All Critics (57) | Top Critics (23) | Fresh (52) | Rotten (5)
'Gimme the Loot' is ... meandering and a little shallow. And even at 79 minutes it feels a little too long for what's essentially the film equivalent of a short story.
A thousand-watt jolt of mischief, a spunky, funky, ebullient indie that packs its 81 minutes with cinematic exhilaration.
It may be a slight movie, but it has its sunny charms.
A movie about teenage taggers in the Bronx should be fast and raw, scruffy and loose, and Adam Leon's Gimme the Loot is just that.
As it lopes along, the movie offers a warm but very sharp portrait of New York's have-nots and their uneasy relationship with the haves.
"Gimme the Loot" shouldn't be as appealing and exuberant as it is, it really shouldn't.
First-time feature director Adam Leon's shots are precise and full of detail.
The film's strong suit is its use of locations.
The film is episodic and determinedly offbeat, funny at its best, boring at its worst.
Shot on the streets of New York in a loose, freeform style, this lively comedy-drama feels somewhat underdeveloped, leaving us doubtful about its realism.
It's a great deal of fun, emotionally touching, and even surprisingly old-fashioned.
Some of the movie doesn't exactly convince, and some of the scenes have an actors-improv feel to them, but there's always plenty of humour and energy.
Endlessly entertaining, refreshingly light-hearted and bursting with summer soul, Gimme The Loot joins the pantheon of great New York movies.
It's a shaggy dog story with a certain amount of charm but not nearly enough drama.
The movie is unpolished, and it matters not a jot, because Leon has written super roles for these kids and invests their relationship with such sly feeling.
Hickson walks the line between bravado and vulnerability, while Washington has a charisma, spark and beauty that should ensure this won't be the last we see of her.
Bolstered by a low-key but assured aesthetic and a soundtrack of vintage soul and doo-wop, the film is infectiously enjoyable, with frequently amusing insights and an affable shagginess.
Out of nowhere, Adam Leon might just have delivered the first great New York film of the decade.
Charming and engaging low-budget indie with a witty script, likeable characters, a strong sense of time and place and a pair of terrific performances from its two young leads.
Funny and freewheeling, it's a joy.
A slim, low-budget coming-of-age tale whose richness lies entirely in its interstices. A keenly observed work that celebrates the unfettered joys of youth, and rewards by reminding of the power of a simple tale told well.
Simultaneously real and hopeful, "Loot" has almost no plot, but when the setting is so fresh and the characters feel so raw and alive, who needs one?
Ghetto laughs with a sophisticated point of view.
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - A unit of Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc said it has agreed to pay $54.5 million to settle some of the thousands of lawsuits in North America that it is facing over injury claims stemming from the use of transvaginal surgical mesh products.
Endo unitAmerican Medical Systems Inc announced the settlement in a regulatory filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday. The company did not disclose how many cases would be resolved by the agreement, in which the company did not admit any liability or fault.
AMS estimated its potential liability as of March 31 from all current and future vaginal mesh cases to be at least $160 million, according to another SEC filing. Settlement details were not disclosed.
AMS is one of several companies facing thousands of lawsuits over transvaginal mesh devices in U.S. state and federal courts, as well as Canada. The devices are designed to treat pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence.
Market data submitted to the FDA showed that in 2010, approximately 300,000 women underwent surgery for pelvic organ prolapse, and roughly one in three of those used mesh. That same year, about 260,000 women underwent surgery for stress urinary incontinence, 80 percent of which involved transvaginal mesh.
Plaintiffs in the lawsuits have alleged a variety of injuries stemming from the devices, including chronic pain and incontinence.
In 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration notified transvaginal mesh manufacturers about reports of potential complications stemming from the devices. In 2012, the agency ordered AMS and other transvaginal device makers to conduct post-market safety studies and monitor the rate at which adverse events were reported.
AMS said it has been hit with thousands of lawsuits since 2008 and expects the number to climb, according to a regulatory filing from May. As of April 26, there were approximately 7,700 mesh cases pending against AMS, Endo and certain subsidiaries, an SEC filing said.
