Technology These Days

A camera with Wi-Fi? It is truly crazy what technology can allow us to do today. Who would have thought that we would be able to take a picture with our digital camera, connect to Wi-Fi, and upload them to facebook? I sure wouldn't have, but that is the great thing about technology, it can surprise us beyond our beliefs.

Now, some camera companies are trying to make it easier to share high-quality photos with WiFi-enabled digital cameras. I tested Samsung's ST80, a 14.2 mega pixel point-and-shoot camera that lets you send photos straight from the device over WiFi.

This Samsung ST80 allows you to take a picture, and then makes it so you can upload it to the Internet. It is a much simpler way than to have to connect it to your computer, add them to your photo album and then add them to the Internet. Now this camera allows you to skip most of those steps and put them right where you want them. I was amazed when I read this article by how technology is so advanced these days. People used to have cameras that they had to go down to the local store to get their film developed, and now with a little help from Wi-Fi they can put it on their facebook right after they take it. This camera had some flaws but in due time the camera will be up to par and a lot of people will have their precious moments on the Internet right away. This was a great business move for Samsung because many of their users probably have a facebook and many people want to be ahead of the game so the sales I think should be going up.

Book Ads

An ad in your book? A book is a place that is supposed to let you get away from all the commercial ads and Internet ads. A book is a place that should let you relax instead of a place where a bunch of ads are trying to sell you the next big thing. I think E-books were a great invention because you don't have to carry a bunch of books around and you can have them stored on to on little device. It's basically an iPod for your books.

Marketers are exploring a variety of formats, including sponsorships that give readers free books. Videos, graphics or text with an advertiser's message that appear when a person first starts a book or along the border of the digital pages are also in the works. Ads can be targeted based on the book's content and the demographic and profile information of the reader.

I feel that no one will want to see an ad while they are reading their favorite book. A book isn't supposed to be flooded with ads, that's why we have the TV and Internet. These companies should shy away from putting their ads into books because I feel that the readers will just get mad and not like those companies anymore. Sure, an ad here and there wouldn't kill us all. But not in our books. It's our one place to get away from you major corporations trying to sell us all of your stuff. People like their e-books and will want to continue to have them but may have to pay the price of a few ads here and there.

Mental Health Break

Crazy Hockey Goal

BYD?

Chinese battery and car maker BYD Co. has future plans to start putting electric cars into Southern California. They plan to ship 50 e6 electric cars to test how they work out. They are also supplying e-buses which if that is a big hit, will lead to a major manufacturing plant in the city. Who knows, these electric cars could be the thing of the future, but we will be helping out China's economy a lot more.

Originally, the e6 vehicle was supposed to launch in the U.S. this year. The delay has been a setback for the global ambitions of China's auto sector, which wants to use electric-vehicle technology to close the distance with more-established global car makers.

I think this is a great idea because it will be a lot more helpful to our environment. The only down side to this is that it may hurt our economy because many of the American car companies will go out of business because so many people will be wanting this new green technology car. But jobs aside, this could really help our people because it will not pollute and we won't have to be taking fuels from hell anymore. This is a major breakthrough and a great step for people to becoming green. I just don't see why they don't send over more and get the e-buses sent already because we need major improvement to our environment and this is the starting point. People should buy this car because we need to start changing if we want this earth here for a really long time. If this pops off, this business will skyrocket and be a world leading car manufacture.

BP Making Transformations

No one wants another huge catastrophe of oil being leaked out and killing our wildlife again. For oil, we keep drilling deeper and deeper and this is putting us at risk for another enormous leak. But BP is making a lot of new safety regulations and trying to keep our water clean while we continue to offshore drill. To this day, we are still cleaning up from the huge explosion on April 20th (picture below) and we can not afford another one.

The oil and gas industry needs a "major transformation" in its approach to safety to avoid another big offshore-drilling disaster, a leader of the presidential panel investigating the BP PLC accident plans to tell a gathering of industry officials Wednesday.
 

