Rubik's Cube frustration now spherical

Rubik's Cube frustration now spherical

The Rubik's Cube has been one of the most well-known puzzles since the 1980s. But the inventor, Hungarian Erno Rubik, is not done causing frustration and has just introduced the Rubik's 360 toy.

Unlike the original, this puzzle is spherical, and the purpose is to change the position of six balls in its central sphere so that they will eventually be located in six compartments on the outer sphere.

It looks like this puzzle won't require you to remember an endless number of algorithms just to solve it like the original cube, but we won't be surprised if you still end up tearing your hair out in the process. It is expected to ship in July or August for $23.40.

(Source: Crave Asia via gizmag)

Google Latitude: An In-Depth Look

Google Latitude: An In-Depth Look

This Wednesday, Google launched its much-anticipated location-tracking service, Latitude, which uses the GPS hardware found in smart phones (such as Google Android phones and BlackBerry and Windows Mobile handsets) to pinpoint your position on a map and share that information with your friends. I've been playing with the software on my BlackBerry for a couple of days, and I've taken the time to explore its features. Here's a guided tour of the Latitude experience.
Web Registration

If you already have a Google Account, you can get started simply by adding Latitude to your iGoogle page on the Web. If you take this approach, you can use your full keyboard and mouse to populate your Friends list. Alternatively, you can browse to google.com/latitude on your smart phone and download the latest version of the Google Mobile app, which has Latitude functionality built in. Once it's on your phone, you can log in and get started.

Add Friends

Before Latitude can do you much good or harm, you'll need to add some friends with whom you'd like to share your location. Gmail users already have a heavily populated contact list to select from, but you also have the option to enter e-mail addresses manually.

Once you've added some friends, their avatars will appear on your map. You'll also be able to see how long ago they last updated their location, either by clicking their avatar in the map view or by looking at their listing in your Friends list. If your friends haven't entered a location for themselves and haven't enabled GPS tracking on their smart phones, you'll just see 'Unknown Location' by their names. In some cases, you'll also see a tiny icon that looks like an eyeball with a slash through it. You might think that this means your friend has chosen to hide his or her location from you, but it actually means the opposite: The friend can't see your location. In this case, you'll need to select that friend and enable the level of location sharing you want to confer.

Privacy

You have three options for sharing your location: You can have Latitude detect your location to the best of its ability and automatically share it; you can set your location manually by entering an address or city; or you can hide your location entirely. You select the option you want in the oddly named Privacy menu. I think that a better label would be Location Sharing, which describes what actually happens here.

This menu sets your sharing preferences universally for all of your friends. If you like, however, you can change your sharing options for each friend individually. More on this later.

Because you can enter any address you want when you set your location, it's very easy to spoof your position with Latitude. For instance, I'm toying with the idea of telling my friends that I'm in Timbuktu, Mali, because I want them to think I'm a hip jet-setter with a taste for exotic locales. (Sure, it's a stretch, but some of my friends are pretty gullible.)

Mobile Latitude

Unless all you want to do is track where your friends are all the time--which sounds sort of creepy, if you ask me--you'll probably spend a lot of time using Latitude's mobile interface. The interface varies a bit, depending on the device you're using it on, but this walkthrough of the screens on my BlackBerry Curve will give you a good sense of what it's like.
Google Mobile & Maps

On the BlackBerry, Latitude lives in the Google Mobile App, which you can download by browsing to www.google.com/mobile on you device. Even if you already have Google Mobile and Google Maps on your BlackBerry, you must download the latest version to get the Latitude features.

Google Earth maps the oceans

Google Earth maps the oceans

It began three years ago with a chance meeting in Spain between the legendary oceanographer Sylvia Earle and John Hanke, the director of Google Earth, the company’s free virtual globe software.

“John, when are you going to finish it?” asked Ms. Earle, “You should call Google Earth ‘Google Dirt.‘”

After that, Mr. Hanke and his team got to work mapping the remaining 70 percent of the planet’s surface. The result: Google Earth 5.0, which became available on Monday.

On the Official Google Blog, Hanke writes:

We have always had a big blue expanse and some low-resolution shading to suggest depth. But starting today we have a much more detailed bathymetric map (the ocean floor), so you can actually drop below the surface and explore the nooks and crannies of the seafloor in 3D. While you’re there you can explore thousands of data points including videos and images of ocean life, details on the best surf spots, logs of real ocean expeditions, and much more.

The “much more” includes shipwrecks, sea surface temperature data, maps of Marine Protected Areas, so-called dead zones, wildlife tracking data, chlorophyll levels, old Jacques Cousteau videos, and much more. One favorite is a feature that allows you to track Arctic sea ice extent from 1979 to 2008.

To gather all this data, Google turned to a host of ocean scientists and environmental advocacy groups, including the Cousteau Society, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the National Geographic Society, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the New England Aquarium, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, to name a few.

