Focks

Condoleezza Rice plays piano for the Queen

contact — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 11:31:54 +0000

Condoleezza Rice performed music by Brahms on the piano in an elegant music room at Buckingham Palace, with Queen Elizabeth II listening. Miss Rice was later presented with an audio recording of the recital by the Queen. The top US diplomat met UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband in London, who’s wife accompanied Miss Rice during the performance. Her visit to the United Kingdom is most likely her last as US Secretary of State. She will be succeeded by senator Hilary Clinton.

Johannes Brahms was a German composer, and is Condoleezza Rice’s favourite composer. She calls Brahms’ music “passionate but not sentimental”.

Update On Hubble Space Telescope

contact — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 09:35:39 +0000

As you may know, the Hubble Space Telescope has been experiencing technical difficulties, and has been operating in safe mode recently. NASA is slowly bringing back modules on the telescope, such as a camera, and are hopeful full operational status can be achieved soon. Some anomalies have delayed the restart that was planned last week. Hubble was launched in 1990. Aging hardware has caused an increase in technical issues.

NASA scientists late last week were hopeful that the latest attempt to fire up the Hubble Space Telescope’s long-dormant backup computer will be successful.

An effort to start the system a week earlier was halted because of two “anomalies,” said Art Whipple, chief of NASA’s Hubble systems management office at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

Whipple said the main systems on the 18-year-old orbiting observatory were running smoothly late last Thursday, shortly after the backup computer was restarted.

Read more…

700 billion dollars

contact — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 13:46:39 +0000

Unless you have been living under a rock, you’ve heard of the 700 billion-dollar bailout plan (politicians prefer the term “rescue plan”) of the Bush administration to keep major financial institutions from collapsing. Now most of us will agree that the situation requires some dramatic action. Yet we have different opinions on whether it is wise to spend 700 billion dollars to help out these companies.

$700 billion is an impressive amount, just to illustrate how much it really is:

- It’s about the same amount as the entire Australian economy (IMF, PPP).
- You need about 12 times Bill Gates to come up with that amount.
- The Iraq War cost almost the same so far.
- You can buy more than 2 million Rolls-Royce Phantom sedans with 700 billion bucks.

The US House of Representatives has already rejected the bailout plan. Today, the US Senate will vote on a slightly modified package. Proponents of the plan insist that this package is needed to keep the US and global economy running, opponents fear that it will reward money hungry bank executives.

What do you think? Use the money to feed the poor, a fancy war against Iran, or perhaps not spend anything?

No more images from Hubble due to glitch

contact — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 10:35:52 +0000

We won’t be seeing new beautiful images from space, at least not coming from our good old friend the Hubble Space Telescope, until it gets patched up. The module responsible for data transmission, the Side A Science Data Formatter, has failed. While some technical issues can be resolved from Earth, this issue can not. NASA’s planned launch of space shuttle Atlantis will be delayed due to the glitch. The Atlantis crew are scheduled to perform a major overhaul of the Hubble Space Telescope, extending its lifetime by 5 years. The important maintenance mission has already been plagued by delays, including Hurricane Ike. Some are now beginning to question whether it is worth saving the space telescope. Most scientists, however, insist that fixing Hubble is still viable and scientifically important. The Hubble Space Telescope has been in operation since April 1990, outside the Earth’s protective atmosphere.

We have to survive on old images from Hubble:

“Of course it’s worth upgrading Hubble,” said Mario Livio, an astrophysicist at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Md. “The part that failed even has as redundant side to it. If all goes well, science operations could be up as early as the end of this week. So you shouldn’t worry about that. It’s definitely not the end of the world.”

The now-broken electronics box had been working steadily since the telescope launched in April 1990.

“These things happen. It’s been up there in orbit, outside the protective atmosphere of the Earth for 18 years,” said Heidi Hammel, an astronomer at the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Co. “Glitches happen. It’s an incredibly robust instrument. Think about your computers — you don’t still use computers that are 18 years old.”

