Earlier this week it was New York State. Now it’s Nevada. Perhaps Greece and the UK could take a lesson on what austerity means. (via LasVegasNow.com)
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Filed under: Concept Cars, Spy Photos, Convertible, Performance, Geneva Motor Show, Mercedes-Benz, Luxury
We’ve been all but assured that a convertible version of the 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG was on the way, and now we’ve got photographic proof of the de-gullwinged drop-top weathering the wintery climes before its reveal in 2010.
Although Mercedes officials haven’t divulged much about the SLS cabrio, it’s likely to be fitted with a retractable soft-top rather than a folding hard-top in a bid to keep weight in check and retain some of the trunk’s capacity. Naturally, the chassis will be fortified to increase rigidity, but considering the SLS AMG was designed from the onset to be both a coupe and a convertible, we suspect the extent of the modifications to be limited and the weight penalty to be minimal.
Some reports indicate that the SLS AMG Roadster could debut as early as the Geneva Motor Show in March, but if we were betting gentlemen, we’d suspect the convertible SLS to debut later in 2010, likely at the Paris Motor Show.
Spy Shots: Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Rolf Nelson, a Wheaton College psychology professor, has just released the results of his study which aimed to shed some light on the impact of playing video games between tasks. The study, which is directed to the
We’ve been talking a bit about some of the communications problem Google seems to have at times, often not doing a very good job communicating with the public on things that may impact them greatly. Here’s yet another example, sent in by Ryan, who notes that many people have recently been kicked out of Google’s AdWord program with no recourse or explanation.
Now, it seems pretty clear that Google is trying to block “bad” advertisers who are somehow lying or cheating the system — and that’s a good thing. But these sweeping bans seem to be catching plenty of legitimate advertisers, and even more frustrating than the “ban” itself is the fact that as many times as you attempt to get them to explain why you were banned or ask for your case to be reconsidered, the company’s response is, effectively, to tell people: “You were banned for being bad, and you will never advertise with us again. Goodbye.” While I’m sure plenty of the banned accounts were banned for nefarious activity, it seems ridiculous to do a permanent and total ban with no explanation whatsoever. Google has been known to do this before (certainly many folks who use AdSense have received similar notices with the same lack of info or recourse). It’s just a shame, because it’s the sort of thing that Google could do right, and seems to have chosen not to.
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Earlier this week we noted Nouriel Roubini’s five reasons that the “barbarous relic” gold is due to fall.
Obviously this raised the hackles of the metal’s biggest fans, including QBAssetManagement, which (via GATA.org) has produced a long rebuttal.
In short, they presnt a ponzi-like view of the global currency system, call out Roubini for being intentionally provocative, and accuse him of a cherry-picked reading of history.
QBAssetManagement-12-14-2009 –
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As predicted, Chrome has eclipsed Safari in web browser market share. According to web analytics firm Net Applications, Chrome’s share is now 4.4 percent, just edging out Safari at 4.37 percent.
For Apple and Safari users, there is both good and bad news here. The good news is that Chrome is WebKit-based like Safari, and more WebKit-based browsing ultimately means greater compatibility for all. The bad news comes in the form of a question: Whatever happened to Safari for Windows?
Via Computerworld, Net Applications VP Vince Vizzaccaro asserts the recent beta release of Chrome for OS X and Linux was responsible for the surge in Chrome usage. At the end of November, Chrome was at 3.93 percent of total browser share, with the OS X version at just 0.32 percent. Two weeks later Chrome for OS X jumped a full percentage point, the increase coming “fairly equally” from Safari and Firefox, according to Vizzaccaro.
Chrome saw an even bigger jump with Linux, from 3.81 percent to 6.84 percent. According to Vizzaccaro, “Linux will be the more intriguing arena to watch.” That may be true, but Net Applications currently counts Linux as just 1 percent of OS market share. Even if Chrome takes half the browser share on Linux, it won’t do much to increase the usage of WebKit-based browsers. That will happen on Windows, if it happens at all, but the sad thing is it could have happened with Safari.
At the launch of Safari for Windows at WWDC ‘07, Steve Jobs commented that “hundreds of millions of Windows users already use iTunes, and we look forward to turning them onto Safari’s superior browsing experience, too.” It never happened. Security and performance issues blunted the initial surge of downloads, but more importantly, Apple has never devoted the resources to making Safari for Windows as good as Safari for Mac. Safari for Windows has never been close to the experience on the Mac, and its market share has never been more than a third of a percent.
Today, Chrome feels like what Safari could have been for Windows, a “fast and intuitive web browsing” experience as Jobs said at WWDC ‘07. That was then, and Chrome is now — better to kill Safari for Windows and use those resources elsewhere.
