By Ken Y-N ( November 29, 2011 at 00:56)
? Filed under Entertainment, Polls
With the digital switch-over finished (with a subsequent massive drop in demand for televisions, but that?s another story), this survey from goo Research, reported on by japan.internet.com, into terrestrial digital television had a look at how people were finding it.
Demographics
Between the 14th and 16th of November 2011 1,089 members of the goo Research online monitor group completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 53.2% of the sample were male. 16.5% in their teens, 18.1% in their twenties, 21.6% in their thirties, 16.0% in their forties, and 21.6% aged fifty or older.
I?m rather satisfied with the whole digital broadcast business. My favourite part is that pressing the data button on most channels gives a three-hourly breakdown of the weather for the next 24 hours in my town, no further fiddling required.
Research results
Q1: Did you know that analogue television broadcasts ended on the 24th of July 2011? (Sample size=1,089)
There were 19 people unable to (or unaware they could) watch terrestrial digital television, so the other 1,070 people were asked the following.
Q2: Compared to before, how satisfied are you with terrestrial digital television? (Sample size=1,070)
Completely satisfied
25.5%
Somewhat satisfied
45.8%
Can?t say either way
26.3%
Somewhat dissatisfied
1.7%
Completely dissatisfied
0.7%
The 26 disgruntled members were asked why they were unhappy (multiple answer); some answers were that it was difficult to understand the functions, the copy limitations are strict, compliant devices are expensive, and the fact that they had to upgrade ? each of these were chosen by 9 people, then 7 people said the picture or sound quality wasn?t what they expected, and 3 said there weren?t any devices they liked. Furthermore, 13 people had other miscellaneous complaints, such as picture or sound degradation in bad weather and the inability to watch other prefectures? broadcasts.
Read more on: goo research,television
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Screen Grabs chronicles the uses (and misuses) of real-world gadgets in today's movies and TV. Send in your sightings (with screen grab!) to screengrabs at engadget dot com.
Fans of USA's Covert Affairs know that Annie Walker's stomping ground is Washington DC, where she pretends to be a buyer for the Smithsonian. So, there are only two plausible explanations for her iPhone 4 being able to connect to Rogers Wireless Canadian network: Either she's got a nuclear powered antenna on that thing, or the company is running a south-of-the-border service for Government agencies. Some might point out that the show is filmed in Toronto for cost purposes and the art directors aren't too hot at spotting continuity errors, but we'd dismiss that as paranoid fantasy.
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover lifts off from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011. The rocket will deliver a science laboratory to Mars to study potential habitable environments on the planet. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover lifts off from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011. The rocket will deliver a science laboratory to Mars to study potential habitable environments on the planet. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) and Curiosity rover lifts off from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011. The rocket will deliver a science laboratory to Mars to study potential habitable environments on the planet. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)
Backdropped by the Atlantic Ocean, the 197-foot-tall United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket rolls toward the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida Friday Nov. 25, 2011. Atop the rocket is NASA's Mars Science Laboratory rover nicknamed Curiosity enclosed in its payload fairing. Liftoff is planned during a launch window which extends from 10:02 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. EST on Saturday Nov. 26. Curiosity, has 10 science instruments designed to search for signs of life, including methane, and will help determine if the gas is from a biological or geological source. (AP Photo/NASA
In this 2011 artist's rendering provided by NASA/JPL-Caltech, the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover examines a rock on Mars with a set of tools at the end of its arm, which extends about 2 meters (7 feet). The mobile robot is designed to investigate Mars' past or present ability to sustain microbial life. (AP Photo/NASA/JPL-Caltech)
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) ? A rover of "monster truck" proportions zoomed toward Mars on an 8?-month, 354 million-mile journey Saturday, the biggest, best equipped robot ever sent to explore another planet.
NASA's six-wheeled, one-armed wonder, Curiosity, will reach Mars next summer and use its jackhammer drill, rock-zapping laser machine and other devices to search for evidence that Earth's next-door neighbor might once have been home to the teeniest forms of life.
More than 13,000 invited guests jammed the Kennedy Space Center on Saturday morning to witness NASA's first launch to Mars in four years, and the first flight of a Martian rover in eight years.
Mars fever gripped the crowd.
NASA astrobiologist Pan Conrad, whose carbon compound-seeking instrument is on the rover, wore a bright blue, short-sleeve blouse emblazoned with rockets, planets and the words, "Next stop Mars!" She jumped, cheered and snapped pictures as the Atlas V rocket blasted off. So did Los Alamos National Laboratory's Roger Wiens, a planetary scientist in charge of Curiosity's laser blaster, called ChemCam.
Surrounded by 50 U.S. and French members of his team, Wiens shouted "Go, Go, Go!" as the rocket soared into a cloudy sky. "It was beautiful," he later observed, just as NASA declared the launch a full success.
A few miles away at the space center's visitor complex, Lego teamed up with NASA for a toy spacecraft-building event for children this Thanksgiving holiday weekend. The irresistible lure: 800,000 Lego bricks.
The 1-ton Curiosity ? 10 feet tall, 9 feet wide and 7 feet tall at its mast ? is a mobile, nuclear-powered laboratory holding 10 science instruments that will sample Martian soil and rocks, and with unprecedented skill, analyze them right on the spot.
It's as big as a car. But NASA's Mars exploration program director calls it "the monster truck of Mars."
"It's an enormous mission. It's equivalent of three missions, frankly, and quite an undertaking," said the ecstatic program director, Doug McCuistion. "Science fiction is now science fact. We're flying to Mars. We'll get it on the ground and see what we find."
The primary goal of the $2.5 billion mission is to see whether cold, dry, barren Mars might have been hospitable for microbial life once upon a time ? or might even still be conducive to life now. No actual life detectors are on board; rather, the instruments will hunt for organic compounds.
Curiosity's 7-foot arm has a jackhammer on the end to drill into the Martian red rock, and the 7-foot mast on the rover is topped with high-definition and laser cameras.
With Mars the ultimate goal for astronauts, NASA will use Curiosity to measure radiation at the red planet. The rover also has a weather station on board that will provide temperature, wind and humidity readings; a computer software app with daily weather updates is planned.
No previous Martian rover has been so sophisticated.
The world has launched more than three dozen missions to the ever-alluring Mars, which is more like Earth than the other solar-system planets. Yet fewer than half those quests have succeeded.
Just two weeks ago, a Russian spacecraft ended up stuck in orbit around Earth, rather than en route to the Martian moon Phobos.
