Category: News

As so many people make health goals on January 1, how about some help with avoiding stress in 2010?

Everyone has stress. Some of us just don’t realize it. Author Roberta Lee M.D. believes that many of us also suffer from “SuperStress,” which has evolved from the frenetic pace of modern life. Lee’s new book, The SuperStress Solution, will be released by Random House on January 12. The book includes a four-week program with a plan for offsetting the physical and emotional effects of stress.

Lee’s article below gives you some tips on avoiding SuperStress (or just regular stress) in 2010.

Reduce SuperStress in the New Year!
by Roberta Lee M.D., Author of The SuperStress Solution

Each New Year, we doctors hear our patients’ wistful declarations of resolve to change their health. As I listen I silently hope that this year those promises will come to pass! I know that 60% of Americans die from illnesses connected to poor choices in lifestyle, such as overeating, lack of exercise and smoking. Whatever your specific goals, my vested interest is to see my patients aspirations take hold and succeed. But I also might have different priorities than you do for yourself. Here are my top health wishes for all my patients . . . see if you think that adopting some or all of these might help you reach your own resolutions, too:

Make health goals practical. Everybody loves to make lofty goals but such high-flying targets make it harder to achieve success.

Make a simple plan to achieve your goals. There is nothing worse than steering towards a goal without a strategy to achieve a successful outcome.

Maintain an exercise routine. Be creative in designing “reward surprises” as incentives to keep yourself going. For example, when I use the treadmill for aerobic exercise I need more entertainment than just watching what’s on TV or listening to music as I huff and puff towards a healthy heart rate. Instead, I buy or rent DVDs of TV shows that I had always wanted to see (and never had time to watch) and only watch them when I work out. Now, I want to get to the next program and see what happens — but I’ll only let myself watch if I am on the treadmill.

Increase physical activity and benchmark your progress. One of the easiest ways to begin moving more is to buy a pedometer and measure how much you are already walking. People who use pedometers walk an average of one mile more than those who do not measure their steps! Aim for 10,000 steps a day, or the equivalent of 5 miles. This might seem like a lot of walking, but you might be surprised to learn how many steps you take in a given day when you start keeping track. One way to increase your overall number of steps is to add mileage by 500 steps each week.

Get more sleep. Sleep deprivation affects mental health. It also decreases a hormone that signals fullness known as leptin. The less leptin, the more you overeat which, in turn, depresses the release of growth hormone during our sleep. The less growth hormone, the harder it will be for your body to build muscle mass, rejuvenate skin and strengthen bones.

See your doctor or primary healthcare advocate. Annual physicals and preventive gynecological exams are an essential part of staying healthy, yet only 21% of adults get a preventive physical exam! Don’t be part of that statistic — commit to making and keeping this one important appointment this year.

Do routine screening tests. Mammograms, Pap tests, prostate and prostate specific antigen (psa) tests and colonoscopies detect breast, cervical, prostate and colon cancer. Early intervention in these cancers improves the statistics for successful outcomes, so talk to your doctor about your need for these tests. Your doctor should also regularly check your cholesterol, vitamin D levels, blood count and routine blood chemistries.

Love something, someone or experience the feeling of being grateful for 5 minutes every day! Dr. Robert Emmons, research expert on gratitude and Editor-In-Chief of the Journal of Positive Psychology, wrote “[First] the practice of gratitude can increase happiness levels by around 25%. Second, this is not hard to achieve — a few hours writing a gratitude journal over 3 weeks can create an effect that lasts 6 months if not more. Third, that cultivating gratitude brings other health effects, such as longer and better quality sleep time.”

To reduce stress, and avoid SuperStress, try this today:

Simple as it sounds; focused breathing — during which you think about your breath as you inhale and exhale — is a very effective stress-management technique. A slow, full breath triggers physical and cognitive changes that promote relaxation. Deep breathing helps release tension and anxiety and is a great energizer because the deeper the breath, the more your body is flooded with life-fueling oxygen. A full breath begins with the diaphragm pushing downward so that the stomach extends out. As your lungs fill with air, your chest expands. When you exhale, the reverse occurs — your chest settles first and then your stomach.

• When anxiety strikes or you find yourself focusing on negative thoughts, immediately exhale through your mouth.
• Now, open your lungs, and breathe in through your nose, drawing in a fresh, cleansing air to the count of four.
• Exhale again slowly to the count of five.
• Repeat four times.

