American manufacturer Ford announced today it will keep offering the taxi and car rental packages for the Mondeo, S-MAX and Ford Galaxy "free of charge". The offer already existed, as it was launched in October 2009, but is now extended "until further notice". The offer is valid for the two taxi and car rental packages offered by Ford in collaboration with the Oldenburg Company INTAX Innovative Automotive Solutions.
For taxis, Ford is offering roof sign pre-installation wi… (read more)
La version européenne du RVR sappellera donc ASX. Mitsubishi a comuniqué des photos et quelques renseignements supplémentaires sur son petit nouveau, qui sera présenté au prochain salon de Genève, en mars.
–>L’ASX est un 4×4 5 places, mesurant 4,30m. de long, dont la commercialisation commencera au printemps prochain au Japon sous le nom de RVR. Le nouveau vient prendre place dans la gamme du japonais sous l’Outlander. Chez nous il aura fort à faire avec le Nissan Qashqai restylé, mais surtout avec le très attendu Renault/Dacia Duster.
-L’ASX héritera de la motorisation prévue sur le RVR, un 1,8l. essence MIVEC, mais surtout recevra un 1,8l. turbo diesel (euro5), associé à une boite manuelle 6 rapports et à un système stop&start.
-Esthétiquement le RVR/ASX adopte la calandre commune à tous les modèles de la gamme et les différences de la version européenne avec la japonaise sont quasi-insignifiantes. Pour les différencier dans la galerie ci-dessous, voir les barres de toit: avec = ASX, sans = RVR.
-Peu d’informations supplémentaires pour l’instant, puisque Mitsubishi n’a rien communiqué d’autre.
Nouveau: pour profiter facilement et rapidement des notifications de nouveautés sur le site, pensez à vous abonner via Twitter. Chaque modification, nouvel article ou nouvelle vidéo sur notre chaîne Youtube, fait l’objet d’un Tweet immédiat!
Ten years ago, Doug Van Sandt made a bet with the authors of a best selling book called Dow 36,000 that after a decade the Dow would be closer to 11,000 than it would to 36,000.
Now that the Dow is linger in the ten thousands, lower than it was when the bet was made, he says it is time for authors James Glassman and Kevin Hassett to pay up. He wants them to send the money to the Salvation Army.
On Monday morning he sent a letter to Glassman asking for them to pay up. We obtained a copy of the letter.
Dear Mr. Glassman: I am writing to confirm that the Dow did not get halfway to 36000, so that under the terms of our Atlantic Monthly wager, you and Kevin Hassett owe $1000 to the charity of my choice, which is the Salvation Army. I should add that it’s a good thing that I was not required to come up with a predicted Dow level, as I would never have guessed that the level would actually have fallen in ten years (who did ?).
In looking you up on the internet, I discovered that we have a common educational experience. I too worked on the Crimson in the early 60’s with Joe Russin , Andy Weil, Peter Gann and a bunch of other really smart guys. I also graduated cum laude with a Government concentration, in 1964. Judging from your career path, we share a conservative bent. Since graduation , law school and an Air Force term, I’ve been defending doctors and hospitals against malpracticwe suits here in Stockton, California. Sincerely,
J. Douglas Van Sant
Kroloff, Belcher, Smart, Perry & Christopherson
[Redacted] (Main)
[Redacted] (Fax)
There’s been no word yet from Glassman or Hassett.
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Poor ol’ John Hodgman. He’s always been beleaguered and sad-looking – from his first appearance in the Get a Mac ads back in ought-six to his most recent in October 2009. He always looks like he needs a hug, a nice pair of comfortable jeans, and a low-fat, no sugar coffee drink.
However, if you can’t get enough of his frumpy corduroy, AdWeek has all of the commercials, in series, for your pleasure. You can doot-doot-doot along to the soundtrack while smilin’ Justin Long and Mr. Grumpy Hodgman keep you amused and informed while, essentially, telling you what hunk of code to buy. Isn’t the 21st Century great?
