Teen Builds Backyard Death Ray
April 22nd, 2011
Geeky Gadgets
By: Glenn Santos
If 19 year-old Eric Jacqmain could travel back in time with his invention, why, he can change history. Holy Cow, that’s a Hollywood movie right there! You read it here first, boys and girl—we’re gonna start on the script ASAP. Also, James Cameron is going to direct it. We insist.
Ahem! Unfortunately our instant-ideas got the better of ourselves up there. Excuse us, kindly. Though Eric Jacqmain travelling through time will not happen anytime soon, his ingenious death ray might just make him viral celebrity.
The death ray is the glittering device pictured above. That’s a humble satellite dish covered in more than 5,000 mirrors and being field tested by Eric Jacqmain. Setting the DIY weapon at an angle, Jacqmain successfully burnt and melted a few hapless objects like a hunk of wood, a rock, and a paint can lid.
Kidding aside, so long as Jacqmain doesn’t set anyone’s house on fire, he deserves all the kudos he gets. Wunnerful, wunnerful. This is what American kids should be doing more often. Even if they fail at DIY backyard science projects, the self discovery and sense of wonderment is priceless.
We also have a good feeling if the machines take over shortly after the launch of the iPad 2, Eric Jacqmain is the one who’ll lead the resistance. This is another great idea for a movie.
Are you reading this James Cameron?
Click here for the full report from Geeky Gadgets
The 10 Most Counterfeited Products Sold in America
April 22nd, 2011
DailyFinance
By: Douglas McIntyre
American consumers love bargains. But that zest for getting a coveted product at the lowest price also has an economic downside: It creates a giant opportunity for the scads of shady operators — especially from China — that specialize in pumping out counterfeit versions of the real thing.
U.S. companies lose at least hundreds of millions of dollars a year in sales from products that are counterfeited overseas and shipped to America. The problem’s exact scope isn’t entirely known because most of these products are never seized and, therefore, the federal government can’t get an accurate measurement of the economic loss.
To get a better handle on just how extensive counterfeiting has become, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data from the U.S. Homeland Security Department’s Customs and Border Protection unit, the federal agency charged with enforcing intellectual property rights (IPR) within America’s borders.
The CBP does so by seizing products that infringe the originals’ copyrights and patents. According to the agency, “The theft of intellectual property and trade in fake goods threatens America’s economic vitality and national security, and the American people’s health and safety. Trade in these illicit goods funds criminal activities and organized crime. In Fiscal Year 2009, there were 14,841 intellectual property rights seizures with a domestic value of $260.7 million. Goods from China accounted for 79% of the total domestic value for all IPR seizures.”
The first notable aspect of the data is the astonishing level at which China takes advantage of the U.S. markets. Some estimates by economists say 8% of China’s GDP comes from the sales of counterfeit goods, from software to designer clothing.
In addition to the CBP data, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed information from the Alliance for Gray Market and Counterfeit Abatement, the International Authentication Association, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and PC World magazine.
The one thing that becomes clear from these investigations is that while counterfeiting improves China’s GDP, it undermines economic growth in the U.S. The federal government can do only so much to combat the problem with current resources. Unfortunately, that means the erosion of sales in some industries due to counterfeit goods coming into the U.S. will continue.
Here are the 10 product categories, in descending order, that lose the most money to counterfeit goods.
1. Footwear
Value: $99.8 million
Percent of Total Seizures: 38%
Just under $100 million worth of counterfeit footwear was seized entering the U.S. in 2009, by far the greatest amount of any product. By value, 98% of counterfeit footwear originated in China. This was the fourth year in a row that footwear was the top commodity seized.
2. Consumer Electronics
$31.8 million
12%
Consumer electronics, such as cell phones, digital music players and cameras, made up 12% of all seizures worth nearly $32 million. China produces most of these electronics, with approximately $18.5 million worth of seizures originating from there. Consumer electronics are also the most popular illegitimate product coming out of Hong Kong, second only to China. They make up 40% of all counterfeit goods that are intercepted from Hong Kong.
