Mass. gov's ex-aide Cowan named interim US senator

William "Mo" Cowan smiles during a news conference where he was named interim U.S. Senator for the seat vacated by U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., at the Statehouse in Boston, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013. Kerry was confirmed by the Senate on Tuesday to be the nation's next secretary of state. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

William "Mo" Cowan smiles during a news conference where he was named interim U.S. Senator for the seat vacated by U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., at the Statehouse in Boston, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013. Kerry was confirmed by the Senate on Tuesday to be the nation's next secretary of state. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

William "Mo" Cowan, center, flanked by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, left, and Massachusetts Lt. Gov. Tim Murray, right, gestures as he speaks during a news conference at the Statehouse in Boston, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013, where he was named interim U.S. Senator for the seat vacated with the resignation of Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. who will become secretary of state. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

William "Mo" Cowan poses with his family following a news conference at the Statehouse in Boston, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013, where he was named interim U.S. Senator for the seat vacated with the resignation of U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. who will become secretary of state. With Cowan are his wife Stacy, and sons Grant, left, and Miles. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

William "Mo" Cowan, left, embraces Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick during a news conference at the Statehouse in Boston, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013, where he was named interim U.S. Senator for the seat vacated with the resignation of Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., who will become secretary of state. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

BOSTON (AP) ? Although his time in the U.S. Senate will be brief ? less than five full months ? William "Mo" Cowan could find himself in the thick of major policy debates from the federal budget to immigration reform and gun control.

Democratic Gov. Deval Patrick on Wednesday appointed Cowan, his former chief of staff, to serve as the interim U.S. senator for Massachusetts until a special election is held June 25 to fill the seat left vacant by John Kerry's confirmation as the nation's next secretary of state.

Cowan, 43, will be the state's second African-American senator. Edward Brooke, a Republican, served two terms from 1967-1979.

In the wake of the "fiscal cliff" agreement Jan. 1 and looming automatic spending cuts, known as sequester, expected to take effect in March, Cowan said he backed a balanced approach to the nation's fiscal woes that include some spending cuts and new revenues.

"I don't think anyone believes it's in the best interests to do straight across-the-board cuts," he said.

"If a sequester happens, it's going to have significant impact on Massachusetts," he added. Some of the cuts could target grants to the state's highly regarded universities and research facilities.

Cowan, 43, stepped down last month as chief of staff, a post he assumed in 2010 after previously serving as Patrick's chief legal counsel.

Patrick lauded Cowan for helping manage the state through the recession and said he had earned the respect of people throughout government.

"In every step, he has brought preparation, perspective, wisdom, sound judgment and clarity of purpose," Patrick said while introducing Cowan at a Statehouse news conference.

Patrick and Lt. Governor Timothy Murray added that the affable Cowan ? who eschewed his trademark bowtie in favor of a traditional suit and necktie for Wednesday's announcement ? also brings a certain amount of "cool" to the job.

Cowan grew up in North Carolina and graduated from Duke University and Northeastern University's law school. He was a partner in the prominent Boston law firm of Mintz Levin before going to work for Patrick, the state's first black governor.

Cowan noted Wednesday that his mother, who is recuperating in North Carolina after knee-replacement surgery, was a child of the segregated South who raised him and his sisters alone after his father died when Cowan was a teen.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said Wednesday that he believes President Obama will be encouraged by the appointment of Cowan, along with a record number of female senators, "because he believes that diversity adds to the quality of debate."

In the days leading up to the selection, Patrick said that he would consider diversity in his choice of interim senator. He had also insisted that the interim appointment be someone with no interest in holding the job permanently, and Cowan went further on Wednesday by saying he had no intention of running for any elected office in the future.

"This is going to be a very short political career," he joked.

Former Democratic U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, who recently retired after more than three decades in the House, had been the only person to publicly express interest in the interim post and Patrick had acknowledged that Frank was among those he had considered.

Wednesday was the second time that Patrick has selected an interim U.S. senator. In 2009, following the death of Sen. Edward Kennedy, Patrick named Paul Kirk, a Democratic party operative and Kennedy family friend, to serve until a January 2010 special election that was won by Republican Scott Brown.

Under Massachusetts law prior to 2004, governors appointed a senator to serve until the next regularly scheduled state election. The Democratic-controlled Legislature changed the law after Kerry became the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee to block then-Gov. Mitt Romney from appointing a Republican in case Kerry won the election.

Brown, who lost his re-election bid to Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren in November, is "leaning strongly" toward running in the upcoming special election, according to Republican officials who spoke to the Associated Press Tuesday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to share internal discussions.

Two Democratic congressmen, Edward Markey, of Malden, and Stephen Lynch, of Boston, are expected to formally enter the race in the coming days. Kerry is among several leading Democrats who are backing Markey.

Kerry's resignation from the Senate takes effect Friday, making Warren the state's senior senator despite having been in the Senate for only a few short weeks herself.

___

Associated Press writers Steve Peoples and Steve LeBlanc in Boston and Nedra Pickler in Washington contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-01-30-Massachusetts%20Senate/id-198c2db1b9fc4366a385e6b76198d290

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Tesco drops Irish beef burger supplier

LONDON (Reuters) - Tesco, Britain's biggest retailer, said on Wednesday it had dropped the Irish supplier of frozen beef burgers that sparked a scandal by testing positive for horse DNA.

Tesco said it would not take any more products from Silvercrest, a unit of ABP Food Group, and said it would now introduce a comprehensive system of DNA testing across its meat products.

There was no immediate response for a request for comment from ABP.

The retailer said its investigation concluded that Silvercrest used meat in Tesco products that did not come from a list of approved suppliers it gave the firm, nor was the meat from the UK or Ireland, despite an instruction that only beef from the UK and Ireland should be used in Tesco frozen beef burgers.

"Consequently we have decided not to take products from that supplier in future," said Tim Smith, Tesco's group technical director. "We took that decision with regret but the breach of trust is simply too great."

Ireland's agriculture department said on Saturday that beef containing horse DNA supplied by Silvercrest to retailers had originated in Poland.

After that statement ABP said it had never knowingly sold equine products.

The issue around food products first appeared on January 15 when the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) said it had found horse DNA in beef burger products sold by Tesco in the UK and Ireland.

The FSAI said beef burgers sold at Dunnes Stores, Lidl, Aldi and Iceland were also discovered to contain horse DNA.

It said most of the affected burgers contained very low levels of horse DNA, but in one Tesco sample horse meat accounted for about 29 percent relative to the beef content.

(Reporting by James Davey; additional reporting by Conor Humphries; editing by Kate Holton)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tesco-drops-irish-beef-burger-supplier-093729624--finance.html

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Justin Bieber Fan Photo: Does Singer Cop a Feel?