Conservationists praised the software’s potential to boost public support. The New York Times’s Andrew Revkin quotes Barbara Block, a marine biologist at Stanford University:

“We cannot as a community conserve what we cannot see,” Dr. Block said. “We’ve worked with the Monterey Bay Aquarium for years to put giant bluefin and white sharks on display, and if we’re lucky 2 million people a year come and see the animals and discover their color, beauty of motion, and form. With the Google oceans feature, we potentially can reach hundreds of millions.”

A press release from the Geneva-based International Union for Conservation of Nature, which compiles the world’s most comprehensive listing of the conservation status of plants and animals, quotes Carl Gustaf Lundin, who heads the organization’s Global Marine Programme.

“With ‘Ocean in Google Earth’ everybody can see the unbelievable beauty of our marine life and how incredibly threatened it is.”

Other features in this latest release of Google Earth include the ability to view historical map data, to create narrated, sharable tours, and to view the terrain of Mars.

"Ancient" Syriac bible found in Cyprus

"Ancient" Syriac bible found in Cyprus

NICOSIA (Reuters Life!) – Authorities in northern Cyprus believe they have found an ancient version of the Bible written in Syriac, a dialect of the native language of Jesus.

The manuscript was found in a police raid on suspected antiquity smugglers. Turkish Cypriot police testified in a court hearing they believe the manuscript could be about 2,000 years old.

The manuscript carries excerpts of the Bible written in gold lettering on vellum and loosely strung together, photos provided to Reuters showed. One page carries a drawing of a tree, and another eight lines of Syriac script.

Experts were however divided over the provenance of the manuscript, and whether it was an original, which would render it priceless, or a fake.

Experts said the use of gold lettering on the manuscript was likely to date it later than 2,000 years.

"I'd suspect that it is most likely to be less than 1,000 years old," leading expert Peter Williams, Warden of Tyndale House, University of Cambridge told Reuters.

Turkish Cypriot authorities seized the relic last week and nine individuals are in custody pending further investigations. More individuals are being sought in connection with the find, they said.

The World's Tallest Cities

The World's Tallest Cities

New York City remains No. 1, but China is catching up.

The soaring global economy of the last 20 years pushed the world's leading financial centers to enduring heights. Not their stock markets, which have collapsed, but their skylines.

All but two of the world's 20 tallest buildings (the 1,451-foot Sears Tower and the 1,250-foot Empire State Building) were built during this long bull market, according to Emporis, a global building-information company. Today the world's tallest cities reflect that growth.

New York City still stands tallest, with 35 towers over 700 feet, more than any other city. But China is catching up. Hong Kong is No. 2 with 30 such towers, and Shanghai is No. 4 with 21 towers.

These cities have risen fast. In 1999, Shanghai completed the 1,380-foot Jin Mao Tower. It was Shanghai's first building taller than 700 feet; since then the city has built 20 more.

No city in the world, however, has developed as explosively as Dubai. As oil wealth flooded the United Arab Emirates, the emirate of Dubai on the Persian Gulf poured money into construction, much as Houston had done decades earlier.

Today, Dubai is home to the world's tallest tower. The 2,684-foot Burj Dubai was topped off in January of this year. The building is scheduled to open in the fall of 2009. It will be the world's tallest building by 1,000 feet. The second-tallest building, Taipei 101 in Taiwan, is a comparatively modest 1,671 feet.

With the rise of China and Dubai, Chicago is now No. 5. Shenzhen, the Chinese city just north of Hong Kong, is closing in.

A report, released this week from the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, estimates that by 2020, the world's skylines will again be redrawn. By 2020, Taipei 101, currently the second-tallest building in the world, will be No. 20.

Dubai is determined to stay on top. After completing the Burj Dubai, it is planning the 3,280-foot Nakheel Tower. Saudi Arabia hopes to build the 3,280-foot Kingdom Tower. Both towers are very tentatively scheduled for completion in 2020--if the oil keeps flowing out and the dollars keep pouring in.

The foundations are already being laid for other super towers around the globe. In Shanghai, the 2,073-foot Shanghai Tower will complete a trio of towers in the city's financial district, which currently includes the world's third-tallest building, the 1,614-foot Shanghai World Financial Center.

In the U.S. both Chicago and New York are racing to build new super towers. New York's Freedom Tower, also known as World Trade Center One, will reach 1,776 feet when completed. In Chicago, foundations are in place for the Chicago Spire, a planned 2,000-footer that would allow the Windy City to remain the home of America's tallest tower.

But whether these skyscrapers will ever touch the clouds depends how quickly the economy turns around. Across the world, projects are grinding to a stop, as financing collapses or demand for hundreds of floors of office space in financial districts disappears. The Chicago Spire, the Nakheel Tower and Moscow's planned 2,008-foot Moscow Tower have all been placed on hold in recent months.
In Pictures: The World's 10 Tallest Cities

USA Swimming suspends Phelps three months

USA Swimming suspends Phelps three months

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado (AFP) - - Record-breaking Olympic champion Michael Phelps has been suspended for three months by USA Swimming after a published photograph appeared to show him smoking marijuana.

