$20 Million Facebook Privacy Settlement Rejected by Judge

A federal judge has rejected Facebook’s settlement offer in a class-action privacy lawsuit over the use of users’ names and faces in “Sponsored Stories” advertisements.

With Sponsored Stories, which rolled out in January of 2011, your “likes” on a brand’s page can result in your name and profile picture being shown as endorsements in that brand’s advertisements on the site. Users were not given an option to opt-out of the feature.

The lawsuit, filed last year, alleged that the practice is a violation of Facebook users’ privacy.

Under Facebook’s proposed deal to settle the lawsuit, it would have given users more control over their “likes,” including the opportunity for users under the age of 18 to opt-out of Sponsored Stories completely. The company would have also paid $10 million to the plaintiff’s legal team and another $10 million to pro-privacy organizations, such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg, who made his uneasiness about the deal known earlier this month, has now firmly rejected it on the basis that the monetary amounts seemed to have been “merely plucked from thin air,” according to Wired.

Seeborg argued that the deal didn’t do enough to address the damages of the 100 million Facebook users who have already appeared in Sponsored Stories. He wrote in his decision that under California law, each party to the lawsuit could be awarded up to $750.

A Facebook attorney has previously argued that the proposed settlement has value for the company’s users.

Facebook earns $1 million in revenue every day from Sponsored Stories.

How do you feel about Facebook’s Sponsored Stories? (Mashable.com)

Olympics Generated 150 Million Tweets

The 2012 Olympics in London generated 150 million tweets and Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt ran away with a big share of them, according to Twitter.
The social network, assessing the 16-day event, found that Bolt’s 200m and 100m races prompted the most chatter during the Games. The former netted more than 80,000 tweets per minute while the former generated more than 74,000 TPMs as they’re known in Twitter’s headquarters.

Among the other highlights:

Andy Murray’s gold medal in the men’s tennis singles: 57,000+ TPM
Jamaica wins gold, sets world record in the 4×100 relay: 52,000+ TPM
Team USA beats Spain, wins gold in men’s basketball: 41,000+ TPM

Other non-medal-winning events that generated a lot of discussion included Hope Solo’s diving catch in the U.S.-Japan women’s soccer final and Kobe Bryant’s dunk towards the end of the U.S.-Spain game.

Meanwhile, Bolt was the most-discussed athlete during the Games, but he was one of 10 athletes to prompt more than 1 million tweets:

1.Usain Bolt
2. Michael Phelps
3. Tom Daley
4. Ryan Lochte
5. Gabby Douglas
6. Andy Murray
7. Kobe Bryant
8. Yohan Blake
9. Lee Chong Wei
10. LeBron James

Parsing the data further, Twitter found soccer was the most-discussed sport with 5 million-plus mentions, though swimming, track & field, gymnastics and volleyball also prompted a lot of chatter.

However, the most-discussed moment in the Games had nothing to do with athletics: Instead the return of the Spice Girls during the closing ceremonies generated the most buzz — 116,000 TPMs — which far outstripped Bolt’s achievement.

What do you think? What were your favorite moments of the Olympics? Let us know in the comments. (Mashable.com)

Pranksters Hijack Mountain Dew’s Drink Naming Contest

Mountain Dew’s promotion to name the brand’s new drink appears to be being hijacked. Top in the running so far: “Diabeetus.”

Other names that most likely won’t see the light of day:
Most Nugget
DickButt
NukaCola
Cumsplosion
Hitler Did Nothing Wrong

Mountain Dew, which has crowdsourced the names of new drinks before on Facebook, recently launched an effort to name a green apple flavored extension. Monday morning the “gallery of names” on DubtheDew, a dedicated site, could not be accessed, though when it did, it appeared with a less controversial list. (Leading name: “meany greeny.”) Reps from the PepsiCo brand could not be reached for comment.

The apparent hijacking comes after David Thorpe and Jon Hendren, the minds behind the popular humor site Something Rotten did the same with a Walmart promotion for Energy Sheets. The Facebook-based promotion awarded the city with the most likes with a visit by rapper Pitbull. Thorpe and Hendren rigged the votes so that Pitbull visited a Walmart in Kodiak Island, Alaska, the most remote Walmart location in the U.S.

It’s unclear, meanwhile, who is behind the latest Mountain Dew effort. A Reddit thread, however, points the finger at controversial online community 4chan while 4chan claims that the whole thing was concocted by Reddit.

