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Assistant coach Frank Hamblen helped us break down the Sacramento Kings by detailing how to contend with Rookie of the Year candidate Tyreke Evans on the perimeter and Carl Landry on the block, as well as Beno Udrih in screen-roll situations.

Hamblen also detailed where L.A.’s focus needs to center in their final home regular season contest in which neither Kobe Bryant (finger) nor Andrew Bynum (Achilles) will play.

Tip off is at 7:30 p.m.

There have been rumors floating around that certain European carriers are working on their own Android handsets. Vodafone was rumored to be working on their own phone, looks like Orange has beaten them to the punch. The Boston will be released first and for the low price of 1 euro.

The price above could change depending on which plan you choose. This phone is rumored to be built for Orange by manufacturer Foxconn. Orange has yet to make an official announcement on the existence of this device, we expect it will come soon since the cat is now out of the bag.

The specs:

– 3.2″ screen at 480 x 320

– Wi-Fi 802.11b/g

– Qualcomm 600MHz processor

– 256MB RAM

– Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR

– GPS

– microSD

– 5megapixel camera

– Android 1.6

[via eurodroid]

Konami has already announced Saw 2, but trying to imagine the nasty things you have to do in the sequel just won’t cut it. Here to take us through all that today is the game’s producer and

by MAPLight.org

A bill to help rescue miners in emergencies and protect miners’ safety was
defeated in Congress three years ago. After passing the House, the bill, called
the S-MINER Act, died in a Senate committee.

Mining interests, who were opposed to this bill, gave twice as much money in
campaign contributions to House members who voted against the bill as they gave
to members who voted in favor.

In the Senate committee where the bill died, mining firms gave more than
twice as much money to committee members as the unions in
support.

Background

The recent explosion at the Massey Energy coal mine in West Virginia that
killed 29 coal miners has left many bewildered Americans questioning how the
federal government could have prevented this tragedy. It has been reported that
Massey was in violation of safety regulations and that federal regulatory oversight of mining conditions was
lax.

In June of 2007, Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) introduced the Supplemental Mine
Improvement and New Emergency Response Act (S-MINER) Act, which, according to the Congressional Research
Service, would have supplemented existing mining provisions in the Federal Mine
Act to require: “(1) emergency response plans to incorporate new technology; (2)
the Secretary of Labor to require the installation of rescue chambers in
underground coal mines; and (3) accident response plans to provide for the
maintenance of refuges.”

Miller chairs the House Committee on Education and
Labor, which issued a report stating: “The S-MINER Act aims to prevent disasters
and, in cases where disasters do occur, to improve emergency response. It also
aims to reduce long-term health risks facing miners, such as black lung.”
Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) explained the bill was necessary because the 2006 MINER Act
provisions had not been effectively enforced. So far, I am concerned that the
slow pace of reform is leaving America’s miners at risk. We’ve made progress.
But [the Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA)] has not moved
aggressively to implement all of the provisions of the MINER
Act.”

Opposition

Two months after introduction of the bill, the Crandall Canyon mining
disaster occurred, killing six miners in Utah. Even after this tragedy
highlighted the dangers of industry standard practices and deficiencies of
regulatory oversight, the mining industry continued to oppose the bill. The
National Mining Association’s Vice President for Safety, Health and Human
Resources testified before the committee. “To be forced to respond to an
additional layer of statutory requirements at this time will undermine the
progress that has been made on miner training and other vital objectives of the
act. It is premature to consider imposing further legislation before the full
impact of the original MINER Act can be comprehensively evaluated.” Further
opposition cited concerns about energy independence and job losses. Congressman
Don Young of Alaska (R) argued, “If this bill was to become law, mines will be shut
down. They will be shut down.” The Bush Administration also strongly opposed the
bill, claiming that “several of the regulatory mandates in the
S-MINER bill would weaken several existing regulations and overturn regulatory
processes that were required by the MINER Act and are ongoing.”

