Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/270362657?client_source=feed&format=rss
zerg rush david wilson playstation all stars battle royale kim zolciak kim zolciak travis pastrana quinton coples
Friday, December 14, 2012
Aviary CEO Says Its Company Goal Is To ?Democratize Creativity,? And It?s Clearly Working
It’s been launch city for a few big companies and new startups this week. Who’s had the very best week, possibly? That would be Aviary, a company that started out with a direct-to-consumer product that allowed people to beautify and share their photos. The company decided to switch gears and provide its tools to other apps and sites. Some people call it a pivot, but that word can be annoying. It was a pretty smart move, as Aviary now powers editing and filters for both Flickr’s brand-new iOS app and Twitter’s recent refresh. By focusing on editing photos and adding filters, the company can build great things that can be used by anyone who would like its feature set in their own app. I spoke with Aviary’s CEO and co-founder Avi Muchnick, whose name is all over this company, about what’s been going on. ——— TechCrunch: How did the relationship with Flickr get started? Avi Muchnick: We have known the folks at Flickr for a few years and have a great relationship with them, so they are familiar with our solutions. We first officially partnered with them by powering photo editing on Flickr.com in April earlier this year, and that integration was quite successful for everyone involved. So we worked with them again to power the photo editor in their new mobile app. TechCrunch: As a company, what are your goals? Avi Muchnick: Our mission is to democratize creativity. We want everyone in the world to feel artistic, no matter their skill level or talents. We’re going to accomplish that by providing our photo-editing SDK to every single app where people use photos to express themselves. TechCrunch: What things are coming along that are new? Will partners integrate them? Avi Muchnick: Unfortunately we can’t share the specifics about what’s coming up next but we are always working on innovative new features to take photos to the next level. We always develop new features with our partners’ needs in mind. We test out all new features in our showcase app (Photo Editor by Aviary), which gives partners a chance to see our full feature set, so they can decide which elements they would like to adopt. TechCrunch: Do you have fans and users who respect your “behind-the-scenes” nature? Avi Muchnick: Yes. We actually used to have a web-based creative suite which millions of people loved to use, and we were reallySource: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/4sjR2yXvfQ0/
nsx chad ochocinco roman numerals new england patriots superbowl halftime madonna madonna
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Kenshiro robot has muscle and bones, is ready to stretch its way into your nightmares
Add this to the list of terrifying robots we hope to never be chased by. Thankfully, Kenshiro here looks to be fairly slow from the video below. Still, this skeleton-and-muscle headless humanoid robot has secured a place in our nightmares for the foreseeable future, thanks in part to its lifelike movements. The 'bot, which is a followup to 2010's Kojiro model, stands about 5'1 and weighs around 110 pounds. It was developed by Yuto Nakanishi and a team of researchers at University of Tokyo, making its public debut at the recent Humanoids conference in Osaka. You can watch Kenshiro in action after the break.
Filed under: Robots
Via: IEEE Spectrum, Phys Org
Source: University of Tokyo
Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/ktaVYA7-bi0/
arnold palmer augusta national blake griffin pau gasol marlins park marbury v. madison 2013 lincoln mkz
Vatican denies free Christmas crib linked to corruption scandal
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Vatican said on Thursday there was no link between its decision to accept the gift of a nativity scene in St Peter's Square and allegations that it had previously paid inflated prices to have them built.
This year's larger-than-life Christmas tableau depicting the biblical scene of Jesus' birth, worth about 90,000 euros ($120,000), was donated by the southern region of Basilicata, one of Italy's poorest.
Some of the documents that sparked this year's 'Vatileaks' scandal indicated that in 2009 the Vatican paid an Italian company six times that amount, about 550,000 euros ($720,000), to build its nativity scene in the square.
The letters, leaked to the media, mentioned the payment as an example of corruption in the city state's business dealings.
Monsignor Giuseppe Sciacca, deputy governor of the Vatican City, was asked by reporters whether accepting a donated crib was a response to the scandal.
"This is exclusively the result of the offer by the Basilicata region to give us this gift, which, with a minimum of good sense, has been accepted," he said.
In the leaked documents, Sciacca's predecessor, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, said the exorbitant cost of the 2009 crib was an example of how the Vatican was losing money through corruption.
