Category: News

The Transformers: War for Cybertron hype-train keeps chugging right along with another round of ViDoc from High Moon Studios to give us more details on the different multiplayer modes of the hotly anticipated robo shooter.
 

We’ve discussed in the past some of Amanda Palmer’s business model experiments, and she’s guest posted on this site herself about connecting with her fans. Last month she finally was “freed” from her major record label deal and celebrated that fact. Anyway, she’s in the San Francisco Bay Area this weekend performing both Saturday and Sunday… and then on Monday, she’ll be teaming up with Ok Go, the band that similarly just celebrated being “dropped” from their label, to do a combination webcast/art contest. As she prepares for all that (and is in the middle of a tour) she took some time to answer a few quick questions about the whole process of freeing oneself from a major record label deal…

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You’ve been fighting your (old) label, Roadrunner for a while now, in response to your feeling that it didn’t do much (if anything) to support your last album. As of a few weeks ago, you’re now officially free from that label. What can you tell us about how those discussions went?

Well, I made it clear to the label a good year and a half ago that i wanted out of the relationship – it was clear to me that things had fallen apart as soon as I went on tour with Who Killed Amanda Palmer, my solo record, and there wasn’t any promotion. They’re a hard bunch of people to figure out. I think the thing that bothers me most about their system was the difficulty of finding out the Real Truth about things. I’m a generally straight shooter, often to my own demise, and I find it incomprehensible when people play giant games and tell giant stories that are misleading just as a matter of day-to-day business. I just can’t function that way.

Of course decisions get made, things change in a moving marketplace – but the label would just keep me totally in the dark about decisions. It became intolerable to feel like there wasn’t even an inkling of a partnership. I’d finally been in the business long enough to realize that the people you work with are your Life. And life’s too short to not work with people you love. I don’t care if I never see a cent they owe me, it’s worth it to be free. Everything ahead of me will be so much more joyful, and every penny I earn will feel more joyful.

With both you and Ok Go recently celebrating getting out from under a major label contract, is this a beginning of a shift in how bands view label relationships? For years, the goal was always to get a major label contract and musicians would celebrate getting that deal. Now musicians are celebrating being “dropped” from major labels. Is this a turning point in how musicians interact with labels? Do you see yourself working with a label in the future? If so, how would you structure the relationship?

I have nothing against Labels at all. Labels are groups of people, trying to work. I like people, and I like work. But I think that the collapsed system has made it so hard for them to work well.

If I signed with another label, it would have to be a very personal partnership between me and a group of people that I really trusted to understand my bigger picture.

I would sit down with folks and seriously drill them on what they believed. I’ve made enough mistakes at this point, I’d proceed with extreme caution and not lock myself into a long-term deal.

Labels are REALLY useful. Any touring band who’s successful knows that you can’t tour and run an office at the same time. But I think the functionality is going to change…I think labels are going to basically dissolve into promotional companies, now that hard-copy music is going bye-bye.

You’ve also been pretty active in experimenting with all sorts of creative business models — and not being ashamed to ask for money. Is there anything in your experiences that you think are applicable to others, or are they more specific to your circumstances? Also, what did you do that didn’t work?

I think asking for money is generally considered shameful in the art and music world; it has been for ages. Art has this untouchable romanticism constructed around it; this cultural ideal about artists and how they shouldn’t touch money because it strips away the integrity of their art. But that’s obviously bullshit, especially if you look throughout history and see that artists have ALWAYS needed to fund themselves and their work creatively, sneakily, with gusto and with shamelessness. The only mistake I think I’ve made is not making the connection sooner. I think I was still living in the delusion back when we signed. Living inside this idea that we, as major-label-artists, would get to live on the Special Cloud of Art without Commerce. If I’d been thinking ahead, I would have been training and educating our audience form the very start to support us directly.

One of the complaints that people have leveled towards a model that involves using social media to talk with fans is that it takes away from their ability to make music. As someone who uses tools like Twitter, blogging and video streaming all the time, what are your thoughts on that?