"Mars really is the Bermuda Triangle of the solar system," said NASA's Colleen Hartman, assistant associate administrator for science. "It's the death planet, and the United States of America is the only nation in the world that has ever landed and driven robotic explorers on the surface of Mars, and now we're set to do it again."
Curiosity's arrival next August will be particularly hair-raising.
In a spacecraft first, the rover will be lowered onto the Martian surface via a jet pack and tether system similar to the sky cranes used to lower heavy equipment into remote areas on Earth.
Curiosity is too heavy to use air bags like its much smaller predecessors, Spirit and Opportunity, did in 2004. Besides, this new way should provide for a more accurate landing.
Astronauts will need to make similarly precise landings on Mars one day.
Curiosity will spend a minimum of two years roaming around Gale Crater, chosen from among more than 50 potential landing sites because it's so rich in minerals. Scientists said if there is any place on Mars that might have been ripe for life, it may well be there.
The rover should go farther and work harder than any previous Mars explorer because of its power source: 10.6 pounds of radioactive plutonium. The nuclear generator was encased in several protective layers in case of a launch accident.
NASA expects to put at least 12 miles on the odometer, once the rover sets down on the Martian surface.
McCuistion anticipates being blown away by the never-before-seen vistas. "Those first images are going to just be stunning, I believe. It will be like sitting in the bottom of the Grand Canyon," he said at a post-launch news conference.
This is the third astronomical mission to be launched from Cape Canaveral by NASA since the retirement of the venerable space shuttle fleet this summer. The Juno probe is en route to Jupiter, and twin spacecraft named Grail will arrive at Earth's moon on New Year's Eve and Day.
Unlike Juno and Grail, Curiosity suffered development programs and came in two years late and nearly $1 billion over budget. Scientists involved in the project noted Saturday that the money is being spent on Earth, not Mars, and the mission is costing every American about the price of a movie.
"I'll leave you to judge for yourself whether or not that's a movie you'd like to see," said California Institute of Technology's John Grotzinger, the project scientist. "I know that's one I would."
It's that time of year again. The time of year where you spend all of your spare time and most of your spare money shopping for holiday gifts. Shopping is never easy, but for that special Android nerd in your life it can be especially difficult trying to find something to occupy their minds and hands so they can tinker and try to blow things up. That's where I can help -- I'm a total nerd (and proud of it) and I happen to spend a lot of time on the 'net making a wish list for that day I finally hit the Powerball. Hit the break and see our gift recommendations for an Android geek, from an Android geek.
While many are fearing EU-reliant stocks, Allot Communications Ltd. (ALLT - Snapshot Report) is on the rise and sees growing demand in the region. Is now a good time to pick up shares of ALLT?
Company Description
Allot offers IP optimization and revenue generation solutions for fixed and mobile service providers.
Another Great Quarter
Since we covered Allot back in early October, the company has reported another earnings surprise. On Nov 1 the company said it earned $0.11 per share in the previous quarter, 4 cents better than the analyst polled by Zacks was expecting.
Despite ongoing concerns in Europe, the company is still seeing strong carrier spending in the region, which accounts for 60% of its revenue.
Estimates on the Rise
The full-year estimate for 2011 is up 7 cents, to $0.35 after Allot's fifth consecutive earnings surprise. Next year's forecast rose 3 cents, to $0.41.
In 2010 the company brought in just $0.09 per share, putting this year's expected earnings growth rate at almost 300%. The 2012 projection is calling for 17%.
Valuations
While that P/E at 44 times forward estimates looks lofty, the PEG ratio is only 1.3 times. So the growth is at a decent price. Price to sales and price to book are both above 5 times, enough to scare away any value investor.
The Chart
Shares of ALLT have surged since the original feature, but a pullback here could make for another nice entry point. The market is a bit skittish right now, but this Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) might be worth buying on the dip.
Read the October 3rd Feature Here
Bill Wilton is the Aggressive Growth Stock Strategist for Zacks.com. He is also the Editor in charge of the Zacks Small Cap Trader service
This Week's Aggressive Growth Zacks Rank Buy Stocks
Brunswick Corp (BC - Snapshot Report) operates in markets that are highly sensitive to the economy, so this is a pretty aggressive play. But, with earnings momentum this Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) could turn around sharply if economic worries start to fade.
Read Full Article.
A region with a booming population will need plenty of infrastructure projects. Hollysys Automation Technologies, Ltd. (HOLI - Snapshot Report) is one company set to profit from them.
Read Full Article.
Shares might be volatile, but with impressive growth rates and attractive valuations Universal Truckload Services, Inc. (UACL - Snapshot Report) is worth a look.
CAIRO ? The long-estranged leaders of the two rival Palestinian political movements said Thursday they significantly narrowed differences and opened a new page in relations in reconciliation talks in Cairo.
Despite the upbeat tone, it remained unclear whether Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Khaled Mashaal, chief of the Islamic militant Hamas, made real progress toward implementing a power-sharing deal they reached in principle in May.
That agreement includes forming an interim unity government, holding parliamentary and presidential elections by May and eventually merging rival security forces.
Abbas and Mashaal talked for two hours Thursday, their first working meeting since Hamas seized Gaza in 2007 and left Abbas with only the West Bank. Previous reconciliation attempts failed and over the years, both set up rival governments in their territories.
Abbas is trying to establish an independent state in the two territories, located on opposite sides of Israel.
Abbas said Thursday's atmosphere was positive and that there "were no differences" regarding the issues. "What is important to us is that we deal with each other as partners and shoulder the same responsibility toward our people and our cause," he said.
Mashaal said that he and his former rival "opened a new page" in relations. He said it would take some time for agreements reached in the meeting to be implemented, but he did not explain.
Neither side commented on the dispute that held up the first stage of a deal ? formation of a unity government of technocrats without clear political affiliations.
Abbas wanted to see his West Bank prime minister, Salam Fayyad, as the head of the interim government, but Hamas rejected that. It was not clear if Abbas dropped Fayyad, an internationally respected economist, as a candidate in Thursday's talks. Hamas believes Abbas is too close to the West.
Azzam al-Ahmed, an Abbas envoy, said activists of the two movements would be released from detention and that elections for parliament and president would be held as planned, in May. He did not elaborate on either issue.
He also said the two sides agreed to engage in "popular resistance." Many Palestinians use this term to refer to nonviolent demonstrations against Israeli occupation. It was not clear whether this meant the Islamic militant Hamas has dropped its support for attacks against Israel. Up to now Hamas has refused to renounce violence.