3. Handbags/Wallets/Backpacks
$21.5 million
8%
Anyone who has walked down a major New York City street has had the opportunity (or several) to buy a fake designer handbag. The CBP seized $21.5 million worth of counterfeit handbags, wallets and backpacks coming into the country. This accounts for 8% of all seized commodities that violated IPR. China exported $19.5 million of these goods.
4. Apparel
$21.5
8%
There was only slightly less apparel seized than handbags, wallets and backpacks. The amount exported from China is also similar, worth $17.9 million. Counterfeit apparel is most often made to resemble designer fashion brands such as Polo Ralph Lauren.
5. Watches/Parts
$15.5 million
6%
lthough counterfeit watches are readily available in the U.S., over $15.5 million worth of watches and watch parts were seized in 2009. The majority of these items (just over $7.9 million in value) came from Hong Kong. The industry is currently flooded with replicas of every Rolex model available, as well as Panerai and Omega models.
Click here for the full report from Daily Finance
Gasoline Prices Up 40% This Summer, U.S. Says
April 22nd, 2011
Market Watch
By: Ruth Mantell
Retail prices for a gallon of regular-grade gasoline will average $3.86 from April through September, up from $2.76 for the comparable period last year, said the Energy Information Administration, the statistics arm of the Department of Energy.
In some areas, monthly average prices could top the national average by at least 25 cents a gallon.
“The continuing economic recovery tends to boost gasoline and diesel fuel consumption, while the effect of higher retail prices tends to dampen it,” according to EIA. “These counterbalancing forces are expected to be prominent features of the summer driving season.”
According to AAA’s daily fuel-gauge report, the national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline is about $3.79, up about 33% from $2.86 a year earlier.
The average U.S. household’s vehicle fueling costs will rise about $825 from last year’s level, hitting $3,360 in 2011, the EIA said.
The government also expects refiner acquisition costs of crude oil to average $112.50 a barrel this summer, up about 50% from the prior year.
Meanwhile, wholesale gasoline margins — the difference between the wholesale price of gas and the refiner acquisition cost of crude — are forecast to average 53 cents a gallon this summer, up 47% from last year.
The catalyst for the increase, according to EIA, will be “continuing strength in worldwide liquid fuels consumption.”
Click here for the full report from Market Watch
The Kevin Trudeau Show: 4-21-11
Today, Kevin gives you more proof that the FTC is monitoring this radio show! Plus, find out how to correct bipolar disorder, depression, and other chemical imbalances without drugs.
Self Help:
Click Here If You’ve Ever Taken An Antibiotic
Get Rid Of Negative Thoughts
Don’t Let Fear Control Your Life
Delete Nutritional Deficiencies
Videos:
Muse – Uprising
Bob Basso – We The People Stimulus Package
Health:
The New Hot Celebrity Disorder
Wendy’s Natural Cut Fries Aren’t So Natural
Fake News Sites Link To Acai Berry Diet Scam
Big Brother:
iPhone Keeps Record Of Everywhere You Go
Everything Kevin:
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Celebrity Seeking Treatment for Bipolar Disorder
April 21st, 2011
ABC News
By: Sheila Marikar
For months, Catherine Zeta-Jones played the part of the devoted wife as her husband, actor Michael Douglas, sought treatment for throat cancer. Now, it seems all wasn’t well in her world.
Today, Zeta-Jones’ publicist revealed that the actress recently sought treatment for bipolar disorder.
“After dealing with the stress of the past year, Catherine made the decision to check in to a mental health facility for a brief stay to treat her Bipolar II Disorder,” her publicist said in a statement. “She’s feeling great and looking forward to starting work this week this week on her two upcoming films.”
Bipolar disorder is also called manic-depressive illness. The disorder is most known for the unusual shifts in mood and energy that those with it experience. Sufferers can go through what is known as a manic episode — an overly excited or joyful state — or a depressive episode — a state of unusual sadness or hopelessness.
