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  • Scanning the World for Reliable Suppliers, Panjiva Seeks to Bring Order to a Messy Process

    panjiva_logo_large
    Erin Kutz wrote:

    If you’re in an industry where you depend on suppliers from across the globe, searching the Web for a part or a collaborator isn’t exactly as easy as trying to figure out where you should eat dinner. Josh Green discovered this around 2005 when he was a Harvard Business School student interning at E Ink, the maker of the screen behind Amazon’s Kindle, and needed to find a supplier for an electronic component.

    It wasn’t easy. So he started talking to MIT computer science student Jim Psota, who he had already been working with on putting together a startup. In 2006 they incorporated Panjiva, a Web company that aims to simplify the supplier search process for businesses of all sizes. Their product is out to tell manufacturers and retailers everything from who they can order parts from, to whether or not a potential supplier is stable enough to work with, to what their top competitors are shipping.

    “We’ve built a Google-like product, but we’re organizing information specific to the global trading space,” says Psota, the co-founder and chief technology officer, who I spoke with at the company’s Cambridge, MA, headquarters (CEO Green leads the operations in New York).

    Panjiva (a play on the name of the supercontinent Pangea) is based on a system of data mining algorithms, machine learning, and natural language processing that culls numbers from more than 10 sources, like U.S. Customs. After Green and Psota found their initial inspiration for the business, they spent a few years developing the product, and raising angel and venture financing. Its backers include Battery Ventures and angels like eBay veteran and Stanford professor Michael Dearing, fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, and David Frankel of the Founder Collective, Psota says. Panjiva’s Web-based, industry-comprehensive search tool launched in April 2009. Home Depot was its first customer.

    The core of the Panjiva product is its search engine, where users can find suppliers by searching for parts, or get more information on a particular supplier they have come across by searching their name. Panjiva’s database has more than 1.5 million companies (including suppliers and customers) from more than 190 countries. Its interface is made to allow users to sift through that deep set of data to find a short list of potential partners. Panjiva customers use drilldown menus based on variables such as country, certifications, shipping date, or the health of the supplier’s business.

    “The raw data that we get in is very messy, it provides disparate data points that are not that interesting in and of themselves to helping the user,” explains Psota. “The secret sauce is taking the disparate and messy data sources and boiling them down and cleaning them up.”

    Once users get a manageable list of suppliers they could potentially purchase from, they can select a particular company to view a complex profile, which includes information such as …Next Page »












  • Lancia mystery prototype drawing appears

    Lancia mystery coupe concept

    This mystery drawing of a future Lancia coupé prototype has appeared on the official Lancia site, under the “Storia & Design” and “Centro Stile” categories. There are a series of drawings under the ‘new concept’ theme, including a Lancia Ypsilon Bertolo model and other past concepts that never made it into production. This particular drawing is simply called ‘new concept’ and could possibly go the same way as the other nice drawings that never were. But if this were ever to take physical shape, it could be an interesting new concept from Lancia. We’ll keep our eyes open for more news….

    Source | Autoblog.it


  • This Is How You Lift a Sunk War Ship Off the Sea [Giant Machines]

    With huge chains and honking cranes, that’s how. Example: This Republic of Korea Navy’s corvette—half of it, actually—floating over the sea’s surface. And before you cry “PHOTOSHOP!”, check out the scene from a distance. More »










    South KoreaAsiaGovernmentEmbassies and ConsulatesJoint Chiefs of Staff

  • HTC EVO 4G Has Been Rooted

    Well that didn’t take long.  The HTC EVO 4G has been rooted thanks to the developer/hacker community.  We can’t say we’re shocked at all by this – Google and Sprint did give put a couple thousand of these right into the hands of the guys who love to tinker with phones most.  It just so happens Matt Matracci was one of those guys in attendance.  A few buddies and a couple of hours later… presto!

    While the full step-by-step process has yet to be revealed, you can watch the video below for the time being.  Any guesses as to how long before Froyo hits the EVO 4G?  Unofficially of course.

    Might We Suggest…


  • Escolha a cadeirinha certa para seu bêbê andar de carro

    Se você tem alguma dúvida em relação a utilização e a escolha da cadeirinha de automóveis, veja no video acima algumas dicas de um especialista em segurança veicular de como proteger nosso maior tesouro, que são nossas crianças e também ficar por dentro da nova lei.