Full article : Is Hubble Worth Saving?

European mobile phone operators warned

Moody — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 09:38:58 +0000

Anyone with half a brain knows that mobile phone operators make huge profits whenever you use mobile internet or text message your friends from abroad. The ridiculous fees they charge when you are out of the country are finally being noticed by the European commission. EU Commissioner Viviane Reding has warned operators that they have to cut their tariffs for mobile internet access and text messaging or risk new regulation that would force them to do so. The commissioner has given the companies until 1 July to comply with her request. In 2007 the EU commission forced operators to cut their roaming fees, which apply to you when you call from outside your home country, by 50%.

Good move if you ask me.

Europe’s mobile phone operators are to be warned to cut the cost of texting and internet access while customers are overseas or face regulation.

A text sent while abroad can cost as much as 49 pence ($0.95) and a study found that transferring 1 megabyte (MB) on average costs £4.11.

Mobile phone companies have begun to cut costs, with O2, Vodafone and 3 lowering some tariffs.

Click here for the article at the BBC.

Chinese Invade Internet

contact — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 10:28:39 +0000

Over 200 million Chinese citizens are now using the Internet. Which puts them in third place on the global list, after the US with 215 million internet users, and the European Union with 273 million netizens. Although 200 million sounds impressive, internet usage as percentage of China’s population of 1.3 billion people is still low. In 2006 “only” 137 million people used the Internet in China. Music is the most popular way to spend time online according to a poll. China will become the second biggest internet country in a few months, and it will not take long to overtake the European Union and end up on top of the list. The Chinese desire to express themselves using the web has caused problems for the central government, which limits what data is available to its population. Major Western Internet companies have been under fire for cooperating with the Chinese government to restrict freedom of expression and access to information. Which is not surprising as these companies want to keep the government happy, as the Chinese market is too interesting (financially) to ignore.

For the first time the report provided a detailed break down of the classes of Internet users in mainland China. Amongst the Internet population in 2007, the rising trend in Internet users from various social levels is very apparent. Specifically the growth in users aged under 18 and over 30 is bigger than any other age group. Internet users educated at junior high school level and under are also increasing faster than other social groups; more and more low-income earners are starting to get in touch with the Internet.

Click here to read more..

Harman Kardon AVR 247 and Kef KHT-3005

contact — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 23:51:17 +0000

It really feels like Christmas already.. except that I am paying for my own presents. But it’s worth it! My JVC system was really getting old, and although I don’t like saying goodbye to stuff - it’s time for its retirement. That doesn’t mean I am throwing it away, God no - it’s still functioning, it just won’t be my main audio setup. Replacing it are a Harman Kardon AVR 247 receiver (7.1) and a neat looking Kef KHT-3005 speaker set. I literally spent a month or so collecting information about possible setups. Taking into consideration my budget, requirements, and how future proof the products are. All the receivers I came across had several minor problems, but the Harman Kardon AVR 247 ended up being the best choice for me.

It arrived 2 days ago. The KEF speakers are not here yet, so had to hook up my JVC speakers to the receiver. The sound quality was already way better. Clarity and volume both increased. Both Harman / Kardon and KEF are renowned audiophile brands. I might have to wait for another week until the speakers arrive, I am looking forward to that day. It’s like a kid getting his or her new toy.

Harman Kardon AVR 247 specifications:

- 7.1-Channel A/V Receiver With HDMI™ Switching and Audio/Video Processing
- 350W: 50 watts x 7 (All channels operating at full-rated power), THD <0.07%, 20Hz - 20kHz into 8 ohms
- 595W: 85 watts x 7, THD <0.07%, @1kHz into 8ohms

Click here for the official product page.

Kef KHT-3005 specifications:

- Frequency Range : 70Hz - 55kHz
- Maximum Output : 108dB SPL @ 1m
- Impedance : 8Ω

Click here for the official product page.

