Pres. Obama has dinner with the tech giants

Photo found on CNN.com website

This morning the White House released a photo of President Obama having dinner last night with Steve Jobs (Apple), Eric Schmidt (Google), Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook) plus the heads of such tech companies as Twitter, Oracle, Stanford University, Yahoo and Netflix. The dinner was at the home of John and Ann Doerr in San Francisco Bay. It was held to discuss future issues in the tech world including the options for job creations too.

It was nice to see Steve Jobs sitting next to President Obama wearing his black mock turtleneck shirt.

smaller iPhone rumors squashed by NYTimes

For the past few days we have been hearing rumors of Apple working on a new smaller iPhone. Well this morning the NYTimes reported that a smaller iPhone is not in the works. But that Apple is working on a cheaper iPhone with voice command integration.

According to reports if Apple was to create a smaller screened iPhone it would require many of the developers to re-write their apps to fit the new smaller screen size. Now that might and might not be the case. If Apple did make a smaller sized screen but, they were able to keep the proportion and screen size resolution to where it is now, developers might not need to have to re-size their apps. Then again it might be to difficult to maneuver around the device too.

The NYTimes did confirm some of the details that the Wall Street Journal was reporting earlier on Apple working on integrating voice commands for navigating the iPhone device.

There is still no word from anyone confirming the previously reported option of storing the majority of the iPhones contents in a cloud and then accessing it when required. The only big issue that will definitely come up with this option will be allocation of desired bandwidth.when people are calling up data. There has always been an issue with bandwidth but if users don't have many things like music and video on their iPhone as they do now, the bandwidth consumption will be even greater and tax the telecommunications industry even more.

So it might be cool to have everything in the cloud. But if it takes to long or isn't accessible because of bandwidth being a problem what good is having and using the device if it can't perform because the industry isn't up to par with what is required for it to function properly.

Who knows maybe Apple is also working on some new kind of packet compression utility to help compress packets of data when it sends it from the cloud to the device. Time will tell as we all eagerly await new from the mother ship.

my Verizon iPhone update

Well folks here is the update on my Verizon phone update.

I logged on the other day and tried to upgrade again!!!!!!
Guess what, still no go. So i went and called Verizon, spoke to a rep and he also said you should be able to upgrade. Well after waiting on hold for a bit, he was able to help me with my request.
I placed my order for my Verizon iPhone and got a shipping date of the 18th of this month.

From reading the early reviews it seems everyone is very happy switching from AT&T's iPhone to the Verizon phone... I am looking forward to getting it and letting you know how it works for me.

I am wondering now with people fleeing AT&T for Verizon will the network and dropped calls be different on AT&T or just business as usually. Only time will tell..

Apple Working on a New Smaller iPhone option

This weekend rumors started coming out from various sites on the net about a new, smaller, iPhone option. Its reported that this would be a cheaper solution without a contract for users. It would offer people an option to buy the iPhone for less than $200.

As more information comes out, it might not be what people think when they say iPhone. Granted it might look like a smaller version of its big brother iPhone. But, the reason why its smaller and cheaper is because it is being reported to have no memory built on board for storage of media. Everything will be on the cloud.

The device will have some memory installed but this is just for OS itself, critical system data reference, buffering media from the cloud and possibly for storage of photos or video on the device if a camera option is offered. If you want an example of this, Apple has already given us it with the Apple TV.

If these rumors are true it would explain Apples huge investments in creating data centers last year. There were some rumors of this leaking out then but they seemed to be nipped in the bud. All in all this isn't such a bad idea, especially with people loosing their phones. If a person does they don't have to worry about their data being comprimised as much. Since with the simple option of logging on to a website the end user can disable the link from the device to the cloud, making the new iPhone a nice paper weight.

This option does sound great but some questions do come to mind.

1. If we put everything in the cloud and it is streaming, have they come up with an idea of how much bandwidth will the average user require? This is an important question especially when one of the biggest problems with AT&T was users using to much bandwidth and having performance issues in the past.

2. Will it be 3G or 4G? With more and more talk of 4G will we finally see a 4G iPhone. Plus what will happen when you go from 4G to 3G? Will there be that 20 to 30 second lag in time many people have reported when it comes to switching networks?

