photo by Scott Beale
Last week we came across this massive macrame owl hanging on the wall at the J. Crew in SOHO. You can’t tell from the photo, but is was several feet high and wide.
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“IBM research shows that about 80 percent of those who begin a corporate blog never post more than five entries,” journalist and heavy-duty blogger Mathew Ingram wrote on GigaOm on Friday.
IBM is hawking a solution to blogger’s block. It’s called Blog Muse, and IBM claims it raised bloggers pageviews, comments and “likes” — those one-click votes for a post some sites allow.
Here’s how it works:
In order to inspire bloggers, our system suggests topics they can write about. The audience is given a voice by letting blog readers share topics they would like to read about with the blogging community. Our system then suggests these topics to potential blog writers who can decide whether or not they would like to address the topic requested. The underlying intuition is that users are more likely to blog if they know about their potential audience and the topics of interest.
Blog Muse replaces the function traditionally performed by editors: Assigning topics to writers based on what they believe readers will go for. It also outs a human trait not always discussed in conversations about blogging: Many writers will cover a topic they’re iffy about, if they believe more people will read about it. And sometimes, they just need a prod from someone else. Even if that someone is an IBM bot.
[Photo: BlogComics.net]
People: IBM
In her ‘Pentax 110′ photograph series, Croatian artist Pekmez Med utilized low-fi film to emphasize the voyeuristic/fetishistic nature of her subject matter, creating a collection of photo’s that maintain a sense of the underground and its happenings. Featuring various action figures and playthings, ranging from the infamous Barbie to Skeletor, the images are stripped down in their simplicity, but ignite and maintain interest in the viewer. Ultimately, her ‘Pentax 110′ series demonstrates a talent for executing a creative notion to a maximum effect.
Photo via oskay
Innovations that help us get the lead out of electronics is a really big deal. The heavy metal is a big source of pollution in soil and ground water tables due to electronics being tossed in landfills, and is a toxic substance in e-waste dumps. University of Maryland is working on what could be the first commercial replacement for the lead used in transducers, actuators, sensors and other components. Resear...Read the full story on TreeHugger
photo: Guyon Morée via flickr.
Let's take the idea of animal rights in a legal direction. Over the weekend voters in Switzerland rejected a proposal to start public funding for lawyers to defend animals in court. Which to many people in the United States may seem like a no-brainer. Public funding for animal rights lawyers? Come on!...Read the full story on TreeHugger
Photo: Meftah is de max maat http://tumblr.com/xsz76pwzl
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It looks like a lot of products unveiled at CES 2010 are finally getting some release and shipping dates. Now the MSi Wind U160 netbook is also now shipping in the US.
Selling for as low as $379.99 (before taxes and shipping), the MSi Wind U160 netbook is a worthy contender for those shopping around for a netbook right now - especially considering it promises up to 14-15 hours of battery life.
You might have to search around though, as Newegg and some other sites are already shipping, but Amazon is still only on pre-order mode.
Just to keep in mind, some of the specs on the MSi Wind U160 include:
It’s available in black and gold, although based on the photo, that’s a very dusty dark gold. (I don’t like it when colors in PR photos can be misleading, especially when shopping online.)
During the Oscars
Apple has shown its first television advert for the iPad, mere weeks before its release. It was aired during the 82nd Annual Academy Awards in the USA, which Jobs himself was attending.
The video shows off various iPad features, including the photo viewing, web browsing, books, mobile watching, mapping, interactivity and device rotation and messaging functions. It also shows keyboard input. Nothing we haven't seen before. In the background, the music is provided by Danish blues-rockers The Blue Van with "There Goes My Love".
As previously reported, the iPad is set to be launched on 3 April in the US and "late April" in the UK. If you're desperately coveting one, but not sure if you can spare the cash, then why not enter our competition to win one by commenting on any story on Pocket-lint during the months of March or April 2010. Why not start with this one - what do you think of the commercial?
