SeaWorld San Diego | "Indian Creates First Ever Smartphone For The Blind"

Source:      http://www.siliconindia.com/
By:            Siliconindia
Category:   SeaWorld San Diego
Posted by:  San Diego Hampton Inn

Seaworld San Die

Bangalore: For the first time ever, a team of researchers in India have created a Smartphone prototype for the visually impaired people. It took about three years for the innovators to create this masterpiece which converts all the texts into the Braille patterns. This new invention would enable and help the blind people to read SMSes and even emails on the phone, reports Times Of India.

Sumit Dagar, innovator of this first of its kind Smartphone was very pleased with its success has told, “We have created the world's first Braille smartphone, this product is based on an innovative 'touch screen' which is capable of elevating and depressing the contents it receives to transform them into 'touchable' patterns.” He also added, "The response during the test has been immense. It comes out as a companion more than a phone to the user. We plan to do more advanced versions of the phone in the future."

NNI Sunday, 21 Apr 2013 10:24 pm | Comments (0)

KARACHI - Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) will be using the latest Information Technology (IT) for improvement in recovery, awareness campaigns and to better the board’s coordination with consumers.
In this regard, two consecutive meetings were held between the KWSB and consultants from World Bank Water Sanitation Programme for South Asia (WSP).
WSP consultants Idrees Butt and Cazy offered KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Farid and senior officers concerned, the technology to bring KWSB in line with modern standards. Similar meetings were also held with WASA officials in the past. The WSP consultants have been recently making rounds of the KWSB to brief them about the technological advances made in the field of IT.
During the meeting, Butt and Cazy briefed the KWSB officers about the practical use of mobile phone services, applications, SMS alerts for mutual coordination, information regarding schedule changes and recovery of bills through phone. They discussed the concerns and requirements as well as possibilities of E-Payments through mobile phones.
It was decided during the meeting that IT applications would be implemented within next two to four months, whereas the WSP consultants assured that the KWSB would not only be provided with the latest technology, but the staff would also be trained so that the board would not have to rely on third parties in the future.
Furthermore, mobile phone billing and other options would be introduced in the later stages of the project. Meanwhile, the KWSB assured the consultants of their complete support in this regard.
Later, the WSP consultants also met KWSB managing director and briefed him regarding the IT systems and applications. During the discussion Misbahuddin also suggested several steps to be taken in order to bring KWSB up to the modern standards and make the system reachable for literate and illiterate consumers alike.

- See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/04/21/city/karachi/kwsb-installs-latest-technology-to-ensure-smooth-operations/#sthash.52ROq48H.dpuf

KARACHI - Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) will be using the latest Information Technology (IT) for improvement in recovery, awareness campaigns and to better the board’s coordination with consumers.
In this regard, two consecutive meetings were held between the KWSB and consultants from World Bank Water Sanitation Programme for South Asia (WSP).
WSP consultants Idrees Butt and Cazy offered KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Farid and senior officers concerned, the technology to bring KWSB in line with modern standards. Similar meetings were also held with WASA officials in the past. The WSP consultants have been recently making rounds of the KWSB to brief them about the technological advances made in the field of IT.
During the meeting, Butt and Cazy briefed the KWSB officers about the practical use of mobile phone services, applications, SMS alerts for mutual coordination, information regarding schedule changes and recovery of bills through phone. They discussed the concerns and requirements as well as possibilities of E-Payments through mobile phones.
It was decided during the meeting that IT applications would be implemented within next two to four months, whereas the WSP consultants assured that the KWSB would not only be provided with the latest technology, but the staff would also be trained so that the board would not have to rely on third parties in the future.
Furthermore, mobile phone billing and other options would be introduced in the later stages of the project. Meanwhile, the KWSB assured the consultants of their complete support in this regard.
Later, the WSP consultants also met KWSB managing director and briefed him regarding the IT systems and applications. During the discussion Misbahuddin also suggested several steps to be taken in order to bring KWSB up to the modern standards and make the system reachable for literate and illiterate consumers alike. - See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/04/21/city/karachi/kwsb-installs-latest-technology-to-ensure-smooth-operations/#sthash.52ROq48H.dpuf

KARACHI - Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) will be using the latest Information Technology (IT) for improvement in recovery, awareness campaigns and to better the board’s coordination with consumers.
In this regard, two consecutive meetings were held between the KWSB and consultants from World Bank Water Sanitation Programme for South Asia (WSP).
WSP consultants Idrees Butt and Cazy offered KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Farid and senior officers concerned, the technology to bring KWSB in line with modern standards. Similar meetings were also held with WASA officials in the past. The WSP consultants have been recently making rounds of the KWSB to brief them about the technological advances made in the field of IT.
During the meeting, Butt and Cazy briefed the KWSB officers about the practical use of mobile phone services, applications, SMS alerts for mutual coordination, information regarding schedule changes and recovery of bills through phone. They discussed the concerns and requirements as well as possibilities of E-Payments through mobile phones.
It was decided during the meeting that IT applications would be implemented within next two to four months, whereas the WSP consultants assured that the KWSB would not only be provided with the latest technology, but the staff would also be trained so that the board would not have to rely on third parties in the future.
Furthermore, mobile phone billing and other options would be introduced in the later stages of the project. Meanwhile, the KWSB assured the consultants of their complete support in this regard.
Later, the WSP consultants also met KWSB managing director and briefed him regarding the IT systems and applications. During the discussion Misbahuddin also suggested several steps to be taken in order to bring KWSB up to the modern standards and make the system reachable for literate and illiterate consumers alike. - See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/04/21/city/karachi/kwsb-installs-latest-technology-to-ensure-smooth-operations/#sthash.52ROq48H.dpuf

Place To Visit In San Diego | "Google Fiber's TV App Lets Users Stream Directly To An iPad"

Source:      http://news.cnet.com/
By:             Dara Kerr
Category:   Place To Visit In San Diego
Posted by: San Diego Hampton Inn

Place To Visit In San Diego

If you live in Kansas City, have Google Fiber, and also own an iPad -- you're in luck. As of Tuesday, the Google Fiber TV app for iPad is available in Apple's iTunes store.

Just what does this app do?

Well, besides doubling as a TV remote control, it also lets users search for programming, browse listings, access on-demand content, and pick shows or recordings to watch. The app also lets users watch any of these shows or movies directly on their iPad.

The Google Fiber TV app has been available to Android owners for about a month now. And, instead of just tablets, it works on all Android devices running Jelly Bean.

While there's still no Google Fiber iPhone app yet, a Google representative told CNET that the company plans to release an app for the device "soon."

 

Google inaugurated its high-speed Internet and TV service in Kansas City in November. The first Net-access system of its kind, Google Fiber has the Internet speed capacity of 1-gigabit-per-second, which the company says can be up to 100 times faster than what most Americans have today with broadband.

