Review of the reviews – Apple’s new iPad

A review of the reviews from Om Malik.

The new iPad reviews are out and here is my summary of those reviews:  LTE is fast, the retina display is stunning and immersive, the new processor is speedy, the camera takes great pictures now, and the more (1 GB) memory makes the iPad awesome. In short, it is totally worth buying and upgrading.

The new iPad is a little fat and little heavy, but don’t worry — wear an untucked shirt and no one would notice. Oh, but the way, bulk or not, it is still the tablet king and it totally kicks Android’s derriere. It is a little expensive, but don’t worry, it is worth it.

My favorite review is that by Dalrymple, so read it. The old hand Mossberg is still the gold standard when it comes to reviews. And Gruber is well Gruber.

via GigaOm

 

The only thing I have to add is that ars technica always has the best review but it takes several days to come out. I’ll post that once it hits the presses, until then enjoy these.

Robot cheetah sets speed record for legged robots

This video shows a demonstration of the “Cheetah” robot galloping at speeds of up to 18 miles per hour (mph), setting a new land speed record for legged robots. The previous record was 13.1 mph, set in 1989.

The robot’s movements are patterned after those of fast-running animals in nature. The robot increases its stride and running speed by flexing and un-flexing its back on each step, much as an actual cheetah does.

The current version of the Cheetah robot runs on a laboratory treadmill where it is powered by an off-board hydraulic pump, and uses a boom-like device to keep it running in the center of the treadmill. Testing of a free-running prototype is planned for later this year.

 

I can’t explain why but watching this video makes me very scared. I think someone needs to make a horror movie with speedy robot cheetahs to haunt my nightmares.

This description of the robotics program doesn’t help any:

Robots hold great promise for amplifying human effectiveness in Defense operations. Compared to human beings and animals, however, the mobility and manipulation capability of present day robots is poor. In addition, design and manufacturing of current robotic systems are time consuming, and fabrication costs remain high. If these limitations were overcome, robots could assist in the execution of military operations far more effectively across a far greater range of missions.

via DARPA Defense Sciences Office

The top 30 Baseball broadcasters according to Moneyball fans

The sabermetrics (a.k.a. Moneyball) website, Fangraphs put together an offseason poll. In it they asked the geeky baseball fans to rate their hometown announcers, with a particular emphasis on sabermetric insight.

Then put it all together using a geeky formula to determine the top 30 Baseball broadcasters:

 

1. Los Angeles Dodgers (Home) – Vin Scully

2. New York Mets – Gary Cohen, Ron Darling, and Keith Hernandez

3. San Francisco Giants – Duane Kuiper and Mike Krukow

4. Houston Astros – Bill Brown and Jim Deshaies

5. Boston Red Sox – Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy

6. Chicago Cubs – Len Kasper and Bob Brenly

7. Milwaukee Brewers – Brian Anderson and Bill Schroeder

8. Detroit Tigers – Mario Impemba and Rod Allen

9. Oakland Athletics – Glen Kuiper and Ray Fosse

10. Tampa Bay Rays – Dewayne Staats and Brian Anderson
Continue reading “The top 30 Baseball broadcasters according to Moneyball fans”

Since the recession began in 2006 – blogging has exploded, growing 500%

Do you ever wonder how many millions of people, before the days of the internet, kept journals?

Do you think the numbers would compare to the millions who are now blogging, tweeting, and social networking…

—

On to the real story:

Millions More Bloggers and Blog Readers

Here is another interesting fact about the recession. Since it began in 2006, the number of blogs in the world has risen from 36 million to 173 million. That is a near 5x growth.

Do you think that has any relation the recession or is just a correlation?

That same data shows that 2x as many people blog on social networks as compared to traditional blog websites. So perhaps the rapid growth is due to the rise of social networks?

Ah, well the data shows that the majority of bloggers are women, half of whom are moms. Another 20% of bloggers are fathers. Something about parenting drives a person to blog…

More stats at neilsenwire

The rise of girl culture – Hunger Games to blow away box office

First Harry Potter, then Twilight, and now Hunger Games. Female authors and female fans are rising.

Based on the enormity of tracking for The Hunger Games,  the Lionsgate movie has the potential to score one of the top debuts of all time at the domestic box office.

Rarely does a film generate the sort of numbers that Hunger Games is enjoying. When the movie–based on Suzanne Collins‘ wildly popular young-adult novel–first popped up on tracking two weeks ago, the scores were so good that box-office observers and exhibitors immediately predicted an opening in the $70 million to $100 million range, with most betting on the higher number.

