Sony Betting That People Want To Watch 4K TV, Have Their Every Move Tracked… And Play Tennis

The 85" XBR-85X950B is one of 9 new 4K TVs Sony is introducing at this year's CES.

The 85″ XBR-85X950B is one of 9 new 4K TVs Sony is introducing at this year’s CES.



Judging by Sony’s first press event at CES 2014 (CEO Kazuo Harai will be giving the keynote speech when the actual event opens tomorrow morning), the tech titan is really banking on the hope that consumers are already over boring old 1080p HD and that they’ll be willing to pay for the higher resolution of 4K TVs. The company has gone as far as putting out a consumer-grade 4K camera so people will create their own content for the sets.

In addition to a new slate of 4K TVs, ranging in size from 49″ to 85″, Sony announced that its newest version of the 4K Handycam is significantly smaller and less expensive than its predecessors, at around $2,000.


The smaller, still kind of expensive, 4K Handycam.

The smaller, still kind of expensive, 4K Handycam.



The hope is that early adopters will be enticed to use these Handycams to shoot video that doesn’t need to be scaled up to display on a 4K TV, because right now there isn’t exactly a huge bevy of content available for these sets.

That point was underlined when Sony bragged that its 4K video download store — which it says is the only one of its kind in the U.S. — has amassed a library of a whopping 140 titles available for viewing since its launch in summer 2013. Of course, there was a time when people scoffed at Netflix’s streaming selection.


Speaking of Netflix, that company’s CEO Reed Hastings made yet another pop-in to a CES presentation to talk up 4K, reminding people that the new season of House of Cards has been shot and edited in 4K and that upcoming Netflix originals will also be done this way.


Of more interest was Hastings’ insistence that Netflix has been able to wrangle 4K streaming to the point that a home with a 15 Mbps downstream Internet connection or better should be able to access 4K files without a hitch. We’ll see what happens when the amount of content and the number of 4K TV owners increases.


4K TV, unlike 3D, seems like an inevitability, as it doesn’t require additional hardware, limit viewing angles, or make large portions of the population motion sick.


Moving on, Sony dives deeper into the wearable tech waters with SmartWear Experience products. Interestingly, Sony’s first product in this line goes around your wrist, but it’s not just another smart watch. Rather, it’s something called the Core, that goes into a SmartBand wristband. The device can basically track everything you do — how far you walk, who you call, text, what pictures you take — and puts it into a handy timeline Sony calls Lifelog. It’s both intriguing and a little scary:



From the very general everything monitor to one that seems incredibly specific — the Tennis Sensor. It literally attaches to the bottom of your tennis racket and analyzes and records your shot — swing speed, ball spin and speed. The sensor will be being demoed on the floor this week, so we’ll try to get our hands on it and see if we still have that magic touch (spoiler: no).




by Chris Morran via Consumerist

MakerBot Hopes You’ll Buy The Kids This Mini 3D Printer And Download Toys

The new Replicator Mini from MakerBot.

The new Replicator Mini from MakerBot.



When I was a kid and Disney’s Aladdin came out, I was extremely perturbed by the genie’s rule against wishing for more wishes, because it completely ruined the entire premise of the genie strategy that I had been working out since infancy. After much thought, I pivoted by deciding to wish for the means of producing whatever I wanted. This brings me to MakerBot’s new Replicator Mini. It’s basically a tiny toy factory, the object of my power-mad childhood dreams.

The box, one of three new machines debuted by MakerBot at their CES press conference, is “one touch” and WiFi enabled. Simply download some 3D models from MakerBot’s new iTunes-esque toy store. Founder Bre Pettis explains, “You connect it to your smartphone or computer, and then there’s just one button. You’re ready to go.”


A ready-to-print 3D model goes for $0.99, or $9.99 for a whole set of related designs. The toys range from pets to dragons to trucks to a whole town full of cute fishmongers and bike repair specialists.


