Anuj Khasgiwala

Now run most of your android apps on your PC using Google ARC

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 20 Apr 2015 11:42:00 +0000

Now you can run and enjoy most of the Android apps without buying a new android phone.

Google has launched new ARC Welder software that allows users to run Android mobile apps through the Chrome browser on any operating system: Windows, Mac OS, Linux, or of course Chrome OS.

To bring your favorite Android apps to a PC or Mac, simply install the Chrome browser and a chrome app program called ARC Welder. Once opened, the latter program requests access to an APK file that corresponds to the app you wish to run.

Initially accessible only to developers, ARC Welder is now available to the general public through the Chrome Web Store. Still in the beta phase, the program is not entirely stable yet and can only run one app at a time. So far, Google has only made a few Android apps compatible with the program.

In the long run, however, Google’s goal is to make all of its Android apps available across multiple platforms (smartphones, tablets and desktop/laptop computers), a little like Microsoft’s idea with its forthcoming OS, Windows 10, and its dedicated multi-platform app store.

Learn about ARC Welder.

1. Try out ARC Welder to run Android apps on a PC or Mac.

2. Launch the program.
Its location will vary, depending on your operating system. Windows users can find it in the Start Menu.

3. Choose a directory.
ARC Welder needs a place to store files, so choose an empty folder somewhere.

4. Open your APK.
It will be in whichever directory you saved it.

5. Launch your app.
Select your settings and see if the app will launch. If it does, you can use it as though it were on an Android mobile device.

There’s a Game Hidden inside your Google Chrome, and it works on Android too!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 21 Jan 2015 04:31:00 +0000

Friends you might be familiar with the 8-bit T-Rex dinosaur that pops up in Google Chrome when you try and access a website while not connected to the internet. The T-rex had short arms and therefore lot of things were out of its reach. Chrome, like that dinosaur, too is having trouble reaching the Internet, but that little dinosaur hides an amazing secret game which you can play offline.

If you turn your WiFi off and then try to access a website using Chrome, the dinosaur will appear informing you that it was unable to connect to the internet. If you then press the spacebar on your computer and instead of spacebar tap on screen on your phones, and the little dinosaur will burst into life and begin running across the screen. The T-Rex will run and your mission is to prevent it from bumping into the saguaros.You then can use the the spacebar to make it jump over onrushing cacti of varying sizes, racking up a bigger score the longer you last. It’s a pretty basic and simple game, but it’s also really addictive.

The game is written in JavaScript and you can find the complete source code in the Chromium repository.

The Companies Where Everyone Wants to Work

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 11:28:00 +0000

For the fourth year in a row, business students from around the world rated Google as the company they would most like to work for. The World’s Most Attractive Employers 2012 report, produced by employer branding firm Universum, asked tens of thousands of business students from the 12 largest economies in the world to identify where they would like most to be hired out of school from a list companies based around the world.

Included on the final list of the most attractive companies are major tech giants like Google, bank holding companies like Goldman Sachs and accounting firms like KPMG. 24/7 Wall St. analyzed company financials, brand valuations, and ratings of these companies by current employees to identify how they manage to be so attractive to potential employees. Based on Universum’s 2012 list, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 13 companies everyone wants to work for.

One factor many of these companies have in common is the fact that they have been able to market themselves as very innovative. In an interview with 24/7 Wall St., Camille Kelly, Vice President of Employer Branding at Universum, explains that this generation of students in particular prioritizes being on the cutting edge of technology.

“Innovation means to a student that there is going to be new challenges, and that they’re going to continue to be able to work on cutting-edge technology,” she says. Of the 13 companies identified as most attractive for prospective employees, five made the Thomson Reuters list of the 100 most innovative companies in the world. Kelly adds that in the case of Google, which did not make the Reuters list, the tech giant branded itself as a very innovative company.

By far, the industry with the most representation on this list is accounting. All of the Big Four accounting firms — PwC, Ernst & Young, Deloitte, and KPMG — are not only all on this list, but in the top ten. Kelly explains that accounting firms have been able to, despite the lack of glamour in their industry, successfully brand the business as well as their specific companies as attractive, lucrative places to work.

The 13 most attractive companies are, for the most part, also powerful global brands. Of the 13 companies voted as most attractive by the students, eight are on Interbrand’s 2012 list of the 100 most valuable global brands. BrandZ, which produces a similar list, also ranks seven of these 13 companies among the 100 most valuable global brands.

Kelly explains that “there is definitely a strong relationship between a strong consumer brand and a strong employer brand” because any prestige and stability are important to students. As a result, prospective employees are more likely to be attracted to companies with familiar products.

Being financially successful also appears to impact the degree to which companies are considered attractive. Most of the 13 companies reported healthy earnings and strong growth over the past several years. For example, Apple’s revenue has more than quintupled in the past few years.

These companies also tend to have highly regarded workplace environments. Companies like Apple, Google, and Ernst & Young, regularly receive accolades for being great places to work. According to a Glassdoor survey of employees, seven of these 13 companies are in the top 50 places to work in the U.S.

Based on the World’s Most Attractive Employers, a report by New York-based global employer branding firm Universum, 24/7 Wall St. identified the 13 companies students most-wanted to work for in 2012. We also reviewed Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For and Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work in order to identify the best workplaces for current employees. We considered two studies on the value of the companies’ core brands, one by Interbrand and another by BrandZ. Additionally, we also considered information on the world’s most innovative companies from Thomson Reuters’ Top 100 Global Innovators. Revenue and profit listed for these companies was for the most recent full fiscal year.

1. Google
Interbrand rank: 4
Number of employees: 53,546
Revenue: $37.9 billion
Net income: $9.7 billion

Google tops the list of the World’s Most Attractive Employers, a position the company has now held for the past four years. The company also ranks first on Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For, and it isn’t hard to see why. Fortune points out that the company’s headquarters, dubbed the Googleplex, contains bocce courts, a bowling alley and 25 cafes company wide. “Employees are never more than 150 feet away from a well-stocked pantry,” one Google employee told the magazine. The company is also generally known for its laid-back corporate environment, with one of the company’s philosophies, “you can be serious without a suit.” Employees, even those not at the top, have also reaped financial success. Software engineers at Google were paid a base salary of $128,336 in 2012, well above the average of $92,648 for all software engineers.

2. KPMG
Interbrand rank: n/a
Number of employees: 145,000
Revenue: $22.7 billion
Net income: N/A

For the third consecutive year, KPMG was named by business students as the world’s second most desirable company to work for, according to Universum. Of this achievement, Chairman Michael Andrew noted that “attracting top students into our firms enables us to bring in the best talent, expertise and knowledge to our clients.” The company earned at least $20 billion in revenue in both fiscal 2010 and fiscal 2011 from its auditing , advisory, and tax services businesses. However, in its survey of top employers, Forbes ranks KPMG the lowest among the Big Four accounting firms.

3. Procter & Gamble

For the fourth year in a row, business students from around the world rated Google as the company they would most like to work for. The World’s Most Attractive Employers 2012 report, produced by employer branding firm Universum, asked tens of thousands of business students from the 12 largest economies in the world to identify where they would like most to be hired out of school from a list companies based around the world.

Included on the final list of the most attractive companies are major tech giants like Google, bank holding companies like Goldman Sachs and accounting firms like KPMG. 24/7 Wall St. analyzed company financials, brand valuations, and ratings of these companies by current employees to identify how they manage to be so attractive to potential employees. Based on Universum’s 2012 list, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 13 companies everyone wants to work for.

[More from 24/7 Wall St.: The Worst Business Decisions of All Time]

One factor many of these companies have in common is the fact that they have been able to market themselves as very innovative. In an interview with 24/7 Wall St., Camille Kelly, Vice President of Employer Branding at Universum, explains that this generation of students in particular prioritizes being on the cutting edge of technology.

“Innovation means to a student that there is going to be new challenges, and that they’re going to continue to be able to work on cutting-edge technology,” she says. Of the 13 companies identified as most attractive for prospective employees, five made the Thomson Reuters list of the 100 most innovative companies in the world. Kelly adds that in the case of Google, which did not make the Reuters list, the tech giant branded itself as a very innovative company.

By far, the industry with the most representation on this list is accounting. All of the Big Four accounting firms — PwC, Ernst & Young, Deloitte, and KPMG — are not only all on this list, but in the top ten. Kelly explains that accounting firms have been able to, despite the lack of glamour in their industry, successfully brand the business as well as their specific companies as attractive, lucrative places to work.

The 13 most attractive companies are, for the most part, also powerful global brands. Of the 13 companies voted as most attractive by the students, eight are on Interbrand’s 2012 list of the 100 most valuable global brands. BrandZ, which produces a similar list, also ranks seven of these 13 companies among the 100 most valuable global brands.

Kelly explains that “there is definitely a strong relationship between a strong consumer brand and a strong employer brand” because any prestige and stability are important to students. As a result, prospective employees are more likely to be attracted to companies with familiar products.

Being financially successful also appears to impact the degree to which companies are considered attractive. Most of the 13 companies reported healthy earnings and strong growth over the past several years. For example, Apple’s revenue has more than quintupled in the past few years.

These companies also tend to have highly regarded workplace environments. Companies like Apple, Google, and Ernst & Young, regularly receive accolades for being great places to work. According to a Glassdoor survey of employees, seven of these 13 companies are in the top 50 places to work in the U.S.

[More from 24/7 Wall St.: Thirteen American Cities Going Broke]

Based on the World’s Most Attractive Employers, a report by New York-based global employer branding firm Universum, 24/7 Wall St. identified the 13 companies students most-wanted to work for in 2012. We also reviewed Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For and Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work in order to identify the best workplaces for current employees. We considered two studies on the value of the companies’ core brands, one by Interbrand and another by BrandZ. Additionally, we also considered information on the world’s most innovative companies from Thomson Reuters’ Top 100 Global Innovators. Revenue and profit listed for these companies was for the most recent full fiscal year.

1. Google

(REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson)> Interbrand rank: 4
> Number of employees: 53,546
> Revenue: $37.9 billion
> Net income: $9.7 billion

Google tops the list of the World’s Most Attractive Employers, a position the company has now held for the past four years. The company also ranks first on Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For, and it isn’t hard to see why. Fortune points out that the company’s headquarters, dubbed the Googleplex, contains bocce courts, a bowling alley and 25 cafes company wide. “Employees are never more than 150 feet away from a well-stocked pantry,” one Google employee told the magazine. The company is also generally known for its laid-back corporate environment, with one of the company’s philosophies, “you can be serious without a suit.” Employees, even those not at the top, have also reaped financial success. Software engineers at Google were paid a base salary of $128,336 in 2012, well above the average of $92,648 for all software engineers.

