    These trends are important because study after study shows a strong correlation between economic freedom and prosperity. Citizens of economically freer countries enjoy much higher per-capita incomes on average than those who live in less free economies. Economic freedom also has positive impacts on overall quality of life, political and social conditions, and even on protection of the environment. Perhaps of most significance in these hard times, Index data indicate that freer economies do a much better job of reducing poverty than more highly regulated economies.
    The public sector can’t match the vitality of the private sector in promoting growth. Governments, even those that promise change, are primarily agents of the status quo. They tend to reflect the views and needs of those already holding political or economic power. Even democratic nations have their vested interests. Real change, however, can happen when those outside the mainstream have the freedom to try new things: new production processes, new technologies and new methods of organizing workers and capital.
    It is common these days to dismiss as simpletons or ideologues those who speak in favor of the free market or capitalism. An honest assessment shows otherwise. Economic freedom, as represented in the Index of Economic Freedom, is a philosophy that rejects economic dogma, championing instead the diversity that follows when entrepreneurs are free to choose their own paths to prosperity.
    The abiding lesson of the last few years is that the battle for liberty requires perpetual vigilance. President Obama professes desire to foster prosperity, environmental protection, poverty reduction and better health care. How ironic, then, that his economic proposals so consistently ignore or even undermine the one system—free enterprise capitalism—that has proven best able to achieve those goals.
    Now America‘s once high-flying economy is barely crawling forward. Americans deserve better, and they can do better—as soon as they reverse course and start regaining the economic freedom that made America the most prosperous country in the world.
    Mr. Miller is director of the Center for International Trade and Economics at the Heritage Foundation. He is co-editor, with Kim R. Holmes, of the “2010 Index of Economic Freedom” (471 pages, $24.95), available at heritage.org/index.

  • Variable Truths On Wind


    We revisit this particular debate.  At present, enlarging connectivity is a best strategy with the current state of the technology.  However, I think that industrial grade energy storage and electric car storage is almost upon us.  Once that is added to the mix, this issue simply goes away.

     

    A previous post also noted that the advent or cheap solar power nicely compliments both the wind power profile and consumer demand.  Again adding storage makes all problems go away.

     

    It is still impressive that the mega build out in Europe has been so successively integrated into their power grid and this makes waiting for the pending fixes to come on stream completely unnecessary.

     

    Wind is working, and solar is now cheap enough to also compete directly.  Since neither requires any fuel whatsoever to operate, they will necessarily dominate the power grid needed for the electrification of transport.  It will always be cheaper to have local production to support local demand.

     

    And no one objects to a windmill storing up power for his and his neighbors’ cars.

     

    Variable truths on wind

     

    http://environmentalresearchweb.org/blog/2010/01/variable-truths-on-wind.html

    The debate over how to deal with the variable energy output from wind turbines continues to rumble on. Some say that, when wind availability is low, there will be a need for extensive back up from conventional plant to maintain grid reliability. However, this backup may already exist: we have a lot of gas-fired capacity, much of which is used regularly, on a daily basis, to balance variations in conventional supply and in demand. Balancing wind variations means this will just have to be used a few times more often each year, adding a small cost penalty and undermining the carbon savings from using wind very slightly. But some say we will need much more that that. A report from Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB) claims that “the current mix of generating plant will be unable to ensure reliable electricity supply with significantly more than 10 GW of wind capacity. For larger wind capacity to be managed successfully, up to 10 GW of fast response generating plant or controllable load will be needed to balance the electricity system”.
    www.pbpoweringthefuture.com
    “Controllable load” includes the idea of having interactive smart grids which can switch off some devices when demand is high or renewable supplies are low.
    However even if that option is available, some say that, with more wind on the grid, to meet peak demand, we will still need more backup plants than we have. By contrast, wind energy consultant David Milborrow claims we have enough, and that some fossil-fired plants can actually be retired when wind capacity is added. That depends on the “capacity credit” of wind – how much of the wind plant capacity can be relied on statistically to meet peak demand. Milborrow puts the capacity credit of wind at around 30% with low levels wind on the grid, falling to 15% at high levels (at say 40% wind on the grid). That indicates how much fossil plant can be replaced. 
    PB see it very differently: “A high penetration of intermittent renewable generation drastically reduces the baseload regime, undermining the economic case for more-efficient plant types with lower carbon emissions.”
    Milborow admits that balancing wind variations has the effect of reducing the load factor for thermal plant, but says that this only costs ~£2.5/MWh at 20% wind, or ~ £6/MWh at 40%. PB will have none of this: “Very high early penetration of wind generation is likely to have adverse effects on the rest of the generating fleet, undermining the benefits of an increased contribution of renewable electricity.”
    PB also seems to slam the door on a possible way out, importing power from continental Europe, the wider footprint then helping to balance variations across a much larger geographical area. It says: “Electricity interconnection with mainland Europe would offer some fast-response capability, but would be unlikely to offer predictable support. Without additional fast-response balancing facilities, significant numbers of UK electricity consumers could regularly experience interruptions or a drop in voltage.”
    Addressing the interconnector issue, among others, TradeWind, a European project funded under the EU’s Intelligent Energy-Europe Programme, looked at the maximal and reliable integration of wind power in Trans European power markets. It used European wind power time series to calculate the effect of geographical aggregation on wind’s contribution to generation. And it looked ahead to a very large future programme, with its 2020 Medium scenario involving 200 GW – a 12% pan-EU wind power penetration. It found that aggregating wind energy production from multiple countries strongly increased the capacity credit. www.trade-wind.eu
    It also noted that “load” and wind energy are positively correlated – improving the capacity factor – the degree to which energy output matches energy demand. For the 2020 Medium scenario the countries studied showed an average annual wind capacity factor of 23–25 %, rising to 30–40 %, when considering power production during the 100 highest peak load situations – in almost all the cases studied, it was found that wind generation produces more than average during peak load hours.
    Given that “the effect of windpower aggregation is the strongest when wind power is shared between all European countries”, cross-EU grid links were seen as vital. If no wind energy is exchanged between European countries, the capacity credit in Europe is 8%, which corresponds to only 16 GW for the assumed 200 GW installed capacity. But since “the wider the countries are geographically distributed, the higher the resulting capacity credit” if Europe is calculated as one wind energy production system and wind energy is distributed across many countries according to individual load profiles, the capacity credit almost doubles to a level of 14%, which it says corresponds to approximately 27 GW of firm power in the system.
    Clearly then, with very large wind programmes you do get diminishing returns and need more backup, but it seems that can be offset to some extent by wider interconnectivity – the supergrid idea, linking up renewables sources across the EU.
    That is already underway. The UK’s National Grid has agreed with its Norwegian counterpart Statnett to draw up proposals for a £1 bn grid-interconnector grid link-up, to be funded on a 50:50 basis, which could help solve the problem of winds intermittency, given that Norwegian hydro could act as back-up for the UK, in return for electricity from the UK on windy days. As yet no UK landfall site has been indicated, but it could include connection nodes along the route with spurs taking power from offshore wind farms and become the backbone of a new North Sea “supergrid”: the UK and eight other North West EU countries have now agreed to explore interconnector links across the North sea and Irish sea. National Grid said: “Greater interconnection with Europe will be an important tool to help us balance the system with large quantities of variable wind generation in the UK.” 