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/01/justin-bieber-fan-photo-does-singer-cop-a-feel/

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AFL-CIO to press for lockout protection (Star Tribune)

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BlackBerry Spokesperson Alicia Keys Tweets From Her iPhone

BlackBerry unveiled Alicia Keys as its new spokesperson, but turns out she's been posting from her iPhone. Seems a little dubious, but we'll see. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/VOw9lqMy0c0/blackberry-spokesperson-alicia-keys-tweets-from-her-iphone

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Detentions made in Brazil fire, funerals begin

A police officer places flowers outside the Kiss nightclub that were brought by mourners in memory of those who died due to a fire at the club in Santa Maria, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 28, 2013. A fast-moving fire roared through the crowded, windowless Kiss nightclub in this southern Brazilian city early Sunday, killing more than 230 people. Many of the victims were under 20 years old, including some minors. (AP Photo/Nabor Goulart)

A police officer places flowers outside the Kiss nightclub that were brought by mourners in memory of those who died due to a fire at the club in Santa Maria, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 28, 2013. A fast-moving fire roared through the crowded, windowless Kiss nightclub in this southern Brazilian city early Sunday, killing more than 230 people. Many of the victims were under 20 years old, including some minors. (AP Photo/Nabor Goulart)

Gladimir Callegaro, second from right, father of fire victim Marina Callegaro and other relatives mourn during her funeral at a cemetery in Santa Maria city, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 28, 2013. A fast-moving fire roared through the crowded, windowless Kiss nightclub in southern Brazil early Sunday, within seconds filling the space with flames and a thick, toxic smoke that killed more than 230 panicked partygoers who gasped for breath and fought in a stampede to escape. An early investigation into the tragedy revealed that security guards briefly prevented partygoers from leaving through the sole exit and the bodies later heaped inside that doorway slowed firefighters trying to get in.(AP Photo/Nabor Goulart)

Relatives and friends carry the coffins of two brothers, Pedro and Marcelo Salla, who died in a nightclub fire, as they prepare to bury them at a cemetery in Santa Maria, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 28, 2013. Brazilian police officials said Monday they?ve made three detentions and are seeking a fourth person in connection with blaze that ripped through a nightclub in southern Brazil over the weekend, killing more than 230 people. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A girl cries during the burial of her brother, soldier Leonardo Machado, at a cemetery in Santa Maria, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 28, 2013. A fast-moving fire roared through the crowded, windowless Kiss nightclub in this southern Brazilian city early Sunday, killing more than 230 people. Many of the victims were under 20 years old, including some minors. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Relatives and friends dance and mourn next to the coffin during the burial of fire victim Tanise Cielo, at a cemetery in Santa Maria city, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, Monday, Jan. 28, 2013. The city in southern Brazil started burying the 233 people killed in Sunday's fire at the Kiss nightclub after the conflagration caused by a band's pyrotechnic display. An early investigation into the tragedy revealed that security guards briefly prevented partygoers from leaving through the sole exit. And the bodies later heaped inside that doorway slowed firefighters trying to get in.(AP Photo/Nabor Goulart)

SANTA MARIA, Brazil (AP) ? Brazilian police officials said Monday they've made three detentions and are seeking a fourth person in connection with a blaze that ripped through a nightclub in southern Brazil over the weekend, killing more than 230 people.

Inspector Ranolfo Vieira Junior said at a news conference that the detentions are for investigative purposes and those detained can be held up to five days. He declined to identify those detained or the fourth person sought, but the Brazilian newspaper Zero Hora quotes lawyer Jader Marques saying his client Elissandro Spohr, a co-owner of the club, had been held.

The paper also says police detained two band members who were on stage when the blaze broke out and were thought to have used pyrotechnics in their act.

A military brigade official said Monday the death toll now stands at 231 people in the early Sunday blaze in the Kiss nightclub in Santa Maria, a university town of about 260,000 people in southern Brazil. Many of the victims were under 20 years old, including some minors. Most victims died from smoke inhalation rather than burns.

Police have said they think the pyrotechnics ignited sound insulation on the ceiling, while witnesses have reported a fire extinguisher didn't work and that there was only one working exit. Many of the dead were also found in the club's two bathrooms, where they fled apparently because the blinding smoke caused them to believe the doors were exits.

"It was terrible inside ? it was like one of those films of the Holocaust, bodies piled atop one another," said police inspector Sandro Meinerz. "We had to use trucks to remove them. It took about six hours to take the bodies away."

Survivors and another police inspector, Marcelo Arigony, said security guards briefly tried to block people from exiting the club. Brazilian bars routinely make patrons pay their entire tab at the end of the night before they are allowed to leave.

"It was chaotic and it doesn't seem to have been done in bad faith because several security guards also died," Arigony told The Associated Press.

Firefighters responding to the blaze initially had trouble getting inside the Kiss nightclub because "there was a barrier of bodies blocking the entrance," Guido Pedroso Melo, commander of the city's fire department, told the O Globo newspaper.

Authorities said band members who were on the stage when the fire broke out later talked with police and confirmed they used pyrotechnics during their show.

Guitarist Rodrigo Martins told Radio Gaucha that the band, Gurizada Fandangueira, started playing at 2:15 a.m. "and we had played around five songs when I looked up and noticed the roof was burning."

"It might have happened because of the Sputnik, the machine we use to create a luminous effect with sparks. It's harmless, we never had any trouble with it," he said. "When the fire started, a guard passed us a fire extinguisher, the singer tried to use it but it wasn't working."

He confirmed that accordion player Danilo Jacques, 28, died, while the five other members made it out safely.

Survivor Michele Pereira told the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper that she was near the stage when members of the band lit some sort of flare that started the conflagration.

"The band that was onstage began to use flares and, suddenly, they stopped the show and pointed them upward," she said. "At that point, the ceiling caught fire. It was really weak, but in a matter of seconds it spread."

Police inspector Meinerz, who coordinated the investigation at the nightclub, said one band member died after escaping because he returned inside the burning building to save his accordion. The other band members escaped alive because they were the first to notice the fire.

Television images from Santa Maria showed black smoke billowing out of the Kiss nightclub as shirtless young men who attended the university party joined firefighters using axes and sledgehammers to pound at the hot-pink exterior walls, trying to reach those trapped inside.

Teenagers sprinted from the scene after the fire began, desperately seeking help. Others carried injured and burned friends away in their arms. About half of those killed were men, about half women.

Bodies of the dead and injured were strewn in the street and panicked screams filled the air as medics tried to help. There was little to be done; officials said most of those who died suffocated within minutes.

"There was so much smoke and fire, it was complete panic, and it took a long time for people to get out, there were so many dead," survivor Luana Santos Silva told the Globo TV network.

The fire spread so fast inside the packed club that firefighters and ambulances could do little to stop it, Silva said.

