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Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso admitted that his desire to compete in Formula One and win more titles for the Scuderia has not changed at all during the past few years. Although he spent the last couple of seasons in the middle of the F1 field – or even in the rear of it, as it happened through the majority of 2009 – the Spaniard is still very much excited when thinking of driving an F1 car.

Talking to the Italian tifosi during a chat meeting on Monday, the 2-time world champion assured them that … (read more)

So we always hear about how hard it is to get an iPhone app approved by Apple, but here’s an interesting case; an 11-year-old boy managed to not just write an app, but get it approved, and now he’s donating some of the proceeds from the sale of that app to a children’s hospital.

This kid didn’t just teach himself how to program, but he also managed to get the app approved, something that many adults can’t seem to manage. The app is called iSketch and it’s a drawing and painting program with your choice of brushes, and colors, along with the ability to send your drawings via email. Now 11 year old Cameron has committed to donating a portion of the proceeds from the sale of his app to the Mattel Children’s Hospital UCLA in Westwood and Santa Monica. That’s something you have to respect no matter how old you are. Normally we find it hard to get excited about iPhone apps (well, except for Button) but this is something worth passing on, if only to help Cameron with his donations. If you want to know more, here’s a link to his blog as well.

Here’s the letter we got today from Cameron’s father:

Hi.

My son Cameron is 11 years old and, last year, he had a medical problem that prevented him from participating in the physical activities he otherwise enjoys. (He is nearly fully recovered.) During that time, Cameron became interested in computers, and he began to read anything he could get his hands on. He watched Stanford University professors on iTunes, scoured the web for articles on programming and taught himself several different programming languages. (Neither my wife nor I have any idea how to program.) Cameron began to focus on the iPhone and iPod touch devices as the “apps” offered for sale for use on those devices seemed really cool to him. He began to work on a few different apps. After completing some summer camps on programming and continuing to read and learn, Cameron finalized an app, which he calls iSketch, and submit it to Apple. The app, which is a painting/drawing program, was approved by Apple for sale on its App Store in December. (He has since updated it several times..)

Inspired by the care he received at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and Orthopaedic Hospital, Cameron has dedicated a substantial portion of the proceeds from his sales to purchase entertainment and electronic items for Mattel Children’s Hospital UCLA’s Child Life/Child Development programs in Westwood and Santa Monica so that pre-teens and teens will have additional age-appropriate options available to them during their Hospital stays. Cameron’s sales so far have been good, but he hopes to accelerate them so that he can donate even more to the Hospital.

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It may not have been their prettiest game, but the No. 2 Cardinal came away with its sixth straight win Saturday afternoon after beating the Washington Huskies 66-51 at Maples Pavilion. Stanford forward Nnemkadi Ogwumike led both teams with 20 points and 13 rebounds, but at times struggled with the rest of the Stanford squad to find good shots, control the ball and contest Washington’s offense.

Michael Liu/The Stanford Daily

“It wasn’t exactly what I wanted to see,” said Stanford Head Coach Tara VanDerveer to open the post-game conference.  “I just thought it was a disappointing effort compared to my expectations for how I want our team to play. […] We weren’t moving the ball the way we wanted to; we weren’t aggressive on defense [or] going after loose balls. It just felt less than inspired. […] Overall, I think it points to [the fact that] we have a lot of work to do.”

The game opened at an uncharacteristically fast pace, with both teams taking a lot of shots and nearly every rebound going to the defense. The Huskies (8-8, 3-3) hung tough until Kayla Pederson sunk her second three-pointer at 13:25 to make it 16-8. While both teams showed less energy as the period wore on, Stanford (15-1, 5-0 Pac-10) managed to buffer its lead to 35-21 before heading to the locker room.

As the second half began, so did Stanford’s more serious troubles. Reigning Pac-10 player of the Year Jayne Appel committed her third foul of the game barely 90 seconds in and was replaced by freshman Joslyn Tinkle. Appel would finish the game with only six shots. Her teammates, meanwhile, couldn’t find the basket until Ogwumike’s left-handed lay-up at 17:09, extending the at-times fragile lead to 37-28. The Huskies continued to press, keeping it as close as 50-42 with 7:55 remaining.

While many of Stanford’s struggles against the Huskies were more subjective – a coach has the right to expect more energy from one of last year’s Final Four teams – the game’s final stats also suggest that the Cardinal may not have been firing on all cylinders.

The Cardinal gave up 17 turnovers to the Huskies and managed to grab 11 offensive rebounds (a relatively low total, considering that Washington primarily used a zone defense and that the Cardinal had 20 the last time they hosted the Huskies). Going back to the beginning of last season, Stanford hasn’t scored less than 66 points in any home game save one: a 58-41 win last February over then-No. 3 California. The 15-point margin of victory is tied for being their smallest of the year at home, matching that of a 67-52 win over another former No. 3 team, Tennessee. The last time the Cardinal hosted the Huskies, they ran them out of the building with a school and conference-record 112-35 scoring margin.