  • 2010 Canadian Car of the Year Final 3

    The Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) announced yesterday the cars, SUVs, and trucks which will enter the final leg of the 2010 Canadian Car of the Year awards. The awards press conference is scheduled February, on Friday 11th, in the south Metro Toronto Convention Centre at the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto.

    The finalists for all the categories taken into consideration by AJAC are listed below:

    2010 Canadian Car of the Year

    BMW 335d Sedan
    Volksw… (read more)

  • Taskbar launcher 0.1 makes Windows Mobile 6.5.3 taskbar more useful

    tbl01beta The new taskbar in Windows Mobile 6.5.3 no longer activates the start menu, but drops down a set of notification icons. I believe Microsoft missed a significant opportunity to add a Pre-like task manager there, and I am not the only one who thinks this area can do more.

    RAMMANN on XDA-Dev has created Taskbar launcher 0.1 which creates a customizable drop down launcher which pops up when you tap the task bar.

    The software is only intended for WM 6.5.3 and works for VGA and WVGA resolutions.

    It is still a work in progress, and currently to change the apps one has to edit a text file, but the developer intends to make the process a bit more slick in the future.

    Read more about the app and download it at XDA-Developers here.

    Via FuzeMobility.com

    Share/Bookmark

  • Bump-Drafting Back to NASCAR in 2010

    Bump drafting will be again permitted in NASCAR, even if the change regards only the races held at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway. The championship officials had initially banned the maneuver following the race at Talladega in the early stages of the 2009 Sprint Cup Series, when Carl Edwards’ car was projected into the catch-fencing after being bumped when exiting the last turn by Brad Keselowski.

    The new rules stated that a driver would not be allowed to pull such… (read more)

  • Audi’s NAIAS Stand Catches Fire…

    Now don’t go thinking the stand, or the Cobo Center for that matter, went up in a blaze of glory, ’cause it didn’t. But the small electrical fire which broke out in the Audi display at the 2010 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) was enough to call for an evacuation of personnel and visitors. According to NAIAS, no injuries were reported.

    "A small electrical fire broke out in the Audi display at NAIAS. No injuries were reported as the floor was efficiently evacuated of patrons… (read more)

  • Toyota Recalls 2.3M Vehicles to Repair Accelerator Pedals

    We all heard about Toyota’s largest recall ever – approximately 3.8 million vehicles sold either under the Toyota or Lexus badge are equipped with incompatible floor mats that could block the accelerator pedal or, at least, this is the official reason – but things are getting more serious. This time, Toyota issued a notification concerning 2.3 million vehicles wearing the Toyota nameplate and not equipped with floor mats.

