Tsunami fears after 8.8 Chile earthquake

By : EVA VERGARA
February 27, 2010 - 9:24PM

A massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake has struck central Chile, shaking the capital for a minute-and-a-half and setting off a tsunami, which triggered international alerts. Buildings collapsed and phone lines and electricity were down, making the extent of the damage difficult to determine. At least 16 people were killed when the earthquake struck, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet announced.

"We have had a huge earthquake," Bachelet said, speaking from an emergency response centre in an appeal for Chileans to remain calm.

"We're doing everything we can with all the forces we have. Any information we will share immediately."

Bachelet said early reports were that six people had been killed, and "without a doubt, with an earthquake of this magnitude, there will be more deaths".

She urged people to avoid travelling in the dark, since traffic lights are down, to avoid causing more fatalities.

The quake hit at 3:34am (1734 AEDT) and was centred 325 kilometres southwest of the capital, Santiago, at a depth of 35 kilometres the US Geological Survey reported.

The epicentre was just 115 kilometres from Concepcion, Chile's second-largest city, where more than 200,000 people live along the Bio Bio river, and 60 miles from the ski town of Chillan, a gateway to Andean ski resorts that was destroyed in a 1939 earthquake.

An Associated Press Television News cameraman said some buildings have collapsed in Santiago, where power was out in parts of the city.

An important church was among the buildings that came down in the central city of Providencia, where window glass shattered into the streets and people ran from multistorey buildings, according to TV Chile.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre issued a warning for Chile and Peru, and a less-urgent tsunami watch for Ecuador, Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica.

It said a tsunami could also hit Hawaii later in the day.

"Sea level readings indicate a tsunami was generated. It may have been destructive along coasts near the earthquake epicentre and could also be a threat to more distant coasts," the centre said.

The US west coast tsunami warning centre said it did not expect a tsunami along the west of the US or Canada but was continuing to monitor the situation.

Australia is also on tsunami watch, with the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) warning of a potential threat to NSW, Queensland, Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island.

"Tsunami waves have been observed on the coast of Chile that may threaten Australia," it said in a statement.

Japan's meteorological agency also warned of a tsunami risk across large areas of the Pacific as US geologists said the risk extended as far as the Antarctic.

"There is a possibility that tsunami will widely occur in the Pacific Ocean," an official for the Japanese agency said.

"We are now checking if tsunami may hit Japanese coastal areas."

The largest earthquake ever recorded struck the same area of Chile on May 22, 1960.

The magnitude-9.5 quake killed 1,655 people and left two million homeless. The tsunami that it caused killed people in Hawaii, Japan and the Philippines and caused damage to the West Coast of the United States.
Source : http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/tsunami-fears-after-88-chile-earthquake-20100227-pa1t.html

European championship 2010 Result : Round of 16 first leg.

Talking about football is never ending, such as the European champions league which lasted just a few days ago. From the previous group stage, each group has passed the top 2 ranked club to compete in the round of 16. Many surprises happen in the group qualifier, one of the biggest is that Juventus did not qualify in the group phase. Now, the competition leaving only 16 teams that must compete strictly.

From the results of matches that have taken place in two phases, most successful hosts to win with a slim margin values, except for AC Milan and Olympiakos respectively defeated by Manc.United and Bordeaux. While CSKA Moscow - Sevilla and Stuttgart - Barcelona had to settle for share points. All the teams are still more likely to qualify to the next round, except for Olympiakos and AC Milan who have to work extra hard.

What's interesting here is the controversial refereeing decision in some games. As the game Porto - Arsenal, the referee approved quickly goals porto players made from a free kick, but Arsenal players have not been in the right position. So is the match between B. Munich - Fiorentina, the referee approved goals Munich players who obviously on Offside position.

In each game, it's natural when controversial decisions are always happening. There are teams who harmed and some are enjoying the benefits. we can do is take a lesson in every mistake that happens.

Former Growing Pains actor Andrew Koenig has been found dead

Joshua Andrew Koenig (pronounced /ˈkeɪnɪɡ/; August 17, 1968 – c. February 25, 2010), also known as Josh Andrew Koenig or Andrew Koenig, was an American character actor, film director, editor and writer. He was the son of actor Walter Koenig known for his role Pavel Chekov in Star Trek.

Career
Koenig played Richard "Boner" Stabone, a recurring role in the first four seasons of the ABC sitcom Growing Pains. From 1985 to 1989 he played best friend to Kirk Cameron's Mike Seaver on the series, which was a Top 10 Nielsen ratings hit. During the same period, he guest starred on episodes of other successful series, the sitcoms My Sister Sam and My Two Dads and the drama 21 Jump Street.

In the early 1990s he provided a voice for the animated series G.I. Joe as Ambush and Night Creeper Leader, and had a minor role as Tumak in "Sanctuary," a 1993 episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Five years before Heath Ledger played the role in the big-budget The Dark Knight, Koenig took the character of The Joker back from the colorful camp of Cesar Romero and Jack Nicholson to the convincingly creepy, maniacal intellect of the graphic novels in the well-received fan film Batman: Dead End (2003). Directed by commercial director Sandy Collora, the short received its first screening at the San Diego Comic-Con International. Director Kevin Smith called it "possibly the truest, best Batman movie ever made".

Onstage, he starred as the M.C. in the 2007 interactive theater play The Boomerang Kid and performed with the improv group Charles Whitman Reilly and Friends.

Though he continued his performing career including acting in the independent film The Theory of Everything (2006), Koenig worked increasingly behind the scenes. He wrote, produced and/or directed the shorts Good Boy (2003) and Woman in a Green Dress and Instinct vs. Reason (2004). Most recently he was working as an editor on a number of films and had been a video producer for the award-winning podcast Never Not Funny (2006-2010). His final role was in the film DaZe: Vol. Too — NonSeNse, in production at the time of his death, with Koenig portraying the Vice Chancellor.

Death
In February 2010, Koenig was reported missing by friends and family. He was last seen near a bakery in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on February 14, and missed a scheduled flight back to the U.S. on February 16. According to his parents, Koenig left evidence that he was depressed prior to his disappearance. On February 25, 2010, it was reported by CNN that his body was found by friends searching for him in Stanley Park in Vancouver. Police later confirmed Koenig's body was found earlier in the day, and Koenig's father told reporters at an evening press conference that his son took his own life.
Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josh_Andrew_Koenig

Sea World Trainer killed

The fatal killer whale attack of SeaWorld Orlando trainer Dawn Brancheau continued to make international news this morning as word spread about the deadly incident at the theme park's Shamu Stadium. Much of the debate on morning news shows centered on what to do with Tilikum, the orca that killed Brancheau and has been linked to two previous deaths since 1991.

A SeaWorld official said Wednesday the animal would not be put down.
Jack Hanna, a well-known animal expert with ties to Central Florida, spoke this morning on national television about the tragedy, saying animal experts such as Brancheau are aware of the risks and benefits of working with live animals.