Money and Votes

After four amendments were considered and three passed, the House passed
the S-MINER Act in January 2008. The bill subsequently died in the Senate
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. The HELP Subcommittee on
Employment and Workplace Safety, chaired by Sen. Murray, met to consider the
bill. Only three members were present for the hearing. No further action was
taken on this bill.

For the House vote, 25 House Democrats and nearly all House Republicans voted
against the bill. On average, House opponents received 103 percent more money from mining interests than House
members voting Yes (an average of $12,526 to each member voting No, $6,174 to
each voting Yes). Democrats voting No received 197 percent more money from mining interests than their
colleagues voting Yes (an average of $16,314 to each Democrat voting No, $5,489
to each votin g Yes).

Seven House Republicans, including West Virginia’s Shelley Capito, supported
passage of the bill, although they received little campaign funding from unions,
the primary special interest MAPLight.org found to be supporting the
bill.

Members of the Senate HELP Committee received 122 percent more from the
mining interests than from the unions (see table below). Only three committee
members represent states that have a significant mining industry. Sen. Murray
received more than twice as much money from mining interests than any other
Democrat on the committee, although her state of Washington is not ranked as a
top mining industry state.

Don Blankenship, CEO of Massey and board member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, has spent millions
of dollars in personal funds to support judicial and state political campaigns,
including $3 million in an attempt to buy a West Virginia state Supreme Court
justice. Nearly another $400,000 was disbursed by Massey’s employees,
including Blankenship, over the last four election cycles to state and federal
candidates, according to query results from a new Sunlight Foundation transparency database. Also, see the Center for Responsive
Politics’ Capital Eye blog for more information about contributions and
lobbying expenditures by Massey and its CEO.

Contributions (2003-2008) from interest groups that supported and opposed
the S-MINER Act to members of the Senate HELP Committee in the 110th

Congress

Senate HELP Committee
Member

Party

State

State Rank in
Mining Production

$ From
Supporting Interest Groups

$ From
Opposing Interest Groups

Isakson, John

R

GA

20th

$0

$97,500

Murray, Patty

D

WA

32nd

$42,000

$74,141

Hatch, Orrin

R

UT

6th

$0

$73,350

Murkowski, Lisa

R

AK

10th

$0

$72,850

Enzi, Michael

R

WY

3rd

$0

$68,600

Burr, Richard

R

NC

26th

$0

$63,449

Alexander, Lamar

R

TN

28th

$0

$45,800

Roberts, Pat

R

KS

25th

$0

$40,300

Bingaman, Jeff

D

NM

16th

$10,000

$33,400

Clinton, Hillary

D

NY

24th

$24,500

$22,700

Coburn, Thomas

R

OK

31st

$0

$22,299

Gregg, Judd

R

NH

47th

$0

$11,800

Dodd, Christopher

D

CT

44th

$18,500

$9,000

Allard, Wayne

R

CO

12th

$0

$7,500

Obama, Barack

D

IL

19th

$29,500

$7,000

Brown, Sherrod

D

OH

21st

$65,250

$6,000

Harkin, Thomas

D

IA

33rd

$23,850

$5,550

Mikulski, Barbara

D

MD

29
th

$26,000

$4,500

Reed, John

D

RI

49th

$11,000

$4,000

Kennedy, Edward

D

MA

39th

$4,500

$0

Sanders, Bernard

I

VT

48th

$46,800

$0

Total

$301,900

$669,739

Methodology

Campaign contributions data provided by the Center for Responsive Politics’
OpenSecrets Open Data. Date range of contributions is: Jan. 1, 2003 –
Dec. 31, 2008. According to MAPLight.org, manufacturing unions and mining
unions supported the S-MINER Act and the following interest groups opposed: coal
mining, metal mining and processing; mining; mon-metallic mining; and stone,
clay, glass and concrete products. Contributions to the presidential campaigns
of members of Congress are not included.

The ranking of state mining production is from Table 2 of the National Mining
Association’s report on The
Economic Contributions of U.S. Mining in 2007.