I think this is a great thing for this business to do. It will help the image of their business to make them seem like that care about the environment to take every precaution so we don't experience another spill. This is a great business move also because they won't have to deal with any big future spills if they make everything more safe when they offshore drill. I just wish that the company would have thought about making these changes before we had our huge spill because now the Gulf of Mexico has major damage that will stay there for a very long time. People wanted BP to stop drilling in the Gulf of Mexico but they said that it was unrealistic because it would threaten U.S. jobs and energy needs. BP just needs to pay for their mistake and clean up and make every possible precaution to avoid having another enormous spill. 

Put it on the Tab

While Meg Whitman was running for the Governor of California,  a Latino maid scandal erupted. Whitman had an illegal immigrant working in her household as a maid, and let her go when she figured out she didn't have her papers. The illegal immigrant wanted money for unpaid wages so she took it to court.

Whitman has denounced the allegations as a "baseless smear attack" by Democratic challenger Jerry Brown and the unions who supported his campaign. Still, her campaign began to lose public support after the status of Diaz Santillan was revealed.

Even if this was brought up by Jerry Brown and the unions who supported him, I feel that it is totally okay. Whitman tried to throw Brown under the bus for the longest time and obviously, failed. This situation made Whitman less popular and lost the vote of most of the Latino population. Nicky Diaz Santillan, the illegal immigrant, was subjected to 5,500 dollars for unpaid wages. This amount of money was probably nothing compared to the amount of money she paid to lose an election. 

Mental Health Break

Song stuck in my head with a very good video. I don't think it is the real video but it is very good.

Four More Years*

NATO, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, claims that the expected 2014 release of the troops in Afghanistan may be even longer. The shift over to Afghan forces may take longer than the time they expected.

It was the latest indication that the U.S.-led military operation in Afghanistan will remain sizable well into the next decade, despite plans to draw down troops and transfer responsibility to the Afghan government.

The end of 2014 isn't a deadline, it's a goal. Tons of families are praying that their loved ones come back home. They want this war to be over just like everyone else. It is sad that these troops have to risk their lives everyday and now to find that it may take even longer. This process needs to hurry up because everyday of them being their is a risk. I feel sorry for all the families because the holidays are coming up and those are the main times for family. Now one wants the loved ones thousands of miles away while they are enjoying turkey and presents without them. Also they need to take those troops out because 2012 is around the corner and no one wants to spend their last days at war.

Oh My...

About a month back I posted a video about Christine O'Donnell and her view about masturbation. Here is more to her story.



Seriously? This lady is running for Senator? I can't see how anyone would back this lady. She should just go back to S.A.L.T so we can continue to ignore her. I can't believe how anyone could back a lady who asks a question and the answer is the 1st amendment. It's about intelligence when you get into politics, and obviously this lady doesn't have it. I'm so glad I don't live in Delaware so I don't have to deal with this lady. To answer your question in the last line of the video, We don't need you. Go back to S.A.L.T so we can ignore you and you don't have to be a figure that we have to watch in the news everyday. It also doesn't help your cause for me if you can't answer my tweet about asking where it says in the constitution it  says separation of church and state. Or maybe you still don't know.

Mental Health Break

You Can't be Serious



I think that all of these folds are clearly coincidental. There's no way that the designing of the bill had any thing to do with 9/11 and Osama.

No on Prop 23

Will this ad work? Prop 23 is about clean energy and rich Texas oil companies trying to keep pumping in their oil. When I watched this ad, I thought it was very good for three reasons. One, it got to the point. It told all the facts, and said why you should vote on Prop 23. Two, it went from serious to funny. Everyone likes a little humor and doesn't always want boring and serious. Three, it used people we look up to. We see that Arnold and James Cameron are backing this, so people will feel that they should also back it. If i could vote for this I think I would vote no. We obviously need new clean energy if we want to keep our earth for a really long time. We have to make changes in the way we treat our environment and this is just one step to get us on the right track.