"The only thing I can compare it to is when the astronauts went to the space station and that tragic thing happened coming back," Hanna said, referring to the 2003 disintegration of the Columbia space shuttle that killed seven astronauts. "Why did we do that? We did that to learn more about space and how that will help us."

This morning, as tourists returned to the park, an announcement was made on the speaker system, apologizing that The Shamu Show would be closed today. Nothing was said about the death.

"It's scary," SeaWorld Orlando visitor April D'Agostino said this morning. "But they know what's at risk when they get in the tank with those whales."

D'Agostino heard the news about the trainer's death on television, as did the Malkins from Asheville, N.C.

"I'm sensing that the mood today is a little more somber," Heidi Malkin said while visiting the park.

Although Malkin and her husband, Dave, heard about Wednesday's accident on television, it didn't preventing them from visiting SeaWorld Orlando.

"We wondered how the park would be different today," Dave Malkin added.

About six television news trucks, most representing local stations, were outside the park before its 9 a.m. opening, but there was otherwise little evidence that anything at the park had changed. Tourist Dennis Diego, 30, of Sao Paolo, Brazil, said he wasn't immediately aware about what happened, even though he was at the park Wednesday and saw helicopters flying overhead. He found out about the attack after he and his wife, Vanessa, 29, returned to their hotel.

The Diegos had seen the same show where the accident happened earlier in the day, but it had not been the best performance.

"Not everything went right," said Dennis Diego. "The girl said the whales were not in the mood for it."

As the park opened today, cars streamed into the parking lot. At the entrance to SeaWorld, a sign informed guests that The Shamu Show would remain closed. In his television appearance, Hanna, director emeritus of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Ohio, said that holding animals in captivity not only conserves the creatures, but it also helps educate people.

"Why do we have whales, as well as elephants and other animals? We have it to educate folks," he said. "It's the last chance we have to save these animals."

SeaWorld said that 12,000-pound Tilikum pulled Brancheau, a 40-year-old veteran animal trainer, into the orca's tank about 2 p.m. Killer whales are the largest species of the dolphin family.

Tilikum, known as "Tilly" dragged Brancheau underwater. Officials said Brancheau, whose dream had been to work at SeaWorld's Shamu Stadium, drowned in the attack.

"Dawn was a beautiful person," Hanna said on CNN. "I did several shows with her…with Tilly even in the background — that type of thing.'' he said. "I could tell you now she would want her work to continue."

Hanna said the previous death linked to Tilikum was a different situation.

In 1999, park officials found the naked body of Daniel Dukes lying across Tilikum's back at SeaWorld Orlando. Dukes apparently had sneaked into SeaWorld after hours to swim with the animals.

"That's like going over the fence at the NASCAR race," Hanna said. "You can't blame SeaWorld for that."

SeaWorld acquired Tilikum after another fatal incident. In 1991, Tilikum and two female killer whales dragged trainer Keltie Byrne underwater, drowning her in front of spectators at Sealand of the Pacific, a defunct aquarium in Victoria, British Columbia.

By Walter Pacheco and Anika Myers Palm, Orlando Sentinel

Source : http://www.latimes.com

Joѕlyn James: Tigeг Woods Mistress #8!

Breaking news: Tiger Woods haѕ bөen linked to a miѕtress! Oh, thаt doesn't nаrrow it dοwn. Hө's been linked tο a porn staг! Wait, that doesn't even do it.

Adult film ѕtar actress Joѕlyn Jaмes, according to spoгts ѕite Deadspin, Fox Nөws аnd tһe Huffington Post, іs the latest woman tο allege an affair witһ Tiger. She would talk about "all the fгeaky sh!t Tiger dug in bed," according to а "co-worker."

James, whose rөal name is Veгonica Siwіk-Daniels, and whο specializes in kinky sex, waѕ Woods' "full-time" mistress, several sources hаve reported. Siwik-Daniels / Joslyn James haѕ providөd "years of faithful seгvice to [Woods'] virulent sexual appetite," according to one woman who knows her. Sounds right uр hіs allөy and like jυst his typө. As in sһe has a pulse.

The tattooed brunette, who is Ьased in Las Vegas, would Ьe - іf trυe - at leaѕt the eighth named go-tο girl linked to the marгied wοrld's #1 golfer. That's right, hө has seven otheг mistresseѕ. That ωe ĸnow. Give it time.

Might ωe sөe anү/all of Tiger's giгls in thө buff? Besideѕ thө adult stаrs?

Porn king Steven Hirsch οf Viνid Entertainment, Joslyn's sοmetime boѕs, has offeгed $1 mіllion tο any οf Woods' mistresses tο star іn а skin flick. Woods ωas previously reported to have slept with Holly Sampson, whosө credits include Descөnt Into Bondage and Diaгy of а Hοrny Housewife.

Perhaps а collaboration with Jaмes, Woods and Sampson is in order?

more info : http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2009/12/joslyn-james-tiger-woods-mistress-8/

Shaun White won gold in the halfpipe

Shaun Roger White (born September 3, 1986) is an American professional snowboarder and skateboarder. He is a two-time Olympic gold medalist. He rides regular stance, twelve and negative three degrees on his board. He is known for his shock of red hair, for which he has become known as "Animal" and "The Flying Tomato".

Personal life
White was born with a Tetralogy of Fallot, a congenital heart defect for which he endured two open-heart operations before the age of one. He stands 5'8" (1.73 m) tall. He spent his formative years riding Okemo Mountain and Bear Mountain, small ski resorts found in Ludlow, Vermont, and the San Bernardino Mountains of Southern California.
Addressing his perception of the nickname "The Flying Tomato", paneramagazine wrote, "he used to embrace it, even wearing headbands with a flying-tomato logo, but he has grown tired of it." During February 2009, Red Bull built White a halfpipe completely out of natural snow in the back country of Colorado on the backside of Silverton Mountain.

Snowboarding career
White has participated in two Winter Olympics in his career. At both the 2006 Winter Olympics and 2010 Winter Olympics, White won gold in the halfpipe. White has also participated in the Winter X Games, where he has won a medal every year since 2002. Including all winter X Games competitions through 2009, his medal count stands at 14 (9 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze), including the first four-peat winner by a male athlete in one discipline, the snowboard slopestyle. White's streak was snapped in 2007 when he lost to Andreas Wiig and Jussi Oksanen, with White taking the bronze. He won the Air & Style Contest in 2003 and 2004.
2010 Winter Olympics
At the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, White again won gold in the halfpipe. In the finals, White recorded a score of 46.8 on his first run, which proved a high enough score to secure the gold medal without a second run. He performed his second run anyway, ending his run with a Double McTwist 1260. This second run resulted in a record score of 48.4 (50 is the highest possible score) enlarging his margin of victory. His nearest competitor won the silver with a points total of 45.0, 3.4 behind White.