3. What will the cost be for service on this phone? With the way some people use data on their phones it could cost them an arm and a leg getting data to and from the cloud and else where on the web.

4. Will this be available in both CDMA and GSM? The new Verizon iPhone tear down shows chips for both networks. This could be an interesting merger of the networks on one new hand held device.

5. How will privacy advocates feel about this? There is always a question of people being tracked as well as data. With implementing this the providers and Apple will know where and what is being done on the phone more and more.

All in all i think its a step in the right direction, esp with people loosing phones and being able to offer more for the consumer. Imagine putting your collection on the cloud, then when you need more space, you just pay for the allocation instead of having to buy a new device.

Something to think about..

Think Different 2008 Edition

Motivational Quote of The Day from NIGHTINGALE.COM

"The trick is in what one emphasizes. We either make
ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves happy.
The amount of work is the same."
— Carlos Castaneda: Was an anthropologist and author

Ken Olsen, Computer Pioneer passes away

Kenneth Harry Olsen, Engineer
((1926-02-2 February 20, 1926 to February 6, 2011 (age 84))

Many people might not recognize the name but Ken Olsen was the founder and former CEO of a company called Digital Equipment Corporation or DEC. This company created one of the first digital computers that was used for commercial use.

Ken served in the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. He received his Bachelors (B.S.) and Masters degrees(M.S.) in Electrical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He was known for have worked on a team that developed air defense technology and core memory while at MIT. He also directed the building of the first transistorized research computer.

In 1957 he founded Digital Equipment Corporation with an MIT colleague. In its glory days it had over 125,000 employees in over 86 countries. DEC was eventually urchased by Compaq in 1988 for $9.6 billion dollars.

During his life Ken was named the "most successful entrepreneur in the history of American business." by Fortune magazine. He also was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1990 and received the National Medal of Technology in 1993. Plus he was brought into the Computer History Museum in 1996.

For laughs.....

Someone sent me this in an email and i thought i would share it.

Enjoy the laughs... Mirko

WRONG EMAIL ADDRESS

This one is priceless.....A lesson to be learned from typing the wrong email address!!!!

A Minneapolis couple decided to go to Florida to thaw out during a particularly icy winter. They planned to stay at the same hotel where they spent their honeymoon 20 years earlier.

Because of hectic schedules, it was difficult to coordinate their travel schedules. So, the husband left Minnesota and flew to Florida on Thursday, with his wife flying down the following day.

The husband checked into the hotel. There was a computer in his room, so he decided to send an email to his wife. However, he accidentally left out one letter in her email address, and without realizing his error, sent the email.

Meanwhile, somewhere in Houston , a widow had just returned home from her husband's funeral. He was a minister who was called home to glory following a heart attack.

The widow decided to check her email expecting messages from relatives and friends. After reading the first message, she screamed and fainted.

The widow's son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor, and saw the computer screen which read:

To: My Loving Wife
Subject: I've Arrived
Date: April 27, 2009

I know you're surprised to hear from me. They have computers here now and you are allowed to send emails to your loved ones. I've just arrived and have been checked in.

I've seen that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing you then!!!! Hope your journey is as uneventful as mine was.

P. S. Sure is freaking hot down here!!!!

Happy 183rd Birthday Jules Verne

If you have a chance folks you should stop by google.com and check out today fun interactive graphic. When you arrive on the site you will notice some portal openings showing a lively sea ahead with all sorts of goodies for us to see. Ahh but there is more. If you look to the right you will notice a lever. Give it a try and see where your travels take you.

Today graphic celebrates the great Jules Vernes 183rd Birthday. Now some people might be like ok so who is Jules Verne and is running to be as old as Methuselah? Well to answer the first question Jules Verne was a great french science fiction author. He was born on February 8, 1828 and died on March 24, 1905 at the age of 77 in Amiens, France.

Some of his best know works were "Journey to the Center of the Earth" (1864), "Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea" (1870) and lets not forget "Around the World in Eighty Days" (1873). What is so great about Jules was his amazing vision he had about traveling to places where man had not even begun to really explore. His imagination helped us to envision some of the most incredible sights on our journey through his story.