Related Links:

Don Blankenship called safety regulators ‘as silly as global warming’

Before the Massey mine disaster, there was Crandall Canyon

Grist: hating on Don Blankenship before hating on Don Blankenship was cool

Twitter and Facebook will hold their developer conferences this Wednesday (April 13) and next Wednesday (April 21) in San Francisco. It’s a juxtaposition that begs for comparison, so here you have it. We’ll also have coverage from both events throughout the next week.

Timing:

Twitter’s first Chirp comes at a time of tension with its developer community. The company is clearly under pressure from its investors’ and its own lofty expectations to become more of a money-generating product and less of an open platform. In the last week Twitter has made clear its intent to compete with Twitter-based startups by buying a select few and building competing branded products. Developers are still getting themselves organized, but they’re meeting today at a Pre-Chirp event and there’s also some momentum to move off Twitter to an open federated standard.

Facebook’s third f8, by contrast, comes at a more stable time. The company roadmapped many of its planned changes in advance, and others have leaked out. But you never know, Facebook isn’t immune to community and developer revolts; the site could always make another privacy preferences change or prune back developer access further.

News:

Twitter is of course launching its Sponsored Tweets product, which it started talking about openly last night. It will also presumably be clarifying and responding to criticism of its relationship with developers.

Among the features Facebook is expected to launch are: location functionality, a firehose feed, “a ‘Like’ Button For the Whole Darn Internet,” and the further opening up of its platform.

Attendance:

Both events are sold out, but will be available through live video streams. Twitter is using Justin.tv and the stream will be available here. Facebook is using Livestream and the stream will be linked to and/or embedded here.

Agenda:

Chirp is notably Twitter-heavy, with a full day of content coming mainly from four of its top execs (CEO Ev Williams and COO Dick Costolo are each speaking twice). It will have just two panels including outsiders, with VCs and people in government and crisis management represented.

Facebook has one name on its agenda so far: Mark Zuckerberg — though its scheduled afternoon tracks on new tools, best practices, industry strategies and its open source projects will presumably include a range of other speakers.

Twitter is hosting a 24-hour Hack Day that starts after the main Chirp agenda and goes into the next day. It will include a variety of office hours by Twitter employees and talks on more specific topics like Cassandra, the mobile web, and Twitter and the media. Apps developed at the event will be showcased at the end. Tickets are still available and they’re cheaper than the full pass.

Facebook, by contrast, is hosting an “intimate” day-after hackathon that you have to apply to.

Logistics:

The Chirp pass base price was $469 with Hack Day-only passes at $140. f8 tickets were $425 or cheaper with an early discount. Chirp is at the majestic Palace of Fine Arts (which is really a theater setting) with the Hack Day at Fort Mason. Facebook is at the The Concourse at San Francisco Design Center on the south side of the city.

(Then, if you want to see how a massive public web company does a developer conference, stick around till next month’s Google I/O, which is at the big-daddy conference location Moscone.)

Related content from GigaOM Pro:

Social Advertising Models Go Back to the Future

Please see the disclosure related to Facebook in my bio.

The faceoff photo comes from Flickr user eflon.

A San Marino man has been arrested for cultivating more than 700 marijuana plants in a sophisticated grow house near the El Monte Airport, police said Tuesday.

Neighbors had reported their suspicions about a townhouse on the 10900 block of Basye Street, with people coming and going at all hours of the night and blacked-out windows.

Detectives staked out the home and pulled over Alexander Moy, 33, of San Marino as he drove away Monday afternoon, said El Monte Police Det. Ralph Batres.

Police obtained a search warrant for the home, where they found at least 700 marijuana plants in different stages of cultivation, along with commercial lighting and temperature control devices.

The operators of the grow house also had cut into the electrical meter to steal power from the utility Southern California Edison, Batres said.

Moy was a renter at the home, which the owner apparently did not know was being used for pot cultivation.

He is being held on $50,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday.