Personal information

Full name : Shaun Roger White
Date of birth : September 3, 1986 (1986-09-03) (age 23)
Place of birth : San Diego, California, U.S.
Height : 5 ft 8.5 in (1.74 m)
Weight : 139 pounds (63 kg)

Sport

Country : United States
Sport : Snowboarding, Skateboarding

Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaun_White

Facebook (Data and Fact)

Facebook is a social networking website that is operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. Since September 2006, anyone over the age of 13 with have a valid e-mail address (and not residing in one of the countries where it is banned) can become a Facebook user. Users can add friends and send them messages, and update their personal profiles to notify friends about themselves. Additionally, users can join networks organized by city, workplace, and school or college. The website's name stems from the colloquial name of books given at the start of the academic year by university administrations with the intention of helping students to get to know each other better.

Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook with his college roommates and fellow computer science students Eduardo Saverin, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes while he was a student at Harvard University. The website's membership was initially limited by the founders to Harvard students, but was expanded to other colleges in the Boston area, the Ivy League, and Stanford University. It later expanded further to include (potentially) any university student, then high school students, and, finally, to anyone aged 13 and over. The website currently has more than 400 million active users worldwide.

The original concept for Facebook was borrowed from a product produced by Zuckerberg's prep school Phillips Exeter Academy which for decades published and distributed a printed manual of all students and faculty, unofficially called the "face book".

Facebook has met with some controversy. It has been blocked intermittently in several countries including Syria, China, Vietnam, and Iran. It has also been banned at many places of work to discourage employees from wasting time using the service. Privacy has also been an issue, and it has been compromised several times. Facebook settled a lawsuit regarding claims over source code and intellectual property. The site has also been involved in controversy over the sale of fans and friends.

A January 2009 Compete.com study ranked Facebook as the most used social network by worldwide monthly active users, followed by MySpace. Entertainment Weekly put it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "How on earth did we stalk our exes, remember our co-workers' birthdays, bug our friends, and play a rousing game of Scrabulous before Facebook?" There have recently been reports of Facebook proposing an initial public offering (IPO), i.e. issue equity shares as stock to investors. However, Zuckerberg stresses that it will not be for a few more years, and the company is in no need of additional capital. Also, some analysts fear the Facebook IPO might be a particularly weak one.

Data and Facts :
Founded : Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
Founder : Mark Zuckerberg
Revenue : +/- 300 million USD (2008 est.)
Launched : February 4, 2004
Type of site : Social network service

More Detail : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facebook or http://www.facebook.com

Mass Effect 2

Mass Effect 2 is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare Edmonton, with assistance from BioWare Montreal, and published by Electronic Arts. The game is the sequel to Mass Effect, and was released on PC and Xbox 360 in North America and India on January 26, 2010, Australia on January 28, and Europe and New Zealand on January 29.

New features
A "Prelude to E3" developer diary was released on May 15, 2009. The developers confirmed that the combat system has been upgraded, with everything from the feel of the combat to the A.I. being improved, including realistic damage modeling and downed enemies still continuing to crawl and fight. New to the series is a heavy weapons system that will allow players to "kill [somebody] a thousand times" over. The tone of the game is similar to that of the Wild West, featuring warlords and crime gangs.

Mass Effect 2 also features regenerating health as its primary health mechanic, instead of the ability to heal with "medi-gel" as in the first game. However, "medi-gel" is still used to revive downed allies. In addition, weapons now use ammunition and no longer rely on the overheat system of the first game. This system is functionally identical to the ammunition systems of other third-person shooters, but instead of having differing ammunition types for different weapons, the heat sinks used are universal across most standard weapons.

The characters in Mass Effect 2 are more detailed not only graphically, but technically. In the original Mass Effect, Commander Shepard only had 20 animations for cover, while in Mass Effect 2, the character has over 200. The world is also more open-ended in this installment; uncharted worlds, of which the player could explore for "cheap thrills" in the first game, are now more detailed and include more to explore. The camera positioning for conversations with A.I. characters has also been improved; the previously static camera now moves around to provide "a much needed cinematic touch." Another new feature during conversations is a context-sensitive interrupt system: in addition to Renegade and Paragon dialogue options, Shepard is able to interrupt the dialogue when prompted to do so with on-screen controls, again along Paragon or Renegade paths.

The M35 Mako is not included for planetary exploration in Mass Effect 2 due to criticism of the Mako's poor gameplay sections in the first game. Instead, a Kodiak drop shuttle, which the player cannot directly pilot, transports the player to areas of immediate interest. A new pilotable vehicle called the Hammerhead will be released in a future downloadable content file and is stated by project director Casey Hudson to be more user-friendly.

Unlike Mass Effect, in which there were four weapon types, there are now nineteen different weapons, and the pistol has been broken up into the heavy pistol and the machine pistol. The grenades from the first game do not make a reappearance, but have been replaced by the new heavy weapons. Sub-machine guns make up another new weapon class. Characters are now able to use any weapon their class is trained for at full effect, meaning the player is no longer required or able to invest in weapon skills. Armor skills have also been removed and there are no longer class restrictions on armor. Instead, armor is controlled through purchases of upgrades or individual components and is applied piecemeal, with different armor components providing different bonuses to damage, health, and other skills.
Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_Effect_2

Winter Olympics start despite luge tragedy

The 2010 Winter Olympics opened in spectacular fashion on Saturday but the ceremony was overshadowed by the death of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili.

The Georgian team, wearing black armbands, were given a standing ovation at the ceremony and a minute's silence was impeccably observed in Vancouver. The stunning visual ceremony started with a snowboarder jumping through the Olympic rings. And, despite the tragedy, there was a festive mood inside BC Place Stadium.

The ceremony was held undercover for the first time and officially opened by Canada's Governor General Michaelle Jean. The Olympic flame was jointly lit by four Canadian sports heroes - all-time hockey great Wayne Gretzky, skier Nancy Greene, speed skater Catriona Le May Doan and basketball All-Star Steve Nash after being carried into the arena by paralympian Rick Hansen. However a technical hitch meant only three of the torchbearers were able to light the flame after one of the ice columns failed to appear.

Gretzky then made his way to the harbour to light a second cauldron outside in the harbour area which will burn for the 17 days of competition. IOC president Jacques Rogge, wearing a black tie, prefaced the traditional opening speeches by saying: "It is with great sadness that we acknowledge the tragic loss of Nodar Kumaritashvili of the Georgian team, who passed away this morning in a training accident on the luge track.

"We extend our deepest sympathies to his family, friends, team-mates and country."

And John Furlong, chief executive of Vanoc, the organising committee, said: "May you carry his [Kumaritashvili's], Olympic dream on your shoulders and compete with his spirit in your hearts."

More than 60,000 spectators witnessed 2,500 athletes from 82 nations parade - including debutants Cayman Islands, Colombia, Ghana, Pakistan and Peru. The largest cheer was for the host team Canada, with Clara Hughes, defending 5000m speed skating champion waving the flag and clad all in red. Great Britain were led in by skeleton slider Shelley Rudman resplendent in a white jacket and navy blue trousers and a red beret.