Jules was refereed to by H.G Wells and Hugo Gernsback as the "Father of Science Fiction".

If you haven't had a chance to read or even see some of his books made into movies, please do so. You will not be disappointed. I recommend first reading the books then going to see the movies because many times the authors words help to paint a more detailed and incredible journey then film can ever create in our minds eye..

Happy Birthday Big Guy....

Google offers $20,000 if you can hack their Chrome browser at the Pwn2Own hacking competition

For all those who will be a contestant at the Pwn2Own hacking competition scheduled on March 9-11 in Vancouver the pot got just a little bit sweeter. The contest cash award fund was at $105,000. But, thanks to Google anyone who can hack the Chrome browser will get $20,000 on top of the $15,000 they will already win.

Along with Chrome there will be other web browsers open to being hacked at the event like Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Mozilla's Firefox, and Apple's Safari browser too. They will be available on two operating systems only, Microsoft Windows 7 or Mac OS X (Snow Leopard). Both OS's running in 64-bit mode.

All contestants that win will also win the laptop they are given to use at the event too. The current roundup includes the following laptops: Apple MacBook Air 13", Alienware m11x, and a Sony Vaio.

Now for someone to hack Chrome it will require "escaping the Chrome sandbox using vulnerabilities only in Google-written code -- the competitor will win $20,000 and a Google CR-49 Chrome OS netbook."

Mobile device hacking will be also available. Offering devices like iPhone 4, Blackberry Torch 9800, Dell Windows 7 Phone and Nexus S running Android.

This competition should be an interesting sight to see, especially since so many of us use mobile devices and one of the above mentioned web browsers in day to day activities in our lives.

Information Week - Google Bets $20,000 You Can't Hack Chrome

The Register - Google offers $20,000 prize in annual hack-off

Verizon iPhone upgrade or NOT

This morning like other Verizon customers i was excited to pre-order my Verizon iPhone 4. But, i noticed i still had a few months on my plan and i was told a few weeks ago from a Verizon rep (called into Verizon) that i could still qualify since i had a mi-fi plan too which was eligible now, all i needed to do was switch it to place my order.

Well guess what i tried that this morning and it didn't allow me to order my iPhone 4 upgrade. Even though i could upgrade to all their other phones. So who knows when i will be able to order my iPhone 4 since its obvious Verizon's not on the ball for its existing customers.

I did try to call in this morning to see what was going on. The first call i made ended up switching me over to a busy signal, NICE real NICE. Then i called back a few times but they seemed to be busy. Hmm i wonder why. I wonder how many other Verizon customers are also being jerked around like this.

Its nice to know that loyal customers for years with Verizon are now getting jerked around. This definitely makes me think about going over to AT&T. Even though the calls aren't perfect at least i won't be getting jerked around with a BS upgrade option that isn't available.

Oh but when i log into my account they do offer me an option to upgrade now at FULL PRICE. But, won't let me order any other way now. Nice to see they will give it to me at $700 plus price. I guess Verizon really does care about their customers, actions speak louder then words. Thank You Verizon for showing me what being with you for years gives me in being a customer.

I hope someone in the press picks this up. It would be interesting to see or hear their take on it. If this isn't an interesting story of Verizon jerking around their existing customers i don't know what is.

Verizon can ya hear me now, NOT very happy and definitely considering going to AT&T NOW.

**********************************update***************************************

Well after finally getting a Verizon rep on the phone it turns out the upgrade i was trying to do by using another units upgrade date is called a Buddy update. I will be able to make it on the 10th when the Verizon store is available in stores. So we shall see then in a week will i be able to get an upgrade or not.

Indiana Teen Creates Death Ray

I have always loved seeing what the inquisitive minds of today's kids can come up with. Today while looking through the online pages of Gizmodo, I came across this story "Teen Glued 5,800 Mirrors Onto Satellite Dish For SOLAR DEATH-RAY".

It turns out that an Indiana teen (Eric Jacqmain, 19 years old) created this portable death ray unit (for $90) on wheels using an old satellite dish and a make shift cart. He even went and made a You Tube video out of it to show off its use.

Pretty interesting idea....Check out the video below, enjoy the nice music with it too.

Gizmodo article link

Verizon gets the iPhone 4

Well folks its official, Can ya hear me Now.....