The Right Way to Make an Ad

I feel this is the right way to do a commercial. It shows what Brown has done for the state of California. All of Whitman's ads are always negative towards Brown and never really show what her herself has done. I also feel that this is a strong commercial because there is nothing screaming about negativity. Yes it shows that Whitman isn't from California, but that's not to bad. I feel like Whitman should go back to New York and a native to California should be running our state. Brown was born in San Francisco, and unlike the Long Island native Whitman, he has a more in touch relationship with the state and means much more to him. I'm not sure who will win, but if I were voting I think I would vote for Brown just because the way Whitman hasn't took such a professional approach.

Whitman Won't Get Rid of the Ads?

On Tuesday, October 26, Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman had a major meeting with an audience of mainly women. Governor Schwarzenegger was also at this meeting, giving his views on the commercials and where the candidates should focus their thoughts. A big topic at this discussion was about Meg Whitman's very harsh commercials that she paid for with money out of her pocket. Jerry Brown also has commercials about Whitman, but nothing compared to the extent of Meg. 

Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman drew a chorus of boos from the capacity crowd at a major women's gathering here Tuesday after going on the attack against her Democratic opponent Jerry Brown and refusing to withdraw her negative television ads, as Brown said he would, for the rest of the campaign

I feel that this is a good debate because it is in our own great state of California. I personally think that Whitman should have said she would take down the commercials because I feel as if she crossed the line. Her commercials may all be true, but it gets annoying every commercial break when I see Whitman basically ripping Brown to shreds. Yes, all of her commercials may be facts, but you have to draw the line somewhere. Whitman got tons of boos from the crowd which I think she deserves. The election is very close and will come down to the wire, but if Whitman loses, her money has been wasted.

Don't Ask, Don't Tell

One of the policies in the armed forces is the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. This policy bans gay and lesbian from serving openly in the U.S. military. The Obama administration asked the federal judge who issued the ruling for an emergency stay of her decision. I don't understand why it matters when they change the law, it's not like it will change much during the war because they are already fighting for that common goal, to win the war. The people that are in the war are adults, and will deal with the situations as adults.

"I agree with the basic principle that anybody who wants to serve in our armed forces and make sacrifices on our behalf, on behalf of our national security — anybody should be able to serve, and they shouldn’t have to lie about who they are in order to serve. And so we are moving in the direction of ending this policy" -Obama

 I don't see the big deal about wanting to serve for your nation, and being a homosexual. There shouldn't be a rule saying you can't help out your country just because you like the same sex. I'm glad they are getting rid of the law, and I think they should do it as fast as possible. I don't see how changing this law can have such an impact of how the military works. You train, get sent of tours, fight for country, and hope you can make it back to your loved ones; same gender or not. Just because some one coming out and saying that they are homosexual doesn't deviate from the task at hand, to win the war. I think Obama should push this to be in affect as soon as possible, to make the military a more accepting and welcoming place to all kinds of people that want to help protect this land we call home.

Mental Health Break

Can you say random?

Cousins? Thumbs Up to That!

Obama related to who? Sarah Palin? No way! Yes way. A genealogist at Ancestry.com figured out that Obama and Palin are 10th cousins related by a common ancestor by the name of John Smith. Anastasia Tyler, a genealogist at the Utah-based Ancesrty.com, figured this out, but do they really want to know this? 

And you thought it was strange to hear that Barack Obama was related to Dick Cheney. Well, betcha can't guess who he's related to now!

Yup — the president has family ties to none other than Sarah Palin, according to the genealogists at Ancestry.com, a discovery the family history site made when looking for connections between political foes.