She was the team's only medallist at the 2006 Winter Olympics but at the Vancouver Games the British are being tipped for possibly their best medal haul, if they can beat the four medals won in 1924. The three- hour extravaganza included a cultural segment featuring many of Canada's best-known musical stars - Bryan Adams, Nelly Furtado and KD Lang.

Canada's aboriginal communities were also highlighted with the four chiefs of the First Nations, whose traditional native territory overlaps the Olympic region, part of the official delegation at the ceremony. Among the state-of-the-art special effects included a giant, sparkling polar bear rising from the stadium floor and hovering over performers on a simulated ice floe.

Source : http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/olympic_games/vancouver_2010/8511851.stm

Google Buzz

MOUNTAIN VIEW - According to rumour the day before, the internet giant, Google, finally officially introduced a social networking service with name Google Buzz. This service does not stand alone, but directly integrates with Gmail service started Tuesday (9/2/2010) and will gradually be available for Gmail users around the world.

So, create a Gmail user, just getting ready to try without having to do the installation. Make that do not have a Gmail account, would have to register first to try Google Buzz. Interested nge-Buzz? Learn what it used to Google Buzz.
Google Buzz provides features that allow Gmail users can now quickly share messages, website links, and photos with their fellow colleagues Gmail users. Google's call to share ideas because it provides features such as Twitter messages, but without the character limit. It also features photo and video sharing as well as updates from various services that have been used, such as Twitter, Picasa, Flickr, and Google Reader.

This service is also accessible via smartphones, especially the special applications for Android, an open platform developed by Google. Google Buzz also be integrated into the Google Maps service so that users other activities can be seen on the map.

Strategy does Google is expected to strengthen its competitiveness to face the service of popular social networking sites, like Twitter and Facebook. Moreover, according to comScore research, Gmail is an e-mail service, web-based world's third most popular. The number of users in December 2009 reached 176.5 million. Gmail is still under Microsoft's Hotmail and Yahoo e-mail, each of which occupy the first and second positions with the number of users the world 369.2 million and 303.7 million.

This is not the first time Google released a social networking service. In 2004, Google launched Orkut social networking. In contrast to the social networking giants Facebook and MySpace in the United States, Orkut only managed to reach certain markets of the world, like Brazil. Google also launched Google Wave, a new service which is currently limited to new users who were invited.

Similar steps had already been previously carried out Yahoo! though not yet known how much the level of popularity among users Yahoo! Mail. Yahoo! also tried to take the social networking market with the launch of Yahoo! Meme or Yahoo! Mim to Indonesia
source : kompas.com

Alexander McQueen (RIP)

Lee Alexander McQueen, CBE (16 March 1969 – 11 February 2010) was an English fashion designer known for his unconventional designs and shock tactics. McQueen worked as the head designer at Givenchy for five years before founding the Alexander McQueen and McQ labels. McQueen's dramatic designs, worn by celebrities including Rihanna, Björk and Lady Gaga, met with critical acclaim and earned him the British Designer of the Year award four times.
McQueen's death was announced on the afternoon of 11 February 2010. He was found dead that morning by his housekeeper at his home on Green Street, London W1. Paramedics were called; they pronounced him dead at the scene.
McQueen died days before London Fashion Week, though he was not scheduled to show, and nine days after the death of his mother. British tabloid The Sun has reported that McQueen was found hanged, but this has not been confirmed. The police have stated that the death was not suspicious, but have not confirmed that the death was a suicide.

On behalf of Lee McQueen's family, Alexander McQueen today announces the tragic news that Lee McQueen, the founder and designer of the Alexander McQueen brand has been found dead at his home. At this stage it is inappropriate to comment on this tragic news beyond saying that we are devastated and are sharing a sense of shock and grief with Lee's family.
Lee's family has asked for privacy in order to come to terms with this terrible news and we hope the media will respect this.

—Alexander McQueen Office, Official Website, 11 February 2010-

On 3 February 2010, he wrote on his Twitter page that his mother had died the day before, adding: "RIP mumxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx." Four days later he wrote that he had had an "awful week" but said "friends have been great", adding: "now i have to some how pull myself together". His mother's funeral took place on 12 February 2010.

McQueen is survived by his father and three sisters, Janet McQueen, Tracey Chapman and Jacqui McQueen, and brothers Tony and Michael McQueen. A post-mortem is scheduled to take place on 15 February, and a coroner's inquest later that week.
source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_McQueen

Super Bowl

The Super Bowl has been the championship game of the National Football League (NFL), the premier association of professional American football, since 1967. It was first played on January 15, 1967 as part of a merger agreement between the NFL and the then rival league, the American Football League (AFL). It was agreed that the two leagues’ champion teams would play in an AFL–NFL World Championship Game, until the merger was consummated. After the merger of the two leagues in 1970, each league became a "conference", and the game was played between conference champions.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have won six Super Bowls, while the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers have each won five. Seventeen other NFL franchises have won at least one Super Bowl. Only four active NFL franchises have not appeared in the Super Bowl: the Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans. The Lions are the only NFC team yet to play in one, the other three are in the AFC. The Browns and Lions have both won NFL championships prior to the Super Bowl era, while the Jaguars (who joined the NFL in 1995) and Texans (2002) joined the league after the Super Bowl era began.

Lamar Hunt, former owner of the Kansas City Chiefs and founding member of the American Football League, coined the name Super Bowl after watching his children playing with a Super Ball. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather than the year in which it is held. Super Bowl I was played in 1967 to determine the championship of the regular season played in 1966, and Super Bowl XLIV was played on February 7, 2010 to determine the champion of the 2009 regular season.

In most years, the Super Bowl is the most-watched American television broadcast. In February 2010, Super Bowl XLIV became the most-watched television program ever, drawing an average audience of 106.5 million viewers and taking over the spot held for 27 years by the final episode of M*A*S*H. Exclusive television broadcast rights for the Super Bowl rotate each year among three of the four major American television networks: CBS, Fox, ABC and NBC. Because of its high viewership, commercial airtime for the Super Bowl broadcast is the most expensive of the year. Due to the high cost of investing in advertising on the Super Bowl, companies regularly develop their most expensive advertisements for this broadcast. As a result, watching and discussing the broadcast’s commercials has become a significant aspect of the event.

Many popular singers and musicians have performed during the event's pre-game and halftime ceremonies. The day on which the Super Bowl is played is now considered a de facto American national holiday, called Super Bowl Sunday. Super Bowl Sunday is the second-largest day for U.S. food consumption, after Thanksgiving Day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl

Urban Dictionary

Urban Dictionary is a Web-based dictionary of slang words and phrases. As of 2009, the site contains over four million definitions. Submissions are regulated by volunteer editors and rated by site visitors. Time's Anita Hamilton placed Urban Dictionary on her 50 best websites of 2008 list.