Abbas left Cairo shortly after the meeting.
Despite the good will expressed by both sides, it appeared unlikely they could go through with all aspects of the agreement.
Abbas would face a Western backlash ? and possibly the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in international aid ? for striking up a political partnership with Hamas and allowing activists of the widely shunned movement into the Palestinian security forces.
Both the Islamists and Abbas' Fatah movement also have major concerns about elections.
Fatah, soundly defeated by Hamas in parliament elections in 2006, is ill-prepared for another legislative vote and does not have a consensus candidate for president. Abbas, 76, has said he would not run again. Hamas fears Israel might target and arrest its candidates, as it did after the 2006 vote.
At the same time, the political split is deeply unpopular among Palestinians, and public pressure is a key reason why Abbas and Mashaal are trying to heal it. Region-wide changes over the past few months, including the failure to resume meaningful Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, have given an additional push toward reconciliation.
The two sides are set to meet again next month, starting Dec. 20, to discuss restructuring the Palestine Liberation Organization, the umbrella group headed by Abbas.
Hamas, which is not part of the PLO, is seeking a role in the group as a possible stepping stone for taking the lead of the Palestinian independence movement from Abbas' Fatah.
STRASBOURG, France ? President Nicolas Sarkozy appeared to temper his calls for the European Central Bank to play a bigger role in solving Europe's debt crisis as he agreed to a German effort to unite the troubled 17-nation eurozone more closely.
Speaking after meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Italian Premier Mario Monti on Thursday, Sarkozy said "propositions for the modification of treaties" would be presented in the coming days.
He wouldn't elaborate on what these changes may be but said they would be ready in time for the next EU leaders summit on December 9. Treaty changes are a notoriously laborious endeavor, requiring the agreement of all 27 EU nations, including non-euro countries such as Britain and Poland.
Merkel said the treaty changes would "make clear that we must take steps toward a fiscal union to express the conviction that we know policies must be more closely coordinated if you have a common, stable currency."
"It is political confidence in Europe that has been lost ? we can only win it back politically," Merkel said.
This was the first meeting of the three leaders since Monti took over last week following mounting market concerns over Italy's huge debt, which stand at euro1.9 trillion ($2.6 trillion), or a huge 120 percent of economic output. Europe's current anti-crisis measures are too not big enough to deal with Italy's debt mountain.
Sarkozy said the three leaders had agreed to meet again "very soon" in Rome at Monti's invitation to continue their three-way dialogue.
The meeting in Strasbourg, France comes amid signs that even Germany and France ? the eurozone's two biggest economies ? are not immune from the crisis that's already seen three relatively small countries bailed out.
All three leaders said they would do what it takes to stabilize the situation and save the euro.
"We want the euro, we want a strong, stable euro ... we will do everything to defend it," Merkel said.
France has been reluctant to resort to changes to EU treaties to improve the way the eurozone countries work together and set policies and prevent future crises. Germany had pushed for such changes, saying voluntary pledges by national governments are no longer enough to boost market confidence.
Merkel insisted that the proposed changes would "not deal with the European Central Bank," which she stressed was responsible for monetary, not fiscal, policy. Sarkozy did not push for a greater role at their closing press conference, while Merkel insisted on the bank's independence.
"In the treaty changes, we are dealing with the question of a fiscal union, a deeper political cooperation ... there will be proposals on this, but they have nothing to do with the ECB," Merkel said.
Many think the ECB is the only institution capable of calming frayed market nerves and Merkel's continued dismissal of a greater ECB role knocked market sentiment and stocks all round Europe were trading lower once again.
Potentially, the ECB has unlimited financial firepower through its ability to print money. However, Germany finds the idea of monetizing debts unappealing.
Merkel also maintained her opposition to the European Commission's new drive for eurobonds.
Germany has opposed the use of eurobonds and has long called on fiscally wayward member states to clean up their own houses with as little outside intervention as possible. A big worry for Germany is that its low borrowing costs would get diluted if eurobonds came into issue and it would then be forced to pay higher rates to tap bond markets.
"It would be completely the wrong signal to lose sight entirely now of these differing interest rates, because they are a pointer to where something still needs to be done and where we need to go further," she said.
Monti, meanwhile, reiterated his pledge to balance Italy's budget by 2013 though he sidestepped the question on whether achieving that aim would require more austerity measures, and if so, whether it risked triggering a recession in the eurozone's third largest economy.
___
Associated Press writers Geir Moulson in Berlin and Frances d'Emilio in Rome contributed to this article.
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PARIS -- A French TV journalist said Friday she was punched and roughed up, then sexually assaulted while covering protests in Egypt's Tahrir Square, the second attack reported in a single day on women journalists working there.
Caroline Sinz told France 3 television, her employer, that she and her cameraman were set upon by young men in the square then separated on Thursday. She said she was punched, then "subjected to a sexual aggression in front of everyone in full daylight." Providing more detail in an interview with RMC radio, she said boys 14 to 16 years old "tore off my clothes and undergarments" and assaulted her.
Mona Eltahawy, a prominent Egyptian-born U.S. columnist, said she was sexually assaulted, beaten and blindfolded Thursday near the square ? by local police. She said the police then dragged her to the nearby Interior Ministry by her hair and detained her there for 12 hours.
Eltahawy, based in New York, is a women's rights defender, a lecturer on the role of social media in the Arab world and a former Reuters journalist.
In February, Lara Logan, a U.S. correspondent for CBS television, was sexually assaulted by a frenzied mob in Tahrir Square.
On Thursday night, the media watchdog Reporters Without Borders advised media outlets that "there is no other solution" but to hold off on sending female journalists to Egypt.
But when that advice was criticized in France on Friday, the Paris-based organization toned down its warning, urging media outlets to show "great care with the safety of the reporters they send."
"It is more dangerous for a woman than a man to cover the demonstrations in Tahrir Square," Reporters Without Borders said. "That is the reality and the media must face it."
Jennifer Lopez is juggling American Idol, her film and music careers, and raising twins -- but her 24-year-old beau still lives on the wild side! A little too wild, in fact. People reports that Casper Smart, the hip-hop dancer whom Lopez has been seeing, may be facing jail time for multiple speeding and traffic-related charges -- including illegal drag racing!