    A utilização da cadeirinha será obrigatória em todo o pais a partir do dia 9 de junho, através da nova lei regulamentada pelo CONTRAN (Conselho Nacional de Trânsito). Quem for flagrado não a obedecendo, será multado por infração gravíssima.

    Essa medida tem como principal intuito diminuir a gravidade das lesões e mortes no transito das crianças. De acordo com o especialista, o índice de redução de acidentes graves com crianças utilizando a cadeirinha é de quase 80%.

    Fonte: Youtube


  • Russia’s DST Looking for Companies to Disrupt the Status Quo

    An unusual payer has been making waves buying stakes in hot Internet companies at hefty valuations, as everyone took notice of. Digital Sky Technologies is a Russian company with deep pockets and a clear drive. It bought a $200-million stake in Facebook last year, raising more than a few eyebrows, and continued the trend by investing … (read more)

  • LG Fathom caught on video

    Mobileburn has managed to catch the LG Fathom in action, and have uploaded this video.

    The handset is truly global, with support for GSM and UMTS on the European bands, and of cours CDAM and EVDO.

    See the video above, and more at Mobileburn here.

    Via Pocketnow.com


  • Kindle 2.5 Update Trickles Out With Facebook In Tow [Kindle]

    Amazon had set a target of late May for their Facebook-friendly Kindle 2.5 update, and it looks as though they’re on schedule. Reports from users have started trickling in—at least for Kindle DX—meaning that the broad OTA release has begun. More »










    FacebookAmazon KindleRecreationRadioCitizen Band

  • Sarah Ferguson “Deeply Embarrassed” Following Prince Andrew Cash-For-Access Scandal

    Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

    The Original Fergie — Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson — was caught selling access to her ex-husband, Prince Andrew, the youngest of Queen Elizabeth’s two sons, for nearly $750,000.

    Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

    Fergie has admitted her finances are “under stress” after she was secretly filmed in a newspaper sting offering access to her ex for cash. In video footage released Sunday, the former royal appeared to offer to set an undercover reporter up for a meeting with Prince Andrew in return for the massive sum.

    In the video, she appeared to accept a $40,000 cash down-payment after promising: “I can open any door you want.”

    Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

    She has since apologized for what she called a “serious lapse in judgement.”

    “I very deeply regret the situation and the embarrassment caused,” says Ferguson — who has two daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie, with Andrew. “It is true that my financial situation is under stress. However, that is no excuse for a serious lapse in judgement and I am very sorry that this has happened. I can confirm that The Duke of York was not aware or involved in any of the discussions that occurred. I am sincerely sorry for my actions.”

    Fergie and Prince Andrew split in 1996 after 10 years of marriage — The Duchess receives $20,000 a year in spousal support. She is currently in Los Angeles, where she will accept an award for her dedication to charity work.


  • Working together for a fair deal in Niger

    In the second of three blogs, Jane Barrett meets the teams of Nigerien herders working to ensure they can buy and sell animals and grain at fair prices.

    Children at work in Niger. Photo: Jane Barrett/Oxfam

    Children at work in Niger. Photo: Jane Barrett/Oxfam

    The third day of our journey to Dakoro in the south of Niger is a big day, as food will be distributed to nomadic herders. The needs of these herders can’t be identified beforehand, as was the case yesterday with the villagers, so each will have to be asked about their situation before being allowed to buy the subsidised grains.

    The herders have already gathered when we arrive in Kombila – some have been waiting here for several days. There are many Touaregs, with their swathes of turban, some of whom also have huge straw hats with ostrich tails. The herders know each other, so they’re asked to take responsibility in helping to identify those truly in need of help.

    I talk with some widows hoping they will receive grain for free. One is Oma, 45, whose husband died when he fell in a well. “My animals have no food,” she says, explaining that they have to cut branches off trees to give them some leaves to eat. “You wouldn’t believe how thin my animals are unless you see it with your own eyes.” She too plans to go north, hoping that soon there will be rain.

    In the afternoon we head to the animal market at Bermo. Many herders are forced to sell their animals to buy grain, but the lack of harvest has caused grain prices to surge, and the herders’ desperation to sell their animals means they get less grain for each animal they sell. Worse still, many herders cannot afford to wait on the market until their animals are sold, so intermediaries “offer to help”, often giving them an unfair price for their animals, unbeknown to the herders, and charging them a fee.

