The End of an Era

Pope Benedict XVI bids farewell to the papacy and announces "I am no longer the pope but I am still in the church. I'm just a pilgrim who is starting the last part of his pilgrimage on this earth."


http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/28/world/europe/vatican-pope-resignation/index.html?hpt=wo_c1

Reality TV bullying

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/28/health/reality-tv-bullies/index.html?hpt=hp_c1

This article is about how captivated we are by fights and arguments that occur on reality TV shows. Research shows how watching shows like this are linked to bullying and aggressive behavior. I think this is a great example of the "a fish does not know it's in water" concept. We do not realize how immersed we are in television shows, yet after watching something like a fight on a reality show our behavior later reflects what we viewed, even if we are not aware of it.

Pandora Caps Media Usage

This article describes an upcoming policy Pandora will be implementing. Pandora will start capping media usage at 40 hours per month. They are trying to overcome the rate at which royalties are rising. Many users don't use more than 20 hours, however those that do use the maximum amount would have the opportunity to pay 99 cents for unlimited media usage for the rest of the month. Do you think this is a good solution for Pandora?

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/02/28/net-us-pandora-fees-idUSBRE91R05T20130228

Transgender Girl Fighting Back

A transgender first grader in Colorado is fighting for the right to use the bathroom.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/27/us/colorado-transgender-girl-school/index.html?hpt=us_c1

Bob and Harvey Weinstein causing issues

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/weinstein-settles-50-million-escape-424693

Seems like there is some controversy surrounding Weinstein Co.'s new animated film Escape From Planet Earth.

4 ways 4G will change your life

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/21/tech/mobile/mobile-technology-4g-pros-cons/index.html

Amazing!

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10101391689265385

BULLYING

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/26/health/bullying-series-identifying-children/index.html?hpt=he_c1

4 ways 4G will change your life

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/21/tech/mobile/mobile-technology-4g-pros-cons/index.html

New Internet explorer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFE4rkSaKOY

venezuelan currency

http://www.businessinsider.com/venezuela-bolivar-currency-devaluation-2013-2

Smartphones Taking Over

The article talks about how smartphones are basically just as good as computers and laptops that it is unnecessary to even buy the two anymore.
Do you think smartphones will take out laptops and computers for good?

http://news.yahoo.com/why-smartphone-next-pc-140053409--finance.html

4G Cell Phones In Cars

AT&T and General Motors are teaming up to create a system where 4G phones will be able to be connected to a wifi through out the car, giving drivers a lot more options.
Do you think this is a good idea? or is this invention going to be causing even more accident a year than the extreme number already?


http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/technology/atandt-gm-team-up-to-make-4g-cars/2013/02/25/04b9fb9a-7f5c-11e2-b99e-6baf4ebe42df_story.html

Not guilty after taping children's head with duck tape

An Ohio mom pleaded not guilty to two charges of child endangerment after wrapping duct-tape around two children's faces and heads. Police said Tiffany Ennis, 31, of Sandusky, Ohio, sent a text message with a picture of her son, 8, with his forehead, eyes, and mouth duct-taped to the boy's father on Feb. 18. Fearing for his child's safety, Rudy Yado contacted Sandusky police and asked officers to check on the boy at Ennis' home, according to the police report. Ennis told police she was playing around with duct tape with her friend and their kids and that she had wrapped tape over her son's eyes and mouth because they both thought it was funny, the report said. Down Syndrome Girl Duct Taped at School Watch Video Ohio Teacher Faces Firing for Duct-Tape Stunt Watch Video Airline Passenger Duct-Taped to Seat: Caught on Tape Watch Video Only the boy's nose was left uncovered. She also taped up the head of an 11-year-old girl, according to the police report. The report did not identify the parents of the girl. According to the report, Ennis told police the children were not hurt and no marks were found on them. Ennis said it was not meant to be hurtful and they were joking around, the report said. Det. Sgt. Dana Newell of the Sandusky police department told ABCNews.com that he went to Ennis' home on Feb. 19 with Erie County Child Services to check on the children. Upon investigating the complaint, Newell said Ennis was subsequently arrested for duct-taping the children's heads and eyes, and transported to the Sandusky police department. She signed herself out, he said. Newell said he could not confirm as to whether Ennis' son was still with his mother. She is due back in Sandusky Municipal Court for trial on May 30. Neither Ennis nor Yado could be reached by ABC News for comment.