A community gym soon became a horror scene, with body after body lined up on the floor, partially covered with black plastic as family members identified kin.

Outside the gym, police held up personal objects ? a black purse, a blue high-heeled shoe ? as people seeking information on loved ones crowded around hoping not to recognize anything being shown them.

The party was organized by students from several academic departments at the Federal University of Santa Maria. Such organized university parties are common throughout Brazil.

Police Maj. Cleberson Braida Bastianello said by telephone that the toll had risen to 233 with the death of a hospitalized victim.

Brazil President Dilma Rousseff arrived Sunday to visit the injured after cutting short her trip to a Latin American-European summit in Chile.

"It is a tragedy for all of us," said Rousseff, who began her political career in the state where the tragedy took place.

Dr. Paulo Afonso Beltrame, a professor at the medical school of the Federal University of Santa Maria. said he was told the club had been filled far beyond its capacity. He had gone to the city's Caridade Hospital to help victims.

"Large amounts of toxic smoke quickly filled the room, and I would say that at least 90 percent of the victims died of asphyxiation," Beltrame told the AP.

"The toxic smoke made people lose their sense of direction so they were unable to find their way to the exit. At least 50 bodies were found inside a bathroom."

In the hospital, the doctor "saw desperate friends and relatives walking and running down the corridors looking for information," he said, calling it "one of the saddest scenes I have ever witnessed."

Rodrigo Moura, identified by the newspaper Diario de Santa Maria as a security guard at the club, said it was at its maximum capacity of between 1,000 and 2,000 people, and partygoers were pushing and shoving to escape.

Santa Maria Mayor Cezar Schirmer declared a 30-day mourning period, and Tarso Genro, the governor of the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, said officials were investigating the cause of the disaster.

The blaze was the deadliest in Brazil since at least 1961, when a fire that swept through a circus killed 503 people in Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro.

Sunday's fire also appeared to be the worst at a nightclub since December 2000, when a welding accident reportedly set off a fire at a club in Luoyang, China, killing 309 people.

In 2004, at least 194 people died in a fire at an overcrowded nightclub in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Seven members of the band playing at the club were sentenced to prison for starting the flames.

A blaze at the Lame Horse nightclub in Perm, Russia, killed 152 people in December 2009 after an indoor fireworks display ignited a plastic ceiling decorated with branches.

Similar circumstances led to a 2003 nightclub fire that killed 100 people in the United States. Pyrotechnics used as a stage prop by the 1980s rock band Great White set ablaze cheap soundproofing foam on the walls and ceiling of a Rhode Island music venue.

The band performing in Santa Maria, Gurizada Fandangueira, plays a driving mixture of local Brazilian country music styles. Guitarist Martin told Radio Gaucha the musicians are already seeing hostile messages.

"People on the social networks are saying we have to pay for what happened," he said. "I'm afraid there could be retaliation".

___

Associated Press writers Marco Sibaja contributed to this report from Brasilia, Brazil, and Stan Lehman and Bradley Brooks contributed from Sao Paulo.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-01-28-LT-Brazil-Nightclub-Fire/id-baa25f03a0b7408aab484aa52e02853a

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Indiana House speaker, legislators wear sneakers for cancer ...

It was casual attire, sort of, at the Indiana Statehouse Monday, and it was all for a good cause.

Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma (R-Indianapolis), along with House legislators and staff, wore sneakers at the Statehouse Monday as part of the ?Suits and Sneakers? challenge in support of the fight against cancer.

?We all have either been personally affected, or know of someone who has battled cancer,? said Speaker Bosma. ?The toll that this deadly disease has on Hoosiers is staggering. Until a cure is found, we can help raise awareness and show compassion to the families that are involved.?

According to the American Cancer Society, 35,000 Hoosiers were diagnosed with cancer last year and 13,000 died from the disease.

The American Cancer Society and the National Association of Basketball Coaches teamed up to sponsor ?Suits and Sneakers,? a program aimed to raise cancer awareness and support those affected by it.

Indiana State University men?s basketball coach, Greg Lansing, was in attendance at the Statehouse Monday.? He encouraged House members and staff to raise awareness on ways to reduce the risk of cancer such as eating right, exercising and making healthy lifestyle choices.

?Cancer affects thousands of families across our state,? said Speaker Bosma. ?I appreciated the efforts that our Indiana collegiate coaches took in challenging the Legislature to help raise awareness. It was a great opportunity to show our fellow Hoosiers they?re not alone in this fight.?

Photo: (Left to Right) House Speaker Brian C. Bosma (R-Indianapolis) poses with Rep. Alan Morrison (R-Terre Haute), Rep. Bob Heaton (R-Terre Haute) and Coach Greg Lansing, ISU for the American Cancer Society to help raise awareness.

Source: http://fox59.com/2013/01/28/indiana-house-speaker-legislators-wear-sneakers-for-cancer-awareness/

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Apple reportedly readying 128GB "Ultimate" iPad 4 for launch

No sooner was support for 128GB NAND flash storage capacities found in iOS 6 beta 5, than reports pop up saying Apple is readying 128GB "ultimate" versions of the iPad 4 for launch. The news come by way of Mark Gurman of 9to5Mac, who typically has excellent sources on imminent product releases.

We?ve gotten word from sources that Apple is preparing to release (in some fashion) a single, additional iPad model. This would be a new SKU for the current fourth-generation iPad with Retina display line. At this point, we do not have pricing information, so it is definitely difficult to pinpoint exactly what this new iPad model is.

The code names are listed as P101 Ultimate and P103 Ultimate. Gurman stresses that it's not a new iPad, or iPad 5, or anything like that, simply a new, higher capacity version of the current iPad 4, in both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + Cellular, and in both white and black.

In early 2008, Apple bumped the original iPhone from 8 to 16GB, so this type of new SKU launch isn't unprecedented. While it lacks the oomph of a completely new model, given that the iPad was refreshed in both March and October of 2012, it does at least give Apple something new on the market, and at 128GB, and presumably at the pricier end of the line-up, at the top of the market.

No word yet on 128GB versions of the iPad mini, or of the iPhone 5 or iPod touch 5.

Anyone compelled enough by big storage to consider a new purchase when/if he hit stores?

• iPad 4 review
• iPad 4 buyers guide

Source: 9to5Mac

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/z8gefaqflWA/story01.htm

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The Definitive Video Marketing Guide From Newbie To Viral Video ...

Video marketing guide designed to take you from a new comer to a viral video marketing king. To see the licensed products I recommend and use click here - http://bit.ly/WFUejG

The initial step of profitable online video marketing whether you are focusing on YouTube video marketing or more general internet video marketing is market research. The reason why is that you want to make sure that the specific industry niche you are going after is profitable otherwise you are just wasting your time. There is no point in going into a market expecting to make money when there is no one there looking to buy.