2. KPMG

> Interbrand rank: n/a
> Number of employees: 145,000
> Revenue: $22.7 billion
> Net income: N/A

For the third consecutive year, KPMG was named by business students as the world’s second most desirable company to work for, according to Universum. Of this achievement, Chairman Michael Andrew noted that “attracting top students into our firms enables us to bring in the best talent, expertise and knowledge to our clients.” The company earned at least $20 billion in revenue in both fiscal 2010 and fiscal 2011 from its auditing , advisory, and tax services businesses. However, in its survey of top employers, Forbes ranks KPMG the lowest among the Big Four accounting firms.

3. Procter & Gamble

Interbrand rank: n/a
Number of employees: 126,000
Revenue: $83.7 billion
Net income: $10.8 billion

Procter & Gamble, the maker of household name products such as Crest toothpaste and Tide laundry detergent, has a host of job opportunities for business graduates in many of its departments. And P&G’s alumni have gone on to very successful careers. Prominent alumni include Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, General Electric CEO Jeffrey Immelt, and Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman. But the largest consumer goods company in the world has had challenges recently. Profit has declined for the last several years, and the company announced in February it planned to slash 5,700 jobs over a four-year time frame as part of a plan to cut $10 billion in costs.

4. Microsoft
Interbrand rank: 5
Number of employees: 94,000
Revenue: $73.7 billion
Net income: $17.0 billion

Alongside Apple, Google and IBM, Microsoft is considered one of the top five brands in the world by both Interbrand and BrandZ. The company, which offers widely-used products such as Windows, Xbox, Skype and Microsoft Office, has been a top choice among business students in each of the past three years, according to Universum. Further, Microsoft has been listed in Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For each year since 1998, although the company ranked just 76th in Fortune’s 2012 report. Additionally, the company had a mediocre quarter to begin fiscal 2013. Revenue in the first quarter fell by 8% and operating income fell by 26% year-over-year, while earnings per share fell from 68 cents in the first quarter of fiscal 2012 to 53 cents in fiscal 2013. The company’s stock has risen by 13.8% in the last 12 months, about the same as the S&P 500 index.
Interbrand rank: n/a
Number of employees: 126,000
Revenue: $83.7 billion
Net income: $10.8 billion

5. Deloitte

Interbrand rank: N/A
Number of Employees: 193,000
Revenue: $31.3 billion
Net income: N/A

In each of the past three years, Deloitte has been one of the top five desired employers according to Universum, making the consulting group one of just three companies to achieve this distinction. The firm, which provides consulting, audit, tax and risk management services to clients worldwide, employs over 56,000 people and has annual revenues exceeding $13 billion in the U.S. alone. According to Fortune, which rates Deloitte as one of its 100 Best Companies to Work For, the average pay for a Senior Consultant, the most common position at the company, is more than $86,000. The company has received accolades for military hiring, LGBT equality and women’s advancement.

6. Ernst & Young
Interbrand rank: N/A
Number of employees: 167,000
Revenue: $24.4 billion
Net income: N/A

Ernst & Young is considered one of the Big Four accounting firms, but the company provides a whole host of services for a wide range of industries, including banking, oil and gas, technology, real estate and many others. Ernst & Young helps other companies meet its tax and regulatory requirements, but it also provides advisory services on strategy and raising capital, among others. The company has a presence in 140 different countries and has made considerable investments in emerging markets such as Brazil, China, India and parts of Africa. Forbes ranks Ernst & Young as The Best Accounting Firm to Work For in 2012, a survey that took into account both prestige and quality of life for employees.

7. PwC

Interbrand rank: N/A
Number of employees: 180,529
Revenue: $31.5 billion
Net income: N/A

In each of the last three years PwC, has been rated by Universum as one of the world’s most desired employers among business students. Fortune also ranks the professional services firm as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For. Among the reasons for PwC’s high ranking are the fully-paid sabbaticals and the mentoring program for expecting mothers. Employees also like working at PwC, which was named by Glassdoor as one of the 50 best places to work, as measured by employee reviews. The company, which provides auditing, assurance and tax services, among other offerings, has total revenues exceeding $31 billion.

8. JPMorgan Chase
Interbrand rank: 32
Number of employees: 259,547
Revenue: $97.2 billion (net revenue)
Net income: $19.0 billion

J.P. Morgan was able, to a large extent, to avoid devastation from the downturn of the housing market, unlike rivals such as Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The firm has emerged stronger than ever. While banks drastically cut headcount in the years following the financial crisis, J.P. Morgan has expanded its ranks, although much of that has come from acquisitions. Between the end of fiscal 2008 and fiscal 2012, J.P. Morgan increased its headcount by 65,000. People hold the company in high regard as well. A recent survey of 3,500 Wall Street professionals conducted by Vault ranked J.P Morgan Investment Bank as the best investment bank to work at in North America, a position it held last year as well.

9. The Coca-Cola Company

Interbrand rank: 1
Number of employees: 146,200
Revenue: $46.5 billion
Net income: $8.6 billion

As a brand, Coca-Cola is so famous that its core product has become a synonym for soda. According to Interbrand, the Coca-Cola brand is worth almost $78 billion and has “a name that is more universally recognized than any other in the world.” In addition to its brand, Coke identifies its people as the second of its two core assets, helping the company innovate and develop new drinks, new packaging, and new equipment. Employees also benefit from a company that is both exceptionally large, with operations in over 200 countries, and stable — as demonstrated by 50 consecutive years of dividend growth through 2011.

10. Goldman Sachs
Interbrand rank: 48
Number of employees: 32,600
Revenue: $36.8 billion
Net income: $4.4 billion

The image of Goldman Sachs has taken a hit in the last few years following several high- profile controversies. These included a Senate committee finding that the bank bet against collateralized-debt obligations it sold to clients, allegations that Goldman masked Greek debt, and a highly publicized resignation letter in the New York Times by now former executive Greg Smith. Still, the firm is generally regarded as the most prestigious on Wall Street. High compensation is certainly an appeal — of the largest banks, Goldman Sachs pays its employees the most. In the first six months of 2012, the company set aside $225,789 for each employee on average. Rival Morgan Stanley set aside $137,548 during that time, while J.P. Morgan investment bank set aside $184,989 for its staff. Goldman is also very exclusive. Almost 300,000 people applied for positions at the bank in 2010 and 2011, with a 4% acceptance rate, and the bank currently employs roughly 32,000 people.

11. Apple
Interbrand rank: 2
Number of employees: 72,800
Revenue: $156.5 billion
Net income: $41.7 billion

Apple connects with customers, and this is reflected in the company’s brand value. Interbrand rates Apple as the world’s second most valuable brand, behind only Coca-Cola, with a worth of over $76 billion. Apple has an even higher rating from BrandZ, which assesses the brand’s worth at almost $183 billion — by far the world’s most valuable. Apple’s employees also think highly of the company. According to Glassdoor, Apple is the 10th-best place to work in the U.S. based on employee reviews. The company is both successful and innovative. Its stock price has risen more than 200% in the last five years, largely on the success of iPhone and iPad. The company has also been unafraid to make the necessary changes to keep its workforce happy. For instance, retail head John Browett was asked to leave after just five months on the job because new staffing formulas cut employees’ hours too heavily.

12. L’Oréal
Interbrand rank: 42
Number of employees: 68,900
Revenue: $26.1 billion
Net income: $4.2 billion

For the first nine months of 2012, L’Oréal reported a 10.9% sales growth from the same time period the year before. Discussing the company’s strong sales, Chairmen and CEO Jean-Paul Agon cited L’Oréal’s ability to innovate — an ability recognized by Thomson Reuters, which named the cosmetics company in its 2011 Top 100 Global Innovator report. Both Interbrand and BrandZ rank L’Oreal among the top 100 brands, meaning customers, too, appreciate the company’s products. Interbrand cited the company’s “dedication to research, innovation, and quality” as critical to its popularity. But the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has recently warned the company about some of its newest beauty products, saying these so-called cosmeceuticals blur the line between drugs and cosmetics, at least in their marketing claims.

13. BMW

Interbrand rank : 12
Number of employees: 102,007
Revenue: $88.4 billion
Net income: $6.3 billion

BMW is a great company for business professionals, having been a top 15 desired employer in each of the past three years, according to Universum. The company is an even better workplace for aspiring engineers; BMW is the only non-tech company rated by Universum as one of the top-five desired workplaces for engineers. The BMW brand, one of the world’s most valuable, is “synonymous with class, performance and style,” according to Interbrand — qualities that likely make employees proud to work there. According to BrandZ, BMW is the most valuable car brand in the world. The company has also been extremely successful in recent months: unit sales in the third quarter of 2012 were up 9% year-over-year, leading to a growth of 16% in net profit compared to the year before.

Is the 2013 Range Rover the world’s best SUV?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 11:19:00 +0000

The 2012 Range Rover was swell — beautiful interior, powerful engines and styling that earned icon status about five years ago. Designed and introduced back when BMW owned Rover, the Range Rover was the rare design that survived a full decade without seeming dated. But ten years equals an eternity in the car business, and 2013 heralds a new Range Rover era. The new SUV looks much like the old one, embracing the Porsche 911 strategy of not messing with a good thing, but making it just different enough to tip off the neighbors. The real action lies under the skin, where Land Rover tackled the old machine's biggest problem: its weight.

Thanks to an all-aluminum chassis (the only one in an SUV), the new Range Rover is about 700 pounds lighter than the old one. The bare body is in fact 50 pounds lighter than that of a BMW 3-series, and the base V-8 model weighs 4,850 lbs. Subtracting weight, rather than adding power, confers all sorts of advantages — handling, fuel economy and off-the-line quickness all improve.

I recall that when Porsche introduced the original Cayenne Turbo, they said something to the effect of, "This thing is 90 percent of a Range Rover off road and 150 percent better on-road." Since then, the Porsche has dialed back its off-road aspirations, but the Range Rover has drastically improved its on-pavement prowess. Burdened with so much less weight and bolted to the new ZF 8-speed transmission, the carryover direct-injected V-8s (in 375 hp naturally aspirated and 510 hp supercharged flavors) hurtle this box down the road with nearly Porsche-like haste. The Supercharged model does 0-60 mph in 5.1 seconds, splitting the difference between a Cayenne S and a Cayenne Turbo. That's pretty nifty for a machine that is still equipped to crawl up mountains in Africa.
Which is what we did with it.

Land Rover introduced its new flagship in Morocco, surely planning for dramatic sand-flinging on the dunes and heroic mountain-goat rock crawling in the Atlas Mountains. But nature threw a curveball, with a omnipresent soaking deluge turning the fluffy dunes into hardpack oatmeal and the highest mountain roads into rockslide-scarred no-go areas. But the weather accidentally helped prove the relevance of an imperial high-riding SUV, as we powered through raging flash-floods and soaked rural roads that surely tested the labyrinthine new air intake -- breathing from the gap between the hood and fenders, this built-in snorkel affords a wading depth of nearly three feet. More than once, I glanced out the window and remarked that I wouldn't want to be walking across the terrain that we were serenely regarding from the comfort of our leather-trimmed aerie.

