CircleCount helps you better understand Google+

2013-05-23 08:43:31 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Quite unbelievable!

2013-05-23 08:28:12 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

5 Steps to Cutting Costs Through Open Source: DIY Drones

In this blog, I'm continuing my exploration of what Chris Anderson's company DIY Drones has done in using open-source methods to create products that are exponentially less expensive to make.

After more than a decade as the editor of Wired magazine, Chris Anderson started the company of his dreams -- a robotics manufacturing company called 3D Robotics, to produce the autonomous flying vehicles coming out of DIY Drones. When it came time to choose a co-founder and the CEO for his company, Chris didn't go with an MIT PhD or a Stanford professor. Instead, Anderson chose Jordi Muñoz, a 19-year-old high school student living in Tijuana, Mexico. How and why Anderson choose Muñoz is the opening theme of this blog. A subject I find fascinating and one that's important for you to understand.

"If Ih... more »

2013-05-22 19:32:04 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 1 +1s)

Train Your Mind

concentrate to change the direction of the train with your mind

goo.gl/rpN0z

2013-05-22 19:27:06 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Visit a small community in Florida known as "Miracle Village," where more than 100 registered sex offenders have settled since 2009. Surrounded by sugar cane fields, the community has become a rare refuge for them as they try to rebuild their lives in one of the only communities that will have them: stringent residency requirements make it almost impossible for them to live anywhere else.

2013-05-22 19:13:51 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

we are now entering a new phase, of what Hawking calls "self designed evolution," in which we will be able to change and improve our DNA. "At first," he continues "these changes will be confined to the repair of genetic defects, like cystic fibrosis, and muscular dystrophy. These are controlled by single genes, and so are fairly easy to identify, and correct. Other qualities, such as intelligence, are probably controlled by a large number of genes. It will be much more difficult to find them, and work out the relations between them. Nevertheless, I am sure that during the next century, people will discover how to modify both intelligence, and instincts like aggression."

If the human race manages to redesign itself, to reduce or eliminate the risk of self-destruction, we will probably reach out to the stars and colonize other planets. But this will be done, Hawking... more »

2013-05-22 03:27:32 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Apparently, someone decided to write a dissertation inspired in part by a review at Amazon.  It is an insightful review, and the book reviewed, Ostrom's "Governing the Commons", is, I believe, one of the most important books written in the second half of the twentieth century:  

"Whoever posted this review, I just thought I would let you know that for my doctoral dissertation I am actually going to be studying the scalability of Ostrom's cooperative management strategies using agent-based modeling. Your comment about this really got me thinking, and is what pushed me over the edge to decide on this as an important enough topic for a dissertation. So thanks (I say now - who knows how I'll feel in a couple of years, right?)."

2013-05-21 23:40:35 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

We are planning to set up an R users' group in Christchurch, New Zealand. Those of you who are from NZ and are interested to be part of the group, can you kindly comment with your ideas and preferences? Also, if any of you have ideas about organizing this group that you'd like to share, that'd be wonderful! #RUsers   #Rusersgroup  

2013-05-21 11:57:39 (3 comments, 8 reshares, 11 +1s)

SAS and SPSS in decline

interesting

2013-05-21 00:43:47 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Join +Josh Livni for a Shortcut on our new Google Maps Engine API. In this episode, Josh covers different ways that developers can integrate public maps and shared vector tables in web and mobile applications.

2013-05-20 19:47:42 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/05/07/map-more-than-half-of-humanity-lives-within-this-circle/

2013-05-20 04:08:18 (1 comments, 1 reshares, 3 +1s)

Would you be able to use this toilet? :) [Design by Hernandez Silva Architects]

2013-05-19 04:03:37 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

In meditation we notice thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations, and then return our focus to the breath. This photo of a Buddha from the Met in NY shows bhumisarsha mudra: the right hand reaches down, marking the moment of enlightenment, when Buddha called upon the earth goddess to witness his resistance of the forces of Mara. In meditation, sometimes moving into this mudra can bring the mind back from the thought stream, wherever it has taken us.

2013-05-18 23:16:02 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

I was reading http://readwrite.com/2013/05/17/the-epic-battle-between-apple-google-is-over-can-you-guess-who-won (off a FB post from +Misty Stanley-Jones ) and, the basic thrust of the piece seems to be that the number of devices with Android will be more. In pure "hardware sold" terms Google/Android will obliterate Apple/iOS.

It may be so. And, it may not be (there hasn't been "sexy hardware" released by Apple yet). 