No doubt, Jennifer Lopez, 42, enjoys basking in a hot guy?s attention again. But while it?s fun, it could be dangerous as well. ?He wants to be rich and famous,? snipes an insider to In Touch about her new guy, Casper Smart, 24. ?He?s a smooth talker and he obviously thinks J. Lo will be his meal ticket.? Compounding the problem, In Touch has learned Casper could soon be cooling his heels behind bars. He has a January court date to face charges for recklessly drag-racing a friend down an LA freeway last winter. And it doesn?t bode well that in 2006, he was found guilty for driving without a license. As a mom already responsible for 3-year-old twins Emme and Max, it looks like Jennifer might now have another child on her hands.
BANGKOK ? Asian stock markets edged higher Thursday as speculation that China might ease its monetary policy soothed fears that the German economy ? Europe's strongest ? may be succumbing to the continent's debt crisis.
Benchmark oil hovered above $96 per barrel while the dollar fell against the euro and the yen.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng posted a 0.5 percent gain at 17,944.72. South Korea's Kospi rose 0.4 percent to 1,790.29 and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained marginally to 4,052.30. Benchmarks in Singapore and Taiwan also rose.
Japan's Nikkei 225, reopening after a one-day public holiday, fell 1.3 percent to 8,208.47. Shares in India, Malaysia and Indonesia also fell.
Speculation that China's central bank was aiming to ease its tight monetary policy helped spur a wave of buying in Hong Kong, analysts said. But the official Xinhua News Agency said Thursday the move ? lowering reserve requirements for six rural banks in eastern Zhejiang ? was administrative rather a policy shift. The banks' reserve requirements had been raised a year earlier after they failed to lend enough to farming businesses.
There have been signs that China's campaign of interest rate hikes and credit controls to tame stubbornly high inflation has been working, giving it leeway to ease monetary policy as the world economy stumbles.
"The positive catalyst today is the expectation that the China tightening cycle might loosen," said Jackson Wong, vice president at Tanrich Securities in Hong Kong.
The chatter helped push up Chinese banking shares. Hong Kong-listed Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. jumped 3.3 percent and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, the country's biggest commercial lender, rose 1.9 percent.
Global markets were spooked Wednesday by the poor results at an auction of German debt, which met with only 60 percent demand. Germany's Financial Agency blamed "the extraordinarily nervous market environment."
The weak buying suggests that Europe's crisis might be infecting strong nations that are crucial to keeping the euro currency afloat. Germany bears much of the burden of bailing out weaker neighbors such as Greece and Portugal.
Analysts at Credit Agricole CIB said the European debt crisis remains "the major concern for the markets" and that the German debt auction signals the spread of "the contagion to hard core economies" in the region.
Borrowing costs for Italy and Spain rose from levels that already were considered dangerously high. Europe lacks the resources to bail out those countries, its third- and fourth-biggest economies.
In the U.S., the government released a mixed batch of economic reports. Slightly more people applied for unemployment benefits last week, a sign that layoffs continue.
Consumer spending was sluggish but incomes rose a bit more than expected. Orders for long-lasting manufactured products fell for a second month and business investment dropped off.
The Dow fell 2.1 percent to close at 11,257.55. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 2.2 percent to 1,161.79. The Nasdaq fell 2.4 percent to 2,460.08.
U.S. markets will be closed on Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday and will have shortened hours on Friday.
Benchmark crude for January delivery was up 4 cents at $96.21 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.84 to settle at $96.17 in New York on Wednesday.
In currency trading, the euro rose to $1.3379 from $1.3326 late Wednesday in New York. The dollar dropped to 77.07 yen from 77.35 yen.
When we first saw the Asus Zenbook UX31-RSL8 ($1,049 list at Best Buy), we knew it would take a top spot in the new laptop ultrabook category, thanks to its well-crafted all-metal construction, superb Bang & Olufsen audio, and a keyboard that rivals the trend-setting Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (Thunderbolt) ($1,299.99 direct, 4 stars) for comfort. And testing in our Labs showed that it provides more than six hours of battery life, as well as more features and better all-around performance than any other slim-bodied laptop we've reviewed. It's our Editors' Choice for ultrabooks, but it should be noted that later versions of this SKU at Best Buy will have the lower-clocked 1.6GHz Intel Core i5-2467M processor, rather than its current 1.7GHz Core i5-2557M.
Design
The Zenbook UX31-RSL8 measures 0.66 by 12.79 by 8.78 inches (HWD), and is roughly the same size as the Apple MacBook Air and Acer Aspire S3 ($899.99 direct, 3.5 stars). The UX31-RSL8's chassis has a spun finish, with tight concentric circles radiating out from the logo etched into its aluminum lid. Asus has emulated Apple's "unibody" construction with an all-metal "monoshell" chassis. But in contrast Apple's seamless single-piece construction, Asus has sandwiched together the palm rest and the underside of the chassis and bolted the two together. The palm rest has an attractive vertical brushed pattern. There was no perceptible flexing in the screen or chassis, and holds up to a firm palm press on the lid.
Compared with the plastic construction of the Acer Aspire S3, the Zenbook UX31-RSL8 feels sturdier and much more substantial, even though it tapers down to 0.11 inch thick at its thinnest point and 0.66 inches at its thickest. The UX31-RSL8 weighs 2.86 pounds, lighter than the MacBook Air (2.9 pounds), Acer Aspire S3 (2.94 pounds), and Samsung Series 9 (NP900X3A) ($1,599 street, 4 stars) (2.9 pounds).
The Zenbook UX31-RSL8 has a 13.3-inch widescreen that displays in 1,600-by-900 resolution?higher than the 1,366-by-768 display on the Acer S3 and 1,440-by-900 one on the MacBook Air. At 450 nits, it's brighter than the display on the Samsung Series 9 and matches the bright backlit screen of the Acer Aspire S3. The Zenbook UX31-RSL8 also has wider viewing angles than the Acer S3, making it better suited to sharing the screen with another person. The audio on the UX31-RSL8 is also impressive, powered by Bang & Olufsen's ICEpower. The resulting sound on the Zenbook is crystal clear and consistent at high volumes?and you can get a surprising amount of volume out of this little laptop. While you can fill a room with sound, you won't be rumbling with bass. For movies and music, you'll definitely want to add a subwoofer to the mix.