Tags: Hardware iPad Apple Tablet PCs Advertising Adverts Video
First iPad commercial aired in the US originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 09:34:44 +0000
Cool, @Zadi got a photo of Steve Jobs at the 2010 Oscars. http://tumblr.com/xmi76i7je My kind of celebrity watching!
[Direct Link]A watched pot never boils. Hang a horseshoe the wrong way and you invite bad luck. Discover the history behind some of the old wives' tales your grandmother told you.
The ABC's Karyn Wilson has been looking into just what makes the cut, and she would love to hear your suggestions as well. What was passed down through your family? What wives tales do you tell your kids?
Click here as Karyn joins Professor of Folklore Graham Seal on a journey into the past to find out why putting new shoes on a table is bad luck and having an itchy hand means money is coming your way.
Photo: Pauline Pitt from Mount Isa in North West Queensland shares some old wives tales with grandsons Marshall and Rhys (ABC North West Queensland: Karyn Wilson)
The ball is rolling for the Canon 70-200mm f2.8 L IS USM II lens - at least in Japan. DC Watch writes that the Japanese market will get this lens on March 19, which is 12 days from now. This includes a hood (food) and the LZ1326 case.
We do not know when this will come out in other markets, but it is EOS-encouraging that B&H Photo is accepting pre-orders for this lens - this is often a good sign in terms of availability since B&H does not take pre-orders initially.
Despite the addition of manual exposure and GPS, the Panasonic TZ10 (ZS7) may have been buried a little bit in the avalanche of megazooms, backlit CMOS sensors, and 1080p video, but today it reminds us of its existence with a brand new review at Photo Review. The review starts with a spec-comparison-refresher between it and three more compact-zooms, and continues with the review action, including plenty of Imatest findings and review-purpose sample pictures. As usual, we won't reveal their findings aqui.
Next up we have an ultra-short review of the "deputy", the TZ8 (ZS5), this one at technology website Info Sync World. Their samples are a list of links. This may be the first review of this model.
"Deputy" is not an official name - Panasonic has been releasing two TZ-series models at a time, a sheriff model (TZ10, TZ7, TZ5, TZ3) and a more affordable deputy model (TZ8, TZ6, TZ4, TZ2). With the release of the TZ7/TZ6 models, Panasonic went crazy and decided to spin off the North American names to the ZS-series, creating unnecessary global confusion. It's bad enough we have 200+ new cameras every year, do we really need 2-3 names per model? :)
In terms of availability the cameras are in pre-order status at their usual colors for the usual prices of $400 and $300.
CNET thinks they've snagged a photo of Apple CEO Steve Jobs schmoozing at the Academy Awards. Does this mean the iPad's going to make a last minute appearance in those outlandish $85,000 gift bags?
Is it him? Supposedly he's next to the woman in the white dress. It'd make sense, given the Up/Pixar connection (FYI, it's "up" for an award...), as well as all the negotiating he's surely been doing behind the scenes in regards to movies and TV shows on the iPad. But it's probably just for Up. Probably.
In any event, is anyone even watching tonight? [CNET]
The Cassowary Coast Regional Council needs $20 million to fix the subsiding Jubilee Bridge in Innisfail. (Thanks to nipper30 for the corker photo of the bridge on the left.)
Up until now, the State Government had committed $12 million, leaving an $8 million shortfall for the Council to make up, but, as Mayor Bill Shannon told me, things have changed...
Photo via Obvious
16 years ago, Horrace Burges had a divine vision, a calling from heaven. And, like the ark-crafting Noah before him, Horrace picked up a hammer and built a large wooden structure of his own--the world's largest tree house. At 10 stories tall, with roughly 10,000 square feet, the tree house may be more aptly called a 'tree mansion', but according Horrace, it's a work in progress....Read the full story on TreeHugger
Text and photo by Scott:
Spencer I took this photo on Sunday at Perrin Park Toowong behind the BCC depot.