Copyright © 2009 Roberta Lee M.D., author of The SuperStress Solution

Author Bio
Roberta Lee, M.D., author of The SuperStress Solution, is vice chair of the Department of Integrative Medicine, director of Continuing Medical Education, and co-director of the Fellowship in Integrative Medicine at Beth Israel’s Continuum Center for Health and Healing at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City. Dr. Lee attended George Washington University Medical School and is one of the four graduates in the first class from the Program of Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona conducted by Andrew Weil, M.D.

For more information please visit superstresssolution.com.

(Book image via Random House; Clouds via stock.xchng)

Post from: Blisstree

Lower Your Stress in 2010

Envivio, provider of technology that compresses video so it can be displayed via televisions, computer screens or mobile phones, has raised $1 million in debt financing, according to a filing with the SEC. Based in South San Francisco, the company is backed by Atlantic Bridge, Credit Agricole Private Equity, Crescendo Ventures, The Solidarity Fund, Innovacom, Harbinger, HarbourVest, Intel Capital, NTT Finance, Saints Capital, Samsung Ventures America and Sigma Designs.

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Raydiance, which claims to be working on “ultrafast lasers” with applications in microelectronics, solar panel manufacturing, eye surgeries, dermatology and cancer treatments, has brought in $3.1 million of an expected $5 million round of funding. Based in Petaluma, Calif., the company is backed by Greenstreet Partners and Draper Fisher Jurvetson. It raised $20 million in a fourth round of funding last year.

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Oh, Android – how good you have been for Motorola. It was only months ago that they were teetering on the edge of obscurity; one 350-person Android task force later, they’ve got the most popular Android handset in the lands and are being name dropped on a nearly daily basis around the rumor mill.

A Chinese leakster managed to get his mitts on this (confusingly obscured) shot of an unreleased Motorola handset, and was nice enough to share it with the world. According to the original source, the handset you see up there is called the Motorola Shadow (or “Mirage”, depending on who’s translation you believe.) What the tipster lacks in well-framed pictures, they make up for with knowledge of the specs: coming in at a ridiculously thin 9mm, this baby supposedly packs a monstrous 4.3 inch screen running at a resolution of 850×484, an HDMI port (shown in the pic), and an 8 megapixel camera ready to shoot video in 1080p. They don’t mention an operating system, and the pic doesn’t help much in that department – but unless Motorola’s doing something crazy, it’s a pretty safe bet that we’re looking at a UI mod of Android.

[Via Electronista]

Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.

Google’s forthcoming smart phone, apparently, has the power to change fortunes. Following speculation that Chinese battery manufacturer BAK (CBAK) won the supply contract for Google’s phone, BAK stock rose 63 percent. After BAK’s chief financial officer Tony Shen denied these rumors, BAK stock dropped 24 percent and is at 2.79 at time of publishing (9:45 AM PST). The amazing thing here is that BAK hasn’t announced anything else of note. BAK’s valuation has been changing around speculation that they might supply batteries for a single model of phone.

Despite the 63 percent gains on 12.29, BAK is down 26 percent over the last three months.

The phone in question is the Nexus One. Following weeks of speculation, we are expecting release information by mid January, probably at a press event Google announced on January 5. The phone will likely be available unlocked and unsubsidized from Google, which would be the first time Google has sold hardware to consumers. The unsubsidized price is $530.

It will also be available subsidized with a two year contract from T-Mobile. The T-Mobile plan will include 500 voice minutes with text and data included for $80 a month. The phone will be built to Google’s specifications by HTC, unlike other Android phones that were built as manufacturers thought they should be. This is all according to a leaked internal document.

BAK has posted two straight years of losses. About two thirds of their business is in cell phone batteries. Another rough third is in laptop batteries and the rest is tied up in its expansion to the automotive battery business. To date, BAK has not been certified to supply OEMs and focuses on the replacement business. A week ago, CBAK announced it had won a $1 million contract to supply bus batteries in China.

If anyone doubted the power of Google before, let them now be convinced. Nothing is official about the Nexus One’s release or even its existence. None the less, rumors about who might supply the batteries for the Nexus One are driving stock prices. The Droid may have disappointed some but the Nexus One might just quietly sidle up into iPhone territory, sales wise.

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Lithium Technologies, builder of customer relations channels like customized forums, blogs and social networks for other companies, has brought in $18 million of an anticipated $23 millon round of venture funding, according to a filing with the SEC. Based in Emeryville, Calif., the company is backed by Benchmark Capital, Emergence Capital Partners and Shasta Ventures. It has raised $39 million to date.

