What we're expecting from Google today

Featured

5 days

Sean Fallon , Nerd Approved

Are you your own worst enemy? If so, the following gadgets might be able to help you overcome some?relatively minor shortcomings. That is to... Read more

2 hrs.

Rosa Golijan

Google I/O, the search engine giant's annual developer conference is taking place in San Francisco, California this week. The show kicks off today, with a keynote event, and I'm here to report live on all that we're expecting Google to unveil,?including its latest and greatest mobile operating system, a new tablet and more.

Here's what we think might be announced.

Android Jelly Bean
Jelly Bean is the code name for latest version of Google's popular mobile operating system. Even though the rumor mill has been steadily churning out little tidbits about this new Android build here and there, we don't really know too much about it.

Word is that Jelly Bean's alternate label is Android 4.1 ??rather than Android 5.0 ??and that it is full of little tweaks, instead of being a total revamp of Ice Cream Sandwich.

It's believed that Jelly Bean will bring improved battery life, a better search function, a native Chrome browser, and something dubbed Google Assistant ??an Android-flavored counterpart to Apple's Siri.

Nexus (7?)?tablet
We've been hearing that Google and hardware maker Asus are working on a tablet for quite a while, and documents discovered by Gizmodo Australia seemingly support everything we think we know about this device.

The documents ??which are allegedly an instruction manual of some sort ??detail that the tablet will be called the "Nexus 7" and that it will be a 7-inch device, with a 1.3Ghz quad-core Tegra 3 processor, GeForce 12-core GPU and 1GB of RAM. The tablet will supposedly?come in 8GB and 16 GB versions, which will be priced at $199 and $249, respectively.?

(Observant sci-fi lovers will note that while the "7" could indicate the screen size, Nexus 7 is the the model of replicant that Deckard himself is suspected of being, in the classic "Blade Runner.")

Chrome OS
Google's been revamping the Chrome OS, particularly its look, and it would make sense if the company were to bring it closer to Android. After all, Apple and Microsoft have taught us that there's something appealing about unified mobile and desktop operating systems, especially as this desktop OS hasn't exactly taken off.

Google Cloud
Google introduced Google Drive, its long-anticipated cloud-storage service, about two months ago.?It wouldn't be surprising if the search engine giant talked about how it plans to integrate the technology into future services or apps.

Google Maps for iOS
As you may know, Apple has ditched Google Maps in iOS 6. Many are hopeful that Google will announce an iOS app which will allow them to continue easily accessing Google Maps in the future. In theory, such an app could include an offline feature similar to the one now offered to Android users.

Google TV
Google TV hasn't been a big hit so far, but Google might be looking to mix things up. How the search engine giant might go about doing that is anybody's guess at the moment ? there could be new hardware, a revamped interface and?appealing content partners. One such partner was announced today: Sirius XM, with its star Howard Stern, will turn up in an app for Google TV.

Google Glass
Google's been pretty shy about showing off its augmented reality glasses, which are part of something dubbed "Project Glass," but perhaps it'll grant developers a closer look at the technology this week.

???
Of course, Google could always throw some curveballs and announce something none of us expected. So for that, keep your eyes glued to our Gadgetbox blog for?live?coverage of the Google I/O keynote. (And if you want to hear some of my personal thoughts on the event, feel free to follow my on Twitter. I'm @rosa on there.)

Want more tech news, silly puns, or amusing links? You'll get plenty of all three if you keep up with Rosa Golijan, the writer of this post, by following her on?Twitter, subscribing to her?Facebook?posts,?or circling her?on?Google+.

nba all star weekend malin akerman jeff carter chomp national enquirer kate gosselin helicopter crash

What does a kiss on the cheek mean - Kiss meanings | Love, Life ...

What does a kiss on the cheek mean? What does it mean if he kisses me on the cheek? Are there hidden meanings to kisses on the cheek? He / she kissed me on the cheek, what does that mean?
A kiss on the cheek can symbolise different things and depends entirely on whether you're in a relationship with the other person or not.