Verizon has the iPhone 4 on its network as a 3G phone.

This morning, Verizon had a press conference with Tim Cook, Apple's COO and Verizons Chief Executive Lowell Macadam on stage to give the presentation. Macadam spoke about how Verizon has upgraded its network and how their performance has been growing. Also, for over two years now they have been working with Apple.

But, today they are announcing that Verizon will be partnering with an industry giant "Apple". Then the official announcement "iPhone 4 Coming to Verizon Early Next Month!"The iPhone 4 has now been designed to work on the Verizon CDMA network. It will have all the features the GSM iPhone owners have come to enjoy, like a Retina display and FaceTime for video chatting. The unit will also have the same A4 chip, 5 MP camera, and integrated ecosystem that made the iPhone 4 so popular.

Beginning February 3rd, existing customers can pre-order the iPhone 4. Then on February 10th, new customers can pre-order the iPhone 4. The pricing will be the same: $199 for 16 GB, $299 for 32GB, with tethering included for up to 5 devices.

For the past year Verizon has been testing 1,000 CDMA iPhones on its network and the results have been very good. They couldn't be happier with the results. The leaked images of the re-design of the antenna were correct. This was done so it can work on the CDMA network.

Questions were asked about why they didn't come out with a LTE phone. Cook answered that the reasons were 1) The first LTE baseband controllers required changes to design Apple was unwilling to make. 2) Customers wanted the iPhone on Verizon ASAP.

There is one thing though, the Verizon iPhone users will not be able to be on the phone and use data at the same time. Cook doesn't believe Verizon customers will have an issue with this and will be willing to make the trade off.

That's all folks. The whole event was over in 30 mins flat...

Can Ya Hear Me Now.....iPhone

Well it looks like the rumors are now finally becoming more of a fact when it comes to the Apple iPhone coming to the Verizon network. On Friday it came out as a short trickle. Then the Wall Street Journal made it more official. By going into detail that Verizon was having a press conference with Steve Jobs on stage to so they can announce the new Verizon CDMA iPhone.


Today the WSJ (Wall Street Journal) was reporting that the Verizon iPhone will be available in stores by the end of the month.

The transition from the AT&T monopoly should be an interesting venture. One of the biggest problems before has been that time and time again customers would be complaining about network performance and pointing the finger with AT&T. As people do leave AT&T, it will be interesting to see if the network performance improves or degrades..

Part of me does wonder what Verizon will do with people who are already on their network when it comes to upgrading early. Will they make a rule to the exception and allow people to get their iPhone sooner or make them wait till their contract is up ?

I do think that Verizon will being Millions of users to the iPhone. But, the true test will be once the people have it and start taxing the network. Will it be the same problem AT&T encountered ? or will it be when someone says "Can ya hear me now" you will hear back Yep cause im on the Verizon network lol...

The other thing i wonder is what will happen with the typical iPhone upgrade coming to Apple will Verizon be part of this upgrade or will it have to wait since the CDMA phones are the new kids on the block. For months now rumors have been popping up of a CDMA/GSM phone.

If Apple came out with this option it could be an amazing phone to have, esp. for the world traveler where many of the places outside of the US use the GSM network.

Daft Punk- Electroma

The pair from the group Daft Punk created a movie called Electroma in 2007. The plot revolves around how two robots want to become human in a society of robots. Its an interesting artistic type of movie where in the beginning the duo are driving around down in a 1987 Ferrari with California plates marked HUMAN.

I came across this posting off the Google Video website. Enjoy

Also, from what i have read the music featured in this movie was not by the band Daft Punk. But this movie was directed and stared the members of Daft Punk: Peter Hurteau and Michael Reich.

Happy Holidays...

image found on nasa.gov website

Hello Everyone,

I just wanted to take the time to wish you all a very Happy Holiday time of year.

May your Holiday Time be filled with Joy, Love & Happiness.

May you be surrounded by the people you Love.....Mirko

Amazing Talent...

Its Christmas eve and i'm sitting at home jumping around YouTube while watching out for Santa on Norda's Santa watch. I suddenly come across this amazing video someone created i wanted to blog about. A poster named Volpin put up a video titled "How to make a Daft Punk helmet in 17 months". He has had 1,613,351 viewers for this video alone.