The arrest in El Monte came a day after two men were arrested for cultivating pot in Malibu Creek State Park, where park rangers seized 900 plants and 3,000 seeds.

— Tony Barboza

Nintendo of America has announced a new springtime DSi bundle for North America. More details past the jump.

Posted by John Chase at 2:15 p.m.

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias announced today that he raised $1.2 million from January through March — about $1 million less than his Republican opponent, U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk.

While Giannoulias trails Kirk in the political donations game, he still had what his campaign said was his best three month period of fundraising ever.

The campaign cash announcements for the single-term state treasurer and North Shore congressman are the first since both men won their respective February primaries. Giannoulias and Kirk are vying to replace U.S. Sen. Roland Burris, who was appointed by ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich to the seat Barack Obama left after he was elected president. Burris did not run for election.

Giannoulias’ campaign said it has $1.2 million on hand, compared to $3 million for Kirk, at the start of April.

Giannoulias’ camp said their candidate is behind Kirk because Giannoulias has tied his own hands for fundraising by refusing to accept contributions from corporate political action committees or federal lobbyists. Giannoulias said Monday that he had raised less than Kirk and would say how much less today.



Kirk’s campaign released a statement saying Kirk’s fundraising advantage shows he has more support than Giannoulias. Kirk’s campaign also said that Giannoulias does accept contributions from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and Democratic National Committee, both of which receive corporate PAC dollars.



Neither campaign has released its financial reports detailing where their money is coming from. Those forms must be filed with the Federal Election Commission by Thursday.

Hoy se presenta de manera oficial el nuevo Alfa Romeo Giulietta, un nuevo vehículo salido de la fábrica de diseños preciosos que es Alfa Romeo. Es el año del centenario de Alfa Romeo y a partir de mayo se comercializará en los principales mercados para meterse de nuevo en el complicado segmento de los compactos.

La arquitectura es nueva, centrada en el agarre en carretera sin perder confort: el Scirocco es un rival duro a batir y los tres modelos de conducción, que permiten modificar los parámetros del motor, intentarán satisfacer a los exigentes clientes de este segmento.

Las dimensiones del vehículo son de 4,35 metros de largo, 1,46 de alto y 1,80 de ancho, con una batalla de 2,63 y un maletero de 350 litros. Los faros delanteros incluyen las luces LED tan de moda y el escudo frontal está interpretado de una manera única. El portón trasero es bien agresivo y bien pegado al suelo, dándole un carácter deportivo importante.

El salpicadero es el del 8C Competizione y el interior la marca se precia de llamarlo “Made in Italy“, cómodos a la par de elegantes. La seguridad quiere ser una parte importante y pretenden obtener las 5 estrellas de la EuroNCAP: los sistemas de control de dirección, diferencial electrónico, VDC y demás hacen que sea el coche el que gestione la seguridad activa del vehículo.

Respecto a las motorizaciones habrá dos motores gasolina, un 1.4 de 120cv y un 1.4 multiair de 170cv, y dos diésel, un 1.6 JTDM de 105 cv y un 2.0 JTDM de 170cv, ambos Multijet de segunda generación. Como última opción se prepara el 1750 TBi de 235 cv y su equipamiento exclusivo Quadrifoglio Verde. El consumo de los coches es reducido, teniendo el 1.4 de 170cv sólo 4,6 litros y 134 gramos de CO2 y sólo 3,7 litros el 1.6 de 105 cv. Por su parte el 2.0 diésel emite sólo 124 gramos a los 100 con 4,1 litros.

Habrá tres acabados diferentes: el Progression, acceso a la gama que incluye 6 Airbags, Start& Stop, VDC y Q2 electrónico, volante y pomo de piel y climatizador manual. Si queremos el Distinctive tendremos además una línea cromada en le exterior, llantas de 16″, tejido de Competizione, control de crucero y algo más. El Quadrifoglio Verde, exclusivo para el 1750 TBi incluye suspensión deportiva rebajada, llantas de 17″, faros Bi-Xenon direccionales, volante deportivo y más extras exclusivos del vehículos.