The revised four-wheel independent air suspension offers 10.2 inches of wheel travel up front and 12.2 inches at the rear, both numbers only about an inch shy of what you get in a Ford Raptor. A new Dynamic Response active lean control system counters body roll on the road while also allowing major axle articulation off-road. The Supercharged can be had with an active rear differential lock in addition to the standard locking center diff. If probably goes without saying, but low range is still standard. True to its heritage, the Range Rover will go places that only a tiny minority of owners will ever dare take it. We did drive up over a craggy mountain trail, a detour that Land Rover claimed was necessary because of a washout but I'd wager was just for the fun of it. Hey, I'm always in favor of gratuitous off-road shenanigans.
If the old Range Rover's weighty chassis offered an obvious area for improvement, the gorgeous interior was harder to upgrade. And the new cabin isn't outrageously different than the old one, but there are some sleek new wood options and the back seat gains almost five inches of legroom (as well as a two-plus-two seating option for the real Gulfstream-on-wheels effect). As in certain sedans, the captain of industry in back can control the front passenger seat to gain some legroom. Land Rover points out that China is vying to become its biggest market, and over there the rich folk don't ride up front.

As for a third row, they're thinking about it and it's a safe bet that Rover will probably offer a really halfhearted one (a la the BMW X5) sometime down the road. But for now the Range Rover is built for selfish people. Or at least, people who don't require that a machine like this should be stand in for a minivan. That's what the LR4 is for.

So, is this the best SUV in the world? Well, I don't know what really competes with it. The Toyota Land Cruiser might be the most relevant competitor off-road, but the Range Rover leaves it for dead on the pavement. The new Mercedes GL is a fine hunk of metal, but it's more of a three-row people-mover that happens to have some off-road ability — the Range Rover is like an amalgamation of G-Class off-road chops with GL on-road modernity.

The only major weak point is fuel economy, which will likely improve from the old model's 14 mpg EPA combined rating—but then only to perhaps 16 or 17 mpg. However, there's a diesel hybrid in the works that would address that concern, presuming Land Rover decides to ship it stateside.
But it's not like any of these dreadnaughts get wonderful mileage. Normally, I applaud the move toward crossovers, because for most people it really does make sense to sacrifice off-road chops that will never be tested in the name of carlike efficiency. But I'm glad Range Rover didn't go in that direction. By going big on aluminum, they managed to invest their flagship with drastically improved on-pavement manners and performance while losing none of the famous off-road ability (and in fact, probably improving it). This is still most certainly an SUV. I'd say, the best.

World's Fastest Supercomputer' Crowned in US

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 11:16:00 +0000

In the clash of the world's supercomputing titans, a new U.S. supercomputer named "Titan" is king.

The $100-million Titan seized the No. 1 supercomputer ranking on the Top500 List with a performance record of 17.59 petaflops per second (quadrillions of calculations per second). The supercomputer, a Cray XK7 system based at Tennessee's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, leaped past the former champion, the Sequoia supercomputer at California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

The top five supercomputers in the world are:

Titan Cray XK47 at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (17.59 petaflops/s)
Sequoia BlueGene/Q at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (16.33 petaflops/s)
Fujitsu's K computer at the RIKEN Advanced Institute for Computational Science in Kobe, Japan (10.51 petaflops/s)
The Mira BlueGene/Q computer at Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Ill. (8.16 petaflops/s)
The JUQUEEN BlueGene/Q computer at the Forschungszentrum Juelich in Germany. (4.14 petaflops/s)

U.S. supercomputers had fallen behind China's Tianhe-1A supercomputer and Japan's Fujitsu K Computer starting in 2009, but staged a comeback with Sequoia's rise in 2012.

Sequoia's 1,572,864 computing cores actually outnumber Titan's 560,640 cores, but not all computing cores are created equal. Titan draws 90 percent of its performance from having 261,632 of NVIDIA's new K20x accelerator cores.

The NVIDIA accelerator cores use the same graphics processing unit (GPU) technology that drives graphics cards for displaying video games. GPUs run tasks on many different "threads" that may run slower than traditional threads on central processing units (CPUs), but GPUs make up for that by running many more threads simultaneously.

GPU-driven supercomputers will become even more crucial in building the next generation of "exascale" supercomputers that would work 1,000 times faster than today's supercomputers. That's because GPUs use far less energy than the CPUs that have traditionally driven computing.

Titan used the new Tesla K20x accelerators to achieve an energy efficiency of 2,142.77 megaflops per watt (million calculations per second per watt), enough to also rank Titan No. 1 on the Green500 list of the world's most energy-efficient supercomputers.

Toyota FT-Bh Concept – the hybrid car of tomorrow

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 14:36:00 +0000

This is the Toyota FT-Bh, a hybrid concept that gets 134.5 mpg, that is approximately 57 kilometre per litre. The Concept was conceived to show how to build a Toyota Yaris-sized hybrid for maximum efficiency without using exotic materials that would drive up prices. Weighing a scant 1,700 lbs., and sculpted for aerodynamics, the FT-Bh's power comes from a 1-liter, two-cylinder engine -- a smaller mill than what you find in large motorcycles.

Toyota’s new FT-Bh concept is a vehicle designed to take the efficiency of full hybrid vehicles to new heights. Making its debut at the Geneva motor show, it is an ultra-light concept, weighing less than 800kg, which demonstrates what can be achieved in terms of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions in an affordable family supermini.

Those figures are from a vehicle that is close in size to today’s Yaris, at 3,985mm long, 1,695mm wide and 1,400mm tall, with a 2,570mm wheelbase. The emissions are about half the level of those produced by a 1.0-litre Yaris.

In their mission to achieve the best possible fuel economy and emissions, the design team focused on five key areas: reducing weight; driving resistance (including aerodynamic and tyre performance); powertrain efficiency; thermal energy management; and electricity savings.

Toyota recognises that a real-world reduction of total global vehicle CO2 emissions can only be brought about if an affordable, ultra-low emissions vehicle can be manufactured and sold in sufficiently high volumes. That made it important that the concept did not require exotic, expensive materials or complex manufacturing procedures, but used instead only those that are already commonly available in the motor industry.

Design

“Ecomotion” was the theme for styling FT-Bh, with its shape demonstrating a new approach to bodywork design. Key panels, such as the roof, are formed to represent the way fabric can be stretched taut between fastening points, to reflect their ultra-light weight.

The front end of the car broadcastsToyota’s current design language with its large lower grille, together with a sculpted bonnet and headlamps that are integrated into the front wings. Ultra-slim A and C-pillars maximise the glazed area for better visibility and a greater sense of space in the cabin.

The way in which the cabin merges seamlessly into the rear of the vehicle, with an uplifted rear bumper and chevron-shaped corner elements, helps achieve the best possible aerodynamic performance and deliver a drag coefficient of just 0.235.

The stretched fabric-look carries through to the minimalist interior, with a concave centre console creating a driver-focused cockpit, while maintaining the overall feeling of light and space.

Weight saving
The target for FT-Bh was a 25 per cent saving on the 1.0-litre Yaris’s 1,030kg kerb weight. Using a combination of high-tensile steel, aluminium and magnesium in the construction has trimmed the weight to just 786kg.

In fact, because the hybrid powertrain is heavier than the three-cylinder 1.0-litre engine (weighing about 60kg), the combined mass of the bodyshell, interior trim, chassis and electronics had to be reduced by around 340kg – one third of Yaris’s weight – to achieve the target.

Such a large saving in the weight of cabin parts has had a ripple effect in weight reduction in the rest of the vehicle. For example, it means there is less load applied on the body structure and suspension, allowing components to be downsized. And less weight means a smaller displacement engine can be used, further saving weight and thermal energy losses.

Powertrain
FT-Bh’s full hybrid drive system is a masterpiece of powertrain downsizing. With substantial weight savings in every driveline component, it is almost 90kg lighter than theHybrid Synergy Drivesystem used in today’s Prius.The lightweight, two-cylinder, 1.0-litre Atkinson cycle petrol engine combines high efficiency with low thermal capacity and benefits with detailed measures to increase combustion efficiency and reduce friction. As a result, FT-Bh achieves an average fuel consumption of 134.5mpg and CO2 emissions of just 49g/km.The car’s light weight makes it agile and responsive to throttle and brakes, and thanks to its electric motor delivering maximum torque from standstill, it is nimble, too.

FT-Bh demonstrates the adaptability of Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drivetechnology. It serves as a study for how even greater fuel efficiency might be achieved in the medium term by using two alternative powertrains: a compressed natural gas hybrid (CNG-HV), with 38g/km CO2 emissions; and a Plug-in hybrid (PHEV), emitting just 19g/km.

Lower driving resistance
The concept represents a comprehensive study in next-generation aerodynamic techniques. It features air curtain intakes on the frontal extremities of the bodywork; air-stream alloy wheels; the replacement of airflow-disrupting door mirrors with cameras; latches in place of handles to open the doors; a pagoda-style roof with a dropped rear section; and a sharply cut rear end that incorporates an air outlet slit and an underfloor spoiler to smooth the flow of air away from the vehicle. Together these measures bring the Cd down from a B-segment/supermini average of about 0.29 to just 0.235.FT-Bh rides on narrow, large diameter 145/55R18 low rolling resistance tyres, which make a significant contribution to bringing down the road load and driving resistance, with no loss of grip or traction.

Thermal energy management and electricity saving
Further goals for FT-Bh were improvements in the recovery of thermal energy and a 50 per cent reduction in electricity consumption. The cabin uses thermally efficient components and the air conditioning focuses only on parts of the car where people are sitting.

The amount of electricity used by the LED headlamps, interior lighting and other electrical components has been drastically reduced, to the extent that power consumption is half that of conventional cars. The glazing has been designed for maximum thermal efficiency and even the matte paint has been chosen for its excellent heat insulation characteristics.

Toyota’s new FT-Bh concept is a vehicle designed to take the efficiency of full hybrid vehicles to new heights. Making its debut at the Geneva motor show, it is an ultra-light concept, weighing less than 800kg, which demonstrates what can be achieved in terms of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions in an affordable family supermini.

Jaguar F-TYPE Unveiled in Paris

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 30 Oct 2012 13:13:00 +0000

A front-engined, rear-wheel drive convertible, the F-TYPE is engineered to deliver pure dynamic driving reward and stunning performance. Three models will be available - F-TYPE, F-TYPE S and the F-TYPE V8 S. They are powered respectively by Jaguar's new 3.0-litre V6 supercharged petrol engine in 340PS and 380PS outputs and its 5.0-litre V8 supercharged petrol producing 495PS. The range-topping F-TYPE V8S will reach 60mph in 4.2 seconds and has a top speed of 186mph. The 380PS V6 F-TYPE S will reach 60mph in 4.8 seconds and 171mph, the equivalent figures for the F-TYPE are 5.1 seconds and 161mph. All engines drive through an eight-speed 'Quickshift' transmission, a centrally mounted SportShift selector offering full manual sequential control, as do the steering wheel-mounted paddles. Torsional and lateral stiffness have been prioritised to maximise handling agility. Around that rigid aluminium structure, every system - steering, brakes, powertrain - has been optimised for immediacy of response to driver inputs.