    We are given an audience with the mayor, who tells us that AREN has done great work by setting up economic interest groups – teams of herders who are trying to reclaim the market from intermediaries, and ensure they get a fair price for their animals. These herders have taken classes and created a business plan which received the mayor’s blessing. Unfortunately the coup d’etat in February has put a hold on their plans, but they are hopeful that one day soon the administration will be cleared.

    Also, AREN has given animals to some women to ensure they have a means to generate an income. Ouma Bermo, although grateful to have been chosen to receive some animals, says it has yet to generate an income for her, as she will only be able to sell the animals in September. For now she has received grain from AREN to feed them.

    Herders are victims of a vicious speculative cycle. Now is the period in between harvests and the most difficult period for them, forcing them to sell animals in exchange for expensive grain. In September, when the harvest starts and they have grain, they will want to restock their animals. But because the supply of grain is high at that time of the year, they will get a low price for it, while the price of animals will have surged.

    The economic group is hoping to buy the animals at the currently low prices, then sell them again in September, countering the speculative cycle. At the moment they don’t have the money – a lot of smiling and winking happens as they tell me this – but they hope to get it.

    In the evening Ouma comes over with some friends who have also been following AREN’s evening courses. She wants to practice her French. For someone who is illiterate and whose mother tongue is Haussa, her courage and determination impress me. As the conversation of the other women drifts away from “conjugating the verb ‘to work’”, Ouma turns and, with the help of a flashlight, continues to read from her exercise book, occasionally gently corrected by her eight-year-old daughter.

    Where we work: Niger

  • Effect of Change to Atmospheric CO2 Level on Average Global Temperature by Dan Pangburn PE

    Article Tags: Dan Pangburn, [email protected]

    article image

    INTRODUCTION

    The analysis at Reference 1 presents a method and equation that accurately calculates average global temperatures since 1895 without considering any influence from change to the level of carbon dioxide or any other greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. The coefficient of determination, R2, for that calculation is 0.8686 (all of those digits are as calculated and are shown only to reveal the tiny differences between calculated values.

    There is no presumption that real-world precision is this close) which means that the equation explains 86.86% of the measured average global temperature (agt) anomalies.

    This is far better than has been achieved by any Global Climate Model. The agt anomaly identified in Ref 1 as a prediction is more correctly called a calculation up to the present and a projection (for the condition of no sunspots) thereafter.

    The present paper includes a determination of the contribution that added atmospheric CO2 makes to average global temperature. It is a refinement of the previous work which was presented in Ref 1. The present work produced the rather startling discovery that, although assuming no effect of added atmospheric CO2 produced an excellent correlation with measured agt, when a significant contribution from added atmospheric CO2 is
    included, an excellent correlation was also produced, in fact, a tiny bit better.

    Click to download “Effect of Change to Atmospheric CO2 Level on Average Global Temperature” by Dan Pangburn

    Read in full with comments »   


  • T-mobile pulls latest HD2 update due to lethal bugs

    T-mobile HD2Uh-oh. Looks like the latest update to the HD2 from T-mobile has caused a few “issues” and has had to be removed from the T-mobile update site.

    Different users have reported different issues ranging from a not-so-terrible reduction in battery life, to a much-more-serious bricking of the phone.

    So, if you’ve already downloaded the update, but were holding off for a special day in May to actually apply it, you’ve dodged a bullet.

    T-mobile are looking into the problem now, and will post an update to their update page when it’s available, but, if I were you, I’d probably wait for the eager guinea pigs to try the update out before you go and apply it, just to be sure.

    [via Boy Genius Report]


  • Shrek leads the box office but does not meet expectations

    Shrek leads the box office but does not meet expectations
    The fourth installment of Shrek leads the box office but does not meet expectations. “Shrek Forever After” has grossed $ 71.3 million during its first three days on screen, while the film industry had calculated a forecast of over 100 million dollars.

    Shrek the Third” was released in 2007 with 121.6 million dollars, “Shrek 2” earned $ 108 million during its opening weekend in 2004 and the “Shrek” series began in 2001 with $ 42 million. The new movie opened in the “lower end of forecasts,” said Anne Globe, head of Worldwide Marketing and Consumer Products.
    However, Globe said that the film is the fourth biggest opening of all time in animated films, behind the previous two installments of Shrek and The Simpsons. Globe hopes the film works well in the coming weeks, before the releasing of the “Toy Story 3″ on June 18, the next big delivery of Walt Disney.