A spokesman for Endo did not immediately return a request for comment Friday.
Shares in Endo were down .32 percent or 12 cents to $37.38 in late afternoon trade.
(Reporting by Jessica Dye; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Leslie Gevirtz)
Although sequestration has grounded some military aviation performances, air show fans have plenty to look forward to in 2013, including helos, hot-air balloons, vintage military planes, and more.
By Kiona Smith-Strickland
", credit: "", sourceid: null, sourcename: "", sourceurl: null, sourcelogo: "", thumbsrc: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/Vr/summer-air-shows-01-0613-smn.jpg", src: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/yJ/summer-air-shows-01-0613-lgn.jpg", srcwidth: 600, srcheight: 450 }, { id: "slide2", url: "the-9-air-shows-you-should-see-this-summer-2", slidetype: "image", title: "Battle Creek Field of Flight Air Show and Balloon Festival", description: "Where: Battle Creek, Mich. \nWhen: July 3 to July 7\n
\nWatch the nearly simultaneous launch of 20 hot-air balloons, see a real-life aerobatic show by Dusty from Disney?s movie (Planes) (played by a specially painted Air Tractor agricultural plane), and watch the Aerostars perform team aerobatics in Cold War?era Russian Yak-52 TW trainers. On July 5, enjoy a pyrotechnic night air show and witness the balloons lighting their burners at sunset.", credit: "Battle Creek CVB/Flickr", sourceid: null, sourcename: "", sourceurl: null, sourcelogo: "", thumbsrc: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/g1/summer-air-shows-02-0613-smn.jpg", src: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/rd/summer-air-shows-02-0613-lgn.jpg", srcwidth: 600, srcheight: 450 }, { id: "slide3", url: "the-9-air-shows-you-should-see-this-summer-3", slidetype: "image", title: "Tacoma Freedom Fair Air Show", description: "Where: Tacoma, Wash. \nWhen: July 4 to 6\n
\nThis two-hour show on Independence Day features vintage military aircraft such the T-33 Shooting Star trainer, the F-86 fighter, and the A-26C Invader light bomber, as well as fantastic civilian aerobatics. On July 6, check out Wings & Wheels, where biplane and helicopter rides share Tacoma Narrows Airport with a car and motorcycle show.", credit: "Ken Jarvis/Flickr", sourceid: null, sourcename: "", sourceurl: null, sourcelogo: "", thumbsrc: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/JL/summer-air-shows-03-0613-smn.jpg", src: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/Lt/summer-air-shows-03-0613-lgn.jpg", srcwidth: 600, srcheight: 450 }, { id: "slide4", url: "the-9-air-shows-you-should-see-this-summer-4", slidetype: "image", title: "Fair Saint Louis Air Show", description: "Where: Saint Louis, Mo. \nWhen: July 4 to July 6\n
\nTour a B-17 Flying Fortress, or take a B-17 ride (for a fee). Check out the nonprofit Commemorative Air Force?s Red Tail Squadron P-51C Mustang World War II fighter. Watch the Red Bull Helicopter perform loops and rolls, enjoy team aerobatic performances by Aeroshell in AT-6 trainers, and don?t miss the Liberty Jump Team?s skydiving show.", credit: "Mark Schierbecker/Flickr", sourceid: null, sourcename: "", sourceurl: null, sourcelogo: "", thumbsrc: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/Vh/summer-air-shows-04-0613-smn.jpg", src: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/Er/summer-air-shows-04-0613-lgn.jpg", srcwidth: 600, srcheight: 450 }, { id: "slide5", url: "the-9-air-shows-you-should-see-this-summer-5", slidetype: "image", title: "Oregon International Air Show", description: "Where: Hillsboro, Ore. \nWhen: July 26 to July 28\n
\nThe Patriots, one of the country?s two civilian jet demonstration teams, will perform formation aerobatics in their L-39 Albatros jets. See vintage military aircraft, including the MiG-17F and MiG-21UM fighters and the A-26 Invader in the air, and then see them up close on the ground. The show also features the Red Bull Skydiving Team and a lineup of exciting aerobatic performances.", credit: "Ryan Harvey/Flickr", sourceid: null, sourcename: "", sourceurl: null, sourcelogo: "", thumbsrc: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/E9/summer-air-shows-05-0613-smn.jpg", src: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/xs/summer-air-shows-05-0613-lgn.jpg", srcwidth: 600, srcheight: 450 }, { id: "slide6", url: "the-9-air-shows-you-should-see-this-summer-6", slidetype: "image", title: "Experimental Aircraft Association AirVenture", description: "Where: Oshkosh, Wis. \nWhen: July 29 to August 4\n