Hunger Games, which opens March 23, is even tracking better than The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1. That film opened in November to $138.1 million, the fifth-best debut of all time domestically.

via THR

 

To which the writers at ComicBook.com explain as the result of a brilliant marketing campaign from Lionsgate:

Lionsgate’s Marketing. At this point, the marketing campaign for this film should be put in a top 10 ALL TIME.  Yes, all time.  From an outstanding Twitter campaign, advance showing contests, incorporating charity with the film, and brilliantly releasing photos, interviews, and clips, Lionsgate has transformed the audience for “The Hunger Games.  A little over 3 months ago, this film was a niche film that was going to bring in respectable numbers on the backs of hardcore fans.  As of today, the audience now includes massively growing numbers of folks that haven’t read the books.  And Lionsgate did this on the cheap.  They didn’t toss out millions on a Super Bowl Commercial and crash the airwaves with ad after ad (like Disney did with “John Carter”). They did it with new media, and by empowering potential moviegoers.  The audience was part of this campaign, and as a result, they’ll see the film out of loyalty.  It’s a campaign that will be taught in film schools for years to come—or it should be.

via ComicBook.com

 

Valid points, all of them, but I still think they, Hollywood, and the entire country are missing something: the rise of the teenage girl.

Just like the teenage boy, and his brother (adult males, age 18-34), have dominated our pop culture landscape since the late 80s, I think we are witnessing the eruption of teenage girls onto the scene.

Some numbers:

Interest among younger women in Hunger Games is now at 45 percent, compared with 36 percent for Breaking Dawn. Among female over the age of 25, interest is 29 percent, versus 27 percent for Breaking Dawn.

One advantage that Hunger Games has over Summit Entertainment’s blockbuster Twilight franchise is male interest.

Monday’s tracking showed that Interest in Hunger Games among males younger than 25 was a healthy 28 percent, compared to 10 percent for Breaking Dawn. Interest among males over 25 was 20 percent, versus 8 percent for the fourth Twilight film.

via THR

 

The latter numbers show that male interest in female writers with female heroines, like in Hunger Games, can attract growing groups of men.

Even more, the former numbers show that nearly half of all teenage girls in the U.S. want to see this movie, as do nearly one out of three adult females.

Long live the rise of girl culture.

Top 20 Graphic Novels of 2011

  1. Walking Dead Vol. 1
  2. Walking Dead Vol. 14
  3. League of Extraordinary Gentlemen III Century
  4. Walking Dead Vol. 15
  5. Walking Dead Vol. 2
  6. Fables Vol. 15
  7. Batman Noel Deluxe Edition (hardcover)
  8. Walking Dead Vol. 3
  9. Walking Dead Vol. 13
  10. Morning Glories Vol. 1

    11.  

  11. Batman Dark Knight Returns
  12. Batman Hush Complete
  13. Walking Dead Vol. 4
  14. Holy Terror (hardcover)
  15. Walking Dead Vol. 5
  16. Fables Vol. 16
  17. Walking Dead Vol. 9
  18. Chew Vol. 1
  19. Batman Year One Deluxe (softcover)
  20. Blackest Night

 

All Trade Paperbacks and Graphic Novels sold to comics shops down 5.01%

 

* Data represents books sold to North American comics shops as reported by Diamond Comic Distributors

“Trust, but verify” – the code of nuclear treaties

English – “trust but verify”

Russian – “doveryai, no proveryai”

The phrase was used by U.S. President Ronald Reagan at a press conference with Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev during the of the signing the INF Treaty at the White House in 1987.

After Reagan used the phrase, Mikhail Gorbachev responded: “You repeat that at every meeting,” to which Reagan answered “I like it.” (thx to Darin McClure)

Why the treaty was important:

The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty was unique when negotiated and remains so. It was designed as a global ban on all U.S. and Soviet missiles having a range of 500-5500 kilometers and, for the first time in U.S. treaty history, contained verification measures that permitted the presence of U.S. inspectors on Soviet soil, and vice versa. The fact that inspectors could for the first time enter sensitive U.S. and Soviet missile facilities was a breakthrough and harbinger of the end of the Cold War.

The treaty not only eliminated an entire class of nuclear missiles but also “brought about a new standard of openness.”

by Rose Gottemoeller

 

Brought up as my local nuclear power plant faces a growing tide of questions about a nuclear leak. The authorities and corporations involved are providing limited information and asking us to trust them.

Sure, we can trust, but we want to verify.