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  • Interior Appoints New Climate Change Advisory Committee

    Members to Provide Guidance on Adaptation Science Initiatives

    WASHINGTON, D.C. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today announced the members of a newly created federal advisory committee who will provide guidance about the Interior Department’s climate change adaptation science initiatives.

  • Stephen Hawking Boycott Sees Astrophysicist Skipping Out On Israel Conference

    Stephen Hawking has joined a boycott that sees the famed astrophysicist skipping out on a conference to be hosed in Israel in June.

    Hawking was originally invited to speak at a conference hosted by Israel’s President Shimon Peres. His boycott of the event is part of a larger academic boycott encouraged by the British Committee for the Universities of Palestine, a group strongly opposed to the occupation of Palestine.

    The Committee provided the following statement on Hawking, which he later endorsed:

    “Hawking joined the academic boycott of Israel and pulled out of the Israeli Presidential Conference: Facing Tomorrow 2013, under the auspices of President Peres. This is his independent decision to respect the boycott, based upon his knowledge of Palestine, and on the unanimous advice of his own academic contacts there.”

    Hawking, and the boycott as a whole, was derided by the conference chairman:

    “The academic boycott against Israel is in our view outrageous and improper, certainly for someone for whom the spirit of liberty lies at the basis of his human and academic mission,” said Israel Maimon.

    Even without Hawking, the conference is expected to attract quite a few well-known people from around the world, including former British PM Tony Blair and former president Bill Clinton.

    [h/t: AFP]

  • Natalie Maines’ Divorce From Country Spawns Solo Album

    One of the Dixie Chicks has struck out on her own and released a solo album. Natalie Maines this week released Mother, a rock album that breaks from the Dixie Chicks’ country music past.

    Maines told CBS in an interview this week that the album has a “harder-edge rock feel” than what the Dixie Chicks were playing. Maines told CBS that it would be hard for her to return to country music after fans lashed out in 2003 when she spoke out against the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

    “It’s definitely difficult for me to go back to country music,” said Maines. “So, yes, I’m sure that 10 years ago did have an effect on where I’m at right now and the fact that I’m doing this solo album.”

    The Dixie Chicks have not released an album since 2006′s Taking the Long Way. Maines stated that she has not seen her former bandmates in around one year.

    Maines also appeared on ABC’s Good Morning America on Monday to promote the Album. She and Ben Harper performed her first single from the album, titled “Without You.”

    Maines is also promoting her album through her various social media channels. She is currently answering questions from fans via her Twitter account using the hashtag #chatwithnat.

  • Klout dips into Q&A and local commerce with launch of new questions feature

    Klout plans to announce a new feature on Wednesday that will prompt users who are supposedly influential about certain topics to answer related questions when they log into the site, building on the company’s idea that one’s knowledge about a particular topic can increase your credibility online.

    The new product puts Klout in competition with several different products, from Quora to Yelp. CEO Joe Fernandez explained in an interview that the company wants to help users actually grow their visibilty on the internet and provide useful information to others, rather than just measure their internet visibility or connect those users with brands. However, the questions product, called “Klout Experts,” seems like an odd choice for the company, which has become something of a punchline in consumer tech and social media circles but might have more options courting businesses and marketing professionals.

    The company used the questions of, “what’s the best veggie burrito in San Francisco” or “what’s the best digital SLR camera to buy” as examples of questions that users might answer, but it’s hard to imagine enough Klout users answering those questions more thoughtfully than the realm of other sites providing such information, or that people will go to Klout when they want burrito or camera advice. It’s true that no one has totally solved social recommendations, but there are companies with a good deal more payments data and location data giving it a shot, including public company heavyweights like Google and Yelp.

    Fernandez touted the company’s integration with Bing as a key audience driver for the product (popular Klout answers will eventually show up in Bing search results), but with about 16.7 percent of market share in February, it’s not like Bing is a default search engine for many people.

    However, when I asked Fernandez about the progress of Klout for business, he perked up (pun intended). Users have now redeemed more than 1 million Klout Perks since that product launched several years ago and said that they already have several hundred thousand businesses signed up for the program. Fernandez said the company is on track to do $10 million in revenue this year, and he sees his company becoming more like LinkedIn, where the majority of the revenue comes from products sold to businesses so it matters less how often consumers visit the site.

    Fernandez said right now, businesses are eager to work with some of the people using Klout’s platform. For instance, McDonald’s might give a Klout Perk to fitness and health experts so those people can try out a new health-conscious menu item, in hopes that if the food is good, those people will tweet how much they love it. So the new question and answer product could become a way for both businesses to poll users about certain topics, or identify people who are particularly vocal online.