Almost Out of Cash, WikiLeaks Starts Taking Donations Again

WikiLeaks, which was down to about $120,000 in total reserves at the end of June because of a blockade program by Visa and MasterCard, is now accepting donations again.

The organization announced on Wednesday that it had found a loophole via the French credit card system, Carte Bleue. Carte Bleue is linked with Visa and MasterCard globally, but both are contractually barred from cutting off merchants within the Carte Bleue system, according to WikiLeaks. The French non-profit FDNN (Fund for the Defense of Net Neutrality or Fonds de Défense de la Net Neutralité) has set up a Carte Bleue fund for WikiLeaks.

Now WikiLeaks is asking supporters to donate before MasterCard and Visa find a way to block payments again.

The plea comes as WikiLeaks is expected to run out of cash within a few months. The organization’s goal is to raise €1 million (about $1.22 million) “immediately.”

Last week, WikiLeaks won an important legal battle against Visa and MasterCard in Iceland — where the credit card companies’ local partner was ordered by a judge to resume processing credit card donations made to the controversial secret-sharing site.

The Icelandic court ruled that Valitor, Visa and MasterCard’s local partner, ran afoul of contract laws when it stopped processing donations to WikiLeaks, according to The Associated Press.

Visa and MasterCard, along with other U.S.-based financial firms such as PayPal, blocked transactions headed for WikiLeaks in 2010 after the website published more than 250,000 American classified diplomatic cables.

Valitor must restore service to WikiLeaks within two weeks or face fines of about $6,000 every day. The company is planning to appeal the decision.

Meanwhile, WikiLeaks leader Julian Assange requested political asylum from Ecuador after losing his appeal against extradition from the U.K. to Sweden last month. He’s wanted by Swedish authorities to answer for accusations of sexual misconduct, but says he believes Sweden would send him to the United States to be tried for crimes related to WikiLeaks releases.

The United States has not publicly charged Assange with any crime. (Mashable.com)

Anonymous Vows to Avenge Loss of Demonoid by Reviving It

Anonymous has vowed to revive Demonoid, a popular torrent sharing and tracking platform shut down by authorities last week, and to extract vengeance on the the forces it holds responsible for the takedown.

Demonoid was hosted on servers at a data center in Ukraine which local authorities raided last week, leading to the site’s shutdown.

Anonymous began its effort, codenamed #OpDemonoid, on Wednesday by launching Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks against several Ukrainian government-owned websites, knocking them offline for a short period of time. DDoS attacks involve overloading a website’s host server with bogus traffic, and are relatively easy to perform compared to more intricate cyberattacks.

Anonymous’ longer-term goal is restoring Demonoid by asking members to host mirror sites across the world, creating what the group called in a release an “open-source Demonoid.”

According to the BBC, the Ukrainian raid on Demonoid was requested by the Mexican government through Interpol, an international organization that allows police from different countries to coordinate with one another. Authorities there had previously been pursuing a member of Demonoid’s staff.

However, the site was on a list of services suspected of engaging in copyright infringement that was drawn up by United States authorities, and the Ukrainian operation coincided with a visit by that country’s vice prime minister to the United States. The United States also has a history of asking foreign police to assist in intellectual property arrests, as was the case in January’s arrest of Megaupload’s Kim Dotcom in New Zealand.

Those factors have led some, including Anonymous, to conclude that the Ukrainian Demonoid raid was the brainchild of the American entertainment industry.

“The action was spearheaded by the usual cabal of lobbyists, SOPA/ACTA supporters, and their bribed politicians,” reads an Anonymous release. “We question what the motives for this action really are? It is clear to us that politics and lobbyists are again getting in the way of progress.”

Anonymous said that its mission to restore Demonoid will “require time and patience.”

Can Anonymous revive Demonoid? Share your thoughts in the comments. (Mashable.com)

Hashtags Help Coordinate Relief Efforts in Philippine Floods

In the midst of widespread flooding in Manila, which displaced more than 80,000 residents and caused at least 50 deaths by unofficial count, a digital lifeline emerged. Filipino citizens, non-profit organizations and government agencies have been using social media to coordinate relief efforts and rescue missions.

The Philippines, one of the most social media-savvy countries in the world, relied on Facebook and Twitter to disseminate information as people pleaded for rescuers to retrieve them from the rooftops of their homes.