Bipolar II disorder is not as severe as bipolar I. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, while those with bipolar I typically experience mania and intense mood episodes that can last at least seven days and may require hospitalization, bipolar II usually results in less intense depressive episodes.
While bipolar disorder often develops in a person’s late teens or early adult years, it has been known to develop later on in life as well.
Zeta-Jones, 41, was outspoken about her anger after Douglas, 66, was diagnosed with throat cancer in August 2010.
“It makes me furious they didn’t detect it earlier,” Zeta-Jones told People magazine. “He sought every option and nothing was found.”
Douglas’ cancer wasn’t the only stress in the couple’s life. Last year, Douglas’ ex-wife took him to court seeking a some of his profits from his “Wall Street” sequel, which was released in 2010 but was based on the iconic film that he made while they were married, which she said entitled her to a share.
Zeta-Jones reportedly turned down roles to be by Douglas’ side through his legal and physical battles. In January, Douglas noted that his cancer fight drew him and Zeta-Jones closer.
“One thing that all cancer survivors talk about is a new depth of feeling that you have for loved ones,” he said while receiving an award at the Palm Springs Film Festival. Zeta-Jones was at the festival with him.
“It’s made us even closer,” he added, “and certainly there’s a depth of emotion and an appreciation of your daily life that you didn’t have before.”
Zeta-Jones and Douglas married in 2000. They have two children together, Dylan Michael Douglas and Carys Zeta Douglas.
Click here for the full report from ABC News
iPhone Keeps Record Of Everywhere You Go
April 21st, 2011
Guardian.co.uk
By: Charles Arthur
Security researchers have discovered that Apple’s iPhone keeps track of where you go – and saves every detail of it to a secret file on the device which is then copied to the owner’s computer when the two are synchronised.
The file contains the latitude and longitude of the phone’s recorded coordinates along with a timestamp, meaning that anyone who stole the phone or the computer could discover details about the owner’s movements using a simple program.
For some phones, there could be almost a year’s worth of data stored, as the recording of data seems to have started with Apple’s iOS 4 update to the phone’s operating system, released in June 2010.
“Apple has made it possible for almost anybody – a jealous spouse, a private detective – with access to your phone or computer to get detailed information about where you’ve been,” said Pete Warden, one of the researchers.
Only the iPhone records the user’s location in this way, say Warden and Alasdair Allan, the data scientists who discovered the file and are presenting their findings at the Where 2.0 conference in San Francisco on Wednesday. “Alasdair has looked for similar tracking code in [Google's] Android phones and couldn’t find any,” said Warden. “We haven’t come across any instances of other phone manufacturers doing this.”
Simon Davies, director of the pressure group Privacy International, said: “This is a worrying discovery. Location is one of the most sensitive elements in anyone’s life – just think where people go in the evening. The existence of that data creates a real threat to privacy. The absence of notice to users or any control option can only stem from an ignorance about privacy at the design stage.”
Warden and Allan point out that the file is moved onto new devices when an old one is replaced: “Apple might have new features in mind that require a history of your location, but that’s our specualtion. The fact that [the file] is transferred across [to a new iPhone or iPad] when you migrate is evidence that the data-gathering isn’t accidental.” But they said it does not seem to be transmitted to Apple itself.
Although mobile networks already record phones’ locations, it is only available to the police and other recognised organisations following a court order under the Regulation of Investigatory Power Act. Standard phones do not record location data.
MPs in 2009 criticised the search engine giant Google for its “Latitude” system, which allowed people to enable their mobile to give out details of their location to trusted contacts. At the time MPs said that Latitude “could substantially endanger user privacy”, but Google pointed out that users had to specifically choose to make their data available.
The iPhone system, by contrast, appears to record the data whether or not the user agrees. Apple declined to comment on why the file is created or whether it can be disabled.
Warden and Allan have set up a web page which answers questions about the file, and created a simple downloadable application to let Apple users check for themselves what location data the phone is retaining. The Guardian has confirmed that 3G-enabled devices including the iPad also retain the data and copy it to the owner’s computer.