But does it make financial sense to 3D print your toys? At $1,375 plus the cost of the model and film (used to actually craft the objects), no, it doesn’t. To be fair, however, you can use the machine to print more than just toys, and presumably the digital store will be expanding into other types of ready-to-print models in the future.


[MakerBot]




by Meg Marco via Consumerist

10 consejos Social Media para hacer vibrar tu marca en 2014 #infografia #infographic #socialmedia

Hola: Una infografía con 10 consejos Social Media para hacer vibrar tu marca en 2014. Vía Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/07/10-consejos-social-media-para-hacer-vibrar-tu-marca-en-2014-infografia-infographic-socialmedia/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Los usuarios de FaceBook son valiosos para los anunciantes #infografia #infographic #socialmedia

Hola: Una infografía que dice que los usuarios de FaceBook son valiosos para los anunciantes. Un saludo Source: TopMarketingSchools.net



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/07/los-usuarios-de-facebook-son-valiosos-para-los-anunciantes-infografia-infographic-socialmedia/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Samsung Pushes Curved TVs, Connected Home Services At CES

photo (1) Just about all the major TV manufacturers will be showing off Ultra HD (aka UHD or 4K) TVs at the Consumer Electronics Show this week, but only one of them will have a 105″ curved behemoth drawing attendees like bugs to a huge, expensive bug zapper.


Even though there is minimal content available for UHD, Samsung appears to be going all in with the TV sets that can deliver four times the resolution of current HD TVs.


In addition to the mammoth 105″ beast, Samsung will be releasing UHD sets ranging from 50″ to 110″, including six curved sets that manufacturers hope will deliver a truly immersive home viewing experience. The curved sets start at 55″.


The company also showed off a prototype TV that starts out flat, but converts to a curved screen with the push of a button.


The closest we could get to any of these was the foot of the stage recently abandoned by Michael Bay, so we can’t really judge the image quality or whether or the curved screen adds anything to the viewing experience. However, once we hit the show floor tomorrow morning, we’ll be getting in front of these curved and UHD sets to see if they are indeed the future of home entertainment.


Speaking of home, Samsung is using CES to launch its new Smart Home service, which the company hopes to launch at retail in the first half of the year.


Smart Home will allow users to control certain web-connected appliances — everything from air-conditioners to lights — via an app on their smartphone or Samsung TV. The company says it will not ultimately limit Smart Home to Samsung appliances, hoping to give customers the ability to control other manufacturers’ appliances via phone or TV.


There will be much, much more from Samsung and others when we hit the floor tomorrow. Now, it’s off to try to get into the Sony press conference across town.




by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Tendencias en Marketing Digital (2014) #infogafia #infographic #marketing

Hola: Una infografía con tendencias en Marketing Digital (2014). Vía Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/07/tendencias-en-marketing-digital-2014-infogafia-infographic-marketing/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Top 10 trabajos que no existían hace 5 años #infografia #infographic

Hola: Una infografía con el Top 10 trabajos que no existían hace 5 años. Vía Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/07/top-10-trabajos-que-no-existian-hace-5-anos-infografia-infographic/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Estrés infantil por el regresos a las clases #infografia #infographic #education

Hola: Una infografía sobre el Estrés infantil por el regresos a las clases. Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/estres-infantil-por-el-regresos-a-las-clases-infografia-infographic-education/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Transformers Director Michael Bay Storms Off Stage In Middle Of Samsung Event


Ever have that nightmare of being on stage and flubbing your lines in front of a huge audience. Well that just happened to notoriously temperamental film director Michael Bay, who fled the stage at the Samsung Consumer Electronics Show press conference after an apparent teleprompter error.


Bay, director of the Transformers movies and other blockbusters, had been brought on stage by Samsung exec John Stinziano to help shill for the company’s new line of curved UHD sets (more on all that in a later post).


Bay immediately started giving a speech about how his job as a director is to make dreams a reality, but it quickly became apparent by the look on his face that this was actually something he was supposed to say later in the program.