In the video he goes from start to finish in various clips of one of the most amazing special effects helmets i have ever seen done at home. He creates an amazing copy of the Daft Punk music group Gold Helmet with some fantastic various lights integrated into the design. If you watch one incredible video, check this one out and see for yourself a very incredibly talented person.

He also created another video showing a "replica of a Portal gun from Valve's 2007 release of the same name" that he created for the "2010 Child's Play Charity" in Seattle on December 7th, 2010. Check this video out too..

I hope you enjoy both of these videos. This artist has an amazing talent and i'm glad he decided to share some of his work with us. Thank you for posting on YouTube.

Motorola presents Tablet Evolution

As we come closer to the new year many of us are getting ready for Christmas time and welcoming in the New Years when the clock strikes twelve midnight on December 31, 2010. But another thing is also starting to show its face too, CES (Consumer Electronic Show) 2011, were all the amazing company's show us all the new cool devices that might be ours one day soon.

Motorola has come out with an amazing animation video looking at the various tablets we have all seen throughout the ages. Showing us the:

Egyptian Hieroglyphics Tablet : 3200 BC
Good graphics, but weight makes for difficult portability

Tablets of Stone: The Ten Commandments: 1440 - 1500 B.C.
Excellent durability, but zero flexibility (can't edit)

Rosetta Stone: 196 B.C.
Multi-lingual support, but low-resolution screen

Mayan Engraved Tablet: 500 A.D.
Successful Latin American distribution, but rumored 2012 self-destruct feature

GRiDPad: 1989 A.D.
Launched as inventory tool, but 20 MB hard drive limits inventory to just 12 items.

iPad: 2010 A.D.
It's like a giant iPhone, but..It's like a giant iPhone.

Galaxy Tab: 2010 A.D.
Android OS, but Android OS..for a phone

Then it pans and zooms to a covered Tablet on a pedistal with a bumble bee zooming by. Over to a close up of a Red Motorola Logo as the bee zooms by and it says "CES 2011".

The video is actually an awesome piece of animation. It is interesting and humorous. Although i don't agree with their iPad Jab. They are entitled to their opinions..

If you haven't seen the video check the embedded video up above and enjoy...

So i can't help but wonder? hmm poking fun at Android, will it be a Chrome OS or possible Windows 7 on a tablet. Since Microsoft is rumored to be taking on the iPad at CES with re-introducing windows 7 tablets....enjoy

TRON: Legacy

Hello Everyone, I had a chance to see an awesome movie this morning, TRON: Legacy in IMAX 3D . If you are like me and you can appreciate a classic movie you will love this continuation of the Tron saga. I thought it was Amazing. On a scale of 1 to 10, i would give it a 15.

I loved watching the original Tron and this movie took you perfectly to the next part of the digital world to show you what came next. For months now with the rest of you i have been teased by clips and photos. But, once you finally sit down and watch it, you are captivated and blown away. You forget about time and just sit back to enjoy the movie. It is 2hours and 7 mins long and honestly i didn't even notice it.

One of the great things about the movie is that it integrates parts of the old original Tron into the story line. So if you haven't seen the original, please go see it first then this movie, you will appreciate the story more. I think this movie definitely deserves some major awards all the way around. I take my hat off to everyone who was involved in this movie, you guys Rock, Thank You.

Mind Mapping comes to iPad with iMindMap Mobile HD

When it comes to taking notes or putting together thoughts and ideas no technique comes close to MindMapping. This amazing way of starting with a central idea then branching out from there is one of the best ways of taking notes. The key to using this type of technique is to use only 3 - 4 words per branch. Giving yourself key words and ideas to branch out your thoughts.

This form of note taking has been found to stick in peoples minds for longer periods of times and also when students have come back to notes years later, the ideas and thoughts seem to come back even faster then the conventional way of taking notes.

The Mind Mapping software has been available for years for your computer. But, now it is out for the Apple iPad. This gives you the power to take your thoughts and ideas with you where ever you go. Plus, you can sync back to your desktop to edit your thoughts there too.
Check out the link on ThinkBuzan to see how awesome this app really is to use. At the bottom of the page they have a video showing how easy and fun it is to use too. Watch the whole video because at the end they show one even more incredible feature available.