\nBilled as the ?World?s Greatest Aviation Celebration,? AirVenture will host 10,000 aircraft from about 60 countries, from World War II warbirds to cutting-edge experimental planes. This year?s lineup includes the only privately owned BAE Sea Harrier F/A2 vertical takeoff and landing fighter. Don?t miss the aerial Pear Harbor re-enactment Tora! Tora! Tora! performed by the Commemorative Air Force and developed in consultation with veterans from both sides of the battle. After witnessing aviation history, check out exhibits demonstrating the latest aircraft innovations and the future of flight.", credit: "Armchair Aviator/Flickr", sourceid: null, sourcename: "", sourceurl: null, sourcelogo: "", thumbsrc: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/OG/summer-air-shows-06-0613-smn.jpg", src: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/5v/summer-air-shows-06-0613-lgn.jpg", srcwidth: 600, srcheight: 450 }, { id: "slide7", url: "the-9-air-shows-you-should-see-this-summer-7", slidetype: "image", title: "Rocky Mountain Airshow", description: "Where: Broomfield, Colo. \nWhen: Aug. 16 to Aug. 18\n
\nLarge sport rocket launches have never been allowed at public events before, but the Federal Aviation Administration is field-testing proposed guidelines for public launches at this year?s Rocky Mountain Airshow, featuring the Stars and Stripes Rocket. You can watch hot-air balloons lift off in the Rocky Mountain BalloonFest. See flyovers by vintage aircraft, including the only flying B-29 left?the Commemorative Air Force?s FiFi?along with thrilling aerobatic acts and wing-walking.", credit: "nelsocs/Flickr", sourceid: null, sourcename: "", sourceurl: null, sourcelogo: "", thumbsrc: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/QT/summer-air-shows-07-0613-smn.jpg", src: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/Uf/summer-air-shows-07-0613-lgn.jpg", srcwidth: 600, srcheight: 450 }, { id: "slide8", url: "the-9-air-shows-you-should-see-this-summer-8", slidetype: "image", title: "Memphis Airshow", description: "Where: Memphis, Tenn. \nWhen: Sept. 28 and Sept. 29\n
\nThe Royal Canadian Air Force?s Snowbirds will perform formation jet aerobatics at Millington Regional Jetport in their CT-114 Tutor jet trainers. After dark, seven surprise acts will perform a pyrotechnic night air show followed by fireworks.", credit: "ceasol/Flickr", sourceid: null, sourcename: "", sourceurl: null, sourcelogo: "", thumbsrc: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/88/summer-air-shows-08-0613-smn.jpg", src: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/4q/summer-air-shows-08-0613-lgn.jpg", srcwidth: 600, srcheight: 450 }, { id: "slide9", url: "the-9-air-shows-you-should-see-this-summer-9", slidetype: "image", title: "Wings over Houston", description: "Where: Houston, Texas \nWhen: Oct. 26 and Oct. 27\n
\nOne of the largest air shows in the U.S., Wings Over Houston features a multitude of warbirds and vintage aircraft, including the B-29 FiFi and the Red Tail Squadron P-51C. This year?s lineup also includes a 60th anniversary Korean War tribute, featuring historic aircraft from the era, from the MiG-15 fighter to the Sikorsky YR-4 helicopter.", credit: "", sourceid: null, sourcename: "", sourceurl: null, sourcelogo: "", thumbsrc: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/lB/summer-air-shows-09-0613-smn.jpg", src: "/cm/popularmechanics/images/kt/summer-air-shows-09-0613-lgn.jpg", srcwidth: 600, srcheight: 450 } ] };
American Heroes Air Show
Where: Lake View Terrace, Calif. When: June 29
This helicopters-only air show is dedicated to demonstrating the vital role of helos in the military, law enforcement, firefighting and search-and-rescue operations. Watch flyovers and demonstrations, explore static displays and public safety exhibits, or take a helicopter ride.