    Here’s what users will see when the Klout Experts product comes to profiles:

    Klout questions

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  • Nokia updates Chat and Ringtone Maker for Lumia Windows Phones

    On Wednesday, Finnish smartphone manufacturer Nokia released two updates for its Chat and Ringtone Maker Windows Phone apps. The changelog lists minor improvements rather than significant enhancements, focusing on expanding the list of supported markets and media formats, respectively.

    Nokia Chat for Windows Phone, which comes with Yahoo Messenger integration, is now also available for those in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Finland, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Spain and Venezuela. The text messaging service still doesn’t allow users to log in using a Yahoo Messenger handle, so if you plan on using the app to chat you will have to add the necessary contacts manually.

    Nokia introduced Chat nearly two weeks ago with support for Lumia users from Australia, Canada, India, Nigeria, South Africa, New Zealand, United Kingdom and United States.

    Ringtone Maker, which is designed to give Lumia users the ability to create ringtones from existing tunes, now supports four new file formats — AAC, M4A, MWA and WMA — and sports “other fixes” meant to “improve stability and usability”.

    Nokia Chat and Ringtone Maker are available to download through Nokia’s Beta Labs. A Nokia account is required in order to grab the apps.

  • Samsung Galaxy S4: Jack of all trades, still master of just one

    Samsung Galaxy S4 Review
    The king is dead, long live the king. The Galaxy S4 helped Samsung keep its impossible promise and unlike most products that see the kind of hype this one did ahead of its debut, the S4 actually delivered. This new handset is an improvement over its predecessor in every way and we loved it when we reviewed the Galaxy S4 last month. But after spending some time with Samsung’s new flagship phone, I also see a worrying trend emerging in the Galaxy S4 and it’s one that could potentially get Samsung into trouble down the road.

    Continue reading…

  • Here comes Dinosaur Train: Roku gets PBS and PBS Kids channels

    PBS programming is coming to Roku streaming devices, courtesy of a new PBS channel s well as a dedicated PBS Kids channel. The PBS Kids channel will include full episodes of shows like Curious George, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, Dinosaur Train, Super Why! and The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That, while the grown-up choice will be featuring videos from shows like NOVA, American Experience, Masterpiece, Nature, Frontline and Antiques Roadshow.

    More to come.

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  • Hotel Tonight is revamping the hotel review for mobile devices

    Instead of typing out a free-form hotel experience review on your laptop once you get home from your trip, or struggling with your smartphone’s virtual keyboard for several long paragraphs, Hotel Tonight has a better idea: just use photos. A new feature, that the mobile hotel booking app is introducing on Wednesday, is called Snap Your Stay.

    iOS Snap Your Stay Hotel Tonight

    By relying on the smartphone’s built-in camera, the app for last-minute, day-of bookings is looking to enhance its carefully curated hotel choices with photo-based user reviews. Hotel Tonight started asking for users for simple thumbs up or down reviews nine months ago and began sharing those responses as “percentages of users who’d recommend this hotel” in September.

    But the Snap Your Stay feature will add more information that a simple user recommendation. The new feature is sort of a guided scavenger hunt: users get a template with places to fill in six photos, with a request for specific highlights of the room you’re staying in an a “wild card” photo for something you liked about the hotel. The idea is for it to be simple and fast, with just a few taps on your phone.

    Enhance Hotel Tonight“We wanted people to put in more info about what they liked about that hotel, but we didn’t think enterting a ton of text was the right paradigm for mobile,” said Hotel Tonight founder and CEO Sam Shank in a phone call this week. “We want it to be something you do during your stay, not after your stay.”

    Other travel and booking sites want user reviews, but the major ones, TripAdvisor’s, for example, require text input even in their mobile apps. And Yelp doesn’t even allow mobile reviews — you have to sit down at a computer to compose them.

    Hence, Hotel Tonight’s attempt to stand out with photo-oriented reviews. This method allows users filling out reviews to avoid typing descriptions on their phone — and users reading them don’t have to wade through pages of text on their phone when they’re trying to make a last-minute hotel decision. In addition to that, Shank says it’s a good way of only allowing reviews from people who’ve actually stayed at the hotel and booked through the app.