Vigano said he had managed almost to halve the cost of the 2010 crib. He was subsequently transferred to the United States, despite an appeal to his superiors to be allowed stay in his job, in what he saw as punishment for doing his work too well.
Two people were convicted by a Vatican court over the leaks of documents.
Paolo Gabriele, the Pope's former butler, is now serving an 18-month jail sentence in a Vatican jail cell for stealing sensitive papal documents and leaking them to the media.
A computer expert was given a suspended sentence for obstructing justice in the case.
(Reporting by Philip Pullella and Naomi O'Leary; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/vatican-denies-free-christmas-crib-linked-corruption-scandal-173424507.html
house of representatives paul ryan michele bachmann donald trump Election 2012 map Election Results Map Early voting results
Pets, volunteers warm hearts at Providence; more help is sought ...
CHELSEA KROTZER | Staff writer Modified December 13, 2012
The cries that echoed from Room 813 in the William Jones Pediatric Unit at Providence St. Peter Hospital on Wednesday soon were subdued by a wagging tail.
PHOTO GALLERY
For more photos from pet visits at Providence St. Peter Hospital, click here.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED
Anyone interested in becoming a volunteer can contact the Providence St. Peter Foundation at 360-493-7981 or click here.
Mandy, an 8-year-old Shetland Sheepdog who has been a therapy pet volunteer at the hospital for two years, stopped by the room of Kameryn Fagerness, a 1-year-old Rainier boy suffering from pneumonia.
Kameryn was dressed in a tiger-printed hospital gown. His eyes grew wide as the dog?s handler, Sherri Cote, picked Mandy up so the boy could reach her. His tears gave way to a smile and gargled sounds of joy as he sat on his knees against the bed, petting the dog?s long fur.
?My little man loves puppies,? said Kameryn?s mother, Heather Moxley. She and Kameryn?s father, Cory Fagerness, brought their son to the hospital at 10:30 p.m. Tuesday.
It was the boy?s second visit this month. Moxley said they first came Dec. 8, the day after Kameryn?s first birthday, and he was diagnosed with bronchiolitis. He was released and seemed to be doing better until Tuesday.
The family hopes to be able to go home Thursday, provided that Kameryn?s oxygen levels stabilize, Moxley said.
The boy has a house full of his own animals to return to, including a dog and two cats. But in the meantime, Mandy provided much-needed smiles for the entire family ? the reason the therapy-animal program was created in 1989.
Volunteer Ann Howie and her dog Falstaff were the first in the nation to get involved in bringing dogs to hospital patients as a form of therapy and care, according to Animal-Assisted Activities & Therapy program coordinator Danni Sabia.
?It was so well-received and had so many benefits,? she said.
Sabia said animals help lower humans? blood pressure in stressful situations, increase self-esteem and emotional stability in children, improve seniors? quality of life and help patients work through anxiety.
The program receives financial support from donors to the Providence St. Peter Foundation. The program already has 55 human volunteers, 30 dogs and a cat; leaders are looking to expand by as many as 24 human-animal teams next year.
The hospital trains new volunteers twice yearly, a process that took Mandy and Cote 50 to 60 hours over three months to complete, Sabia said.
The next training session is scheduled for February.
?Teams have to pass evaluations before they go in to visit, and (we) make sure they have good teamwork,? Sabia said. ?We have to make sure the animal wants to do it as much as the human.?
Mandy appeared more than willing to lend a paw. Wearing a blue hospital badge with her name and a pair of red bow pins on her head, the dog was ready to meet and greet in the pediatric ward.
?Sherri with her pet partner Mandy have come for a visit,? Cote told hospital staffers, waiting for the door to the pediatric unit to unlock.
Her first patient, a 6-year-old Tumwater boy, had fallen asleep before she arrived, so they changed plans and visited Kameryn after hearing cries from his room. His parents said it was perfect timing.
?I think it?s a great idea to bring animals in,? Moxley said. ?If I were a little kid sick in the hospital, I would want to have a dog visit me.?
?You don?t even have to be a kid; it made me happy,? Fagerness added, laughing.
Volunteers are trained to find the safest and easiest ways for patients to have access to the animals, which can include putting the dog or cat on the patient?s bed, Sabia said.
The volunteers make notes of each visit, detailing what happened and how the animal was received.