Facebook just disclosed that that their White Hat program has discovered a potential bug that could allow contact information, including email and phone numbers, to be accessed by other uses who have some type of existing connection. You can see a copy of the email above, which they're proactively sending affected users. In a blog post, though buried after several paragraphs of mitigation, Facebook said:
Because of the bug, some of the information used to make friend recommendations and reduce the number of invitations we send was inadvertently stored in association with people?s contact information as part of their account on Facebook. As a result, if a person went to download an archive of their Facebook account through our Download Your Information (DYI) tool, they may have been provided with additional email addresses or telephone numbers for their contacts or people with whom they have some connection. This contact information was provided by other people on Facebook and was not necessarily accurate, but was inadvertently included with the contacts of the person using the DYI tool.
It's a lot to unpack, so read it carefully. If you received an email, read it doubly carefully. Then let us know what questions, concerns, and overall thoughts you might have.
BAGHDAD (AP) ? A suicide car bomb and other militant attacks killed nine people in northern Iraq on Saturday, officials said, the latest in a wave of violence that has killed nearly 2,000 Iraqis since the start of April.
The deadliest attack was in al-Athba village near the northern city of Mosul, when a suicide car bomber rammed his explosives-laden car into a police patrol, a police officer said. Three civilian bystanders and one policeman died while six other people were wounded, he added.
With violence spiking sharply in recent months to levels not seen since 2008, al-Qaida in Iraq and other militant groups have been gathering strength in the area of Mosul, some 360 kilometers (220 miles) northwest of Baghdad.
In the city of Tuz Khormato, 210 kilometers (130 miles) north of Baghdad, gunmen on motorcycles riddled a civilian vehicle carrying four off-duty policemen with bullets, killing three and wounding another, a police officer said.
Another group of gunmen attacked a police checkpoint in the city of Samarra, killing two policemen and wounding four, another police officer said. Samarra is 95 kilometers (60 miles) north of Baghdad.
Police also said two civilians were killed and nine wounded when a bomb ripped through a small market late Friday in Baghdad.
Four medical officials confirmed the casualty figures. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to release information.
Also on Saturday, the United Nations said another 27 residents of a camp housing members of an Iranian exile group have been relocated to Albania. The move follows a deadly rocket attack on the facility last week.
A total of 71 residents of Camp Liberty have now relocated to the southeast European country, which has agreed to accept 210 of them. Germany has also offered to take 100 residents. The U.N. is urging other member states to accept some of the more than 3,000 living in Iraq.
The dissident group, the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, is the militant wing of a Paris-based Iranian opposition movement that opposes Iran's clerical regime and has carried out assassinations and bombings there. It fought alongside Saddam Hussein's forces in the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war, and several thousand of its members were given sanctuary in Iraq. It renounced violence in 2001, and was removed from the U.S. terrorism list last year.
Iraq's government wants the MEK members to leave, and the U.N. has been working to resettle them abroad.
Two residents of Camp Liberty were killed in a June 15 rocket attack on the facility. A Shiite militant group claimed responsibility, saying it wants the group out of Iraq.
______
Associated Press writer Adam Schreck contributed to this report.
LONDON (Reuters) - Investors in Britain's largest companies have rowed back on the protests over pay which most readily symbolized public distaste over perceived corporate greed during last year's 'shareholder spring'.
Research by Reuters has found that the average vote against executive pay deals at FTSE 100 annual general meetings has fallen by 18 percent from two years ago, even though surveys suggest earnings have continued to rise.
The decline in dissent comes shortly before shareholders acquire new powers to reject compensation policies.