You are going to be spending a lot of time creating your marketing video and hours searching for video marketing tips so you want to make sure all that time does not go wasted. You can not afford to skip this step.

To see the products that I license, click here http://bit.ly/WFUejG and either myself or one of my team members will contact you to offer personalized help if you choose to market the same products.

0:30 Step 1 of Video Marketing
1:43 What to look for when doing market research
3:20 Youtube video marketing research
5:10 Product options for profitable marketing

Here is more video marketing tips from one of my colleagues:

How To Utilize Online Videos In Your Business Campaign

Keeping in touch with customers via flat newsletters and traditional emails can become rather boring for both you and your audience. Consider the possibilities offered by video marketing! This article will help you out with a few basic tips and tricks to get you started. After that, it's up to you to quickly adapt to this highly effective tool in advertising.

Video Marketing

When considering video marketing, you have to think about the idea of search engine optimization. You should always include a transcript or overview of your video for people that would rather read instead of watch the video. This is a great idea, and you should make sure you keep up with it as you post videos.

Make sure your audience will be receptive to video marketing before you launch your new campaign. If your typical customers are not likely to use YouTube or share videos on social networks, you should probably focus on other marketing methods. Use surveys to determine how likely your customers are to subscribe to this new campaign.

To help garner even more views embed your video in your website. Most people when they think of video marketing think only of posting a video on YouTube. Instead, post it on your website and include a link on your Facebook wall and Tweet about your new video on Twitter.

Video marketing does not have to be complicated. One of the most popular formats is simply a regular video, without any bells and whistles included. Of course, if you can, those videos with flash animations have also proved popular, as well as picture slide shows with a voice over and music.

If you decide to create a series of videos, it is important that you remain consistent. Try using the same length and format for your videos and use similar title pages and credits so viewers easily recognize your video marketing campaign. If possible, release your videos on a certain day of the week to build anticipation.

Make video marketing a part of your strategy, but do not rely on it entirely. Remember, it can be expensive to continuously post new videos. In addition, it can be time consuming to make them and put them up online. Therefore, while they are very valuable, you should engage in other tactics as well.

Video is a great medium for conveying ideas. This works in business by showing customers what makes your business special. A short video describing your products or highlighting your experience will go a long way to making that sale. Remember to be clear and make any ideas your convey simple to understand so that your video marketing campaign will be a total success.

You've got to use what's at your disposal in business, and having video marketing is certainly an advantage! Hopefully this article has given you a good introduction to this method of marketing and got you thinking. The next step is to step up to the mic and tell the world about your business!

To license products so you can make 100% commissions and not have to pay high licensing costs click here - http://bit.ly/WFUejG

To watch Video #2, click here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRtjVIphELE

Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnWJ2Cu3ZsQ

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Canon EF 180mm Macro f/3.5L USM

By Jim Fisher

The EF 180mm Macro f/3.5L USM ($1,579 list) is a telephoto prime lens for Canon cameras that features macro shooting capability. At its closest focusing distance it supports 1:1 magnification, which means that an object in the image frame will be projected onto the camera's sensor at its actual size. The lens can also be used as a standard telephoto optic?there's a switch on the side of the barrel that allows you to choose between the full focus range for autofocus or to only try and focus on objects that are close to the front element of the lens. One downside to using the lens as a handheld telephoto optic is the lack of image stabilization?something that the similar Sigma 150mm F2.8 EX DG OS HSM APO Macro does include.

The lens is very long, but not overly wide?it measures 7.3 by 3.3 inches and is heavy at 2.4 pounds. A tripod collar, which wraps around the lens near its base, is included. It's a good idea to use it rather than your camera's tripod socket, as it evens out weight distribution to lessen the amount of stress placed upon the lens mount. Standard 72mm filters are supported, and the front element is stationery so using a polarizing filter is feasible. A lens hood and carrying case are included.

I used Imatest to check the sharpness of the lens when paired with the full-frame Canon EOS 6D. I also shot the lens with the APS-C Canon EOS Rebel T4i, whose smaller sensor gives the lens a field of view that is nearly 300mm, which came in handy at a baseball game. The lens puts up impressive sharpness figures?it notched 2,414 lines per picture height at f/3.5, well in excess of the 1,800 lines that mark a sharp photo. Performance increases a bit at f/8, where it hits 2,497 lines. Distortion is not a concern?there is only a negligible 0.2 percent shown in test results. The Sigma 150mm is not as sharp at f/2.8 at 1,843 lines, but it does hit 2,400 at f/4 and comes close to 3,000 lines at f/8.

Aside from the lack of image stabilization, which is not a concern when it comes to macro tripod work, there isn't much negative to say about the Canon EF 180mm Macro f/3.5L. It's expensive, but its price is not out of line for its class?the Sigma 150mm is priced at $1,600, although it often sells for much less, and Nikon's similar AF-S Micro-Nikkor 200mm f/4D IF-ED costs nearly $1,800. If you can live with the slightly wider field, choosing the Sigma will add image stabilization without sacrificing magnification or sharpness at comparable apertures?but there's very little chance that you'll be disappointed by the images that this Canon macro lens can capture.

More Digital Camera Reviews:
??? Canon EF 20mm f/2.8 USM
??? Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
??? Canon TS-E 90mm f/2.8
??? Canon EF 180mm Macro f/3.5L USM
??? Canon EF 28mm f/1.8 USM
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/BjhtvKheuAw/0,2817,2414666,00.asp

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Ellie Kay at MCRD ? San Diego Booksigning + Military Families ...

First of all ? I?m going to be signing ?Heroes at Home? at MCRD (Marine Corp Recruiting Depot) in San Diego at the MCS from 2:00 to 4:00 on January 31, 2013. So please come by and say hello and I?ll be happy to answer any military family finance questions you may have!

We lived in eleven different military houses in the first thirteen years of marriage. We weren?t exactly thinking about the American dream of owning our own home, we were just satisfied if the carpet came with the house and we could get enough bedrooms to have the kids only sleep two to a room! But, eventually, we slowed down our military moves long enough to buy a home and it was worth the wait.

Whether you are a reservist, guard or active duty, you may be in a position to ask a very common question in today?s economy?is now a good time to invest in a home or should you rent? Here are some ideas to help you determine the housing climate for your situation.

Sunny Skies for a $5,000 Grant for YOU

The ?Dream Makers? program from the PenFed Foundation?offers grants up for $5,000 to first time homebuyers of modest means who work in the service of our country?s defense. So go to this site to see if you qualify to be one of those who make home ownership a dream come true!

Dark Clouds Dissipating

Is the housing market finally starting to recover? Larry Shover, author of Trading Options in Turbulent Markets and a regular expert on Fox News says, ?The sheer fact that median rental yields are more than 1.5% higher than the average 30-yr fixed rate mortgage should help support property prices.? People are starting to invest in housing again, whether they are buying it for a family home or as investment property to rent. So now can be a very good time to buy if you plan on keep the home at least three years or if you live in an area where you have the potential to rent out the home when you PCS.