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Atieva, maker of advanced batteries for plug-in cars, has brought in $7 million in equity, according to a filing with the SEC. Based in Mountain View, Calif., the company is backed by the China Environment Fund and Venrock.

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C3, a secretive company working on a new way to gauge carbon emissions footprints, has brought in $26 million of an anticipated $43.4 million third round of venture funding, according to a filing with the SEC.

Despite facing several key competitors in the space, including Carbon Trust, Hara and Carbonetworks, C3 already seems to be setting itself apart — recruiting heavyweights like former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and former Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham for its board. The starpower isn’t surprising, considering that the San Mateo, Calif. company was founded by Thomas Siebel — the man who sold Siebel Systems to Oracle for $5.7 billion.

This cast may already say a lot about C3. The combined intellect of the management team, which includes former Siebel executive Patricia House (one of Fortune’s 50 most powerful women), is surely impressive. But the tone is overwhelmingly conservative. As TechCrunch points out, Siebel was a major proponent of Sarah Palin’s during the election. That’s how conservative.

Considering that Republicans in the Senate are almost unanimously resolved to crush any climate bill that includes a carbon cap-and-trade system, emissions management doesn’t appear to be high on the party’s list. The right-wing has been vocal in its hatred for cap-and-trade, claiming that it will only hurt the U.S.’s already weak economy. So why does C3, a seemingly conservative company, look like it will be measuring carbon emissions for the express purpose of making a cap-and-trade system work better?

The only argument that seems to make sense is that C3 will be more focused on the energy security piece of carbon and emissions management. The presence of Rice on the company’s board also suggests that it will be more international in scope, which makes a security bent more likely.

But this prediction is inconsistent with comments made earlier this year by the C3 team suggesting that the company would be developing enterprise software to help companies keep track of and reduce their carbon emissions. Still, it’s unclear why Rice, Abrahams and Siebel would be rallying behind a startup with such modest ambitions in an already crowded space. I guess we’ll have to wait and see in 2010.

The $26 million reported was raised in several chunks since the company’s founding in January of this year. It has yet to disclose any of its investors.

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Hair loss is very common in old age, but it can also occur in young people and teenagers. Most youngsters consider hair as an asset that enhances their appearance, and hair loss is often seen as a threat of losing one’s good looks.

For most men and women hair thins gradually with age. This is a natural phenomenon called involutional alopecia.

Causes of Hair loss

The cause of hair loss is different in different people. For some, it is said to be a hereditary problem where one of the parents or grandparents suffer from hair loss. People leading a stressful life or those who have undergone mental trauma in their life are also said to have hair loss problems.

Vitamin and mineral deficiencies are another cause of hair loss, along with chemical hair treatments such as perms or coloring. Even blow drying your hair or wearing a ponytail can thin out your hair.

Cause of hair loss in Women

In women, thyroid disease, substantial weight loss or gain, stress, and anemia are all problems that may be the cause of hair loss. Pregnancy and menopause also create hormonal changes that affect your hair, and hair loss in women is experienced many times after giving birth. Scalp infections can cause hair to fall out in clumps.

Natural Hair Loss Remedies

The search for natural alternatives to treat hair loss aims to find alternatives for conventional pharmacological measures, since these often have extreme side effects. One of these alternatives is homeopathy – it can be termed a natural route because this medicinal system utilizes distillations of organic substances. Homeopathy has several treatment modes for addressing hair loss.

Natural and holistic therapy offers a gentler alternative for people experiencing hair loss than the harsh effects of conventional medication. Treatments such as herbal and homeopathic remedies stimulate and encourage hair growth as well as support blood circulation, hormonal balance and thyroid functioning.

Herbal remedies along with good nutritional diet (supplements in case of severe deficiency or if directed by your doctor) help hair grow stronger and more plentifully by nourishing it at the roots. They achieve this by stimulating blood flow and supplying nutrients to the hair follicles and hence promoting healthy hair growth and slowing down excessive hair loss. Although the process begins within a few days, as the hair grow slowly, the results are visible only after a few months.

Results from the homoeopathic approach can take a longer time, but they are very often dramatic.