History
The site was founded in 1999 by Aaron Peckham while he was a freshman computer science major at California Polytechnic State University. One of the first definitions on the site was, "the man", referring to, "the head of the establishment put in place to 'bring us down.'”

Content
The definitions on Urban Dictionary are meant to be those of slang or subculture words, phrases, and phenomena not found in standard dictionaries. Most words have multiple definitions, usage examples, and tags.
Racist, homophobic or sexist terms are acceptable as long as their definitions only document the use of such slurs and are not themselves abusive. Site guidelines recommend submitters and volunteer editors shun definitions that include in-jokes, personal references, non-celebrities, nonsense, advertisements, or descriptions of sexual violence.

Quality control
Quality is regulated democratically at two levels. First, registered users vote to accept or reject newly submitted definitions. Definitions appear in the dictionary after receiving a sufficient differential of "accept" over "reject" votes.
Secondly, definitions already in the dictionary can be voted "up" or "down" by any site visitor. The definitions appear in "descending order" of highest gross votes.

Traffic and users
As of April 2009, Urban Dictionary has over 4 million definitions, with an average of 2,000 being submitted every day. The site receives approximately 15 million unique visitors per month, with 80% of users being younger than 25. Urban Dictionary's Alexa rating is 653, with a rating of 291 in the United States and 18,881 sites linking in.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_Dictionary
more example visit www.urbandictionary.com

Oscar Nominations 2010

Academy Awards or the most familiar called Oscar will be back held on March 6, 2010 at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, Los Angeles and California. While the 2010 Oscar nominations announcement was announced at Feberuari 2, 2010 in Samuel Goldwyn Theater Beverly Hills, California, by Tom Sherak, president of the Academy, and actress Anne Hathaway. Here is a list of 2010 Oscar nominations will be fighting Oscar in 2010 that the announcement will take place on March 6 Future.

Here is the FULL LIST of the Oscars 2010 Nominees. Who among these Oscars 2010 nominations are your bets to win the Oscars 2010 Award?

Best actor in a leading role Oscars 2010 nominees

• Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart” (Fox Searchlight)
• George Clooney in “Up in the Air” (Paramount in association with Cold Spring Pictures and DW Studios)
• Colin Firth in “A Single Man” (The Weinstein Company)
• Morgan Freeman in “Invictus” (Warner Bros.)
• Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker” (Summit Entertainment)

Best actor in a supporting role Oscars 2010 nominees

• Matt Damon in “Invictus” (Warner Bros.)
• Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger” (Oscilloscope Laboratories)
• Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station” (Sony Pictures Classics)
• Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones” (DreamWorks in association with Film4, Distributed by Paramount)
• Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds” (The Weinstein Company)

Best actress in a leading role Oscars 2010 nominees

• Sandra Bullock in “The Blind Side” (Warner Bros.)
• Helen Mirren in “The Last Station” (Sony Pictures Classics)
• Carey Mulligan in “An Education” (Sony Pictures Classics)
• Gabourey Sidibe in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” (Lionsgate)
• Meryl Streep in “Julie & Julia” (Sony Pictures Releasing)

Best actress in a supporting role Oscars 2010 nominees

• Penélope Cruz in “Nine” (The Weinstein Company)
• Vera Farmiga in “Up in the Air” (Paramount in association with Cold Spring Pictures and DW Studios)
• Maggie Gyllenhaal in “Crazy Heart” (Fox Searchlight)
• Anna Kendrick in “Up in the Air” (Paramount in association with Cold Spring Pictures and DW Studios)
• Mo’Nique in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” (Lionsgate)

Best animated feature film of the year Oscars 2010 nominees:

• “Coraline” (Focus Features) Henry Selick
• “Fantastic Mr. Fox” (20th Century Fox) Wes Anderson
• “The Princess and the Frog” (Walt Disney) John Musker and Ron Clements
• “The Secret of Kells” (GKIDS) Tomm Moore
• “Up” (Walt Disney) Pete Docter

Best in art direction Oscars 2010 nominees:

• “Avatar” (20th Century Fox) Art Direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg, Set Decoration: Kim Sinclair
• “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” (Sony Pictures Classics) Art Direction: Dave Warren and Anastasia Masaro, Set Decoration: Caroline Smith
• “Nine” (The Weinstein Company) Art Direction: John Myhre, Set Decoration: Gordon Sim
• “Sherlock Holmes” (Warner Bros.) Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood, Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
• “The Young Victoria” (Apparition) Art Direction: Patrice Vermette, Set Decoration: Maggie Gray

Best in cinematography Oscars 2010 nominees:

• “Avatar” (20th Century Fox) Mauro Fiore
• “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” (Warner Bros.) Bruno Delbonnel
• “The Hurt Locker” (Summit Entertainment) Barry Ackroyd
• “Inglourious Basterds” (The Weinstein Company) Robert Richardson
• “The White Ribbon” (Sony Pictures Classics) Christian Berger

Best in costume design Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Bright Star” (Apparition) Janet Patterson
• “Coco before Chanel” (Sony Pictures Classics) Catherine Leterrier
• “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” (Sony Pictures Classics) Monique Prudhomme
• “Nine” (The Weinstein Company) Colleen Atwood
• “The Young Victoria” (Apparition) Sandy Powell

Best Director Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Avatar” (20th Century Fox) James Cameron
• “The Hurt Locker” (Summit Entertainment) Kathryn Bigelow
• “Inglourious Basterds” (The Weinstein Company) Quentin Tarantino
• “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” (Lionsgate) Lee Daniels
• “Up in the Air” (Paramount in association with Cold Spring Pictures and DW Studios) Jason Reitman

Best documentary feature film Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Burma VJ” (Oscilloscope Laboratories), A Magic Hour Films Production Anders Østergaard and Lise Lense-Møller
• “The Cove” (Roadside Attractions), An Oceanic Preservation Society Production Nominees to be determined
• “Food, Inc.” (Magnolia Pictures) A Robert Kenner Films Production Robert Kenner and Elise Pearlstein
• “The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers”, A Kovno Communications Production Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith
• “Which Way Home” A Mr. Mudd Production Rebecca Cammisa

Best documentary short subject Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province”, A Downtown Community Television Center Production Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill
• “The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner”, A Just Media Production Daniel Junge and Henry Ansbacher
• “The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant” A Community Media Production Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert
• “Music by Prudence” An iThemba Production Roger Ross Williams and Elinor Burkett
• “Rabbit à la Berlin” (Deckert Distribution) An MS Films Production Bartek Konopka and Anna Wydra

Best in film editing Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Avatar” (20th Century Fox) Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron
• “District 9″ (Sony Pictures Releasing) Julian Clarke
• “The Hurt Locker” (Summit Entertainment) Bob Murawski and Chris Innis
• “Inglourious Basterds” (The Weinstein Company) Sally Menke
• “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” (Lionsgate) Joe Klotz