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This crazy guitar is actually an open source MIDI system using a sexy touchscreen with multi-touch and reactive fretboard. The result? Let’s just say while you probably won’t get much cherry pie playing this thing, the guys at Information Society will definitely invite you into their trailer at the Iowa State Fair this year.
Called the Misa Digital he fretboard has 144 note buttons, runs Gentoo Linux and, friends, has an Ethernet port with SSH server. Now you can truly hack the Gibson.
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Amazon’s lopped $50 off the price of the 4.7-inch Magellan Maestro 4700, which includes Bluetooth, voice command, and predictive traffic features. You can get it for $140, today only.
Other features include a built-in AAA TourBook, 6 million points of interest, highway lane assist, spoken street names, and 3D landmarks “such as stadiums and bridges.”
Magellan Maestro 4700 4.7-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator [Amazon.com]
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Mornin’ Crunchers — Did you know that today is National Popcorn Day? Grab your favorite movie and Happy Popping!
-Tiger Woods is allegedly seeking treatment for sex addiction in a Mississippi treatment facility….
-Another sign of the times: The New York Times is close to announcing that the paper will begin charging for access to its website…..
-Speaking of The Times, you would think such a reputable news organization wouldn’t have missed the memo about Dexter star Michael C. Hall and his recent cancer diagnosis. Somehow, the news fell through the cracks resulting in this Twitter snafu and a subsequent apology…..
-A sneak peek at Jean Paul Gaultier’s upcoming guest collection for Target….
-Who wants to see Ivana Trump in her underwear?
-Taco Bell founder dies @ 86…..
-Mo’Nique au naturale on the red carpet…..
-A nightclub in Singapore is offering free drinks to women according to bra size. “Fill My Cups” Nights have become all the rage at OverEasy Nightclub in recent weeks and are promoted with posters promising “Booze for your boobs.”
5 years ago I wrote a prediction about RSS here on ReadWriteWeb. I proclaimed that "in the not too distant future, more people will subscribe to topic/tag/remix feeds than feeds of actual people."
I think it’s fair to say that I was totally wrong on that prediction. Thanks to Facebook and Twitter, in particular, many more people ’subscribe’ to people than topics (subscribe a.k.a. ‘follow’ or ‘friend’). And I’m glad my prediction didn’t pan out, because the social graph of people is much more interesting to follow than a bunch of keywords. But it begs the question: what happened to all the promise of tracking topics using RSS?
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While many of us use Google Alerts and apps like LazyFeed to track keywords and topics, that’s still a relatively geeky thing to do.
In a follow-up post in January 2005, entitled Why Topic/Tag/Remix Feeds Are The Future of RSS, I wrote that "tools will evolve to let people easily set-up personalized searches for information relevant to them and subscribe to the results [using RSS]." I wasn’t suggesting that conversations or people are unimportant. On the contrary, as I explained in ‘05, "topic/tag/remix feeds will make it even easier to find the conversations that matter to you and indeed you are more likely to meet new people and discover new points of view."
That has certainly happened, but not so much due to RSS – more because of Facebook and Twitter. While RSS did expand over those 5 years, social networking services became much more popular as ways to track information.
Also, online media has matured a lot over the past 5 years. Nowadays people commonly subscribe to blogs and other news media across a variety of niches – and that’s how they keep up-to-date on topics of interest to them. For example, I subscribe to NPR All Songs Considered and Pitchfork (amongst other sites) to get the latest alternative music news.
Both of these trends (the rise of the Social Graph; and maturing of professional niche media) have made topic feeds from the likes of Google Alerts less attractive than I thought they’d be 5 years ago.
However, I still believe in the promise of topic-based RSS feeds. Indeed I currently use a number of services to track a set of topics of interest to me. One is Google Alerts, which I have set up as RSS feeds in Google Reader. Plus I use a couple of services that launched just recently, LazyFeed and Regator.
Sadly, the promising services of 2005 – such as PubSub and Feedster – haven’t made it as far as 2010 (although last year PubSub was born again under new management).
It’s possible that LazyFeed and Regator won’t last either, but let’s hope that a startup soon finds the key to unlock the potential of topic feeds.