“The lines are all screwed up,” Bay mumbled. “I’ll just wing it.”


And he tried, for all of about 30 seconds, with Stinziano doing his best to feed him talking points, but it was all too much for Bay, who exited stage right in a huff.


An obviously embarrassed and shocked Stinziano was left to apologize for Bay’s vanishing act and then just moved on to the next topic.


The Samsung press event is just wrapping up now, so I’ll have more on their massive curved TVs and other topics shortly.




by Chris Morran via Consumerist

10 datos desconocidos sobre las matemáticas #infografia #infographic #education

Hola: Una infografía con 10 datos desconocidos sobre las matemáticas. Vía Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/10-datos-desconocidos-sobre-las-matematicas-infografia-infographic-education/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Resumen de año 2013 de Apple #infografia #infographic #apple

Hola: Una infografía con el resumen de año 2013 de Apple. Vía Nota: has de ver la infografía a su máximo tamaño para poder disfrutar de ella. Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/resumen-de-ano-2013-de-apple-infografia-infographic-apple/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Todo lo que debes saber sobre Redes Sociales #infografia #infographic #socialmedia

Hola: Una infografía con todo lo que debes saber sobre Redes Sociales. Un saludo Source: Masters-in-Marketing.org



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/todo-lo-que-debes-saber-sobre-redes-sociales-infografia-infographic-socialmedia/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

10 formas de llegar a los estudiantes de tu clase #infografia #infographic #education

Hola: Una infografía con 10 formas de llegar a los estudiantes de tu clase. Vía Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/10-formas-de-llegar-a-los-estudiantes-de-tu-clase-infografia-infographic-education/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Ley general de educación en México #infografia #infographic #education

Hola: Una infografía con la Ley general de educación en México. Vía Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/ley-general-de-educacion-en-mexico-infografia-infographic-education/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

15 estadísticas de Instragram que puede que no conozcas #infografia #infographic #socialmedia

Hola: Una infografía con 15 estadísticas de Instragram que puede que no conozcas. Un saludo Courtesy of: DMR



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/15-estadisticas-de-instragram-que-puede-que-no-conozcas-infografia-infographic-socialmedia/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

T-Mobile Increases Coverage With $3.3B Purchase Of Verizon Wireless Spectrum


Is T-Mobile coming to a cornfield near you? The little mobile company that could will likely increase its coverage outside densely populated cities this year, all thanks to a tidy bit of wireless spectrum it just bought off Verizon.


T-Mobile announced Monday the purchase of low-band spectrum licenses from Verizon Wireless at a hefty price tag of $2.365 billion, reports Fortune.


Low-band spectrum can travel farther distances and penetrate buildings more effectively than high-band spectrum, which is good for T-Mobile as it seeks to reach more rural customers. City slickers will benefit as well — the move increases T-Mobile’s low-band spectrum coverage to 21 of the top 30 U.S. markets – including New York, Los Angeles Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.


And if it can appeal to those customers, it might just stop them from jumping ship to AT&T: Monday’s purchase comes on the heels of AT&T’s new promotion offering current T-Mobile customers hundreds of dollars in trade-in and bill credit to switch to the larger provider.


The purchase includes 700 MHz A-Block spectrum licenses, as well as certain AWS and PCS spectrum licenses.


By (new staffer!) Ashlee Kieler


T-Mobile acquires wireless spectrum from Verizon [Fortune]




by consumerist.com via Consumerist

Are Steamable Frozen Dinners All That Marketers Claim? (Hint: No)


Lots of frozen meal brands have debuted new and exciting meals that they claim will “steam” right in the packaging. Is that even a thing? Is that really any different from how other microwaveable meals cook? Our fresh and nutritious colleagues down the hall at Consumer Reports noticed all of these ads, and decided to test a variety of steamy meals.

Their verdict: the meals are edible and some have great flavors and textures, but the “steam” technology doesn’t add anything special to the cooking in real terms. Meals didn’t always heat or cook perfectly, which the plastic bag steaming technology was supposed to fix. Cooking times aren’t significantly shorter than most other packaged meals. Neither are macronutrients like calories, fat, protein, and sodium content is pretty much the same.