Top 10 cars from 2013 under $100,000

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 30 Oct 2012 13:10:00 +0000

There is a parlor game popular among the inebriated wherein an individual conjures a trio of people—actors, athletes, random men in the bar—and participants have to chose, absolutely, which one they would sleep with, which they would wed, and which they would murder. When automotive writers congregate, and get drunk enough, a similar game ensues, though it goes along the lines of: borrow, buy, dream.

This week we’re going to play a version of that latter game, in which we focus solely on the buy part. To celebrate the official start of the 2013 car-shopping season and the release of the 2013 models, we posed to ten of the top car writers the question of what new car they would purchase for under $100,000. The only rule was that it had to act as their day-to-day vehicle, and thus fit their real-life needs—messy kids, demanding friends, and potholed streets included. They were also required to provide some brief explanation for their choice. Click through the slide show to view their utterly fabulous array. (Prices, and images, reflect how the writers optioned “their” cars.)

Current Car: 1983 Mercedes-Benz 300D
Car Pick: Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG wagon ($98,950)

I need a wagon. Sedans don’t have the room to haul my various creams and unguents, and I’m not about get a faux off-roading crossover—if I’m going to buy something with capabilities I’ll never use, it better actually have those capabilities. Also, I need performance, ideally allied to the sort of vector-locking, road-crushing chassis that Mercedes-Benz makes. But Mercedes only makes one wagon, and so I must choose—via special order—the E-class five-door with the monster engine, enhanced with the performance package. As for gas mileage? Don’t worry, it’s got an Eco mode.

Current Cars: 2004 BMW 325i Sport, 1972 GMC Suburban 4x4
Car Pick: 2013 Audi A7 Prestige ($75,920)

No two-seat Porsche Boxster S for me. My boyfriend and our best moviegoing upstate gays require my chauffeuring skills every weekend—as does the local dump. And while I’d prefer a wagon, BMW’s new hatchback 3-er hasn’t yet hatched. But this mesomorphic five-door—Those ravaging eyes! Those swimmer’s thighs!—will do nicely, with class-trumping cargo room, surrounded by pure class. Combine this with all-wheel drive, a powerfully efficient engine, and the world’s most usable infotainment interface, and you have one vehicle that melds, and supersedes, the strengths of both my current rides. I’d slather mine in brown on brown—so darkly chocolate you can taste the bitterness.

Current Car: None
Car Pick: Mini John Cooper Works Convertible ($35,100)

As a bigger guy, I naturally gravitate toward smaller cars. Or maybe they gravitate toward me. Either way, a fully loaded, manual John Cooper Works convertible would be my pick at this time in my life. I just moved to Brooklyn, so size is key when parking or slaloming through the NYC streets. And for traveling, I only need enough room to haul me and my girlfriend, and a bag for each of us. More importantly, Have you driven a manual Mini? You won’t stop smiling for days. Toss in the J.C.W.’s 208-hp turbocharged engine and you’ve cooked up pure crack on wheels.

Current Car: My grandmother’s Chelsea boots
Car Pick: 2013 Porsche 911 Carrera S ($99,415)

I live in the West Village (read: small streets, no parking) with frequent needs for heading east (Long Island, please) and not a lot of baggage—in life or otherwise. The 911 Carrera S is 400 horses fast, efficient (27 mpg on the highway), and iconic—a legend of automotive design. But none of that would matter if this seven-speed lacked spirit, that elusive intangible that somehow transforms metal and rubber into something to love. It doesn’t. One drive and you’ll know the coupe is capable—and worthy—of something real. I’d be a fool to resist.

Current Cars: Consumer Reports’ test cars
Car Pick: 2013 Hyundai Veloster ($19,450)

Why choose a front-wheel-drive Hyundai with no power? The Veloster is a modern-day Honda CRX. While it’s based on a subcompact, it’s fun to drive, looks cool, is surprisingly functional, and barely uses any gasoline, no matter how hard you beat on it. Plus, there’s lots of room for my kids and their stuff. A Scion FRS may be more fun at speed, but I figure I’ll always own a purpose-built track car, and I’ll still be able afford one—or three—after forking over only $20K for the Veloster.

Current Car: 2010 Mazda 5
Car Pick: 2013 Porsche Cayenne S Hybrid ($98,970)

The real test of family cars comes in darkness, typically in subzero temperatures, as you clean a kid’s vomit ambush from the seats in the glow of the Kum & Go and ask, “Should we just sell it?” My 2010 Mazda 5 passed that dark night of the stomach, and, like Gabby Douglas, it’s a small performer that shines in all-around events. The only serious rival for my family’s affection? The Porsche Cayenne Hybrid S, which can be loaded with rear-seat entertainment and combinations of wood, leather, und aluminum to create an interior that ranks among the industry’s best—absent a true gut check.

Current Car: 2007 Chevrolet Suburban
Car Pick: Mercedes-Benz CLS63 AMG ($95,900)

Big power, big noise, big luggage sucker. Squeaks in under $100,000 with thick leather, black wood, and massaging seats. Plus, it is so beautiful, I would wash it with my tongue.

Current Car: 1994 Chevy K1500 Blazer
Car Pick: Jaguar XF Supercharged ($72,225)

Acknowledging the reality of aging parents and my girlfriend’s young son, I can’t choose anything with two doors. Mr. Berk’s price ceiling keeps me away from a properly optioned Porsche Panamera. In California, BMWs are like Bavarian cockroaches, so, no. But salvation hails from Coventry in the Jaguar XF Supercharged. The chassis is lovely, the motoring experience serene. Stomp on the throttle and the rear tires keen, as the huffed V8—one of the world’s most enthralling power plants—sends you drifting across multiple lanes. And priced against the competition, the Jag’s a veritable steal.

Current Car: 2001 Subaru WRX Wagon
Car Pick: Subaru BRZ ($27,900)

These days, excess just might be on the decline. If so, Subaru’s BRZ is surfing the vanguard. A bizarre joint venture with Toyota, the BRZ is everything a car guy actually needs. At well under 3,000 pounds it’s light, which not only results in supercar-rivaling handling, it provides green-car-rivaling miles per gallon. The BRZ is beyond fun to drive, yet with the rear seats down it can haul every piece of your stuff, assuming you’re childless. Most important for us writerly types, you get $90,000-plus Porsche-style handling for right around $28K, with all the proper options ticked.

Current Car: 1989 BMW M3
Car Pick: 2013 Ford Mustang Boss 302 ($42,995)

Side-mounted exhaust pipes loud enough to rattle dishes in the next county. A stick for a rear axle—solid, like a pickup truck’s, and thus gloriously feisty. A 5.0-liter, 444-hp V8 that spins to a vibrasonic 7,500 rpm. Suspension that works a veritable miracle, performing well on both track and street. Drive one of these things, and you feel like the world’s most sophisticated goon. Scratch that: you are the world’s most sophisticated goon. I have stripes. Do you have stripes? No? Then get the hell out of the way.

Farthest Galaxy Yet Revealed by Cosmic Lens

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 16:07:00 +0000

The earliest known confirmed galaxy has been discovered with the help of cosmic lenses formed out of the warped fabric of space and time, researchers say.

This distant, ancient galaxy may have once helped clear out the murky fog that once filled the early universe, scientists added.

Astronomers estimate that the universe began about 13.7 billion years ago during the Big Bang. Recent findings suggest the first galaxies formed less than 500 million years after the universe's birth.

Little is known about the earliest galaxies since their light is very faint, given how far away they are. One tool researchers can use to peer at these galaxies are so-called gravitational lenses, magnifying glasses resulting from the warped fabric of reality.

Gravity curves space-time; the greater the mass of an object in space, the stronger its gravitational pull. This, in turn, bends light around it, affecting how telescopes on Earth view it.

Astronomers can gauge the age of an object by estimating its distance. Since the speed of light appears the same throughout the universe, knowing how far away an object is reveals how long it took for its light to get here. Scientists can work out the distance of an object by looking at how much the light from it is distorted.

Using gravitational lensing caused by one of the most massive known galaxy clusters, scientists glimpsed a galaxy that existed when the universe was about 500 million years old using two NASA space observatories: the Hubble Space Telescope and the Spitzer Space Telescope.

Based on its level of development, the researchers estimate this galaxy is about 150 million times the mass of the sun and formed less than 200 million years after the Big Bang. This is currently the earliest known and most distant galaxy that scientists have confidently identified.

"We feel like archaeologists with a pre-Neanderthal fossil in hand," lead study author Wei Zheng, an astronomer at Johns Hopkins University, told SPACE.com.

Astronomers have detected potentially older galaxies, but their faintness makes it difficult to make out key details regarding their age.

"Such a discovery would not have been possible if the object was un-lensed," Zheng said.

The age of this galaxy reveals it formed during the so-called "epoch of reionization" that occurred about 150 million to 800 million years after the Big Bang. This critical but still largely mysterious event occurred when intense ultraviolet radiation cleared the fog of atomic hydrogen that once pervaded the cosmos by ionizing it into its constituent protons and electrons.

"This provides us with a unique glimpse of star formation and galaxy growth in the period spanning 300 [million] to 500 million years after the Big Bang," astronomer Daniel Stark at the University of Arizona at Tucson. "While caution should be exercised in the interpretation of a single object, the results presented in the Zheng paper point to significant star formation activity throughout this period."

Much remains uncertain as to what sources of radiation caused the epoch of reionization. Since the researchers found this ancient galaxy after only monitoring a small patch of sky, Zheng said the early universe may have overall been rich with galaxies that drove reionization.

The scientists detailed their findings in the Sept. 20 issue of the journal Nature.

McLaren P1 supercar

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 16:04:00 +0000

Welcome the McLaren P1 -- the British maker's first supercar since the all-dominating F1 of the 1990s, and from the first trio of photos McLaren released today, the P1 will be one of the most striking vehicles on the road just sitting still. We don't know yet how much power it packs or how well it will perform, but McLaren promises the P1 will be nothing less than the best, ever.
Known as McLaren designer Frank Stephenson's first clean-sheet design for McLaren after the MP4-12C, the P1 is expected to combine the 3.8-liter V8 from the MP4-12C with some kind of hybrid system that could approach 1,000 hp total. In a statement, McLaren managing director Antony Sherriff says the P1 will be "the most exciting, most capable, most technologically advanced and most dynamically accomplished supercar ever made -- not necessarily to be the fastest in absolute top speed but to be the quickest and most rewarding series production road car on a circuit."

The rest of the details will be unveiled in Paris next Thursday, with the production model expected about a year from now.

Forbes: The most beautiful cars of 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 16:36:00 +0000

Vintage cars like a Ferrari 250, the E-Type Jaguar and the original Porsche 911 have always been prototypes of automotive beauty. But there are some new models on the market today that can stand up to the handsome rides of old. Such specimens as the brand-new Jaguar F-Type, the sultry Ferrari 458 Spider, and the obscure Zenvo ST1 Supercar made our list of the most beautiful cars of 2012.