However, what is interesting to note is the breadth and depth of new investments that the Google I/O talks put forth. Coming on the back of a long drawn spring cleaning initiative, being able to put forward plans for how Android/ChromeOS will become a developer oriented platform is something that is relevant. It is true that there is a significantly high population of "ancient" Android devices still being sold. Any Android device thatis... more »

2013-05-18 21:33:21 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

From the vision document: "Human Brain Project’s first goal is to build an integrated system of six ICT-based research platforms, providing neuroscientists, medical researchers and technology developers with access to highly innovative tools and services that can radically accelerate the pace of their research. These will include a Neuroinformatics Platform, that links to other international initiatives, bringing together data and knowledge from neuroscientists around the world and making it available to the scientific community; a Brain Simulation Platform, that integrates this information in unifying computer models, making it possible to identify missing data, and allowing in silico experiments, impossible in the lab; a High Performance Computing Platform that provides the interactive supercomputing technology neuroscientists need for data-intensive modeling and simulations; a Medical InformaticsP... more »

2013-05-18 21:26:46 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

When you get bored, sometimes it's nice to take a little walk.

This is yet another photo of Eyjafjallajökull, taken by the daredevil photographer Skarphedinn Thrainsson... or Skarphéðinn Þráinsson if you can handle those runic letters "edh" (ð) and "thorn" (Þ).  You can see more of his amazing photos here:

http://photos.skarpi.is/

#volcanoes  

2013-05-18 21:16:50 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

Aerial view of Horseshoe Falls [Niagara Falls]

2013-05-18 00:19:47 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Startling details on the spot fixing by cricketers, from SMH.
http://m.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/australians-unwittingly-caught-up-in-spotfixing-scandal-20130517-2jprj.html

Aren't these cricketers ashamed of themselves and what they are doing? Sordid!

2013-05-17 09:27:32 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

"Despite physical constraints, Ray replied "Mr Prime Minister, all these days of my confinement in the hospital, many press cameramen wanted to take my photograph but I turned down their requests. If I accede to your request, what will they think? That I have bowed to the PM as he is in authority. It will also give a wrong signal and appear discriminatory." The Prime Minister was silent and didn't pursue further. But he couldn't hide his disappointment. Nor could members of his family hoping to be photographed with the giant of cinema."

A wonderful display of justice by Satyajit Ray #character #virtue

2013-05-17 08:23:43 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Just signed the DORA declaration. I think this is high time the scientific community reviews the hallowed impact factor.

2013-05-17 06:57:01 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

(Fri10) Hindu festivals around the world. Thirty-nine awesome photos:

http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/09/hindu-festivals/100154/

2013-05-17 05:45:25 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

Amazing Shot.. Beneath the Waves!
Fore more: www.bizarbin.com

2013-05-16 01:39:54 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

"The remarkable thing about cards is that what is perhaps the most important information company in the world has at last decided on a canonical way to display much of the information that it transmits to us. "
Makes it very pleasing to look at a lot of information. 

2013-05-15 21:37:41 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

The New Google Map ... 
http://www.google.com/help/maps/helloworld/desktop/preview/
#googlemaps  

2013-05-15 21:33:58 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

This new design of Google+ is much better. Like it.

2013-05-13 23:43:48 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 4 +1s)

2013-05-13 21:27:24 (1 comments, 1 reshares, 1 +1s)

Wow!

2013-05-11 07:12:29 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Dusk Over Torlesse Range, Sheffield, Canterbury

2013-05-11 07:10:50 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 2 +1s)

Dusk Over Torlesse Range, Sheffield, Canterbury

2013-05-11 04:05:30 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

The Young Ballerina ...

2013-05-09 09:34:22 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Announcing PLOS Labs – Call For Participation - http://bit.ly/10kcQpm "to develop disruptive ideas and products for science communication"

2013-05-05 04:38:57 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

“The experiment involves giving individuals a small sum of money, at regular intervals, as a supplement to all other forms of income, and observing what happens to their families if this sum is given unconditionally.”

2013-05-04 22:28:42 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Growth vs Development Nobel winner Amartya Sen discusses way ahead for India with NDTV - Video http://ow.ly/2wDsDT

2013-05-02 23:29:46 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Reading up on the character strengths and virtues by Seligman and Peterson and took their test (http://www.viacharacter.org/www/Portals/0/VIA%20Classification.pdf)
Here is the list of character strengths (24 strengths) and virtues (six virtues). For more information, see the pdf.
Wisdom and knowledge (creativity, curiosity, judgment, love of knowledge, perspective), courage (bravery, integrity, persistence, vitality), humanity (love, kindness, social intelligence), justice (citizenship, fairness, leadership), temperance (forgiveness-mercy, humility, prudence, self regulation), and transcendence (appreciation of beauty, gratitude, hope, humour, and spirituality). 
The combination of all these in virtually every action every day makes for a very exalted human being. So there. The handbook is a tremendous resource.