The steamer baskets and bags might feature meals that appeal to you, but from the solo diner’s point of view, there’s no vast technological improvement. Get the cooking time down to a minute or so and cut back on the sodium–then you’d have some impressive advancements.


Frozen dinners get the steam treatment [Consumer Reports]




by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

El LP ha vuelto #infografia #infographic

Hola: Una infografía que nos dice que el LP ha vuelto. Un saludo You will find more statistics at Statista



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/el-lp-ha-vuelto-infografia-infographic/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

¿Estamos obsesionados con la tecnología? #infografia #inforgaphic #tech

Hola: Una infografía que plantea si ¿Estamos obsesionados con la tecnología? Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/estamos-obsesionados-con-la-tecnologia-infografia-inforgaphic-tech/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Top 10 países que más gastan en tecnología #infografia #infographic #tech

Hola: Una infografía con el Top 10 países que más gastan en tecnología. Un saludo You will find more statistics at Statista



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/top_10_paises-que-mas-gastan-en-tecnologia-infografia-infographic-tech/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

FaceBook en 2013 #infografia #infographic #socialmedia

Hola: Una infografía sobre FaceBook en 2013. Vía Un saludos



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/facebook-en-2013-infografia-infographic-socialmedia/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Yes, Narwhals Really Do Exist And Yes, You Will Get In Trouble For Smuggling Their Tusks

Goodbye, Mr. Narwhal.

Goodbye, Mr. Narwhal.



Are you an Inuit? No? Then you shouldn’t be selling narwhal tusks. And oh yes, despite what you might think when you picture a giant sea creature with a horn like a unicorn, the narwhal is very real (even if spellcheck says otherwise) and you will be very busted for smuggling their ivory tusks.


One of three people charged in cross-border smuggling of narwhal tusks from Canada into the U.S. is pleading guilty tomorrow to charges stemming from a 2009 incident, reports the Bangor Daily News.


Here’s how you spot a narwhal, in case you’re worried you might accidentally be smuggling tusks: The males’ tusks spiral counter-clockwise from the head and can be as long as eight feet. Those pointy bits might be used to impress females or engage in narwhal-on-narwhal battle action to win the ladies.


The whales are native to Arctic waters and are protected by the U.S. by the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and in Canada under the Convention in International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The Inuit people may legally harvest and sell the tusks in Canada, but that’s it.


The men are accused of buying the tusks from retail outlets in Canada and then selling them on the Internet. One man allegedly hid them in his truck and a trailer and crossed the border into Maine with the illegal booty to complete the sales.


To make matters worse, or at least more notable, one of the men indicted in the case is an ex-Mountie. He was arrested by the Environment Canada in 2011 after a two-year investigation called Operation Longtooth, which is pretty good name, all things considered.


Things we learned: Yes, narwhals are very real and no, you cannot sell them in or smuggle them into the U.S. The more you know!



Tenn. man to plead guilty to smuggling narwhal whale tusks in scheme run by ex-Mountie [Bangor Daily News]




by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Just Because It’s Called A Baggage “Carousel” Doesn’t Mean You Should Ride It


Why are we not surprised that a man caught riding a baggage claim carousel at the Des Moines International Airport did it 1. on a dare and 2. perhaps while under the influence of alcohol? No charges have been pressed yet but security frowns on people riding the moving belt, especially as it goes through the secure area where bags are loaded. [via the Des Moines Register]




by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Cómo vender APPs en tu APP Store en Navidades #infografia #infographic #marketing

Hola: Una infografía sobre cómo vender APPs en tu APP Store en Navidades. Un saludo Dot Com Infoway – Mobile Apps Marketing Agency



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/como-vender-apps-en-tu-app-store-en-navidades-infografia-infographic-marketing/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Dish Goes Wireless With Latest Receivers

Dish CEO Joe Clayton posing with his troop of kangaroos.