Now that Kansas City residents have had a chance to test the service out, Google Fiber will also be launching in Provo, Utah, sometime this year and in Austin, Texas, in 2014. The Google representative told CNET that the Google Fiber TV apps will also be available to customers in these cities once their Internet service is installed.

rachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) will be using the latest Information Technology (IT) for improvement in recovery, awareness campaigns and to better the board’s coordination with consumers.
In this regard, two consecutive meetings were held between the KWSB and consultants from World Bank Water Sanitation Programme for South Asia (WSP).
WSP consultants Idrees Butt and Cazy offered KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Farid and senior officers concerned, the technology to bring KWSB in line with modern standards. Similar meetings were also held with WASA officials in the past. The WSP consultants have been recently making rounds of the KWSB to brief them about the technological advances made in the field of IT.
During the meeting, Butt and Cazy briefed the KWSB officers about the practical use of mobile phone services, applications, SMS alerts for mutual coordination, information regarding schedule changes and recovery of bills through phone. They discussed the concerns and requirements as well as possibilities of E-Payments through mobile phones.
It was decided during the meeting that IT applications would be implemented within next two to four months, whereas the WSP consultants assured that the KWSB w - See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/04/21/city/karachi/kwsb-installs-latest-technology-to-ensure-smooth-operations/#sthash.52ROq48H.dpuf

NNI Sunday, 21 Apr 2013 10:24 pm | Comments (0)

KARACHI - Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) will be using the latest Information Technology (IT) for improvement in recovery, awareness campaigns and to better the board’s coordination with consumers.
In this regard, two consecutive meetings were held between the KWSB and consultants from World Bank Water Sanitation Programme for South Asia (WSP).
WSP consultants Idrees Butt and Cazy offered KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Farid and senior officers concerned, the technology to bring KWSB in line with modern standards. Similar meetings were also held with WASA officials in the past. The WSP consultants have been recently making rounds of the KWSB to brief them about the technological advances made in the field of IT.
During the meeting, Butt and Cazy briefed the KWSB officers about the practical use of mobile phone services, applications, SMS alerts for mutual coordination, information regarding schedule changes and recovery of bills through phone. They discussed the concerns and requirements as well as possibilities of E-Payments through mobile phones.
It was decided during the meeting that IT applications would be implemented within next two to four months, whereas the WSP consultants assured that the KWSB would not only be provided with the latest technology, but the staff would also be trained so that the board would not have to rely on third parties in the future.
Furthermore, mobile phone billing and other options would be introduced in the later stages of the project. Meanwhile, the KWSB assured the consultants of their complete support in this regard.
Later, the WSP consultants also met KWSB managing director and briefed him regarding the IT systems and applications. During the discussion Misbahuddin also suggested several steps to be taken in order to bring KWSB up to the modern standards and make the system reachable for literate and illiterate consumers alike.

- See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/04/21/city/karachi/kwsb-installs-latest-technology-to-ensure-smooth-operations/#sthash.52ROq48H.dpuf

NNI Sunday, 21 Apr 2013 10:24 pm | Comments (0)

KARACHI - Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) will be using the latest Information Technology (IT) for improvement in recovery, awareness campaigns and to better the board’s coordination with consumers.
In this regard, two consecutive meetings were held between the KWSB and consultants from World Bank Water Sanitation Programme for South Asia (WSP).
WSP consultants Idrees Butt and Cazy offered KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Farid and senior officers concerned, the technology to bring KWSB in line with modern standards. Similar meetings were also held with WASA officials in the past. The WSP consultants have been recently making rounds of the KWSB to brief them about the technological advances made in the field of IT.
During the meeting, Butt and Cazy briefed the KWSB officers about the practical use of mobile phone services, applications, SMS alerts for mutual coordination, information regarding schedule changes and recovery of bills through phone. They discussed the concerns and requirements as well as possibilities of E-Payments through mobile phones.
It was decided during the meeting that IT applications would be implemented within next two to four months, whereas the WSP consultants assured that the KWSB would not only be provided with the latest technology, but the staff would also be trained so that the board would not have to rely on third parties in the future.
Furthermore, mobile phone billing and other options would be introduced in the later stages of the project. Meanwhile, the KWSB assured the consultants of their complete support in this regard.
Later, the WSP consultants also met KWSB managing director and briefed him regarding the IT systems and applications. During the discussion Misbahuddin also suggested several steps to be taken in order to bring KWSB up to the modern standards and make the system reachable for literate and illiterate consumers alike.

- See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/04/21/city/karachi/kwsb-installs-latest-technology-to-ensure-smooth-operations/#sthash.52ROq48H.dpuf

rachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) will be using the latest Information Technology (IT) for improvement in recovery, awareness campaigns and to better the board’s coordination with consumers.
In this regard, two consecutive meetings were held between the KWSB and consultants from World Bank Water Sanitation Programme for South Asia (WSP).
WSP consultants Idrees Butt and Cazy offered KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Farid and senior officers concerned, the technology to bring KWSB in line with modern standards. Similar meetings were also held with WASA officials in the past. The WSP consultants have been recently making rounds of the KWSB to brief them about the technological advances made in the field of IT.
During the meeting, Butt and Cazy briefed the KWSB officers about the practical use of mobile phone services, applications, SMS alerts for mutual coordination, information regarding schedule changes and recovery of bills through phone. They discussed the concerns and requirements as well as possibilities of E-Payments through mobile phones.
It was decided during the meeting that IT applications would be implemented within next two to four months, whereas the WSP consultants assured that the KWSB w - See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/04/21/city/karachi/kwsb-installs-latest-technology-to-ensure-smooth-operations/#sthash.52ROq48H.dpuf

NNI Sunday, 21 Apr 2013 10:24 pm | Comments (0)

KARACHI - Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) will be using the latest Information Technology (IT) for improvement in recovery, awareness campaigns and to better the board’s coordination with consumers.
In this regard, two consecutive meetings were held between the KWSB and consultants from World Bank Water Sanitation Programme for South Asia (WSP).
WSP consultants Idrees Butt and Cazy offered KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Farid and senior officers concerned, the technology to bring KWSB in line with modern standards. Similar meetings were also held with WASA officials in the past. The WSP consultants have been recently making rounds of the KWSB to brief them about the technological advances made in the field of IT.
During the meeting, Butt and Cazy briefed the KWSB officers about the practical use of mobile phone services, applications, SMS alerts for mutual coordination, information regarding schedule changes and recovery of bills through phone. They discussed the concerns and requirements as well as possibilities of E-Payments through mobile phones.
It was decided during the meeting that IT applications would be implemented within next two to four months, whereas the WSP consultants assured that the KWSB would not only be provided with the latest technology, but the staff would also be trained so that the board would not have to rely on third parties in the future.
Furthermore, mobile phone billing and other options would be introduced in the later stages of the project. Meanwhile, the KWSB assured the consultants of their complete support in this regard.
Later, the WSP consultants also met KWSB managing director and briefed him regarding the IT systems and applications. During the discussion Misbahuddin also suggested several steps to be taken in order to bring KWSB up to the modern standards and make the system reachable for literate and illiterate consumers alike.