Roughly half of the population uses social networks — something that government rescue workers, volunteers and media outlets used to their advantage by creating unified hashtags to spread information more efficiently. #RescuePH is for rescue calls; relief aid’s hashtag is #ReliefPH, breaking news falls under #FloodsPH, and official government alerts are tagged with #PHalert.

Social media users also created a relief center map on Google Maps and a rescue request form.

Do you think consolidated hashtags and online coordination make a noticeable difference in disaster response, or is an official rescue request form an unnecessary step in relief aid? Let us know in the comments. (Mashable.com)

Gameloft To Finally Bring An Unreal Engine Powered Title To Android

Gameloft, arguably the foremost creator of premier mobile titles, could be about to bring its fist Android game powered by Epic’s Unreal Engine, although there is no information available with regards to what the title might be. A teaser image has been released via Gameloft’s Facebook page, and although the blogosphere seems, for obvious reasons, the title will be of the Android variety, the company is yet to confirm this.

Still, it’s certainly exciting news for those who enjoy cutting-edge titles, and when one looks at the likes of Infinity Blade for iOS (also powered by Unreal Engine), it’s clear to see how much better a game can be when Epic infiltrates the development stage. Although I’m not a fan of Infinity Blade or Infinity Blade II per se, I still find both of them pretty awe-inspiring to play, and they are prime examples of how incredibly strong mobile gaming as come along in the past couple of years.

The teaser image itself doesn’t really give us a great deal to go on, but one thing is for sure – the title will be one to yield extreme interest from those partial to gaming on an Android device. Aside from a bloody sword and a skull, there’s precious little else in terms of giveaway signs, but those interested can now place a vote for what the next hint will be. The choices include another image or a teaser trailer, and I’m pretty sure those keen to discover what Gameloft has up its sleeve will opt for the latter.

Android is certainly left out in the cold when it comes to games available, with developers opting to create titles for iOS as a matter of priority. Once a game (or indeed, an app) has proved its worth on Apple’s ecosystem, it is often then that devs decide to create a port for Google’s market-leading mobile operating system. (Redmondpie.com)

Student Texted About Quitting Texting While Driving Off Cliff, Lived

In yet another example of why you shouldn’t text and drive, an Alabama college student drove off a cliff while texting.

Fortunately, he survived, but incurred some serious injuries. After six months of recovering, he’s finally able to talk about it.

Right before Chance Both’s truck went over a cliff, he texted, “I need to quit texting, because I could die in a car accident.”

Both suffered a broken neck, a crushed face, a fractured skull and traumatic brain injuries, a local news station reported. He was brought back to life three times by doctors.

Lately, texting while walking has been an increasing issue for law enforcement. Distracted walkers can cause accidents or get themselves into dangerous situations.

We told you earlier this week about a Philadelphia man being so distracted by talking on his cellphone, that he fell onto train tracks and was knocked unconscious. Luckily for him, no trains were headed to the station at that time.

Cellphone distraction also infamously caused a man to nearly walk into a brown bear and resulted in one woman’s embarrassing moment falling into a mall fountain.

Earlier this summer, we asked you if you think texting while walking should be illegal. The majority of you said no, but had strong opinions about the dangers of texting and walking.

Do you know anyone who texts while driving or walking? Tell us in the comments. (Mashable.com)

You Can Buy This Massive Robot for $1.3 Million

Piloting a giant humanoid robot has only been something you could watch on your television screen… until now.

A team of hobbyists, skilled engineers and robot-lovers in Japan created an honest-to-goodness mech you can actually drive.

A group called the Suidobashi Heavy Industry created the Kuratas, a human-controlled robot. Standing more than 12 feet tall and weighing 9,920 pounds, the Kuratas made its debut this weekend at Wonder Fest 2012, an annual hobby convention in Tokyo, Japan. Unsurprisingly, it was the hit of the show.

The Kuratas features a humanoid upper body and four insect-like legs with wheels. It’s designed to seat one person in its “chest,” which pivots above a waist and has one fully-articulated arm on either side. Pressing a button on the front of the robot opens the driver compartment canopy, allowing you to climb inside its cramped interior. Once inside, the canopy closes and you’re presented with a large LCD display and an array of lighted indicators.

Controlling the robot is handheld through a custom control stick that’s part steering wheel, part puppetry rig. It can be turned to pivot the bot’s waist and steer it when moving — the Kuratas has a top speed of six miles per hour — while a pair of joysticks operates the arms.

Twisting and bending these sticks allows you to control the arms similar to how puppeteers move the elaborate animatronics used in movies. Users can also control the robot’s movements with an app installed on an iPhone.