El precio de este nuevo modelo, siempre un dato relevante en los segmentos más vendidos, oscila entre los 20.725 € incluyendo IVA y matriculación del 1.4 120cv y los 29.925 € de la versión de 235 cv. Si queremos la versión de 170 cv la podremos obtener por 24.925 €. Las dos versiones diésel empiezan en 20.870 € y acaban en 28.095 €según el acabado que elijamos, el Distinctive o el Progression.

En definitiva una entrada triunfal en diseño, motor y seguridad al segmento de los compactos, uno de los más importantes de nuestro continente.

Fuente | Alfa Romeo

One of the often-overlooked factors in buying an exotic car is the cost of maintenance: even if you can afford the price of admission, can you afford to write checks when service is due? Take the Ferrari 308, for example. You can find plenty of examples in the $30,000 to $35,000 range, but a 15,000 mile service will set you back around $5k. Need an engine rebuilt because you didn’t do the required maintenance? Best plan on spending $10k and up at your Ferrari shop.

Ferrari’s may be expensive to maintain, but they look like sensible economy cars when compared to the Bugatti Veyron. Britain’s Autocar did a piece on Veyron ownership costs a few months back and the numbers were staggering. Let’s start with a “routine” service, which will set you back roughly $20,000.00. There’s no word on service interval, but let’s assume that your Bugatti dealer wants to see you back annually. I’m not guessing they publish a 10% off coupon for service, either.

You’ll go through tires on a somewhat regular basis, especially if your Veyron sees track time. A new set of rubber (which you can’t buy at Pep Boys) will drain your bank account another $36,000.00, and I’d plan on at least one set per year. Still interested? At every fourth tire change, the wheels must be inspected and stress tested for cracks. Let’s hope your dealer doesn’t find any, because each wheel has a price tag of roughly $11,000.00.

Used Veyrons have hit eBay at the $1,000,000.00 price point, a depreciation of roughly 40% from new. Even if they eventually depreciate to the point of attainability, not many of us will ever be able to afford the costs of Veyron ownership.

Filed under: Sedan, China, Shanghai Motor Show, Geely, Beijing Motor Show, Design/Style, Luxury

Never underestimate the power of a nose job. After getting in hot water with Rolls-Royce for the design of its GE limousine, Geely Automobile has reworked the majority of the car into what you see above. The Chinese automaker originally unveiled the GE at the 2009 Shanghai Motor Show, and the car looked like it had raided the Spirit of Ecstasy’s wardrobe before hitting the stage. The engineers at Rolls-Royce were not amused, and threatened legal action unless the car underwent serious alterations.

Presumably in response to the Rolls dust-up, Geely has fitted the GE Limousine with an all-new nose, complete with a massive baleen grille and grinning headlights. The interior has also gone under the knife, and as a result, you’ll no longer find a single throne in the rear. The company has opted for a much more traditional two-bucket design out back.

Expect to see the reworked GE at this year’s Beijing Auto Show, along with a total of 58 other vehicles(!) from the company’s three brands.

[Source: Autocar]

Geely set to reveal modified Rolls-Royce aping limousine in Beijing originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 13 Apr 2010 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A new report issued by the Dept. of Agriculture’s Office of the Inspector General says that tainted meat is making its way to your dinner plate because of a combination of inter-departmental squabbling and a lack of general oversight by the regulatory agencies involved.

It’s the Food & Drug Adminstration’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) that’s responsible to testing meat for bacteriological contamination and for high levels of residue from metals, antibiotics and pesticides. However, FSIS relies on both the FDA and EPA to set tolerable limits for those residues, and their failure to do so has resulted in meat being sold to consumers that probably should not have been.

Meat Residue Audit

Reads the report:

Together, FSIS, FDA, and EPA have not established thresholds for many dangerous substances (e.g., copper or dioxin), which have resulted in meat with these substances being distributed in commerce.