- See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/04/21/city/karachi/kwsb-installs-latest-technology-to-ensure-smooth-operations/#sthash.52ROq48H.dpuf

NNI Sunday, 21 Apr 2013 10:24 pm | Comments (0)

KARACHI - Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) will be using the latest Information Technology (IT) for improvement in recovery, awareness campaigns and to better the board’s coordination with consumers.
In this regard, two consecutive meetings were held between the KWSB and consultants from World Bank Water Sanitation Programme for South Asia (WSP).
WSP consultants Idrees Butt and Cazy offered KWSB Managing Director Misbahuddin Farid and senior officers concerned, the technology to bring KWSB in line with modern standards. Similar meetings were also held with WASA officials in the past. The WSP consultants have been recently making rounds of the KWSB to brief them about the technological advances made in the field of IT.
During the meeting, Butt and Cazy briefed the KWSB officers about the practical use of mobile phone services, applications, SMS alerts for mutual coordination, information regarding schedule changes and recovery of bills through phone. They discussed the concerns and requirements as well as possibilities of E-Payments through mobile phones.
It was decided during the meeting that IT applications would be implemented within next two to four months, whereas the WSP consultants assured that the KWSB would not only be provided with the latest technology, but the staff would also be trained so that the board would not have to rely on third parties in the future.
Furthermore, mobile phone billing and other options would be introduced in the later stages of the project. Meanwhile, the KWSB assured the consultants of their complete support in this regard.
Later, the WSP consultants also met KWSB managing director and briefed him regarding the IT systems and applications. During the discussion Misbahuddin also suggested several steps to be taken in order to bring KWSB up to the modern standards and make the system reachable for literate and illiterate consumers alike.

- See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/04/21/city/karachi/kwsb-installs-latest-technology-to-ensure-smooth-operations/#sthash.52ROq48H.dpuf

Hotels Near Doral Golf Resort - Google Fined 145,000 Euros Over Wi-Fi Data Collection in Germany

Source - http://www.bloomberg.com/
By - Karin Matussek
Category - Hotels Near Doral Golf Resort
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Hotels Near Doral Golf Resort

Operator of the world’s largest Internet search engine, was fined 145,000 euros ($189,230) by a German regulator for collecting wireless-network data by its cars taking photos for the Street View service.

Google’s cars from 2008 to 2010 captured the data, including contents of e-mails, passwords, photos and chat protocols, Hamburg data regulator Johannes Caspar said in an e- mailed statement today. He had reopened the probe after prosecutors dropped a related criminal case last year.

“In my view, this is one of the biggest data protection rules violations known,” said Caspar. Google’s “internal control mechanisms must have severely failed.”

Google, based in Mountain View, California, has been fined by regulators around the world over the Street View Wi-Fi breaches, with the French privacy regulator levying a 100,000- euro penalty in 2011.

The company tightened up its systems to address the Street View issue, Peter Fleischer, Google’s global privacy counsel, said in a statement. The project leaders never wanted the data and didn’t use it or even look at it, he said.

Google is also being watch by privacy authorities as it debuts new services in competition with Facebook Inc. Earlier this month, six European Union regulators started “coordinated” enforcement measures over the company’s new privacy policy. Google last year introduced a uniform set of rules, unleashing criticism from regulators and consumer advocates.

Caspar said fines for negligent data rule violations are limited to 150,000 euros under German law. The limit should be raised in order to deter unlawful behavior, he said

Suites Near International Dolphin Mall - '60 Minutes' and '48 Hours' Twitter Accounts Suspended After Being Hacked

Source - http://www.aceshowbiz.com/
By - Press Release
Category - Suites Near International Dolphin Mall
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Suites Near International Dolphin Mal

Several CBS Twitter accounts have been hijacked and were used to send bogus messages. On Saturday, a tweet posted on "60 Minutes" account read, "Exclusive: Terror is striking the #USA and #Obama is Shamelessly in Bed with Al-Qaeda," and was retweeted on "48 Hours" feed.

Other tweets posted by the hacker(s) were about Syrian propaganda. "the US government is sponsoring a coup in Venezuela and a terrorist war in Syria," and "Obama wants to destroy the Syrian and American people. We must stop this beast" were some of other fake messages posted on "60 Minutes" account.

CBS has confirmed that their accounts were compromised. "We have experienced problems on Twitter accounts of #60Minutes & @48Hours; We apologize for the inconvenience; Twitter is resolving issues," it tweeted from CBS News account.

By Saturday afternoon, CBS regained the control on both "60 Minutes" and "48 Hours" Twitter accounts, and the fake messages were removed. Hours later, however, the accounts were compromised again and are currently suspended.

While CBS is still working with Twitter to investigate the issue, some believe that the Syrian Electronic Army is responsible for taking over CBS feeds. Previously, the same group hacked the Twitter accounts for BBC, NPR, and Reuters.

Budget Hotels In Miami - YouTube Again Beats Viacom's Massive Copyright Infringement Lawsuit

Source - http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/
By - Eriq Gardner
Category - Budget Hotels In Miami
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Budget Hotels In Miami

For the second time in three years, U.S. District Judge Louis Stanton has granted YouTube summary judgment in a huge copyright lawsuit.

The decision comes after the Second Circuit Court of Appeal revived the lawsuit last April. In that opinion, the appeals court agreed with YouTube that internet service providers must be aware of infringements before becoming liable for infringements, but also determined that the federal judge hadn't properly considered whether YouTube may have had actual knowledge of specific infringing clips or whether YouTube might have essentially willfully blinded itself from having that knowledge.

In past few months, the parties have been fighting over whose responsibility it was to demonstrate YouTube's knowledge.

On Thursday, Judge Stanton ruled that YouTube is protected by the safe harbor provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

Saying that Viacom was making "ingenious" arguments that amounted to "an anachronistic, pre-Digital Millennium Copyright Act" view of the law, the judge writes, "The burden of showing that YouTube knew or was aware of the specific infringements of the works in suit cannot be shifted to YouTube to disprove."

Here's the full ruling.

The lawsuit was filed in New York federal court in 2007. It was alleged that YouTube, later acquired by Google, had built its business by hosting without authorization tens of thousands of copyright infringing videos such as Comedy Central's The Daily Show and Nickelodeon's SpongeBob SquarePants.

In 2010, Judge Stanton first ruled in YouTube's favor.

At issue is section 512(c) of the DMCA, which affords safe harbor for websites responding expeditiously to takedown demands. Despite Viacom's arguments that YouTube ignored red flags and refused to institute protocol to filter copyright infringing works, the judge said that statutory protections required more on Viacom's end.

Viacom appealed the case to the 2nd Circuit.

In deciding to revive the lawsuit and remand it back to Judge Stanton, the appeals judges noted that that 75 percent to 80 percent of all YouTube streams contained copyrighted material in the period at issue, and that suggested "that the defendants were conscious that significant quantities of material on the YouTube website were infringing."