?We have notes on every visit that has been made in this hospital,? she said.
Chelsea Krotzer: 360-754-5476
ckrotzer@theolympian.com
theolympian.com/thisjustin
@chelseakrotzer
Source: http://www.theolympian.com/2012/12/12/2351637/pets-volunteers-warm-hearts-at.html
brandon jennings the vow review luol deng culkin wooly mammoth no child left behind no child left behind
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Computers, creativity and learning: Motherhood and HCI - call for ...
I am excited because we got a workshop proposal accepted for CHI 2013 on Motherhood and HCI.Write a position paper! Come along! It'll be fun!
Here's a previous post of mine about interface design issues for breastfeeding mothers, written, as I recall, while feeding a sleeping and very heavy baby.
?Call for Participation: CHI 2013 Workshop on Motherhood and HCI Important Dates 11 January 2013: Workshop Submission Deadline 8 February 2013: Notification of Acceptance 27/ 28 April 2013: Workshop held in Paris, France Website: http://motherhoodandhci.wordpress.com/ *********************************** Becoming a mother and the experience of being a mother are increasingly influenced, mediated and invaded by technology and digital interactions. We invite the CHI community to grow and nurture the emerging topic of motherhood and HCI and explore how the lens of ?motherhood? changes implications for design, development, and notions of care through participation in the CHI 2013 workshop ?Motherhood and HCI? (http://motherhoodandhci.wordpress.com/). This one-day workshop will address research and design issues relating to technology use associated with the processes and experiences of conception, pregnancy and infertility, labour, childcare and the mother?s work in the family and home. Topics include (but are not limited to) the experience of motherhood, technologies for supporting mothers, and perspectives on the role of the mother, as well as everyday practices relating to technology and motherhood. We invite non-mothers,mothers and mothers-to-be to participate in our workshop through the submission of a 2-page position paper in CHI Extended Abstracts format that describes the authors experience engaging with a specific theme, or challenge involved with designing, using, or evaluating technologies that relate to the concept or experience of ?motherhood?. We positively encourage submissions from a diverse range of participants, perspectives and disciplines. We also encourage active participation from industries already engaged in the design and development of technologies for motherhood. Submissions will be selected based on their originality, quality and ability to promote discussion amongst the community. Submissions and questions should be directed to madeline.balaam@ncl.ac.uk. More details can be found at: http://motherhoodandhci.wordpress.com/. At least one author of each accepted paper must attend the workshop. Please submit your position paper by Friday 11th January 2013. *********************************** Workshop Organisers Madeline Balaam, Newcastle University Judy Robertson, Heriot-Watt University Rebecca Say, Newcastle University Geraldine Fitzpatrick, Vienna University of Technology Gillian Hayes, UC Irvine Melissa Mazmanian, UC Irvine Belinda Parmar, ladygeek.com
Source: http://judyrobertson.typepad.com/judy_robertson/2012/12/motherhood-and-hci-call-for-papers.html
amzn white house correspondents dinner phoenix coyotes bruce irvin charlie st cloud celtics josh hamilton
Mali's PM forced to resign, after arrest by junta
BAMAKO, Mali (AP) ? Soldiers arrested Mali's prime minister and forced him to resign before dawn on Tuesday, showing that the military remains the real power in this troubled West African nation despite handing back authority to civilians after a coup in March.
The prime minister's ouster comes as the United Nations considers backing a military intervention in Mali, a once-stable country now in constant turmoil. By late Tuesday, a new prime minister had been named, but the developments drew international rebuke and raised questions about the viability of the military operation, which would use the country's military to try to take back Mali's north from Islamic extremists.
Prime Minister Cheikh Modibo Diarra, dressed in a dark suit, his expression somber, appeared on state television at 4 a.m. to announce his resignation, hours after soldiers stormed his house.
"Our country is living through a period of crisis. Men and women who are worried about the future of our nation are hoping for peace," he said on television. "It's for this reason that I, Cheikh Modibo Diarra, am resigning along with my entire government on this day, Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012. I apologize before the entire population of Mali."
The 60-year-old Diarra is a NASA astrophysicist who has contributed to numerous space exploration missions including the Magellan probe to Venus and the Galileo spacecraft to Jupiter. He is now under house arrest, said a spokesman for the junta, Bakary Mariko.