If people are complaining that social networking is taking away their ability to make music, they’re mistaking “ability” with “priority” and they’re being pussies.

There’s no rule that says that if you join twitter you had to hang your guitar on the wall and let it collect dust – that’s just a fucking myth we tell ourselves to excuse ourselves from work when we find networking fancy and shiny and tempting. Networking and twitter and all the things that connect bands to their fans and to their fellow artists can be INSPIRING and DISTRACTING, depending how you use them. It’s just a tool, like the telephone. You choose when to pick it up. If you’re strong, you know how to prioritize your life. I’m not saying I’m GOOD at it, but I see where the lines are and I know when I’m falling into the over-communication ditch…then I scrape myself off, unplug, let my brain turn back into a creator’s brain, and strap myself there until I have something interesting to bring back to the mac.

What’s next for Amanda Palmer?

My new huge exciting project is an album of Radiohead ukulele covers (no, really) that I’m releasing on digital and vinyl only this july. It’s a really gorgeous record. Right after that comes out I’m starring in the musical “Cabaret” this fall at the American Repertory Theater, directed by my old high school mentor Steven Bogart, who was the same one that co-created the Neutral Milk Hotel-inspired musical I did last year. I miss and love the stage…rock world gets a little old sometimes. After that, I don’t know, I’ll probably open a juice bar and retire. But I’ll tweet about exciting juice combinations every morning.

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A Volkswagen acaba de lançar a primeira imagem da nova geração do Passat, que já foi flagrado algumas vezes mas ainda não tinha sido revelado oficialmente.

A marca ainda não revelou nenhum detalhe do modelo, apenas a imagem que dá pra ver como será seu novo desenho, principalmente a dianteira que muda bastante.

Seu motor também não foi revelado. Mas segundo fontes, o modelo deverá ser apresentado para o mercado Europeu depois do meio do ano.

Fonte: German Car Blog

Jamais Cascio at Open the Future has a post (revived from 2006)on the ethics of futurism – OtF Core: Ethical Futurism.

Futurists — including scenario planners, trend-spotters, foresight specialists, paradigm engineers, and the myriad other labels we use — have something of an odd professional role. We are akin to reporters, but we’re reporters of events that have not yet happened — and may not happen. We are analysts, but analysts of possibilities, not histories. We’re science fiction storytellers, but the stories we tell are less for entertainment than for enlightenment. And, much to our surprise, we may be much more influential than we expect. …

As I see it, then, where business professionals are responsible to the client and their various stakeholders, foresight professionals are responsible to the future.

Here’s what I think that means:

It means that the first duty of an ethical futurist is to act in the interests of the stakeholders yet to come — those who would suffer harm in the future from choices made in the present. This harm could come (in my view) in the form of fewer options or possibilities for development, less ecological diversity and environmental stability, and greater risks to the health and well-being of people and other species on the planet. Futurists, as those people who have chosen to become navigators for society — responsible for watching the path ahead — have a particular responsibility for safeguard that path, and to ensure that the people making strategic choices about actions and policies have the opportunity to do so wisely.

From this, I would argue for the following set of ethical guidelines:

An ethical futurist has a responsibility not to let the desires of a client (or audience, or collaborator) for a particular outcome blind him or her to the consequences of that goal, and will always informs the client of both the risks and rewards.

An ethical futurist has the responsibility to understand, as fully as possible, the range of issues and systems connected to the question under consideration, to avoid missing critical potential consequences.

An ethical futurist has the responsibility to acknowledge and make her or his client (audience, collaborators) cognizant of the uncertainty of forecasts, and to explain why some outcomes and consequences are more or less likely than others.

An ethical futurist has the responsibility to offer unbiased analysis, based on an honest appraisal of sources, with as much transparency of process as possible.

An ethical futurist has the responsibility to recognize the difference between short-term results and long-term processes, and to always keep an eye on the more distant possibilities.