Filed under: Motorsports, Videos
When a 250-mph funny car suddenly loses control and launches like a missile in your direction, common sense dictates that the best thing to do is run away. As fast as possible. While the instincts of the shutter bugs at Pomona Raceway in California told most to run for cover, Andy Willsheer just kept on shooting. And when Steve Gasparrelli’s Ford Mustang funny car came screaming at him full tilt and completely out of control, Willsheer snapped off several of the most up close and personal shots you’ll ever see.
Gasparrelli’s Mustang funny car slipped on some oil right out of the gate and made an immediate 90-degree right turn right for the concrete barrier. The drag car was immediately upended by the barrier just three feet from where Willsheer was shooting. Neither Willsheer or Gasparrelli were seriously hurt in the incident. We’re not sure if Willsheer was brave or stupid for not moving, but we sure do like the pics. Be sure to head over to the Daily Mail to check out Willsheer’s amazing photos and hit the jump to watch video of the accident. Pretty amazing stuff.
[Source: Daily Mail]
Continue reading VIDEO: Photographer snaps drag car crash with nerves of steel
VIDEO: Photographer snaps drag car crash with nerves of steel originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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PRESS RELEASE
December 15, 2009 Contact: Dawn Alford, 542-5524
Wed., Dec. 16, 2009
CBC Thornton Center Atrium
9:30 AM
Second-graders are set to release their butterflies in the Columbia Basin College Thornton Center Atrium on Wednesday, December 16, 2009 at 9:30 a.m. Approximately 120 Whittier Elementary students will let their painted lady butterflies go free, then spend time touring the CBC campus and learning about college.
The butterflies were raised by the students as part of the class month-long science curriculum. The field trip will provide these youth early exposure to the college environment; with hopes of stimulating their desire to one day obtain a higher education. Potentially, these very students could be released onto college campuses in a decade to pursue degrees.
Note regarding butterfly release: With climate control, water features, and abundant plant life the Thornton Atrium is a natural choice in which to set the butterflies free, especially this time of year.
City Year for Kids is a fun, and educational week-long vacation camp that City Year Boston runs during the winter and spring school vacations. We provide a safe, engaging place for children to go who may not otherwise have adult supervision when school is out. The camps are located at four sites throughout Boston, serving roughly 700 children. During the camps, pairs of corps members and volunteers lead teams of 10-12 elementary school children.
This year’s winter program, runs from Monday February 15th through Friday February 19th, and would be an excellent volunteer opportunity for your organization. Volunteers are welcome to volunteer for just one day or all four. Volunteers will also be required to attend one training prior to the camp.
Kynikos Associates founder Jim Chanos stopped by the Fast Money set for an interview with CNBC’s Melissa Lee this afternoon.
A few highlights from the video:
One thing Chanos hints at but doesn’t quite explain is that his fund is always net short but long the market. How can that be? The positions of the fund are always tipped toward short selling. But the returns on those shorts are bench marked against the market. This means that in a bear market, Chanos’s shorts must out-perform to the downside for the firm to make its perfomance targets. In a bull market, things are a bit easier.
Here’s the video:
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John Aravosis says it better than I ever could.
Ahoy there, mateys! Get ready to weigh anchor, hoist the mainsail and all eyepatched and peglegged pirate jazz. LittleBigPlanet’s finally getting some water next week via the piratey Pirates of the Caribbean pack.
Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Lotus, Design/Style
The upper echelon at Lotus continues to evolve, with today’s announcement that Donato Coco has been appointed as the new director of design at the UK sports car maker and engineering consultancy. The Italian designer is moving to Hethel from Ferrari headquarters in Maranello where Coco worked on recent products like the F430 Scuderia coupe, Spider 16M, California, 599XX and the new F458 Italia. Prior to his Ferrari tenure, Coco was the chief designer at Citroen.
With Coco’s hiring, Lotus hopes to bring its design expertise up to par with its engineering work for other automakers. Coco will also oversee the design of the upcoming Lotus product range which will continue to be led by current design head Russell Carr. With Coco and Carr, Lotus will be producing an Evora convertible, an all new Esprit and eventually a new Elise and Exige in the coming years.
[Source: Lotus]
Continue reading Lotus appoints Ferrari designer Donato Coco as new design director
Lotus appoints Ferrari designer Donato Coco as new design director originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Optida Co. design and produce various configuration optical components with require coatings upon your request:
High-Reflection Mirrors, Windows, Prisms, Lenses, Polarizer’s, Beamsplitters, Partial Reflectors, Interference filters, Astronomical filters, etc.
Optida Co Ltd was established in 1997. Since the beginning we were continuously accumulating valuable coating production experience, expanding human, hardware resources, range and quality of our optical coatings.