One very embarrassing situation involves a shipment of U.S. meat to Mexico that was turned away by Mexican authorities after determining it contained higher-than-allowable levels of copper. Since the U.S. sets no limit on copper, there was no way to prevent that beef from being re-sold stateside.

There’s also some finger-pointing going on between the agencies involved:

Although EPA routinely asks FSIS to test for pesticides the three agencies have together determined to be high health risks, FSIS has, for many years, continued to test for only one type of pesticide, citing its limited resources and the fact that EPA has not established tolerances for many varieties of pesticide.

The Inspector General’s report also laments FSIS’ ability to get the recall ball rolling in cases where it does find high levels of contaminants. The report claims that between July 12, 2007 and March 11, 2008, FSIS found that four carcasses were adulterated with violative levels of veterinary drugs and that the plants involved had released the meat into the food supply.

“Although the drugs involved could result in stomach, nerve, or skin problems for consumers, FSIS requested no recall,” reads the report. “Officials explained that when meat enters commerce, the agency must prove that consuming a single serving of the contaminated meat is likely to cause harm” before it can ask the plant to issue a voluntary recall. And if the plant won’t do so voluntarily, FSIS must then find a U.S. Attorney to file a motion in district court.

A somber memorial on Tuesday morning snaked its way through downtown Los Angeles, as thousands honored LAPD Officer Robert J. Cottle, killed March 24 in Afghanistan while on Marine Reserve duty.

[For the record: An earlier version of this post said the memorial was on Wednesday.]

During a private service at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angeles, Cottle was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star.

Cottle’s casket, covered in an American flag, was carried in a wagon by horseback from Los Angeles Police Department headquarters to the cathedral, with a group of law enforcement officers walking alongside and to the back, including Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck.

Onlookers lined some street corners, watching as the procession passed by.

Cottle, 45, was traveling with three other Marines in the Marja region of the country, which has been the focus of an intense U.S.-led offensive against Taliban forces in recent weeks.

Their armored vehicle struck an improvised explosive device, killing Cottle and another Marine and seriously wounding the two others, said LAPD Capt. John Incontro, who oversees SWAT operations.

The procession significant jammed traffic in downtown Los Angeles, as several major streets, including Main, Spring and Temple, were closed.

Many bus lines were rerouted. The closure caused major backups into downtown L.A. Tuesday morning, with some commuters reporting delays of up to 50 minutes getting into the civic center area.

Some of the traffic closures will continue through 2 p.m.

Here are details about the memorial:

TRAFFIC

The funeral procession will start at the new LAPD headquarters and end at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. Portions of 1st Street, Broadway, Spring Street, Temple Street, Hill Street, and Grand Avenue will be closed as early as 6 a.m., according to the LAPD.

TRANSPORTATION

Metro bus service in downtown Los Angeles will be affected. A funeral procession will begin at 8:45 a.m. at the Police Administration Building, located at 100 W. 1st St., and will proceed to the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels at 555 W. Temple St. Numerous Metro bus lines in the Civic Center area will be detoured from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., at which time bus service will return to its regular schedules. Metro bus lines affected by the detours will include: 2, 4, 10, 14, 30, 31, 37, 40, 42, 42A, 45, 48, 55, 60, 68, 70, 71, 76, 78, 79, 81, 83, 84, 90, 91, 92, 94, 96, 302, 333, 355, 439, 445, 485, 487, 489, 714, 730, 740, 745, 770, 794 and Silver Line, according to the L.A. Department of Transportation.

— Shelby Grad

California’s War Dead database: Read more than 100 memories shared by Cottle’s friends and family on his memorial page. Share your own memories and learn more about his life and the lives of more than 580 other men and women from California who have died while supporting the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Photos: Emily Cottle, wife of LAPD Officer Robert J. Cottle, carries their 9-month-old daughter, Kaila Jane, as she, family members and LAPD officers, pictured at top, walk behind his casket, pictured at right. Credits: Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times

According to a recent Columbia University Medical Center study, consuming a healthy diet may help lower a person’s risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease later in life.