It RUNS in the family

http://www.newsday.com/news/world/pistorius-brother-also-faces-charges-in-a-woman-s-death-1.4703983

Lost Continent found

SCIENTISTS believe they've discovered the remains of a lost continent on the floor of the Indian Ocean off Africa. The research team from Norway, South Africa, Germany and the UK identified the ancient “microcontinent” after analysing beach sands from the island of Mauritius. They believe Mauritius was split from the larger island of Madagascar, 900 kilometres to the west, by volcanic eruptions between 61 and 84 million years ago. The beach sands were deposited by subsequent eruptions within the last nine million years. But the analysis found a smattering of zircon grains up to 2 billion years old, suggesting the recent volcanoes had spewed out fragments of an ancient continental crust. They believe the microcontinent, which they have christened “Mauritia”, may also lie beneath Réunion Island and the Seychelles.

Shopping with fingerprints

These days, fingerprint scanners are used, but not very widely outside of Tom Cruise movies. But a small South Dakota college is doing a trial run of a scanner that has you swipe a finger to make a transaction. The School of Mines and Technology in Rapid City has put the tech into two shops on campus. Purchasers type their birthday into a pad, swipe their finger in a machine, and get a receipt delivered by email. The scanner checks the buyer's unique print to identify him or her, and it also checks for living hemoglobin in the finger, preventing any unsavory characters from trying to use a severed digit. The 2,400-student campus is filled with only mechanical engineering or hard science majors, which is why they were picked for the pilot program run by Hanscan Indentity Management and one of its subsidiaries, Nexus USA. About 50 students volunteered to try it out. There are privacy issues involved with these scanners--you have to offer up your fingerprint before it can be identified as you--but it's a give and take. You give your fingerprint, and a thief, presumably, can't impersonate you as easily. Although once these get more widely used, it'll become more worthwhile for someone to figure out how to beat it.

Hand Sanitizer can catch you on fire!?

A bizarre fire ignited in a Portland hospital earlier this month, causing second- and third-degree burns in 11-year-old cancer survivor Ireland Lane. A state fire marshal report released Wednesday suggests that the blaze was started, in part, by something many of us use every day: hand sanitizer. Is it time to toss the Purell? In a word, no. With the Lane tragedy, an inauspicious mix of hand sanitizer, static electricity, and olive oil was to blame, the report says. Though similar incidents have been recorded--in hospital settings no less--it is highly unlikely you’ll set off a fire the next time you slap on some hand sanitizer and go dragging your feet across a carpet. In any case, hand sanitizer has far more benefits than risks. Here's what allegedly happened to Lane: In a room in Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, Lane used olive oil to remove glue used during an EEG test from her scalp. EEGs are common procedures for understanding electrical activity in the brain, and olive oil is commonly used to remove the EEG glue--especially when patients are allergic to the compound traditionally used to break down EEG glue. The oil dripped from her head to her shirt, and Lane likely wiped some of it on her shirt, too. Later, Lane cleaned her hospital bed and the attached tray with hand sanitizer. The sanitizer likely rubbed off onto her shirt and body. Then Lane started playing with her bed sheets, creating static electricity. The static electricity ignited the hand sanitizer, and the olive oil probably fed the flames, the report says. Lane’s story, while incredibly rare, isn’t unique. A 2002 report from Center for Disease Control on hand hygiene in hospitals describes one incident in which a health care worker ignited the vapor from hand sanitizer with the static electricity she created from removing a gown and then touching a metal door. In 2006, a similar incident occurred, when a nurse’s hand--wet with sanitizer--caught fire as she changed a dial in an oxygen-enriched environment. A spark of static electricity can set hand sanitizer ablaze, but it’s extremely uncommon. “[The Lane case] was an outlier as far as I can tell,” says Mark Bruley, of ECRI Institute, non-profit focused on improving health care safety. What are not outliers are hospital infections. In the United States every year, nearly 2 million hospital patients--about one in 20--experience infections. In this context, it is clear that the benefits of using alcohol-based sanitizer, like the Oregon hospital’s sanitizer 3M Avagard, which kills 99 percent of pathogens within 15 seconds, outweigh the risks. There are precautions you can take with hand sanitizer. Use the minimal amount, Bruley says. Take a dime-sized portion and rub your hands until the gel or liquid evaporates. And whatever you do, don’t mess around with olive oil and staticky bed sheets.