The government remains technically under the control of the interim president, Dioncounda Traore, who waited nearly 24 hours after Diarra's arrest to address the nation. Late Tuesday, he issued a decree naming a longtime civil servant, Django Sissoko, as the new prime minister. And in an oblique speech, he spoke of the need for Mali to remain united in its goal of reconquering the north and installing democracy, never mentioning the military.
The shake-up in Bamako is already looking like it may endanger plans for the military intervention. The African Union is proposing sending several thousand African troops to help the Malian military take back the north, which fell to al-Qaida-linked Islamists in the chaos that followed the March 21 coup.
The military's meddling in state affairs has concerned the international community. Many worry that supporting the operation will simply further arm and embolden the very officers responsible for Mali's current state.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle warned Tuesday that Diarra's forced resignation makes Western countries wary of getting involved in a military incursion.
"One thing is clear: Our offers of help come with the condition that the process of restoring constitutional order in Mali be conducted credibly," he said.
U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland called Diarra's arrest a setback for Mali. "We need Sanogo and his brothers-in-arms to stay out of politics," she told reporters, referring to coup leader Capt. Amadou Haya Sanogo.
The U.N. Security Council threatened to impose sanctions against those blocking a return to constitutional order in Mali and called on the armed forces to stop interfering in state affairs.
The now-ousted prime minister was arrested between 10 and 11 p.m. Monday at his home by the military, who drove him the Kati military camp, the sprawling base where the March 21 coup was launched.
Late Tuesday, Sanogo said on state television that he had no regrets over the prime minister's resignation. But he denied that the military forced him out, saying simply that his soldiers "facilitated" his departure.
At the moment of his arrest, the aging leader was getting ready to leave for the airport for a medical trip to Paris, said a police officer who was on duty at the airport and who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press.
"The plane that was to take the prime minister to France was on the point of departure," said the policeman. "It was stopped by people from the Yerewoloton group who invaded the airport," he said.
Yerewoloton is a civic group believed to be backed by the junta which has carried out violent actions on the military's behalf. This same group in May invaded the presidential palace and beat Traore, the interim president, until he lost consciousness.
That incident brought the international community down like a hammer on Mali's junta. Sanogo signed an accord agreeing to step down and retreated from public life. Despite his retreat, there were numerous signs suggesting that the junta still called the shots in Bamako.
On state television Tuesday, Sanogo accused Diarra of pursuing his personal ambitions rather than the good of the country.
"We didn't force him. We facilitated (his resignation). A few weeks ago, he himself told us that if we really wanted him to leave, that he would hand in (his resignation) but not to the president of the republic, nor to any other authority ? only to us," said Sanogo. "Yesterday we realized that it was really necessary for him to resign. And it's for this reason that we brought him to Kati."
Human Rights Watch's senior researcher for West Africa, Corinne Dufka, said the events fit with the pattern of abuse by soldiers since the coup eight months ago.
"They've arrested, beaten and intimidated journalists; tortured and disappeared military rivals; and now, apparently, arbitrarily detained the prime minister. None of these incidents have been investigated and those responsible appear to have been emboldened by the shameful lack of accountability," Dufka said.
Bamako remained calm Tuesday, despite waking up to what is being called a "mini-coup." People went about their daily lives, yet with a sense of disappointment in this nation once held up as a model democracy in Africa.
"I really am struggling to understand ? so if the prime minister is not doing his job properly, it's up to the junta to come and arrest him?" said Aboubacrine Assadek Ag Hamahady, a university professor. "Based on what law, on what legal text can the junta justify this arrest?"
___
Callimachi reported from Dakar, Senegal. AP writers Geir Moulson in Berlin, Don Melvin in Brussels, Bradley Klapper in Washington, Edith Lederer at the United Nations and Jamey Keaton in Paris contributed to this report.
___
Rukmini Callimachi can be reached at www.twitter.com/rcallimachi
Baba Ahmed can be reached at www.twitter.com/Babahmed1
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/malis-pm-forced-resign-arrest-junta-160941902.html
iOS 6 Release Date Canelo Alvarez Chavez vs Martinez Yunel Escobar Irish Daily Star seth macfarlane Black Mesa
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)