Product Description
Procerin is a vitamin for hair loss that is specially formulated to block production of DHT, the primary cause of hair loss in men. Procerin’s benefits are greatest for younger men (18-35), and those whose hair is still in a growth phase. Men that still have growing hair experience an increase in hair count, and improvement in both hairline and thinning at the crown of the their head. Men often begin losing hair in their 20’s, with hair loss progressing more rapidly… More >>

Procerin Male Hair Loss Control

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Using an app to tweet about sexting? One university wants you to watch your language.

Lake Superior State University, though no doubt a fine institution of higher learning, doesn’t have big name recognition. But it does have one annual PR stunt created by the school’s public relations director back in 1975: a “word banishment” list for the year that just ended.

The list’s full name, “List of Words Banished from the Queen’s English for Mis-use, Over-use and General Uselessness,” pretty much sums up its function. For 2010, four tech terms made the cut.

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The International Monetary Fund took months to launch its much anticipated latest round of gold sales, but its better-than-expected profit of $4.7 billion makes the timing look impeccable.

In June, before gold prices began climbing in the autumn, the IMF estimated it would garner $850 for each ounce of gold sold to central banks and other official holders. After having sold just more than half of its planned sale of 403.3 metric tons, however, the fund has averaged $1,049 an ounce.

“Obviously, it’s a good price relative to the original assumptions,” a senior IMF official said last month.

The fund in the past three months has announced sales of 212 metric tons of gold, with the sales going to India, Sri Lanka and Mauritius. The sales have generated an estimated profit of $4.7 billion, the fund said last week in a midyear review of its own financial position.

Inflation worries, a depreciating U.S. dollar and seasonal factors have been pushing prices higher. When the IMF made its estimate in June, the front month price of gold on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange was well above $900 an ounce, and it hit a high of $1,226.40 on Dec. 3. It’s currently
trading around $1,097.50 an ounce.

“There’s a real seasonal pattern to gold. It’s best to be selling in the fall,” said Frank Holmes, chief executive and chief investment officer at U.S. Global Investors, a firm specializing in gold, natural resource, emerging market and infrastructure investments.

Gold prices typically slide during the summer months before rebounding in the autumn, he said.

The IMF’s executive board in mid-September approved the sale of one-eighth of the funds total gold holdings. It announced in November an off-market deal to sell 200 metric tons to India–its first such sale in nine years.

The IMF is selling the gold in order to “put the financing of the IMF on a sound long-term footing,” IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said earlier this year. It plans to create an endowment with profits from the sales that could be used as a source of funding for the IMF.

Emerging market countries such as India and China were expected to be among those lining up to buy the IMF’s gold. The IMF still has 191 million tons it is approved to sell.

“Emerging countries that have surplus dollars are just being prudent in diversifying,” Holmes said. “You can’t just have euros, pound sterling and U.S. dollars.”

While Scott Licamele, the director of Red Star Asset Management, is expecting the U.S. dollar to rally in the first quarter of 2010, he sees the currency depreciating over the longer term. “Central banks are adjusting to that new reality,” he said.

De la última prueba del Peugeot 3008 equipado con el motor diesel HDi de 150 CV nos hemos guardado una parte muy especial, una comparativa. Cuando lo probamos ya comentaba que el segmento del Peugeot 3008 era muy singular porque no es un crossover puro (no dispone de tracción ni como opción) e intenta ser un monovolumen. Por tanto nos dejaba dos opciones o ir a por un Nissan Qashqai o buscar un monovolumen similar para compararlo.

Como personalmente creo que la mejor característica del 3008 es su espacio interior, buscamos un monovolumen diesel y recién salido al mercado y se nos ocurrió el Renault Scenic, por similitud en medidas y gracias al concesionario RODOSA (Renault Vigo) nos cedieronun Scenic diesel. Porque pese a que el Peugeot pueda parecer más grande son muy similares ambos modelos en medidas exteriores, sobresaliendo quizás la altura del 3008.

Vamos a comparar dos aspecto principales de ambos modelos: diseño/ habitabilidad y comportamiento/motor. El Renault Scenic que probamos equipaba el motor 1.5 dCi de 105 CV, motor que sería equiparable al 1.6 HDi de 110 CV.

En cuanto al diseño exterior llama la atención que pese a tener unas medidas similares, es algo más grande el Peugeot 3008 pero sobretodo nos da esa sensación por la altura del vehículo puesto que tiene un puesto de conducción y una posición más alta que el Scenic. En cifras el Peugeot tiene una longitud de 4,37 metros y una anchura de 1,84 metros y por su parte el Renault Scenic tiene una longitud de 4,26 metros y un ancho de 1,80 metros.