It might seem odd to fault a team while they’re winning, but Cardinal, seeking to earn its first National Championship after nine consecutive Pac-10 titles, has recently struggled to meet the admittedly high expectations of players, coaches and fans.

“Today’s game was definitely uninspired,” admitted redshirt senior Rosalyn Gold-Onwude. “I think there’s been a string of games now where we’ve won because we’re maybe bigger or more talented, not because we’re playing a more inspired game to win and I think we need to pick it up. I wouldn’t pick out just this one game as an anomaly – I think it’s a string.”

While the high standards for a team of Stanford’s caliber merit some criticism after such a performance, the Cardinal still played plenty of good basketball to come away with a victory. Stanford outshot the Huskies 47.1% to 30.6%, outboarded them 44 to 31, made 18 assists compared to the Huskies’ eight and stole the ball nine times compared to Washington’s six.

“Obviously we had to do some good things to win the game,” VanDerveer said. “I thought we had some good plays. Nneka got inside and made some good plays.”

Washington, meanwhile, had a few unusual troubles of its own. The Huskies got off to an impressive start, sweeping a talented pair of Arizona teams two weeks ago to earn a record of 8-6, 3-1. Highlighting the Huskie season is senior Sami Whitcomb, who (entering Saturday’s game) led her team with 14.0 points-per-game and 6.0 rebounds-per-game.

Some of the Cardinal’s struggles may have simply been caused by absent players. Both scratched from the game were point guard JJ Hones (with a swollen knee) and guard Jeanette Pohlen. It was the first time in 53 games that Pohlen, who injured her ankle against Washington State on Thursday, was out of the starting lineup and her first time missing a game altogether in the Cardinal’s last 92. Sophomore Lindy La Rocque started in her place.

“With Jeanette, I’m not counting on her [to be ready next week],” said VanDerveer. “JJ probably could’ve played tonight if it was an NCAA game or something, but she’s just trying to rest her knee more until it’s better.”

Although it’s never good to have several experienced players injured or struggling, there are certain bright sides to the Cardinal’s current situation.

“Until [everyone’s healthy and playing well], I think this is an excellent opportunity,” Gold-Onwude said. “I think there’s a lot of players who had 20 points and 10 assists and all that in high school – young players with an opportunity to really show themselves. I think we just have to embrace the challenge.”

One such player, at least on Saturday, was Joslyn Tinkle. The Missoula, Montana freshman posted two three-pointers and a steal, scoring eight points in only 17 minutes.

The Cardinal will take to the court again this Thursday, when it travels north to face Oregon State at 7 p.m. After battling the Beavers, Stanford will take on their counterpart at Oregon University, the Ducks, on Saturday at 11 a.m.

After back in December 2009 Honda’s racing division previewed the HSV-010 GT sportscar, the Japanese manufacturer’s entry in the 2010 Super GT Series GT500 class, the car has been officially presented today, together with its full specifications.

HSV stands for Honda Sports Velocity and is aimed to take on established competitors like the Nissan GT-R. Especially because Honda plans to take the series with the new vehicle.

Below are the specifications of the HSV-010 GT:

Vehicle … (read more)

Just as expected, the 2010 Geneva Motor Show will be the best occasion to roll out the latest contraptions in the European automotive world and Mitsubishi tries to take full advantage of this. The company will launch at the Geneva show the all-new ASX compact crossover, a model that represents the European flavor of the Japanese RVR that will go on sale next month.

The ASX will provide enough room for 5 occupants and will go on sale in select European markets in late spring 2010.

The engin… (read more)

Nintendo may be a lot of things, but stupid it ain’t. Cashing in on yet another gift-giving holiday, the console sales leader is bringing Americans a pair of freshly paint-licked Wii Remotes that should appeal to the his-and-hers demographic that seems to grow in number at this time of year. As you can see above, grabbing one will set you back $54.99, which is about the same price as the regular MotionPlus bundle. So, even if you weren’t thinking about wooing your loved one with yet another Wii peripheral, at least the US now gets a 200 percent improvement in MotionPlus color choices. How is that not progress?

[Thanks, Brandon]

Pink and blue Wii Remotes ready for Valentine’s Day pre-order originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jan 2010 03:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Shelby American recently revealed a supercharged concept version of the Mustang-based 2011 Shelby GT350 to the attendees of the Barrett-Jackson Auction Opening Night Gala, to honor the 45th anniversary of the first GT350 and first Shelby big block Cobra. According to the Shelby team, the idea behind the GT350 was to build a car that is light, nimble and powerful.

After it was hand built in our new design studio, it began extensive testing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway by veteran test drivers Vi… (read more)

We know that most of you might argue that the racing fans in the United States of American don’t really appreciate the Formula One championship, or at least they don’t consider it just as exciting or tough as the NASCAR championship. However, the latest news coming from the continent across the Atlantic says otherwise.

In a recent on-line pole conducted by the famous American cable television network ESPN, the 7-time champion of Formula One was voted out the best racer of the decade.