The judges at the appellate court, though, said that a service provider needs "awareness of specific infringing material" before being held liable.

In coming to today's decision, Judge Stanton notes Viacom's acknowledgement in its summary judgment papers that it lacks "the kind of evidence that would allow a clip-by-clip assessment of actual knowledge."

This is an admission, according to the judge,  that "plaintiffs lack proof that YouTube had knowledge or awareness of any specific infringements of clips-in-suit."

Judge Stanton next turns to the question of equivalents -- whether YouTube willfully blinded itself or had the right and ability to control infringing activity.

On the first, the judge writes "the examples proffered by plaintiffs (to which they claim YouTube was willfully blind) give at most information that infringements were occurring with particular works, and occasional indications of promising areas to locate and remove them. The specific locations of infringements are not supplied: at most, an area of search is identified, and YouTube is left to find the infringing clip."

After referring to some legal precedent, the judge points to a failure on Viacom's part to identify specific clips, saying that the DMCA excuses YouTube from doing that search, and that the plaintiff comes up short in producing the kind of knowledge that would show willful blindness.

Judge Stanton also turns to the issue of whether YouTube, even without knowledge of specific infringing activity, may have influenced activity while at the same time gaining a financial benefit, so as to lose its safe harbor from copyright liability.

In analyzing the “right and ability to control” infringing activity, the Second Circuit ruled the safe harbor provisions “requires something more than the ability to remove or block access to materials posted on a service provider’s website."

Viacom said that "something more" was established by YouTube's willingness to allow its services to be used to infringe, that the UGC site exercised judgment on deciding to remove some but not all clips and that YouTube organized and facilitated searches of videos. Viacom also pointed to internal emails from YouTube executives on how to monitor copyrighted works on the system, and how the defendant had at one point disabled community flagging of material on the service.

But Judge Stanton doesn't buy it.

He writes, "YouTube's decisions to restrict its monitoring efforts to certain groups of infringing clips... do not exclude it from the safe harbor, regardless of their motivation. Plaintiffs' remaining evidence of control goes no further than the normal functioning of any service provider, and shows neither participation in, nor coercion of, user infringement activity."

The judge also rejects the plaintiff's theory of YouTube's liability from syndicating content to third parties such as mobile service providers.

In reaction to the ruling, a Viacom spokesperson says,"This ruling ignores the opinions of the higher courts and completely disregards the rights of creative artists.  We continue to believe that a jury should weigh the facts of this case and the overwhelming evidence that YouTube willfully infringed on our rights, and we intend to appeal the decision.”

Affordable Vacations In Miami - Growth Worries Weigh On Asian Shares, Commodities; Gold Tumbles

Source - www.reuters.com/
By - Chikako Mogi
Category - Affordable Vacations In Miami
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Affordable Vacations In Miami

European stock markets were seen rebounding after hitting a 2013 low overnight, with financial spreadbetters predicting London's FTSE 100 .FTSE, Paris's CAC-40 .FCHI and Frankfurt's DAX .GDAXI to open up as much as 0.5 percent. .L.EU

U.S. stock futures were little changed, suggesting a calm Wall Street open after both the Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX and the Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC closed down more than 1 percent overnight. .N

Recent data from China and the United States fell short of market expectations and triggered this week's selling across markets. Some investors saw this as a timely liquidation of one-sided positions built over the past several months, when optimism over the U.S. economic outlook boosted U.S. stocks to record peaks and lifted European shares to multi-year highs.

The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS fell 0.7 percent, with its materials sector .MIAPJMT00PUS taking the hardest hit with a 2.4 percent slump as precious and base metals prices slid.

Japan's Nikkei average .N225 declined 0.9 percent. .T

Worries that slowing global growth will dent demand for raw materials hurt sentiment in resources-reliant Australian shares .AXJO, whose 1.2 percent fall was the biggest among regional bourses.

Worries that slowing global growth will dent demand for raw materials battered shares in resources-reliant Australia, with the index .AXJO off 1.5 percent, the biggest fall among regional bourses.

"Markets are gradually realizing that the long-term commodity boom, or super-cycle as some people call it, that started around the turn of the century is now over," said Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy at AMP Capital Investors, of Australian stocks.

South Korean shares .KS11 fell 0.9 percent, weighed down by weakness in U.S. stocks on disappointing corporate earnings reports.

Copper, seen as a gauge for manufacturing and China-related growth, extended its losses, with London copper sliding as much as 4 percent to $6,800 a ton.

Oil prices tumbled for a seventh straight session, with Brent crude futures staying below $98 a barrel, a level breached for the first time since July on Wednesday on concern about global oil demand.

U.S. crude fell 0.2 percent to $86.55 after dipping below $86 earlier to a fresh four-month low.

"We're just seeing an ongoing adjustment to the weaker data seen earlier in the week ... what we're seeing is a price adjustment to an emerging outlook that supply is increasing," Ric Spooner, chief market analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney.

GOLD SELLING MOMENTUM

Spot gold shed as much as 2.7 percent to a low of $1,339.86 an ounce on Thursday and last traded down 0.7 percent at $1,367.30. Bullion touched its lowest in more than two years of $1,321.35 on Tuesday.

U.S. gold futures slid as much as 3.4 percent to a low of $1,335.60 an ounce on Thursday as holdings on SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, slipped to their lowest level since April 2010.

"Gold's downtrend largely reflects changing preconditions that supported buying of bullion, and selling momentum is picking up as various bearish factors resonate with one another," said Koichiro Kamei, managing director at financial research firm Market Strategy Institute.

Kamei cited the Federal Reserve's Beige Book survey of economic activity, which allowed for the possibility the U.S. central bank would scale back its bond-buying stimulus later in the year. The survey on Wednesday showed the U.S. economy posted moderate growth between late February and early April.

"The gold-supportive macro environment is changing. Also, despite ample central bank fund injections, few signs are emerging of heightening inflationary pressures globally," Kamei said. "On top of that, investors may have run out of patience with reports of the central bank of Cyprus selling gold and ETF outflows pushing prices lower."

JAPAN STILL FAVOURED

Data from Tokyo showed a small rise in Japanese exports, improving business confidence and surging investment flows, demonstrating early successes for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's radical pro-growth strategy. But firms have yet to see signs of a sustained boost to economic activity.

But Tokyo's weekly capital flows data underscored a persistent gap between how domestic and foreign investors perceive Japan's growth outlook.

Buying of Japanese equities last week by foreign investors hit its highest since the finance ministry began collecting the numbers in 2005. The data also confirmed Japanese investors have yet to actively seek returns from overseas assets despite falling domestic yields, as they sold foreign bonds last week.

The dollar steadied around 98.09 yen after touching a low of 95.67 yen on Tuesday, and the euro also held steady around 127.97 yen, above Tuesday's low of 125 yen.