    Because smartphone cameras are so good, Shank is confident that images submitted will be pretty high quality. But please, no Instagram photos: “We want Hotel Tonight photos to look different, don’t want them to look vintage, or black and white, or like they’re from 1977. So we have a dimmer switch to brighten them up.” Which, Shank points out, is going to be good for indoor room photos.

    Hotel Tonight, just over two years old, is now in 12 countries, nearly 100 cities and has been downloaded to 5 million iOS and Android devices.

    In addition to the photo-based room reviews, the app also plans to introduce on Wednesday guaranteed room rates: if you find a lower rate on another site, tell Hotel Tonight and you’ll get the dollar difference back in Hotel Tonight user credits.

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  • The Power of Purple Pricing

    Any business trying to sell its products profitably must have some idea of what sales and hence revenue would be at different prices. Suppose we double our prices. Sales will fall, but will margins go up so much that it is worth it? Suppose we halve our prices. Margins will fall, but will sales go up so much that it is worth it?

    In making these judgments, a business might use historical data or simply guess by adding a mark-up over costs. But there is a better way to learn the structure of demand, one that uses real time information and discovers the revenue-maximizing price at the same time. It is a variant on the so-called Dutch auction that has been used for over a hundred years in the Netherlands to sell flowers.

    In a Dutch auction, the price starts off high and is lowered until someone buys. Dutch auctions are fast: only one person has to say they want the object for sale and the auction is over.

    We used a variant of the Dutch auction to set prices for basketball games at Northwestern University where we work at the Kellogg School of Management and the Department of Economics. We call it Purple Pricing. Our Dutch auction has one vital and important twist: the Purple Pledge guarantees that, wherever the final price ended up, if someone buys a ticket at a higher price, they get a refund for the difference between the price they paid and the final price. The Purple Pledge is the key feature that allows us to learn demand and set the optimal price at the same time.

    Let’s say you are a huge Wildcats fan and are willing to pay $100 to see them play the Ohio State Buckeyes. The current price for the game stands at $99, so if you think the price is going to stay there, you would buy straight away to get the best seats possible. But in a traditional Dutch auction, since the price might go down, you might wait to get a better deal. The Purple Pledge solves your dilemma because if the price does go down you get a refund anyway. So, in fact you should buy as soon as the price falls just below your maximum willingness to pay as the Purple Pledge fully insures you against price cuts. This means that Purple Pricing with the Purple Pledge allows us to determine what sales would be at different prices — say a price of $70 — by looking at sales that occurred at that price or above. We learn the “demand curve.”

    We can also set prices on the fly. Let’s say current sales are 6,000 at a price of $70. If we cut the price by a dollar we have to give $6,000 back to people who already bought tickets. But the last price cut from $71 to $70, only increased sales by 50. So, most likely we would only gain 50 times $69 by cutting the price, a gain of $3,450. If our objective is pure revenue maximization, then it is not worth cutting the price. If our objective is to increase attendance for the game, then we know how much revenue we are giving up to get extra attendance. Whichever way we decide to go, we can make the decision based on real-time data.

    This is the kind of thing we did for tickets for Wildcats Games against Ohio State and Penn State. We ended up charging $38 for some seats in the OSU game; NU Sports had planned to sell tickets for $35 before we got involved. We ended up charging $20 for tickets to the PSU game; NU Sports had planned on charging $28 for this game before we got involved. After the games, someone gave us data from the secondary market StubHub. If we had known the data in advance we would have set the same prices we ended up setting on the fly. In other words, we did not need the benefit of hindsight to set prices. Purple Pricing discovered the “right” prices anyway.

    Purple Pricing was a big hit. But we repeatedly get the same questions: Why use a descending price Dutch auction and not the usual ascending price auction? Why would anyone want to give refund and not just keep the money?

    The problem with an ascending price auction is that it is does not do a good job at capturing value. If you begin at $50 then someone whose maximum willingness to pay is $100 just buys straight away, and you lose revenue. A Dutch auction with decreasing prices has a similar problem: if you begin the auction at $99 but cut the prices, the person who values the ticket at $100 will just wait to buy. You still do not capture their value. The Purple Pledge resolves this issue: you get a refund if the price goes down and the earlier you buy the better the seat selection. And, since you have to pass on refunds, you might end up settling at price of $70 not $50. You would have given a bigger “refund” in the ascending price auction by starting the auction at $50.

    As a pricing mechanism, Purple Pricing allows a seller to learn buyers’ maximum willingness to pay so they get an excellent picture of demand. And, at the same time, the seller makes money despite giving refunds. Buyers, in the meantime, are comfortable buying early, getting the best seat they can, confident that they won’t pay more than anyone else.

