China announced an 11.2% increase in its defense budget for 2012.
For the first time, China’s defense spending will top $100 billion
At a news conference Sunday, Li Zhaoxing, a spokesman for the congress, announced the $110-billion budget, while stating that the spending “constitutes no threat to other countries.’’
“You can see that we have 1.3 billion people with a large land areas and a long coastline, but our outlays on defense are quite low compared to other major countries,” said Li.
By way of comparison, the U.S. Congress has approved $662 billion in Pentagon spending for next year.
Last year at this time, Beijing announced a 12.7% increase in military spending, resuming double-digit expansion after a more modest 7.5% increase in 2010.
Adm. Robert Willard, U.S. commander for the Asia-Pacific region, told the Senate Arms Services Committee last week: “They continue to advance their capabilities and capacities in all areas.”
via LA Times
China’s military continues to grow – spending tops $100 billion for the first time
China announced an 11.2% increase in its defense budget for 2012.
For the first time, China’s defense spending will top $100 billion
At a news conference Sunday, Li Zhaoxing, a spokesman for the congress, announced the $110-billion budget, while stating that the spending “constitutes no threat to other countries.’’
“You can see that we have 1.3 billion people with a large land areas and a long coastline, but our outlays on defense are quite low compared to other major countries,” said Li.
By way of comparison, the U.S. Congress has approved $662 billion in Pentagon spending for next year.
Last year at this time, Beijing announced a 12.7% increase in military spending, resuming double-digit expansion after a more modest 7.5% increase in 2010.
Adm. Robert Willard, U.S. commander for the Asia-Pacific region, told the Senate Arms Services Committee last week: “They continue to advance their capabilities and capacities in all areas.”
via LA Times
The Hobbit – behind the scenes production video #6
Peter Jackson’s first video production blog for The Hobbit for 2012.
Looks like they’ve started shooting part 2 of The Hobbit now which will be coming out in 2013, while the first part comes out this Christmas 2012. There’s also some cool footage of Andy Serkis directing the 2nd unit as well.
via ThinkHero
Previous production videos (#2-5) can be found at IanTeanStreet
For more on the special effects check out the WETA Workshop
Also, visit Peter Jackson on Facebook for more personal details.
NASA completely hacked, several times in cyber war
NASA said hackers broke into its computer systems 13 times last year, stealing employee credentials and gaining access to mission-critical projects in breaches that could compromise U.S. national security.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration spends only $58 million of its $1.5 billion annual IT budget on cyber security, Paul Martin, the agency’s inspector general, told a Congressional panel on NASA security earlier this week.
“Some NASA systems house sensitive information which, if lost or stolen, could result in significant financial loss, adversely affect national security, or significantly impair our nation’s competitive technological advantage,”
He said the agency discovered in November that hackers working through a Chinese-based IP address broke into the network of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
He said they gained full system access, which allowed them to modify, copy, or delete sensitive files.
Unencrypted notebook computers that have been lost or stolen include ones containing codes for controlling the International Space Station as well as sensitive data on NASA’s Constellation and Orion programs and Social Security numbers, Martin said.
via Reuters
An eco-house in Esenada, Mexico – built into a seaside cliff
An interesting concept for a beach home is profiled in the LA Times. The house is built into a cliff using “rammed-earth,” concrete slabs, and recycled materials.
D’Acosta and Turrent began their two-year construction project by digging a foundation into the cliff, then constructing a perimeter of 3-foot-thick rammed-earth retaining walls. They called the inner structure of earthen tunnels an “hormiguero,” or ants’ nest. A concrete slab hearth supports the weight of the wood floor and roof, “like a huge column supporting a bridge,” D’Acosta said. The result is a 2,300-square-foot house with bohemian flair.
Another component of the home is recycled 100-year-old redwood planks from a bridge in Northern California. The couple bought 200 of the timbers, each 27 feet long and 1 ton, from a salvage yard in Rosarito Beach.
See more pictures and details at LA Times
New 'Avengers' trailer – a scene-by-scene breakdown of the new footage
Just a few days ago, a new Avengers trailer was released, containing awesome footage:
- Hulk catching Iron Man in mid-air
- Three-way fight between Thor, Captain America, and Iron Man.