2013-05-01 05:51:46 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

23-year-old raped after getting into car at Gurgaon mall
http://ndtv.in/10TXb7y

2013-05-01 00:45:17 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 1 +1s)

"Between the As and Zs of the matter, this issue is about the abacus of our daily life, about its alphabet from the Bs to the Ys. It is about where we as a nation are headed. Are we, on voting day alone, an electorate but on all other days a protectorate that swings from being a pre-medieval khanate, a medieval nizamate, a modern-day sultanate? And, in another dimension of our life, headed to becoming a Hindutva plus technutva revivalate?", writes Gopal Krishna Gandhi. Tough questions to field.

2013-04-29 06:10:29 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

"Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got til it's gone
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot"
Prophetic.

2013-04-28 22:51:01 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Funny contradictions.
"Another neat device that caught my eye at the tech show was PD233 Pocket Photo. It is a portable printer for your smartphone. It is great for NFC-enabled Android devices. All you need to do is touch the phone to the tiny printer and you get the picture printed. To use it properly, you will need to download the LG Pocket Photo app."
[http://www.telegraphindia.com/1130429/jsp/knowhow/story_16837900.jsp#.UX2m6o-F5AU]
Why would you need a pricey dedicated printer for smartphone photos?

2013-04-27 21:11:08 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 2 +1s)

Cities in America are finding useful ways of handling a torrent of data. One approach is to give them to the public. For example, San Francisco, New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Chicago are or soon will be sharing the grades that health inspectors give to restaurants with an online restaurant directory http://econ.st/1817mEK 

2013-04-26 20:59:49 (2 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

2013-04-20 23:15:52 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

person of interest

Yesterday morning, this 22-foot long craft sat shrinkwrapped and parked at the end of driveway in a backyard in Watertown like thousands of of other boats in thousands of other backyards around New England. 

This picture of the craft, released by the Massachusetts State Police earlier today, was taken with the same thermal imaging rig that law enforcement has been using to detect marijuana growing operations all around the country or that the military uses elsewhere around the world.
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/19/17830076-secret-weapon-how-thermal-imaging-helped-catch-bomb-suspect?lite

The key technology in the capture, however, may have been one of the oldest: a telephone. 

The police knew to train the FLIR on the boat because of a 911 call from the boat's owner, David Henneberry. 

When Henneberryst... more »

2013-04-17 23:44:24 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

2013-04-17 23:41:29 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

This is a truly unfortunate piece of public art, which I saw last week in Atlanta. From one angle, you can convince yourself it looks a bit like a lion, but mostly it looks like a pile of you-know-what, even to the texture. I sometimes wonder who commissions buildings, and public art, and why they are allowed to foist their taste on an unsuspecting public.

2013-04-17 18:46:16 (2 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

I've been interviewing Bill Gates since...well, let's just say a long time.  Some exchanges have been contentious, others less so, but not once have I failed to be blown away by his intelligence and focus.  In recent years, he has been an even better interviewee, as he feels more comfortable to publicly unleash a very sharp -- often hilarious -- sense of humor.  

This relatively short session for Wired's 20th anniversary issue shows what I mean . He makes serious points, but is clearly having a lot of fun.

As for the last question, I always try to toss in one he hasn't heard before.  When I saw he mentioned Catcher in the Rye on his blog -- one of two novels out of maybe fifty books he notes there -- I had to ask the Billster whether he identified with Holden Caufield. Not only was his answer pure gold, but he obviously remembered the book in detail and took tohea... more »

2013-04-16 21:40:39 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

2013-04-16 01:50:21 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

2013-04-15 22:39:42 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 2 +1s)

おはようございます

2013-04-13 00:46:39 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Oh, well. 

2013-04-11 22:13:34 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

"On Thursday he went a step further and said India committed a serious “human rights violation” by “murdering” its women and children. It was not clear from the journalist’s question what he was referring to: India’s skewed sex ratio, the high female mortality rate or the street violence against women. But he managed to rile both leaders. The journalist made no mention of the Delhi gang-rape but Dr. Singh felt compelled to bring it up."

2013-04-11 22:05:17 (2 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Very important site, worth bookmarking.

2013-04-11 18:54:33 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

This color-coded chart will help you pick the most nutritious produce for any diet. Read more: http://lifehac.kr/xr1e87w