Traders said the dollar may stagnate just below the symbolic 100 yen mark, but it will gain over the longer term due to a firmer economy and the much higher probability that the U.S. will end its super-easy monetary policy well before Japan does.

"Real money and leveraged (players) are still looking for a higher dollar/yen," said Adam Gilmour, head of FX and derivatives sales for Asia Pacific at Citi in Singapore.

Traders will watch this weekend's Group of 20 meeting in Washington for any critical remarks over the yen's continued weak trend.

Trip To Miami - Cyber-Attackers Focus On Small Businesses, Web-Based Malware

Source - http://www.eweek.com/
By - Robert Lemos
Category - Trip To Miami
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Trip To Miami

Targeted attacks have increased in the last year with a larger proportion targeting small businesses, security software company Symantec stated in its Internet Security Threat Report released on April 16.

In 2012, an average of 116 targeted attacks hit organizations every day, up from 82 attacks in 2011, with manufacturing companies replacing government agencies as the favored target of such attacks, the company found. Symantec defines a targeted attack as an operation that focuses on a specific target or victim, to differentiate them from large-scale attacks of opportunity.

Small businesses continue to be a focus of such attacks, with firms of 250 or fewer employees accounting for 31 percent of attacks, Symantec's report stated. The focus on small businesses is likely because attackers see them as a stepping stone into the networks of large companies, Vikram Thakur, principal manager of Symantec's security response group, told eWEEK.

"The fact that government is no longer the No. 1 target—it's manufacturing—supports our assertion that attackers are going after the supply chain," he said.

The trend is one of several highlighted in Symantec's annual analysis of the data collected from its nearly 70 million sensors, which are the endpoint clients, network appliances and network honeypots that report malicious activity to the company.

Among the major trends, Symantec saw the number of Web attacks detected per day increase to 247,000 in 2012, up from 190,000 in 2011. Yet spam appears to be on the decline, with the overall global spam volume dropping to 30 billion messages per day in 2012, down from 62 billion per day in 2010.

"Malware, spam and social engineering continue to be massive, chronic problems," the company stated in the report. "Although they have been around for a long time, attacks continue to evolve and they still have the potential to do serious damage to consumers and businesses."

The company also reported an increase in software vulnerabilities that matched the data from other companies, which is expected as many of the security firms use similar data sources.

The Mac OS X platform continues to attract more attention from attackers, with 10 families of malware targeting the operating system in 2012, according to Symantec. Yet, mass malware attacks still overwhelmingly focus on the Windows operating system, the company said.

"At some point, we will reach the stage where the malware authors will focus on the Mac platform," Thakur said. "I think that's coming, but I don't think we are there yet."

In the mobile arena, malware rose 58 percent in 2012 compared with 2011, but 97 percent of the malicious programs targeted the Android operating system, Symantec stated in the report.

The number of security vulnerabilities in each mobile platform appears to have no correlation to the number of attacks. In 2012, Apple's iOS had 387 vulnerabilities publicly reported, while the Android and BlackBerry operating systems had only 13 vulnerabilities each. Yet far more malware hit the Android OS, with about 140 families of malware, each with more than 4,000 variants on average, targeting the platform.

Holiday In Miami - Breast Cancer Drugs Urged For Healthy High-Risk Women

Source - http://www.nytimes.com/
By - DENISE GRADY
Category - Holiday In Miami
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Holiday In Miami

On Monday, an influential panel of experts said that the answer is yes, but only for certain women who are at increased risk because of breast cancer in the family or a personal history of breast lumps or other problems. Two drugs, tamoxifen and raloxifene, can lower the risk, and may be worth taking even though both can have serious adverse effects like blood clots and strokes, the experts said.

The panel, the United States Preventive Services Task Force, recommended that for healthy women ages 40 to 70, doctors help assess the odds of breast cancer and offer to prescribe one of the drugs for patients whose risk is above average — but only if their chances of developing blood clots and strokes is low.

Because of the adverse effects, the panel also advised that the drugs not be prescribed for women unless they are at increased risk of breast cancer.

“There is evidence of benefit for certain women,” said Dr. Wanda K. Nicholson, a task force member and an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill.

Dr. Nicholson said she recommended the drugs for some of her own higher-risk patients. Some take them; some choose not to.

“The take-home point for women is to have that initial conversation with their provider,” she said.

The task force recommendations are being published in draft form and are open for public comment until May 13. An analysis of research on which the recommendations were based was also being published in Annals of Internal Medicine. The advice matches that given by the task force in 2002 (the group re-evaluates many of its subjects once a decade), though the earlier report stopped short of telling doctors to offer to prescribe the drugs. Members of the group said they relied on a wealth of new data that helped confirm and clarify the risks and benefits of the two drugs, and how they measure up against one another.

Tamoxifen and raloxifene have been recommended for years for women whose odds of developing breast cancer are higher than average. Both drugs block the effects of estrogen, and can lower the risk of the type of breast cancer whose growth is stimulated by the hormone. About 75 percent of breast cancers fall into that category. Tamoxifen is more commonly used to prevent recurrences in women who have already had breast cancer, and raloxifene is most often prescribed to prevent fractures in women with osteoporosis. Tamoxifen can also decrease the risk of fractures.

Doctors may see these drugs as a rare opportunity to lower the risk of cancer, but some women see them as simply trading one risk for another. Many healthy women, even if they are at increased risk, refuse the drugs, asking why they should take pills to lower the odds of a disease they may never get anyway, especially when the drugs can have dangerous or unpleasant side effects.

Besides increasing the risk of blood clots and strokes, the drugs can also cause hot flashes and vaginal problems like dryness and pain that can damage a woman’s sex life. In addition, tamoxifen can lead to cataracts and uterine cancer.

In the United States, 232,000 new cases of breast cancer are expected this year, and about 40,000 women will die from the disease.

The group estimated that among 1,000 women with an increased risk of breast cancer, there would be 23.5 cases of invasive breast cancer over five years. If the women took one of the drugs, 7 to 9 cases would be prevented over five years.

But an extra 4 to 7 women per 1,000 taking the drugs would develop blood clots during that time, and there would be 4 extra cases of uterine cancer per 1,000 women taking tamoxifen — an approximate doubling of both of those risks. Women who had surgery to remove the uterus would not have to worry about that type of cancer.

The task force considered a woman likely to benefit from the drugs if her odds of developing breast cancer during the next five years were 3 percent or higher. One common method of estimating the risk uses an online tool that asks a series of questions about the patient’s health and family history. It calculates her risk, and compares it to the average for women of that age.

At age 40 the average woman has a 0.6 percent risk of developing breast cancer over the next five years; at age 50, 1.3 percent; at age 60, 1.8 percent; at age 70, 2.2 percent. Plugging risk factors into the calculator, like mothers or sisters with breast cancer, or a personal history of breast biopsies, makes the risk go up.

But experts warn that although these estimates can be useful in predicting the risk for large populations, they do not work very well for individuals.