The Zenbook UX31-RSL8 has a chiclet-style keyboard that shares the square tile layout of the MacBook Air 13-inch, but adds a new luxurious element with metal keys. While the keys have the same low height and shallow keystrokes as the MacBook Air, the backlight is sadly absent. The glass-topped touchpad is smooth and expansive, measuring five inches diagonally. The broad touch surface supports multitouch gestures, and though it has distinct right and left mouse buttons, it also features a clickpad. The bottom right and left corners?which serve as nearly silent mouse buttons?click more easily than the clickpad surface, making the use of the clickpad optional for those who want the more familiar experience of a standard trackpad.
Features
The thin-sliced proportions of an ultrabook are achieved, in part, by jettisoning many of the features you would find in a standard mainstream laptop, like the optical drive. Despite the limited space available, Asus has managed to include a few features you won't find on the Acer S3. On the left hand side of the Zenbook UX31-RSL8, you'll find a USB 2.0 port, a combined headphone and microphone jack, and a built-in card reader (SD/MMC). On the right, there's a USB 3.0 port, a mini VGA connection, and a microHDMI port. Neither the MacBook Air or the Acer Aspire S3 offer USB 3.0, and the microHDMI output can be used on a much broader array of monitors and HDTVs than Apple's Thunderbolt port, though it may require an adapter.
In addition to these on-board ports, Asus includes two additional adapters with the Zenbook?a mini VGA-to-VGA adapter (allowing greater use with monitors and projectors), and a USB-to-Ethernet adapter (allowing a wired LAN connection). The Samsung Series 9 also requires (and included) an Ethernet adapter. Integrated 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 technologies are onboard the UX31-RSL8. Asus bundles a protective laptop sleeve, an attractive fabric and faux-leather envelope with a soft padded lining, and a small matching case for the dongles themselves.
Asus has made a point of keeping your information secure with several Asus branded tools, including Asus Secure Delete and Asus Face Logon, which combines facial recognition and a built-in webcam to make logging onto the Zenbook UX31-RSL8 as easy as looking at the screen. Automatic data backup and recovery kicks in whenever the battery level dips below five percent, ensuring that even when left in standby mode for several weeks, your work won't be lost. A 60-day trail of Trend Micro Titanium Internet Security also provides protection, though only for a limited time.
The UX31-RSL8 is equipped with a 128GB solid-state drive (SSD), and access to Asus's Web Storage which lets you offload storage to the cloud. Asus provides 2GB of free storage space for a year, and unlimited space can be bought for a modest subscription fee?ranging from $8.99 for a three-month subscription to $54.99 for two years. Though the SSD doesn't offer the 320GB offered by the Acer Aspire S3's spinning hard drive?or the lower cost?it does have the benefit of being more durable than traditional spinning drives, and allows practically instant boot-up and resume times. Our own testing confirmed Asus' claims of 15-second cold start and 2-second resume from sleep.
There are a few preinstalled programs. In addition to the aforementioned security software trial for Trend Micro, there's also Microsoft Office Starter 2010, a Bing toolbar, and Nuance PDF reader. There are also several Asus-branded utilities, including Asus Tools, and Asus Vibe 2.0, which includes a multimedia library and games. On the desktop are utilities for toggling Instant-On on and off, and PowerWiz, which gauges your current power usage and provides a running estimate of remaining battery life. Asus covers the Zenbook UX31-RSL8 with a one-year warranty, which includes accident protection, and a second one-year warranty covering the battery.
Best Buy offers an extended warranty program, which gives customers an extra year of protection beyond the one-year warranty of most system manufacturers. There are two plans in this extended warranty program. The standard plan ($119.99) covers the system against normal wear and tear, power surge damage, and includes a "No Lemon" guarantee in which Best Buy will simply replace the computer if it requires more than four repairs during the coverage period. Best Buy's advanced plan ($219.99) offers all this, and also covers the system against accidental damage from drops and spills. Other special offers can be found online or in stores, like discounts on printers, software, and tech support plans which are available with any new PC purchased through Best Buy.
Performance
Perhaps the most gratifying aspect of the Zenbook UX31-RSL8 is its performance. Asus equipped the UX31-RSL8 with a 1.7GHz Intel Core i5-2557M dual-core ultra low voltage processor and 4GB of RAM, the same components found in the MacBook Air 13-inch. It's also a step up from the processor used in the Acer S3 and the upcoming Lenovo IdeaPad U300 ($1,199, stay tuned for our review), which uses the same Core i5-2467M processor found in the smaller Apple MacBook Air 11-inch (Thunderbolt) ($1,199 direct, 3.5 stars). Despite the similar hardware, the UX31-RSL8 outperformed the 13-inch MacBook in PCMark 7 (3,531 points) and Cinebench R11.5 (2.2 points)?the 13-inch MacBook Air scored 3,186 points and 2.17 points, respectively. It also produced the best performance in multimedia tasks, with leading scores in both Handbrake (2:08) and Photoshop CS5 (4:36). This performance pulled ahead the MacBook Air (2:09 in Handbrake; 4:55 in CS5), Acer Aspire (2:36 in Handbrake; 5:37 in CS5), and Samsung Series 9 (4:45 in Handbrake; 5:53 in CS5).
Though it outperformed the MacBook Air in processor performance, the MacBook Air produced better graphics scores using the same integrated Intel graphics chipset. In 3DMark 06 the Zenbook UX31-RSL8 scored 4,619 points at medium detail settings and 1,024-by-768 resolution. With these same settings the MacBook Air scored 4,781 points. The Acer S3 fell behind with 3,530 points. In our Crysis and Lost Planet 2 gaming benchmark tests, the Zenbook UX31-RSL8 (18.4 frames per second in Crysis; 17.1fps in Lost Planet 2) and MacBook Air were close (18.8 fps in Crysis; 21.2 frames per second in Lost planet 2), but the Acer S3 only scored 16.3fps in Crysis and couldn't run Lost Planet 2.
One of the defining characteristics of the ultrabook category is long battery life. Though Asus has claimed the 50Wh battery in the UX31-RSL8 will provide up to eight hours of continuous use, it lasted only 6 hours 9 minutes in MobileMark 2007. However, this test was performed with all battery-extending features turned off, making it possible to eke out more time with power-saving measures in place. So far, the only comparable laptop to break the six-hour mark is the Samsung Series 9 (6:04, capacity not specified) and Toshiba Portege Z835-P330 ($799.99 list, 3.5) (7:35, 47Wh battery), while the Apple MacBook Air lasted 5:46 (with a 50Wh battery) and Acer Aspire S3 lasted 5:20 with a smaller capacity 36Wh battery. Asus also claims that the Zenbook has up to 14 days of standby time, which is considerably shorter than the 30 days claimed by the MacBook Air or 50 days claimed by the Acer Aspire S3. We couldn't test this standby estimate overnight, but you should still feel confident leaving the UX31-RSL8 in standby mode for days at a time.