In addition to its literal pair of arms, the Kuratas is armed with a multi-rocket launcher and two Gattling cannons. The former fires plastic rockets filled with compressed water, while the latter can shoot a terrifying 6,000 plastic BBs per minute when you smile.

The robot is fitted with a Xbox Kinect sensor in order to pick up your gestures and facial expressions, including the one needed to unleash what its creators have dubbed the “smile shot.”

The price of owning the Kuratas starts at a whopping $1.35 million. Suidobashi Heavy Industry set up a web page where you can customize your own Kuratas prior to purchase, including paint schemes, upholstery options and other options. No word on how much shipping will cost.

Apple Considered Investing in Twitter

Apple isn’t currently in talks with Twitter to invest in the social-networking site, but according to a report from The New York Times, the two companies were previously in such discussions that would value Twitter at more than $10 billion.

“Apple has considered an investment in the hundreds of millions of dollars, one that could value Twitter at more than $10 billion, up from an $8.4 billion valuation last year, these people [briefed on the matter] said. They declined to be named because the discussions were private,” the Times reports.

Social media, so far, isn’t in Apple’s wheelhouse, and it’s had fragile relations with Facebook in the past. Things with Twitter, on the other hand, have been a little more friendly. As the Times points out, Twitter’s baked in to Apple’s operating systems.

“Those guys are a great partner,” Twitter CEO Dick Costolo said of Apple in a separate interview, according to the Times. “We think of them as a company that our company looks up to.”

In the paired-up world of tech giants and social media, Microsoft and Facebook have each other and Google (which owns Apple’s mobile competitor Android) has Google+. Could Twitter and Apple be the next hot couple? (Mashable.com)

iPhone catches fire in 17-year-old’s pocket

Just a week after we reported that an iPhone had overheated, melting a mat, video footage has emerged of an iPhone allegedly exploding in a 17-year-old’s pocket.

Finnish news site Kauppalehti has obtained security camera footage of Henri Helminen leaving a van and walking calmly away as smoke billows from his back pocket, he eventually pulls the smouldering device out of his pocket and throws it to the floor.

Helminen told Kauppalehti: “The phone was working perfectly” before the incident.

These kinds of overheating incidents are frequently the result of a previous knock or liquid intrusion, either of which can disrupt the internal circuitry and cause short-circuits. Ivanov has said she dropped the iPhone 3GS into a swimming pool more than a year before it overheated, but thought she’s solved the problem by leaving the iPhone in a bowl of rice for a few days. (http://www.macworld.com.au)

Moody’s downgrades Nokia credit rating, outlook negative

HELSINKI—International ratings agency Moody’s on Monday downgraded the long-term debt of Nokia by two notches, to “Ba3″, cautioning the Finnish mobile phone giant would likely suffer even deeper than expected losses going forward.

“Nokia’s transition in the smartphone business will cause deeper operating losses and consequently cash consumption in the coming quarters than we had previously assumed,” the ratings agency said in a statement, adding that the outlook on all of Nokia’s ratings remained negative.

Moody’s had bumped Nokia to “junk” status in June, two months after the two other large ratings agencies, Standard and Poor’s and Fitch, but the drop to Ba3 places the Finnish mobile phone maker four notches below investment grade.

Monday’s downgrade came after Nokia last Thursday reported far worse-than-expected second-quarter results, posting a net loss of 1.41 billion euros ($1.74 billion), about four times their loss of 368 million euros during the same period a year earlier and more than double the loss anticipated by analysts.

Nokia, which recently lost its ranking of 14 years as the world’s biggest mobile phone maker, dramatically changed its strategy a year and a half ago, deciding to phase out its Symbian smartphones in favor of a partnership with Microsoft.

But Moody’s said it was disappointed with Nokia’s outlook and cautioned that its new Lumia smartphones, which the company is counting on to help it survive stiff competition from RiM’s Blackberry, Apple’s iPhone and handsets running Google’s Android platform, were loss-making.

The ratings agency also stressed there was no guarantee Nokia’s highly anticipated Windows Phone 8, set to launch later this year, would help it get back in the black.

“A return to profitability in the Devices & Services (D&S) segment on the back of smartphones with the Windows Phone 8 mobile operating systems is by no means assured,” the agency said.

Nokia, meanwhile, said it was disappointed with the downgrade, but insisted in a statement that “its impact on the company is limited.”