Living well without money

Could you do it?
http://shine.yahoo.com/financially-fit/family-lives-without-money--by-choice--and-thrives--190436599.html

Automatic tweeting after death?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bianca-bosker/liveson-social-media-afterlife_b_2735382.html?utm_hp_ref=technology&utm_hp_ref=technology


Apparently, there is a new social media experiment called LivesOn that stores all of your previous tweets and creates a computerized version of yourself that tweets on its own, including after you have passed away.

A little strange if you ask me, I don't think people would take it too well seeing someone they loved or even knew continue to tweet or post anything after they had passed..

From the article, it seems as though the experiment is purposefully mocking the path that social media is  heading down, however, I don't doubt that there are thousands (or millions?) of people that would actually be in favor of LivesOn.

What do you all think about this?

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/21/tech/innovation/chrome-pixel-touchscreen-laptop/index.html

It is very scary that this can actually happen!

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/21/tech/mobile/mcafee-threats-report/index.html

$32,000 to go swimming?

Would you go swimming in this river? A Chinese man is offering a reward of $32,000 if an environmental official will go swimming. The catch however is that he must go swimming in the river found near the city Rui'an that is extremely polluted from dumping. The biggest question in all of this is why hasn't the environmental agency done anything to help clean this up and prevent it from happening in the future?


http://finance.yahoo.com/news/chinese-dare-officials-swim-polluted-104559100.html

Same Sex Marriage Coverage Causes Uproar

The Laurel Leader-Call, a newspaper found in Mississippi, recently ran a story on a same sex couple that got married. It was displayed on the front page of the paper and told the story of Jessica Powell and Crystal Craven. Members of the community that do not favor same sex marriage received the paper and were outraged, making malicious comments. Do you think the paper should be able to run the story without such a backlash?

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/gay-marriage-mississippi-newspaper-owner-140311568.html

India Demands Diamond Back

The Prime Minister of Britain, David Cameron, has spent the past three days in India on business in regard to trade and investment between the two countries. While there the idea of returning the Koh-i-Noor diamond to India was brought up. The 105 carat diamond was taken by Britain back in colonial times when the country demanded jewels from India. The diamond is currently set in the royal crown and is on display in the Tower of London and the Prime Minister was quoted saying that ""I certainly don't believe in 'returnism', as it were. I don't think that's sensible." Do you think that India should have the diamond returned to them or that the Britain Prime Minister is right in his decision?

http://news.yahoo.com/britain-india-diamond-royal-crown-ours-000950576.html

Check out this indoor getaway!

http://www.gadling.com/2013/02/21/soviet-hangar-now-serves-as-a-sunny-escape-photos/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl7%7Csec1_lnk1%26pLid%3D273257

Looks like fun!

Mom wants attention..any baby could say this.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/caren-chesler/cursing_b_2650448.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl6%7Csec1_lnk2%26pLid%3D273128

Seems as almost if she is proud of this.  Why would you want to tell people this is what you're teaching your child?

Get with it, Mississippi!

http://americablog.com/2013/02/mississippi-abolishes-slavery-148-years-too-late.html

Smart phones getting...smarter

Surprisingly, the smart phone is about to get even more impressive.  Could you imagine a screen-less phone?  Well, it's in the works.  Along with new 3D technology, people are working to create biometric authentication to create this phone without a screen, and wireless payments will be available.  Phones will literally be able to serve as your own personal assistant?  Do you find all this useful?  Or is it scary to think your phone could be smarter than you are?

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/21/tech/mobile/smartphone-developments-mobile-strategy/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

"Pardon me" ad

http://www.aol.com/video/popular-ad-returning-to-tv-after-16-years/517678585/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl19%7Csec1_lnk1%26pLid%3D272685

Kraft will be airing a "follow-up" commercial of its popular "Pardon Me" ads during the Oscars Sunday. "Good Morning America" hit the streets to see just how many people even remembered the ads that have been off the air since 1997. The ad will only be aired once (during the oscars) because its going to cost $1.7 million for a 30-second spot.

Are you cooler online?

http://grooveshark.com/brad_paisley

Today's Communication... Good or Bad?

A mother was told that her son was dead via Facebook message. Do you think people have poor communication skills due to technology?


http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/trending-now/mom-finds-son-death-police-via-facebook-message-181645445.html

Freedom of Speech... Do we have it? Limited?