You're dating / in a relationship

A kiss on the cheek can be a fun way of showing affection. It symbolises friendship and friendship is often associated with fun. By him / her kissing you on the cheek it could show that not only?are you lovers / boyfriend and girlfriend, you also have a bond of friendship which is important to any relationship. Friendship makes a relationship even better because it allows you to communicate better, confide in each other deeper, trust each other more and never get bored of spending time together.

You're not in a relationship or dating

• A kiss on the cheek could be a result of him / her having feelings for you but not being sure how you may react if he / she kissed you on the lips. It might be to him / her a quick alternative to the obvious kiss on the lips but providing the same closeness for him / her in that he / she still got to kiss you.
• A kiss on the cheek could also be a really great first kiss as it allows the other person to know that you find interest in him / her without moving too fast.
• A kiss on the lips could be the way he or she greets people in his / her culture as this is often practised as a form of greeting in many cultures or traditions.

ravens ray lewis steven tyler national anthem penn state paterno newt gingrich joe paterno dead

Colon cancer is quickly gaining pace in Kuwait | Kuwait Times

KUWAIT: ?It is very difficult to ignore the facts,? said Dr. Abdullah Al Haddad, Specialist of General Surgery and Colon and Rectum surgery at Dar Al Shifa Hospital. ?Colon cancer is quickly gaining pace as the number one type of cancer found in Kuwait.? ?A patient starts off with fear of diagnosis, and quickly panics or loses hope right after they discover the truth,? he continued. ?What usually works to get them through is by understanding exactly what is happening to them, and the options they have for treatment.?

What is cancer staging all about?
Generally, doctors use staging as a way to assess the required treatment by defining first the extent to which the cancer has spread. Factors taken into account include the size of the tumor, penetration level, effect on adjacent o as well as distant organs, and number of lymph nodes.

On diagnosis & treatment
In terms of diagnosis, the gastroenterologists report is very crucial, as it mainly is used to accurately allocate the lesion or cancer. If the patient has been diagnosed with colorectal cancer, then a CT or MRI will be done before surgery. Apart from colonoscopy and surgery, the other existing diagnostic tools that can be used are virtual colonoscopy, capsule endoscopy, or barium enema.

Most colon cancer cases require surgery, after which the doctor can assess whether the patient requires chemotherapy. The only exception to a change of treatment order is in the case of metastases being present. For rectal cancer, depending on the depth of the tumor and the close proximity to the anus, the decision will be made in terms of giving chemotherapy or radiotherapy before the surgery.

?Here at Dar Al Shifa Hospital we understand that a fundamental comfort factor during a time like this is being sure that treatment is being conducted by the best talent available; and so it is our first priority.? There are a number of advanced methods used in surgical intervention, such as the conducting endoscopy and removal of the tumor through the rectum ? a procedure which is unique to Dar Al Shifa Hospital. Patients usually return to practicing their normal routines within a few days post-operation.

Life after surgery
Post treatment, most people lead normal lives. The rate at which recovery happens depends on a number of factors, mainly starting with the level of advancement in surgery, as well as the patient?s adopted lifestyle after surgery. Patients are advised to do a blood test every three months for 2 years and go for a check-up every 6 months after their surgeries.

?It is important to conquer the fear that comes with these situations, which is achieved by a acquiring knowledge on the matter? continued Dr. Al Haddad. ?At Dar Al Shifa Hospital the doctors are very diligent at helping our patients by explaining the process and what comes with it, ensuring that they feel safe to ask whatever questions they might have.?

Read by 788

?

williams syndrome hoya casa de mi padre

Life: is it inevitable or just a fluke?

* Required fields

* First name

* Last name

* Country

* Email address

* Password Password must contain only letters and numbers, and be at least 8 characters

* Confirm password

oakland pinnacle airlines kansas vs kentucky joe posnanski michael kidd gilchrist national championship calipari

Three Avatar Sequels Filming Back-to-Back?