Ferrari 458 Spider
Feast your eyes on the world's first hardtop convertible mid-engine supercar. This $257,000 stunner has a V8, rear-wheel drive engine and goes 0-60mph in 3.3 seconds. With the roof up, the car looks just like the stunning Italia. With the ultra-light hardtop down, it is the hottest convertible on the market today.

JaguarC-X16
The new F-Type, due out next year as a 2014 model, is supposed to recapture the sports-car heritage the company used to have with its C-Type, D-Type and E-Type sports cars. Production prototypes have had a supercharged V6 engine and are small and light enough to, ostensibly, at least, compete against cars like the Aston Martin V8 Vantage, Ferrari 458 Italia and Porsche 911.

Zenvo ST1
It is a Danish-made, 1,250-horsepower supercar that goes 0-60mph in 2.9 seconds and has a top speed of 233mph. It has a 7-liter, V8 engine that sports 1,050 ft-lb of torque with rear-wheel drive on 7-speed manual transmission. The entire body, and most of the trim, is carbon fiber. It weighs 3,000 pounds. Only 15 of the ST1 will be made, with three slated for U.S. showrooms.

Lamborghini Aventador
Michael Prichinello, the co-owner of Classic Car Club Manhattan says this car is 'everything a supercar should be: shouty, sexy, outlandish and inter-planetary.' He adds that the lines are much harder than any other car, and all the folds and creases remind me of automotive origami.

McLaren MP4-12C
"The McLaren MP4-12C isn't brand new but after seeing it in person and driving it, it just blew my mind," says Atif Kazmi, founder of the mens lifestyle site Por Homme. "Besides, the front looks like it's smiling at you. Beautiful."

Mercedes-Benz SLS
The convertible is the second car to be developed independently by AMG. (The SLS AMG gullwing coupe was launched last year.) It has 563 horsepower and a top speed of 197 miles per hour. It also handles just as amazingly as the coupe, thanks to modifications that increase the rigidity of the body (the cross-member under the dash has additional supporting struts; a structure between the soft top and the tank stiffens the rear axle).

Aston Martin V12 Zagato
Prichinello says English cars don't always work that well, but they sure are beautiful. 'I like this car because the DB9 has been around for a bit and the V8 looks very much like the DB's little brother. The Zagato tag on an Aston is very special, so the car wearing it should be too. While the new Zagato doesn't delivery newness in the form of technology, engine or anything else, it is a beautiful example of bodywork. The curves are both powerful and graceful. It's a gentleman's GT car.'

Bentley Mulsanne
The $300,000 four-door, five-seat sedan comes with a 6 3/4 liter, 505 horsepower V8 engine and an eight-speed automatic transmission that reduces CO2 emissions and saves 15% more fuel than the previous V8. It is hand-made in Crewe, England, and takes more than 320 hours of construction from start to finish. Almost half of Mulsanne production time goes into crafting its interior, which is trimmed with hand-stitched leather, polished stainless steel sills and grills, and premium wood veneers.

Maserati Gran Turismo
GT Sport is the best of Italian GT cars, Prichinello says. 'It is an over-exaggeration of everything a GT car should be. First off, the size of the thing. In person, it's as long as a football field, but it's that length that lets the graceful lines of the GranTurismo get bigger and bolder at the ends. The hood is long and muscular, letting you know there's a Ferrari-born engine underneath, and while it looks classically Italian and sports-minded, there's something very sinister about it. This isn't a nice man's car.'

Electronic supercar unveiled

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 03:32:00 +0000

Croatian concept car manufacturer Rimac Automobili is preparing to unveil a prototype of their Concept One electric supercar at the upcoming Salon Prive luxury car show in London in early September.

Concept One car is seen in this undated handout released on August 31, 2012. Croatian concept car manufacturer Rimac Automobili based near Zagreb prepares to unveil a prototype of their Concept One electric supercar at the upcoming Salon Priv' car show in London in early September.The Concept One has a carbon fiber body an electric motor powering each wheel, and can produce 1,088 horse powers, capable of achieving top speed of around 305 kmh (190 mph) with a range of 600 kilometres (373 miles), making it the world's fastest electric car. Costing around $1 million each, only 13 of these high-end electric cars are expected to be produced per year.

Gorgeous Cosmic 'Superbubble' Observed by X-Ray Space Telescope

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 12:02:00 +0000

This superbubble in the N44 nebula inside the Large Magellanic Cloud was carved out by exploding stars. The photo, released in August 2012, comes from the Chandra X-ray Space Telescope, combined with data collected by observatories

Exploding stars carve out gas cavities called superbubbles in a nearby dwarf galaxy, as shown in a new photo from the Chandra space telescope.

This photo reveals a superbubble in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a small satellite galaxy of our own Milky Way, that lies roughly 160,000 light-years away from Earth.

Chandra's X-ray observations are shown here in blue light, which represents hot regions. The red light in the photo is from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which sees infrared light from areas containing dust and cooler gas. Meanwhile, optical light is shown here in yellow in observations from the 2.2-meter Max-Planck-ESO telescope in Chile, which sees ultraviolet radiation from hot, young stars.

Combining all these wavelengths, this composite picture helps give astronomers a fuller understanding of this dynamic region. Many of the bright stars belong to the star cluster NGC 1929, which is embedded in the nebula N44, inside the Large Magellanic Cloud.

Superbubbles are formed when massive stars reach the ends of their lives, exploding in powerful bursts called supernovas that send out shockwaves through space. These shockwaves and winds push gas outward to carve out huge cavities in space.

However, many of the details of how this works remain a mystery. Some superbubbles, including the one in N44, release more X-ray light than current theories suggest they should. This new photo helps astronomers distinguish between the different sources of X-ray emission in this region to try to account for the light they observe.

R-SPACE CONCEPT CAR

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 12:00:00 +0000

R-Space, unveiled at the 2011 Geneva Motor show, is the third concept car to be completed under the direction of Laurens van den Acker. It represents the "Family" stage in the company’s new life-cycle Design strategy. With a silhouette that is both sporty and sculptural and a playful interior, R-Space proves that a MPV can be cunning and innovative. It is also environment-friendly, as it is powered by a petrol concept engine that previews the new range of modular TCe engines, Energy TCe, that will be launched by Renault in 2012.

A fun and sporty car for the family

The interlinking movement of the front seats is a return to the idea of a couple in love and playful backseat made up of cubes

Third phase of Laurens van den Acker's Design strategy, R-Space is a simple, sensuous and welcoming family vehicle. It also draws back to the sensuality of the first concept car of the cycle of life, DeZir.

This family car features double doors which, unobstructed by any central pillar, give clear access to a spectacular interior designed to trigger strong emotions from the very first glance, and a feeling of space and openness.

The theme being that of the family, it was the image of the family Sunday breakfast that provided the inspiration for R-Space’s colours and materials. The tenderness and warmth of these shared moments find their expression in tones that are warm and "sweet".

The tapered profile of the side windows emphasises the dynamic profile, while the large windscreen and panoramic roof – the thickness of which gradually changes – transform the passenger compartment into a cosy cocoon of shade. The nose of R-Space adapts the new visual identity (centred on the large, vertically-oriented Renault lozenge), already used on DeZir and Captur.

In terms of interior design, the family likeness to the DeZir concept car is clearly visible at the front in the forms of the dashboard and seats. The driver enjoys a cockpit-like environment, with a section of the seemingly floating dashboard being specifically dedicated to driving functions. The interlinking movement suggested by the front seat backrests is a return to the idea of a couple in love.

The rear area of the vehicle revolves around children. With a flexible and infinitely versatile play space, it is shaped by twenty-seven cubes, powered by miniature motors. Four settings can be programmed, from an all-flat surface, to a booster seat, a table or a random configuration (only when the vehicle is parked) for children games. The cube in R-Space’s cabin is very much in evidence – to the extent of even forming the covering for the floor and door casings.

An environment-friendly vehicle

R-Space

A cockpit-like environment

R-Space is powered by the Energy TCe Concept engine. Packed with advanced features, this direct-injection petrol engine previews the new range of modular TCe engines that Renault will launch onto the market in 2012.

With a capacity of 900cc, this three-cylinder concept-engine is a product of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Mated to an automatic EDC double clutch gearbox, it provides the performance of a 1.6 litre engine, with a peak power of 110hp/80kW and 160Nm of torque.

The Energy TCe Concept engine offers technologies such as direct fuel-injection, radio-frequency spark plugs, an Exhaust Gas Recirculation Boost system, a pulse Stop&Start system – and even a variable-displacement oil pump. Its reduced CO₂ emissions have been kept to only 95g/km, equivalent to a fuel consumption of only 3.7 litres/100km, without sacrificing performance.

R-Space is also equipped with the Visio-System, a forward-facing camera sending information on the vehicle’s surroundings (traffic lights, pedestrian crossings etc), to the "DRIVINGECO²" function that indicates the best way to drive economically in each situation. At the end of the journey, the "DRIVINGECO² Score" function rates the driver’s eco-driving performance, detailing various parameters such as the use of brakes and engine braking.

The fun side of improving one’s eco-driving performance is something that can also be shared in real time with the passengers : children in the rear playing video games on the seat screens automatically receive bonus points if the driver achieves a particularly good eco-score on a section of the journey.

Supersonic Flying Wing Nabs $100,000 from NASA

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 11:46:00 +0000

A flying wing aircraft design resembling a ninja star can turn 90 degrees in midair to go into supersonic mode.

An aircraft that resembles a four-point ninja star could go into supersonic mode by simply turning 90 degrees in midair. The unusual "flying wing" concept has won $100,000 in NASA funding to trying becoming a reality for future passenger jet travel.

The supersonic, bidirectional flying wing idea comes from a team headed by Ge-Cheng Zha, an aerospace engineer at the University of Miami. He said the fuel-efficient aircraft could reach supersonic speeds without the thunderclap sound produced by a sonic boom — a major factor that previously limited where the supersonic Concorde passenger jet could fly over populated land masses.

"I am hoping to develop an environmentally friendly and economically viable airplane for supersonic civil transport in the next 20 to 30 years," Zha said. "Imagine flying from New York to Tokyo in four hours instead of 15 hours."

The U.S. military's B-2 Spirit stealth bomber that debuted in 1989 represents the only previously successful flying wing aircraft, even though experimental flying wings flew before then. Zha's bidirectional flying wing kicks the general concept up a notch by essentially laying two flying wings on top of one another at a 90 degree angle, so that the aircraft faces one way for subsonic flight and rotates another way for supersonic flight.

The midair transformation allows the aircraft to fly in its most fuel-efficient modes at both subsonic and supersonic speeds, Zha explained. Jet engines located on top of the aircraft in concept illustrations appear to rotate independently of the aircraft so that they can always point forward in flight.

Such midair spinning might sound unpleasant for people riding the aircraft. But a five-second rotation would only cause pilots and passengers to experience a "g-force" just one-tenth the force of gravity — less than what airline passengers experience during takeoff.