  • Tough luck Windows 8, the international space station is going Linux

    Some critics (and, oh, there are many) claim Windows 8 is out of this world — or not meant for it. That Microsoft reached for the stars but fell to earth. How right they may be. The operating system won’t achieve escape velocity anytime soon, and an older version is about to burn up on reentry.

    The International Space Station, better known as the ISS, runs on Windows, but that is changing. Launched in 1998, the orbiting home, which circles the earth at an altitude of just over 400 kilometers (it varies), is home to a team of astronauts who depend on, not only supplies from home, but also a computer system that keeps everything running smoothly. That computer system is moving to Linux.

    This consists of a network of laptops, which provide the ISS crew with all of the vital capabilities needed for day-to-day operations; telling the astronauts where they are, managing inventory of the equipment used and even interfacing with the cameras that capture the photos and videos we all ogle at on the internet.

    Linux Foundation says that Keith Chuvala of United Space Alliance, who is tasked with maintaining all of this computer technology, is responsible for the change.

    “We migrated key functions from Windows to Linux because we needed an operating system that was stable and reliable – one that would give us in-house control. So if we needed to patch, adjust or adapt, we could”, Chuvala says. That has to sting Microsoft just a bit.

    Chuvala and his team are utilizing the training offered by the Linux Foundation to get up to speed developing applications in Linux and responded by developing two courses geared specifically towards the USA/NASA team’s needs. The organization claims “both training sessions were adapted to provide tailored instruction for the diverse group”.

    The next challenge set — Robonaut (R2) is headed for the ISS. Running on Linux, the robot can be manipulated by onboard astronauts with ground controllers commanding it into position and performing operations.

    Oh, and remember those Voyager space crafts? The computer NASA maintains to control them has a master clock that runs at 4 MHz but the CPU’s clock runs at only 250 KHz. At least the ISS does not have that to contend with.

    Photo Credit: NASA

  • Barkley: Gay Players Were “No Big Deal” In The NBA

    Charles Barkley knows a thing or two about the NBA. He was a player for more than 15 years so surely he would know something about gay players in the league, right?

    In a radio interview on the Dan Patrick show, the subject of Jason Collins, who recently came out as the first openly gay NBA player, and gay players in the NBA became a topic. Barkley said he, and pretty much every other player, had played with a gay teammate during their time in the league:

    Everybody did. Everybody played with a gay teammate, Dan. And it’ s no big deal. First of all, I think it’s an insult to gay people to think that they’re trying to pick up on their teammates. But everybody has played with a gay teammate… It’s obviously discussed, privately, because the problem is, Dan, unless somebody tells you they’re gay, you can’t say a thing about them being gay. Ya know, until somebody has the courage, and I think it takes great courage to come out, it’s kind of an unspoken word to be honest with you.

    He used Collins to back up his claim saying that the Wizards center had played with six teams, so by extension, players on those six teams had played with a gay teammate. He also said that nobody knows a teammate is gay until they come out because “it’s none of your business.”

    You can check out the full interview with Barkley below:

    [Image]

  • AT&T adds more LTE markets, on pace to reach 250 million Americans by end of year

    att_logo

    Just last week we let you guys know that AT&T was expanding LTE coverage in 9 regions and adding 17 new regions.  It looks like AT&T is at it again, as they activated towers in the last few days, adding a total of 16 new markets. With the new market additions, they’re on pace with their plan to reach 250 million Americans with LTE coverage by the end of the year.  They’re currently at 200 million.  

    Here are the regions that are getting AT&T’s LTE service this week:

    (more…)

  • Featured Android Game Review: Boulder Dash XL [Brain & Puzzle]

    Boulder_Dash_XL_Spash_Banner

    HeroCraft has done it again. Fans of the 80s classic Boulder Dash will want to take a look at this one because it not only has the original version, but a new updated version with better graphics and gameplay. Boulder Dash XL was co-developed with First Star Software and is the same exact game that’s available on both the Xbox 360 and PC. You can play either Rockford or Crystal as you dig through caves to collect diamonds within the time limit.

    Boulder Dash XL gives you 100 caves to explore that delivers all kinds of obstacles and enemies such as falling boulders, trap doors, magic walls, Amoebas, Wild Walkers, Fuzzy Flies, Fuzzy Walkers, Radical Radiators, and so much more. You get a telescopic arm to move large boulders as well as dynamite for bigger jobs. Control options are a plenty. You can choose touch/swiping or an on screen D-pad. You can place the D-pad on the right or left side or you can split them.