I did not count the trollies, but there are hundreds.
The place is worth a visit. Regards Scott.
Jillian Ganz overlooking Suzy Amis Cameron's green dress fitting. Photo by Jim Peck
Even with Linda Loudermilk and Stella McCartney's high-end sustainable clothing, it is still an effort to get eco-minded celebs into black tie worthy gowns. A couple years ago, retro Chanel was all the rage, which was a great idea, until Reese Witherspoon discovered hers wasn't a one-and-only dress, as she'd been told, and her '50s number showed up on somebody else. These are problems we don't have to worry about, thankfully. To avoid the whole thing, actress Suzy Amis Cameron (wife of Avatar's James Cameron) held a contest f...Read the full story on TreeHugger
We all give presentations in our work and lives, whether it's a one-on-one meeting with your boss or a lecture to a room full of people. Psychology Today offers a great guide to giving a successful presentation.
Photo by James Jordan.
I'm presenting a panel at SXSW this year, and the fact is, as is the case with many people, public speaking still rankles my nerves. Psychology professor Nancy Darling offers some great suggestions for giving a good presentation, and reminds us nervous speakers that it's really not about us:
There are five main components to pulling together a good presentation:
- Choose a goal;
- Find a storyline that will help the group reach that goal;
- Develop a series of activities or a method of presentation that allows you to develop your storyline. Don't let your media determine your storyline!
- Remember that your role is to facilitate the group reaching its shared goal. This is your primary responsibility!
- Remember that it's not about you. All that matters is the experience of the other people in the room.
It's easy to get caught up in nerves when you're giving a presentation, but try to remember that the focus of the presentation is really on the information you're trying to get across, not on you. If you're confident in your information, let that boost the confidence you've got in your presentation.
Even if you're not a nervous presenter, I'd recommend giving Darling's guide a read through. It's full of solid suggestions for improving your presentations.
[The red carpet outside the Kodak Theater in LA got one last cleaning this afternoon in advance of tonight's Academy Awards. Photo via Zadi Diaz]
Quentin Tarantino has resurrected many careers. His next personal project, according to conversations we overheard between the two men, involves Chris Tucker.
Tarantino, hair dyed brown with gray roots showing, in a leather cowboy shirt, was drinking vodka and orange, holding court at the Weinstein party at Soho House. His enthusiasm was predictably off-the-charts. He opined on Italian B movies and how much he loves black voices and was very happy to chat to anyone who came past him.
Except that apparently Tarantino and the wildly lame Chris Tucker—wearing an embroidered jacket to rival Tarantino's leather shirt—are talking about two projects. One is a Tarantino-helmed doc/road movie of Tucker's standup. The other is a "soldier film," as Tucker phrased it. If Quentin could rescue John Travolta, we suppose anything is possible.
[Photo via Getty Images]
Getting Away From it All... And Taking it With You http://bit.ly/918vpg
You've probably heard that ReadWriteWeb has just announced the 2010 Mobile Summit, which – judging by last fall's real-time web summit – is going to be a bang-up event. (With Kaliya Hamlin facilitating, how can it be otherwise?)
This one's in honor of the summit... and in honor of all of us for whom ubiquitous connectivity means you're never really 100% present in physical space.
Sponsor
Oh, sure, it has its drawbacks - the car accidents, the walking into parking meters, the wedding that got called off because you just had to Twitpic a photo of the moment to your tweeps, which was awkward as you were the bride.
But let's admit it: We're part of the hive mind, and we're proud of it. Onward to Mountain View!
Getting Away From it All... And Taking it With You
- LouCypher
As an outgrowth of photorealism, hyperrealism is a relatively new school of painting that creates the illusion that you’re actually looking at a photo. With new technology in cameras and digital equipment, artists have been able to be far more precision-oriented. Be ready to be wowed! See them all at My Modern Metropolis.
Photo: Ninja wallpaper http://tumblr.com/xsz75kp31
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