Today our skilled and experienced technicians and engineers make the company very flexible and competitive. We offer a broad range of typical optical coatings as well as custom coatings, suitable for various needs and applications.
GCC, a global forefront manufacturer in the visual communications industry, is proud to announce that GCC received the Industrial Technology Award – Corporate Excellent Innovations Award, symbolizing the Oscar Academy Award in high-tech industry, conferred by Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).
After the honor of “SMEs Rising Star Award”, “National SME Award”, and continuously a winner of “Taiwan Excellence Awards” for many years, GCC won the 17th Excellent Corporate Innovation Award under Industrial Technology Advancement Award, conferred by MOEA. This year is also the 20th anniversary since the founding of GCC. This honor not only proved the R&D ability of GCC, it also means the innovation of company’s technique, products, manufacturing process, organization, and strategies are highly approved by the government.
“GCC is not a mainstream manufacturer in Taiwan. Many people are even unfamiliar with GCC’s niche products, such as its vinyl cutter, laser engravers, laser markers, laser cutters, and the Inkjet printers,” says Dr. Leonard Shih, the CEO of GCC. “However, with our profound and solid technical property, we have won our own place in global visual communications related industries and become an internationally well-known design and manufacturing supplier of professional equipments.”
With its persistence on high product quality, GCC thoroughly implements customer-oriented product R&D and innovation, from the initial design proposal to the final manufacturing process, and even to brand marketing and customer services. Moreover, GCC dedicates to nurture R&D manpower and pass down R&D spirit that qualifies international standards.
“Even though innovative research & development are frequently mentioned in Taiwan; however, schools, our society, and even most people only have a superficial understanding about it. It is not profoundly understood and not thoroughly executed. I think real innovative R&D should be able to endure trial. Speaking more precisely, it should be able to pass the test of international markets, because our competitors come from all over the world. Only the most innovative R&D that meets global standard can compete with international brands side by side and even surpass them. R&D engineers nurtured by GCC not only focus on technical and quality perspective, they also have sophisticated standard R&D spirit and cultivation, making their design qualifying global R&D standards. ” says Dr. Leonard Shih.
About Industrial Technology Advancement Award
Established in 1992 by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the “Industrial Technology Advancement Awards” aims to drive industrial innovation and transformation by honoring select corporations and individuals with outstanding innovation achievements. In the past 17 years, up to 1300 corporate participants took part in the Award, with 273 corporations awarded for their extraordinary technology advancements, as well as 41 individuals with breakthrough innovative developments. These winners all attained excellent performance and reputation. Many corporate leaders even see the award as a key performance indicator. Previous award events had not only won enthusiastic responses from the domestic industry, but also boosted R&D advancements in other trades through exchanges with the award winners.
About GCC
GCC, a global leader in supplying professional large format UV curable inkjet printer, laser engraving/cutting/marking systems, vinyl cutting equipment, provides businesses, governments, and consumers with innovative and reliable solutions. Headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, GCC has branch offices in Walnut, CA and Capelle a/d IJssel, Netherlands. With over 100 current and pending worldwide product patents and trademarks, GCC has earned a worldwide reputation for innovation, quality and reliability in the awards & recognition, sign, personalization and manufacturing industries.
The Jenoptik Optical Systems division focuses its scope of service in the field of optoelectronics on the ever-increasing demands of the market for devices and testing procedures in rapid diagnostics. Sensitivity and specificity of Jenoptik’s semiconductor and optical components meet the full range of current and future assays and markers as well as the diversity of detection methods.
In this field we have been a reliable development partner and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for leading diagnostic companies for more than ten years.
We can draw upon great experience in development and production of more than 100 million detection modules and components, which operate extremely narrowband at wavelengths specifically required in the range between UV 350 nm and NIR 1750 nm.
The optimum balance of energy input into the sample on the one hand and signal detection on the other hand is achieved by using optical components, such as lenses and filters, especially adapted to the needs of rapid diagnostics.
We are a prime partner in industrializing and manufacturing of customized optoelectronic single or system components for rapid diagnostics. This includes demanding chip technology, as well as precision assembly and housing according to customer requirements.
Together with EPIGAP Optoelektronik GmbH, which was acquired in 2008 and now is fully integrated, Jenoptik offers, as one of only a few manufacturers in the world, the entire value chain – from the chip to the reader housing – consolidated within one company. The reduction of interfaces avoids common sources of error and leads to gain of quality and time.