En cuanto a la línea y al diseño no podemos negar que el Peugeot 3008 tiene un diseño más innovador y sobretodo más original, mientras que el monovolumen de Renault tiene un diseño más conservador sobretodo en su frontal (con rasgos que adopta del Mégane, incluyendo los colmillos en la defensa). En la parte posterior el Scenic se vuelve algo más original al incorporar los faros traseros de nuevo diseño y el Peugeot los faros traseros tipo aleta con efecto LED de los intermitentes.

Si pasamos al interior de ambos modelos, podemos encontrar más diferencias y es donde el Peugeot 3008 se queda algo corto. Puesto que Renault Scenic en algo menos de tamaño consigue un mayor espacio interior y sobretodo gana en huecos y soluciones porta-objetos, como las guanteras bajo las alfombrillas traseras y bajo los asientos o las mesitas traseras plegables tras los asientos. Soluciones que el Peugeot sólo incorpora en parte y que son propias de un monovolumen, por ejemplo el 3008 cuenta con guanteras bajo las alfombrillas traseras pero pierde algunos huecos y soluciones prácticas que el Scenic si tiene.

En cuanto al puesto de conducción en el Peugeot 3008 domina la imaginación con esa consola central tan peculiar, pero a la vez la instrumentación del velocímetro y demás es totalmente sobria sin grandes alardes de diseño. Por contra el Renault Scenic tiene la instrumentación más centrada y todo ello es una pantalla LCD que nos muestra los datos desde la velocidad, combustible, hasta incluso la información de la radio. La única pega que le veo a esa pantalla es que está algo cargada con demasiada información, sobretodo si nos podemos a funcionar con la radio.

Por último el sistema de navegación del Renault Scenic se encuentra totalmente integrado en la consola central y para manejarlo debemos utilizar un joystick y varios botones que lo rodean que se sitúan en el tren central y que se manejan de forma sencilla.

Si comparamos la calidad de ambos modelos en el interior, el Renault sale perdiendo por algunos plásticos duros del salpicadero que deslucen bastante el conjunto, porque por ejemplo los mandos de la radio o climatizador son de buena calidad o incluso el volante, pero los plásticos del salpicadero podían tener algo más de suavidad al tacto, sobretodo comparativamente con el Peugeot.

Si pasamos al apartado de motor y comportamiento, está claro que comparativamente no podemos comparar un motor diesel de 105 CV con otro de 150 CV, pero si el comportamiento en general del coche. El Renault Scenic contaba con un motor que se ajustaba muy bien al coche, el 1.5 dCi de 105 CV le aportaba la fuerza necesaria y lo movía con soltura.

En cuanto a comportamiento, si he notado más diferencias. La altura y el diseño del Peugeot 3008 que lo quiere acercar a un crossover le resta estabilidad y aplomo (como ya os comentaba en la primera parte de la prueba) y el Scenic en ese aspecto se comporta mucho más como un turismo ganando algo más de aplomo.

Además el Renault Scenic, pese a contar con unas medidas similares gana en maniobrabilidad frente al Peugeot 3008, y cuenta con una dirección algo blanda (comparativamente con el 3008) pero precisa. Para circular por ciudad lleva ventaja el Renault sin duda y en confort de marcha los dos se sitúan prácticamente al mismo nivel (exceptuando el comportamiento).

En cuanto a una valoración general de ambos modelos, en el caso del Peugeot 3008 hay que tener en cuenta su diseño y el confort de marcha sobretodo al viajar, así como la postura de conducción más elevada. En caso de que no nos interese mucho la estética crossover (recordemos que el Peugeot no lleva tracción total) el Renault Scenic cuenta con más soluciones como monovolumen y se comporta de manera muy similar a un turismo.

En cuanto a precios es algo más barato el Renault Scenic, que parte de los 18.350 euros (sin descuentos) de la versión base gasolina de 110 CV y en concreto el motor 1.5 dCi de 105 CV arranca en los 21.450 euros (sin descuentos). La versión que hemos probado con bastantes extra, sólo le faltaban los faros de xenon, sube hasta los 26.520 euros (sin descuentos).

