The red-haired electro star supported Allen on her recent UK tour, and disclosed that she had an aggressive competitive streak when it came to keeping fit by playing games on the console. "I didn't partake in the Wii sports that she did because it just always got too aggressive because she's so competitive, which I am, but not in like sports or computer games because I don't really care," said Jackson, speaking to Manchester radio station Key 103. "But she gets so into it, it got actually a bit terrifying. "After a while it was just like every time she got the Wii thing into her hand everyone was like 'oh my god, disperse' – like stand back – because she hit Micky in the face about three times. "She'd really get into tennis, but she'd do it when there was no space, she doesn't care, she'd like hit people and be like I don't care, I'm winning! So that was just stay out of the way, I think she was playing the computer. "But it's a good way to do exercise, she was using it as a kind of exercise I think because I know she's been on kind of a health trip recently and I think that was kind of a good way of keeping fit on tour." Jackson, 20, is the daughter of actress Trudie Goodwin who plays Sgt June Ackland in ITV's The Bill. ( www.telegraph.co.uk )
Lily Allen Is A 'Terrifying' Whizz On Nintendo Wii Console
by Firzy | 10:29 AM in Internet News | comments (0)
The Hotelicopter - First Giant Flying Hotel in the World
by Firzy | 9:08 AM in Auto Tech, Environment Technology, Future Technology | comments (0)
If you cannot afford buying a private jet then it would be interesting for you to know that American engineers recently unveiled the Hotelicopter concept, which is, in fact, a heavy lift aircraft transformed into a flying hotel equipped with 4 stores and 18 rooms. The aircraft was constructed according to the model of the Soviet Mi V-12, which was the largest helicopter ever built. It is worth mentioning in 1960 the Soviet engineers created only 2 prototypes of the aircraft. According to the Hotelicopter company, it acquired one of the upper mentioned Soviet prototypes in 2004 and now its flying hotel is ready for the first flight, which will take place on June 26th. Although the computer generated images of the Hotelicopter are really stunning, showing that its designers surely had a lot of imagination, the aircraft's Maximum Takeoff Weight of 105,850 kg (232,870 lb) is just the same as that of the initial prototype Mi V-12. This means that there's little chance that the Hotelicopter can have a three story luxury hotel added onto it. The Hotelicopter site features a design of the aircraft, with information saying that the flying 5-star hotel can boast soundproofed rooms, each featuring queen-sized bed, fine linens, a mini-bar, coffee machine, wireless internet access, and a long list of luxurious appointments one would probably not expect from such a machine. As for the original Mi V-12, then it should be mentioned that the Soviet aircraft was really huge, bigger than any other heavy lift helicopter currently in use. Note that each rotor of the flying giant had a diameter of about 115 ft (35 meters). All rotors were mounted at the end of a large wing. On August 6, 1969, two Soviet V-12s carried out a successful flight, setting a helicopter heavy lift world record, which is 44,205 kg (88,636 lb) at a height of 2,255 meters (7,398 feet). They did not make it into the mass production due to the fact that they were hard to maneuver. The Hotelicopter company announced that it's giant flying hotel will perform its inaugural flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport on June 26, 2009. ( www.infoniac.com )Source
The brainchild of Dr Stephen Wolfram, a British physicist, the computational search engine soft launched at the end of last week, but was fully unveiled on Monday. Wolfram Alpha is a natural search engine, which filters information and data stored in its own vast databases to answer specific search queries. The aim is to return a single search result with the right answer, rather than a list of thousands of web pages which may or may not contain the information requested, as is the case with other search engines, such as Google and Yahoo!. This is because Wolfram Alpha doesn’t crawl the web for its answers like Google does. It actually searches its own huge database of factual data. Dr Wolfram's brother, Conrad Wolfram, who is the website’s creator and strategic director of the company, told The Telegraph: “If you use a search engine, it’s a bit like a librarian who gives you a whole set of papers that you need to look through to get the answer. If you use Wolfram Alpha, it’s more like having your own personal analyst who takes the question you’ve got and tries to come back with a specific set of answers unique to your question.” Early user response has been mixed. The search engine has been praised for its extensive database and detailed results, however the single answer it selects for the users is not always the best one in terms of relevancy, prompting some users to prefer Google’s range of results. Last week Google announced its own take on computational search with the launch of its new tool, Google Squared. It allows users to type in a specific query and receive a list of information that relates to that search term. For example, a search for London boroughs will return a list of all boroughs alphabetically, along with links to relevant websites and information about population and the leader of the council. The results are presented in a grid, and users can remove columns of unwanted information or add a column of data they would prefer to see. ( www.telegraph.co.uk )
Daimler Presents Mercedes-Benz F-CELL Roadster Featuring Hybrid Drive
by Firzy | 9:00 AM in Auto Tech | comments (0)
On March 25th, 2009, Daimler presented the F-CELL Roadster, the company's latest model from its "F-Series" concept cars. The design of the vehicle was inspired by different eras of car industry. There are such design features as the carbon-fiber bucket seats covered by hand-stitched leather and the uniquely styled fiberglass front section, which was borrowed from the Formula One racing bolides. The car's emission-free fuel cell system, found at the rear, generates a power of 1.2kW, making it possible for the hybrid roadster to reach a maximum speed of 25 km/h (15mph) and realize an operating range of up to 350 km (217 miles). The design is probably the car's most striking aspect, mixing the original Benz patent motor car with features borrowed from Formula One Racing. It took about a year for over 150 trainees and dual education system students to design, develop and assemble the exclusive hybrid model at Daimler AG at the Sindelfingen plant. Trainees managed to combine high-tech and tradition, thus building the vehicle of the future. Junior employees from the fields of automotive mechatronics, model-building, electronics, coating technology, manufacturing mechanics, product design, and interior appointments, worked together to create the F-CELL. "This project impressively demonstrates that the topic of sustainable mobility has become an integral part of our vocational training," outlined Human Resources Board member and Labor Relations Manager Günther Fleig. The F-CELL's large spoked wheels represent the car's reference to the Benz Patent Motor Car from 1886. The car is controlled with the help of drive-by-wire technology. In addition, a joystick replaces the steering wheel.( www.infoniac.com )