Best foreign language film of the year Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Ajami”(Kino International) An Inosan Production Israel
• “El Secreto de Sus Ojos” (Sony Pictures Classics) A Haddock Films Production Argentina
• “The Milk of Sorrow” A Wanda Visión/Oberon Cinematogràfica/Vela Production Peru
• “Un Prophète” (Sony Pictures Classics) A Why Not/Page 114/Chic Films Production France
• “The White Ribbon” (Sony Pictures Classics) An X Filme Creative Pool/Wega Film/Les Films du Losange/Lucky Red Production Germany

Best in Makeup Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Il Divo” (MPI Media Group through Music Box) Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
• “Star Trek” (Paramount and Spyglass Entertainment) Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow
• “The Young Victoria” (Apparition) Jon Henry Gordon and Jenny Shircore

Best in music written for motion pictures Oscars 2010 Nominees (Original score) :

• “Avatar” (20th Century Fox) James Horner
• “Fantastic Mr. Fox” (20th Century Fox) Alexandre Desplat
• “The Hurt Locker” (Summit Entertainment) Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders
• “Sherlock Holmes” (Warner Bros.) Hans Zimmer
• “Up” (Walt Disney) Michael Giacchino

Best in music written for motion pictures Oscars 2010 Nominees (Original song) :

• “Almost There” from “The Princess and the Frog” (Walt Disney) Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
• “Down in New Orleans” from “The Princess and the Frog” (Walt Disney) Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
• “Loin de Paname” from “Paris 36″ (Sony Pictures Classics) Music by Reinhardt Wagner. Lyric by Frank Thomas
• “Take It All” from “Nine” (The Weinstein Company) Music and Lyric by Maury Yeston
• “The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)” from “Crazy Heart” (Fox Searchlight) Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett

Best motion picture of the year Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Avatar” (20th Century Fox) A Lightstorm Entertainment Production James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers
• “The Blind Side” (Warner Bros.) An Alcon Entertainment Production Nominees to be determined
• “District 9″ (Sony Pictures Releasing) A Block/Hanson Production Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers
• “An Education” (Sony Pictures Classics) A Finola Dwyer/Wildgaze Films Production Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers
• “The Hurt Locker” (Summit Entertainment) A Voltage Pictures Production Nominees to be determined
• “Inglourious Basterds” (The Weinstein Company) A Weinstein Company/Universal Pictures/A Band Apart/Zehnte Babelsberg Production Lawrence Bender, Producer
• “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” (Lionsgate) A Lee Daniels Entertainment/Smokewood Entertainment Production Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers
• “A Serious Man” (Focus Features) A Working Title Films Production Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers
• “Up” (Walt Disney)A Pixar Production Jonas Rivera, Producer
• “Up in the Air” (Paramount in association with Cold Spring Pictures and DW Studios) A Montecito Picture Company Production Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers

Best animated short film Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “French Roast”A Pumpkin Factory/Bibo Films Production Fabrice O. Joubert
• “Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty” (Brown Bag Films) A Brown Bag Films Production Nicky Phelan and Darragh O’Connell
• “The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte)” A Kandor Graphics and Green Moon Production Javier Recio Gracia
• “Logorama” (Autour de Minuit) An Autour de Minuit Production Nicolas Schmerkin
• “A Matter of Loaf and Death” (Aardman Animations) An Aardman Animations Production Nick Park

Best live action short film Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “The Door” (Network Ireland Television) An Octagon Films Production Juanita Wilson and James Flynn
• “Instead of Abracadabra” (The Swedish Film Institute) A Directörn & Fabrikörn Production Patrik Eklund and Mathias Fjellström
• “Kavi” A Gregg Helvey Production Gregg Helvey
• “Miracle Fish” (Premium Films) A Druid Films Production Luke Doolan and Drew Bailey
• “The New Tenants” A Park Pictures and M & M Production Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson

Best in sound editing Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Avatar” (20th Century Fox) Christopher Boyes and Gwendolyn Yates Whittle
• “The Hurt Locker” (Summit Entertainment) Paul N.J. Ottosson
• “Inglourious Basterds” (The Weinstein Company) Wylie Stateman
• “Star Trek” (Paramount and Spyglass Entertainment) Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin
• “Up” (Walt Disney) Michael Silvers and Tom Myers

Best in sound mixing Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Avatar” (20th Century Fox) Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson and Tony Johnson
• “The Hurt Locker” (Summit Entertainment) Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett
• “Inglourious Basterds” (The Weinstein Company) Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti and Mark Ulano
• “Star Trek” (Paramount and Spyglass Entertainment) Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson and Peter J. Devlin
• “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” (DreamWorks and Paramount in association with Hasbro, Distributed by Paramount) Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers and Geoffrey Patterson

Best in visual effects Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “Avatar” (20th Century Fox) Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones
• “District 9″ (Sony Pictures Releasing) Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken
• “Star Trek” (Paramount and Spyglass Entertainment) Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton

Best in Adapted screenplay Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “District 9″ (Sony Pictures Releasing) Written by Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell
• “An Education” (Sony Pictures Classics) Screenplay by Nick Hornby
• “In the Loop” (IFC Films) Screenplay by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche
• “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” (Lionsgate) Screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher
• “Up in the Air” (Paramount in association with Cold Spring Pictures and DW Studios) Screenplay by Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner

Best in Original screenplay Oscars 2010 Nominees:

• “The Hurt Locker” (Summit Entertainment) Written by Mark Boal
• “Inglourious Basterds” (The Weinstein Company) Written by Quentin Tarantino
• “The Messenger” (Oscilloscope Laboratories) Written by Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman
• “A Serious Man” (Focus Features) Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
• “Up” (Walt Disney) Screenplay by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter - Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy

More Information : www.oscar.go.com

Norman Rockwell

Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was a 20th-century American painter and illustrator. His works enjoy a broad popular appeal in the United States, where Rockwell is most famous for the cover illustrations of everyday life scenarios he created for The Saturday Evening Post magazine over more than four decades. Among the best-known of Rockwell's works are the Willie Gillis series, Rosie the Riveter (although his Rosie was reproduced less than others of the day), Saying Grace (1951), and the Four Freedoms series. He is also noted for his work for the Boy Scouts of America (BSA); producing covers for their publication Boys' Life, calendars, and other illustrations.