Read this article about a woman who was fired from her job for voting for Obama.
Do you think we really do have our Freedom of Speech?

http://news.yahoo.com/ohio-woman-claims-she-fired-obama-vote-143706582.html

Can't Hide from Chemicals

In the past, horror stories of chemical dumping grounds, like Love Canal in Niagara Falls, affected the nearby population and flooded the news. More recently these stories of the affects of chemicals have been coming from smaller more frequently seen places. The tap water you drink, the aluminum cans you drink out of, and power lines that surround your house are all sources of danger according to Richard Carriero and his wife, Carrie. The future mom and dad that are living a more natural lifestyle are expecting their first child and refuse to expose the future baby to plastic and synthetics. This idea came after Carrie was diagnosed with a benign tumor last year and they were informed by a United Nations-sponsored report that found that man-made chemicals in everyday objects are likely the cause of some cancers, psychiatric disorders and birth defects. Do these facts scare you or do you find these everyday items safe to use?

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/parents-talk-chemicals-worry-everywhere-begged-convenience-004842630.html

Package Free Future

With the environment becoming more and more of a priority in today's society, one man is finding a way to help out. Aaron Mickelson is creating prototypes of products to discover new ways to package them without using excessive resources. He believes that while it is a safety function and provides protection to a product, packaging is over engineered nowadays. Approximately 30% of Americans solid waste per year comes from packaging. That's 76 of 250 million tons. Do you think that ideas like Mickleson's should be funded and created as soon as possible? or do you believe that other issues are of more importance?

http://shopping.yahoo.com/news/designing-the-packaging-free-future-212537958.html

New Gains in Technology

Research and work in the field of technology presents a new way for those who are blind to see. A bionic eye has been approved by the FDA but can only be used for those with a rare type of blindness called retinitis pigmentosa. Now this new device will not allow people to see everything but to see light and dark. This is a big step for those who have been left permanently blind. With technology like this becoming realistic, do you think that scientists will soon be able to create bionic eyes that allow people to see normally?

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/19/health/fda-bionic-eye/index.html?hpt=us_t5

Work Hard, But No Playing Hard?

This article talks about how a gym teacher at a school puts math and English lessons into a gym class that is know for a period where children/students are able to take a break from the school work, relax their minds, and just play for an hour.
Do you think gym should be children's fun? or do you think their needs to be more academics put into it?

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/19/education/gym-class-isnt-just-fun-and-games-anymore.html?_r=0

3D Printers Coming Soon

Talk about futuristic! Soon to come into our lives will be 3D printers.
What are your thoughts of this neat invention?


http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/17/disruptions-3-d-printing-is-on-the-fast-track/?ref=technology

"Boys Only" Rule Leaves Female Football Player Behind

It's not often that you read about an 11 year old girl knocking boys on their butt, especially while playing football. However, that's just what Caroline Pla had been doing in her Catholic Youth Organization football team all last season. At the end of last season though she was told that the "boys only" policy would be put into affect for her safety. Do you think that it's fair for a girl who can clearly hold her own against the boys to be left out of a sport she loves?


http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/14/us/philadelphia-archdiocese-boys-only-football/index.html?hpt=us_r1

Fuel for the debate

Over the last few months the headlines of papers have been flooded with stories of public shootings. These devastating shootings, such as the ones in Aurora and Newtown, have re-sparked the debate on whether or not the United States should have stricter rules on guns. On Tuesday, another shooting occurred in California which left four people, including the gunman himself, dead. Do you think that the US can find a solution to prevent future shootings without causing an uproar among gun activists?

http://news.yahoo.com/authorities-4-dead-california-shooting-spree-171521933.html

What's in the food your eating?