The national governing body of the sport stressed that the punishment was not for a doping violation, but said they wanted to send a "strong message" to Phelps about his status as a role model for young people.

"USA Swimming has reprimanded Michael Phelps under its Code of Conduct by withdrawing financial support and the eligibility to compete for a period of three months effective today, February 5," said a statement issued late Thursday.

"This is not a situation where any anti-doping rule was violated, but we decided to send a strong message to Michael because he disappointed so many people, particularly the hundreds of thousands of USA Swimming member kids who look up to him as a role model and a hero.

"Michael has voluntarily accepted this reprimand and has committed to earn back our trust," the statement added.

Phelps had been expected to return to competition for the first time since the Olympics at a USA Swimming Grand Prix meeting in Austin, Texas in early March.

Now he won't be able to race until May. That would still allow him to compete at the US National Championships in Indianapolis in July, the qualifying meet for the World Championships in Rome July 18-August 2.

Any plans Phelps had for the post-Olympic season were plunged into disarray when Britain's News of the World published the photograph in which Phelps appeared to inhale from a glass pipe of the kind used to smoke marijuana.

The newspaper said the photo was taken at a university party in South Carolina in November.

The 23-year-old swimmer, who electrified the Beijing Games in August when he won an unprecedented eight gold medals, told his hometown newspaper the Baltimore Sun on Wednesday that the incident showed "obviously bad judgment and it's something I'm not proud of at all."

Phelps suffered more fall-out on Thursday, when US food company Kellogg's said it would not renew its endorsement deal with the Olympian when it expires at the end of the month.

"Michael's most recent behavior is not consistent with the image of Kellogg," company spokeswoman Susanne Norwitz said in a statement.

"Michael accepts these decisions and understands their point of view," a spokesman for Phelps's agents Octagon said. "He feels bad he let anyone down.

"He's also encouraged by the thousands of comments he's received from his fans and the support from his many sponsors. He intends to work hard to regain everyone's trust."

Several other sponsors, including apparel manufacturer Speedo and watchmaker Omega, have stood by Phelps.

Speedo was the company that forked over a one million-dollar bonus as Phelps surpassed US swimming icon Mark Spitz's 36-year-old record of seven gold medals at one Games in Beijing.

In Beijing Phelps set seven world records en route to his eight gold medals. He took his total of Olympic titles to a record 14, including six from the 2004 Athens Games.

In the glow of that success Phelps said he would return for the 2012 Olympics in London, but he indicated to the Baltimore Sun that the bruising publicity he has received this week could prompt him to reconsider.

"This is a decision of mine that I'm not going to make today and I'm not going to make tomorrow," Phelps told the newspaper, saying any move would include discussions with his longtime coach and mentor, Bob Bowman.

Since the photo was published, Phelps said he has come under intense scrutiny -- of a far different sort than he received in the wake of his Olympic triumph.

"I've been waking up to guys yelling into megaphones outside my window at 7 o'clock in the morning," Phelps said. "I've had paparazzi people following me from my house to my mom's house. People knocking on the door."

It's not the first time Phelps has had to polish his image. In 2004, after he won six gold medals and two bronze at the Athens Olympics, the 19-year-old Phelps pleaded guilty to drunken driving and received 18 months probation.

"I think this is like the DUI, in that it's something I can talk more about and make sure that nobody makes the same mistakes I made," Phelps told the newspaper. "What I've gone through in the last week, no one wants to go through."

Lakers win NBA thriller to end Celtics streak

Lakers win NBA thriller to end Celtics streak

BOSTON, Massachusetts (AFP) - - Lamar Odom's free throws with 16 seconds left in overtime helped the Los Angeles Lakers stop the streaking Boston Celtics cold for the second time this season.

The Lakers outlasted the Celtics 110-109 - their second victory over the Celtics this season after they fell to Boston in six games in the National Basketball Association championship series last season.

Kobe Bryant had 26 points and 10 rebounds and Odom added 20 points for the Lakers who imprved to 40-9. That gave them the best record in the NBA in terms of percentage, as the Celtics fell to 41-10.

The Lakers also had the satisfaction of again ending a significant Celtics winning streak.

The Lakers ended Boston's franchise-record 19-game winning streak in Los Angeles Christmas Day.

This time they halted a 12-game winning streak. What may eventually prove more important, the two victories earned the tiebreaker for home-court advantage if the teams meet again in the NBA Finals.

The Lakers trailed 109-108 when Odom blocked a shot by Glend Davis, grabbed the loose ball and tried launch a fast break.

He was fouled as he passed, setting up his key free throws.

On the ensuing possession - the final one of the game - Rajon Rondo accidentally was undercut by Derek Fisher, who fell to the floor in the path of the Celtics' point guard.

The gaffe let the Celtics set up a play from out-of-bounds, but Pau Gasol got a piece of Ray Allen's three-point attempt.

Fans at the TD Banknorth Garden went wild calling for a foul as time expired.

Allen scored 22 points for the Celtics, who were without defensive player of the year Kevin Garnett at the end of the game after he fouled out with 4:22 to play in the fourth quarter.