Dish CEO Joe Clayton posing with his troop of kangaroos.



At today’s CES press conference, the folks at Dish continued to push its Hopper as the big selling point of its satellite service, with new announcements of additional recording options, along with virtual and wireless DVR experiences.

Last year’s Consumer Electronics Show found Dish at the center of a controversy, with CNET unable to give the company the Best of CES award for its latest Hopper DVR because CNET’s parent company, CBS, is suing Dish over the Hopper.


The satellite company was ultimately victorious, with the Consumer Electronics Association giving it the award and ending its relationship with CNET.


When Dish CEO Joe Clayton referred to the Dish as “award-winning,” he then paused before joking, “Hearing no objections… I guess it’s finally official.”


SUPER JOEY

The first announcement was the introduction of what Dish calls the SuperJoey, a souped-up version of the company’s Joey receiver. The SuperJoey, when combined with the Hopper DVR, gives the user the ability to record up to eight shows at once.


However, that comes with the asterisk that four of those maximum eight shows include the “Prime Time Anytime” service that records all four major network programming for later viewing.


Taking away the Prime Time Anytime channels, Dish says the SuperJoey/Hopper combo allows for simultaneous recording of five shows.


WIRELESS JOEY

Sick of having your TV placement determined by the location of the coax outlets in your house? Dish is the latest to introduce a wireless receiver that should help you get around this problem.


There are two components to the Wireless Joey, an access point and the receiver. The access point connects to the Hopper and then transmits the signal via 802.11ac to up to two wireless receivers in the house at up to 1.3 Gbps.


Since the access point does the WiFi broadcasting for you, users don’t need an Internet connection in the home. It also means that the access point doesn’t rely on your home’s WiFi to transmit the signals.


VIRTUAL JOEY

Dish announced last night that new LG TVs will soon come with a “virtual Joey” app that means no additional receiver is needed to access Dish programming and recorded content.


Today, it added the both the Playstation 3 and 4 will soon have virtual Joey apps that do the same thing. Of course, for all these apps, users would need to be in the same home as the main Hopper DVR.


DISH ANYWHERE

Like several other cable and satellite biggies, Dish has an app that allows for remote access to live programming. Today, it announced that it will soon bring the app to the Kindle Fire. The app is also adding voice-recognition and improved search.


FREE iPADS

Dish confirmed today that it will continue giving free iPad Minis to new Dish subscribers. However, customers must decide on whether they want the iPad or the traditional rate discounts given for the first 12 months of the 24-month contract.




by Chris Morran via Consumerist

As If That Hovering Retail Associate Isn’t Enough, Stores Can Track Your Every Move With Apps

The eye in the sky is watching us all. If you have the app for that.

The eye in the sky is watching us all. If you have the app for that.



It always seems like there’s one of two scenarios at a store: Either you can’t find a retail associate to answer your questions or you feel like screaming “I AM JUST BROWSING!” to the three or four constantly hovering in your immediate vicinity. If that second scenario strikes fear into your heart, prepare your heart to be extra fearful with the expansion of new, in-store tracking technology that works through your phone’s apps.


A company called inMarket is rolling out a system it calls iBeacons to more than 200 grocery stores — including Safeway and Giant Eagle — in Seattle, San Francisco and Cleveland, reports TechCrunch.


Okay, great, beacons, shopping, got it. So what do these tiny Bluetooth enabled devices actually do at those stores?


In a nutshell, they track shoppers. Let’s say you’ve downloaded an app for a certain retailer and it has tools that will for example, remind you once you’ve stepped foot in the store that you made a grocery list. You walk through the doors and bing! Your grocery list pops up as a reminder not to forget something.


Other apps might send you alerts about store discounts, items that are on sale or ways you can chalk up loyalty points toward other purchases.


(I imagine standing near the deodorant display and a message popping up reading, “Something smells ripe. Better stock up.”)