Nestle is the latest company falling victim to the horse meat scandal surging through Europe. This recent problem has caused one fifth of adults to start buying less meat according to a poll conducted by Consumer Intelligence. Do these discoveries of horse meat in big companies food products affect the way you feel about eating meat?

http://news.yahoo.com/nestle-finds-horsemeat-beef-pasta-meals-015720312--finance.html

And so the sappy Nicholas Sparks frenzy continues...

http://movies.yahoo.com/blogs/movie-talk/fans-defy-critics-wrap-safe-haven-warm-embrace-182052166.html

We are all poor college kids, right? We are also painfully aware of the stereotypical second (maybe third) date: a trip to the movies. So since society has forced you poor gents to take out that girl you met at that party last night to the movies, shouldn't you at least get an interesting movie for your buck?
In my opinion, a movie should take you on some sort of journey. You should not be able to predict the entire outcome of the story just shortly after the two main characters meet.
So here is the basic outline of a classic Nicholas Sparks novel:
1. Mysterious girl moves to a new town
2. Mysterious girl meets an average Joe of a boy (usually super attractive might I add)
3. They aren't into each other at first
4. Shocker. They fall in love.
5. There is some contention in the relationship that separates the two (usually a part of mysterious girl's past or one her quirks)
6. No worries. Their love was so strong that they were able to find their way back together.

If you think about his stories (Notebook, Last Song...just to name a few), why on Earth would someone go out of their way to see one of the movies if you already know that it is going to be a mediocre love story?

More of the same FACEBOOK hacked

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/15/tech/social-media/facebook-attack/index.html

Cutting prices :)

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/13/tech/gaming-gadgets/apple-macbook-prices/index.html

iWatch?

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/11/tech/mobile/apple-smart-watch/index.html

Access to locked Iphones

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/14/tech/mobile/iphone-password-hack/index.html

Crazy reaction to children's motrin

http://www.aol.com/video/girl-parents-awarded-63m-in-massachusetts-motrin-lawsuit/517672895/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl6%7Csec1_lnk2%26pLid%3D270489

One of the largest deals ever in food history!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/14/warren-buffetts-berkshire_n_2685098.html?utm_hp_ref=business&icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl2%7Csec1_lnk1%26pLid%3D270367

Would you pay this much for ketchup? haha

Olympic runner charged with murder!!! http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/02/14/oscar-pistorius-shoots-girlfriend/1918689/

Some high schools ban Valentine's Day exchanges | StAugustine.com

No V-day in some High Schools </3

http://staugustine.com/news/florida-news/2013-02-13/some-high-schools-ban-valentines-day-exchanges

Apple cuts prices on MacBooks

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/13/tech/gaming-gadgets/apple-macbook-prices/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

This is a huge move for Time Warner

http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/02/13/time-warner-magazine-unit/1917479/

 

Does Slacker have a chance of getting you to change from Pandora?

Have you experienced the difference Slacker is trying to point out, that Pandora has fewer songs to choose from than other streaming services?

ADVERTISING

A Smaller Rival Takes Aim at Pandora

A scene from the Slacker digital music service commercial, which is to begin running on the Web on Wednesday.

By BEN SISARIO

Published: February 12, 2013

• FACEBOOK
• TWITTER
• GOOGLE+
• SAVE
• E-MAIL
• SHARE
• PRINT
• REPRINTS
• 

ONE of advertising’s great (or at least most amusing) traditions is the challenger attack ad, in which a field’s No. 2 (or No. 3) player tries to distinguish itself by taking aim at the leader. When artfully done it can have a great effect, as in Avis’s long-running “We try harder”campaign against Hertz, or Samsung’s recent ads mocking the obedience of iPhone fans.

Add to Portfolio

• Pandora Media Inc

Go to your Portfolio »

The latest example is in digital music services, with Pandora as the Goliath and its much smaller competitor Slacker in the role of David with the 30-second sling.

In an online-only spot that will start running Wednesday, a young woman at a coffee shop vexes everyone in earshot when she opens a blue “Pandora’s box” — labeled “P,” like Pandora’s app icon — and unleashes a singularly annoying song.

“It plays that over and over again,” the woman complains to a friend, who blames Pandora’s “small music library” for the repetition. With Slacker helpfully loaded on her phone, the friend points out that Slacker has 10 times as many songs, and other features, too.

Like Pandora, Slacker offers free, ad-supported Internet radio and has two tiers of premium service. Listeners can eliminate ads for a $4 monthly subscription, and $10 a month also adds features that — like Spotify and other “on-demand” services — let users play any song they choose.

Since its founding in 2006, however, Slacker has struggled to stand out. With four million monthly users, 560,000 of them paying, its audience is a fraction of Pandora’s, which is more than 65 million a month; Clear Channel Communications has nearly 50 million online listeners through its station sites and iHeartRadio app.

To promote itself among such formidable competition — and to introduce a revamped version of its site — Slacker wants to show that it tries harder.