That's not all they discovered either. Rush Limbaugh is also related to our president, he is also a 10th cousin. So maybe Rush should ease up on the president now that he knows he is related to the man. But that's not even the craziest one. George W. Bush is also related to Obama and Palin, being 11th cousins to him. It's crazy how for down the line these genealogists can go, and I'm not sure if either of these people would like to know that they are related to the other. But some of the stuff that these genealogists can discover can be pretty cool, like I bet you didn't know that Brad Pitt and Obama are related. Yes it is true, and it is amazing how small of a world it truly is.

 

Obamamania Gone?

President Obama isn't the big man on campus anymore. According to a recent poll, Obama's followers are getting smaller and smaller among the college kids. But why is Obama losing his followers? I think it was because many of the high school and college kids that were able to vote only voted for Obama because it seemed like a cool idea. Many of the high school students probably didn't have much knowledge about the man and his views.

Forty-four percent of students approve of the job Obama is doing as president, while 27 percent are unhappy with his stewardship, according to the survey conducted late last month. That's a significant drop from the 60 percent who gave the president high marks in a May 2009 poll. Only 15 percent had a negative opinion back then.

I'm not saying that all the kids voted for Obama but I know a lot did. I even thought it was cool to have a black president, but I didn't vote for Obama, because I couldn't. Many teens just wanted to see an African-American president, but now they are seeing that maybe they didn't have the best judgement when they voted. I think many more of the voters should have done their research before they selected their future president. Many of the people don't like Obama because of persistently high unemployment and opposition to his plans to revive the economy and overhaul health care. But I think what Obama is trying to do is a good thing. He's trying to win back his people, because no one wants to be president and have the whole country not back him in his decisions. Obama should do this, but yet worry about the nation first.

Campaigning Goes to Far?

The race for governor is a close won. Whitman, funding her own campaign, has had many commercials about Jerry Brown and his previous times in politics. This video shows how low Meg Whitman is willing to go to become governor of California.


Meg Whitman is funding her campaign, while Jerry brown is not. This means that Meg Whitman says okay to all of these. But is this going to far? There are commercials about Whitman, yes, but Brown isn't paying for them with the money out of his pocket. I think this shows a not so good outlook for Whitman because she is smashing him so hard. But I also feel like you have to do things to win. I guess I'm just split in between the two. This is a very close race, and it means a lot to our state. Who ever wins this debate will govern our state, so we must care. Both sides have very good arguments, but both have their down sides. Brown, ex-mayor of Oakland, wasn't the greatest mayor ever. Also, Whitman doesn't have any political experience, and she barely even votes on issues. Each side is sort of alarming when it comes to our governor. We are saying that our state is turning "red", so who knows will win, it's not over until the final ballot is in.

My Political Lean

I guess I am a Democrat

Conservative/Progressive score: 7
You are a social moderate. You think the progressive movement is overall well meaning, but sometimes it goes too far. On issues like abortion and affirmative action, you see the negatives of both extremes on the issue. You probably value religion, but at the same time you think it should still stay separate from the government

Overall, you would most likely fit into the category of Democrat

Capitalist Purist/Social Capitalist score: 8
You are a Moderate Capitalist. You support an economy that is by and large a free market, but has public programs to help people who can't help themselves or need a little help. Pretty much you believe in the American economy how it currently is.

Libertarian/Authoritarian score: 5
You're a Moderate. You think that we all have certain inalienable rights that must be protected, but that sometimes laws need to be made to protect the majority's lives or quality of lives. You might think that the 2nd amendment isn't necessary anymore because letting everyone a gun is extremely dangerous to the community. You might also be against illegal drug use or public pornography because of its possible harmful effects to society.

Pacifist/Militarist score: 0
You're a Pacifist. You are angered that the United States thinks it should dominate the world through its military force. You think that the only time war is necessary is when we are in direct danger of being attacked. You also believe the US spends way too much of its money on defense, as we can practically cut it in half and still easily defend ourselves, and use that money to fix all our economic problems.

Big Debate for the Win!