This feature is to connect it to your external projector and give presentations right from your iPad on to the screen. As you give it. You start with the central idea and you can build your branches out during the presentation. Giving you a great way to walk your audience through the material.

New Chicago Apple Store - Lincoln Park

This weekend i had a chance to visit the new Apple store in Chicago. It is located in beautiful Lincoln Park on the corner of North Ave and Halsted. The store opened its doors at 10:30am. From what i heard people had been camped out all night to be the first to walk into the store.

I got there at about 12:30pm. There were still some small lines to get into the store even then. As you walked in, store Associates were passing out these white small boxes with T-shirts inside commemorating today's event. The T-shirts were black with some multi sized/colored apple leaves on the front with green text on the back calling out the store and a white apple logo in the middle of the wording. They were a nice simple design and fit in perfect for a Fall Chicago Day opening.

The T-shirt boxes were a one piece giant folded cardboard item. It was actually pretty cool. The outside was white and the inside was green with a white Apple logo inside the box. The one thing i love about Apple is they really do look into everything down to the box itself.

As we walked in to the store, the place was filled with people. They also had a lot of cops in uniform and plain clothes walking around too. I don't blame them esp. with how some people might be tempted to try to grab and run. Although i think that would be the worst mistake they could make. But you know what they say "Stupid is as Stupid does". lol

The Apple associates wore these nice blue long sleeve shirts with a white embroidered Apple Logo's in the center. It reminded me a bit of Apple meets Iron Man. I loved the shirts and i got to talking to one of the associates about getting one. But he said it was just for Apple employees. The material was like that of a polo shirt. Really sweet. Apple if you are reading this please make some of these shirts for sale. They look really really nice and yes i know a ton of us would buy them.

The store had all the goodies Apple is know for, from the beautiful new MacBook Air to the amazing iMacs. The store was just gorgeous. I loved walking around looking and being able to play with everything i could. It had a nice clean, comfortable look & feel to it.

The Apple associates were very friendly and always there to help or assist you with any questions. The one thing that stuck out that i loved was how everyone working there was being themselves. You had people with long hair, short hair, big giant afros, multi colored hair, tats, body art (aka piercings),etc. I love walking in a place where people are people no covered up so they don't scare the clients. This is one of the reasons why i love Apple, they don't styfile the creativity people have deep within.

The store is huge, it has a stainless steel panel finish on the outside with three entrances made out of primarily Glass with a bit of steel in some places. Really nice, clean and sleek design.It also has a nice modern sit down park on the side between the store and the newly renovated North and Clybourn Train station. Apple plunked down $4 million to bring it back to life.

If you have had a chance to visit. I would def. encourage you to do so. They did a fantastic job on the store, train station and the people are very warm and friendly who work there. Plus, you can always find something to bring home with you, what ever your price range, Apple has it all.

Chicago - New Apple Store Opens up in Lincoln Park Tomorrow at 10:30am

This weekend Apple will be opening up a new store in Chicago's Lincoln Park Neighborhood at 10:30am. The store is located at the corner of North Ave & Halsted in Chicago.

Come one, come all to the grand new Apple store. Below is a video showing the outside buildings features and location.. enjoy and see you there.

Benoit Mandelbrot Dies...

20 November 1924 – 14 October 2010

The father of Fractal Geometry, Benoit Mandelbrot dies of Cancer at age 85 in Cambridge, Massachusetts according to family members.

"The cause of death was cancer, his family said in a statement.

His seminal book, "The Fractal Geometry of Nature," published in 1982, argued that irregular mathematical objects once dismissed as "pathological" were a reflection of nature.

The fractal geometry he developed would be used to measure natural phenomena like clouds or coastlines that once were believed to be unmeasurable.

He applied the theory to physics, biology, finance and many other fields of study.

"Fractals are easy to explain, it's like a romanesco cauliflower, which is to say that each small part of it is exactly the same as the entire cauliflower itself," Catherine Hill, a statistician at the Gustave Roussy Institute, told AFP.