In the meantime I’m curious to know if you subscribe to topic feeds? If so which tools, if any, do you use to track topics? Please leave a comment. I’ll write a follow-up post later this week, highlighting the best apps that are mentioned.
Image credit: shizhao
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Is nothing sacred? Could fanboys just leave some small section of Earth unexposed to their partisan antics? Apparently not, as even this innocent Nerf basketball hoop has been reconfigured with a PowerMac G5 case backboard. [Cult of Mac via TUAW]
To no one’s surprise, Jon Corzine signed New Jersey’s medical marijuana bill into law yesterday, on his last day on the job as the state’s governor.
That makes 14 states that have legalized medical marijuana. But as both the WSJ and the New York Times note this morning, research into the medical uses of the drug remains rather limited.
That’s partly due to the fact that it’s not easy for researchers to study the drug, the NYT suggests. The article cites the case of a University of Massachusetts researcher who has been trying for nine years to get federal approval to grow and study marijuana plants but has yet to be allowed to proceed, despite a favorable ruling from the D.E.A.’s administrative judge. (The D.E.A. says it follows the lead of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which is part of NIH.)
So what has research shown about medical uses of marijuana? It appears to help with neuropathic pain, which is caused by certain types of nerve damage, the WSJ says. There’s also evidence to suggest it eases nausea and improves appetite in some types of patients, including people who are getting chemotherapy for cancer. Of the many other possible uses suggested for the drug, evidence is hard to come by, according to the article.
Nelson Piquet Jr. is really taking his future NASCAR career seriously, as the Brazilian seems to make use of every chance he can get his hands on to get accustomed to driving stock cars or endurance prototypes.
Earlier today, we have reported to you that Piquet Jr. has successfully completed his second NASCAR test with Red Horse Racing and was really hopeful of a 2010 programme with the team in the Camping World Truck Series. Hours later however, on his official website, the Brazilian driver … (read more)
Michael Giberson
A Financial Times article discusses advances in the application of LED technology, both for television and other display technologies and for general lighting applications.
Pete Moran of the DCM venture capital firm says LEDs have advantages such as longer life and greater efficiency compared with both incandescents and the energy-saving compact fluorescents with which consumers are currently replacing them.
“They contain no mercury, they’re inherently dimmable, the colour is more natural and you’ll put one in your house and never need to change the bulb,” he says.
In my experience compact florescent light bulbs didn’t always live as long as advertised and other bulb characteristics were less satisfactory as well: the color was sometimes less desirable and the bulbs usually not dimmable.
Like compact florescent light bulbs, LED lights have offered consumers longer-lived bulbs with lower energy costs at the cost of higher costs up front. However, new LED lights are so long-lived (actually, projected to be so long lived) that one may be able to build new houses with all LED lights and have them last as long as a 30-year mortgage. The higher up front cost of the lights would be factored into the cost of the home and become part of the amount borrowed, which would ease the consumer’s management of the investment cost, and the lower energy consumption over the life of the lights would help the consumer make the slightly higher house payment.
Elsewhere: Tom Konrad at Alt Energy Stocks likes LED manufacturers’ stocks, but thinks LED maker Cree, Inc. is now overpriced.
Locally (for me, anyway): Texas Tech University Nano Tech Center researchers are doing nanoscale research on LEDs, examining the limits of current LED technology in projection systems and developing ultraviolet LEDs, among other things.
The real-time web has been one of the biggest trends of 2009 and one that is likely to play an important role in 2010. Yet, even as everyone agrees on its importance and that it is growing, very few people have actual numbers to back up these assumptions. Twitter would be one, of course, but apart from saying that it’s seeing one o… (read more)
The following Xbox 360 games are now ready for direct download from the Xbox LIVE Marketplace:
Content: Brave- Warrior's Tale
Price: Check pricing for your region
Availability: Australia, New Zealand and North America
Dash Text: (Online Interactions Not Rated by the ESRB) This game supports English, French, Italian, German, and Spanish. Download the manual for this game by locating the game on http://marketplace.xbox.com and selecting “See Game Manual". The exciting coming of age story of a young native american, set in a fantastic world of magic and mythology! Re-live the tales of your elders, and learn the skills you'll need to defeat the evil Wendigo. There are no refunds for this item. For more information, see www.xbox.com/live/accounts.