    The retro mode will give you the original 8-bit 1984 hit and the Arcade mode will give you the updated version with better graphics. If that’s not enough, there are three additional modes: Score Attack, Puzzle Mode, and Zen Mode. In Score Attack, it’s your job to get as many points as possible in specially designed caves within the time limit. The exit will open early and if you make your way back before time runs out, you will be rewarded, so play your strategy accordingly. Puzzle mode has no time limits. It’s just a matter of finding a way to get all the diamonds for each level.

    You are graded with the 3 star system like many other games. Get one star for completing the cave, two stars for collecting 50% or more of the diamonds, and three stars for getting at least 90%. Grabbing one star will unlock the next cave, but will you be satisfied?

    Boulder Dash XL is the perfect combination of retro and 21st century fun. It costs $2.99 and there are no in-app purchases to bother with unless you want to unlock caves before solving the previous ones, but who wants to do that? Hit one of the download links to get started and as always, let me know what you think.

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  • IaaS marketplaces: the impact of utility computing

    Cloud-based services revolutionized IT, creating a fundamental shift in the way businesses consume compute, storage and networking. The emergence of open IaaS marketplaces will provide IT with the same degree of agility and choice in the way they acquire those resources, and it could be every bit as revolutionary as the initial move to the cloud.

    Through the application of financial and economic principles and methodologies to IT infrastructure, these marketplaces pave the way for new technical and financial products and offer a path toward more efficient, cost-effective service delivery. These marketplaces could completely redefine the IT purchasing structure and necessitate entirely new delivery structures.

    Marketplaces will also bring new risks and responsibilities. Market manipulation, a loss of quality control, staffing and integration, and the specter of government oversight are among the serious concerns for compute consumers struggling to understand the shifting landscape.

    Our panel of experts will answer these questions and more:

    • What lessons can we learn from previous marketplace failures and successes?
    • What is the role of IaaS brokers and what new products will they develop?
    • What is the impact of potential government regulation and oversight?
    • How will IaaS marketplaces affect staffing, operations and cost?

    Speakers include:

    Register here to join GigaOM Research and our sponsor 6fusion for “IaaS marketplaces: the impact of utility computing,” a free analyst roundtable webinar on Thursday, May 23, 2013, at 10:00 a.m. PT.

        

  • Amanda Berry Has Arrived At Her Home, May Address Media

    Amanda Berry has arrived home, according to reports.

    ABC has video of the homecoming, showing the front of her house covered in balloons, with a big “Welcome Home, Amanda” sign.

    Berry was expected to address the media at 12PM, but as of the time of this writing, it appears that she will not immediately do so.


    The emotional arrival is resonating throughout the Twitterverse.

  • Release dates for Galaxy Mega, Galaxy S 4 Mini, Galaxy S 4 Zoom, and Galaxy S 4 Activ Leaked

    Galaxy-S4-Mini-Review

    Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S 4 is expected to be released in a range of different models internationally. We brought news that the Galaxy Mega was officially announced by Samsung last month, while the Mini, Zoom, and Activ are expected to be announced by Samsung by the end of this month. Tentative release dates have been leaked for these phones.

    Black and white versions of the Galaxy S 4 Mini, which as its name suggests is a smaller version of the Galaxy S 4, is expected to be released in Week 29 of this year, which falls between July 15 and July 21.

    The Galaxy Mega features a larger display for the budget-minded consumer, and will come in variants of 6.3- inches and 5.8- inches. It’s expected to be released in Europe and Russia between now and June 23. The black 6.3 inch version should come this week, followed by the white 5.8 inch version next week. The white 6.3 inch Mega will come the week of May 20, and the black 5.8 inch version will arrive the week of June 17.

    The black version of the camera-focused Galaxy S 4 Zoom which will feature a 16-megapixel camera is expected to be released the week of June 3-9, while the white version will hit stores June 17-23.

    The rugged dustproof and waterproof Galaxy S 4 Activ (we called it the Active previously), which will come in an exciting metallic orange color, will roll in the week of July 15-21.

    Source: SamMobile

    Come comment on this article: Release dates for Galaxy Mega, Galaxy S 4 Mini, Galaxy S 4 Zoom, and Galaxy S 4 Activ Leaked

  • Megyn Kelly: Fox News Renews Anchor’s Contract

    Megyn Kelly has been a Fox News fixture since she began hosting America Live in 2010. Since that time, she has become one of the most recognizable faces of the channel along with Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity. Now, Fox is making sure its star female anchor will stay on with the cable TV news network.