Meg Whitman vs. Jerry Brown for governor of California. A very close race and these next few debates can either win or lose it for twhithese two. Not only will they be debating each other, Gov. Schwarzenegger will also be joining them. This is probably going to be a very interesting debate because each person has very different views on similar subjects. 

California first lady Maria Shriver has put together what probably will be the final face-to-face meeting between gubernatorial candidates Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown - an unscripted conversation between them and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger about governing California.

 Debates at UC Davis and Fresno State shall be fun to watch because being a Californian, we should care who we want to govern our state. Both candidates have very strong back when it comes to people behind them. Jerry Brown who has more experience than Whitman, Whitman being from eBay. Whitman and Brown will be attending the women's conference, which is to known, "The Main Event." This conference will be held on October 24, will have many known figures attending. People like former first lady, Laura Bush, and even singer, Mary J. Blige. This debate should be watched very closely so we can choose the right person suited for our state.

The Monster is the Lake

In North Dakota, townspeople of Devils Lake, are scared for their lives. A lake that slowly eats away at a town, nobody wants to deal with that. But that is what is happening in Devils Lake, about 160 miles from Fargo.

It's been called a slow-growing monster: a huge lake that has steadily expanded over the past 20 years, swallowing up thousands of acres and at least two towns in its rising waters.

 The real question is what are we going to do about this? As a nation we can't take our usual lackadaisical approach to this. We need to figure out new ways to get rid of the overflow of water, by maybe using it to drink because we're always on a shortage? The $330,000 a month to only take an inch off isn't going to cut it. We need to act as one not only to save the homes of many people, but to save a lake that has been attracting people for years. This is a real test for America. We have all of these inventors, so invent something so we can use this water to our advantage. We don't want to wait any longer on this issue because the longer we wait, the more houses and families will be destroyed. All I'm saying is that we need to step up as one.

This Lady as a Senator? Really?

Classic case of America getting ready to celebrate being as dumb as we want to be. Christine, trying to become a Senator of Delaware, has some very odd views. In this video O'Donnell shows exactly how America is as dumb as we want to be, by telling the nation they can't do the thing that rhymes with congratulate, when that is a totally personal thing that one should deal with themselves. How can a person running for Senator tell what people can and cant do on their own time?

Should we make an exception for Richmond?

In Point Richmond, Chevron wants to expand their refinery, but this is not good for our air. Not only is this an issue for our environment, but to see if our state can stand on their rules or our standards can be overruled by the right number of votes. If the refinery expands, Friedman's "code green" will be completely ignored. Our country cannot be "as dumb as we wanna be" and allow this to happen, the state needs to put a foot down and not allow this to happen.

Frustrated by environmental reviews, businesses are employing a new tactic to speed development: asking legislators for exemptions from the rules. The latest example appears to be an expansion of Chevron's Richmond refinery.

 The terms for this debate are kept secret, but why would California allow this? Chevron already has a refinery, they are obviously well off, and if they did expand, we can expect another hole in our ozone. The negative effects aren't only going into the atmosphere, but into the homes of the blue-collar Richmond by tax revenues and jobs. Why would legislation not stand on their morals of their rules? Because we're "as dumb as we wanna be" and we are easily pushed over even though we can already see the negative effects it will bring us in the future.

Watch Your Water

No one wants mercury in their water, so why should the Bay Area have to suffer because of China's coal-fired plants? The theory is that the mercury is coming across the Pacific Ocean from China from the coal-fired plants which is a major source of mercury pollution.

When researchers wanted to test largemouth bass at Lower Crystal Springs Reservoir for mercury levels, the reservoir's managers in San Francisco figured the scientists were simply looking for a clean sample to compare with toxic results at other spots.