Add Brave- Warrior's Tale to your Xbox 360 download queue
Content: skate.
Price: Check pricing for your region
Availability: Not available in Australia and Japan
Dash Text: (Online Interactions Not Rated by the ESRB) This game supports English only. Download the manual for this game by locating the game on http://marketplace.xbox.com and selecting “See Game Manual". The authentic skate experience. There are no refunds for this item. For more information, see www.xbox.com/live/accounts.
Add skate. to your Xbox 360 download queue
Also, Xbox LIVE members in Japan, can now purchase A-Train HX
January 2010
Issue 1.10
Welcome to the winter issue of Transitions.
The purpose of this irregular electronic newsletter is to bring to readers’ attention some of the many new projects and developments informnig the current system of scholarly communication, with emphasis on new products and programs, the open access movement, and other alternative publishing models. Scholarly communication refers to the full range of formal and informal means by which scholars and researchers communicate, from email discussion lists to peer-reviewed publication. In general, authors are seeking to document and share new discoveries with their colleagues, while readers–researchers, students, librarians and others–want access to all the literature relevant to their work.
While the system of scholarly communication exists for the benefit of the world’s research and educational community and the public at large, it faces a multitude of challenges and is undergoing rapid change brought on by technology. To help interested members of the UI community keep up on these challenges and changes we plan to put out 4 issues per year of this newsletter. Please visit our web site, Transforming Scholarly Communication, to find out more about this topic.
This newsletter is designed to reflect the interests of its readers so please forward comments, suggestions and entries to include to [email protected].
Visit our newsletter to read the articles:
Public Access to Federally Funded Research – Public input
University Press survival… through open access
Compact for Open Access Publication Equity (COPE)
PLoS One to be indexed by Web of Science
Optical Society of America – a pioneer in scholarly publishing innovation
Nobel Prize-winning scientists urge Congress to act
Open Access Encyclopedias
Who will pay for Arxiv?
Studies on Access – a review
Medical Schools Quizzed on Ghostwriting
Scholarly and Research Communication, a new OA journal
Wellcome Trust calls for greater transparency
(Editor’s note: Will Herman is an entrepreneur who has founded or held senior roles at several tech companies. This column originally appeared on his blog.)
I’m fortunate that I get to work with many startups, both independently and with TechStars where I’m a mentor. There is no better way to learn than through teaching (learning is the most fun you can have, at least for a sustained period) and there are few better students than entrepreneurs.
Good entrepreneurs always want to know why they should do something and not just what they should do. They test, challenge and refuse to take anything for granted. They’re highly motivated, smart and understand success is not about them as an individual, but about the team they can build. And they strive not only to make their first venture a success but also to become strong, solid leaders and managers that can build many great companies.
So, with all these qualities, it shocks me how often entrepreneurs choose a mentor because they’re the loudest guy in the room.
You know that person, the one who likes to talk incessantly about all of his or her accomplishments and is quick to give advice on any and all subjects. The person who speaks before listening and has never had any failures. Yeah, that guy.
Somehow, in the sponge-like desire that good entrepreneurs have to vacuum up every morsel of knowledge, they often attach themselves to the first person that sounds like they know anything. Unfortunately, that’s usually the one who brags the loudest.
So, here’s a simple three-step plan on how to avoid adopting Mr./Ms. Know-it-all as your savior:
I’m no psychiatrist, but the loud braggart in the room is probably making up for something else (get your mind out of the gutter, I was referring to some business deficiency) or has had too much to drink. Either way, they do you no good.
Be selective. Find someone with both good advice based on things they’ve actually done plus the ability to communicate they way that works best for you. You’ll be much happier and, quite likely, more successful yourself.