NASA liked the idea enough to give Zha and his colleagues a $100,000 grant from the Innovative Advanced Concepts program. But the U.S. space agency does not expect such funded concepts to fly for at least another 20 years or so.

"We are inventing the ways in which next-generation aircraft and spacecraft will change the world and inspiring Americans to take bold steps," said Michael Gazarik, director of NASA's Space Technology Program.

The bidirectional flying wing aircraft could also lead to the first supersonic drones soaring over the U.S. homeland or distant battlefields. Zha previously pitched the robotic military version to the U.S. Air Force at an unmanned aerial systems conference in 2009.

Both the U.S. government and aircraft manufacturers also have begun pushing for hypersonic aircraft capable of flying more than five times the speed of sound (Mach 5). Aerospace giant EADS displayed one passenger jet concept at the Paris Air Show in 2011, but aviation experts suggested a ticket to board the flight would cost at least $10,000.

The U.S. has already begun carrying out tests of unmanned hypersonic aircraft, but with mixed results. A U.S. Air Force test of the unmanned X-51A WaveRider ended prematurely when the aircraft plunged into the Pacific Ocean on Aug. 14.

Space Sugar Discovered Around Sun-Like Star

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 05:48:00 +0000

This image shows the Rho Ophiuchi star-forming region in infrared light, as seen by NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Explorer (WISE). IRAS 16293-2422 is the red object in the center of the small square.

glycolaldehyde

What a sweet cosmic find! Sugar molecules have been found in the gas surrounding a young sun-like star, suggesting that some of the building blocks of life may actually be present even as alien planets are still forming in the system.

The young star, called IRAS 16293-2422, is part of a binary (or two-star) system. It has a similar mass to the sun and is located about 400 light-years away in the constellation of Ophiuchus. The sugar molecules, known as glycolaldehyde, have previously been detected in interstellar space, but according to the researchers, this is the first time they have been spotted so close to a sun-like star.

In fact, the molecules are about the same distance away from the star as the planet Uranus is from our sun.

"In the disk of gas and dust surrounding this newly formed star, we found glycolaldehyde, which is a simple form of sugar, not much different to the sugar we put in coffee," study lead author Jes Jørgensen, of the Niels Bohr Institute in Denmark, said in a statement. "This molecule is one of the ingredients in the formation of RNA, which — like DNA, to which it is related — is one of the building blocks of life."

Glycolaldehyde can react with a substance called propenal to form ribose, which is a major component of RNA, or ribonucleic acid. RNA is similar to DNA, which is considered one of the primary molecules in the origin of life.

Astronomers found the sugar molecules using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) radio telescope in Chile. Using ALMA, the astronomers monitored the sugar molecules and found that they are falling toward one of the stars in the binary system, explained study researcher Cécile Favre, of Aarhus University in Denmark.

"The sugar molecules are not only in the right place to find their way onto a planet, but they are also going in the right direction," Favre said in a statement.

When new stars are formed, the clouds of dust and gas from which they are born are extremely cold. Much of the gas turns into ice on the dust particles, bonding together and becoming complex molecules, the researchers said.

As the newborn star develops, it heats up the inner parts of the rotating cloud of gas and dust, warming it to about room temperature, the scientists explained. This heating process evaporates the chemically complex molecules and forms gases that emit radiation that can be picked up by sensitive radio telescopes.

"A big question is: how complex can these molecules become before they are incorporated into new planets?" Jørgensen said. "This could tell us something about how life might arise elsewhere, and ALMA observations are going to be vital to unravel this mystery."

Since IRAS 16293-2422 is located relatively close to Earth, scientists will be able to study the molecular and chemical makeup of the gas and dust around the young star. Powerful instruments, including ALMA, will also help researchers see the interactions of these molecules as new alien planets form.

The detailed results of the study will be published in an upcoming issue of the Astrophysical Journal Letters.

Two Alien Planets Found with Twin Suns Like "Star Wars''

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 05:43:00 +0000

A twin star system that is home to two planets. The planets have two suns like the fictional planet Tatooine in the "Star Wars" universe.

Astronomers have for the first time discovered two alien planets whirling around a pair of stars: a complete solar system with twin suns just like Luke Skywalker's fictional home world Tatooine.

Most stars like our sun are not singletons, but rather come in pairs that orbit each other. Scientists had found planets in these binary systems, so-called circumbinary planets with two suns like Tatooine in the "Star Wars" universe.

To find more circumbinary planets, astronomers analyzed data from NASA's prolific Kepler space telescope, which has detected more than 2,300 potential alien worlds since its March 2009 launch. Kepler had to date detected four systems with circumbinary planets — Kepler-16, 34, 35 and 38.

The scientists have now announced the detection of Kepler-47, the first system seen with multiple worlds encircling a pair of stars. The star and its planets, called Kepler-47b and Kepler-47c, dwell about 5,000 light-years away, in the constellation Cygnus, the Swan.

"Kepler-47 shows us that binary stars can have close-in planetary systems, just like the ones we see in single stars," study lead author Jerome Orosz at San Diego State University told SPACE.com. "Most of the stars in the galaxy are in binary or higher-order multiple systems, so the fact that planetary systems can exist in these types of systems is important. If we were restricted to looking for planets around single stars, we would be missing most of the stars in the galaxy."

Spotting "Tatooine" solar system
The planets are much too far away to see with the naked eye. Rather, they were discovered by the drop in brightness they cause when they cross in front of, or transit, their host stars.

This dimming is tiny, only 0.08 percent for planet Kepler-47b and 0.2 percent for planet Kepler-47c. By comparison, Venus blocked about 0.1 percent of the sun's surface during its recent transit. Data from Kepler enabled researchers to deduce the relative sizes of the objects and orbits. They also relied on follow-up observations performed by telescopes at the McDonald Observatory in West Texas.

One of the stars is much like our sun, and the other is about a third its size and 175 times fainter. The inner and outer planets are respectively 3 and 4.6 times Earth's diameter — the smaller planet is the smallest circumbinary planet seen yet.

The inner world completes an orbit every 49.5 days, while the outer one takes 303.2 days, giving it the largest known orbit for any transiting exoplanet. The stars themselves whirl around each other every 7.5 days.

The scientists published their findings online Aug. 28 in the journal Science. They will also detail their results Aug. 29 at the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union in Beijing.

Planet in the habitable zone?

Intriguingly, the outer planet lurks in the system's habitable zone, where a rocky planet like Earth is the right temperature to have liquid water on its surface.

"We've learned that circumbinary planets can be like the planets in our own solar system, but with two suns," said study co-author Joshua Carter at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.

Although the outer planet is probably a gas giant slightly larger than Uranus and therefore not suitable for life as we know it, these findings do show that circumbinary planets can and do exist in habitable zones.

"The thing I find most exciting is the potential for habitability in a circumbinary system," said study co-author William Welsh at San Diego State University. "Kepler-47c is not likely to harbor life, but if it had large moons, those would be very interesting worlds."

Weird weather on Tatooine planets

Circumbinary planets might undergo relatively wild climate swings.

On Earth, the sun is a relatively stable source of light, with the solar insolation or energy we receive only varying by 0.1 percent or so. "As a result, we don't need to worry about what the sun is doing, at least over time-scales of years to decades," Orosz said. "For a planet around a binary system, there can be changes in the insolation of several percent on the time-scale of days to weeks. In addition, if the planet's rotation axis is tilted, then that also has an effect. Therefore the seasons are rapid and complicated."

"Also, let's say for the sake of discussion that the planet's rotation period is 24 hours, just like the Earth," he added. "Because you have two suns instead of one, you can have more than 12 hours of daylight, depending on the positions of the stars at sunrise or sunset."

In addition, since all the circumbinary planets the Kepler space telescope has discovered have orbits closely aligned with the orbits their stars have with each other, "you would see your suns eclipse each other on a regular basis," Orosz said. "In the case of Kepler-47, when the secondary star passes in front of the primary, the total light drops by 15 percent. This would happen every 7.5 days or so."

More exotic alien solar systems possible
The new discovery show that planetary systems can form and survive even in the chaotic environment around binary stars.

The researchers expect that the planets in Kepler-47 originated much farther out than their present orbits, at locations where the conditions for the formation of giant planets are more favorable. They eventually then migrated inward due to interactions with the disk of gas and dust that also encircled the stars.

"We think these planets and most other planets formed from a residual disk of debris left over from the star-formation process," Orosz said. "It was not at all obvious that this disk could survive near a newly formed binary star, given the orbital motions of the two stars. However, it now appears that apart from minor differences in the orbital spacings, planetary systems around binary stars can be similar to those around single stars."

In the future, the researchers want to look for smaller and smaller alien planets around binary stars.

"We are at the limit of what simple visual searches can do, so we need better software to help us automate the process," Orosz said. "Given more time and data, I think we can find more circumbinary planetary systems in the Kepler data."

Brown : The red-hot color for new cars and trucks

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 02 Sep 2012 08:17:00 +0000

Silver was the most popular exterior car color in America for nearly a decade. But while it remains beloved by automotive designers for best showing off a car's styling, its unstinting argent reign was finally overthrown this year. By white. According to Sandy McGill, BMW Designworks' lead designer in color, materials, and finish, this is Steve Jobs' doing. "Prior to Apple, white was associated with things like refrigerators or the tiles in your bathroom. Apple made white valuable."

Valuable, yet boring. So while the rise in white's snowy stock may be good news for the luxury market — white is high maintenance, thus luxurious — it's a pale palliative for those of us with a bit more pigment in their palette. Fortunately, our expert interviews and analysis reveal that more enticing colors are emerging.

Light blue's ascension is connected to environmental wellbeing: clear skies, clean water. Crisp oranges are migrating from the world of high-end outdoor equipment. New paint technology may finally allow fashion's passion for fluorescents to flow from the runways onto the highways. And, as always, the smart money's on gold: as its price and profile have skyrocketed, so has its demand as a coating.

But the most enticing color trend, from our perspective, is the return of brown. After all, what could be more compelling to unicorn-riding Rainbow Brites like us than the hue derived — as any child left too long at an easel will readily demonstrate — from combining every shade in the visible spectrum?
As recently as 2008 articles and experts were prognosticating the "extinction" of brown as an automotive exterior color: it was too rooted in the malaise of the 1970s, it blended in too well with the scenery, it lowered resale value. Even the aesthetically-bereft American Automobile Association (AAA) danced on brown's loamy grave, claiming, in their Car and Color Safety dispatch of 2004 that, "brown, black, and green cars [are] roughly twice as likely as white cars to be involved in crashes resulting in serious injury."

But, like every cinematic hero, the very moment of brown's alleged eradication presaged its incipient resurrection. According to paint giant PPG's Global Color Manager, Jane Harrington, brown's latest uptick is based in its ability to convey stability and comfort, as well as the kind of authenticity that consumers— especially luxury consumers — seek. "Think of the experience of good coffee, good chocolate, great pieces of wood," Harrington told us, referencing the entire field of upscale umbric goods. "You're seeing it across the crafts industry: more genuine materials, something that has longevity. The handmade quality people are looking for in luxury."