With more than 70 percent of 2013 FTSE 100 AGMs completed, remuneration resolutions have drawn an average 'No' vote of 6.6 percent, down from 7.6 percent for the same companies in 2012 and from 8 percent for all FTSE 100 members in 2011.
As with other stock indexes, the British blue-chip benchmark's composition changes slightly from year to year.
These votes are still advisory, but from October reforms brought in by Britain's business secretary Vince Cable will give shareholders the power to reject any changes to a pay policy at the next company AGM, or to vote down an unchanged policy every three years.
No FTSE 100 pay vote in 2013 has so far seen objections reach the 50 percent threshold which would force a company back to the drawing board. Last year, a majority of shareholders at two companies, WPP and Aviva , voted against proposed pay deals for executives.
There is no clear evidence that the decline in voting levels reflects a fall in executive earnings, although some major investors credit efforts by companies to make changes and better engage with shareholders for the fall in protest votes.
A survey last week by consultancy MM&K and proxy voting firm Manifest found that average pay for UK CEOs in 2012 had increased by more than 10 percent from 2011 as an equity rally inspired by quantitative easing inflated earnings. Click here for more details: http://r.reuters.com/duj98t x Cable told Reuters there had been some evidence of pay moderation, particularly among new appointments. Barclays CEO Antony Jenkins got a package worth 2.6 million pounds last year, for example - much less than the 17 million pounds his predecessor Bob Diamond took home in 2011.
But Cable warned that shareholders risk squandering their new powers if they lack the determination to challenge pay deals they perceive to be too generous or contrary to a firm's long-term interests.
"Our changes will help to create the right environment for long-term, responsible private sector growth, which will in turn support a stronger economy and a fairer society," said Cable, a Liberal Democrat member of the Conservative-led coalition government.
"The challenge is now for shareholders to engage with companies. We've given them the tools through our reforms but these will only work if shareholders are willing to use them."
When British companies faced their shareholders during the 2012 AGM season, it felt like revolution was in the air. Heads rolled and the phrase 'shareholder spring' was coined to echo the popular uprisings across the Arab world.
The average vote against pay deals actually fell compared with 2011, however, and the latest data shows a further decline so far this year.
"This does not bode well for the incoming regime of binding shareholder votes," said Alan Macdougall, managing director at PIRC, which provides voting advice to UK institutional investors and is a vocal campaigner for improved corporate governance standards.
"The willingness of many asset managers to nod through all but the most egregious remuneration policies means it would not be surprising to go through a whole season without a company being defeated.
"There is a real danger that unengaged asset managers undermine the credibility of shareholder oversight of pay," he told Reuters.
And it's not the case that shareholders have simply toned down their protests through the use of abstentions.
When abstentions are rolled into the total votes counted at FTSE 100 AGMs, the Reuters research shows that 2.2 percent of votes have been withheld so far this year on pay resolutions, a fall from 2.4 percent in 2012 and from 3.6 percent in 2011.
LEARNING THE LESSONS?
Angeli Benham is UK corporate governance manager at Legal & General Investment Management, the fund arm of the British insurer, which owns about 4 percent of UK shares. She said the decline was a function of last year's ructions.
Although the average vote against pay dropped in 2012, investors could be said to have picked their battles. Shareholder votes claimed the scalp of Aviva CEO Andrew Moss, forced WPP back to the drawing board on bonuses, and sent other companies scrambling to tweak pay arrangements as their turn on the AGM treadmill approached.
"A lot of the companies that I worked against last year, did come and chat to shareholders and most of them have made significant changes to their remuneration," said Benham.
"Other shareholders are now engaging more with companies... and companies that haven't engaged with us in the past are coming forward."
Investors suggest that some companies last year were playing catch-up with pay after restraint during the financial crisis, and were willing to stomach political anger and investor tutting in order to bring salaries to levels they deemed appropriate.
Historically, many investors have been loath to join a public vote against management and there were already expectations that this latest AGM season might fail to live up to last year's headlines.
Fund managers often claim to do their best work behind closed doors and highlight the need for pragmatism when voting on compensation for UK CEOs which is not out of step with payouts to peers around the world.