Europe knew of CIA jails

Moody — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 13:35:46 +0000

Surprise, surprise, European nations knew of secret CIA jails. At least that’s what a European parliament report says. A special committee has been investigating the entire CIA secret jails issue for months. The committee was led by Claudio Fava, who said that “Many governments co-operated passively or actively with the CIA”. High ranking EU officials including foreign policy chief Javier Solana were accused by Mister Fava of refusing to provide details about the affair. Another report by the Council of Europe pretty much came to the same conclusion as this report. There has been no hard evidence of secret CIA jails on European territory. The jails were allegedly used in the US War against Terror. US media earlier reported that detention centers were set up in Romania (a future EU member) and Poland (a current EU member). Both nations deny the accusations.

He accused top EU officials including foreign policy chief Javier Solana of failing to give full details to MEPs.

The report echoed allegations made in June by the Council of Europe - Europe’s leading human rights watchdog - that European states were complicit in illegal CIA operations as part of the US-led “war on terror”.

US President George W Bush admitted in September that the CIA had used prisons abroad for the secret detention of terror suspects, but he did not specify where the prisons were.

He insisted the suspects had not been tortured.

From : EU nations knew about CIA jails

Vatican to relax ban on condom use?

Moody — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 14:53:52 +0000

Sadly there are still millions of people in Africa and other poor regions that follow the Vatican’s doctrine on condom use. 8000 people a day die because of AIDS. The Vatican has refused to ease their ban on artificial contraceptions. However, at the request of the current Pope, Benedict, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has submitted a study on the issue, and whether easing the ban would be in violation of Christian belief. Many say that the Vatican’s doctrine has killed hundreds of thousands due to it’s backward rules. AIDS campaigners have been pressing the Vatican to change those rules for a long time, but it seems that this Pope is more open to changes. Surely, he can’t ignore the millions of AIDS deaths in the World every year? The Church teaches abstinence as a way to prevent HIV/AIDS infections, which is a very ignorant and naive way to deal with the issue.

The Italian newspaper La Repubblica says that under the doctrine of the “lesser evil” the 200-page report could result in a situation in “which it would be possible for the faithful to use prophylactics to avert fatal risks”.

A total rethink could potentially save millions of lives from death and misery, said Brian Haill, president of the Australian AIDS Fund Inc, a Catholic charity helping people living with the disease in Australia, Papua New Guinea and Malawi. But he was not hopeful.

“I’d have to say, if there is any hope at all, however shallow, is that maybe the Pope might at least recognise the dreadful plight of married people where a husband or wife might be HIV infected.”

From : Campaigners press Vatican on condom use

France’s first woman president?

Moody — Fri, 17 Nov 2006 10:26:45 +0000

French Socialists have selected Segolene Royal to be their presidential candidate. She will most likely face Nicolas Sarkozy as opponent from the conservatives. Madame Royal received over 60% of the vote, making a second round unnecessary. The other two Socialist presidential candidates were Mr Strauss-Kahn who took 20.8%, and Mr Fabius with 18.5% of the votes. Both are political heavyweights, which might actually work against them as many in French have lost trust in the conventional old politicians. If the French population pick Segolene Royal to be their head of state, she would be the first woman president in France. The Germans picked Angela Merkel as their chancellor not long ago, and in the US many believe Condoleeza Rice and Hillary Clinton will be fighting for the White House. 3 important world powers (Germany, France, and the US) presented by women would be an interesting situation, though I am probably getting ahead of myself. Miss Royal is a mother-of-four and current head of the regional Poitou-Charente region council. Her Socialist rivals have constantly attacked her lack of foreign policy credentials. The French people will be voting for a president on 22 April 2007.

French Socialist presidential candidate Segolene Royal has promised to embody change if she becomes France’s first female head of state.

Ms Royal, 53, described her win over two rivals in a ballot of party members as “extraordinary”, and said she wanted to write a new page in French history.

She won with more than 60% of the vote, avoiding a second round.

From : France’s Royal promises changes