“Nokia’s financial position remains strong,” it stressed, pointing out that as of the end of June it had a net cash balance of 4.2 billion euros and a credit facility of 1.5 billion, which it can count on until 2016.

Following Monday’s announcement, Nokia saw its share price drop 3.02 percent to 1.38 euros a piece in afternoon trading on a Helsinki stock exchange down 3.04 percent. (Inquirer.net)

After Malware Scare, Apple Makes First Appearance at Black Hat Conference

Apple will make its first appearance at computer security conference Black Hat on Thursday when Dallas De Atley, Manager of the Platform Security team at the company, takes the stage to talk about key security technologies in iOS.

Typically absent for security conferences, the move is a significant one, and one that shows Apple realizes that its operating system is vulnerable and that the company could benefit from the input of a group of people who have the main goal of revealing those vulnerabilities.

The first iOS malware app was confirmed earlier this month. Called “Find and Call” the app would have users upload all of their contact information to a server that would them spam all of their contacts with messages that appeared to come from the victim’s phone.

Hackers have started to pay more attention to the OSX platform. Previously thought to be free from viruses and attacked, Apple computers have started to see a rise in malicious software attacks.

Black Hat has been going on for the past 15 years. The conference brings together thought leaders from different facets of the information security worlds – everyone from corporate and government employees to academic and underground researchers – to help attempt to “define tomorrow’s security landscape.”

Since its initial conference in 1997, Black Hat has expanded its conference from a single event each year in Las Vegas to a series of conferences around the world in locations such as Abu Dhabi, Barcelona and Washington DC.

Microsoft first made an appearance at the conference in 1998, and Google took the stage in 2010. While most of the speakers at the Black Hat conference have a detailed description of their planned discussion topic, Apple’s description merely says it will “discuss key security technologies in iOS.”

The conferences are vendor-neutral and bring together some of he brightest and most prestigious names in the space for briefings as well as hands-on, high-intensity, multi-day trainings provided by some of the most respected experts in the world. Attendees can also receive formal certifications while attending the conference.

What do you think about Apple participating in the Black Hat conference? Let us know your thoughts in the comments. Source: Mashable

Apple OS X Mountain Lion Goes on Sale Wednesday

For Mac owners, it’s Christmas in July again.

In its earnings report Tuesday, Apple officially announced that the long-anticipated Mountain Lion, otherwise known as OS X 10.8, would go on sale first thing Wednesday morning — just as predicted.

Costing $19.99, it will be available in the Mac app store only. Anyone who bought a new Mac on or after June 11 is entitled to a free upgrade.

Apple is making a habit of releasing new versions of the Mac OS in July; that’s when we got our first taste of OS X 10.7, known simply as Lion. That, too, was announced on the company’s earnings call and made available the following morning.

Lion is now used by 40% of Mac owners, according to Apple. Some 50% are still using the previous version, Snow Leopard. Lion was criticized by some for being a minimal upgrade that removed some much-loved features, such as replacing the “save as” with the less user-friendly “export.”

Mountain Lion, by contrast, is a significant upgrade that adds plenty of integration with the iPhone and iPad operating system, iOS. Users will see their Reminders, Messages, Notes and other notifications automatically synced between devices.

The upgrade also allows you to post to Twitter, Flickr, Vimeo and other services from within every page and window. At Apple’s recent Worldwide Developers’ Conference, CEO Tim Cook boasted that Mountain Lion added more than 200 new features.

It’s only for current Lion or Snow Leopard owners, however; if you’re one of the few Mac users on a previous version, you’ll have to upgrade to Snow Leopard before buying Mountain Lion. And if you’re on a pre-2009 Mac, chances are your computer won’t have enough power to run Mountain Lion.

Stay tuned for our full Mountain Lion review Wednesday, and let us know in the comments: are you ready to buy?

Viber Gets Group Messaging and Two Other Stories You Need to Know

Welcome to this morning’s edition of “First To Know,” a series in which we keep you in the know on what’s happening in the digital world. Today, we’re looking at three particularly interesting stories.

Viber Gets Group Messaging, Hits 90 Million Users

Mobile messaging application Viber has released version 2.2, introducing group messaging as well as improved call quality and several user interface enhancements.

The company also said it has reached 90 million users, with users making over 1.5 billion minutes of calls each month. This is a jump of 20 million users in just over two months.