Christine Francis, military spouse of a retired Marine and a current realtor in the Camp Pendleton area says, ? Now is definitely the time to buy because the interest rates are at an all time low. Sometimes military families can get into a home for only a $500 deposit. My agency has been able to get that $500 back by using a VA loan and financing the total amount. When the sellers are paying closing costs, many of my military clients are getting into their new homes for zero down.?

The Perfect Storm : Unemployment and Underemployment

The primary problem that could potentially ruin your sunny days is unemployment, which is expected to remain well above 8% for the rest of the year. If you are active military and plan on staying in the military, then this would not have a great impact unless you depend on the spousal employment to meet the mortgage obligation. However, if you are a Guard or Reserve family or if you are active and plan to separate and find a new job near the house you just purchased, then unemployment is something to take into consideration. The same is true for underemployment: if you don?t get the salary you need to meet your monthly payments. If either of these conditions are on your horizon, then it becomes a riskier endeavor to take the plunge in the housing market.

Clearing Skies ?Interest rates and VA Loans

According to VA data, there are 23.8 million U.S. Veterans and less than 10 percent of them?2.1 million?have VA loans. ?A VA loan is very attractive to most mortgage brokers,? says a representative from USAA home mortgages specializing in U.S. Department of VA loans. He adds, ?VA loans have looser underwriting standards than conventional and even Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans. With a VA loan, veterans can get 100 percent financing without private mortgage insurance (PMI) and lower interest rates.? Plus, you can get up to $3100 when you buy and sell your home through MoversAdvantage with USAA.

Christine Francis says her clients have been getting 3.75% interest rates on VA loans. The other advantage is that sellers are allowed to cover all closing costs, prepaid items and discounts. This lets borrowers essentially walk into their new home with no down payment, no closing costs and a 30 year fixed rate with no mortgage insurance.

Sunny Days ? Housing Inventories

??? In many parts of the country, home prices are so far below their peak that millions of homeowners owe more on their homes than they?re worth. This means that prices are continuing to drop, and may have even bottomed out according to Moody?s Economy.com. Consequently, it continues to be a buyer?s market in terms of value. Christine Francis says, ?Without a crystal ball, it?s hard to tell [where house prices are trending], but I do believe that we are at the bottom of housing prices and the only place we can go is up.?

Plus, with values expected to rise even more toward the end of 2013, the home you buy low, is likely to increase in value almost as soon as you close the deal.

See you at the book signing!

Ellie Kay

America?s Family Financial Expert (R)

?

Source: http://elliekay.com/blog/527/ellie-kay-at-mcrd-san-diego-booksigning-military-families-should-you-rent-or-buy/

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Harry's Afghan downtime: movies, candy trades

In this photo taken Nov. 3 2012, and made available Monday Jan. 21 2013 Britain's Prince Harry or just plain Captain Wales as he is known in the British Army, races out from the VHR (very high ready-ness) tent to scramble his Apache with fellow Pilots, during his 12 hour shift at the British controlled flight-line in Camp Bastion southern Afghanistan, The Ministry of Defense announced Monday that the 28-year-old prince is returning from a 20-week deployment in Afghanistan, where he served as an Apache helicopter pilot with the Army Air Corps. (AP Photo/ John Stillwell, Pool)

In this photo taken Nov. 3 2012, and made available Monday Jan. 21 2013 Britain's Prince Harry or just plain Captain Wales as he is known in the British Army, races out from the VHR (very high ready-ness) tent to scramble his Apache with fellow Pilots, during his 12 hour shift at the British controlled flight-line in Camp Bastion southern Afghanistan, The Ministry of Defense announced Monday that the 28-year-old prince is returning from a 20-week deployment in Afghanistan, where he served as an Apache helicopter pilot with the Army Air Corps. (AP Photo/ John Stillwell, Pool)

In this photo taken Dec. 12 2012, made available Monday Jan. 21 2013 Britain's Prince Harry or just plain Captain Wales as he is known in the British Army, wears a Santa hat as he shows to a TV crew his sleeping area at the VHR (very high readiness) tent close to the flight-line, from Camp Bastion southern Afghanistan. The Ministry of Defense announced Monday that the 28-year-old prince is returning from a 20-week deployment in Afghanistan, where he served as an Apache helicopter pilot with the Army Air Corps. (AP Photo/ John Stillwell, Pool)

In this photo taken Dec. 12, 2012, made available Monday Jan. 21, 2013 of Britain's Prince Harry or just plain Captain Wales as he is known in the British Army, talks to a TV crew after making his early morning pre-flight checks on the flight-line, from Camp Bastion southern Afghanistan. The Ministry of Defense announced Monday that the 28-year-old prince is returning from a 20-week deployment in Afghanistan, where he served as an Apache helicopter pilot with the Army Air Corps. (AP Photo/ John Stillwell, Pool)

LONDON (AP) ? Prince Harry's off-duty time in Afghanistan appeared to be full of war movies, board games and elaborate candy trades.

The 28-year-old helicopter pilot and fellow members of his squad swapped Kit Kats and Rice Krispies Squares for American soldiers' M&Ms, according to a British media pool report released Sunday.

Harry himself outlined one of his less-prestigious duties. The third-in-line to the U.K. throne said anyone who lost at Uckers ? a military game similar to Ludo or Parcheesi ? had to then wait on his comrades like a Buckingham Palace butler, ready with a fresh cup of tea whenever anyone rang their bell.

"Whoever loses ... then you have to make brews for everybody all day," Harry told journalists ahead of his return to Britain this week.

He also denied rumors that he was far better at PlayStation than at traditional board games.

"I don't know who told you that," he told reporters. "I lost two days ago, and yesterday, so since you guys have been here I've only lost."

Harry returned to Britain on Wednesday after a 20-week deployment in Afghanistan in which he acknowledged that he had targeted Taliban fighters from the cockpit of his Apache attack helicopter.

Asked in an earlier round of interviews whether he had killed anyone, Harry said: "Yeah, so, lots of people have." That admission disturbed some Britons and led to front-page headlines like the one in The Daily Mail that read: "Harry: I Have Killed."

This latest round of interviews, focusing on Harry's daily life at Britain's Camp Bastion military base in Afghanistan, is not likely to draw the same kind of headlines.

The report mainly carried glimpses of the prince's daily routine, including his favorite foods ? chicken and broccoli ? and his favorite movies ? "Full Metal Jacket," ''Apocalypse Now," and "Platoon."