Jenoptik combines the core competencies and technologie:
– Optics and system design
– Chip development and production, board layout
– Precision tooling
– Injection molding technologies (2-component, macro and micro)
– Surface technology
– High precision assembly and packaging technologies
and thus covers the complete value chain from the sample detection to the output of a digital signal. Already today optoelectronic arrays can be configured for excitation and detection in multi-parameter analytics which are increasingly powerful, smaller and highly cost-efficient.
Consequently, Jenoptik’s scope of service meets even the highest requirements of the industry in rapid diagnostics and personalized medicine.
This week, Sierra Instruments introduced a line of mass flow meters Certified by Sierra for Green House Gas (GHG) reporting. All Sierra GHG meters now conform to the new EPA rule (40 CFR Part 98), which mandates that as of January 2, 2010, companies in the United States that emit more than 25,000 tons/year of CO2 equivalent must report GHG emissions. It is estimated that approximately 10,000 of the country’s largest businesses will be affected.
Sierra’s GHG Certified mass flow meters provide an economical way to totalize methane or natural gas burned, enabling the calculation of CO2 equivalent emissions. Sierra has extensive experience in producing highly accurate and repeatable mass flow meters for methane (CH4) as well as N20, SF6, HFC’s, PFC’s and CO2 as called out in the EPA mandate.
“This is really our strong suit,” says Matthew J. Olin, President of Sierra. “Our customers saw the environmental writing on the wall some time ago and we have been steadfastly pursuing both sustainable and profitable industry flow measurement solutions ever since. To make it easier for our customers facing this measurement challenge to find the meter they need, we’ve established a dedicated webpage www.sierrainstruments.com/greenhouse.html that features our three most popular GHG Certified mass flow meters. We’ve also trained our team of flow application and service engineers in the EPA Greenhouse Gas reporting rule so they can answer customer questions.”
The three GHG Certified thermal mass flow meters on Sierra’s GHG webpage are the Boiler-Trak™, Model 640S and Model 780S. Sierra’s Boiler-Trak™ is a thermal mass flow meter designed for stationary combustion applications (commercial boilers, kilns and heaters), which are among the largest emitters of CO2. To date, over 15,000 units have been successfully installed. Sierra’s Model 640S has been optimized for landfill gas, the second largest source of CO2. Landfill gas is very humid, at low pressure (20-40 mBarg) and about 40°-60°C (100°F) when it leaves the landfill. Given that the 640S has 100:1 turndown, no moving parts, and generates nominal pressure drop across the immersible sensor probe, it is ideal for this application. The Sierra Model 780S was designed for gas and electricity producers, the third largest category of CO2 emitters. This flow meter is routinely used by gas and power plants to measure methane to compressors, pre-heaters, boilers and other process equipment.
GCC, a global forefront equipment-manufacturing provider in the visual communication industry, is delighted to announce the availability of our special GCC 20th Anniversary signature model, Expert 24*.
In celebration of the GCC 20th Anniversary, we are proud to introduce the Expert 24 model which comes with a trendy and colorful appearance. The new Expert 24 features 250 grams of cutting force and up to 24 IPS cutting speed, providing precise cutting quality and superior tracking capability to meet the demands of entry-level sign makers. GCC uses the same professional cutter components from our pro machines in the Expert 24 model to keep the cutting quality and reliability at an affordable price.
Features of the Expert 24 include but are not limited to the following:
Guaranteed 3 meter tracking
GCC Expert 24 consists of the best components that stable drum guarantees
3 meter tracking to ensure quality outputs and save you a lot of material and cost.
Dual-port connectivity
GCC Expert 24 supports dual-port connectivity with USB and serial ports. The USB port provides faster data transmission and dual-port connectivity provides sign makers with great flexibility for data transmission.
Software compatibility
GCC Expert 24 supports several application programs including CorelDraw, Illustrator, AutoCAD and SignPal etc, gives users faster adaptability and no extra learning.
User-friendly interface
The easy-to-use control panel is along with the special VLCD software, offering users a simple and intuitive workflow.
* Note: GCC Expert 24 is only available in selected areas. Please contact your local GCC sales representatives for product availability.
About GCC
GCC, a global leader in professional large format UV curable inkjet printer, laser engraving/cutting/marking systems, vinyl cutting equipment, provides businesses, governments, and consumers with innovative and reliable solutions. Headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, GCC has branch offices in Walnut, CA and Capelle a/d IJssel, Netherlands. With over 100 current and pending worldwide product patents and trademarks, GCC has earned a worldwide reputation for innovation, quality and reliability in the awards & recognition, sign, personalization and manufacturing industries.
For more product information, please visit our website at www.gccworld.com or contact local GCC sales representatives in your area.
Advertising experts from all over have recently gathered and selected the best ads over the last ten years, and Adweek has just released the results. The elite list is made up of commercials for some of the