The Asus Zenbook UX31-RSL8 tops the spiritual progenitors of the ultrabook category, the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch and the Samsung Series 9. While it may not be as affordable as the Acer Aspire S3 or the Prot?g? Z835-P330, it more than makes up for it in superior construction, a fuller feature set, and stronger performance. With models on the horizon, it may face some stiff competition soon, but for the time being, the Zenbook UX31-RSL8 is our Editors' Choice and the ultrabook to beat.
BENCHMARK TEST RESULTS:
COMPARISON TABLE Compare the Asus Zenbook UX31-RSL8 with several other laptops side by side.
More laptop reviews: ??? Asus Zenbook UX31-RSL8 ??? HP ProBook 4430s ??? HP Pavilion dv7-6b55dx ??? Sony VAIO VPC-F237FX/B ??? Samsung Series 9 (NP900X3A-B01UB) ?? more
Verizon is gearing up for the holidays and come Nov. 24, they have some great deals lined up for customers. Kicking things off, they've now gone ahead and announced the Droid Incredible 2's new red color option and sale prices for a slew of other devices, mind the dates though as they are specific:
Droid Incredible 2 (Red) - Available online on Nov. 24, 25 and 28 and in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores nationwide for free after a $50 mail-in rebate only on Friday, Nov. 25.
LG Revolution - Will be available for $49.99 with a new two-year customer agreement online on Nov. 24, 25 and 28. The Revolution by LG will be in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores nationwide at holiday pricing after a $50 mail-in rebate only on Friday, Nov. 25.
Pantech Breakout - Will be available for $49.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and new two-year customer agreement between Nov. 24 and Nov. 28.
Motorola Xoom - Available online on Nov. 24, 25 and 28, the Motorola XOOM will be available at special holiday pricing of $199.99 with a new two-year customer agreement on a Mobile Broadband plan beginning at $30 monthly access for 2 GB of data. The Motorola XOOM will be in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores nationwide at the promotional pricing only on Friday, Nov. 25.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 7-inch - Will be available for $149.99 after $50 mail-in rebate and new two-year customer agreement between Nov. 24 and Nov. 28.
Then there is also the Sony Xperia Play that is being given away for free from Nov. 24 through Nov 28. No matter how you look at it, it's quite a bit of savings happenings if you're in the market for a new Verizon device. Plus, you can get even more savings by checking into Foursquare and Facebook. Full press release is past the break for you all, in case you need more info.
CANBERRA, Australia ? Tobacco giant Philip Morris launched legal action against Australia's government on Monday less than an hour after Parliament passed legislation banning all logos from cigarette packages.
Health and aging minister Nicola Roxon called the new law "an example for the world to follow."
The legislation, which takes effect in December 2012, bans the use of logos and brand imagery on cigarette packages, instead requiring that brand names be printed in a small, uniform font on dull olive green packets ? a color the government believes consumers will hate.
Cigarette packs will also include larger health warnings with graphic pictures of the negative health effects of smoking.
Tobacco companies have fought the legislation and threatened legal action since the government first announced its plan last year.
Philip Morris Asia, which is based in Hong Kong, quickly served a legal notice of arbitration under an investment treaty that Hong Kong has with Australia. The company said it also intends to pursue claims under Australian law.
It says that billions of dollars of valuable trademarks and investments in Australia are at stake.
"We are left with no option," Anne Edwards, a spokeswoman for Philip Morris Asia, said in a statement. "The government has passed this legislation despite being unable to demonstrate that it will be effective at reducing smoking and has ignored the widespread concerns raised in Australia and internationally regarding the serious legal issues associated with plain packaging."
Health minister Roxon called passage of the law a momentous event in Australian public health history.
"Plain packaging means that the glamour is gone from smoking and cigarettes are now exposed for what they are: killer products that destroy thousands of Australian families," Roxon said.
She said packaging is one of the last powerful marketing tools available to tobacco companies.
"Let there be no mistake, big tobacco is fighting against the government for one very simple reason ? because it knows, as we do, that plain packaging will work," Roxon said.
Tobacco advertising on billboards and in magazines has long been banned and restrictions on smoking in public places, including restaurants and bars, are common.
Smoking rates have been declining in Australia for years, but the government says cigarettes still kill 15,000 Australians a year and cost the country about $31.5 billion annually.
The government is required under the constitution to pay compensation to anyone from whom it takes or devalues property, including intellectual property such as trademarks. But opinions are divided on what the implications of those rules, and international trade laws, are in the case of cigarette packages.
Australia is following the lead of other countries. Uruguay's government requires that 80 percent of the front and back of all cigarettes packages be devoted to warnings. In Brazil, labels feature graphic images of dead fetuses, hemorrhaging brains and gangrened feet.
In the United States, a judge recently blocked a federal requirement that cigarette packs feature graphic warning images starting next year, saying it should be delayed until a lawsuit brought by tobacco companies is resolved.
NEW YORK ? An "al-Qaida sympathizer" accused of plotting to bomb police and post offices in New York City as well as U.S. troops returning home has been arrested on numerous terrorism-related charges.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced at a news conference Sunday the arrest of Jose Pimentel of Manhattan, "a 27-year-old al-Qaida sympathizer" who the mayor said was motivated by terrorist propaganda and resentment of U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said police had to move quickly to arrest Pimentel on Saturday because he was ready to carry out his plan.
"We had to act quickly yesterday because he was in fact putting this bomb together. He was drilling holes and it would have been not appropriate for us to let him walk out the door with that bomb," Kelly said.
The police commissioner said Pimentel was energized and motivated to carry out his plan by the Sept. 30 killing of al-Qaida's U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki.
"He decided to build the bomb August of this year, but clearly he jacked up his speed after the elimination of al-Awlaki," Kelly said.
Ten years after 9/11, New York remains a prime terrorism target. Bloomberg said at least 13 terrorist plots have targeted the city since the Sept. 11 attacks. No attack has been successful. Pakistani immigrant Faisal Shahzad is serving a life sentence for trying to detonate a car bomb in Times Square in May 2010.
Pimentel, a U.S. citizen originally from the Dominican Republic, Pimentel was "plotting to bomb police patrol cars and also postal facilities as well as targeted members of our armed services returning from abroad," Bloomberg said Sunday.
