Favorite Thanksgiving Tradition

My Thanksgiving tradition consists of the usual family coming over, eating a ton, and talking/making jokes at the dinner table. Best thing we do after dinner every year is eat a ton of sweets and play a game.

Game- "Name Game"

- Object of the game is to talk and ask as many questions as possible to everyone without saying any of the names at the dinner table. First loser does ALL the dishes.

And yeah, that's my Thanksgiving tradition :]

Tech Article- 11/19/10

Robotic legs a step in the right direction

Thirty years ago doctors told Noboru Matsumoto that he would never walk again. Matsumoto had suffered severe brain injuries after a motorcycle crash. The accident left his speech slurred and unable to walk properly. It was in that movement that Professor Yoshiyuki Sankai saw hope for Matsumoto to defy the original doctor's diagnosis. Professor Sankai is the inventor of the Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL), a wrap-around robotic belt and legs. Sensors sit on top of the patient's skin that picks up the brain signals instructing the body to move. There are 140 HAL suits in use in Japan, renting for just under $2,000 a month. Professor Sankai is in the final stages of bringing the suits to Sweden and Denmark and is hoping to one day introduce the suits to the U.S., to help the aging baby boomers.

Click here for video.

Google Reader

Google Reader is considered to be one of the best RSS readers. It is amazing in the way that it does not spam, it gives you automated news, and customization. If you have a Google Reader you will NOT receive any spam messages, you will receive instant information and news updates, and you will only get information about the things you are interested in, nothing else. Google Reader is helpful in my academic and personal life because I am a very organized and enjoyed being informed about the things that most interest me, which aren't always easy to find information on. Google Reader is an amazing way to organize files and data. Google Reader will definitely go on with me even after this class because not only is it an easy way to organize myself for all my classes, but it also allows me to be updated on my favorite things [i.e photography, animals, and new scientific discoveries].

Syndication

These are the websites I visit on a regular basis:

Facebook
Tumblr
 GivesMeHope
Taste of Awesome
Youtube


RSS Feed Sites

AOL

Mozenda

ABC

Tech Article- 11/12/10

Hypertexting/Hypernetworking risks

A new study by the Case Western Reserve School of Medicine links  poor health behaviors such as smoking, drinking, and sexual activity to hypertexting and hypernetworking. The study defines hypertexting as sending more than 120 text messages per school day. Hypernetworking is spending more than 3 hours per school day on social network sites like Facebook and Twitter. These are what recent studies show:

Teens who are hypertexters are:

- Nearly 3.5 times more likely to have sex

- 40% more likely to have tried cigarettes

- 90% more likely to report four or more sexual partners

Teens who are hypernetworkers are:

- 60% more likely to report four or more sexual partners

- 69% more likely to be binge drinkers

- 84% more likely to have used illicit drugs

Click here for video.

Tech Article- 11/3/10

iPhone gives Europe extra hour of sleep

Late to work this morning? Forget those excuses about traffic jams or Halloween hangovers. You might be able to blame your iPhone. Reports from Europe suggest a bug in the iPhone's alarm app caused it not to adjust to the end of Daylight Saving Time in that part of the world. Consequently, people in Europe have been tweeting like crazy about waking up one hour later. Daylight Saving Time ended on Sunday in Europe, causing clocks to reset one hour earlier. Reports suggest recurring iPhone alarms did not adjust to the new time. The time change does not go into effect until November 7 in the United States and no-alarm clock problems have been reported here. Earlier in October, websites in Australia reported an iPhone software bug caused alarms to go off an hour earlier than they expected.

Want to see the angry tweets? Check them out


Jokes on this issue by tweeters:
Number 1
Number 2