Fans of James Cameron?s Avatar?have been eagerly awaiting a sequel since the film was released in 2009. Cameron has been teasing us with the slightest details of what the next Pandora-set adventures might involve, but he has been very coy about story specifics and start dates. However, it now looks like Cameron is finally about to start shooting THREE new Avatar movies back-to-back.

Avatar SPOILERS follow.

Sigourney Weaver divulged the details to Showbiz 441 at the premiere of her new Clinton ?inspired series, Political Animals. The actress stated that once she completes work on the series, she will feature in a short run of a Christopher Durang play and then segue into James Cameron?s three Avatar sequels. This again confirms Weaver?s involvement in the Avatar world ? even though her character died in the last film. It should be noted that when the actress was asked about a timeline for the production of these movies, she said that she didn?t know, replying ?I just show up?. However, it does look like a second series of the six-part Political Animals will have to wait until Cameron completes work on this new trilogy.

This mammoth undertaking is probably one of the reasons why Avatar 2 was bumped from its intended Christmas 2014 release date, and it gels with what we heard last month when Cameron said:

?I?m not interested in developing anything. I?m in the Avatar business. Period. That?s it. I?m making Avatar 2, Avatar 3, maybe Avatar 4, and I?m not going to produce other people?s movies for them.?

The move to shoot three Avatar sequels at the same time makes sense for a number of reasons. Avatar wasn?t cheap to produce (over $200 million), and three films would come at a reduced cost if Cameron concentrated on one extended shoot, rather than dismantling everything only to have to rebuild (and re-hire) a few months later. Peter Jackson shot the Lord of the Rings trilogy at the same time, a move which kept costs to a minimum ? and we all know how that turned out. The move also ensures the availability of cast and crew. One blocked time-frame means that you may not have to recast roles, or shoot around actors who are busy elsewhere (hence the reason why Political Animals will have to wait for Weaver).

However, there could be a downside to this plan. Avatar was so successful ($2.7 billion globally) because audiences had never seen anything like it before ? it was a ?game changer?. The effects, coupled with the use of 3D, made it a true cinematic experience, but Cameron risks cheapening the brand, (if you will) by flooding the market with too many Avatar films. Sure, there is pent-up demand for Avatar 2 now, but will fans be so willing to part with their cash to see parts three and four in quick succession?

Screen Rant readers will know that Cameron likes to keep his Avatar cards close to his chest and this should be treated as speculation until it is confirmed or denied by the director. After all, how many times has Tom Arnold said that True Lies 2 was on the way?

Source: Showbiz411

"Follow us if you want to live."

patrice o neal. osteopathy osteopathy diphtheria diphtheria del rio

Romancing the firefly

ScienceDaily (June 26, 2012) ? The twinkling of fireflies heralds summer romance for these magical insects. While courting on-the-wing, male fireflies attract females' attention with bioluminescent flashes.

But new research from biologists at Tufts University's School of Arts and Sciences, published online in Proceedings of the Royal Society -- Biological Sciences, reveals that, after the lights go out, female fireflies prefer substance over flash. They seem to choose mates able to give them the largest "nuptial gift" (a high protein sperm package that helps females produce more eggs) without regard to flashes. Those generous males are also more likely to succeed in becoming the fathers of the next firefly generation.

Previous work on Photinus fireflies shows that females are very picky during the on-wing stage of courtship. These females will only flash a response toward select males that light up with especially attractive courtship flashes. After a lengthy back-and-forth exchange, the flashing stops, the lights go out, and firefly pairs spend the night together.

A night of firefly romance also includes gifts, called spermatophores, that each male donates to his sweetheart. But the next night these females are likely to mate again with a different male.

After a female has mated with several males, the big evolutionary question becomes: which male gets to pass along his genes to the next generation of firefly babies?

"Lots of people don't realize that sexual selection is happening not only before mating, but also during and even after mating," said Professor of Biology Sara Lewis, an expert on the evolutionary process of sexual selection and senior author on the paper. "Focusing on what happens after contact, we wanted to examine how much a male's success -- in both mating and fathering offspring -- depended on his flashes or on his nuptial gift offering."