If someone were to steal an iPhone and “jailbreak” it, giving them direct access to the files it contains, they could extract the location database directly. Alternatively, anyone with direct access to a user’s computer could run the application and see a visualisation of their movements. Encrypting data on the computer is one way to protect against it, though that still leaves the file on the phone.
Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at the security company Sophos, said: “If the data isn’t required for anything, then it shouldn’t store the location. And it doesn’t need to keep an archive on your machine of where you’ve been.” He suggested that Apple might be hoping that it would yield data for future mobile advertising targeted by location, although he added: “I tend to subscribe to cockup rather than conspiracy on things like this – I don’t think Apple is really trying to monitor where users are.”
Click here for the full report from Guardian.co.uk
Fake News Sites Link To Acai Berry Diet Scam
April 21st, 2011
The Huffington Post
By: Carla K. Johnson
Consumers searching for unbiased journalism on the acai berry diet clicked their way into a scam, according to federal regulators who have filed lawsuits in six states in an attempt to shut down the alleged Internet tricksters.
The Federal Trade Commission announced Tuesday it has asked federal courts to stop a wave of fake news sites that entice consumers to buy the unproven weight-loss products.
The sites violate federal law by using the logos of major news outlets to mislead consumers into thinking they’re reading real news reports, according to the court filings. In reality, the sites are advertisements.
Over the past seven days, the FTC filed complaints in federal courts in Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Georgia and Washington. The complaints named 10 website operators and asked the courts to freeze their assets.
The defendants paid more than $10 million to advertise their fake news sites, the FTC said. It’s not clear whether the defendants allegedly running the sites are connected, although content on the sites is similar or the same, said FTC attorney Steven Wernikoff in Chicago.
“We’re still trying to figure that out,” Wernikoff told The Associated Press on Tuesday. “There was some copying of content going on. Regardless of the genesis of the content, the operators are still responsible for the deception on their sites.”
Courts granted temporary restraining orders in some of the cases and many of the websites have been taken down.
One typical lawsuit alleges that Tanner Garrett Vaughn of Mill Creek, Wash., claimed on a website called BreakingNewsAt6.com that a reporter tested an acai berry product and lost 25 pounds in four weeks without dieting or exercise. The FTC claims no real reporter tested the products.
Vaughn is cooperating with the FTC and the website is no longer operating, said Vaughn’s Washington, D.C.-based attorney James A. Kaminski.
“It’s our position that the defendant has done no wrong,” Kaminski said.
The Illinois attorney general’s office filed a separate lawsuit against Ishmael Lopez Jr. of Sauk Village. The office alleges Lopez used a fake news site to promote acai weight-loss products. A phone listing for Lopez could not be found.
According to court filings, the scam worked like this:
A consumer types “acai” into Google or another search engine. An ad pops up that says, “Health Reporter Discovers The Shocking Truth.” Clicking on that link leads the consumer to a fake news site featuring a first-person story about a fake reporter’s positive experience with the diet products. One more click and the consumer lands on an ad offering a “free trial” of an acai berry supplement.
The FTC received multiple complaints from consumers who paid from $70 to $100 for weight-loss products after having been duped by the fake news sites.
Acai, a popular beverage flavor, is a dark purple fruit from a palm found in Central and South America. Marketers sell a diet supplement purported to contain acai, often selling it with a separate “colon cleanser” product.
Last year, the FTC filed a separate lawsuit against a Phoenix-based company for using fake celebrity endorsements for acai berry products. In that case, still under way, Oprah Winfrey and Rachael Ray filed statements with the court denying they’d ever endorsed the products.
Click here for the full report from The Huffington Post
Wendy’s Natural Cut Fries Aren’t So Natural
April 21st, 2011
OrganicAuthority.com
By: Jill Ettinger
Last fall, the fast-food chain Wendy’s introduced its Natural Cut Fries With Sea Salt, promoting them with ads pointing to the more natural look (they leave the potato skins on) and the better tasting product. But, as it turns out, the product is anything but natural.