In the study, lead author Yian Gu and his colleagues monitored the dietary habits of more than 2,000 adults over the age of 65 who were free of symptoms related to cognitive decline. After an average of four years of follow-up, the research team found that 253 individuals had developed Alzheimer’s disease.

Gu found that high intakes of nuts, fish, tomatoes, fruits, poultry as well as cruciferous and green leafy vegetables were associated with a significantly decreased risk of being diagnosed with the brain disorder. In contrast, consumption of high-fat dairy, red meat, organ meat and butter was linked to a considerably increased risk.

"Epidemiological evidence linking diet—one of the most important modifiable environmental factors—and risk of Alzheimer’s disease is rapidly increasing," said the authors.

"Our findings provide support for further exploration of food combination-based dietary behavior for the prevention of this important public health problem," they added.

Ever wonder what might be the perfect vehicle to get around from point A to point B without getting out of your seat?

Introducing Honda’s U3-X Personal Mobility Vehicle–a vehicle that looks like a cross between a Segway and an electric wheelchair. Shaped like a figure 8, the device is omni-directional—it can move forwards, backwards, or even sideways. All you have to do is plop yourself on the device’s cushioned leather seat and then as PC Mag’s Lance Ulanoff describes, some smart tech does the rest:

Since the U3-X balances itself (a trick learned from Honda’s ASIMO robot), you can simply hold the handle and roll it along. Its lithium-ion battery holds an hour charge and features a rather unique omni-directional wheel system (called an Omni Traction Drive System) that can roll forward on the full-size wheel or sideways on dozens of little wheels that sit inside the larger wheel. Balancing is provided by accelerometers and sensors that detect the rider’s center of gravity and make constant adjustments to keep the U3-X and rider in perfect balance. Riding is simply a matter of leaning, slightly, in the direction you want to go.

It’s also a portable fella, weighing 22 pounds, which can be packed up neatly and stowed away in a car or under the desk.

But don’t expect to see the Personal Mobility Vehicle zipping across offices anytime soon, as it is still in prototype stage and not available in the market.

Bloggers, meanwhile, have already jumped on the prototype, pointing out that Ducktales’ fans would recognize Honda’s offering to be similar to GizmoDuck’s armor.

Here’s Honda’s own, more extensive, and sort of odd, video teaser (which is just begging for some spoof captioning):

Archos apparently is planning on rolling out its Generation 8 tablets come this summer, with six models ranging from 3- to 10-inch screens. Along with prices ranging from $100-$350 Archos is bringing the power of the internet to your hands without draining your pockets. What stands out about this tablet is that it’ll have mulitouch which will be a first for Archos. Generation 8 will also be packing an ARM Cortex processor between 800MHz and 1GHz with a 3G open GL support. Said to be running Android, swapping out AppLibs for the Android Market. Hopefully there will be more talk about this tablet at Computex in June. [archoslounge via slashgear]

In an effort to dismantle the conservative political group known as the Tea Party, officials with a national liberal organization said they are planning on infiltrating and crashing Tea Party demonstrations today.

Jason Levin, founder of the CrashTheTeaParty.org, said on Monday that he has recruited liberal allies across the country who will help make the fiscally conservative organization’s members look racist, ignorant and homophobic during their tax day protests, according to the Associated Press (AP).

"Every time we have someone on camera saying that Barack Obama isn’t an American citizen, we want someone sitting next to him saying, ‘That’s right, he’s an alien from outer space!’" Levin said.

He added that organizers will attempt to dismantle the Tea Party by accentuating the least attractive qualities of some of its members.

"Do I think every member of the tea party is a homophobe, racist or a moron? No, absolutely not," Levin said. "Do I think most of them are? Absolutely."

While rallying against high taxes today—tax day—the Tea Party is also planning a possible fight over President Obama’s next Supreme Court nominee who will replace Justice John Paul Stevens after he retires later this year, CBN.com reports.