It all sounds very helpful, but the trade-off is that while you’re roaming the store, these iBeacons are tracking you, ostensibly to collect data about your shopping habits as well as send you helpful tidbits. They can pinpoint you to within a few feet of your smartphone, making marketing to you pretty darn effective. And as for that info they’ve collected, it’s likely that you won’t be totally aware of what it’s being used for in the future.


On the one hand, if you’ve already agreed to this kind of marketing/service when you download an app, it’s great to get the alerts when you’re actually in the store or near something you want to buy, instead of when you’re simply walking past it on the street and don’t want to be annoyed just because you’re nearby.


But if you’re the kind of person who doesn’t like your every move watched no matter where you turn in a store, then you’ll probably want to keep an eye out for any app using iBeacon technology or something similar. Yet another reason to actually read those Terms of Service before you hit “Install.”


inMarket Rolls Out iBeacons To 200 Safeway, Giant Eagle Grocery Stores To Reach Shoppers When It Matters [TechCrunch]




by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

No necesitas un título para ser un líder #leadership

Hola: Una presentación que nos dice: No necesitas un título para ser un líder. Un saludo



TICs y Formación http://ticsyformacion.com/2014/01/06/no-necesitas-un-titulo-para-ser-un-lider-leadership/ Via Alfredo Vela y www.bscformacion.com

Naked Man Rescued From Washing Machine Is A Helpful Reminder That Appliances Are Not Toys

At least Cherie had clothes on. (YouTube)

At least Cherie had clothes on. (YouTube)



Did people in Australia not watch Punky Brewster growing up? Because surely if one Aussie man had seen the episode where Cherie gets stuck in a refrigrator during hide-and-seek (spoiler alert: SHE ALMOST DIES!) he never would’ve climbed naked into a washing machine and expect any kind of positive result.


Again, appliances are not toys. If refrigerators or washing machines were meant to be used as nesting places for humans, they’d be called HideInMes or CrawlInHereAndEscapeEasilys. But they’re not, which is why it was not a good move for a naked man to hide in a top-loading washing machine to surprise his partner.


The BBC says emergency rescuers had to use olive oil as a lubricant to eventually free the man after 20 minutes of effort. So not only is it embarrassing enough to be naked in a washing machine and unable to free yourself, but firefighters, paramedics and search-and-rescue squad members were all there to witness it.


A police rep says “it was just a game gone wrong” and that “It would be fair to say the gentleman was very embarrassed.”


Another officer issued the kind of advice we’re fond of dispensing to our readers, just in case you get it into your head that appliances are some kind of adult playground equipment.


“My advice would be for people not to climb into appliances – obviously that [can] cause a number of issues, as we’ve seen on the weekend,” he explained.


Or at least bring your own olive oil. Kidding! Don’t do it at all, obviously. Cherie would agree.


Australia police free naked man stuck in washing machine [BBC News]




by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Ask For A F*** Ton Of Mayo At Smashburger, That’s What You Get

fton

A Maryland woman wanted a lot of mayonnaise on her burger. A lot. “A f***ton of mayo,” she told the co-worker who would be placing the order. When her co-worker placed the order at the local Smashburger, they used those exact words. Apparently, the phrase was evocative enough that Smashburger used those exact words on the order ticket and the customer’s receipt. (Note: un-censored receipt appears after the cut, in case you’re in a place where bad words aren’t cool.)


“I wanted them to know I was serious. I didn’t want a little kid’s amount of mayo,” the woman who eventually ate the burger told local news site Bethesda Now. She found the amount of mayonnaise on her burger satisfactory, but they couldn’t fit it all on the actual burger: she received an additional to-go container of mayo on the side.


mayo


Smashburger Provides Customer With ‘F*** Ton Of Mayo’ [Bethesda Now]




by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Krispy Kreme Gives Man Bus Stocked With Donuts So He Wouldn’t Have To Steal A Truck


What’s a guy to do when his dream of stealing a Krispy Kreme truck and driving it around to hand out donuts to kids realizes his plan is full of (donut) holes? For one 42-year-old man recently diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease (ALS), that sweet crime spree came true when Krispy Kreme got involved. Well, without the stealing part.