High end car makers like Mercedes, BMW, Mini, Porsche, Rolls-Royce, and Bentley have all begun investigating what brown can do for them, with each marque offering at least two — and in the case of Bentley, a full half-dozen — earthy shades on their contemporary offerings. But we're also starting to see brown trickle down into the lower ends of the automotive marketplace. Ford now offers its Taurus sedan and Escape SUV in Kodiak Brown, as well as proffering a caramelly Golden Bronze dip on its best-selling F-150. And Toyota, though famous for producing cars that are both literally and figuratively beige, has also began to polish the mahogany, offering a quartet of browns on models like the Venza, Avalon, RAV-4, and Tacoma (though, ironically, you cannot purchase a Sienna in brown.).

But brown's delightfully filthy insurgency isn't based solely on its connection to the composted topsoil used to grow your heirloom radishes or the Kopi Luwak coffee beans pooped out by a Sumatran civet cat and roasted for your artisanal espresso. Nor is it merely surfing the aspirational wave a few coats may bring to the mass-market. It's also fueled by a deep-seated fondness for the past.

Flickr/dave_7

Or, at least that's what Alex Nuñez thinks. As Senior Automotive Editor at Consumer Search, and Weekend Editor at Autoblog, he is an industry expert. But it's his role as founder of Facebook's Brown Car Appreciation Society — which now includes nearly 600 members, mainly automotive writers, analysts, and pundits — that catalyzed our interview. "I think it's a nostalgia thing for guys our age. I'm 40, and we grew up at a time when you had all these brown cars in active use," Nuñez said. "Maybe it's that a lot of people who are in decision-making positions in the car industry are of that age, and this stuff is sort of subliminally ingrained as a feel good thing — these browns and earth tone colors."
Experts like Jane Harrington and Sandy McGill are hard at work tracking the next big incipient color trend — bronzes, with their patinaed implication of history and refinement; aluminum flakes that make metallic paints more silky; even digital OLEDs that can display anything, like an automotive iPad. But when we asked Nuñez if there were other color trends he was stalking, he didn't hesitate. "Not really." He is interested only in seeing brown deepen its fecund reign. "I'm disappointed that you can't order a Mustang Boss 302 in brown, or a brown Camaro. So there's still opportunity for expansion."

The hidden winner from the Apple vs Samsung decision

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 15:27:00 +0000

Apple walks away with a ruling that Samsung copied the iPhone. Samsung will appeal and look to have the decision mitigated as much as possible. And over in the corner, Microsoft and Nokia look at each other, nod their heads, and smile. This was a good court verdict for Windows Phone.
Round one of the Apple/Samsung patent dispute is over, with Apple in the ascendancy. The public perception is not going to be over certain models of older Samsung handsets, the exact patents and software methods used, or the differences between Samsung’s UI layer TouchWiz and Google’s default Android UI layer.
It’s going to be ‘Android copied the iPhone’.

For the last year, every review of Windows Phone powered handsets has noted the radically different UI formerly known as Metro. It does take a little getting used to, but like any new toy once you get the basics Windows Phone is as fast and capable for the majority of smartphone users. There’s no chance that Windows Phone will be mistaken for iOS (and if it was, part of Apple’s evidence was the licensing of certain patents to Microsoft for use in their smartphone OS).
Everyone is expecting Nokia to announce the first Windows Phone 8 smartphone next month on September 5th. It’s an event that’s sure to get coverage (even if it is in a rather busy period of announcements from companies that are trying to get in before Apple’s September 12th event). Nokia and Microsoft have been handed a competitive advantage.
In a world where Android has copied iOS, they are going to waltz up to the press and go ‘look at our phone, you can think differently!’ Another subtle dig at Android, a strong selling point to consumers, and a key differentiator in the smartphone ecosystem. Samsung is handed the lemons, but it’s Nokia that will get to make the first batch of lemonade.
What happens now to Android as a whole is going to be very interesting. While the appeals process for this case may go on for some time, there will be a chilling effect on other manufacturers, who will be watching the cost of licensing the patents on the ‘free’ Android OS with trepidation. Expect Apple to be drafting invoices in the very near future. But will the manufacturers who just want a modern smartphone OS turn away from the uncertainty in Android? Will they want a solution that is fully licensed, covers all the patents, and will let them stand out in the marketplace? If so, Microsoft are going to welcome them with open arms.
And when Windows Phone 8 get the traction that many expect it will, what will Samsung do?
They are on top of the heap at the moment with the Galaxy range of devices, but they also have something interesting on the back burner. The Focus range… essentially the Galaxy hardware but running Windows Phone rather than Android OS. They’ve already said Windows Phone 8 devices will be arriving before the end of 2012, could they now put a little more emphasis on the Windows Phone line?
The last thing Samsung will want to do is be left stranded in the courts holding their Android football while everyone else runs ahead to score with Windows Phone handsets. Nokia are all-in on the new platform, HTC could see it as a way to bypass Samsung’s dominance in Android, and both Huawei and ZTE are ready to leverage Microsoft’s OS.
Samsung was probably planning to do just enough to stay involved in Windows Phone at the start of this year, but I expect them to take a bit more interest in the platform, do a little bit more marketing of their new Windows Phone handsets, and to put more skin in the game to make sure they’re not left without a chair when the music stops.
Apple took the victory, Samsung lost in court, but the true winner looks to be Microsoft.

Apple triumphs over Samsung in landmark patent case

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 15:24:00 +0000

Apple Inc scored a sweeping legal victory over Samsung on Friday as a U.S. jury found the Korean company had copied critical features of the hugely popular iPhone and iPad and awarded the U.S. company $1.05 billion in damages.

The verdict -- which came after less than three days of jury deliberations -- could lead to an outright ban on sales of key Samsung products and will likely solidify Apple's dominance of the exploding mobile computing market.

Apple's victory is a big blow to Google, whose Android software powers the Samsung products that were found to infringe on Apple patents. Google and its hardware partners, including the company's own Motorola unit, could now face further legal hurdles in their effort to compete with the Apple juggernaut.

Samsung lawyers were grimfaced in the quiet but crowded San Jose courtroom as the verdict was read, and the company later put out a statement calling the outcome "a loss for the American consumer."

The jury deliberated for less than three days before delivering the verdict on seven Apple patent claims and five Samsung patent claims -- suggesting that the nine-person panel had little difficulty in concluding that Samsung had copied the iPhone and the iPad.

Because the panel found "willful" infringement, Apple could seek triple damages.

Apple upended the mobile phone business when it introduced the iPhone in 2007, and shook the industry again in 2010 when it rolled out the iPad.

It has been able to charge premium prices for the iPhone -- with profit margins of as much as 58 percent per phone -- for a product consumers regarded as a huge advance in design and usability.

The company's late founder, Steve Jobs, vowed to "go to thermonuclear war" when Google launched Android, according to his biographer, and the company has filed lawsuits around the world in an effort to block what it considers brazen copying of its inventions.

The legal win on Friday came one year after CEO Tim Cook assumed the helm of the company. Shares in Apple, which just this week became the biggest company by market value in history, climbed almost 2 percent to a record high of $675 in after-hours trade.

Brian Love, a Santa Clara law school professor, described the verdict as a crushing victory for Apple: "This is the best-case scenario Apple could have hoped for."

CHALLENGE FOR COMPETITORS

The verdict comes as competition in the mobile device industry intensifies, with Google jumping into hardware for the first time with its Nexus 7 tablet, and Microsoft's new touchscreen friendly Windows 8 coming in October, led by its "Surface" tablet.

Apple's victory could present immediate issues for companies that sell Android-based smartphones and tablets, including Google's own Motorola subsidiary, which it acquired last year for $12.5 billion, and HTC of Taiwan.

Amazon -- which has made major inroads into the tablet market with its cheaper Kindle Fire -- uses a modified version of Android for its Kindle products but has not yet been subject to legal challenge by Apple.

Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu said the entire Android universe may now have to consider "doing something different."

"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to look at it and figure it out," he said. "Prior to the iPhone, none of the phones were like that. Android, if you look at it, is very similar."

Some in the industry say Apple's legal offensive is bad for consumers.

"Thx Apple it's now mandatory for tech companies to sue each other. Prices go up, competition & innovation suffer," Mark Cuban, an Internet entrepreneur and owner of the Dallas Mavericks basketball team, said in a Twitter message.

But the legal battles are far from over. In a separate but related case, Apple has won a pre-trial injunction against the Google Nexus tablet. Another lawsuit, against Motorola, was thrown out recently by a federal judge in Chicago, but litigation between the two at the International Trade Commission continues.

Earlier on Friday, a South Korean court found that both companies shared blame for patent infringement, ordering Samsung to stop selling 10 products including its Galaxy S II phone and banning Apple from selling four different products, including its iPhone 4.

Still, the trial on Apple's home turf -- the world's largest and most influential technology market -- was considered the most important test of whether Apple would be able to gain substantial patent protection for the iPhone and the iPad.

FAST-PACED, HIGH-STRESS TRIAL

The legal fight began last year when Apple sued Samsung in multiple countries, and Samsung countersued. The U.S. jury spent most of August in a packed federal courtroom in San Jose -- just miles from Apple's headquarters in Cupertino -- listening to testimony, examining evidence and watching lawyers from both sides joust about patents and damage claims.

Jurors received over 100 pages of legal instructions from U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh on August 21, prior to hearing the closing arguments from attorneys.

Lawyers from both tech giants used their 25 hours each of trial time to present internal emails, draw testimony from designers and experts, and put on product demonstrations and mockups to convince the jury.

At times, their questions drew testimony that offered glimpses behind the corporate facade, such as the margins on the iPhone and Samsung's sales figures in the United States.

From the beginning, Apple's tactic was to present what it thought was chronological evidence of Samsung copying its phone.

Juxtaposing pictures of phones from both companies and internal Samsung emails that specifically analyzed the features of the iPhone, Apple's attorneys accused Samsung of taking shortcuts after realizing it could not keep up.

Samsung's attorneys, on the other hand, maintained Apple had no sole right to geometric designs such as rectangles with rounded corners. They called Apple's damage claim "ridiculous" and urged the jury to consider that a verdict in favor of Apple could stifle competition and reduce choices for consumers.

Samsung's trial team appeared to suffer from strategic difficulties throughout the case. Judge Koh gave each side 25 hours to present evidence, but Samsung had used more time than Apple before Samsung even began calling its own witnesses.

By the end of the trial, Samsung attorneys had to forgo cross-examination of some Apple witnesses due to time constraints. During closing arguments, Samsung lead attorney Charles Verhoeven played mostly defense, spending relatively little time discussing Samsung's patent claims against Apple.

The jury had not been expected to return a decision so rapidly. Even on Friday, Samsung's lead lawyer was spotted casually clad in a polo T-shirt and jeans.