In an interesting twist for an Apache pilot, "Black Hawk Down," the Ridley Scott film about a helicopter raid gone wrong in Somalia, was among the movies spotted in Harry's communal tent.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-01-27-Britain-Prince%20Harry/id-1a7ab08705b74d6e943cfe6d8361fcc7

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There Is A Pot Of Gold At The End Of The Internet Marketing Rainbow!!

If you have not started promoting your business via internet marketing, put this on your immediate to-do list.

Online marketing has so many positive influences.

This article will give you guidance to help you get started on a successful internet marketing campaign.

Site-wide links are simply links that appear on every one of your site?s pages.

In most cases, you?ll find these on the lower half of a webpage. They tend to link to things such as contact pages or the site?s menu.

If you want to guide your customers to a certain page, these sorts of links are useful. They also help in site navigation, making it more user-friendly.

You should remember the parts of your site which your customer does not see when you are writing your HTML code.

One key example of this is the meta tag.

These tags are a search engine?s first stop in determining what your site is all about.

You should add alternative tags that will get traffic to your site, but you should focus mainly on the meta tags that are relevant to your site. Rather than using too many tags on your site, research which keywords are popular within your target audience and then implement those keywords with meta tags.

HTML tags are what people use to mark how important a specific text is.

The most important text is the most likely to be emphasized with bold font.

Use bold tagging for titles and key words and concepts throughout the body of the article. Make sure you use the tag on your main title.

In addition, make use of sub-lines for the separate parts of the content. This improves search engine optimization, and makes your site easier to navigate and comprehend.

Make sure you use keywords in your titles so that you can highlight important content.

It is important that you constantly look for new ways to market your products online.

While other marketing techniques can also grow your business, do not write off the potential benefits of internet marketing.

It is common for videos to go viral due to the massive number of Internet junkies using the web today. This happens because internet users spread the viral item to their social contacts online.

Items that go viral do not last very long, but they can be very helpful if you utilize them in the right way. It is hard to discern what types of things will catch on in this way, but if you work hard at developing unusual, amusing and distinctive content, you may be surprised by what can happen.

Knowing what tends to go viral is the first step to creating a viral sensation.

These is only a tiny slice of the internet marketing pie.

Once you have found success with these ideas, look for additional tips to provide you with more success.

Bookmark this website if you would like to learn more on Internet Marketing.

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Source: http://internet-marketing-blog101.com/there-is-a-pot-of-gold-at-the-end-of-the-internet-marketing-rainbow/

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Arianna Huffington: Sunday Roundup

This week, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, amidst the buzz generated by the UK heading into a triple-dip recession, the IMF downgrading its forecast for global growth, and David Cameron's speech on an EU referendum, there was also a lot of talk about the surprising number of sessions devoted to mindful leadership, meditation, wellness, and redefining success -- topics that united, among others, PIMCO's Bill Gross, professors Mark Williams and Sheena Iyengar, neuroscientist Amishi Jha, economist Joe Stiglitz, and Buddhist monk Matthieu Ricard. Tipping point? Perhaps, but definitely a signal that the powers that be are beginning to accept the connection between our ability to deal with the crises that surround us and the way we live our lives, and care for our body, mind, and spirit. This mindset has gone from being dismissed as New Age California flaky to being supported by growing scientific evidence and embraced by a growing number of corporate leaders. Looking inward is suddenly in.

?

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Follow Arianna Huffington on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ariannahuff

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/sunday-roundup_265_b_2558365.html

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Japan defends stimulus, yen policy under fire

DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Japan's economy minister rejected criticism on Saturday that his country's extraordinary fiscal and monetary stimulus program was aimed at weakening the yen and undermined central bank independence.

Akira Amari told the World Economic Forum in Davos it was up to the market to determine the currency's exchange rate, and the Bank of Japan had chosen independently to sign a joint statement with the government on actions to fight deflation and revive economic growth.

"You might think there's a deliberate policy to drive down the value of the yen but we in government refrain from commenting on the exchange rate of the yen," Amari said in response to criticism of Japanese action.

South Korea's central bank governor questioned the efficacy of Japan's easing of monetary policy and said the BOJ's decision to start buying unlimited amounts of assets in 2014 could have unintended long-term consequences.

"What they did created a couple of problems," Bank of Korea Governor Kim Chong-soo told Reuters in an interview in Davos. "One is that the level (of the currency) is affected, and the pace of change is also a problem. They did it too hastily."

A stable exchange rate is key for the Bank of Korea, Kim added.

The yen has come under pressure since reports on Thursday quoted deputy economy minister Yasutoshi Nishimura as saying the yen's decline was not over, and that a dollar/yen level of 100 would not be a concern.

The Japanese currency is now trading around a 2-1/2 year low against the dollar at around 90 yen, as the market remained focused on Japan's pursuit of a reflationary economic policy.

BREAK CYCLE OF DEFLATION

Amari said the government and the BOJ had agreed on exceptional measures because Japan had to break a prolonged cycle of deflation and economic contraction.

Appearing on the same panel, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde refrained from direct criticism but urged Japan to put forward a medium-term plan to reduce its public debt after this week's measures.

"Japan has made very important decisions. We are very interested in these policies. We would like them to complement it with a mid-term plan on how the debt would be reduced," Lagarde said.

Japan's debt stood at 235 percent of gross domestic product before new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced a new deficit-financed stimulus program this month. The BOJ said it was doubling its inflation target to 2 percent and would take new monetary stimulus measures.

Appearing on the same panel, Canadian central bank chief Mark Carney, soon to take over as governor of the Bank of England, said the Japanese policy as outlined did not breach the Group of Seven industrial nations' policy understanding against unilateral currency intervention.

However a European Central Bank source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the ECB was "not very happy" at what was seen as a step towards competitive devaluations and the Group of 20 major economies' finance ministers and central bankers should address the issue next month.

"I guess this is a G20 issue that needs to be addressed there. It is potentially dangerous and we should avoid (currency wars)," the source said.

"It's not a problem yet. But if they (Japan) continue in that direction and we see also what's happening with quantitative easing in the United States and Britain, then we would be the only one who would not follow suit.

"The risk is that this would indeed have an effect on the exchange rate and that we would get into a dangerous situation," the ECB source said.

(Reporting by Lisa Jucca, Kelvin Soh and Paul Taylor; writing by Paul Taylor; editing by Jason Neely)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/japan-minister-not-trying-weaken-yen-central-bank-141103533--business.html

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SimpleSignal's Video Conferencing Team Receives RealPresence ...

SimpleSignal Continues Significant Commitment of Resources to Hosted Video Communication and Collaboration as a Key Initiative for 2013.

Dana Point, CA (PRWEB) January 25, 2013

SimpleSignal, Inc., the leading service provider of cloud-based unified communications and collaboration (UC&C) for business, today announced RealPresence Environment Certification from Polycom, Inc., the global leader in open standards-based unified communications and collaboration. SimpleSignal Channel Managers: Scott Davidson, Ira Feuerstein, Shannon Martin, Ryan McDowell, and Jeff Sexton, along with the company?s Executive Vice President, Michael Sterl, were acknowledged by Polycom as Qualified Representatives of the RealPresence video conferencing solution.

