All those topics that i wish i had time to pursue more earnestly.

Wow, that’s creepy:

install a grid of little cameras on the ceiling of their stores that can track people as they walk around the store, starting from when they walk in the door until they leave. The grid would be self-organizing, adjacent cameras talking to each other and handing off trackees to each other. It couldn’t recognize people, although if you buy something with something other than cash, it’d know who you were from that transaction. This isn’t intended for loss control (retailese for shoplifting) but more for marketing. They could, for example, rent a rack in a prominent position to a supplier, and charge them by the number of people who stop to look at it.

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this is an interesting phenomena… it is a growing phenomena too. how many shopper cards are already rfid tagged? want to bet that you have one that is?

One Laptop Per Child Project Abandons Hand Crank:

One Laptop Per Child Project Abandons Hand Crank
One Laptop Per Child project abandons hand crank in favor of a foot pedal attached to the AC adaptor. Negroponte also says Linux is too “fat” for the 500 MHz AMD processors they plan to use. -dj

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interesting…. a foot pedal and a cord…. give a kid a solid object on the end of a string and what do they tend to do with it?

USA Today tastes tests popular coffees:

Out of possible scores of “5 slurps,” Starbucks ranked at 4 1/2, while McDonald’s followed with 3 1/2 , Burger King with 2 1/2 and Dunkin Donuts and 7-11 with 2 slurps each. While Starbucks was also the most expensive drink in the test, the “dead-serious brew with an intense bitter chocolate aroma, a silky texture and a complex, fruity, almost wine-like flavor” made it worth it to the tasters.

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coffee is not supposed to be bitter. starbucks has habituated people to expect bitter coffee because it mixes so much sugar in their coffee drinks that you need bitter to offset the sugar. now people just expect the bitter without the sugar…. iewww. bitter comes from poorly, usually over, roasted and stale beans. good coffeeshops everywhere will sell you coffee the way it is supposed to taste… instead of how the starbuck’s paradigm has lead you to think expensive coffee should taste. expense in this case, is not a sign of goodness.

ok, that is my anti-starbucks coffee rant.

The first international conference on Asian comics, animation and
digital games!

Theme: Cultural Economy and Transnational Imaginary
Organizer: York Centre for Asian Research (YCAR), York University
http://www.yorku.ca/ycar/ACAG%202006/index.html

Co-sponsor: International Journal of Comic Art, Asian Cinema Studies
Society
Keynote speaker: Professor John A. Lent, Temple University, USA

Early Bird Registration is now on! Deadline April 10, 2006
http://www.yorku.ca/ycar/ACAG%202006/registration.html

Make your conference check-in easier by registering in advance and save
on rates! Download the registration form, pay by mail or by fax with
credit card.

Unique on-campus residence accommodation experience
The Pond Road Residence that is next to the conference venue at the
Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) Building has a block of rooms
available for ACAG2006 participants. This nine-storey residence features
two-bedroom suites which share an ensuite kitchen and bathroom. There is
a large ground floor common room which features a laundry room,
comfortable lounge furniture, TV, and landscaped courtyard. It’s a great
place to gather, study and relax!

Off-campus hotel reservation deadline April 18th, 2006
Holiday Inn Midtown Toronto and North York have a block of rooms
available at a special ACAG2006 conference rate till Tuesday April 18th,
2006!

Join Us!
ACAG2006 promotes scholarship and intellectual engagement between
academics and cultural production professionals on the conference themes
and topics ranging from anime and manga, animation and film, cyberspace
and digital games. A conference is so much more than published papers.
ACAG brings together interesting people from various cultures to
exchange ideas, meet and network! This is the first international
conference on Asian comics, animation and gaming with participants from
Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Japan,
Philippines, Taiwan, United Kingdom and USA!

Top 10 cities for foodies – Spring Travel – MSNBC.com:

Choosing just ten of the world’s best cities for foodies was no picnic. In the process, we let our tastebuds wander the globe in search of sustenance. Our definitive list finds cities chosen for their unique dishes – if you hanker for snake, head to Hanoi – others for their celebrity chefs – witness Las Vegas and New York – and still others for creating dishes known the world over – we have Brussels to thank for mussels and fries and Tokyo for superlative sushi and sashimi.

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i’ve been to a few of these places…

Virginia law requires internet safety in schools:

The state of Virginia has passed a law requiring schools to teach internet safety as part of the curriculum, reports the Washington Post:

“The measure’s sponsor, Del. William H. Fralin Jr. (R-Roanoke), said he wrote the bill after his oldest son turned 10 and started competing with his parents for computer time. It raised a question in my mind,” he said. “We teach our kids not to talk to strangers. We teach our kids not to take candy. But in today’s world on the Internet, not only can you be talking to strangers without supervision, but you can be talking to someone you think is not a stranger, but who is one. There needs to be some sort of basic training on that.”

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this should be an interesting experiment….

The ARTICLE 19 Freedom of Expression Virtual Handbook:

The ARTICLE 19 Freedom of Expression Virtual Handbook
The ARTICLE 19 Freedom of Expression Virtual Handbook is a resource providing access to international and best comparative standards on the right to freedom of expression. It is designed to be accessible to journalists, NGOs and others, while also providing high-quality legal information.

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Freedom of expression is necessary for scientific progress.

behavol behavior management solution,faq’s:

What is Behavol?
Behavol is a liquid supplement designed to use as a tool to modify aggressive
or inappropriate behaviors. The product is non-perishable and can be stored
at room temperature.

little rhymes:

classic.

:

The life of an eighteen-year-old girl in Israel is interrupted when she is plucked out of her environment at an age when sexual, educational, and family values are at their highest exploration point. She is then placed in a rigorous institution, where individuality becomes a secondary matter, making room for nationalism. “I solemnly swear…to devote all of my strength and to sacrifice my life to protect the land and the liberty of Israel,” repeats the newly recruited soldier during her swearing-in ceremony. She enters the two-year period in which she will change from a girl to a woman, a teenager to an adult, all under a militaristic, masculine environment, and in the confines of an army that is engaged in daily war and conflict

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the meaning and requirements of national militarism is transformational to many identities.