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We probably pour far too much time into dissecting the latest ThinkPad model or superphone, so to balance things out here’s some positive news coming out of Intel regarding its laptop distribution programme for the developing world. Still a for-profit venture, the Classmate PC project seems to have been developing rather well, which has led the chipmaker to announce it’ll be overhauling the case designs and internals of the machines it has on offer. Coming later this year, the new netbook models will offer Atom N450 and N470 Pineview CPUs as well as integrated 3G and WiMAX connectivity. Yeah, that’s pretty decent gear by anyone’s standards, so it’s no surprise that Argentina, Brazil and Turkey have signed up for a total of 426,000 units between them, adding to the two million devices already shipped globally. Maybe someone should tell the UK government about this netbook craze before it’s too late.
Intel Classmate PC is not forgotten, gets Pine Trail and WiMAX overhaul originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jan 2010 09:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Remember that retooled controller that Sony seemed darn well inclined to bring to the masses with its PlayStation 3? Some might say that was the original Arc, but given that just about everyone laughed the design off and forced the company’s hand with the conventional SIXAXIS, there seems to be a distinct possibility that the suits are about to get their revenge. According to “a concrete source speaking under conditions of strict anonymity,” VG247 has it that Sony’s forthcoming PS3 motion controller will be labeled Arc when it hits retail shelves sometime “this year.” If you’ll recall, we knew that the device was called Gem (or was it Sphere?) during its internal production, but this is first time we’ve been notified of a proper name for those “on the outside.” ‘Course, only time (and high-ranking marketers) will tell whether the moniker will stick, but we find ourselves strangely attracted — who knows, maybe we’re just sympathetic.
Sony’s PS3 motion controller might be called Arc, or something far less bodacious originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jan 2010 08:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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A report recently released by renewable energy developer Trillium Power Wind in Toronto highlights that Ontario’s energy regulators have so far received applications for offshore wind projects that combined could generate almost 21,000 megawatts of power.
Trillium has skin in the game with its own plan for a 710 megawatts wind farm offshore Lake Ontario.
Quoting the report the Globe and Mail writes that in Ontario offshore wind could generate more than C$250-billion ($243 billion) of economic activity over 15 years.
On shore or off shore, renewable energy companies like Ontario’s investor- friendly energy legislation. The Green Energy Act, voted into law last spring, includes a generous feed-in tariff system that sets the price the government will pay for wind or solar power. This allows developers to enter long-term power purchase agreements with provincial utilities knowing in advance what they would earn over the lifetime of the projects.
Specific to off shore power, the Green Energy Act has set a high price of 19 cents a kilowatt-hour, which is more than double the current retail rate, reports the Globe and Mail.
Trillium says the Great Lakes’ mix of high winds, relatively shallow water, and access to existing transmission lines make it an attractive area to develop offshore wind farms. Research firm Emerging Energy Research North America’s first offshore wind farm won’t be built until 2012.
The U.S. lags behind in developing its offshore potential. Emblematic of that is Cape Wind, a Boston-based developer, which for the past seven years plan for a 420 megawatts offshore wind power project off shore Cape Cod has been snarled by opposition from local residents and bureaucratic red tape.
Until a few weeks ago the project, after numerous setbacks, seemed on track to start negotiating terms of a crucial long-term power purchase agreement with local utilities. Yet, that’s been put on hold with the recent decision by the National Register of Historic Places to grant the Nantucket Sound eligibility to be listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The decision could lead to more delays as it ensures that significant archeological research are undertaken as part of this already long permitting process.
Photo Credit: GridServer.com
Shelby enthusiasts have waited nearly four decades for this moment (yes, it’s really that important if you know cars). Meet the new 2011 Shelby GT350, a supercharged version of the new 5.0L V8 2011 Ford Mustang.
“In 1964, Ford Motor Company asked Shelby American to turn their secretary’s car into a race winner to help them sell Mustangs,” said Carroll Shelby, founder of Shelby American. “Our Shelby GT350 ruled its class at the track and was feared by GM and Chrysler owners on the street. Enthusiasts have anticipated the GT350’s return since it went out of production in 1970. Now my band of hot rodders has created a car worthy of the name.”