?As part of our strategic partnership with Polycom, we feel this certification allows our channel managers to provide best in class service not only to our existing customers but also to our channel partners and their customers,? said Michael Sterl. ?As we continue to improve SimpleSignal?s Video-as-a-Service (VaaS) offering, it is critical that all members of our team understand the interoperability of the Polycom RealPresence environment with our service.?

The RealPresence Environment Sales Track, presented by Polycom University, provides a comprehensive overview of the RealPresence environment including immersive telepresence, desktop and mobile applications, as well as an overview of the supported video endpoints. Additionally, the course provides detailed information regarding various financing options from Polycom.

Polycom University offers targeted training content delivered by the company?s team of highly-skilled instructors and can be deployed in a classroom setting, which is available live online as well, or as a self-paced online program. Each track for product-based courses provides a blend of both instructor lectures and presentations and hands-on exercises. This dynamic blend of educational techniques equips students with valuable product knowledge, solution-based problem resolution and a complete understanding of the video collaboration systems.

About SimpleSignal
SimpleSignal is an enterprise hosted PBX and cloud-based Unified Communications service provider, delivering voice, video, and mobile communications to thousands of satisfied business customers globally. The company provides the most innovative and advanced mobile/video PBX capabilities in the industry, and is one of the first companies ever to extend video PBX telephony over iPads, iPhones, and Android mobile devices that can connect with any brand of video conferencing equipment. For more information, visit http://www.simplesignal.com, check out the company blog at http://www.simplesignal.com/blog, or connect at facebook.com/simplesignal and twitter.com/simplesignal.

About Polycom
Polycom is the global leader in open standards-based unified communications and collaboration (UC&C) solutions for voice and video collaboration, trusted by more than 415,000 customers around the world. Polycom solutions are powered by the Polycom? RealPresence? Platform, comprehensive software infrastructure and rich APIs that interoperate with the broadest set of communication, business, mobile and cloud applications and devices to deliver secure face-to-face video collaboration in any environment. Polycom and its ecosystem of over 7,000 partners provide truly unified communications solutions that deliver the best user experience, highest multi-vendor interoperability, and lowest TCO. Visit http://www.polycom.com or connect with us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to learn how we?re pushing the greatness of human collaboration forward.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2013/1/prweb10359470.htm

Source: http://www.virtual-strategy.com/2013/01/25/simplesignal%E2%80%99s-video-conferencing-team-receives-realpresence-environment-certification-po

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Ren? Girard gets new honor - The Book Haven - Stanford University

An immortel in 2005

I was visiting with Ren? and Martha Girard last night at their Stanford home. He was a bit under the weather with an oncoming cold, and Martha brewed a Chinese tea for all three of us.? In the domestic setting, they didn?t whisper a word of the latest international news.? But here it is this morning:

Professor Emeritus Ren? Girard will be granted the Order of Isabella the Catholic, Commander by Number, by the Spanish head of state, H.M. King Juan Carlos. Girard is receiving the decoration ?for his outstanding work, during the past decades, in the fields of philosophy and anthropology.? ? The Order of Isabella the Catholic is a Spanish civil order bestowed upon both Spanish citizens and foreigners in recognition of services that benefit the country.

What service has he rendered Spain?? Recall the role of Don Quixote in his landmark Deceit, Desire and the Novel.

A statement from the cultural advisors to King Juan Carlos points to Girard?s ?profound attachment? to ?Spanish culture as a whole? as reason for the award. Girard has repeatedly said that the works of Miguel de Cervantes, one of Spain?s greatest writers, have been crucial to him when it came to elaborating his theories.

Merci.

The article notes that the mimetic theory is ?arguably? his most famous theory.? Okay, I?ll argue.? At least a little.? Having spent hours poring over the clippings in the Girard archives at the Biblioth?que Nationale de France, the biggest file of news clippings is easily Violence and the Sacred.? When I speak to Europeans ? such as Mario Biagini, or Tomas Venclova ? they say that Violence and the Sacred is the book that had a powerful impact on their thinking and their lives.

That?s the book that made an apparent (but only apparent) U-turn from literary theory to anthropology, sociology, and the social sciences.? He began to theorize about the origins of violence, and the role of the scapegoat in unifying societies.? He lost a few fans, no doubt, who wanted the shoemaker to stick to his last ? but that?s the book that moved him into another sphere, making him one of the greatest thinkers of the last century.

The Consul General of Spain in San Francisco, Jorge Montealegre Buire, delivered the award to the immortel of the Acad?mie Fran?aise in a private ceremony with his family today.? I hope it went well.

There is always a takeaway when I visit Girard.? This time I took away ? his cold.? It may be a quieter weekend than I?d planned.

Tags: Jorge Montealegre Buire, King Juan Carlos, Ren? Girard

This entry was posted on Friday, January 25th, 2013 at 11:07 pm by Cynthia Haven and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Source: http://bookhaven.stanford.edu/2013/01/rene-girard-gets-new-honor-from-the-king-of-spain-no-less/

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Build a Sturdy, Good-Looking Raspberry Pi Case from Cardboard

If you're planning to do any of the Raspberry Pi hacks we've featured this week, you'll probably need a decent case for your Pi before you get started. Design Engineer Jude Pullen wanted one too, but also wanted to use materials he already had. A couple of cardboard boxes and a hot glue gun were all it took to build this case.

Jude walks us through the process from start to finish at the link below, including the measurements and cuts required to make the case look as good as this one?complete with the lights shining through the case, all of the holes for the required ports, and even the toothpick ventilation bars across the top of the case to keep the Pi nice and cool. The video above, which Jude made for DesignSpark, outlines the project.

He used standard cardboard for the case, but he also notes that you shouldn't just take his finished product for granted?consider what kind of cardboard you have on hand to work with, and then think about what the final product you plan to use your Pi for will look like. Then you can build a case to match. This case, for example, is ideal for a media center or other stand-alone Pi project. Hit the link below to take a look and see how it's all done.

How to make a Raspberry Pi Case | Design Modeling with Jude Pullen via Instructables

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/otAtjvjlkJU/build-a-sturdy-good+looking-raspberry-pi-case-from-cardboard

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Parrot Zik

The Parrot Zik seems to do everything. Wireless Bluetooth audio? Check. Active noise cancellation? Yep. Integrated NFC and touch sensitive controls that auto-pause your music when you remove the headphones? Of course. There's even a free app from Parrot that's extremely useful. However, one reason it's useful is that it's the only way to balance out the Zik's highly-sculpted frequency response. With so many bells and whistles, the Zik, designed by Philippe Starck, risks being a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. It's not the best-sounding, nor best noise canceling pair out there, but at $399.95 (list), it's priced like it is. So many products would be a jumbled mess with such an array of features, however, and the Zik manages its arsenal gracefully. Above all else, it's a beautifully, thoughtfully designed headphone pair.