He was under surveillance by New York police for at least a year who were working with a confidential informant and was in the process of building a bomb; no injury to anyone or damage to property is alleged, Kelly said. In addition, authorities have no evidence that Pimentel was working with anyone else, the mayor said.
"He appears to be a total lone wolf," the mayor said. "He was not part of a larger conspiracy emanating from abroad."
At Pimentel's arraignment later, his lawyer Joseph Zablocki said his behavior leading up to the arrest was not that of a conspirator trying to conceal some violent scheme. Zablocki said Pimentel was public about his activities and was not trying to hide anything.
"I don't believe that this case is nearly as strong as the people believe," Zablocki said. "He (Pimentel) has this very public online profile ... This is not the way you go about committing a terrorist attack."
Pimentel, also known as Muhammad Yusuf, was denied bail and remained in police custody. The bearded, bespectacled man wore a black T-shirt and black drawstring pants and smiled at times during the proceeding.
Pimentel is accused of having an explosive device Saturday when he was arrested that he planned to use against others and property to terrorize the public. The charges accuse him of conspiracy going back at least to October 2010, and include first-degree criminal possession of a weapon as a crime of terrorism, and soliciting support for a terrorist act.
Bloomberg said at the news conference that Pimentel represents the type of threat FBI Director Robert Mueller has warned about as U.S. forces erode the ability of terrorists to carry out large scale attacks.
"This is just another example of New York City because we are an iconic city ... this is a city that people would want to take away our freedoms gravitate to and focus on," Bloomberg said.
Kelly said a confidential informant had numerous conversations with Pimentel on Sept. 7 in which he expressed interest in building small bombs and targeting banks, government and police buildings.
Pimentel also posted on his website trueislam1.com and on blogs his support of al-Qaida and belief in jihad, and promoted an online magazine article that described in detail how to make a bomb, Kelly said.
Among his Internet postings, the commissioner said, was an article that states: "People have to understand that America and its allies are all legitimate targets in warfare."
The New York Police Department's Intelligence Division was involved in the arrest. Kelly said Pimentel spent most of his years in Manhattan and lived about five years in Schenectady. He said police in the Albany area tipped New York City police off to Pimentel's activities.
Asked why federal authorities were not involved in the case, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. said there was communication with them but his office felt that given the timeline "it was appropriate to proceed under state charges."
About 1,000 of the city's roughly 35,000 officers are assigned each day to counterterrorism operations. The NYPD also sends officers overseas to report on how other cities deal with terrorism. Through federal grants and city funding, the NYPD has spent millions of dollars on technology to outfit the department with the latest tools ? from portable radiation detectors to the network of hundreds of cameras that can track suspicious activity.
___
Associated Press writers Jennifer Peltz and Colleen Long contributed to this report from New York. AP writer Samantha Gross contributed to this report.
Insight on why investors should be paying attention to the premium investor, with Clifford Davis, BNP Paribas head of institutional equity derivatives sales.
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Olympic Villages: Catalyst for urban renewal, or post-Games hangover?Public release date: 22-Nov-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Jane Hurly jane.hurly@ualberta.ca 780-492-6821 University of Alberta - Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation
Grandiose development dreams fall prey to economic dynamics, lack of democratic process
The Olympic Games are big business and generate substantial amounts of revenue for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) through lucrative television contracts and corporate sponsorship. The Games are now also widely perceived as important promotional opportunities for cities seeking to reinforce their claims as 'world class' destinations for tourists and capital in the global economy.
Related to these latter goals, beginning with the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, the Games have also been envisioned by civic elites as opportunities to develop under-utilized land through the construction of extensive Olympic Villages that can, in turn, be sold as luxury condominiums. Cities hope that once the Games are over, they'll benefit from upscale housing developments in prime areas that will attract buyers and pour millions back into city coffers.
Vancouver's aspirations were no different in 2010: to promote itself as a large, world-class, cosmopolitan gateway to the Pacific Rim and to accomplish an ambitious redevelopment of the Southeast Shore of False Creek (the North Shore was redeveloped when Vancouver hosted Expo 1986), but which had become an under-valued, derelict wasteland. "The plan was to build condominiums that would start as athlete housing and end up as a draw for global investors and tourists, in addition to the city's business and professional classes," says sociologist Jay Scherer, whose paper examining Olympic villages and large-scale urban development as deficits of democracy has just been published.
But it was a flawed process that ultimately left taxpayers responsible for the entire construction cost of the 2010 Winter Olympic Village a cost still not recouped almost two years later. To Scherer, the absence of transparency, democratic debate, open consultation with the community and many decisions made in camera about the Olympic Village were at the heart of the debacle.
Troubles began, according to Scherer, "when the City of Vancouver picked a developer who didn't have the resources and capital funding to complete this type of development in poor economic conditions. When the recession hit in 2008 and the credit crunch happened, the developer couldn't get the credit needed to build the village.."
While Vancouver city council had banked on a rising real estate market and a booming economy when they began their Olympic journey, plans unraveled in 2008 with the market crash. With the US hedge fund that had backed the developer demanding a payment guarantee of $190 million on its $750 million loan, city officials, anxious to meet their promise to VANOC to complete the village by late 2009, provided the hedge fund with a completion guarantee so that Vancouver would be obliged to complete the Olympic Village should the developer fail to do so, thereby putting the citizens of Vancouver at risk of the full cost of the development.
A furious public rebelled, ousting its mayor mainly because of one thing: transparency.
"The biggest problem," says Scherer, "is that all of the major decisions took place behind closed doors. In terms of democratic input from citizens over how their tax dollars were being spent, city officials, the developer and others argued that because of the repercussions for the private sector, they couldn't discuss it publically.
It's an argument that's become all too common in cities around the world entering into a public partnership with a private sector company, and expected that those discussions take place behind closed doors."
As the Olympic village costs mounted, some of the grandiose ideas for a green, state-of-the art, housing development (not a requirement of the IOC) had to be shelved. One of the dreams axed was to provide housing for low-income families. "When cities pursue these ventures, there has to some sort of community benefit to build on some non-market housing," says Scherer. "But when budgets are tight, those are the first things to be cut. This is what happened in Vancouver."
By comparison, notes Scherer, while Sydney, Australia entered into a similar public/private partnership to develop and build its Olympic village as a large-scale urban development, it was the luck of a buoyant economy that meant they weren't trapped in the same position as Vancouver. Yet London, which hosts the 2012 Olympic Games, bailed out the developer of its Olympic village to the tune of 326 million this year once again a decision made by government behind closed doors with no public consultation and in an economic downturn.