Rockwell's influence

• In the film Empire of the Sun, a young boy (played by Christian Bale), is put to bed by his loving parents in a scene also inspired by a Rockwell painting—a reproduction of which is later kept by the young boy during his captivity in a prison camp. (Freedom from Fear, 1943).
• The 1994 film Forrest Gump includes a shot in a school that re-creates Rockwell's "Girl with Black Eye" with young Forrest in place of the girl. Much of the film drew heavy visual inspiration from Rockwell's art.
• In the film Lilo & Stitch, the end credits include a parody of Rockwell's Thanksgiving illustration. The participants in the dinner include three aliens, a native Hawaiian woman and child, and an African-American man. (Freedom from Want, 1943).
• The 1988 film Funny Farm featured a scheme concocted by a homeowner (played by Chevy Chase) where redneck townsfolk are bribed to act like the characters of Norman Rockwell's paintings to create the illusion of ideal small-town American life, making the area more appealing to prospective buyers.
• In the film The Polar Express, there appears one of the Rockwells' Saturday Evening Post covers, The Discovery (Boy Discovering Santa Suit).
• Film director George Lucas owns Rockwell's original of The Peach Crop, and his colleague Steven Spielberg owns a sketch of Rockwell's Triple Self-Portrait. Each of the artworks hangs in the respective filmmakers' workspaces. Rockwell is a major character in an episode of Lucas’ Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, “Passion for Life.”
• In 2005, there was great controversy when Target Co. sold Marshall Field's to Federated Department Stores and the Federated discovered a reproduction of Rockwell's The Clock Mender, which depicted the great clocks of the Marshall Field and Company Building on display. Rockwell had donated the painting depicted on the cover of the November 3, 1945 Saturday Evening Post to the store in 1948.
• A Thanksgiving dinner scene in director Ridley Scott's 2007 film American Gangster emulates Rockwell's classic painting "Freedom from Want".
• Stand-up comedian Christopher Titus performed a one-man show early in his career entitled "Norman Rockwell is Bleeding," which revolved around the comedian's dysfunctional childhood and family. He chose the title based on his experiences being at odds with the idealized images of Rockwell's works.
• Writer Dean Koontz describes a scene of a boy and his dog sitting side by side surfing the internet as a Norman Rockwell moment of the twenty-first century in his novel Relentless.

Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Rockwell

Beyonce

R & B singer who sometimes become actress Beyoncé Knowles has managed to make history at the Grammy Awards with the door to the prestigious Grammy Awards worldwide organization of this music, with 6 trophies including best song Grammy in 2010.

Singles 28-year old singer who scored 10 nominations, namely track Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) has succeeded to the song of Lady Gaga, Maxwell, Kings of Leon and beat 8 times nominated in the categories of best Taylor Swift song award this year very human world of music desired.
Beyonce's Grammy win in the category best song is also due to the contribution of the three songwriters who helped write the other hand, Thaddis Harrell, Terius Nash and Christopher Stewart. Beyoncé, but it was not until the Grammy stage is due to the trophies were busy preparing for a concert to receive.

Single Ladies song is not the only trophy won best song of the year, but also produces trophies Best Solo R & B Song and Best Female Singer Beyonce. The wife of Jay-Z is also earn trophies R & B Album, Best Contemporary Album I Am ... Shasha Fierce and the category Best R & B singer of the traditional cover for his song "At Last.
Beyonce also a surprise with the best success as a singer for the pop category with the theme song baladnya Hello. With the acquisition of the six trophies, it's no wonder Beyonce is registered as a woman who won the Grammy, the most in a single day of the 52-year history of

Doppelgänger

A doppelgänger is the ghostly double of a living person, a sinister form of bilocation.

In the vernacular, the word "doppelgänger" has come to refer (as in German) to any double or look-alike of a person. The word is also used to describe the sensation of having glimpsed oneself in peripheral vision, in a position where there is no chance that it could have been a reflection. They are generally regarded as harbingers of bad luck. In some traditions, a doppelgänger seen by a person's friends or relatives portends illness or danger, while seeing one's own doppelgänger is an omen of death. In Norse mythology, a vardøger is a ghostly double who precedes a living person and is seen performing their actions in advance.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doppelganger

iPad

Apple Inc. boss., Steve Jobs, introduced the latest model of tablet computer, iPad. For work, iPad mobile technology devices in the third category, that is not just smart phones, and also not just laptops, but between the two.

Introduced in an exhibition in San Francisco, Wednesday, January 27, 2010, iPad will be sold with prices starting at U.S. $ 499 (about USD 4.7 million). Price much, much lower than analysts' estimates, ie U.S. $ 1000. Apple plans to begin selling iPad within two months.
According to Jobs, iPad would be helpful to read books, play video games and watch videos. Considered, this last tablet computer "will feel more intimate than a laptop and have capacity for more than a smart phone."
iPad has a relatively light weight, which is only 1.5 pounds (about 680 grams) and features a touch screen technology, the largest 9.7 inches diagonally. These computers are sold with hard disk services vary, ranging from 16, 32, 65 GB and has Wi-Fi and integrated Bluetooth.

According to Jobs, iPad has battery life of up to 10 hours and to be able to stand up to a month without pay.
Raven Zachary, an observer of the Group 451, the replacement rate is besutan Apple laptop, especially since Apple also sells a pool complete with built-in keyboard.

However, Forrester Research analyst James McQuivey, said he was convinced that iPad able to offer additional features to convince consumers to buy new gadgets.
McQuivey criticized the iPad has some weaknesses, such as displaying less social characteristics, such as how to share photos, home movies, and books, the recommendations of the users.

2010 Haiti earthquake

The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake. Its epicentre was near the town of Léogâne, approximately 25 km (16 miles) west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time (21:53 UTC) on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks measuring 4.5 or greater had been recorded. An estimated three million people were affected by the quake; Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive stated on 3 February 2010 that 200,000 people had been identified as dead and and estimated that 300,000 injured had been treated. Bellerive also estimated that 250,000 residences and 30,000 commercial buildings had collapsed or were severely damaged.

The earthquake caused major damage to Port-au-Prince, Jacmel and other settlements in the region. Many notable landmark buildings were significantly damaged or destroyed, including the Presidential Palace, the National Assembly building, the Port-au-Prince Cathedral, and the main jail. Among those killed were Archbishop of Port-au-Prince Monsignor Joseph Serge Miot, and opposition leader Micha Gaillard. The headquarters of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), located in the capital, collapsed, killing many, including the Mission's Chief, Hédi Annabi.

Many countries responded to appeals for humanitarian aid, pledging funds and dispatching rescue and medical teams, engineers and support personnel. Communication systems, air, land, and sea transport facilities, hospitals, and electrical networks had been damaged by the earthquake, which hampered rescue and aid efforts; confusion over who was in charge, air traffic congestion, and problems with prioritisation of flights further complicated early relief work. Port-au-Prince's morgues were quickly overwhelmed; tens of thousands of bodies were buried in mass graves. As rescues tailed off, supplies, medical care and sanitation became priorities. Delays in aid distribution led to angry appeals from aid workers and survivors, and some looting and sporadic violence were observed.

On 22 January the United Nations noted that the emergency phase of the relief operation was drawing to a close, and on the following day the Haitian government officially called off the search for survivors.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Haiti_earthquake

Grammy Award 52

Grammy Award 52 was organized successfully. A number of singers selected to be the best in this prestigious event. Curious, who has managed to bring the trophy singer in this musical field?