We need to resolve this issue because the effects can happen to a wide range of people. Little kids can be damaged in their brain and adults can have lung and kidney problems. Researchers need to get on top of the situation, and get rid of the mercury in the water. If we don't get active about this issue, our country will have an even bigger stamp on our foreheads saying "dumb as we wanna be" which is the last thing we need. Scientists also need to step up quickly and get rid of the mercury, and the country needs to look into if China is really polluting our water or not. If China is indeed polluting our water, we need to figure out how they can stop polluting the water of the Bay Area and even the larger picture, the Pacific. This also relates to Hot, Flat, and Crowded because this could potentially endanger species in the waters and we don't want another species to go extinct like the river dolphin. If so that would be just another tally to the tab for the Chinese and they don't want to have a bad image so they should also be proactive in getting the mercury pollution stopped. 

Climate change gives us a reason to change

How many hints is it going to take the world to realize how we are living isn't good for the environment? Our people need to change the way they live their daily lives. Our planet needs to be able to go on for thousands of years to come so that everybody has a chance to live like we did.

Floods, fires, melting ice and feverish heat: From smoke-choked Moscow to water-soaked Iowa and the High Arctic, the planet seems to be having a midsummer breakdown. It's not just a portent of things to come, scientists say, but a sign of troubling climate change already under way.

Our people need to figure out how to predict these drastic outbursts of violent weather so we are more better prepared for a national disaster. Scientists blame all of this warming due to emissions from power plants, cars, trucks and other fossil fuel burning sources. The carbon dioxide and other heat trapping gasses are all getting stuck in the atmosphere. If we can better our emissions we could easily have not had all of these bad occurrences in our world. This is exactly why Friedman called for a "Code Green" because we don't want to have to deal with our consequences so we might as well fix it now instead of going any further.

South Korea on the right track towards Tom Friedman's "Code Green"?

Hanwha Chemical Corp. may then double its revenue in 2015 by increasing production of components used in solar-power panels and rechargeable batteries. Hanwha is really investing their money into solar, that they even had their first acquisition with an overseas solar company, Solarfun Power Holding Co. of China.

South Korean companies are betting orders for solar-power equipment will rise as governments take steps to cut carbon emissions blamed for global warming. The country's 30 major industrial groups, including Hanwha's parent Hanwha Group, will invest 22.4 trillion won by 2013 in clean-energy development, according to the energy ministry.

I think what South Korea is trying to achieve is great. Our world obviously needs a better energy source because our fossil fuels aren't going to last forever. Hanwha has a great idea by putting most of its money into solar power and not only that they are making rechargeable batteries for cars. Rechargeable batteries are a great idea because we don't need to waste the materials needed to make a car over and over again when we can easily recharge the battery and have the car last much more longer and that also cuts out a lot of the bad emissions with a battery car.

Japan is hot, hot, hot!

Temperatures over the world are increasing, and everyone is looking at global warming for the blame. This summer, Japan has recorded the highest temperatures on record. This ties into Friedman's, Hot, Flat, and Crowded, because the "hot", global warming, is causing Japan's temperatures to raise.

The Asian country joins a large swath of the Northern Hemisphere that has experienced an unusually hot summer. Meteorologists say 17 nations have recorded all-time-high temperatures this year, more than in any other year, and scientists have said that July was the hottest month on record for the world's oceans. 

The heat isn't something to mess around with. It can kill, and it's not a fun death. Its said that around 150 deaths have occurred because of heat stroke. The highest temperatures recorded have been beat by almost three percent, but who is to blame? Of course the obvious finger is going to be pointed at global warming, and most of us would agree, like I am. But these temperature rises aren't just occurring in Japan, they are also occurring in other countries like Saudi Arabia, China, and Kuwait. All of these countries have been hitting high temperatures that they are not used to. On the flip side to all the "hot" drama, there is a good thing about this. The economy is getting a boost, by about three percent, from the consumers buying cool drinks, summer clothes, and cooling products. I'm not really sure what to think, because yes the economy is going up, but on the other side, our world is steadily getting hotter and hotter.