Apple Wins One, Loses One in Patent Battle With Samsung

Apple has won a preliminary ban of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 across the European Union. Samsung said it is “disappointed” with the court’s ruling, though the company “welcomes” another court decision, which states that the company’s Galaxy Tab 10.1N does not infringe Apple’s intellectual property.

ASUS Transformer Pad Infinity Comes to UK on August 31

ASUS Transformer Pad Infinity will become available in the UK through Amazon on August 31 for £599, the company has announced.

The device features a 1920 x 1200 Super IPS+ display, Android 4.0 and a detachable Mobile Dock accessory which turns it from a tablet into a laptop.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, mattjeacock

Jack Daniel’s Sends the Most Polite Cease-and-Desist Letter Ever

When Patrick Wensink was commissioning the cover for his book, Broken Piano For President, he probably wasn’t expecting a cease-and-desist letter from Jack Daniel’s Properties — the owner of the Jack Daniel’s trademarks.

Looking at the cover for the book, it’s easy to see why the Jack Daniel’s people might take issue with the design. The typeface isn’t exactly the same, but the border and presentation is a dead-ringer for the classic black label of that sweet, sweet Tennessee whiskey.

Usually when we write about trademark disputes, one party claims that another party is using its size to “bully” to get its way.

Not this time.

In what might just be the nicest cease-and-desist letter we’ve ever seen, the people at Jack Daniel’s Properties not only politely explained the situation to Wensink, the company even offered to help pay for the cost of designing a new cover.

Jack Daniel’s Properties isn’t even forcing Wensink to take his book off the shelf. Instead, the company just wants him to change the cover when it’s reprinted.

Even better, the publicity around this rare act of lawyerly kindness might end up helping sales for Wensink’s book.

On his blog, the author says that Powell’s is already sold out of the paperback, but Amazon still has some copies in stock. In his own words, “that baby’s going to be a collector’s item.” Hey, you never know.

All we know is that if more trademark complaints were handled like this, the world might be a better place.

What do you think of the way Jack Daniel’s Properties handled this situation? Let us know in the comments.

Source: Mashable

Kissenger: virtual lips for long-distance lovers

SINGAPORE—Finding it hard to keep up the passion in a long-distance relationship? Help might be on the way.

A robotics professor in Singapore has invented a gadget equipped with motion-sensitive electronic “lips” that allow amorous but absent couples to exchange long-distance smooches via the Internet.

Shaped like a small head with oversize silicone lips, the “Kissenger” — short for Kiss Messenger — was unveiled in June at a scientific conference in Britain and is still being refined for commercial launch.

“It can be used between humans to improve their communication,” its creator Hooman Samani told Agence France-Presse.

Couples just have to connect the devices to computers via USB cables, link up online and start kissing the silicone material to trigger sensors that move the gadget on the other side.

They can stare at each other on screen while exchanging kisses.

“The main issue is to transmit the force and pressure, and also the shape of the lip,” Samani said.

The “special silicone material” chosen for the lips offers “the best sensation and feeling”, said the scientist, who has personally tested the device.

But the Kissenger is not yet ready for the market despite “a lot of offers” from interested parties because there are “ethical issues” that need to be resolved on top of the technical aspects, he said.

“Kissing is very intimate so in order to have a product in market which is going to deal with this sensitive issue we have to do proper studies and investigation on the social point of view, cultural point of view,” he said.

The device is still being refined at a laboratory jointly set up by the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Keio University of Japan.

Samani calls his field of study “lovotics” — research into the relationship between robots and humans — and the Kissenger is just one of several devices being developed by his team.

Source: Inquirer.net

US man’s ‘confession’ obituary goes viral

LOS ANGELES—A US man’s self-written obituary, in which he reminisces about the good times – and makes a few confessions, including never having earned the PhD he claimed in life – has gone viral.

Val Patterson, who died of throat cancer last week, professed his abiding love for his wife and remembered the joy of being young in Utah. But he also admitted to some things he shouldn’t have done.

“As it turns out, I AM the guy who stole the safe from the Motor View Drive Inn back in June, 1971. I could have left that unsaid, but I wanted to get it off my chest,” he said in the obituary in the Salt Lake Tribune.

“Also, I really am NOT a PhD. What happened was that the day I went to pay off my college student loan… the girl working there put my receipt into the wrong stack, and two weeks later a PhD diploma came in the mail.

“I didn’t even graduate, I only had about three years of college credit. In fact, I never did even learn what the letters ‘PhD’ even stood for.”

The 59-year-old described himself as an “artist, inventor, business man, ribald comedian, husband, brother, son, cat lover, cynic.