Futurists perform a quirky, but necessary, task in modern society: we function as the long-range scanners for a species evolved to pay close attention to short-range horizons. Some neurophysiologists argue that this comes from the simple act of throwing an object to hit a moving target. Chimpanzees and bonobos, even with DNA 98% identical to our own, are simply unable to do so, while most humans can (at least with a bit of experience). It turns out that the same cognitive structures that let us understand where a moving target will be may also help us recognize the broader relationship between action and result — or, more simply, how “if” becomes “then.”

I’m not sure how many futurists recognize the weight of responsibility that rests on their shoulders; this is an occupation in which attention-deficit disorder is something of a professional requirement. But when we do our jobs well, we can play a pretty damn important role in shaping the course of human history. It’s incumbent upon us, then, to do our jobs with a sense of purpose and ethics.

Audi set a record for the most number of cars sold in the first four months of the year. It sold 360,760 units and expects further growth for the second quarter.

At the company’s Annual General Meeting, Rupert Stadler, Audi chairman of the board, said that the company is progressing very well but that it will continue to “keep [its] foot on the accelerator.” Audi is relying on the release of its new-generation A8 to raise sales. It will also be offering the entry-level A1 model in the second half of the year, adding more momentum. Audi’s sales in the four months of the year translate into double-digit growth rates in all its sales regions. Audi was able to generate revenue of €8.2 billion, a 23% increase compared to the same period last year. With these results, Audi expects that the remaining months of the year will be successful as well. For this year, Audi is scheduled to launch 12 new models, including the A7, RS 5 and the Q5 hybrid.

Source: Car news, Car reviews, Spy shots

At the 2010 Fleet World Honours, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class got the award for Best Luxury Car. This is actually the second straight award of this type that the luxury sedan has gotten.

Adrian Freeman, regional corporate sales manager for Mercedes-Benz UK, received the award in a ceremony held at the Royal Automobile Club in Pall Mall, last May 18. Steve Moody, editor of Fleet World, said all new cars that attempt to enter the luxury segment have one model to beat: the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. Moody said that its upcoming efficient engines have made the line-up even more impressive than before. The Mercedes-Benz S350 CDI BlueEfficiency has an average fuel consumption rating of 37.2 mpg and CO2 emissions of 199 g/km. This engine meets Euro 6 standards, which actually will start taking effect in the UK in 2014 at the earliest.

Source: Car news, Car reviews, Spy shots

I can’t resist whispered sonnets or hastily scribbled limericks, but how many guys actually memorize poems nowadays? At least there are apps like this one to help them fake the knowledge and romance with a quick flick of the wrist. More »










iPhone – Handhelds – Smartphones – Limerick – Recreation

El microcoche urbano de Mercedes-Benz le robó bastante protagonismo a su matriz en el primer día del Salón de Madrid por la importancia de su rueda de prensa. Y es que si el presidente y consejero delegado de Mercedes-Benz España, José Luis López-Schümmer, y la presidenta de ACCIONA Energía, Carmen Becerril, firman juntos un documento, se trata de un acontecimiento que hay seguir con atención.

Ambas partes suscribieron ayer un acuerdo de colaboración para comenzar una experiencia piloto de movilidad eléctrica en la capital española que durará cuatro años. Mientras que Mercedes-Benz entregará 42 Smart Fortwo Electric Drive en régimen de renting a diez empresas participantes en la iniciativa, ACCIONA construirá 121 puntos de recarga necesarios para el uso de los vehículos tanto en las sedes de dichas organizaciones como en los domicilios de los conductores o determinadas áreas públicas.

Carmen Becerril añadió que estos puntos contarán con tecnología inteligente y su electricidad se generará utilizando energías renovables como ha acreditado la Comisión Nacional de Energía, de forma que todo el proceso de carga es 100% ecológico. También comentó que ofrecerán algunos servicios adicionales como la programación previa de la recarga o la supervisión de la misma usando el móvil.

El proceso de selección de las empresas que formarán parte de la experiencia y la localización de los puntos de recarga empezará muy pronto. Durante las pruebas, Mercedes-Benz y ACCIONA elaborarán estudios para comprobar la integración de los Smart Fortwo Electric Drive en su uso diario y la opinión de las personas que los conduzcan. Si resulta un éxito, Mercedes-Benz tiene previsto añadir 35 unidades de una variante eléctrica del Clase A a la experiencia.

¿Y qué es lo que se encontrarán los conductores del Fortwo Electric Drive? Pues algo muy parecido a lo que se podrá comprar en los concesionarios Smart a partir del año 2012. Su motor eléctrico de 30 kW (un poco más de 40 CV) le permite llegar hasta 100 km/h y acelerar de 0 a 60 en 6′5 segundos.

Sin embargo, la novedad más importante con respecto a anteriores conceptos del Smart eléctrico son sus baterías, que en el Electric Drive de producción son de ion-litio. Su capacidad es de 16′5 kWh y otorgan una autonomía de 135 kilómetros, de sobra para recorridos urbanos. Además, se pueden recargar con enchufe en cualquier toma de 220 voltios y 16 amperios.

El Smart Fortwo Electric Drive puede presumir de ser el primer vehículo totalmente eléctrico producido en masa y, como se ha venido afirmando desde que fue anunciado, probablemente es lo que le faltaba a este microcoche para convertirse en el urbano perfecto. Os dejamos con las fotos:

Fotos | HighMotor

Pois é, com o lançamento do novo Uno, com novo design e motor, todos deixaram o Fiat Palio um pouco de lado.

Mas quem achou que a Fiat também iria deixar o modelo de lado, se enganou. A marca acaba de anunciar que o modelo receberá novas modificações restritas a sua dianteira.

No seu interior ainda não foi nada revelado se recebera alguma alteração, mas no motor já está quase confirmado que não vai mudar nada.

Fonte: Autos Segredos

The first details of Killzone 3 has emerged online and by the look of things, it’s going to be in full 3D. More details after the jump.
 
 

Merrick Alpert spoke to The Courant’s Rinker Buck on Friday night at the Democratic Party convention.

Alpert said, “They cut every backroom deal possible to deny me the nomination. They don’t want a primary because it’s easier for Dick Blumenthal to run unimpeded by opposition within his own party. But the fact is that if we held the general election today, the party wouldn’t be strong enough to prevail. I went to Nancy DiNardo and said, ‘Why are you blocking me?’ Allow me to speak at the convention. She said she couldn’t tell the rules committee what to do. But it was her rules that they were enforcing.”

      Alpert’s campaign treasurer, Patrick Terrell of Mystic, said that Alpert’s exclusion from the state convention is simply a policy that was practiced all year by the Democrats. At many Democratic Town Committee meetings, where candidates go months before the convention to try and line up delegates, Alpert was denied entry and wasn’t allowed to speak to the delegates, Terrell said.

       “It’s wholly undemocratic,” Terrell said. “We’ve been blocked out. This is our one chance to talk to the delegates of a Democratic convention. But we are the opposition they never wanted to take seriously. In theory, this is a party that celebrates inclusiveness. But there was no inclusiveness tonight.”

           The Blumenthal and DiNardio strategy was clear–deny Alpert the 15 percent of votes that would have allowed him to get on the ballot for a primary and thus avoid an expensive extra fight at a time when Blumenthal prefers to take on his likely GOP opponent–Linda McMahon–right away.

          But not all Blumenthal delegates at the convention agreed with this shutout strategy, and its implications for the image of the Democratic party in the state. Tim Bowles is a delegate from Preston and a strong Blumenthal supporter with Blumenthal stick-on badge pasted to his shirt. He is a member of the Democratic  Town Committee from Preston.

          “I think the party should be inclusive. I’m on the town committee in Preston and we had Alpert come to speak to us a few months ago and I thought he was very impressive. He’s not ready yet for the office he is seeking, but he’s quite an impressive guy. I would like to have seen a more open and democratic process.”

Democrats Late In …

Nancy DiNardo, Democratic Party chairwoman, gaveled the convention open about 6:15 p.m. Friday. It took awhile to gain control, though. She called for order several times but couldn’t corral more than 1,800 distracted activists. The sergeant at arms then took the podium, also several times, to gain order, asking the assistant sergeants at arms to clear the aisles.

… Early Out

During Richard Blumenthal’s speech, diehard supporters clapped at all the right points, but before it was over the majority of delegates were heading for the exits or visiting with friends. Many were reading newspapers, checking their Blackberries, or buying drinks for their friends in the back. The parking lot was filling with exiting delegates, most of them headed for the Lamont/Glassman or Malloy/Wyman hospitality tents. While Blumenthal was still speaking inside, there were long lines at the tent bars. “It’s a mass exodus — it’s all over,” said Kyle Anderson, a Hartford delegate. “There’s nothing more to watch. As soon as Merrick Alpert gave his concession speech, there was no point to be in the convention hall.”

Eddie Shows Up

A tough week in court couldn’t keep Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez away from the Democratic Convention, where he was mingling and looking relaxed.

Lambasting Linda

Merrick Alpert bashed wrestling entrepreneur Linda McMahon, who was across town battling for the Republican nomination against former U.S. Rep. Rob Simmons of Stonington and investor Peter Schiff of Weston.

“I am running because I cannot stand the thought that Linda McMahon from World Wrestling can buy it, and you can’t tolerate that, either,” Alpert said. He added, “We all know that the highly effective attack in Tuesday’s New York Times was hatched in Linda McMahon’s office. If we settle on our nominee tonight, that exceedingly well-funded and vicious machine, created by Karl Rove but now housed at World Wrestling, will be gifted three additional months to ruin our candidate.”

Working The Room

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ned Lamont was shaking hands and chatting, with a staffer following him around with a video camera. … Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy, expected to win the party’s endorsement for governor, came through the press area, shaking hands as he moved along.

aka Merrick Alpert

Merrick Alpert couldn’t give his own speech, but the essence of it was delivered anyway — about 7 p.m., by Gregory Schulte in his nomination.

 “The rules committee changed the rules today, and he will not be permitted to speak to you,” Schulte said from the podium. Then he pretty much read Alpert’s four-page speech. The seconding speech was scheduled to be delivered by Shawn Asselin. Alpert and his wife, Alex, stood in the center of the hall and applauded.

 

Well, this is fun. A tech company in Germany is claiming that movie studio Warner Bros. has “pirated” its “anti-piracy” technology. No, seriously. You can read the full complaint (pdf) below:

It’s actually a patent infringement lawsuit, but unlike most patent infringement lawsuits, the company suing, Medien Patent Verwaltung (MPV), claims that it actually met with Warner Bros. and “disclosed the technology” to the company. While I have to admit that I find it quite amusing to see Warner Bros. accused of “pirating” its “anti-piracy” technology, when you look at the details, it seems like a typically ridiculous patent scenario, with some random company suing for patent infringement over something another company came up with independently.

Making things even more amusing? In the lawsuit, MPV mis-identifies its own patent, incorrectly using the title of a patent.. held by Warner Bros! MPV’s patent 7,187,633 is titled “Marking of a data medium material for information intended for reproduction.” Warner Bros., though, has a different patent, 7,206,409, titled “Motion picture anti-piracy coding.” But in the filing… MPV refers to the title of its own patent as “Motion picture anti-piracy coding” and never mentions Warner’s actual patent by that name. Ooooops. Oh, and the WB patent? Filed before MPVs…

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Babies do a lot of sleeping—sometimes up to 18 hours a day. And with the remaining six hours dedicated to pooping and crying, you have to wonder when these tater tots are actually learning. The answer: sleep multitasking. More »










Health – Medicine – Neurology – Medical Specialties – Conditions and Diseases

Sex is more likely to be avoided by those who had just suffered from heart attack as revealed by researchers in the U.S.

More and more heart attack survivors fear of having sex because the activity might kill them. However, a new study shows that doctors of these patients play a key role in giving advice about sex. If the doctor fails to talk to the patient about continuing their sex life, the more the patient would fear that he/she might die while having sex. Giving information is necessary for a doctor since they play a big role in their patient’s life.

The chance of death while having sex is really small as doctors would say. This was also proved by Dr Stacy Tessler Lindau, a gynecologist and sexuality researcher at the University of Chicago, as she stated the chance of dying during sex was “really small”. In fact, if you can perform walking or even your daily activities, you can already have sex. Sex is safe for heart attack survivors as experts say.

The study involved 1,184 male and 576 female heart attack survivors, where the average age was 60. The results of the study revealed that less than half of the men and only one third of the women were advised before leaving the hospital that they can resume sex. A year after, more than two thirds of the men and 40 percent of the women reported that they had sex. Men were more active in sex, how ever, Lindau said if they experienced chest pains while having sex, it is better for them to stop and consult their doctor.

Dr. Edward Havranek, a cardiologist at Denver Health Medical Center and leader of the Heart Association conference, said “A heart attack should not keep people from enjoying sex”

Related posts:

1. Eat Chocolates to reduce Heart Risk
2. Important Information About Amitriptyline
3. Yoga Helps Cancer Survivors Sleep Better and Increase their Energy

A Ford anunciou nessa semana o crossover Titanium na sua gama de veículos para 2011. O modelo não deverá ser um dos mais caro da gama, mas com certeza será um dos mais procurados.

No seu interior o modelo conta com bancos de couro com detalhes de camurça, além de volante todo feito em couro perfurado, para melhor a aderência das mãos.

De baixo do capô, o modelo conta com duas opções de motores. A primeira opção é um motor de 3.5 litros que rende 262 hp, a segunda versão é de 3.5 litros que rende 335 hp, ambos os motores são EcoBoost menos poluente.

Ainda tem alguns detalhes que a marca ainda não revelou, como seus equipamentos de série. Seu preço deve ser $ 40.340.

Fonte: World Car Fans

Filed under: Videos, Middle East

If Dubai ever needed a theme song, C&C Music Factory’s “Things That Make You Go Hmmm” would fit the bill. Perhaps the only country in the world where you’re driving down the highway, in traffic, and this happens. If you want to know what this is, follow the jump for the video – as with so many other things that come out of Dubai, ya just gotta see it.

[Source: YouTube via Clutch’d]

Continue reading Video: Just another day in Dubai traffic

Video: Just another day in Dubai traffic originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 21 May 2010 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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German customer Audi entrusted TGW Systems Integration with the overall support of the intra-logistics system that is currently installed in Neckarsulm, Germany, to guarantee maximum availability of the system.

TGW is currently implementing an intra-logistics solution for material supply at Audi’s Neckarsulm site, which will go live in autumn 2010 and continuously be operated for more than 100 hours a week.

In order to ensure this continuous operation Audi trusts in TGW Systems Integration’s support service, having placed a full service contract with the Austrian general contractor who will thus assume the overall technical support of the system. TGW’s scope of service includes operative support of the control centre, control system and software as well as on-site maintenance and servicing of the entire electro-mechanical equipment.

This comprehensive system support will ensure maximum availability of the intra-logistics system, increasing the company’s planning reliability.

SIPOS Aktorik has successfully managed a comprehensive actuator retrofit for E.ON’s German power plant, Franken 1. The extensive service provided included 80 valves cut out of the pipeline and replaced, 120 old actuators removed and 200 new SIPOS Flash 5 actuators mounted and put into operation. In addition, on-site assistance has been provided which reinforces SIPOS’ growing reputation for partnership support.

The installation at the Nuremberg-Gebersdorf plant, which was completed in just over two weeks, also confirms the actuator supplier’s capabilities of responding to the power industry’s most demanding timescales.

The 790 MW power plant’s control system is managed by Siemens: SIPOS collaborated closely in the commissioning of complete units, demonstrating its ability to provide a total support service.

SIPOS is a global supplier of specialist actuator solutions with an expanding installation base in the power sector. The variable speed capability of the actuators, which are used for valve control, has particular appeal for power industry applications: an ability to slow down before reaching its end position extends the life of both the valve and its seat.