The report from the task force states: “Most women identified as ‘high risk’ will not develop breast cancer, and the majority of breast cancer cases will arise in women who are not identified as having increased risk.” The group also noted that the type of risk calculator generally used is not recommended for women with mutations in BRCA genes, which greatly increase the risk of breast cancer.

Dr. Heidi Nelson, a research professor at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, Oregon, led a team that analyzed several large controlled studies. They found that the drugs could reduce the incidence of invasive cancer by 30 percent to 68 percent, compared with placebos. A new finding is that tamoxifen had a greater protective effect than raloxifene. But it was more likely to cause blood clots. Women over 50 were more likely to develop blood clots from the drugs, or uterine cancer while taking tamoxifen.

Dr. Nelson noted that some studies found women would be more willing to take the drugs if they could prevent breast cancer entirely, rather than just lowering the risk, or if the drugs had no side effects.

One thing that might help doctors and patients, she said, is to keep in mind that the adverse effects were more common in older women. In addition, she said, younger women who had had biopsies showing a condition called atypical hyperplasia did seem to be at added risk and might be among the best candidates for taking the drugs. She said the data suggested that a five-year course of treatment could have protective effects that would continue even when the drugs were stopped.

Hotels Near Marlins Park - Drop in U.S. Retail Sales Depresses Asian Stocks

Source - http://www.washingtonpost.com/
By - Jonathan Burgos
Category - Hotels Near Marlins Park
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Hotels Near Marlins Park

Asian stocks dropped, with the regional benchmark index sliding from its biggest weekly gain in seven months, as investors await data on Chinese economic growth after U.S. retail sales fell unexpectedly.

Nissan, a Japanese carmaker that gets 32 percent of sales from North America, declined 2.1 percent. Newcrest Mining, Australia’s biggest gold producer, sank 6.9 percent in Sydney, after the bullion tumbled to to the lowest price in almost two years. Mando, a South Korean supplier of automotive parts, tumbled 15 percent after announcing plans to support unprofitable Halla Engineering & Construction.

The MSCI Asia Pacific index slipped 0.2 percent, to 137.86, as of 10:17 a.m. Monday in Tokyo before markets opened in Hong Kong and China. The gauge jumped 3.5 percent last week, the biggest weekly gain since September, as the yen traded near 100 per dollar and slower-than-estimated inflation in China eased concern about monetary-policy tightening.

Retail sales in the United States dropped in March by the largest amount in nine months, government data released Friday showed.

“On a short-term basis, there’s concern over the fact that we’re getting slightly softer data out [of] the U.S. in the past week,” said Angus Gluskie, managing director at Sydney-based White Funds Management, which oversees more than $350 million. “Over the medium-term, there’s probably more upside for the market as we get indications of a synchronized improvement in the global economy.”

Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell 0.8 percent after the U.S. Treasury Department said it would urge Japan to refrain from pursuing policies to devalue its currency. The nation’s economy has shown signs of picking up, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said Monday in Tokyo.

South Korea’s Kospi index slid 0.4 percent, while Taiwan’s Taiex index was little changed. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 0.7 percent, and New Zealand’s NZX 50 index was little changed.

The MSCI Asia Pacific index traded at 13.9 times estimated earnings compared with 14.4 for Standard & Poor’s 500 index and 12.6 times for the Stoxx Europe 600 index, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News.

S&P 500 futures were little changed. The gauge lost 0.3 percent Friday after the retail sales report and while commodities plunged and a gauge of consumer sentiment slipped.

Extended Stay In Miami - Apple Agrees to Pay $53M to Settle iPhone Warranty Lawsuit

Source - http://www.wired.com/
By - David Kravets
Category - Extended Stay In Miami
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Extended Stay In Miami

Apple is agreeing to pay $53 million to settle a class action accusing the company of failing to honor warranties on iPhones and iPod Touches, according to an agreement obtained today by Wired.

The settlement, (.pdf) set to be filed in a San Francisco federal court in the coming weeks, provides cash payouts to potentially hundreds of thousands of iPhone and iPod Touch consumers who found Apple unwilling to repair or replace their faulty phones under Apple’s one-year standard, or a two-year extended, warranty. Apple chief litigation counsel Noreen Krall signed the agreement Wednesday. Apple admits no wrongdoing in the settlement, which needs a judge’s approval.

According to several lawsuits combined in San Francisco, no matter what the problem, Apple refused to honor warranties if a white indicator tape embedded in the phone near the headphone or charging portals had turned pink or red. However, the tape’s maker, 3M, said humidity, and not water contact, could have caused the color to at least turn pink.

Affected devices include the original iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, and the first-, second and third-generation iPod Touch. Payouts are around $200 and could be less or double based on the number of claims submitted.

Lead counsel for the plaintiffs, Jeffrey Fazio, declined to be quoted on the deal because the settlement is not public. Apple did not immediately respond to a telephone inquiry late Thursday.

Airport Hotels In Miami - Windows 8, Tablets Blamed For Record Drop In PC Sales

Source - http://www.escapistmagazine.com/
By - Press Release
Category - Airport Hotels In Miami
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Airport Hotels In Miami

In sad news for the computer industry, market research firm IDC has released its latest tally of PC sales for the first quarter of 2013 which demonstrate a 14 percent decline in the number of computers sold during the period. This marks the largest drop since IDC began tracking these figures in 1994.

While there are a number of reasons for the waning sales, IDC pins the majority of the blame on the much-maligned Windows 8 operating system. "At this point, unfortunately, it seems clear that the Windows 8 launch not only failed to provide a positive boost to the PC market, but appears to have slowed the market," states IDC vice president of clients and displays Bob O'Donnell.

According to IDC, Lenovo was the only manufacturer to report year-on-year growth, while HP, Dell and Toshiba all reported declines.

Intriguingly, IDC's report even includes Apple's computers, and while its decline was less severe than other firms, it too saw a dip in sales of both desktops and laptop computers.

Obviously Apple isn't affected by the introduction of Windows 8, so what gives? Beyond the failure of Microsoft's latest OS, IDC believes that consumers are increasingly opting for tablets for their computing needs. This makes sense, as almost any modern tablet has enough horsepower and functionality to take care of the majority of most people's computing needs. It's only when you want to play videogames or render media that you really need a powerful computer to get the job done. Combine that with unrivaled portability, and it seems clear why this decline in computer sales is so drastic.

Golf Resort In Miami - Smaller Dishes Could Cut Childhood Obesity

Source - http://healthland.time.com/
By - Bonnie Rochman
Category - Golf Resort In Miami
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Golf Resort In Miami

Smaller plates, fewer calories? The latest study shows one way to fight childhood obesity may be to shrink the size of the dinner plate.

According research published in the journal Pediatrics, first-graders served themselves more and downed more calories when they used a large plate instead of a smaller one.