“I had a lot of fun,” he wrote.

“It was an honor for me to be friends with some truly great people. I thank you. I’ve had great joy living and playing with my dog, my cats and my parrot.

“But, the one special thing that made my spirit whole, is my long love and friendship with my remarkable wife, my beloved Mary Jane. I loved her more than I have words to express.”

Nonetheless, he said: “My regret is that I felt invincible when young and smoked cigarettes when I knew they were bad for me.

“Now, to make it worse, I have robbed my beloved Mary Jane of a decade or more of the two of us growing old together and laughing at all the thousands of simple things that we have come to enjoy.”

He concluded: “If you knew me or not, dear reader, I am happy you got this far into my letter. I speak as a person who had a great life to look back on.

“If you knew me, remember me in your own way. If you want to live forever, then don’t stop breathing, like I did.”

The online obituary was linked to a memorial video on the website of a local funeral parlor – which crashed Tuesday under the weight of people trying to log on to see more, at one point receiving 100,000 hits a minute.

Here's the actual obituary written by Val.

I was Born in Salt Lake City, March 27th 1953. I died of Throat Cancer on July 10th 2012. I went to six different grade schools, then to Churchill, Skyline and the U of U. I loved school, Salt Lake City, the mountains, Utah. I was a true Scientist. Electronics, chemistry, physics, auto mechanic, wood worker, artist, inventor, business man, ribald comedian, husband, brother, son, cat lover, cynic. I had a lot of fun. It was an honor for me to be friends with some truly great people. I thank you.  I’ve had great joy living and playing with my dog, my cats and my parrot. But, the one special thing that made my spirit whole, is my long love and friendship with my remarkable wife, my beloved Mary Jane. I loved her more than I have words to express. Every moment spent with my Mary Jane was time spent wisely. Over time, I became one with her, inseparable, happy, fulfilled. I enjoyed one good life. Traveled to every place on earth that I ever wanted to go. Had every job that I wanted to have. Learned all that I wanted to learn. Fixed everything I wanted to fix. Eaten everything I wanted to eat. My life motto was: “Anything for a Laugh”. Other mottos were “If you can break it, I can fix it”, “Don’t apply for a job, create one”. I had three requirements for seeking a great job; 1 – All glory, 2 – Top pay, 3 - No work.

Now that I have gone to my reward, I have confessions and things I should now say. As it turns out, I AM the guy who stole the safe from the Motor View Drive Inn back in June, 1971. I could have left that unsaid, but I wanted to get it off my chest. Also, I really am NOT a PhD. What happened was that the day I went to pay off my college student loan at the U of U, the girl working there put my receipt into the wrong stack, and two weeks later, a PhD diploma came in the mail. I didn’t even graduate, I only had about 3 years of college credit. In fact, I never did even learn what the letters “PhD” even stood for. For all of the Electronic Engineers I have worked with, I’m sorry, but you have to admit my designs always worked very well, and were well engineered, and I always made you laugh at work. Now to that really mean Park Ranger; after all, it was me that rolled those rocks into your geyser and ruined it. I did notice a few years later that you did get Old Faithful working again. To Disneyland – you can now throw away that “Banned for Life” file you have on me, I’m not a problem anymore – and SeaWorld San Diego, too, if you read this.

To the gang: We grew up in the very best time to grow up in the history of America. The best music, muscle cars, cheap gas, fun kegs, buying a car for “a buck a year” -- before Salt Lake got ruined by over population and Lake Powell was brand new. TV was boring back then, so we went outside and actually had lives. We always tried to have as much fun as possible without doing harm to anybody - we did a good job at that.

If you are trying to decide if you knew me, this might help… My father was RD “Dale” Patterson, older brother “Stan” Patterson, and sister “Bunny” who died in a terrible car wreck when she was a Junior at Skyline. My mom “Ona” and brother “Don” are still alive and well. In college I worked at Vaughns Conoco on 45th South and 29th East. Mary and I are the ones who worked in Saudi Arabia for 8 years when we were young. Mary Jane is now a Fitness Instructor at Golds on Van Winkle – you might be one of her students – see what a lucky guy I am? Yeah, no kidding.

My regret is that I felt invincible when young and smoked cigarettes when I knew they were bad for me. Now, to make it worse, I have robbed my beloved Mary Jane of a decade or more of the two of us growing old together and laughing at all the thousands of simple things that we have come to enjoy and fill our lives with such happy words and moments. My pain is enormous, but it pales in comparison to watching my wife feel my pain as she lovingly cares for and comforts me. I feel such the “thief” now - for stealing so much from her - there is no pill I can take to erase that pain.