    The New York Times is reporting that Kelly has renewed her contract with Fox News. The publication cites unnamed sources as stating Kelly’s contract renewal was not a given. The anchor reportedly had intrest from other news channels such as CNN and ABC. A New York Magazine expose on NBC’s Today show published in March mentioned that morning show executives at one point were considering Kelly as a replacement for Ann Curry.

    Fox News anchor Greta Van Susteren has also reportedly renewed her contract with the TV channel. The Times is quoting Van Susteren’s husband, John Coale, as stating Van Susteren could be bumped from her 10 pm time slot. The speculation is that Kelly, who currently hosts the afternoon Fox show America Live, could be moving into the channel’s primetime lineup.

    One factor that could throw a wrench into these plans is the fact that Kelly is currently pregnant. She announced the pregnancy back in February, live on Fox News.

  • Three Bodies Found On Farm Spark Homicide Investigation

    Three bodies found on a farm have sparked a massive homicide investigation in Kansas. Now police are trying to match the bodies to a missing persons report from last week.

    The bodies – two adult men and one woman – were found on a farm west of Ottawa. Two people – Kortni McGill and Corey Schlotzhauer – originally checked out the property after they had lost contact with a friend. They found a foul odor emanating from the property at the time, and called the police to investigate. An initial sweep of the area found nothing, but McGill found one of the bodies under a tarp the next day.

    Besides the three bodies, investigators also found a burn barrel with baby items and clothing. Some think that the discovery may indicate that the woman found was a Kansas City mother that went missing with her 18-month-old baby last week. Tests are still ongoing, but it could explain the existence of the baby items if the tests come back positive.

    The investigation has now pulled in over 40 detectives from across the state as they attempt to find answers to a very bizarre murder case.

    [h/t: AP]

  • ’105-Year-Old Bacon Woman’ The Latest Oscar Mayer ‘Old People And Meat’ Campaign

    A 105-year-old woman who loves bacon has gone viral. Pearl Cantrell, apparently eats bacon for every meal, and even tries to convince her family and friends to eat more.

    Naturally, Oscar Mayer saw an opportunity to use her as something of a mascot for its bacon products, and gave her a ride in the Oscar Mayer Weinermobile. From WIVB.com:

    “We’ve seen a lot of stories on the road, but nothing quite like this one. So we’re excited to be here,” said Abraham Luna, a “hotdogger” for Oscar Mayer. “We know she’s an inspiration. Pearl is an inspiration for the community and her friends and family.”

    Hitting the streets of her hometown of Richland Springs, Pearl is riding “shot-bun” in the Wienermobile, waiving to several generations of people that she’s seen grow up throughout the years.

    I’m not sure what weiners have to do with bacon, but anything for the brand, I guess. Oscar Mayer has of course been hitting social media promoting the whole thing:

    Even before that, Oscar Mayer was running old people-related meat marketing campaigns. In fact, just less than a week ago, the company tweeted out this “#TransparentGrandpa” video:

    Grandpas and deli fresh ham.

    I guess we know which demographic Oscar Mayer is focusing on these days.

  • Hold on tight: Nokia Lumia 928 camera shines in roller coaster video demo

    Although Nokia hasn’t officially announced the Lumia 928 yet, it’s already starting to take shots at the smartphone’s competition. On the U.S. landing page for the phone — the URL has ends with “lumia928″ — Nokia sticks it to both the Samsung Galaxy S 4 and Apple’s iPhone 5, with a video to show off the handset’s camera.

    If you get motion sickness easily, I’d be cautious watching the video: It’s taken with all three phones at night with some parts on a moving roller coaster called The Hurricane.

    After watching the video, I can’t see anyone disputing the Lumia 928 as a clear winner. It handles the low-light extremely well and uses optical image stabilization to smooth out the bumps and turns while riding the coaster. And it’s smart of Nokia to focus — no pun intended — on the features and expertise it brings to smartphones. Hopefully, this footage is from an actual Lumia 928: I’d hate to see a repeat of Nokia’s camera demo faux pas from last year.

    But there’s a reason why iPhone models take up the first three spots in the top five most-used cameras on Flickr: They take all-around great shots and they’re super simple to use. Will the Lumia 928 win out over its peers in low-light situations? Most assuredly, although the HTC One is quite good in the same scenario. What else will the Lumia 928 offer to sway buyers, however? That’s the missing piece of this picture.

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