Going forward, Scherer says, whether it's Edmonton building a new, world-class arena or a city taking on the Olympic Games, "Cities need to be aware of taxpayers taking on a disproportionate share of the risk and the importance of democratic transparency between elected officials and the private sector with these types of projects, and to consider the public good so that the economic benefits are not only for enjoyment of some, while alienating or excluding others."
###
Dr. Scherer's paper "Olympic Villages and Large-scale Urban Development: Crises of Capitalism, Deficits of Democracy" was published in Sociology.
Contact information for Dr. Scherer:
phone 780-492-9146
jay.scherer@ualberta.ca
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Olympic Villages: Catalyst for urban renewal, or post-Games hangover?Public release date: 22-Nov-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Jane Hurly jane.hurly@ualberta.ca 780-492-6821 University of Alberta - Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation
Grandiose development dreams fall prey to economic dynamics, lack of democratic process
The Olympic Games are big business and generate substantial amounts of revenue for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) through lucrative television contracts and corporate sponsorship. The Games are now also widely perceived as important promotional opportunities for cities seeking to reinforce their claims as 'world class' destinations for tourists and capital in the global economy.
Related to these latter goals, beginning with the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, the Games have also been envisioned by civic elites as opportunities to develop under-utilized land through the construction of extensive Olympic Villages that can, in turn, be sold as luxury condominiums. Cities hope that once the Games are over, they'll benefit from upscale housing developments in prime areas that will attract buyers and pour millions back into city coffers.
Vancouver's aspirations were no different in 2010: to promote itself as a large, world-class, cosmopolitan gateway to the Pacific Rim and to accomplish an ambitious redevelopment of the Southeast Shore of False Creek (the North Shore was redeveloped when Vancouver hosted Expo 1986), but which had become an under-valued, derelict wasteland. "The plan was to build condominiums that would start as athlete housing and end up as a draw for global investors and tourists, in addition to the city's business and professional classes," says sociologist Jay Scherer, whose paper examining Olympic villages and large-scale urban development as deficits of democracy has just been published.
But it was a flawed process that ultimately left taxpayers responsible for the entire construction cost of the 2010 Winter Olympic Village a cost still not recouped almost two years later. To Scherer, the absence of transparency, democratic debate, open consultation with the community and many decisions made in camera about the Olympic Village were at the heart of the debacle.
Troubles began, according to Scherer, "when the City of Vancouver picked a developer who didn't have the resources and capital funding to complete this type of development in poor economic conditions. When the recession hit in 2008 and the credit crunch happened, the developer couldn't get the credit needed to build the village.."
While Vancouver city council had banked on a rising real estate market and a booming economy when they began their Olympic journey, plans unraveled in 2008 with the market crash. With the US hedge fund that had backed the developer demanding a payment guarantee of $190 million on its $750 million loan, city officials, anxious to meet their promise to VANOC to complete the village by late 2009, provided the hedge fund with a completion guarantee so that Vancouver would be obliged to complete the Olympic Village should the developer fail to do so, thereby putting the citizens of Vancouver at risk of the full cost of the development.
A furious public rebelled, ousting its mayor mainly because of one thing: transparency.
"The biggest problem," says Scherer, "is that all of the major decisions took place behind closed doors. In terms of democratic input from citizens over how their tax dollars were being spent, city officials, the developer and others argued that because of the repercussions for the private sector, they couldn't discuss it publically.
It's an argument that's become all too common in cities around the world entering into a public partnership with a private sector company, and expected that those discussions take place behind closed doors."
As the Olympic village costs mounted, some of the grandiose ideas for a green, state-of-the art, housing development (not a requirement of the IOC) had to be shelved. One of the dreams axed was to provide housing for low-income families. "When cities pursue these ventures, there has to some sort of community benefit to build on some non-market housing," says Scherer. "But when budgets are tight, those are the first things to be cut. This is what happened in Vancouver."
By comparison, notes Scherer, while Sydney, Australia entered into a similar public/private partnership to develop and build its Olympic village as a large-scale urban development, it was the luck of a buoyant economy that meant they weren't trapped in the same position as Vancouver. Yet London, which hosts the 2012 Olympic Games, bailed out the developer of its Olympic village to the tune of 326 million this year once again a decision made by government behind closed doors with no public consultation and in an economic downturn.
Going forward, Scherer says, whether it's Edmonton building a new, world-class arena or a city taking on the Olympic Games, "Cities need to be aware of taxpayers taking on a disproportionate share of the risk and the importance of democratic transparency between elected officials and the private sector with these types of projects, and to consider the public good so that the economic benefits are not only for enjoyment of some, while alienating or excluding others."
###
Dr. Scherer's paper "Olympic Villages and Large-scale Urban Development: Crises of Capitalism, Deficits of Democracy" was published in Sociology.
Contact information for Dr. Scherer:
phone 780-492-9146
jay.scherer@ualberta.ca
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
With the digital switch-over finished (with a subsequent massive drop in demand for televisions, but that?s another story), this survey from goo Research, reported on by japan.internet.com, into terrestrial digital television had a look at how people were finding it.
Perhaps the most gratifying aspect of the Zenbook UX31-RSL8 is its performance. Asus equipped the UX31-RSL8 with a 1.7GHz Intel Core i5-2557M dual-core ultra low voltage processor and 4GB of RAM, the same components found in the MacBook Air 13-inch. It's also a step up from the processor used in the Acer S3 and the upcoming Lenovo IdeaPad U300 ($1,199, stay tuned for our review), which uses the same Core i5-2467M processor found in the smaller Apple MacBook Air 11-inch (Thunderbolt) ($1,199 direct, 3.5 stars). Despite the similar hardware, the UX31-RSL8 outperformed the 13-inch MacBook in PCMark 7 (3,531 points) and Cinebench R11.5 (2.2 points)?the 13-inch MacBook Air scored 3,186 points and 2.17 points, respectively. It also produced the best performance in multimedia tasks, with leading scores in both Handbrake (2:08) and Photoshop CS5 (4:36). This performance pulled ahead the MacBook Air (2:09 in Handbrake; 4:55 in CS5), Acer Aspire (2:36 in Handbrake; 5:37 in CS5), and Samsung Series 9 (4:45 in Handbrake; 5:53 in CS5).
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Public release date: 22-Nov-2011
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