If you knew me or not, dear reader, I am happy you got this far into my letter. I speak as a person who had a great life to look back on. My family is following my wishes that I not have a funeral or burial. If you knew me, remember me in your own way. If you want to live forever, then don’t stop breathing, like I did.

Source: Inquirer.net, starksfuneral.com

Mormons Use Facebook, Apps to Increase Political Outreach

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints have begun leveraging their evangelizing networks through smartphone apps to help draw support for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign. By employing specialized apps like LDS Tools to gather phone numbers and addresses of Mormon church members, political supporters can cross-check the contact info with voter registration data to contact other Romney backers.

However, Mormon church rules forbid the use of LDS resources for political purposes. Dave Isbell, a Nevada Mormon, tells CNN, the apps are being used despite official church policy.

“The church makes it really easy for you to get a hold of anyone in your ward,” Isbell says. “If you are a Romney supporter in the church, you have an opportunity to talk to everyone in your ward that already has a relationship of trust with you.”

LDS Tools, available for free in the App Store, offers full directories of church members including that of stake and district presidencies. The app even offers event calendar listings and a “birthday list.”

Isbell adds, “I’m sure the campaigns and the church are saying ‘you can’t do that,’ but people will fall on their sword for Mitt Romney and some people will justify the means.”

The Mormon church has also expanded traditional pavement-pounding evangelizing with a virtual experience, now reaching out to people more through social networks, like Facebook and Twitter, than in person.

Traditionally, Mormon church members are expected to spend one to two years of their lives going door-to-door spreading the Gospel. But Elder Erich Kopischke, the head of the Church’s European operation, told The Times that the Internet is proving more effective in getting converts.

“One post on Facebook could reach 900,000 people in an instant,” Kopischke says, arguing it would take many months, if not years, to knock on that many doors.

About half a million people have liked the church’s official Facebook page. The account displays photos and videos of Mormon families and practicing members of the community, as well as polls like, “Why is Jesus Christ Important to You?” and scripture passages as status messages. The official Mormon Twitter account has around 13,000 followers.

The somewhat young religion (founded less than 200 years ago) has seen a dramatic increase in recent years. The census reported 6.1 million Mormons in the U.S. in 2010 — a 45% growth since 2009.

Kopischke adds the practice of “door-knocking” has often been regarded as “aggressive proselytizing” and the web gives believers a more unassuming space to share their religious views.

“If I want to share with you what is really on my heart or that I have observed something, [social networking] is easier than to make the trip,” he says.

This isn’t the first time the Mormon Church has used digital means to connect with others. In 2011, the church launched a multimillion-dollar TV, print and Internet advertising campaign using the tagline, “I’m a Mormon.”

The ads featured people of different races, cultures and lifestyles discussing their personal stories and declaring their faith. The purpose was to help negate prevalent stereotypes of Mormons in America. The ads also encouraged people to go to the official website and share their own stories about being a practicing Mormon.

Since the launch of the campaign and the subsequent website, more than 1 million people have had online conversations with Mormons, the New York Times reports.

Do you think Facebook and Twitter are good forums for discussing religion? Tell us in the comments.

Image courtesy of Flickr, peasap. Source: Mashable

Google Puts Social Twist on Ramadan Traditions

Google is making religion digital for the month of Ramadan with its launch of Islamic-geared YouTube channels and Google+ Hangouts.

For the duration of holy month — when practicing Muslims fast from dawn to sunset — a YouTube channel will broadcast live daily prayers from Mecca.

Another YouTube channel will be dedicated to special religious programming about Islam as well as Arabic soap operas. Google’s official blog reports the channel will make more than 50 Ramadan shows available the same day they air on television.

Studies have shown that the rate of viewing Arabic soap operas has historically risen during Ramadan. Google’s launch of the new channel may help capitalize its marketing with the large global audience during the month.

Additionally, Google+ will host a series of 30 Hangouts featuring celebrity chefs with their favorite Iftar (the sunset meal that breaks the fast) recipes, doctors with tips for eating healthy during Ramadan, poets discussing religious literature and even actors discussing their favorite religious shows.

This is the first time Google has implemented Ramadan into its social platforms.

Image courtesy of Flickr, mishox. Source: Mashable