    In recent months, Toyota has investigated isolated reports of sticking … (read more)

  • Alquiler de películas en Youtube, pagos en Boxee. Los nuevos intermediarios cada vez más cerca

    U2 vídeo en directo por youtube

    Los distribuidores / agregadores de contenidos audiovisuales – desde cadenas de televisión a plataformas que agregan a estas por cable – deberían echar un ojo a movimientos como los de Youtube añadiendo alquiler de películas y Boxee con sistema de pago. Sin duda el que más posibilidades tiene de impactar en la industria es el servicio de vídeo de Google, cuyo negocio cada vez parece estar más alineado con Hulu (monetización de producciones de calidad, no sólo publicidad, también pago) que con la fórmula original de contenidos de usuario.

    El abanico de posibilidades que se abre va desde la desintermediación para nuevos creadores hasta la posibilidad para las productoras de apretar el margen que se lleva la plataforma de pago que ahora mismo comercialice su oferta. El vídeo por internet puede forzar que quienes tuviesen un rol de mero agregador – y muchas cadenas de televisión se asemejan a esto – vean amenazada su situación cuando Youtube y compañía estén más presentes en el televisor del salón, algo que no estaría tan lejos si observamos los movimientos de los fabricantes. ¿Qué vamos a ver seguro en los próximos meses? Demandas de que se legisle a su favor y contra el vídeo online, algo que ya podemos ver tejiéndose en Italia como cuenta alt1040. Eso sí, el argumento no será que hay una amenaza para el negocio basado en que hay pocas licencias para canales de televisión y apaños como la TDT de pago, sino ¿adivinan? la propiedad intelectual que los malvados internautas amenazan.

    Relacionado: Los nuevos intermediarios en la televisión y el cine por internet. Tendencia 2010.


  • Limited Chevy Corvette Auctioned for Haiti

    The last of the 427 cars built specifically for North America and the only 2008 Z06 available in Crystal Red Metallic Tint Coat will be auctioned at the 39th annual Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction for the benefit of the American Red Cross relief fund intended for Haiti.

    The proceeds will be donated by GM in addition to the $100,000 which already went to the Red Cross. The auction will be held Saturday evening, Jan. 23, at the Barrett-Jackson event in Scottsdale, Arizona.

    This speci… (read more)

  • Nina Paley vs. Jaron Lanier

    Okay, so we had said that we were just going to do one post debunking Jaron Lanier’s new hatred for everything about “open culture,” but WNYC recently had a nice little debate between Nina Paley and Jaron Lanier — and the thing that amazed me is how unprepared to debate these topics Lanier appears to be. Admittedly, some of it is just that Lanier loses his train of thought a few times, but that’s really not what stands out. He rarely seems to have an actual point. You can pretty much sum up his position as “but, artists need to make money and after 10 years, they haven’t been able to online, so it’s a failure.” But that’s it. Nothing in what he says explains how to change things. It’s just pining for the way things used to be. And whenever he’s confronted on specific points, he either falls back to saying “well, I made up that argument originally, but now I know it’s wrong” without ever explaining why it’s wrong, or saying “well, I’m not an absolutist, so I could maybe see how free could be helpful.” His discussion about the length of copyright and whether copyright should go to kids and grandkids is quite telling. He doesn’t seem to understand the issues at play, doesn’t have a clear train of thought, and goes back and forth and makes totally arbitrary claims, such as, “well, I don’t know, I think it’s okay to pass it on to your kids, but if it’s for your grand kids, okay, I guess I can see that that’s starting to be too much.” Why? Not clear.

    The one point that really does need to be refuted is that he seems to believe that artificial scarcity somehow makes people pay. He talks about the importance of a “social contract” to have people “pay for others’ brains.” He says “people need to be secure that they’re earning their dignity and don’t need to sing for their supper every night.” But that confuses a few different issues. Having the government step in and ramp up copyright laws doesn’t earn anyone their dignity. Providing products that people actually want to pay for does. And that’s the point that Lanier seems to miss. He tries to support the importance of “artificial scarcity” by using money as an example, saying that money only works because it’s artificially scarce. But that’s a total misunderstanding of money. Money works because it’s a proxy for value, so it isn’t actually artificially scarce at all. It’s legitimately scarce, because if you print more money, the value of the money already in the system goes down (inflation) meaning that you have to pay more to get the same thing. It works because it’s a proxy for that scarce value. It’s not an artificial scarcity at all. He later agrees with Nina when she talks about the importance of real scarcity, but fails to recognize that real scarcity makes sense, whereas artificial scarcity is actually economically limiting.

    Lanier also makes an odd claim that the old studio/label system allowed for a “middle class” of content creators. But that’s really not true. For most who go through that system it’s totally hit or miss, with most missing. But with new business models, we’re seeing more and more people who are able to make a perfect middle class living by not having to wait for the gatekeepers. More people are making money due to their music today than ever before, and it’s because they have all sorts of different ways to make money.

    Nina, not surprisingly, does an excellent job responding to each of Lanier’s points. He brings up the inevitable claim that “but people could take your film and do stuff with it!” and she points out that she wants that, and knows that her fans are smart enough to know the difference between her original and what others do with her film.

    All in all it’s a fun debate to listen to, but I have to admit that I would have found it a lot more interesting if Lanier actually sounded like he understood the topic at hand beyond the superficial level.

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