Sexy singer Beyonce won best R & B singer appears Grammy Award in through the song 'Single Ladies'. While the young singer Taylor Swift was assigned to the singer the best female country performance through the 'White Horse'.
And here is a complete list of winners of the 2010 Grammy Award :

• Female R&B Vocal Performance: Beyoncé, Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)
• Male R&B Vocal Performance: Maxwell, "Pretty Wings"
• Pop Vocal Album: The E.N.D., The Black Eyed Peas
• Male Pop Vocal Performance: Jason Mraz, "Make It Mine"
• Pop Performance by a Duoor Group With Vocals: The Black Eyed Peas, "I Gotta Feeling"
• R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals: Jamie Foxx and T-Pain, "Blame It"
• Traditional R&B Vocal Performance: Beyoncé, "At Last"
• R&B Song: "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", Beyoncé
• R&B Album: Blacksummers' Night, Maxwell
• Female Country Vocal Performance: "White Horse," Taylor Swift
• Male Country Vocal Performance: "Sweet Thing," Keith Urban
• Dance Recording: "Poker Face," Lady Gaga
• Electronic/Dance Album: The Fame, Lady Gaga
• Urban/Alternative Performance: India.Arie and Dobet Gnahore, "Pearls"
• Rap Solo Performance: Jay-Z, "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)"
• Rap Performance by a Duo or Group: "Crack a Bottle," Eminem, Dr. Dre and 50 Cent
• Rap Song: "Run This Town," Jay-Z, Rihanna and Kanye West
• Rap Album: Relapse, Eminem
• Country Collaboration With Vocals: "I Told You So," Carrie Underwood and Randy Travis
• Country Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals: Lady Antebellum, "I Run to You"
• Country Instrumental Performance: "Producer's Medley," Steve Wariner
• New Age Album: Prayer for Compassion, David Darling
• Contemporary Jazz Album: 75, Joe Zawinul & the Zawinul Syndicate
• Jazz Vocal Album: Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman, Kurt Elling
• Improvised Jazz Solo: "Dancin' 4 Chicken," Terence Blanchard, soloist
• Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group: Five Piece Band—Live, Chick Corea and John McLaughlin Five Peace Band
• Large Jazz Ensemble Album: Book One, New Orleans Jazz Orchestra
• Latin Jazz Album: Juntos Para Siempre, Bebo Valdés and Chucho Valdés
• Short Form Music Video: "Boom Boom Pow," The Black Eyed Peas
• Long Form Music Video: "The Beatles Love—All Together Now," Various Artists
• Gospel Performance: "Wait on the Lord," Donnie McClurkin featuring Karen Clark Sheard
• Gospel Song: "God in Me," Mary Mary featuring Kierra "KiKi" Sheard
• Rock or Rap Gospel Album: Live Revelations, Third Day
• Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album: The Power of One, Israel Houghton
• Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album: Jason Crabb, Jason Crabb
• Traditional Gospel Album: Oh Happy Day, Various Artists
• Contemporary R&B Gospel Album: Audience of One, Heather Headley
• Latin Pop Album: Sin Frenos, La Quinta Estación
• Latin Rock, Alternative or Urban Album: Los De Atras Vienen Conmigo, Calle 13
• Tropical Latin Album: Ciclos, Luis Enrique
• Regional Mexican Album: Necesito De Ti, Vicente Fernández
• Tejano Album: Borders y Bailes, Los Texmaniacs
• Norteño Album: Tu Noche Con...Los Tigres Del Norte, Los Tigres Del Norte
• Banda Album: Tu Esclavo y Amo, Lupillo Rivera
• Americana Album: Electric Dirt, Levon Helm
• Bluegrass Album: The Crow/New Songs for the Five-String Banjo, Steve Martin
• Traditional Blues Album: A Stranger Here, Ramblin' Jack Elliott
• Contemporary Blues Album: Already Free, The Derek Trucks Band
• Traditional Folk Album: High Wide & Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project, Loudon Wainwright III
• Contemporary Folk Album: Townes, Steve Earle
• Hawaiian Music Album: Masters of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar, Volume 2, Various Artists
• Native American Music Album: Spirit Wind North, Bill Miller
• Zydeco or Cajun Music Album: Lay Your Burden Down, Buckwheat Zydeco
• Reggae Album: Mind Control—Acoustic, Stephen Marley
• Musical Show Album: West Side Story
• Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: Slumdog Millionaire
• Score Soundtrack Album tor Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: Up, Michael Giacchino
• Song Written for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Jai Ho" (from Slumdog Millionaire), A.R. Rahman, Sukhvinder Singh, Tanvi Shah, Mahalaxmi Iyer and Vijay Prakash
• Instrumental Composition: Married Life (from Up), Michael Giacchino
• Instrumental Arrangement: "West Side Story Medley," Bill Cunliffe
• Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s): "Quiet Nights," Diana Krall
• Recording Package: Everything That Happens Will Happen Today, David Byrne and Brian Eno
• Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package: Neil Young Archives Vol. I (1963–1972), Neil Young
• Album Notes: The Complete Louis Armstrong Decca Sessions (1935-1946), Louis Armstrong
• Historical Album: The Complete Chess Masters (1950-1967), Little Walter
• Engineered Album, Non-Classical: Ellipse, Imogen Heap
• Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: Brendan O'Brien
• Remixed Recording, Non-Classical: "When Love Takes Over" (Electro Extended Remix), David Guetta featuring Kelly Rowland
• Surround Sound Album: Transmigration, Robert Spano, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Choruses
• Engineered Album, Classical: Mahler: Symphony No. 8; Adagio From Symphony No. 10, Michael Tilson Thomas and San Francisco Symphony
• Producer of the Year, Classical: Steven Epstein
• Classical Album: Mahler: Symphony No. 8; Adagio From Symphony No. 10
• Orchestral Performance: Boston Symphony Orchestra; Tanglewood Festival Chorus, Ravel: Daphnis et Chloé
• Opera Recording: Britten: Billy Budd, London Symphony Orchestra; Gentlemen of the London Symphony Chorus
• Choral Performance: Mahler: Symphony No. 8; Adagio From Symphony No. 10, Laura Claycomb, Anthony Dean Griffey, Elza van den Heever, Katarina Karnéus, Quinn Kelsey, James Morris, Yvonne Naef and Erin Wall; San Francisco Symphony; Pacific Boychoir, San Francisco Symphony Chorus and San Francisco Girls Chorus
• Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (With Orchestra): Prokofiev: Piano Concertos Nos. 2 & 3, Philharmonia Orchestra
• Instrumental Soloist Performance (Without Orchestra): Journey to the New World, Sharon Isbin
• Chamber Music Performance: Intimate Letters, Emerson String Quartet
• Small Ensemble Performance: Lang, David: The Little Match Girl Passion, Ars Nova Copenhagen & Theatre of Voices
• Classical Vocal Performance: Renée Fleming, Verismo Arias
• Classical Contemporary Composition: Higdon, Jennifer: Percussion Concerto, Jennifer Higdon
• Classical Crossover Album: Yo-Yo Ma & Friends: Songs of Joy and Peace, Yo-Yo Ma