When he found out he had a terminal illness he decided to apply online for a job as a donut delivery man, reports CBS News. But not because he needed extra cash — no, that gig was just means to an end.


“I knew I wouldn’t get the job, but at least then I could say when they arrested me, ‘Hey, man, I applied,’” he explained.


What’s that now? Well yeah, because: “Then the next step is to try to steal a truck,” he says.


His big idea was to steal a truck after staking out a Krispy Kreme donut factory near his home in Durham, N.C. He’d simply follow a driver on a route and slip into the truck at the right moment.


“And then just go around and give away the donuts,” like some kind of baked goods Robin Hood, he explained. But his plan had plenty of holes, the least of which wasn’t stealing the truck. His goal was to hand out the donuts to kids by pulling up to schools and being like, here, have some donuts.


While he wasn’t too worried about the repercussions of getting caught — “One of the blessings of ALS is — what are they going to do?” — he realized his plan probably wouldn’t work.


But his dream refused to die. Krispy Kreme heard whispers of his plot on Facebook and instead of threatening him, the company offered him a ride. A bus stocked with donuts, to be exact.


And then for a whole day, the man, his family and friends took to the streets in this mobile donut unit, handing out donuts wherever they were needed most — city parks, cancer wards and children’s hospitals.


“We’re glad to make some people smile,” he says. Doing what you can to make people smile is everything, he explains, as he faces his future with ALS. And he wants kids to know that.


“Because if I can’t impact people, this whole thing is a waste,” he says.




N.C. man bakes up Krispy Kreme caper [CBSNews]




by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Estilos de aprendizaje para el siglo XXI





via Educación tecnológica http://villaves56.blogspot.com/2014/01/estilos-de-aprendizaje-para-el-siglo-xxi.html www.bscformacion.com

Walmart Rollbacks: Rolling Forward, Standing Still

What is a “rollback?” Walmart shoppers know that it’s when an item has decreased in price recently, and it’s something that the chain brags about on signs throughout the store. They even brag about rollbacks when prices stay the same…or go up.


It’s that, or maybe someone made a mistake on these signs. You can’t blame us for being confused, though.


rollback_meals

Kaleb noticed this strange display in the freezer case where the inexpensive frozen dinners hang out. “You’ll notice that the rollback price is 2 for $2.00…you’ll also notice that some of the little microwave dinners don’t have the “rollback” tag on them…and are priced at $1.00 each,” he writes. Yes, everything in that case, even the “rollback” items, normally cost a dollar. The only change is that Walmart apparently wants us to buy twice as many.


Kaleb also noticed that there’s no former price printed under “WAS:” on those little shelf tags. “Almost like the little printer that spits those things out just didn’t have the heart to go through with it anymore…” he mused.


Meanwhile, at Brian’s local Walmart, they’re rolling peanut butter forward.


rollforward




by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Even Selling Recreational Pot For Twice The Price, Colorado Sellers Say They’re Running Out


In less than a week, Colorado dispensaries and pot shops report that they’re selling so much recreational marijuana, there could be a shortage basically any moment. After all, it’s not like they can just grab the plants your cousin was growing in the closet and sell them off. In the face of this supply problem, even charging twice the price for the recreational stuff over the medical version isn’t stemming the tide of eager buyers.


For example, at one pot store the San Francisco Chronicle looked at, customers were shelling out $45 for an eighth of an ounce of recreational pot, compared to the $25 charge for the same amount the shop sells for medical purposes.


“They’re not used to coming into a facility and paying $25 an eighth, so when they come in, it’s just whatever the price is,” the store’s president and chief executive said. “Having the ability to buy safe, reliable, quality marijuana in an environment that’s fun and exciting sure beats going in a back alley and saying, ‘Hey buddy, you got a bag?’”