Design
First things first: These headphones are pretty stunning, with a luxurious combination of black leather, chrome, and a nice black matte surface. The ear pads are very plush, and for the first thirty seconds, they're the most comfortable headphones you've ever worn. Eventually, the underside of the headband, which can be precision adjusted and then locked in place, gets a little uncomfortable, putting some less-than-cushiony pressure on the scalp, regardless of adjustments. The awesome ear pads more than cancel out the headband's less-than-comfortable design, however.

Aside from a Power button on the right ear, there are no buttons, but there are plenty of invisible controls. Once you've paired your device via Bluetooth?a process that can be done swiftly via NFC on compatible devices, and fairly quickly using the standard pairing method, as well?you can control volume by swiping your finger up or down the right ear's outer panel. Swipe forward or backward, you skip a song or rewind. Tap once, and you pause or answer a call. It's all quite intuitive, and completely hidden from sight.

Then there's the sensor on the surface of the ear pads that detects when you're wearing the headphones. The aforementioned app lets you set the Zik up so the active noise cancellation switches on the moment the sensor detects they're on?a process that takes a split second. Your music also auto-pauses every time you remove the headphones, and starts up when you put them back on. Simply put, these are very impressive design functions?the kind that, at first, wow you a little bit with their simplicity and originality.

Occasionally, the sensor falters?after all, it's a filter that detects pressure from your skin, but not specifically your cheek. If you rest your headphones around your neck or place your fingers in the wrong spot while holding them, you might hear your music start up unexpectedly. It's easy to fix, however?just move the ear pads away from your skin.

I'd argue the convenient auto-pause feature is more than just a novelty, and worth this minor side-issue, though I do wish the app allowed you to shut this feature off if you so desired. You can override playback by using the controls on your source device. You can also fine tune volume settings and navigate playback on the source device, without issue, for those who don't want to use the blind controls on the right ear's surface.

The headphones also include a built-in mic for taking calls, and additional mics for the noise cancellation. A 3.5mm audio cable is also included for wired playback. A USB cable is included for charging and updates, though you can also wirelessly receive updates (via Bluetooth) to the headphones' firmware via the App.

Even the battery compartment is well-designed. The outside panel of the left ear cup pops off easily, in goes the included rechargeable battery, and a light magnetic force snaps it consistently back into place. I'd guess I could remove and replace the lid without much effort in less than two seconds on every try. Parrot rates the battery life at roughly 6 hours when you are using all the features, 18 hours when you use just the noise cancellation (it can be turned off in the app), and 24 hours of standby.

Performance
It's kind of hard to pinpoint what the Zik actually sounds like, since it's very tweakable, thanks to the customizable EQ. To be blunt, without the EQ, the Zik does not sound very good, to me at least. It is far too bass heavy, with weird spikes around the hi-mid region that have an unpleasant effect on vocals and the attack of stringed instruments and some percussion. However: There is never any distortion at top volumes, even on deep bass tracks, and you can fine-tune the EQ so much as to almost completely eliminate the harshness of the sound signature.

Furthermore, while you can use the Zik in passive mode (without being powered up), it might as well be a different pair of headphones. No power gives you a more or less bass-free, treble-heavy frequency response, while powering up makes things overly-bass-heavy. Obviously, you can only use the headphones passively when the included 3.5mm cable is connected to your sound source. (By the way, in wired mode, the Zik will mute your music, but not pause it. At least this was the case with an older MacBook?with headphones off, sound disappeared, but the song in iTunes continued to play.) Being able to use the headphones wired, and even passively, albeit with diminishing returns, is a plus. But the bottom line here is: The Zik has an identity crisis, sonically speaking.

With no EQ adjustment, and powered up, the Zik manages a dubious feat: It is simultaneously muddy (lacking definition in the low-mid range) and tinny (overly tweaked and harsh in the hi-mid range). Not exactly $400 sound. But a visit to the free app, and some tweaking (I lowered the deep bass, boosted the mid-bass frequencies, cut the high-mids, and boosted the highs?in each case, not by much) turns the Zik's capable drivers into nice-sounding headphones.

I could go through my usual descriptions of how classical, pop, rock, hip hop, and folk music sound through the Zik, but it seems pointless. Trust me: if you care about sound quality, you'll be adjusting the Zik from its default setting immediately. If adjustment were impossible, the Zik's rating would probably be a 3.0, saved from a worse rating by its excellent, groundbreaking design. But since the default setting can be so easily tweaked and tuned, and even turned into a frequency response that borders on flat (or booming, if you wish), it's pointless to rate and review this headphone pair in a vacuum. Basically, if you lack an iOS or Android device, don't bother with the Zik, because the app is the single-most important piece of the puzzle when it comes to its audio performance.

But let's not forget about noise cancellation. When you first place the Zik on your head, the world appears to go on mute. Is the noise cancellation as stark (no pun intended) as, say, the Bose QuietComfort 15's? No. but it's still quite effective, and while there is some noticeable hiss added to the equation, it's not nearly as noticeable as it is on pairs with less effective NC circuitry. The circuitry here is above average?not the best, but in a pair that also happens to be wireless and full of secret magic tricks, certainly more than acceptable.

Who is the Zik for? Travelers, I'd guess?those with Bluetooth mobile devices, a desire for active noise cancellation, and, let's face it, those who want a very stylish and feature-loaded product. The Zik won't disappoint this crowd.

However, $400 is a lot of money, and if you're more of a sound snob than a feature-fiend, there are other headphones in this realm to consider. If noise cancellation is the most important thing to you, the aforementioned Bose QuietComfort 15 is superior. If you're looking for great noise cancellation as well as excellent audio performance, the AKG K 490 NC is a borderline masterpiece. And if you couldn't care less about noise cancellation but would love a wireless headphone pair that sounds great, consider the Logitech UE 9000.

If?all of this sounds very nice, but what you really want is a wireless option for a lot less money, consider the simple-but-effective Sennheiser MM 100?there's no noise cancellation, but at moderate levels it offers solid wireless audio at a fraction of the price.?

For those of you who love the sleek design and clever features that Apple has built into its products over the years, the Parrot Zik offers that level of appeal, answering needs you didn't think you had, and doing so automatically. I wish it sounded better out of the box, but kudos to Philippe Starck?the Zik is a magnum opus of design.

More Headphone Reviews:
??? Parrot Zik
??? Pioneer HDJ-2000
??? MartinLogan Mikros 70
??? Beats by Dr. Dre Powerbeats
??? Yamaha PRO 300
?? more

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