Simply advising parents — and kids — to eat less and exercise more hasn’t turned the childhood obesity epidemic around. And it’s obvious why: high-calorie foods are plentiful, not to mention sugary beverages that can also pack on the pounds. Portion sizes have ballooned over the past several decades. And at least one study reported that plate sizes have increased too. With one in three U.S. kids now defined as overweight or obese, researchers at Temple University decided to study how effective shrinking plate sizes could be in keeping appetites in check.

The theory made sense; previous research found that adults pile on more food and eat more calories when their bowls are bigger. Would the same hold true for children, wondered Jennifer Orlet Fisher, an associate professor of public health at Temple’s Center for Obesity Research and Education.

She and her colleagues zeroed in on two classes of first-graders at a private school in north Philadelphia. Over eight days, the 42 students helped themselves to a buffet set up by the researchers. It was self-serve, a plus for the 7-year-olds, and the menu stayed essentially the same to eliminate the possibility that kids might load up on mac and cheese but go easy on sautéed kale. Their choices: penne or chicken nuggets, applesauce and mixed veggies.

On half the days, the kids used plates that were 7 ¼ inches in diameter — about the size of a salad plate — and on the other days they were provided with dishes the size of a dinner plate at 10 ¼-inches in diameter. Their plates were weighed before and after they ate.

The kids served themselves 90 calories more on days when they used bigger dishes; they ended up consuming about half those calories and leaving the rest uneaten, which was still more than what they ate on days they used the smaller plates. “Studies show that when kids serve themselves more, they are going to eat more,” says Fisher, the study’s lead author.

Fisher doesn’t think that simply swapping a large plate for a small plate is the answer to controlling eating. But the good news is that it’s much easier to change kids’ eating habits than those of adults. Children are more likely to eat only when they feel hungry, while adults are more influenced by other factors including the cost of food and the emotions that can prompt mindless noshing. “Kids are much less complicated eaters than adults are,” says Fisher.

As a mom of twin 8-year-old boys, she empathizes with the struggle many parents face when confronted with scraping up a healthy meal for the family. Moms and dads don’t have time to study, interpret and implement dietary recommendations or follow nutritional guidelines, but switching to smaller plates might be something they can easily do.

Hotel Near FIU - China’s Stocks Rise After Inflation Slows More Than Estimated

Source - http://www.businessweek.com/
By - Weiyi Lim
Category - Hotel Near FIU
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Hotel Near FIU

China’s stocks rose for the first time in five days after a government report showed inflation slowed more than estimated last month.

TCL Corp., a television maker, advanced to the highest level in 21 months after the company estimated first-quarter net profit may have jumped eightfold. SAIC Motor Corp., the biggest Chinese automaker, climbed 1.7 percent after reporting a 17 percent gain in sales last month. Hualan Biological Engineering Inc. led a decline for health-care companies.

The Shanghai Composite Index (SHCOMP) added 0.4 percent to 2,221.42 at the 11:30 a.m. local-time break. The CSI 300 Index (SHSZ300) rose 0.6 percent to 2,486.31. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index surged 1.8 percent. Consumer prices rose 2.1 percent in March from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said, compared with the 2.5 percent median estimate of 38 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

“CPI is lower than expected and stocks are recovering after a big decline yesterday as worries about the bird flu and property measures are being priced in,” Huang Cendong, an analyst at Tebon Securities Co., said in Shanghai. “Stocks are reaching a bottom and I would expect a proper rally soon.”

The Shanghai index has fallen 2.1 percent this year amid concern steps to cool property prices will drag on economic growth. Larger Chinese cities including Shanghai and Guangzhou are expected to follow Beijing in raising down payment requirements for second homes, the China Securities Journal reported today, citing unidentified people.
Inflation Data

TCL gained gained 3.7 percent to 2.75 yuan. The company said first-quarter profit may have risen between 670 percent and 710 percent from a year ago. SAIC advanced 1.7 percent to 14.98 yuan after saying March vehicle sales rose 17.4 percent from a year earlier.

Today’s economic report also showed producer prices fell 1.9 percent from a year earlier, the 13th straight decline, compared with the median estimate of a 1.9 percent drop in a Bloomberg survey of 32 economists. Food costs rose 2.7 percent in March from a year earlier, less than half of February’s 6 percent pace.

“Today’s reading will definitely help alleviate the inflation and monetary tightening concerns” that were triggered by February inflation of 3.2 percent, Bank of America Corp. economist Ting Lu wrote in a report today. He said Feburary inflation was distorted by the Lunar new year, while a government crackdown on excessive consumption was also helping to contain consumer-price gains.

China is targeting inflation of about 3.5 percent this year, then-Premier Wen Jiabao said in his final annual report to the legislature on March 5, lowering the goal from last year’s 4 percent. Slowing price gains are a boost for Premier Li Keqiang as he seeks to sustain a rebound from the economy’s weakest annual expansion in 13 years.
Trade Outlook

Trade data scheduled for tomorrow will probably show exports climbed 11.7 percent last month from a year ago. Exports rose 21.8 percent in February from a year ago, customs bureau data showed on March 8, beating the median estimate of 8.1 percent in a Bloomberg News survey.

China’s unprecedented run of better-than-forecast export growth has spurred deeper skepticism of the data at banks including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., casting doubt on the strength of the recovery.

Gains in overseas shipments exceeded forecasts by at least 7.5 percentage points in December, January and February, the first time that’s happened in three straight months in the eight years Bloomberg has compiled analyst estimates for the data.
Drugmakers Fall

The Shanghai Composite fell to the lowest level since Dec. 27 yesterday on concern the H7N9 bird flu outbreak will hurt the nation’s economic recovery. The death toll from the influenza rose to seven today, while the infection tally increased to 24.

Consumers should avoid markets where poultry is butchered as authorities increase monitoring for the new influenza strain, Feng Zijian, head of emergency response at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said in Beijing.

A gauge of health-care stocks in the CSI 300 fell 1.7 percent, the most among 10 industry groups. Hualan Biological slid 4.9 percent to 24.61 yuan. There is “no need to panic” over the bird flu as the World Health Organization has not found any evidence of virus transmission between humans as in the case of SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, in 2003, Fortune CLSA Securities analysts led by Zen Zhou wrote in a report today.
Solar Companies

The Shanghai gauge’s trading volume was 17 percent lower than the 30-day average today, while its 100-day volatility was within 1 percent of the one-year high of 20 set on March 28, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Valuations have fallen to 9.1 times projected 12-month earnings, the lowest level since Dec. 13 and less than the seven-year average of 15.8, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

The Bloomberg China-US Equity Index (CH55BN) of the most-traded Chinese companies in the U.S. rose 0.4 percent in New York, as solar manufacturers rallied on a report that billionaire Warren Buffett may be interested in buying Suntech Power Holdings Co. after the company was forced into bankruptcy.