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Awkward Family Photos Blog Becomes Web Sensation
by Firzy | 8:56 AM in Internet News, Network | comments (0)
The Blog was only established this month but is already attracting more than two million visitors a day, with major publishers lining up to offer book deals. The premise of the site – gauche family photos, wittily captioned – has hit a nerve with people delighted to discover that the eccentricities of their own relatives are far from unique. Among the most popular images so far is a soft focus shot of a pregnant woman and her partner embracing as they gaze sweetly at the camera. Both are shirtless. In another, titled "The Choker", a smiling son grips his mother tightly around the neck while his father – wearing a dog collar and shorts – looks on. The caption reads: "This is what happens when your male role model is both a priest and a gym teacher." Mike Bender, who co-founded the website with fellow Los Angeles-based writer Doug Chernack, said that they hoped it would become a "communal celebration of awkwardness", and was not intended to humiliate those pictured. "It hit us that there was something universal about the awkwardness of family and we thought it be cool to blog about that," he said. "And what better way to show that than through the family photo, something everyone can relate to?" The first photos were sent in by the founders' friends or lifted from elsewhere on the web, but the site is now being deluged with reader submissions. Mr Bender has even posted a photo of his own relatives. "Our only fear was whether or not we'd get submissions, but people have been sending them in like crazy. and they really seem to get it, because the majority of photos are great," he said. "I think there is something kind of cathartic for people about sharing the oddness of their families and that's what we hope the site will be, a communal celebration of awkwardness." But not every gets published. "We had one woman send in a photo of her during a water birth. She thought it was awkward. We were disturbed," he said. Mr Bender said that they had received approaches from Harper Collins, Penguin and Time Warner Books about releasing an Awkward Family Photos book after the site was featured on popular blogs including Gawker and Boing Boing. ( www.telegraph.co.uk )Source
Prada Transformer - A Building That Changes Its Shape
by Firzy | 6:36 AM in Environment Technology, Internet News | comments (0)
Previous works of Rem Koolhaas, a famous Dutch architect and "Professor in Practice of Architecture and Urban Design" at the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University, USA, always managed to impress people but his latest work is probably the most daring and inspiring. It's called the Transformer and was designed in collaboration with Prada. The Transformer represents a pavilion that was designed with the goal of accommodating various cultural programs and functions such as art, architecture, film, and fashion. Because the famous architect doesn't always consider applying traditional methods of design and construction , his new creation literally transforms according to a specific function. The name says it all - the Transformer changes its shape for different events. Designers will construct the Transformer using a steel framed tetrahedron, which will be covered in a plastic membrane. Four different shapes make the tetrahedron: a hexagon, cross, rectangle and circle. Whether a fashion show is going to take place or a movie will be shown, the construction will be lifted then rotated on its axis and then put back down. A rectangle floor was developed for cinema; for a fashion show the Transformer will have the floor in shape of a cross and so on. Visitors will have the ability to see and appreciate the building starting with the end of March and till July 2009 in Seoul. ( www.infoniac.com )Source
Internet Users 'could Suffer Brownouts Due To YouTube And iPlayer'
by Firzy | 6:33 AM in Internet News, Network | comments (0)
Computers will freeze and drop offline with increasing regularity as the web's outdated infrastructure struggles to cope with the surging popularity of bandwidth-hungry video sites, it is claimed. Analysts are warning that the internet will cease to function as an effective tool of communication – becoming merely an "unreliable toy" for casual users – unless networks are upgraded. The Government has made universal broadband the cornerstone of its digital policy, promising that every household will have a connection by 2012. But there are concerns that a failure to commit to new high-speed networks could undermine the long-term future of the economy. Online traffic is already growing at 60 per cent a year, but Ted Ritter of Nemertes Research, a think tank, predicts demand could double in 2009, driven by increased use of video-on-demand websites. More than 180 million television programmes were watched over the internet in the first year of the BBC's iPlayer catch-up service, with rivals 4oD and ITV.com also attracting large audiences. The video-sharing website YouTube, which has helped propel Britain's Got Talent winner Susan Boyle to international fame, reportedly uses as much bandwidth as the entire internet took up in 2000. "Today people know how home computers slow down when the kids get back from school and start playing games, but by 2012 that traffic jam could last all day long," Mr Ritter said. "For business purposes, such as delivering medical records between hospitals in real time, it's useless." Telecoms companies in Britain are already investing in new fibre-optic cables to replace the existing network of copper lines – BT has pledged to connect 10 million homes to its super-fast service by 2012, and Virgin Media is also rolling out fibre optic broadband. But it is feared that millions of homes particularly in rural areas will be left with a crawling, second-rate service as internet use explodes. Some internet service providers are planning to profit from the predicted congestion by charging websites to fast-track their content, in a move seen as compromising "net neutrality" – the principle that all web content should be transmitted with equal priority. Mr Ritter, who is compiling a report on the future on the web to be published later this year, has warned online surfers to expect "brownouts" – debilitating combinations of screen freezes and slow connections - in the near future. "At best, we see the [economic] slowdown delaying the fractures for maybe a year," he said. ( www.telegraph.co.uk )
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