Around the state, recreational pot sells for about $400 an ounce, twice the $200 an ounce price tag retailers collect for medical marijuana, according to the executive director of the National Cannabis Industry Association, a Washington-based trade group.


“That’s just supply and demand,” he explained. “As more businesses open and the businesses get a sense of what the demand is and are able to meet it, the prices will go back down.”


Ah yes, about meeting that demand — other store owners are saying that if customers keep coming the way they have been this last week, they’re going to sell out, and soon.


“We are going to run out,” one store owner told the Colorado Springs Gazette on Day 2 of legal recreational sales. “It’s insane. This weekend will be just as crazy. If there is a mad rush, we’ll be out by Monday.”


Yes, that means today, Coloradoans. Coloradoites? In any case, don’t be surprised if you can’t get your hands on some green.


Pot Prices Double as Colorado Retailers Roll Out Green Carpet [San Francisco Chronicle]

High demand has marijuana shops running low on supplies [Colorado Springs Gazette]




by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Mens Wearhouse Likes The Way Jos. A. Bank Looks, Wants To Buy It


Jos. A. Bank and Men’s Wearhouse sell similar merchandise at similar price points in similar environments (malls), so why should they deny how much they have in common?

The two companies have been circling each other for months now, wanting to acquire each other. Now Men’s Wearhouse has made a second, higher offer for Jos. A. Bank.

When we say that the companies are circling each other, we mean that they really have made formal offers for each other. Just a few weeks ago in late December of 2013, JB rejected an offer for $55 per share. In September, they made a $48 per share offer to buy the larger company, which was rejected.


This time around, Men’s Wearhouse is taking their offer straight to the shareholders. They’ve also nominated a few candidates to the smaller company’s board.


Men’s Wearhouse boosts bid for Jos. A. Bank [USA Today/AP]




by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Science Teacher Loses 37 Pounds After Eating Only McDonald’s Food For 90 Days


Remember that documentary Super Size Me? You likely do — the one where filmmaker Morgan Spurlock ate only McDonald’s for a month, gained a bunch of weight and basically felt like crap? A science teacher in Iowa decided to basically redo that experiment, but this time he balanced out his only Mickey D’s diet very carefully and ended up losing 37 pounds in 90 days. And of course, he made a documentary about it as well.

It’s probably a good idea to put the “Don’t try this at home” disclaimer on the whole story because it sounds like the science teacher and his students put a lot of work into making sure that he followed strict guidelines while eating McDonalds, reports KCCI News.


“I can eat any food at McDonald’s (that) I want as long as I’m smart for the rest of the day with what I balance it out with,” the teacher explained.


He and three of his students laid out strict daily nutritional limits of 2,000 calories per day and tried to stick with recommended dietary allowances for things like carbohydrates, proteins, fat calories, cholesterol.


It also helped out the experiment that a local franchise owner agreed to provide all 90 days of three meals per day for free, just because he was interested in how the whole thing would shake out.


The students put together their teacher’s meals using the guidelines they’d come up with together, and it sounds like his days were somewhat varied. For example, if he had a breakfast of two egg white delights, oatmeal and 1 percent meal, he’d have a salad for lunch and then eat off the value meal for dinner.


“So this isn’t something where you say ‘well he went to McDonalds and he only had the salads. No, I had the Big Macs, the quarter pounders with cheese. I had sundaes, I had ice cream cones,” he said.


Added in to all that McDonald’s was exercise — he started walking 45 minutes a day. By the end of the trial, he’d shed 37 pounds, he says, and his cholesterol dropped from 249 to 170.


So is McDonald’s some kind of magical diet place, have we been all wrong about fast food? Well, no. It’s all about paying attention to what you eat.


“The point behind this documentary is, ‘Hey, it’s (a) choice. We all have choices. It’s our choices that make us fat not McDonald’s,” he said.


Science teacher creates documentary based on McDonald’s diet [KCCI]




by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist