Category: News

Ser piloto de Fórmula 1 es la máxima aspiración de quien se dedica profesionalmente a la competición, además de ser el sueño de muchos millones de gentes en todo el mundo que no son estrictamente pilotos de carreras. Y junto con todos los beneficios económicos innegables de ser parte del mundo de la Fórmula 1, está la posibilidad de poder comprarse prácticamente el coche que uno quiera y hasta de darse el lujo de que las marcas que te patrocinan te regalen coches para uso particular, una especie de publicidad rodante.

Si Fernando Alonso se dió el lujo de poder tener un Maserati Gran Cabrío o un SLR McLaren 722, otros optarán por modelos más normalitos, como Jaime Alguersuari a bordo de su Seat León Cupra R. Nico Rosberg pilotea en las calles un Mercedes C63 AMG y anteriormente tuvo un Audi RS6, mientras Lewis Hamilton no se queda atrás y hasta ve cómo la policía australiana le confiscaba un flamante Mercedes, después de que por sus manos pasaron coches dispares, como un Mercedes GL, o un Smart Roadster de Brabus; tanto el moreno como Jenson Button estarán deseando que McLaren les regale a cada uno un MP4-12C. Por su lado, a pesar de que a Hekki Kovalainen no le va muy bien con el Lotus, la casa británica le entregó un Lotus Evora personalizado, mientras que Jarno Trulli disfruta el suyo, de bonito color rojo, mientras conserva un Fiat 500 clásico de los años sesentas.

Felipe Massa se mueve en algunos modelos de Ferrari, aunque el brasileño ha tenido en el pasado un Maserati Quattroporte. Cuando era piloto de Fórmula 1, Kimi Raikkonen fue visto en su moto construida especialmente para él por el customizador de motos más famoso del mundo: Marcus Walz. El modelo de Kimi es la Iceman 2, un nombre muy apropiado para Raikkonen, aunque en su garage guarda también un Ferrari Enzo. Otro que formó parte de la Fórmula 1, David Coulthard, tiene un Maserati GranSport, mientras guarda con cariñoso recelo un clásico: un Mercedes-Benz 280 SE de 1971.

El campeón mundial, Jenson Button no reporta ningún coche en especial, pero se sabe que gusta de los Volkswagen Kombiwagen, ya que posee uno, tal vez con el motor tocado, y en sus épocas de Honda recibió un NSX. Michael Schumacher debe poseer al menos unos 2 ó 3 Ferrari o Mercedes, pero sin duda que su preferido será el FXX, junto con el Ferrari California, ya que parece que tiene uno.

Hasta aquí algunos de los coches más conocidos entre los pilotos. Quedan por mencionar otros (los coches de Renault que usaba Alonso y Fisichella, por ejemplo). Si recuerdas algún otro coche particular de piloto que no he mencionado, siempre puedes pasar por comentarios y mencionarlo.

Vía | Autopista

The Australian has an article on the looming clash between coal miners and coal seam gas producers in Queensland – Coal giants and gas firms set for clash

THE massive ramp-up planned in Queensland coal seam gas production to feed Gladstone liquefied natural gas plants could face delays as key players look to develop acreage the state’s coalminers also have their eyes on. …

Under Queensland’s legislation, ground can be explored by both miners and CSG producers at the same time. When it is time to convert it to production leases overlapping claims are subject to negotiation between CSG and mining companies.

If this is unsuccessful, the Queensland government will have to make a ruling. The government has not been placed in this position yet, but as applications to reserve ground for gas production gather pace, disputes are more likely.

“Coal seam gas is in areas which coalminers are now starting to look at opening up, because the global financial crisis has passed and metallurgical coal prices are moving up,” said Paul Newman, head of energy at law firm Blake Dawson. “From our perspective, there is a regime that will come under pressure from this process. There is uncertainty about what the government will do.”

Early plans by Xstrata for a massive 100 million tonnes a year coal province near Wandoan in the Surat Basin is also expected to spur other miners with overlapping CSG exploration tenements. In a recent tenement overlap dispute between CSG producers and the small underground coal gasification sector, the Queensland government ruled on the side of the CSG producers. It is hard to see state government, which collects royalties from the world’s biggest coking coal export industry, siding so quickly with the CSG industry if the coal industry moves against it.

TomDispatch has an article on the chances of the US withdrawing from Iraq and Afghanistan – Yes, We Could… Get Out! .

Yes, we could. No kidding. We really could withdraw our massive armies, now close to 200,000 troops combined, from Afghanistan and Iraq (and that’s not even counting our similarly large stealth army of private contractors, which helps keep the true size of our double occupations in the shadows). We could undoubtedly withdraw them all reasonably quickly and reasonably painlessly.

Not that you would know it from listening to the debates in Washington or catching the mainstream news. There, withdrawal, when discussed at all, seems like an undertaking beyond the waking imagination. In Iraq alone, all those bases to dismantle and millions of pieces of equipment to send home in a draw-down operation worthy of years of intensive effort, the sort of thing that makes the desperate British evacuation from Dunkirk in World War II look like a Sunday stroll in the park. And that’s only the technical side of the matter.

Then there’s the conviction that anything but a withdrawal that would make molasses in January look like the hare of Aesopian fable — at least two years in Iraq, five to ten in Afghanistan — would endanger the planet itself, or at least its most important country: us. Without our eternally steadying hand, the Iraqis and Afghans, it’s taken for granted, would be lost. Without the help of U.S. forces, for example, would the Maliki government ever have been able to announce the death of the head of al-Qaeda in Iraq? Not likely, whereas the U.S. has knocked off its leadership twice, first in 2006, and again, evidently, last week.

Of course, before our troops entered Baghdad in 2003 and the American occupation of that country began, there was no al-Qaeda in Iraq. But that’s a distant past not worth bringing up. And forget as well the fact that our invasions and wars have proven thunderously destructive, bringing chaos, misery, and death in their wake, and turning, for instance, the health care system of Iraq, once considered an advanced country in the Arab world, into a disaster zone(that — it goes without saying — only we Americans are now equipped to properly fix). Similarly, while regularly knocking off Afghan civilians at checkpoints on their roads and in their homes, at their celebrations and at work, we ignore the fact that our invasion and occupation opened the way for the transformation of Afghanistan into the first all-drug-crop agricultural nation and so the planet’s premier narco-nation. It’s not just that the country now has an almost total monopoly on growing opium poppies (hence heroin), but according to the latest U.N. report, it’s now cornering the hashish market as well. That’s diversification for you.

It’s a record to stand on and, evidently, to stay on, even to expand on. We’re like the famed guest who came to dinner, broke a leg, wouldn’t leave, and promptly took over the lives of the entire household. Only in our case, we arrived, broke someone else’s leg, and then insisted we had to stay and break many more legs, lest the world become a far more terrible place.

It’s known and accepted in Washington that, if we were to leave Afghanistan precipitously, the Taliban would take over, al-Qaeda would be back big time in no time, and then more of our giant buildings would obviously bite the dust. And yet, the longer we’ve stayed and the more we’ve surged, the more resurgent the Taliban has become, the more territory this minority insurgency has spread into. If we stay long enough, we may, in fact, create the majority insurgency we claim to fear.

Article Tags: Howard Hayden, Open Letter/Fax

To: Department of State

Date: 23 April 2010

Re: U.S. Climate Action Report 2010. 5th ed.

Many states around the nation are trying to enact laws to restrict carbon emissions, and industries too numerous to mention have begun making changes hoping to be fully prepared to comply with laws they haven’t seen yet. Congress is considering laws in hopes that they can avoid having EPA impose its own version of CO2 restrictions.

Before jumping on this bandwagon, we should be certain that we understand the science. U.S. Climate Action Report 2010, 5th ed. might be understood by some Americans to be the definitive word; however nary a word in the report even pretends to

establish a link between CO2 and putative global warming

show that the increase in CO2 concentration is due to human activity instead of natural causes (such as natural warming of the oceans)

show that either an increase in CO2 concentration or an increase in temperature is, on balance, bad (or worse than laws restricting CO2 emissions) or

do any science whatsoever.

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by Kevin Jon Heller

Julian beat me to the punch regarding the new Council on Foreign Relations report, From Rome to Kampala: The U.S. Approach to the 2010 International Criminal Court Review Conference.  The first thing to note is that it isn’t really a “report.”  Reports have sober, reasoned analysis, careful argumentation, and document their controversial claims with footnotes to relevant material.  This “report,” by contrast, is nothing more than a political call-to-arms to undermine the ICC, one that simply regurgitates the same tired points that the US has been making for 15 years.

The report is relatively short and worth reading in its entirety.  If you don’t have enough time, though, it can be reduced to the following three propositions:

[1] The US has the right to unilaterally use military force whenever and wherever it wants to.

[2] ICC jurisdiction over the crime of aggression would limit that right, so the Review Conference negotiations must be undermined.

[3] The US should avoid being seen as openly undermining the ICC’s negotiations, because transparency will make undermining those negotiations more difficult.

Some specific thoughts on the report:

After World War II, the United States led Allied efforts to prosecute top German and Japanese officials for atrocity crimes and crimes against the peace (aggression), overcoming British and Soviet arguments for summary execution of the enemy leadership.

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The General Assembly resolution contains a nonexhaustive list of acts that may constitute aggression, while leaving open the possibility that additional acts may constitute aggression as determined by the Security Council. The resolution represented a political compromise, and many international law experts believe this definition is too vague for the purposes of imposing individual criminal liability.

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Two issues divided the Working Group. The first was whether the state whose nationals are alleged to have committed the crime must consent to the ICC’s jurisdiction over aggression, or whether the consent of the victim state is sufficient. States in favor of requiring the consent of the alleged aggressor state argue that it is mandated by international law.

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The United Kingdom and France have argued that given the Security Council’s primary role in regulating the use of force, including the determination that acts of aggression have occurred, it must have the last word on whether the ICC may move forward with prosecutions. Opponents of a decisive Security Council role have pointed to the risk of deadlock in the council, noting the council’s historical reluctance to label actions as aggression.

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Given these divisions, the review conference is faced with three options… 3. Send the entire aggression issue to a new working group for further consideration. The United States is the only country to have openly advocated for this approach.

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The proposed definition reflects this uncertain state of the law by merely listing acts that might constitute aggression without defining when those acts are unlawful. The definition does not address how claims of self-defense or humanitarian necessity affect the categorization of the use of force as aggression.

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It is similarly unclear whether a preventive or preemptive strike against a proliferator of weapons of mass destruction (WMD)—for example, a U.S. or Israeli strike against suspected Iranian nuclear weapon program sites—would constitute criminal aggression.

thought experiment — without veto, would the us prefer a political body like the SC to determine or a legal body like the icj/icc? US okay with present arrangement for one reason — the veto.

If aggression existed as a crime in 2003, for example, Iraq could have consented to the jurisdiction of the ICC after the U.S. invasion, potentially exposing U.S. leaders to investigation and prosecution for the decision to use force. In such a scenario, the ICC prosecutor could have investigated U.S. or coalition partners, asking them for detailed explanations of their legal rationale as well as for classified intelligence information regarding Iraq’s alleged weapons programs. The prosecutor might have then second-guessed the conclusion by the United States and other governments that their use of force was justified under existing UN Security Council resolutions.

one can only hope so! uniquely american…

Even if the definition were clear, allowing ICC aggression prosecutions to proceed without Security Council authorization could undermine Security Council efforts—including ongoing diplomacy—to restore peace and stability in conflicts, perhaps by sending conflicting signals to the parties regarding the merits of the underlying dispute.

This from a country that until recently was 1 billion in arrears and was willing to veto peacekeeping operations unless Americans were given immunity!

These concerns suggest that the Security Council, which is entrusted by the UN Charter with responsibility for
maintaining international peace and security, should oversee determinations regarding aggression.

It does — through deferral power. but no veto, which is the real objection.

Although non-P5 states are less concerned about preserving Security Council authority, some recognize from a pragmatic standpoint the importance of support among P5 members for the court’s agenda, given the practical
difficulties in apprehending suspects and collecting evidence without the support of the most powerful states.

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The goodwill created by the Obama administration’s decision to participate at the review conference could be quickly dissipated by an overly assertive American strategy, especially if critics successfully characterize the United States as obstructionist.

The arrogance! bunch of children who will be thrilled the US shows up.

Although U.S. negotiators could suggest specific changes to the text that would improve its viability as a criminal provision, this strategy is unlikely to succeed and could be counterproductive…. Offering alternative language may also create false expectations regarding U.S. support for aggression with an improved definition.

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Rome Statute parties are evenly divided on the question of whether the consent of the alleged aggressor state is
required to activate aggression jurisdiction.

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[T]he United States must be clear that it will not support an outcome that allows the prosecutor to proceed with aggression prosecutions absent the consent of both parties involved and approval of the Security Council.

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Nevertheless, given the inherently political nature of evaluating the use of force and the need to consider designations of aggression in the context of broader efforts to resolve conflicts and preserve stability, there is no viable substitute for Security Council primacy in making aggression determinations.

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The United States should make clear that if the state parties decide to activate the court’s jurisdiction over aggression without consensus (and by implication without addressing the most significant U.S. concerns), the likelihood that important nonparty states, including the United States, Russia, and China, will join the court will be greatly diminished.

Concern troll…

The United States should avoid obstructing the decisions of state parties on items of the review conference agenda where the United States lacks a national interest.

At least it admits obstruction with the rest!

Given the need for the United States to be active on the issue of aggression, and the opportunity to participate constructively in the stocktaking sessions, the delegation should remain neutral, or even voice support, on the remaining agenda items if they do not implicate significant U.S. interests.

Again, patronizing…

The United States is currently engaged in a noninternational armed conflict with al-Qaeda.

by Julian Ku

The International Whaling Commission’s proposed compromise on the whaling dispute has been released (h/t Jurist). As I noted before, the proposed deal would bring all nations within the IWC framework, but explicitly permit commercial whaling for certain nations for at least the next 10 years. The numbers permitted under the proposal is a little murky, but it may include thousands of whales, including some whales that are considered endangered.  Predictably, the Greenpeace folks are opposed.  It is true that this is not exactly a whale-friendly compromise.  But Japan could, with relatively little cost, simply get out of the IWC and hunt even more. So the choice for whale-defenders is a tough one. But this compromise text looks promising.

Article Tags: Met Office, Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre

The BAe 146, which was unable to fly until last Tuesday because of a refit, was the only plane equipped with state-of-the-art laser measuring equipment, known as Lidar. Only once the jet had finally taken to the air was the Met Office able to map the full extent of the ash from Iceland.

The disclosure of the delay will add to questions about whether the no-fly zone over British airspace could have been lifted earlier. The authorities are already facing accusations that they overreacted to relatively low levels of ash in the atmosphere.

Yesterday, Sir Richard Branson, president of Virgin Atlantic, criticised the grounding of planes as an “overreaction” and “not the right decision”, adding that his airline had lost £50m as a result.

…….While its jet was incapacitated, the Met Office instead had to use a Dornier propeller plane that had less advanced technology and was unable to fly at high altitude.

Click source to read FULL report from Steven Swinford and Daniel Foggo

Source: timesonline.co.uk

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The Courant tried to reach Malapanis but could not. Her lawyer, James Wade, declined comment. As far as I can tell, Lovallo’s interview will be her first public comment on the case.

Lovallo’s show can be heard at 5 p.m. on the following stations: WDRC1360,  WMMW1470, WWRO12409 and WSNG610. 

Arctic Cooling, a brand that made its name selling cooling supplies for computers, has delved into the headphone market with their new Arctic Sound line. I had the opportunity to review Arctic Sound E352 headphones, the premium model of their five model collection. The E352 is built with a wooden chassis and a large driver coil which gives these headphones a high quality output with a warm and natural sound. Arctic Sound headphones are precisely engineered by Swiss and German audio experts, but does that really mean anything these days? How nicely has Arctic Cooling diversified into the headphone market? Dive in with me for the full review…

What’s in the Box:
-Arctic Cooling E352 Headphones (of course!)
-Durable Carrying Case with Zipper – Perfect for Storing and Protecting your earphones. Also prevents cord tangling
-3 Sets of Silicone Eartips  – Small Medium and Large
-Cable Clip

Design:
The E352s stands out from regular earbuds; The glossy wooden chassis distinguishes the E352s as a classier set of ‘buds. The earbud cable is a regular Y shaped cable with a rubber casing. The thickness of the cable is standard compared to any other inexpensive headphones. The strangest design flaw choice is that there is no “Right” and “Left” labels anywhere on these earbuds (no ‘R’s or ‘L’s either). The buds are shaped exactly the same so that’s no help either. The only design queue to help you orient your earbuds is the AC logo on the Y point of the headphones (where the headphone cable splits into separate right and left cables). The logo must face away from your body to properly listen. The driver enclosure on the buds are relatively long. This generally means the driver is larger, which is good. The buds will sit about half an inch outside of your ear canal. Personally, I found this feature enabled the bud to come loose from my ear with any decent amount of cable movement.

Performance
The performance of these E352 headphones is largely dependent on the type of music that is playing through them. Arctic Sound lived up to their claims of high quality sound with a warm and natural sound when listening to soft acoustical music (Simon & Garfunkel sounded great). This type of music was kind to the E352’s weak mid-range audio output. When playing songs with more low-range audio (bass) like a rock or rap song, the “enhanced bass” overshadowed the vocals (weak on treble). The bass sounded unnatural and forced. This unbalance of bass and treble makes these heavier genres of music sound untrue to how the song was intended to be heard. It is possible some users prefer this type of sound though.

The carrying case that came with Arctic Sound’s E352s is great. It’s durable, zipper sealed, and even allows you to wrap up the earbuds inside so they do not tangle. It may leave a small bulge in your pocket, but it’s sure to keep the earbuds safe and untangled.

Conclusion
Considering the E352’s are Arctic Sound’s most expensive earbuds ($69.95 from the website) they were a bit disappointing. Soft and Acoustical types of music sounded pretty good, but $70 is a lot to pay for headphones that don’t always sound good. Personally, I would wait until Arctic Cooling makes it further along on the headphone learning curve. The Enhanced Bass seems like a marketing gimmick; yes the bass is loud, but it does not sound good. Also, leaving off a “left” and “right” indicator on their earbuds seems a bit silly. The one thing Arctic Sound actually did right was the case; I will be sure to use it in the future. I would strongly recommend anyone considering the E352s to check out ThinkSound’s TS01 Earphones. Also encased in wood, the TS01’s sound much better and are priced just under $50.

New Four-Door Coupe Sign that BMW Design is in Good Hands
Canadian Auto Press

Some time ago BMW teased us with a full-size four-door coupe concept simply called CS Concept, and we all got pretty excited that it might see the light of day. After all, it was the most beautifully styled BMW we’d seen in years, and would have made a flagship worth of the vaunted CS nameplate. But alas the automaker officially killed any plans to produce it, if there actually ever were any, dashing the hopes of millions of roundel fans.

BMW Concept Gran Coupé

Now there’s new hope, and while the Concept Gran Coupé might not possess quite the fluidity of form that the CS captured, it is mighty good looking and appears close enough in design to the upcoming 5 Series to be a likely four-door coupe candidate.

Mercedes set the ball rolling with its CLS, forever changing the auto industry with a new four-door coupe segment, although now that the segment is established many give the honour of first four-door coupe to Maserati and it’s ultra-sleek Quattroporte that arrived on the scene a year earlier. Since then a variety of players have entered the scene, from the comparatively entry-level Volkswagen CC to the decidedly upscale Aston Martin Rapide, as well as Porsche’s shockingly good Panamera and Audi’s upcoming A7.

The Concept Gran Coupé, if produced, would fill the D-segment and target its main rivals directly; the CLS is based on MB E-Class architecture and A7 shares Audi’s MHB “modular architecture” with the A6; the Passat CC, also midsize, is not considered to be a direct competitor and the Rapide is in a different class altogether.

Those that have seen the next 6 Series are reporting that the Concept Gran Coupé is much the same other than side profile, the 6 will feature two doors instead of one and sport more rake in the C-pillar. Whether the Concept Gran Coupé sees the light of day or is a four-door tease of the next 6 Series two-door coupe, or the next 6 Series itself, or for that matter something altogether new, remains to be seen.

Still, the Concept Gran Coupé boasts particularly attractive lines, especially the roofline that is 100 mm (4 inches) flatter than either the 5 or 7 Series sedans and features frameless doors for a coupe-like presence. LEDs all-round bring it up to modern-day spec, while the interpretation of BMW’s trademark twin-kidney grille leading into a beautifully sculpted, pronounced hood and lovely recessed headlamp clusters is especially appealing. The lower front fascia’s air intakes are assertive without being overtly aggressive and sleek front-side panel air vents tastefully penned. The Gran Coupé’s deeply sculpted door panels add to the car’s muscular, almost animalistic edge that will likely be universally loved, while those who lean towards tradition will appreciate the trademark L-design taillights.

The Concept Gran Coupé and new 5 Series show signs that BMW is evolving from its previous flamed surface design language initiated by the famed (or infamous) Chris Bangle and 7 Series designer Adrian van Hooydonk. While some have lambasted van Hooydonk for the 7, and his Rolls-Royce Phantom design, it’s important to remember that he was also responsible for the much-lauded CS Concept mentioned previously. Likewise, van Hooydonk, still in charge of BMW’s global design, is also responsible in part for the current 1 Series, updated 3 Series, new 5 and, ahem, 5 Series Gran Turismo, updated X5, love it or leave it X6, much-improved 7 Series, gorgeous new Z4 and, of course, this latest Concept Gran Coupé.

The Concept Gran Coupé is a sign that BMW’s future design language is in good hands; it will be interesting to see how the new prototype affects upcoming production cars.

Department of Energy has announced the 20 teams from as many universities which will compete in the Solar Decathlon to design, build and operate the most affordable and energy-efficient solar-powered home. The event will be held at the National Mall in Washington D.C. in the Fall 2011.

The DoE intends to a) educate students and public about the various energy-efficient technologies having application in home designing, b) introduce to the public the advantages of energy-efficient homes and use of renewable energy and c) train the students in energy efficiency technologies. The teams will be evaluated on their performance through a series of contests involving various aspects of designing, building and operating a solar-powered home. The students will be evaluated on parameters such as architectural, economical and engineering aspects.

Universities selected for the 2011 Decathlon include Ghent University (Belgium), Purdue University (Indiana), Tonji University (Shanghai), University of Calgary (Canada) and Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand). (more…)

Filed under: Healthy Eating, Holistic Recipe

Have you ever checked the nutrition label of your breakfast cereal? You might be surprised to learn that your favourite, high-fibre, “healthy” cereal is jam-packed with sugar and sodium. Children’s boxed cereals are even worse and I’ve listed 10 … Read more

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Rushing to the launch party for tokidoki’s new makeup line for Sephora, I booked it through Midtown Manhattan hoping to find the event space without a problem. Still light outside, I arrived at the address and peering into the space, I felt like I was about to enter either a time warp of some awesome club on a Saturday night. Walking into the space, I was surprised to see a full sized skate ramp complete with three skater chicks doing tricks, full sized tokidoki characters dancing and mingling with the party guests, and donuts served on light sabers. I knew I was in the right place.

tokidoki, the lifestyle brand brain child of Italian designer Simone Legno is all about fun and the criminally cute. Growing up in Italy in the 1980s, Legno was inspired by the Japanimation cartoons and comics that were flooding the culture. Putting his own spin on the idea, Legno launched his brand in the form of clothes, toys, and accessories, and now makeup. tokidoki is a brand that emphasizes technology and has released USB keys, ear phones, and other technology pieces in the past. Now venturing into the world of makeup, tokidoki is partnering with Sephora, a brand Legno says understands “the relationship between fun, creativity, self-expression and color unlike any other retailer.”

And tokidoki’s new makeup line ain’t your grandma’s rouge. Designed much like their lifestyle brand to be innovative and cutting edge, the line blends the criminally cute with the quality makeup that Sephora stands by. The makeup itself is a hybrid between indigenous Japanese and Italian ingredients (much like tokidoki itself) and professionally milled powder formulations and makeup artist approved brushes and tools. The collection features various eyeshadows, palettes, lipglosses, lip stains, bronzer, powder, blush, nail polish, and then some fun items like key chains, makeup bags, and tank tops. The makeup is innovative because it adds both adorable and functional design aspects to every product. For example, the Prisma Gloss, $16, is housed in a standard plastic lipstick stick but has an attention to detail that most $16 lipglosses do not. The twist off top of the lipgloss houses the glittery skull and crossbones and a little tokidoki skull figure hiding in the cap of the gloss. Aside from packaging, the lipgloss applicator is made of silicone rather than a standard brush for longevity and ease of application. Ok so we get it, the packaging looks cute but is the makeup decent? From what I sampled from the gift bag, yes! The lipgloss is non-sticky and has a light purple hue that gave me that subtle “I just ate a grape popsicle” look. Other innovative products include palettes that are housed in a ring box style case that houses complementary eye shadows as well as a hidden little tokidoki character on the bottom of the palette. So cute! All the eye shadows are housed in the signature skull and cross bone style to add a little glam to your makeup bag.

At first glance, the tokidoki makeup line is adorable. The innovative packaging embodies the signature tokidoki style and I love the attention to detail such as the hidden tokidoki key chain characters in the palettes and in the top of the lipgloss. What makes this line different is that it combines innovative design and the tokidoki style with professional grade Sephora quality makeup. From what I’ve tried, I’ve been impressed with the fact that tokidoki was able to create a hybrid between the novelty of the tokidoki line and the quality of the Sephora brand.

Filed under: Health, Healthy Eating, 30-Day Nutrition Challenge

Erika, one of the participants in our 30-Day Nutrition Challenge writes that she is suffering a bit living a gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free, caffeine-free, alcohol-free and processed foods-free existence. I think she is reacting to the … Read more

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-It’s still touch and go for Poison frontman Bret Michaels. The “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” crooner suffered a severe brain hemorrhage on Friday and remains hospitalized in San Antonio. Bandanas everywhere continue to fly at half-staff. …..

-When Miriam Starobin saw that her best friend, Allyson Golden, was choking on a dislodged piece of gum during music class this week, the 12-year-old Long Islander used her favorite cartoon for the inspiration to spring into action. “The first thing I did was channel SpongeBob. I saw SpongeBob do the Heimlich,” Starobin told Good Day NY on Friday…..

–In WTF News: A restaurant in Australia refused a blind man entry because the establishment’s managers thought his guide dog was “gay….” Sometimes there simply are no words. Movin’ on!

-Jamie Lee Curtis penned a poignant piece about her late mother, Psycho actress Janet Leigh, for the May issue of MORE Magazine….

-When all else fails, blame the Black guy: A White man charged in connection with six robberies in the Cincinnati, Ohio area used a African-American mask as a disguise during the crimes….

–Melissa Etheridge opened up about her split with wife Tammy Lynn on Friday’s Oprah. The “Come To My Wind” star told the talk show queen their split was mutual and blasted tabloid banter claiming she cheated on Tammy….

-Jeremy London, former star of Party of Five and 7th Heaven, reveals his drug hell…

-A North Carolina town popularly known as “Mayberry with a beach” has banned swimmers from wearing thongs….

-Watch your backs, Snooki and JWoww, the original Jersey girls are making a comeback — The Real Housewives of New Jersey return to Bravo on May 3. In this clip for the forthcoming second season of the popular docu-soap, accused “prostitution whore” Danielle Staub consults with a priest about the drama she’s been having with the other housewives. Visit Bravo.com for a litany of Season 2 video sneak peeks:

This is without a doubt one of the coolest apps of any kind on any platform. The latest update just made it even better. There is now a picture gallery with photos taken from the Hubble Space Telescope. This app now has “Magnetic Correction” to fix the angles of the stars to more accurately depict how it would look if you were looking directly at them. I highly recommend this app for any Android user.

Market description:

Google Sky Map: A star map for Android.

Google Sky Map turns your Android-powered mobile phone into a window on the night sky.

New in 1.4: Support for Samsung Behold. Minor performance improvements.

Keywords: planetarium, astronomy, skymap

Find us on Twitter: @googleskymap
Web site: http://www.google.com/sky/skymap

This update is long overdue. Those of you that have used this app know it’s not that good, and that’s disappointing for an official app. You would think the app from the company itself would be the best but that is often not the way it is. V1.2 brings with it the ability to access your inbox and notifications. Are you excited yet? This feels like when MMS was finally made available on the iPhone. This basic feature should’ve been there from the beginning.

The announcement of this update was made on the official page for the app. There are already a lot of users posting on their page how unhappy they are with this update. It seems as though it’s still subpar for most. Personally, I don’t use it a lot. How is it working for you? What do feel is still missing? Scan the qr code and give it a whirl.

(This is a guest post from the author’s blog.)

No group in America has been hit harder during the current recession than young adults.  Millions of Americans are graduating from college with virtually no money, lots of debt and with very dim employment prospects.  Those who don’t go to college are even worse off.  All their lives these young Americans were taught if they studied hard, got an education and worked within the system that good jobs and the American Dream would be waiting for them.  But now millions of them are realizing that all of their studying and hard work is not providing them with the rewards that they always thought they would get.  This is causing large numbers of young American adults to become depressed and disillusioned.  In fact, record numbers of them are moving back in with their parents.  But without decent jobs, what are they supposed to do?  

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in March the national rate of unemployment in the United States was 9.7%, but for Americans younger than 25 it was 18.8%.  In fact, according to a Pew Research Center study, approximately 37% of all Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 have either been unemployed or underemployed at some point during the recession.

Things are even worse for those under the age of 20.  According to a new report based on U.S. Census Bureau data, only 26 percent of American teens between the ages of 16 and 19 had jobs in late 2009 which represents a record low since statistics began to be kept back in 1948.

But the inability to get good jobs is only part of the story….

*The Pew Research Center study also found that only 61% of Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 are covered by some form of a health plan.

*According to a National Foundation for Credit Counseling survey, only 58% of those in “Generation Y” pay their monthly bills on time.

*Not only that, but according to a November MetLife poll, nearly 70% of those in “Generation Y” are not building up a cash cushion, and 43% are accumulating too much credit card debt.

*According to Fidelity Investments, those in Generation Y have more than three credit cards on average, and 20 percent of them carry a balance of at least $10,000.

So what does all this mean?

It means we are raising a generation of young Americans that are a financial mess. 

But isn’t that our own fault?

After all, most young Americans have never received any formal training on how to manage their money, and the role models of financial responsibility they do have (the rest of us) are hardly worth emulating.

But if each generation of Americans is becoming increasingly financially irresponsible, what does that mean for the future of this nation?

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