"It suits the status quo in both PLC remuneration committees and the investment management industry to pretend that the drop-off in shareholder opposition to pay is a sign of progress," said PIRC's Macdougall.
"Neither group really believes that there is a problem with pay, and so the token changes companies are willing to make are quickly banked as ?wins' by asset managers."
If you haven't already heard, Instagram was recently updated to include support for video uploads. Just like Vine, Instagram can auto-play those videos as soon as you scroll past them. For many of us, this feature may be more annoying than it is useful. As it happens, there's a way to disable it.
Here's how:
Launch the Instagram app from the Home screen of your iPhone.
In the bottom navigation, tab on the Profile tab which is the furthest to the right.
On your profile screen, tap on the Settings gear in the upper right hand corner.
Scroll down a ways and they'll see an option for Auto-Play videos. Tap to turn the slider to the Off position.
That's it. Instagram will now not play videos automatically as you scroll past them unless you actually tap on them to play them.
Posted by contact on Jun 20, 2013 in Blog, Fresh Ink | Comments Off
My name is Jonathan Ische, and I am a writer currently interning for San Diego Writers, Ink. I?recently graduated from Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU) with a degree in writing.
Although it?was a long five years (after changing my major a few times), I extracted as much as I could out of all the?conjoined experiences I had?from various roommates and the pleasures and pitfalls of girls, to what I?heard and experienced vicariously, and of course, through numerous courses and books.?With God perpetually remaining at the center of my life, I believe my education and the talents and?blessings I have undeservedly received can alter the world for the better.
Previously I had been interested in healthcare and helping people on an individual basis. I was?learning the highly detailed information of everything pertaining to the human, from the large scale of?muscles and how they interact through movement, to the molecular level of how different medicines?affect body functions. Interesting and practical as this field of study is, I felt out of place. There was?more I could do to help others. That is when I found out about the writing program at PLNU.
Writing allows for someone to portray a unique perspective of life. Whether a writer chooses to?write a poem on the immensity of the universe and the billions of stars and trillions of planets that exist?at this very moment or writes a novel about his or her first love, writing is an instrument unlike any?other. It transcends time and distance and is not restrained to any particular language.
An easily?recognizable example of how writing meets these criteria is plays. How many hundreds of years have?passed since Shakespeare has died? Yet his plays not only influenced the dreams and realities of?people in his own era but live on and continue to influence today as well. However, the effect of writing?does not end there. After reading one such play, how many people were sparked to write an essay, for?example, on their own interpretation? Furthermore, how many people were convinced after reading the?logic and ideas of an essay to apply it to their own lives? If these ideas are read or heard by people in?power, how much good can writing accomplish then? Does the cycle showing the power of the written?word continue through one such person in power, like a president or prime minister, and then make?itself apparent for all to see through a new law or bill?
As the famous Romantic British writer Percy Shelley wrote in his essay, A Defence of Poetry,??Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world.? Writing, no matter the form, is an art that can?be used to shape the way we think, the way we act, and the way we live. Governments can be?transformed, lives can be saved, and the amount of greatness humanity can achieve is limitless.
Meanwhile, in order for any of these goals to become evident, it all starts with you, and I, and the?community of writers sitting down and transcribing our lives and inspirations. We must use the tool of?writing to mold the world into a place everyone agrees is a place worth living in. Among the countless?ways writing can transfuse into the daily lives of not only those living in luxury, but the poor and hungry?on their deathbeds, San Diego Writers, Ink serves as one of the many beacons of hope that can guide?humanity to heights that have never before been reached.
SDWI is an organization that fosters the creativity within everyone by offering classes, hosting?events, and giving workshops all geared toward honing the skill of writing. None of the board members?are paid, but each one strives to bring the beauty of writing to all who wish to develop their craft. By?giving people an opportunity to break away from the frantic nature of their daily lives and sit down and?relax for a while to write, or by welcoming professionals to come and teach classes on how to be a?better writer, SDWI is proud when someone discovers the joy of writing.