But late Friday afternoon, a court officer announced a verdict had been reached. After the verdict was read, Koh found some inconsistencies in the complex jury form and asked the jury to revisit it, ultimately resulting in a reduction of about $2 million in the damages award.

The jury decided Samsung infringed six out of seven Apple patents in the case, and that Apple had not infringed any of Samsung's patents. Apple's protected technology includes the ability for a mobile device to distinguish one finger on the screen or two, the design of screen icons, and the front surface of the phone.

The jury also upheld the validity of Apple's patents, and said Samsung acted willfully when it violated several of Apple's patents. That could form a basis for Koh to triple the damages tab owed by Samsung.

"This is a vindication of Apple's effort to create significant airspace around their design, and that's relevant not just for Samsung, but for firms coming over the horizon," said Nick Rodelli, a lawyer and adviser to institutional investors for CFRA Research in Maryland.

Apple's lawyers said they planned to file for an injunction against Samsung products within seven days. Koh set a hearing for September 20.

The case in U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, is Apple Inc v. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd et al, No. 11-1846.

How to Block Useless Websites from your Google Search Results

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 15:14:00 +0000

Block Websites from appearing in your Google Search Results

Google has been getting better at identifying and removing spam websites from their search results pages but sometimes not-so-useful sites do manage to slip through the Google filters. What can you do to prevent such sites from appearing in your Google results?

Approach #1: Block Sites at the Browser Level

Google offers an easy-to-use Chrome add-on called Personal Blocklist that lets you block entire web domains from showing up in your Google search results. If you spot any irrelevant website in search results pages, just click the block link (screenshot below) and all pages from that website will be hidden from your Google results forever.

The Chrome add-on implements client-side filtering – the blocked websites

are still getting served in Google search results as before and the add-on

simply hides them on your screen using CSS.

A limitation with this approach is that it works only inside Google Chrome. That is, if you are searching Google inside Firefox or maybe on your mobile phone, the site filters that you have created in Chrome won’t be available to you.

Approach #2: Block Sites per Google Account

Google also offers a web dashboard for manually blocking spam websites, one URL at a time. You can add up to 500 different websites to your blocked list and Google won’t show pages from any of the included sites provided you are signed in with your Google account. That’s the promise but unfortunately, this solution doesn’t seem to work anymore.

Approach #3: Google Search with a Global Filter

If you would like to create a “global filter” for your Google search results that works inside all browsers including mobile devices, you can make use of Google’s Custom Search (CSE).

CSE, if you are new, is Google except that it is meant for searching a smaller set of websites and not the entire Internet. Now here’s a little trick. You can do a reverse configuration such that Google CSE searches the entire Internet except the websites that you think are useless. Here’s how you can set it up in 2 minutes.

Step #1 (optional): Assuming that you have been blocking websites using the Personal Blocklist add-on in Chrome, click the BlockList icon in your Google Chrome toolbar and choose “Export” to download the list of all sites that you have blocked so far.

Step #2: Click here to create a Custom Search Engine. Give it a name, description and in the “Sites to Search” section, enter all the popular TLDs (like *.com, *.org, etc) one per line.

Whitelist all the popular top-level domains like .com, .org, etc.

Step #3: Click Next to save the changes. You’ll have an option to test your CSE. Click Next again and on this screen, click the link that says “Include more sites.” This is where you’ll enter the list of “bad” websites the should be blocked in Google Search Results.

Choose Exclude Sites -> Exclude Sites in Bulk and enter all the domains that should be removed from your Google search results. You can even copy-paste your Chrome Block list here. Save the changes and your “clean” Google search engine is ready.

[*] If you would like your Google search engine to search all known TLDs and not just the popular ones, go to the Manage Search Engine page inside Google CSE and change the “How to search included sites” option from “Search only included sites” to “Search the entire web but emphasize included sites.”

Filter the less-useful websites from your Google Results

Google CSE results are as relevant as the main Google web search engine and the layout looks good on mobiles and tablets as well. The only manual work you will have to do going forward is to keep the Chrome block list and the CSE exclude list in sync with each other.

Animation firm brings C7 Chevrolet Corvette conjectures to life

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 05:18:00 +0000

There have been some exciting versions of the current C6 Corvette, including the Z06, ZR1, and for us regular workin’ Joes, the Grand Sport. But anticipation for the next-generation C7 Corvette has been running high, as evidenced by the off-the-charts pageviews we got from some spy shots of a mule testing a few months ago. Well, Trinity Animation, a graphical animation firm based in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, did one better by combining all the publicly-available knowledge, photos and renderings of the upcoming C7 and synthesizing all the information into a two and a half minute video giving us an idea of what it might look like in the flesh.

Among some of the noteworthy details show in the video are rectangular taillights similar to those on the Camaro, center-mounted quad tailpipe tips, LED accent lighting in the headlamps, and aggressive front fender vents. Another cool feature, if it makes it to production, are the LED lights on the outer rear edge of the rear wheel wells. Also, rather than the domed glass hatch on the current C6 Corvette, this rendering of the C7 shows side rear-quarter windows, and a flat glass rear hatch.

How close will Trinity’s animation be to the real deal? We’ll have to wait a few more months until the production C7 Corvette is unveiled. Possibly as early as the 2013 Detroit Auto Show in January.

Ferrari F12 Berlinetta

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 08:03:00 +0000

Ferrari has unveiled the F12 Berlinetta declaring it to be its “fastest road car ever".

In 3.1 seconds it could get through with the speed.

New blogs

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 15:45:00 +0000

Dear friends, to know more about the adgets review and automobiles, you can now read my posts on a new blog named Time4TechNews. My all new posts are available on this new blogs.
http://time4technews.blogspot.com

Top 5 action games on Android

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 11:26:00 +0000

With devices getting smarter and processors getting faster, gaming has turned out to be a bigger, more prominent avenue of interest for smartphone owners. And not just simple gaming like in the olden days - today smartphones offer detailed graphics, immersive sound and realistic controls, aided by devices like Sony Ericsson Xperia Play, and Sony Tablet that have cutting edge technology.

Brothers in Arms 2
Brothers in Arms 2 is a war game where your role is of a solider on his way to becoming a war hero. Set in World War 2, the game puts users in the middle of the battle field where they have to strategise and outsmart the enemy to be victorious. The story is simple, yet intriguing. Users not only fight on foot, but get to play on different vehicles, which have their own limitations. They can shoot with rifles, flamethrowers, or can also use heavy machine guns found in the bunkers.

Players can choose to play solo in the story mode or can kill with friends over the internet as well. Also included is the Bluetooth game play option, so you can team up with your friends against the enemy. With the game, users get to experience every front of the war with 50 missions to unlock across five locations: the Pacific, Normandy, North Africa, Germany and Sicily. To unlock missions, users need to earn dog tags, which in the context of the game are experience medals.

Line Runner
Line Runner is based on a stick figure whose only task is to jump over and roll under obstacles in a variety of combinations, and that is what this game is about. But as easy as it might sound the game throws some real challenges at you while playing. The combination of jumps and rolls that you have to do get really challenging with each stage, and there are ten stages in all. The controls provided for this game are two buttons placed on the sides, one for rolling under obstacles and the other for jumping over them.

Although the game does not feature an elaborate story or detailed graphics, it offers some great gaming in which the player needs to be really alert and active.

It takes time getting used to the game. You will find yourself getting killed by hitting obstacles in the face or legs often. The number of stages or tracks provided in the game is enough for hours of fun and excitement. You will not find yourself easing on the controls at any point during the game and the difficulty just keeps on increasing. The game has a total of ten tracks that offer ample gaming time. Even after that you have the random track for additional fun if you finish or get bored of the ten preset tracks.

In the options you will find the graphic tweaks that allow you to move the city in the background as you advance on the track and the grave tombstone that marks the point where you died the last time so you can monitor your progress. You can compete with players across the globe and stack up some real cool numbers to flaunt on OpenFeint as well.

Cartoon Wars
As silly as it might sound, Cartoon Wars is based on the story of a fight between cartoons and the monsters that have caged and tormented them for ages. The cartoon characters, after years of slavery, have decided to gather all their efforts and fight the monsters. You play on the cartoons' side and to do this you train new fighters while protecting the castle, which stands as a symbol of victory and revolt.

The black and white cartoon characters defend the blue side while the monsters attack from the red side. The game is based on a simple objective and that is to beat the opponent. All you need to do is create troops and send them to fight with monsters while they do their best from their side.

The game is based on a magical source of energy called Mana power, which is used to create troops. Mana power is the life blood of this game, especially for cartoon characters, and is generated by the Mana generator that is placed right behind the tower.

The power is generated every second, but there are times when you need more power, and that is why you must upgrade the power and skills of characters when you really need it. For doing so, you require money and forging stones. You earn gold and forging stones after each battle and these you can use either to upgrade, or to unlock new characters. However, forging stones can only be earned if the player finishes the fight in less than ten of the total 20 minutes of battle time.

Paper Zombie

Killing zombies, those pesky non living creatures, has always been fun. Another addition to zombie killing action is Paper Zombie, and as the name hints, the zombies are now made of paper, which needs to be cut or burnt properly to kill zombies. What makes the zombie killer game a super hit is that it gives much needed freedom to players to choose how to kill the nasty zombies.

Paper Zombie has been acclaimed as one of the top ten games on iOS, and we are sure it will hit the same mark on Android as well, with its superior game play. The game doesn't have a story, but players need to kill the waves of zombies they face in over 70 levels of this game.

Paper Zombie is an action shooter game where your main motive is to slay and burn. Well, payers must improve and innovate to tackle the zombies. Players need to upgrade weapons, which can be done by earning money within the game, and players need to outsmart the zombies before they get out of hand.

Talking about weapons, Paper Zombie includes three weapon styles that have their own uniquenesses and weaknesses. Players must use the right weapon at the right time to survive the zombie attack, but be very careful as to when you spend the money as every wrongly spent penny might prove fatal and you will have to start all over again.

Gun Bros

Gun Bros is the story of a fight between the TOOL (Tyrannical Oppressors of Life) and the FRAGGED (Freakishly Rugged Advanced Genetics Galactic Enforcement Division) forces, wherein the only objective for players is to kill or else get killed, and for the rugged and the tough ones it is to lay their weapons. The game gets a few more brownie points being absolutely free to play.

You play as the FRAGGED solider whose sole mission is to scout the planets and rid them of TOOL creatures. Game play involves shooting and making some clever moves when the heat seeking missiles and plasma bursts from enemies come your way. The newest addition to the game is real multiplayer capability, which a player can use to play with a fellow Bro both in online and offline modes.

The game starts with the basic levels first, but as you gain experience you open up newer and more difficult stages.

Keep in mind that if you do not upgrade your player there is only so much you can play in this game as the enemies grow stronger and harder to kill by each passing wave. But at the same time do not get carried away with the design of the gun as sometimes smaller guns cause more harm than the dangerous looking big guns.