Pretty exciting if you’re a casual fan (watch the trailer below), but if you can’t get enough…
Then check out these scene-by-scene breakdowns of the new footage – 21 screen captures and descriptions.
Once you’re done with go on to the next dissection of the trailer from October – 22 screen captures and follow-along descriptions.
Avengers – trailer 2 – released Feb 29, 2012
All of the trailers are easily viewed at the Avengers Facebook page and also check out the prologue (6-minute video) for the Dark Night Rises
New ‘Avengers’ trailer – a scene-by-scene breakdown of the new footage
Just a few days ago, a new Avengers trailer was released, containing awesome footage:
- Hulk catching Iron Man in mid-air
- Three-way fight between Thor, Captain America, and Iron Man.
Pretty exciting if you’re a casual fan (watch the trailer below), but if you can’t get enough…
Then check out these scene-by-scene breakdowns of the new footage – 21 screen captures and descriptions.
Once you’re done with go on to the next dissection of the trailer from October – 22 screen captures and follow-along descriptions.
Avengers – trailer 2 – released Feb 29, 2012
All of the trailers are easily viewed at the Avengers Facebook page and also check out the prologue (6-minute video) for the Dark Night Rises
Make Your Dreams Come True – the Muppet Babies intro theme song
Muppet Babies, we make our dreams come true
Muppet Babies, we’ll do the same for you
When your world looks kinda weird and you wish that you weren’t there (Kermit)
Just close your eyes and make believe and you can be anywhere (Piggy)I like adventure (Kermit)
I like romance (Piggy)
I love great jokes (Fozzie)
Animal dance!! (Animal)
I’ve got my computer (Scooter)
I swing through the air (Skeeter)
I play the piano (Rowlf)
And I have blue hair (Gonzo)
Me, I invent things (Bunsen)
Mee mee mee meee! (Beaker)Is everything all right in here? (Nanny)
Yes, Nanny. (all)Muppet Babies, we make our dreams come true
Muppet Babies, we’ll do the same for youMuppet Muppet Muppet Muppet
Babies Babies Babies Babies
Make dreams come true.
If you like this also check out Cookie Monster – C is for cookie!
Obama creates the most politicized Facebook Timeline ever – complete with merchandise
President Obama converted his Facebook page to the timeline format Thursday morning, a day after the timeline option became available for branded pages.
Obama’s 2012 campaign staff, which administers the Barack Obama fan page, took advantage of the new format by featuring an image of the President’s birth certificate emblazoned on a coffee mug at the beginning of it.
The Obama campaign began selling mugs and other memorabilia with images of the president’s long-form birth certificate on its Web site shortly after it was released.
via WaPo
“There’s really no way to make the birth certificate conspiracy completely go away, so we might as well laugh at it — and make sure as many people as possible are in on the joke. Get your Made In The USA mug today.” – $20
Netflix turns to TV shows after the movie industry tries to bully the company
Netflix is now primarily an Internet streaming service for television shows, not feature films.
TV series now account for more than half of all Netflix viewing. That helps to explain why this Wednesday (Feb 29, 2012) — the long-awaited moment when motion picture classics like “Scarface” and newer hits like “Toy Story 3” will vanish from the streaming service — is not the doomsday that it was once expected to be.
The vanishing films are from Starz. Its three-and-a-half-year-old deal helped Netflix persuade millions of people to sign up for Internet streaming.
It became clear about a year ago that the deal would not be renewed. By then, though, Netflix was bulking up on old TV episodes.
Analysts say the prioritizing of television partly explains why the company has been able to retain about 21.7 million streaming subscribers in the United States — totaling one in four households that have broadband.
Many of the new titles are full seasons of TV series like “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad” and “Lost” that Netflix executives call “26-hour movies.”
Netflix is sensitive to that criticism — but says it doesn’t really matter. As long as its algorithms serve up something worth watching, even if it’s not the subscriber’s first choice, he or she will continue paying for and enjoying the service, the company believes.