“We had to be very honest with where we were in the marketplace,” said Craig Rechenmacher, Slacker’s chief marketing officer. “We had to be disruptive in the marketplace, and we needed something that targets our competitors and the holes in their service.”

Slacker will spend $5.5 million on media placements this year, Mr. Rechenmacher said. In addition to the video spot, by Liquid Advertising, the campaign will include display ads by the agency Questus, and they will run on music and pop-culture sites like YouTube, Vevo, Brooklyn Vegan and College Humor.

The ads show off what Slacker says is its human touch, with playlists created by music experts and stations featuring D.J.’s and commentators. Pandora caters to listeners’ tastes through a secret algorithm that analyzes each song’s musical “genome.” (Others, likeSongza, have grown quickly through expert programming, but Pandora is the field’s leader by far.)

“When we did research on our core users, what they love the most, what came back was the idea that it felt like somebody was home,” said Jack Isquith, Slacker’s senior vice president of strategic development. “There was someone who loves music at the controls.”

The campaign is also evidence of a slow change in the marketing of digital music services, many of which have avoided advertising in favor of online word-of-mouth (and, of course, lots of free music). Pandora, for example, is often featured in commercials by its partners, like car companies, but has made none of its own.

“It costs a lot of money to build a brand if you didn’t hit it luckily through viral channels, like Pandora did,” said David Hyman, the former chief executive of the music service Mog, which was sold last year to Beats Electronics.

The biggest force in promoting digital music over the years, music executives say, was Apple’s iTunes and iPod commercials. Rhapsody, too, has run dozens of television ads, including a memorable one with Jay-Z in 2009.

For the most part the recent wave of streaming services has not been heavily advertised, but that is changing as the field grows more competitive. Last year, Rdio, a subscription service, did a multimillion-dollar campaign that included billboards in Times Square. Spotify, which has grown quickly but has not fully penetrated the mainstream market, recently hired its first agency of record, Droga5 — the former agency of Rhapsody.

For its campaign, Slacker wanted to focus on how digital services serve consumers. In the coffee shop video, the patrons align with the demographics of the service — 18 to 44 years old, and slightly more females than males, said Will Akerlof, the chief executive of Liquid Advertising — and visibly express their reactions to the music playing.

To find a sufficiently irritating soundtrack, the agency looked at a 2007 Rolling Stone magazine feature, “The 20 Most Annoying Songs,” Mr. Akerlof said, and recorded a techno-pop version of the folk song “Cotton-Eyed Joe,” in the style of Rednex’s version from the mid-1990s (No. 13 on the list).

That lighthearted approach, with a focus on the consumer, has been missing from many digital-music ads, Mr. Isquith said.

“The approaches of many of the people in the space has been, ‘Hey, we’re standing next to big stars,’ or, ‘Hey, we’ve got the slickest, most cutting-edge tech product,’ but that’s not why people use it,” he said.

“Our ads,” Mr. Isquith added, “are meant to say that this is a great listener experience that will delight you.”

Tag You're It

A group of friends started playing the old traditional game Tag, but these four guys put a little twist on it.  During the month of February these guys travel all over the world and try and tag a friend by surprise. No tag backs, and if you are the last person to be tag by the time February is over, you start by being it the next year.
Are these guys crazy? or do you see a traditional game revamped that many people will be starting to play?


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323375204578269991660836834.html

What do you all think about LinkedIn?

http://money.cnn.com/2013/02/07/technology/social/linkedin-earnings/index.html

What a good idea!

http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/29/tech/mobile/sandy-charge-devices/index.html?hpt=te_t1

Former LA Police Officer On Killing Spree

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/08/us/former-los-angeles-police-officer-sought-in-shootings.html

Former LA Police Officer has gone on a killing spree against his former employers. As of yesterday, they still have not caught him. He has been trained by the very people who are now searching for him, which makes it much harder.

The LAPD has reopened the case that cased the former Officer to be fired years ago. Dorner claims it was due to racism.

He is currently hiding in the mountains north of LA.

It's scary to think you are hunting someone who has been trained to know your every step...

Hope they catch him and get him the help (mentally) he needs.

Crazy Stuff!

http://aol.sportingnews.com/ncaa-football/story/2013-02-08/reuben-fosters-dad-arrested-after-17-years-on-run-alabama-recruit-danny-foster-a?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl6%7Csec1_lnk2%26pLid%3D268306

How could someone live on the run for sixteen years?