    The previous bet of DreamWorks Animation, “How to Train Your Dragon,” was deemed a disappointment after winning in March a relatively modest $ 44 million during its first weekend, so the study’s stock price fell 8 percent the following Monday. But the film has managed to stay strong, with sales to date of $ 211 million.

    The production of “Shrek Forever After,” with the voice actors of the caliber of Mike Myers, Antonio Banderas, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz, cost about $ 135 million, and global marketing will involve about 165 million, said Globe. The film also earned about $ 26 million in its premiere in seven other countries, most marked in Asia like the Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand, and won $ 20 million in Russia.

    Moreover, “Iron Man 2″ fell to second place with $ 26.6 million, after leading the North American box office during the two previous weekends. The superhero saga has raised $ 251.3 million in U.S. theaters, and 268 million more abroad.

    Related posts:

    1. Shrek Forever After on the Walk of Fame in Hollywood
    2. Shrek to be Released in 3D
    3. What The Shrek Just Happened? : Now Showing “Shrek Forever After”

  • Flash kills browsing in Android 2.2 Froyo

    Brian at PocketNow posted a browser comparison video showing the iPhone, the Nexus One, and the HTC HD2 all viewing the same websites. He installed Froyo on the Nexus One and downloaded the Flash beta which allows him to run almost all Flash content. It’s really long.While I do enjoy a long video of a man playing with Android phones, 11 minutes worth of a man playing with phones (found after the jump) might be a bit tiring. However, the money shot comes at about 1:40 where you see some Flash games playing in the wild.

    I think the most interesting part of that part of the video is how close Flash games running on a good processer are to standard, natively written games.

    So fine, you say, things look great. Why not run Flash?


  • “Our Worst Nightmare Has Come True”

    Louisiana’s governor and coastal parish leaders are criticizing BP and the federal government for moving too slowly in addressing a growing oil spill that has already contaminated 65 miles of the state’s coastline.

    “We met today to take action, to take matters into our own hands,” said Gov. Bobby Jindal. “We know we’ve got to do that if we’re gonna win this fight to protect our coast.”

    State, parish and city officials have arranged daily coastal surveys and identified people and equipment ready to jump into action on short notice. But their ultimate plan of dredging protective sand berms along Louisiana’s barrier islands still awaits a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers, which is studying the project’s potential impact on the environment.

    “As you can see, our worst nightmare has come true,” Plaquemines Parish President BIlly Nungesser said as he pointed to a recent photo of pelicans in a nearby rookery saturated with oil. “Had we started the dredge project when we first demanded an emergency permit, a lot of the areas that we’re all here to talk about would have been protected. And I believe 80 to 90 percent of this oil could have been kept at bay on the barrier islands.”

    FOLLOW JONATHAN ON TWITTER, FACEBOOK AND KYTE.

    The theory behind the plan is that oil is easier to clean on the sandy beaches of barrier islands, but difficult — if not impossible — to remove from wetlands. Proposals to burn or flood the oil out of marshes could also destroy these important wildlife habitats.

    “We can fight this oil on the barrier islands 15 to 20 miles off our coast or we can face it in thousands of miles of fragmented wetlands,” Jindal said. “Every day we’re not given approval on this emergency permit to create more of these sand booms is another day that choice is made for us, as more and more miles of our shore are hit by oil.”

    Grand Isle Mayor David Camardelle said there is a dredge sitting idle just off the coast of his community. “Boy! You don’t know how bad I want to go as a pirate and take that thing and start blowing sand,” he said.

    The mayor was, of course, joking. But his statement reflects the increasing frustration of many coastal Louisiana residents.

    Meanwhile, the Obama Administration has started voicing its own frustration over the pace of BP’s response to the oil spill. “If we find they’re not doing what they’re supposed to be doing, we’ll push them out of the way appropriately,” said Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar.

    Today, Salazar and Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano are scheduled to lead a bi-partisan Senate delegation to the region to monitor the oil spill and the response.