Performance wise, the 2011 Shelby GT350 is upgraded over a standard 2011 Mustang GT in almost every way. The most significant upgrade, however, is under the hood. The 5.0L V8 features a supercharger from Ford Racing helping the GT350 produce more than 500-hp (official specs have yet to be released). The engine is mated to a 6-speed manual transmission and center exit exhaust. Stopping power comes from a Baer brake system, which features 6 piston kit in the front and 14″ ERADISPEED rotors in the rear with cooling ducts for all four corners.
In term of pricing, a starting MSRP of $33,995 doesn’t sound all that bad – well, at least until you realize that it doesn’t include the price of a new 2011 Mustang GT.
Click through for the press release and the high-res image gallery.
2011 Shelby GT350:
Press Release:
SCOTTSDALE – Jan. 18, 2010 – Shelby American, a wholly owned subsidiary of Carroll Shelby International Inc. (CSBI:PK), will fulfill the dreams of enthusiasts by returning the legendary Shelby GT350 to its lineup of American performance cars. The Shelby team unveiled a supercharged concept version of the Mustang-based 2011 Shelby GT350 to the surprise of thousands gathered at the Barrett-Jackson Auction Opening Night Gala to honor the 45th anniversary of the first GT350 and first Shelby big block Cobra.
The concept behind the GT350 was to build a car that is light, nimble and powerful. Beginning with the “small block” 5.0 liter Ford Mustang GT as its base, the Shelby American team worked with experts from Ford Racing, Goodyear, Borla, Cragar and Baer to create a car that is fast and has razor sharp handling. Every segment of the car is enhanced or replaced to create the ultimate balanced performance pony car that is true to the spirit of the 1965-1970 MY Shelby GT350.
“The 2011 GT350 balances heritage with modern necessity,” said Shelby American president Amy Boylan. “Former Hot Wheels and Ford designer Larry Wood joined Vince LaViolette, Walter Cardenas, Andrew Smidt and the rest of our Las Vegas team to help integrate 1965-1970 Shelby styling cues with modern aerodynamics. We worked with Ford Racing to supercharge the engine with a goal of 500 horsepower, as well as to sharpen the handling. Baer Brakes helped engineer the fantastic brakes and we shod the GT350 with 19″ modern Cragar wheels and super sticky Goodyear tires. This Shelby is truly a complete performance package”
“Since this was one of the most important cars in Shelby’s history, everyone stepped up to make sure it meets Carroll’s performance standards,” added Gary Davis, vice president of production for Shelby American. “After it was hand built in our new design studio, it began extensive testing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway by veteran test drivers Vince LaViolett and Gary Patterson. We’re all proud to be part of this milestone Shelby car.”
Each GT350 will be clad in traditional white with Shelby Guardsman blue Le Mans stripes and feature the new Ford V8 coupled to a 6 speed manual transmission and center exit exhaust. Blue Shelby GT350 valve covers and billet caps set off the supercharged engine. The Baer brake system features 6 piston kit in the front, as well as 14″ ERADISPEED rotors in the rear with cooling ducts for all four corners.
The suspension was upgraded with new Ford Racing springs, struts, sway bars and adjustable caster/camber plates. The car also receives a new front fascia, tail light trim, front splitter, rear deck lid filler panel and rear fascia. Functional scoops are located on the side rockers and hood. GT350 badges on the outside and inside include a Shelby serial number. The A pillar carries a fuel pressure, oil pressure and boost gauge.
The Shelby GT350 is a post title program; a customer purchases a car from their local Ford Dealer, which is turned into a GT350 by the Shelby American Team. A limited number will be built in the 2011 model year. A Ford Mustang GT can be dropped shipped by a Ford dealer to Shelby’s Las Vegas facility for conversion or a customer can arrange to have a properly specified car transported to the factory. The Shelby GT350 up-fit completed by Shelby American has a MSRP of $33,995 and does not include the price of the base car.
Customers interested in a Shelby GT350 should contact Roger Sorel at (702) 942-7325 or log onto www.gt350.shelbyamerican.com.
– By: Kap Shah