"It's a curve that reproduces itself to infinity. Every time you zoom in further, you find the same curve," she said.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy paid tribute to Mandelbrot, saying he had "a powerful, original mind that never shied away from innovation and battering preconceived ideas," according to a statement published by his office.

"His work, which was entirely developed outside the main research channels, led to a modern information theory," Sarkozy added.

Mandelbrot had been "very critical of the prevailing banking models," adding that his "warnings were not heeded," Sarkozy said.

"France is proud to have received Benoit Mandelbrot and to have allowed him to benefit from the best education."

A professor emeritus at Yale University, Mandelbrot was born in Poland but as a child moved with his family to France where he was educated.

In the United States and around the world, his work attracted the attention of academics, but also pop culture because the fractals he uncovered could be illustrated in stunningly beautiful, multi-colored representations.

"Mandelbrot spent most of his professional life working at IBM?s main research laboratory at Yorktown Heights, New York," the family statement said.

"He also taught mathematics for many years at Yale University; he was Sterling Professor Emeritus of Mathematical Sciences."

He was awarded the Wolf Prize for Physics in 1993, and the 2003 Japan Prize for Science and Technology.

David Mumford, a professor of mathematics at Brown University, told the New York Times that Mandelbrot revolutionized his field.

"Applied mathematics had been concentrating for a century on phenomena which were smooth, but many things were not like that: the more you blew them up with a microscope the more complexity you found," the Times quoted him as saying.

"He was one of the primary people who realized these were legitimate objects," Mumford added.

Mathematicians and economists were among those who reacted swiftly to Mandelbrot's death on the Internet.

Nassim Nicholas Taleb, the statistician and philosopher best known for the book "The Black Swan," turned over his website to mourn Mandelbrot's passing.

The page featured only the words: "Benoit Mandelbrot, 1924-2010, A Greek among Romans."

Chris Anderson, the organizer of the TED conferences that feature addresses from prominent thinkers drawn from a variety of fields, also offered his condolences.

He described Mandelbrot, who addressed the Technology, Entertainment, Design conference earlier this year, as "an icon who changed how we see the world" on the TED blog.

Mandelbrot leaves behind his wife, Aliette, two sons and three grandchildren."

Ubuntu 10.10 is here

Yesterday the new version of Ubuntu Linux, version 10.10 came out.

I quickly downloaded it and gave it a spin. The first thing i noticed was that the downloads actually came down quicker then before. After that i burned a copy to CD and installed it on my MacBook Pro 13 inch laptop. The installation screen was totally revamped. At first i was a bit worried as it installed but then a more colorful and detailed screen popped up.
It was a small screen right in the middle with information about the new release. It allowed you to flip through screens as it installed itself on your machine. After that i logged in and did my updates check. Just two updates to download and installed.
After working with it for a while yesterday, it does seem smoother and faster then previous builds.

I will post more after using it for a while. If you haven't have a chance to try Linux. I would definitely recommend downloading a copy of Ubuntu and giving it a try. If you are coming from a Windows background you shouldn't be worried because the adjustment will be painless and pleasant. Enjoy,.

AT&T now offering iPhone 4 color choice

Well boys and girls its been a while since the iPhone 4 first came out.
So this morning as i was surfing around a bit, I stopped by the AT&T site to see what was going on and to my surprise it looks like now we have an option for a black or white model iPhone 4.

Its nice to see we now have an option to try the white model too. I remember reading before that it actually was a longer process to make the white model iPhone 4. It would be nice to see one of these white versions in person when they hit the stores.

Spread the word... Ubuntu is coming soon..

One way of recycling old books

In a time where more people are turning to eBook. One man found a way to recycle the old regular books most of us great up reading and learning from..

images found on Gizmodo...

Steve Jobs Stopped by Japanese Security at Kansai International Airport in July

Updated: 9/14/2010
Kowa Bunga Dude, Turns out the Ninja throwing star story is all fiction. It seems the Japanese tabloids got us with their fabled story about Steve Jobs....

“Steve did visit Japan this summer for a vacation in Kyoto, but the incidents described at the airport are pure fiction," the statement reads. "Steve had a great time and hopes to visit Japan again soon.”