Unsafe Facebook

The article says that Facebook is recommending users to check their privacy settings due to Facebook's new search tool. This new addition to Facebook allows strangers to find out who you are, what your interests are, as well are where you go and hang out even with certain privacy settings on.

Do you think it is time Facebook draws a line?


http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/07/technology/personaltech/protecting-your-privacy-on-the-new-facebook.html?_r=0

This is terrible!!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/07/mamura-nasirova-arrested-baby-smacking-camera_n_2639567.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl44%7Csec1_lnk2%26pLid%3D267558

The end of Saturday delivery...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/us-postal-service-to-end-saturday-delivery/2013/02/06/16032b88-7084-11e2-ac36-3d8d9dcaa2e2_story.html

The U.S. Postal Service on Wednesday moved to circumvent Congress by announcing that it will stop collecting and delivering mail on Saturdays in an effort to stem its staggering financial losses. This would cause letter carriers, clerks, and mail sorters to lose their jobs, about 20,000 to 25,000. This financial loss/decline in mail volume is caused by the Internet as Americans switch to communicating and paying bills online.

New Twitter?

Twitter bought a company called Bluefin Labs which analyzes peoples commentary about television shows. Twitter says buying the company out with create more revenue for their company. Also Twitter said everything that Bluefin has to ofter will be available to Twitter in the fall of this year.

Do you think that Twitter will change and become more of a place to talk about t.v shows, rather than our everyday thoughts? Do you think this will get Twitter more users? Do you think this will make Twitter better than it is now?

http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/05/twitter-buys-company-that-mines-chatter-about-tv/?ref=technology

CHECK THIS OUT

COVER STORY: JORGE COLOMBO’S IPAD FINGER PAINTINGS

URL:

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/culture/2013/01/cover-story-finger-paintings.html#slide_ss_0=1

Check this out

COVER STORY: JORGE COLOMBO’S IPAD FINGER PAINTINGS

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/culture/2013/01/cover-story-finger-paintings.html#slide_ss_0=1

Apple Censorship

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/05/tech/mobile/web-freedom-mobile-apps/index.html?hpt=te_t1

Apple is now trying to censor apps. I certainly think that explicit content should be censored on sites that are not intended for adult material. That being said, considering the number of apps available, it seems a bit unrealistic to expect that all the apps can be controlled.

Raising Hope

http://news.yahoo.com/budweiser-clydesdale-foal-named-hope-134416657.html

How precious. The Clydesdale from the Superbowl commercial finally has a name: Hope. While I am not entirely sure why Hope is a relevant name for a horse exhibited in a beer commercial, it is really cool that the public got to vote for it. Over 60,000 people voted via twitter.

How many millions of dollars does he make to do this?

http://aol.sportingnews.com/nfl/story/2013-02-05/rob-gronkowski-video-wrestling-club-injured-arm-cast-patriots-las-vegas

Underground bunker rescue

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/05/us/alabama-child-hostage/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

Will Donald Trump or Bill Maher win this battle?

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/why-donald-trump-is-lose-417806

I think Bill Maher will win, but it's interesting to see the examples of past court cases with promotions and such.

funny media

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufu5sqJh24Q

Super Bowl

What did you all think of the Super Bowl? http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/04/tech/social-media/super-bowl-funniest-tweets/index.html?hpt=te_t1

Great superbowl comercial

http://www.youtube.com/user/mbusa/featured?v=oPNr0_6MnDo

Dr. Who?

Last Friday, a teenager in Australia was caught and arrested for impersonating a physician at a hospital he volunteered at  He didn't just go as far as to try on some scrubs and a name badge, he treated some patients,  including a young girl after a scooter accident, and prescribed medications.  Doesn't give much peace at mind , does it?  If he wants to work in this field so bad, this isn't really the way to get started.


Practical joke or was it taken way too far?  Should the consequences be taken further?

Elephants In Indiana

Check this out, thought this article was interesting! Elephants that were unloaded onto Indiana's interstate, that caused an accident.

http://fox59.com/2013/01/31/update-elephants-stranded-on-side-of-road-west-of-i-70-crash/#axzz2JcDAAI5F

Do you think the elephants will make it in this weather? Where do you think they are headed to?