Whether the writing faction of?choice is fiction, screen writing, journalism, poetry, essays, nonfiction, etc., SDWI?s board and staff are supremely happy?when you grow as person and as a writer. When you write your own characters that people can connect?with, when the hours you spent writing parts in a play are given to people who act them out and you see?your work come to life, when you find out your poem helped someone through the hardest time of their?life, that is when SDWI is pleased you chose them to be an outlet for your writing.
I?m not really a blog writer, and this is my first, but convention requires me to be a bit selfish?and speak more about my life. Someday, I would like to write books that are among the best the world?has to offer, and maybe even have them made into movies. If by God?s will I happened to become rich, I?would donate a large amount the money I make to charities and churches which have the potential to?reach people on a more personable level. I desire for my books to help solve some the issues of today,?such as global warming, and be a source people can look to, along with the Bible, for how to live?enriching lives full of love and peace. While none of this may ever occur, I will always aspire to be the?best writer I can be that can hopefully mold the world into a better place.
Write On, ?Jonathan Ische
?
Jonathan Ische is an intern at SDWI. We are happy to have Jonathan here as he begins his journey as a writer.
It's a boy at Brookfield Zoo! (And a very important one at that.)
The pitter patter of little hooves can now be heard at the Chicago-area Brookfield Zoo thanks to the arrival of an addax antelope calf.
The zoo announced Thursday that a male addax calf was born on June 7 to mama Sara, 4, and 11-year-old father Winston. Its precious, already-visible horn buds are expected to already grow into horns in the coming weeks.
According to the zoo, addax are a critically endangered species on the brink of extinction -- almost 200 live in accredited zoos across North America, while only about 300 more live in the wild, mostly in Niger. The addax have been hunted excessively of its horns, flesh and hide, contributing to the species' decline.
In further good news at the zoo, three more members of the Brookfield's addax herd are also expecting to give birth this summer -- so the calf will likely have some new playmates before long.
Google?s plans to beam the Internet from giant balloons sent to the stratosphere could boost small businesses in rural parts of Asia by connecting them online, the company said Wednesday. Karim Temsamani, Google?s head of Asia Pacific, said in a speech at the Communicasia conference in Singapore, that the Internet balloons might also facilitate communication during disasters.
Google last week revealed top secret plans to launch thousands of balloons to provide Internet connections to remote parts of the world, allowing the more than four billion people with no access to get online.
Its scientists on Saturday released up to 30 helium-filled test balloons flying 20 kilometres (12.4 miles) above Christchurch in New Zealand, carrying antennae linked to ground base stations.
?What?s devastating is that only a tiny fraction of SMEs (small-medium enterprises) all across Asia are online right now,? Temsamani told the conference.
He said India, one of the region?s emerging economies, has 47 million small businesses, but only one per cent are online.
?Getting more businesses online is crucial to every single country in the region,? he said.
The experimental balloon project, called Project Loon, is one way to provide affordable Internet access to ?rural, remote and under-served? regions, Temsamani said.
?For farmers in remote rural areas, this would bring market information that allows them to get better prices from merchants,? he added.
The balloons, which once in the stratosphere will be twice as high as commercial airliners and barely visible to the naked eye, will also help in disasters when communication infrastructure is down, Temsamani said.
?For places with few doctors, this could help relay drug information. In disasters, this could help coordinate supplies,? he said.
The balloon network is controlled by ground stations connecting to the local Internet infrastructure and beaming signals to the balloons, which are self-powered by solar panels.
Users below have an Internet antennae they attach the side of their house which can send and receive data signals from the balloons passing overhead.
Some 50 people were chosen to take part in the trial in New Zealand and were able to link to the Internet.
Temsamani cautioned that the project remained in an experimental stage, and would require a lot of work from participating nations.
?These balloons need networks? co-operation to function, we?re all going to have to work together on this,? he said.
He said Google expects half a billion people in emerging markets worldwide, most of them in Asia, to have Internet access ?between now and 2015?.
?These people will drive this transformation even faster. They will not have all the desktop-based habits we?ve developed over the past 10 years,? he added.