Lewis and coauthor Adam South, who studied in the Lewis lab and recently received his Ph.D. from Tufts' Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, set up an experiment using infrared video and paternity testing based on firefly DNA to determine what makes certain males more successful after the lights go out.

To get the female fireflies in the mood, the researchers relied on LED lights programmed to make two kinds of flashes. Some females saw only artificial male flashes determined by previous research to be highly attractive to females; others saw unattractive flashes.

Male fireflies were also split into two groups: virgins whose nuptial gifts were large since the males had never mated and males whose spermatophores were smaller because they had mated the previous night. After several minutes of courtship flashing, males and females were put together in pairs, and the Tufts biologists videotaped their close-up courtship behaviors under infrared illumination. Because they take place under cover of darkness, many of these behaviors had never before been observed.

Analysis of hours of firefly video revealed that once a female was in close quarters with a male, she was much more likely to mate with males that had larger nuptial gifts to offer, as determined by the researchers' later examination. The females didn't seem to care what kind of male flashes they had seen.

"We were surprised to discover that attractive flashes only seem to benefit males during the early stages of firefly courtship," said South. "Initially, flashes are important. Female fireflies preferentially respond to males based on temporal flash characteristics. Once males make physical contact, however, females switch to an alternative cue -- one that's related to male nuptial gift size. What makes this especially intriguing is that females have no way to directly evaluate gift size, since it's created and transferred internally."

Furthermore, when females mated sequentially with two different males, paternity testing of their offspring revealed yet another benefit for big gift-givers. Males that gave larger nuptial gifts fathered more of their mate's offspring compared with rival males. South and Lewis say that's probably because larger gifts contain more sperm.

So not unlike human romance, love remains a mystery among fireflies and first impressions are only part of the story. While a female's initial assessment of potential mates is based on males' luminescent flashes, the Tufts research shows that once a pair makes contact, sexy flashes no longer matter. Instead, it's those males that have larger nuptial gifts to give that win out with higher reproductive success. Males with limited resources may face a trade-off between investing either in sexy flashes or in costly gifts.

The work was funded by the National Science Foundation.

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

---

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Tufts University, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Journal Reference:

1. A. South, S. M. Lewis. Determinants of reproductive success across sequential episodes of sexual selection in a firefly. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2012; DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2012.0370

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

madonna super bowl performance superbowl commercials best superbowl commercials madonna half time m.i.a super bowl coin toss madonna super bowl halftime

Retirement Spots With Year-Round Pleasant Weather

Many people dream of a retirement in which they will never again have to shovel snow or defrost a car. But at the same time, not many retirees want to swelter through or pay the air conditioning bills associated with several months' worth of 95-degree days.

To find some places with year-round pleasant weather, U.S. News used National Climatic Data Center figures to find places where the average high temperature in July is less than 90 degrees and the average low in January is above freezing (32 degrees). That's not to say these places have never had a very hot or cold day, but average temperatures generally remain within this range. Here are some places where the weather is typically nice throughout the year:

California

You'll find warm winters and moderate summers in the Los Angeles and Long Beach areas, where January's average lows are in the upper 40s and July's average highs are in the low 80s. "The coast of southern California, San Diego for instance, is characterized by year-round pleasant conditions," says Charles Wax, a meteorology and climatology professor at Mississippi State University and state climatologist for Mississippi. "This area is under the Mediterranean-climate type, which is a moderate climate with a summer dry period. The lack of rainfall in the summer is conducive to outdoor activities, wine-growing, and the movie and air industries."

It's cooler in the San Francisco Bay and Santa Barbara areas, where average temperatures can drop into the lower 40s in winter and hit highs in the low or mid-70s in summer. "Anywhere in California offers relatively mild winters, but the heat in the summer can vary dramatically," says Eugene Cordero, an associate professor of meteorology at San Jose State University. "For example, Sacramento or any inland place in California during the summer can often go over 100 degrees, while San Francisco can be in the 50s and 60s because of the cool clouds from the ocean." Other places with year-round pleasant weather include San Diego, Santa Maria, and Eureka.