In r… (read more)

At the very first sight this mirror look like a solar panel and further its name, ‘Solarclone’, supports the perception. However, it’s just a mirror. It’s made of recycled aluminum and provides natural light through reflections captured from its surroundings. The product belongs to Antrepo Design Industry and intended to encourage people to reduce carbon footprints.

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All around the world, security measures are being tightened to protect us from the most evil of evils, terrorism. Just a few days ago, the FBI’s mighty computing power and its brightest forensic detectives put together a mock photo of an older Bin Laden using photos they found on the Internet. Not one to be outdone, the British police has now arrested… (read more)

Facing its first opponent of the regular season, the No. 3 Stanford men’s volleyball team decisively handled No. 8 Hawaii in back-to-back matches this weekend on the Farm.

The Warriors came to Stanford following an upset over the nation’s top-ranked program, USC and looked to extend their winning streak. However, the Cardinal dominated both matches, never trailing by more than one point in any set.

“We knew that UH was a team that could get hot at any moment so we knew it was necessary to have a killer instinct and put them away as early as possible,” said junior outside hitter Spencer McLachlin. “They had just beaten the No. 1 team in the country, so we couldn’t let them get any momentum.”

On Friday, January 15, the Cardinal opened its season at Maples Pavilion to a spirited crowd of costumed students and local volleyball enthusiasts. Despite a match-opening service error, Stanford jumped out to an early 10-6 lead, with multiple kills from senior Evan Romero and sophomore Brad Lawson.

Consistent serving from McLachlin and front row play from sophomore Gus Ellis and senior Garrett Werner aided the Cardinal to a 24-13 lead. Four serves from Myles Muagututia, multiple offensive errors from Hawaii and a final kill by Werner brought the second set to a 30-15 close.

After switching sides, the Cardinal quickly asserted itself in the second set, with a kill from McLachlin and two aces and a kill from Romero.

Three straight service aces by Lawson brought the score to 23-13, but the Warriors rallied back within six points after several Stanford attack errors and Hawaii kills. The team regained its composure with a timeout and the second set ended with a Romero kill and a final score of 30-21.

Like the first two, the third set was dominated by the Card. Ellis went on an early six-serve run, bringing the score to 6-2. Romero, McLachlin and Lawson continued to put down balls from senior setter Kawika Shoji, leading Stanford to an eventual 30-18 third set and 3-0 victory over Hawaii.

Romero and Lawson finished the match with 13 kills apiece. Kawika Shoji played consistently both offensively and defensively with 37 assists and 8 digs. The Cardinal hit .494 versus Hawaii’s .113.

The following day, Stanford faced Hawaii yet again, showing no signs of slowing down from their impressive play the night before.

McLachlin opened the match with a block and three kills. Kawika Shoji maintained the momentum with two kills and an assist to Romero, helping Stanford to a 9-3 lead.

The teams went back and forth with multiple service and attack errors on each side with the Cardinal maintaining an 8 to 10 point lead. Five late Hawaii kills and a service ace brought the score to 28-23, but a kill by Lawson followed by a Lawson-Ellis block closed the first set at 30-23.

The second set proved to be the closest of the matches with the teams going back and forth on almost every point. Romero and Lawson traded kills with Hawaii’s Jonas Umlauft and Joshua Walker.

At 20-18, a kill and ace by McLachlin gave Stanford a four-point lead, which was carried to the set’s final score of 30-26.

Ellis started the third set strong, with the opening kill followed by three serves. McLachlin did the same, contributing three kills of his own to bring Stanford to a 4-1 lead. Hawaii came back to close the gap, but after the Warriors’ Joshua Walker served an ace to make the score 16-11, Hawaii never came within five points of the Card.

Two kills from Evan Romero as well as several attacking errors from Hawaii helped Stanford widen the lead to seven points at 18-11.

Two consecutive blocks from Ellis and two kills by Garrett Dobbs brought the team into the final stretches of the match. A kill from Garrett Werner ended the final set of the series at 30-19, with the Cardinal completing a two-match, six-set sweep over the Warriors.

Sophomore libero Erik Shoji finished the match with an impressive 14 digs and brother Kawika contributed 41 assists. The Cardinal put down 50 kills, led by Romero with 14, McLachlin with 13 and Lawson with 11. Hawaii’s Umlauft and Walker contributed 11 kills each. Stanford finished the weekend with 13 service aces versus Hawaii’s two.

“Our serving the first match was probably the best we have served as a team since I have been at Stanford,” McLachlin said. “Secondly, we blocked extremely well.”

Overall, Stanford was pleased with its showing this weekend and is hopeful for what looks to be a promising season.

“Our maturity helps us stay focused,” said Kawika Shoji. “We are an older, more experienced team that understands what it takes to win and reach our goals. These first two matches have given us great confidence going into this weekend’s matchup with BYU. We are off to a good start, but understand that we have a long way to go.”

The Cardinal will next face No. 5 BYU this Friday and Saturday in Provo, Utah.