Apple debunks bogus story of Steve Jobs throwing star trouble, AppleInsider

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Reports are coming out now that the great Ninja Man Steve Jobs got stopped at Kansai International airport in Japan in July while returning home from a family vacation. The reason why, he had a ninja throwing star in his carry on bag. But, the funny thing was that he was boarding his own private jet.

"Jobs said it wouldn't make sense for a person to try to hijack his own plane, according to the report," the translation reads. "He then told officials he would never visit Japan again, the magazine reported. Apple declined to comment."

A spokesman for the airport did confirm some of the information but not the name of the person it happened too.

Japanese security forbids Steve Jobs from boarding own jet with throwing stars, AppleInsider

Scientists develop new form of Artificial Skin

photo found on telegraph.co.uk

One of the biggest problems with robots and prosthetics has been developing a feel for the outer skin layer. People normally know how something feels and how much pressure they should exert when gripping something. A team at University of California, Berkeley has come up with a new “thin flexible material that is embedded with microscopic wire semiconductors giving it the ability to ‘feel’”.

This sounds like an amazing break through when it comes to teaching robots or prosthetic limbs the way we feel things when a person picks up a softball or something as fragile as a wine glass. It gives them the ability to feel how much pressure is required. One of the examples they give it the ability for a robot to do dishes without destroying everything fragile.

I like to think more about the ability to give people with prosthetic limbs another way to connect back to the feeling sensations they used to have in the past. Imagine being able to feel again. I think for many people that ability alone is priceless, especially when you think of the feeling we all do when we touch someone we love, from holding their hands to touching their face. There is no other feeling like it.

Artificial skin developed by scientists, telegraph.co.uk

Researchers Develop Touch-Sensitive 'e-Skin', Bloomberg Businessweek

Sensitive touch for 'robot skin', BBC News, Technology

Resident Evil: Afterlife 3D

Today, I decided to go out to the movies and see the new 3D movie, Resident Evil: Afterlife 3D. I wasn't sure what to expect because technology is always evolving and yesterdays 3D is different than today's version of it. As we arrived at the theater mid-day there was a line at the ticket counter. I honestly didn't expect that many people mid-day on a Sunday afternoon.

Then as we got to the counter and purchased our tickets, they gave us our ticket and a pair of 3D glasses for the movie. I wasn't sure if they would be the old cheap cardboard red and blue lens glasses. But, they weren't those at all. The glasses were black plastic framed with slightly tinted clear lenses. So after I loaded up with my bottled water, large butter popcorn and twislers I headed into the theater.

It was a small crowd for Resident Evil so I found the perfect seat to view it without worrying about loud, noisy, people around me. Then just as I sat down, a message came across the screen for everyone to please put on your 3D glasses. So I put mine on and got ready for the show.

We were pleasantly entertained by a Scion car commercial in 3D. It was actually pretty cool to see. Then there were a few other goodies they showed us in 3D. Afterwards, they ran some regular movie previews for upcoming shows.

I got the feeling we saw 20 mins of previews before the movie began. Then another message came across the screen to please put on your 3D glasses. This time more 3D previews came on for some new movies coming out soon in 3D. They looked pretty awesome. Then it was time for the show to start.

I have to admit, when first putting on the glasses it did feel a bit strange. Then they cut the 3D stuff out, showed some regular previews. Then back to the 3D stuff. As the movie started I noticed in the first few mins I felt a bit queasy. I was worried I might actually lose my lunch. It took a few minutes to get used to it, then it was ok. I don't know if others felt it, but I definitely did.

Then as I sat back and watched the rest of the movie, I was totally blown away. It was AWESOME, I loved it. There were several parts where things came right out at you, as they were thrown or exploded out. This was definitely a new form of 3D.

A few times I peered over the glasses to see if I could notice anything. There is one scene where the people are standing talking together and they appear to be right out in front of you. So as I peered out over the glasses, I noticed that the background was a bit blurry. But, outside of that no other difference.

All in all the movie was Fantastic. It did leave room for another version for the Resident Evil series. You know how it is folks, the umbrella corp. never dies they just terrorize in another way. If you want to see a great action, zombie flick with yes a bit of the matrix theme in it, Resident Evil: Afterlife 3D is your movie.

I give it 4 thumbs up out of 4 thumbs....