Florida

Key West, Tampa, and Palachicola each experience an average high of 90 degrees in July. All three cities have much cooler winters, with an average January low of 65 degrees in Key West, 52 degrees in Tampa, and 43 degrees in Palachicola.

Georgia

In July, Atlanta's average high is 89 degrees. During the winter, the temperature declines to an average low of 34 degrees. David Stooksbury, an associate professor of engineering and atmospheric sciences at the University of Georgia in Athens, says his current city is his first choice for a retirement spot. "Located in the northern Piedmont region of gently rolling hills, the spring and fall seasons are long and pleasant. The winters are mild with an occasional snow," says Stooksbury. "Because of the University of Georgia being located in Athens, the city has many free to inexpensive cultural and academic opportunities. With the growth of the medical program at UGA, medical options are expanding throughout the city."

Hawaii

If you're looking for a place to retire that has consistently pleasant weather, Hawaii is your best bet. In Honolulu, for example, temperatures ranged from an average low of 66 degrees in January to an average high of 88 degrees in July. Temperatures are also consistently pleasant in Hilo, Kahului, and Lihue. "Hawaii does have a seductive temperature range," says Gary Barnes, a meteorology professor at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa. "The air has a soft and wonderful feel." However, housing prices in Hawaii reflect the pleasant climate. "I would not retire in Hawaii simply because I could not begin to afford it," says Barnes. "Cost of living wins out, unfortunately, over Hawaii's great weather."

North Carolina

Summer temperatures in Cape Hatteras hit an average high of 85 degrees in July, which offers plenty of opportunities to visit the impressive Atlantic Ocean beaches and wildlife refuge. January's average low is 39 degrees. "If I had retired in the USA, and based only on weather and leaving out the west coast, Asheville would have been my choice," says Peter Robinson, an emeritus geography professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who is now retired in the UK.

Oregon

Temperatures range from an average low of about 33 degrees in January to an average high of 82 degrees in July in Eugene and Salem. Astoria is generally cooler in the summer (67 degrees) and slightly warmer in the winter (37 degrees).

Puerto Rico

San Juan has a tropical climate that can get very humid in the summer, with an average high of 87 degrees in July. It doesn't cool down much in the winter in this Caribbean island city. January's average low temperature is a pleasant 71 degrees.

South Carolina

Hot summers are common in Charleston, which has a semi-tropical climate. July's average high temperature is 89 degrees, but winters cool down significantly to an average low of 42 degrees.

Texas

Winters are mild in Galveston, where the average January low is a pleasant 50 degrees. Summer can be sweltering, with an average high in July of 89 degrees. John Nielsen-Gammon, an atmospheric sciences professor at Texas A&M University and the Texas State Climatologist, recommends the South Texas coast, from Corpus Christi to Brownsville. "The area is far enough south that it avoids many of the cold-air outbreaks that plague the rest of the central and eastern United States, and it's also along the main path of tropical Atlantic air flowing northward into North America," he says. "This means that the South Texas coast almost always has a decent breeze blowing, even in summertime, making its summer climate similar to that of a Caribbean island."

Washington

Seattle's legendary rainfall is largely confined to the winter months. The city averages just five days of precipitation in both July and August. Most places in Washington have fairly cool summers, with July's average high of 75 in Seattle and just 68 in Quillayute. January lows in both cities are in the mid-30s.

Of course, not every retiree wants to live in a place with placid weather. Some may find the change of seasons and large shifts in weather interesting, and feel like something is missing without them. Nielsen-Gammon has no intention of retiring somewhere with year-round pleasant weather. "I'd much rather be entertained by the weather," he says, suggesting that he might prefer witnessing 50-knot wintertime gales on the Oregon coast, thunderstorms in South Florida, tornado-producing supercells forming over the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, or the steady accumulation of lake-effect snow in Michigan. "Now those would be good weather destinations for retirees," he says.

Twitter: @aiming2retire

tri international criminal court ios 5.1 apple tv update new ipad release pregnant jessica simpson international womens day