El Peugeot 3008 arranca en los 21.130 euros del motor gasolina de 120 CV y el disel 1.6 HDi de 110 CV base se sitúa en los 23.030 euros. Comparativamente un Peugeot equipado con el motor diesel de 110 CV y un equipamiento similar al Scenic que probamos se situaría en los 26.080 euros con navegador y sin xenon. Hay que tener en cuenta que es una aproximación, porque Peugeot en el nivel de acabado Sport Pack que es el que probamos equipa el xenon y lavafaros, entre otros elementos por tanto lo hemos configurado sobre la base del acabado Premium del 3008 y el Scenic con el acabado Dynamique.

Agradecimientos al concesionario Renault- RODOSA por facilitarnos un Renault Scenic para la comparativa.

Las fotos del interior son todas del Renault Scenic.

Comparativa: Peugeot 3008 vs Renault Scenic

Fotos | David Taboada

Prueba Peugeot 3008 | Parte I , Parte II, Parte III

All of you Google Voice fans better be excited because 2010 is possibly shaping up to be the year Google Voice will become VOIP capable. In an interview with eWeek, Google Executive Bradley Horowitz revealed that Google indeed plans to implement VOIP services in the coming year, thus allowing Google Voice users to use VOIP services with a data connection.

Horowitz had this to say:What we’re trying to do with telephony is give people a seamless experience that frees up their telephony communication from the silos where it’s lived for the last decade. Voicemail, my contacts, all of those things have been segregated from the rest of my Web experience. We have big plans to do a better job.

As someone who uses Google Voice daily, I am extremely excited about this. As always, we will keep you informed when more definitive information comes forward.  Lets hop its true!

Article Tags: ClimateGate, Headline Story, Met Office, Piers Corbyn, YouTube

WeatherAction New Year Message

• Jan AND Feb will be unusually cold in Britain, Ireland, & Europe – Standard Meteorology / ‘Global Warming’ forecasts will fail AGAIN.
• ‘Man-Made Climate Change’ is failed science based on fraudulent data
• Met Office & Global Warmers blasted for ongoing forecast failures

Click source to read FULL message from Piers Corbyn

Source: weatheraction.com

Read in full with comments »   

2009 Sleepers: The Best Games You Didn’t Play

Once you’re done with Mario and Modern Warfare, hunt down this baker’s dozen
of overlooked greats.

By Jeremy Parish

Even with all the fall 2009 releases that were delayed into 2010, it’s still been a heck of a year for games. Blockbusters everywhere! You couldn’t walk to the bus without tripping over one, it seems. And with all that obsessing over the big-name hits, a huge number of worthy also-rans have gone almost completely overlooked by gamers at large. Well, that just doesn’t sit right with us. Sure, we like the triple-A titles as much as the next batch of game-obsessed nerds, but we love the little guys, too. So, we’ve put together a baker’s dozen of overlooked or sleeper games that you might have missed amidst all the furor. At the very least, they’ll give you something to do before March hits and we’re drowning in goodness again.

<!– 10. –> A Boy and His Blob

Dev: WayForward | Pub: Majesco | Platform: Wii

Less a remake than a total overhaul of an inspired but uneven NES classic, WayForward’s take on A Boy and His Blob is visually stunning — and almost as difficult. By getting rid of the concept of limited lives and building in a generous checkpoint system, the developer was able to create a platformer that consists of hundreds of challenging little puzzles strung together in a package that manages not to frustrate despite its difficulty… well, except the bosses, which tend to inspire infuriated hair-pulling. A curious blend of storybook charm and old-school videogame challenge, it’s a true Wii gem.

<!– 10. –> Critter Crunch

Dev: Capybara | Platform: iPhone/PS3

Critter Crunch is basically Magical Drop mixed with Space Invaders and dressed up with a cute rendition of the food chain, which means it’s a fast-paced puzzler that arguably teaches kids about nature. (Red in tooth and claw and all that.) Really, though, it’s just a fun, addictive game that perfectly fits the iPhone platform (and isn’t too shabby on PSN, either). The object-matching puzzle genre is pretty well tapped out by now, but Critter Crunch is the most memorable entry to hit this crowded field in quite some time — and at $1.99 on iPhone and $6.99 on PSN, the price is just right.

<!– 10. –> Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War II

Dev: Relic | Pub: THQ | Platform: PC

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Crunching the numbers on venture capital investments in green technology companies in 2009, Greentech Media Research (GTM) finds the sector both weathered this year’s financial storm, and thrived in terms of total deals. More startups shared the wealth in 2009, with 356 deals, up from 350 deals in 2008 and just 222 deals in 2007

But […]