  • Seagate Dishes Out Momentus XT HDD, World’s Fastest 2.5-Inch HDD [Hard Drives]

    Offering 250GB, 320GB and 500GB options, Seagate’s hybrid Momentus XT HDD is allegedly the world’s fastest 2.5-inch drive for laptops (breaking their previous record), and comes in at a shade over 100 bucks. More »










    Hard disk driveHardwareStorageHard DrivesSeagate Technology

  • Steve Jobs to Deliver Apple’s WWDC Keynote on June 7 [Apple]

    Of course it was expected, but Apple has confirmed that Steve Jobs will be delivering the keynote to begin the Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, June 7. One sure topic? The next iPhone. More »










    Steve JobsApplePioneersMacintoshHistory

  • U.S. Backs South Korea’s Response to North Korean Aggression

    The word from the White House and from Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is “unequivocal,” by which the Obama administration fully supports the actions of the South Korean government in response to North Korea’s unprovoked rocket attack on its Naval ship the Cheonan, which killed 46 sailors.

    South Korean President Lee Myung-bak announced that the South will close shipping lanes to the impoverished North and cease all economic activity with it. He plans to get the United Nations Security Council to address the Cheonan attack — a move that has the backing of the White House. “Secretary Clinton and Ambassador Rice are each consulting very closely with their Korean counterparts,” read a White House statement issued at 1 a.m. today, “as well as with Japan, China, and other UN Security Council member states in order to reach agreement on the steps in the Council.”

    The operative part of the statement:

    Specifically, we endorse President Lee’s demand that North Korea immediately apologize and punish those responsible for the attack, and, most importantly, stop its belligerent and threatening behavior.  U.S. support for South Korea’s defense is unequivocal, and the President has directed his military commanders to coordinate closely with their Republic of Korea counterparts to ensure readiness and to deter future aggression.  We will build on an already strong foundation of excellent cooperation between our militaries and explore further enhancements to our joint posture on the Peninsula as part of our ongoing dialogue.

    Flying back from a major economic summit in China, Clinton declined to say that the Chinese, North Korea’s last remaining benefactor, saw the Cheonan incident as the U.S. and the South Koreans do.  But “the Chinese recognize the gravity of the situation we face,” she said. “The Chinese understand the reaction by the South Koreans, and they also understand our unique responsibility for the peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.” Clinton added that the North Koreans have caused “a highly precarious situation” on the Korean peninsula.

    Speaking last week at the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Robert Gates pointedly noted that whatever strain from two extended wars that the U.S. Army and Marine Corps feel doesn’t apply to the forces that would respond to a resumption of hostilities in Korea. “If there were a problem in Korea, our main arms would be the Navy and the Air Force,” Gates said. “And so we — those are not stretched in the same way that the — that the ground forces are. But again, the key to remember — the key thing to remember here is that this was an attack on a South Korean ship, and the South Koreans need to be in the lead in terms of proposing ways forward.”

  • Albuquerque gives New Mexico its first solar-powered farmer’s market

    street farmers market

    Eco Factor: New farmer’s market will look at mobile solar power unit for power.

    In an attempt to power farmer’s market with clean energy and spread environmental awareness amongst the visitors, Albuquerque, New Mexico’s Downtown Action Team has given birth to what it claims will be the first solar-powered farmer’s market in the country. The non-profit dedicated to renovating the city’s downtown was struck with an idea to check if it was possible to power their farmer’s market for its entire season using solar energy.

    (more…)

  • Video: Exterior driving footage of the 2011 Ford Shelby GT500

    2011 Ford Shelby GT500

    Last week Ford released a video of its SVT team hitting up the Virginia International Raceway (VIR) with the 2011 Ford Shelby GT500. The 2011 model brought in a lap time of 2:58.48, which was over eight seconds faster than the 2010 Shelby GT500.

    While last time we only got a cockpit view of the 2011 Shelby GT500’s VIR run, today we get to see some exterior driving footage with some nice supercharged sounds. Not a bad way to kick of Monday morning.

    Click here to get prices on the 2011 Ford Shelby GT500.

    Refresher: The 2011 Ford Shelby GT500 Coupe and Convertible are powered by a 5.4L supercharged V8 making 550-hp (an increase of 10-hp) with a peak torque of 510 lb-ft. The new powertrain weighs 102 pounds lighter, resulting in a better power-to-weight ratio, improved fuel-economy, acceleration, handling and steering precision. Buyers can also opt for the SVT Performance Package to further enhance performance. For 2011, the Shelby GT500 gets an EPA-projected fuel-economy of 23/15 mpg (city/highway).

    2011 Ford Shelby GT500:

    2011 Ford Shelby GT500 Coupe (Exterior Driving Footage):

    2011 Ford Shelby GT500:

    – By: Omar Rana