Suntech jumped as much as 28 percent after a news service owned by Hong Kong Economic Times said Buffett’s MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co. may buy the solar panel maker, citing an unidentified person. Trina Solar Ltd. surged the most in two months. SouFun Holdings Ltd. slumped a second day. The iShares FTSE China 25 Index Fund (FXI), the largest Chinese exchange-traded fund (FXI) in the U.S., closed little changed.

Hotel Reservations In Miami - EA The Worst Company In America? Again?

Source - http://news.cnet.com/
By - Chris Matyszczyk
Category - Hotel Reservations In Miami 
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Hotel Reservations In Miami

It's that time of the year again.

The one where companies vie to be worse than Comcast.

That used to be the plot, at least, to the point at which Comcast tried to get its own staff to help prevent it winning the Consumerist's Worst Company in America award.

Last year, though, Electronic Arts walked off with the prize, and this year things aren't looking too good.

It's already in the Final Four, where it must face the might of Ticketmaster. So EA's COO, Peter Moore, thought it best not to attempt ballot stuffing.

Instead, he took to his company's blog in order both to preempt a repeat victory and perhaps to encourage voters to have mercy.

In a post titled "We Can Do Better," Moore offered that this poll might not be the most objective assessment of worstness.

He wrote: "This is the same poll that last year judged us as worse than companies responsible for the biggest oil spill in history, the mortgage crisis, and bank bailouts that cost millions of taxpayer dollars."

His point is one of the more undeniable that any COO could offer, save for the fact that BP wasn't even involved in this competition last year.

Still, he added: "The complaints against us last year were our support of SOPA (not true), and that they didn't like the ending to Mass Effect 3."

Actually, that one's a little awkward too, as the Consumerist itself pointed out that its analysis didn't suggest Mass Effect 3 or SOPA had anything to do with it:

Moore began to reach for arguments that seemed slight -- for example citing e-mails that people were being encouraged to vote for EA because of the the specific players featured on the cover of Madden.

He also suggested that the inclusion of LGBT characters in games was hurting the company's cause.

I have a feeling that a rather pronounced enthusiasm for nickel-and-diming might have caused a slightly more elevated level of dissatisfaction with customers. As might the little mess that accompanied the launch of Sim City.

Still, Moore counters reasonably: "Every day, millions of people across globe play and love our games -- literally, hundreds of millions more than will vote in this contest."

Being voted "Worst Company in America" is really closer to being voted "The Company That People Who Are Online A Lot Hate Most," which isn't quite the same thing.

It's just not nice when people say it about you. And it is, as the Consumerist points out, one way at least some of your customers express their frustrations. (Senior management just fires people.)

As well as EA and Ticketmaster, Bank of America and -- gosh -- Comcast are in the Final Four.

But perhaps none of these managed to compare themselves, as did Moore in his post, with the New York Yankees, L.A. Lakers, and Manchester United.

Surely he realizes that when these teams have an off year -- the Yankees and Lakers are managing that quite gracefully so far -- their fans aren't exactly silent.

The Worst Company in America voting is a little bit of a game. It's odd that the COO of a gaming company is unable to see it as that.

Budget Hotels In Miami - Scientists Use 3D Printer To Make Tissue-Like Material

Source - http://www.smh.com.au/
By - Press Release
Category - Budget Hotels In Miami
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Budget Hotels In Miami

British scientists have used a custom-made 3D printer to make living tissue-like material that could one day serve medical purposes, according to findings released on Thursday.

The material is made up of thousands of connected water droplets, encapsulated within lipid films, that can carry out some of the functions of human cells.

These "droplet networks" could be the building blocks of a new technology used to pass on drugs and, down the road, could even replace damaged tissue, said a statement from Oxford University, where the scientists are based. Their findings were published in Friday's issue of the US journal Science.

Since the so-called droplet networks are completely synthetic, don't have a genome and and don't replicate, they lack the problems linked with other methods of creating artificial tissues - such as those using stem cells.
"We aren't trying to make materials that faithfully resemble tissues but rather structures that can carry out the functions of tissues," Hagan Bayley, a professor at Oxford's Chemistry Department who headed the research, said in a statement.

"The droplets can be printed with protein pores to form pathways through the network
that mimic nerves and are able to transmit electrical signals from one side of a network to the other."

According to fellow Oxford scientist Gabriel Villar, "the printed structures could in principle employ much of the biological machinery that enables the sophisticated behaviour of living cells and tissues".

Each droplet measures about 50 microns in diameter (0.05 millimeters), or about five times the size of living cells. However, the researchers believe "there is no reason why they could not be made smaller".

This synthetic material can be designed to take on different shapes once printed.

In this way, a flat shape can be programmed to fold itself into a "hollow ball", the statement said.

As for the 3D printer used, it was custom built at Oxford.

In February, researchers said they had engineered artificial human ears that look and act like the real thing thanks to 3D printing.

Cornell biomedical engineers and Weill Cornell Medical College physicians said the flexible ears grew cartilage over three months to replace the collagen used to mold them.

Affordable Vacations In Miami - Rumor: Apple's Expiring Chip Contract With Samsung

Source - http://appleinsider.com/
By - Neil Hughes
Category - Affordable Vacations In Miami
Posted By - Homewood Suites Miami

Affordable Vacations In Miami

The details come from Taiwan's Economic Daily News, and were highlighted by Japanese blog Macotakara on Tuesday. The report claims that Apple plans to utilize a so-called "A7" processor built on a smaller 20-nanometer process next year.

That advanced chip is rumored to be built by TSMC, and not Samsung, Apple's longtime chip producing partner. Currently, Samsung is responsible for the fabrication of all of Apple's A-series chips to date, including the latest A6 chip in the iPhone, and the beefier A6X found in the fourth-generation iPad.

The rumor, if true, suggests that Apple's anticipated "iPhone 5S," a next-generation handset expected to debut this year, will not feature a full-fledged next-generation "A7" processor. Conversely, the report's anticipated branding of the chip could be incorrect, and TSMC could in fact be working on a 20-nanometer chip for Apple that could be known as an "A8," or something else entirely.

The company's first custom A-series chip, the A4, debuted in the first-generation iPad in 2010, and launched in the iPhone 4 later that year, while the A5 was introduced in the iPad 2 and later came to the iPhone 4S in 2011. Since then, new iPad models have had enhanced chips with an "X" moniker, like the A5X in the third-gen iPad and A6X in the fourth-gen model, while the A6 chip debuted last year in the iPhone 5.

TSMC officials have high hopes for their forthcoming 20-nanometer chip production process, as CEO Morris Chang has predicted the smaller chips, set to debut in 2014, will outsell the company's existing 28-nanometer chips in the first two years. That bullish belief has helped to fuel speculation that Apple plans to adopt TSMC's 20-nanometer chips for its iPhone and iPad starting next year.

Apple has long been rumored to be interested in switching its mobile chip manufacturing from Samsung to TSMC, but those predictions have yet to become a reality. Apple was once Samsung's largest customer, but the iPhone maker is said to be interested in removing Samsung from its supply chain as the two companies have become bitter rivals.