The name itself is the giveaway: natural cut? That doesn’t actually tell consumers the product ingredients are natural, but it’s easy to be misled into thinking that’s what Wendy’s means. The fries undergo several unnatural treatments, including being sprayed with a chemical called sodium acid pyrophosphate, which prevents the potatoes from turning brown in the two deep frying sessions they go through—once at the factory and then again at the restaurant.
Although they’re called “Natural Cut Fries With Sea Salt” the name could actually read: “Natural Cut Fries With Sea Salt, Dextrose and Dimethylpolysiloxane.” Dextrose is a corn derived sugar coating added to the fries to help retain color, and dimethylpolysiloxane is a silicone-based chemical food additive that stabilizes the frying oil, which would otherwise become foamy after repeated fries.
The deception doesn’t stop at the chemicals added to the fries. John Keeling of the National Potato Council told Yahoo that Wendy’s highlights its use of “100% Russet potatoes,” but that virtually “all processed French Fries are Russets.” And, as Americans seek ways of reducing sodium intake, Wendy’s Natural Cut Fries also contain more sodium than their original fries, up by more than 40 percent to 500 milligrams in a medium size serving.
Whether it is the appearance of Wendy’s Natural Cut Fries With Sea Salt that make them seem healthier, or the actual taste, a third party research firm concluded in a national taste test that 56 percent of people polled preferred Wendy’s fries versus 39 percent who favored McDonald’s.
Click here for the full report from OrganicAuthority.com
The Kevin Trudeau Show: 4-20-11
Today, Kevin gives you even more proof that inflation is already here and that your standard of living is declining rapidly because of it.
Self Help:
Uncontaminated Meat
Further Your Education
Manifest Your Every Desire
The Only Answer To Cancer
Drop-Dead Gorgeous Hair Without The Side Effects
Health:
Health Risks Behind Drop-Dead Gorgeous Hair
School Lunches Around The World
Bad News For Meat Eaters
Jamie Oliver Shows How Much Sugar Is in Flavored Milk
Wealth:
10 Countries With The Most Billionaires
Everything Kevin:
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New Lawsuit Filed over GMO Alfalfa
April 20th, 2011
SlashFood.com
By: Jason Best
The next skirmish over genetically modified foods is getting underway, pitting a coalition of environmental, consumer and food-safety groups against the federal government.
Early this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved unrestricted planting of a type of GM alfalfa engineered by Monsanto. To the average consumer, that might not sound like such a big deal-after all, we’re not rabbits.
But rabbits aren’t the only animals that like to munch on the sweet grass. Alfalfa is the primary food source for cows, too. No only that, but alfalfa has a wily propensity to cross-pollinate across miles; over time, opponents say, there’s no way to ensure that the GM variety doesn’t intermix with the non-GM variety.
What that means is that the government’s decision to approve the use of GM alfalfa could spell the end of organic dairy products, ranging from milk to yogurt. By law, no GM ingredients can be used in the production of anything labeled “organic.”
Opponents also charge that widespread use of GM alfalfa will result in the release of an estimated 23 million more pounds of toxic chemicals into the environment. That’s because Monsanto developed its GM alfalfa to withstand application of its Roundup herbicide. Currently, more than 90 percent of the alfalfa grown in the U.S. does not use any herbicide, according to the UDSA. Critics say that planting GM alfalfa will not only lead to more herbicide use, it will encourage an already growing problem of herbicide-resistant weeds, so-called “superweeds.”
A broad coalition of groups, ranging from environmental organizations such as Earthjustice to public advocacy groups such as the Center for Food Safety, have filed suit in federal court to block USDA’s decision.
“Approving the unrestricted planting of GE alfalfa is a blatant case of the USDA serving one form of agriculture at the expense of all others,” says one of the plaintiffs in the case, in a press release issued by the coalition. “If this decision is not remedied, the result will be lost livelihoods for organic dairy farmers, loss of choice for farmers and consumers, and no transparency about [GM] contamination of our foods.”
Click here for the full report from SlashFood
