New planet in sight. Illustration by trrent
People are relentless these days - specially when we talk about Nasa discovering new planets. It`s quite interesting to note the last one, Kepler 21b, is 1.6 Earth size, ten times heavier, with no mild temperature at all (2960 F degrees).
A research group knows, after several months of observation, that it is in a zone that could be habitable. Don`t know if they are talking about the hot hot planet aforementioned, or other planets close by. Kepler 21b and other planets are around another Sun type of star, a lot bigger and younger than ours.
That is a sign for astronomers to keep looking.
They are 18 newfounded planets in total, researchers say, that could be habitable. Of course the distance from its parent star does impress anyone: 600 light years. Although they are far away, it`s possible to see the big star which they are close by, with a simple telescope. You just have to know what you are looking for.
According to a scientist I heard on the radio today, it`s the first step in order to attain something big. People are starting to get worried about what happens in the future, because the Sun and/or the Earth won`t last forever, so...
Nothing to be preocupied right now. Probably that`s why astronomers begun to look already (!!) Is this evolution making its way to forever be? Well, I only know that moving a whole lotta people across the galaxy is something quite curious to think about!
Farewell, Steve.
Picture from http://exame.abril.com.br/inovacao/noticias/5-conselhos-de-jobs-para-quem-quer-pensar-diferente
Some weeks ago I wrote a blog post about Apple without Steve Jobs. I considered that he would soon be able to announce new Apple products. I feel bad I didn't see the real reason for his impediment as president of the corporation. He died on October 5, in consequence of a rare pancreatic cancer.
If I had checked it, I would've given a concise statement. The thing is that he acknowledged he was cured from cancer on his Stanford speech to students, in 2005.
It seems like he got the symptoms back in 2009 and endured in a liver transplant the same year. It was supposed to stop the spread of the disease and add more years to his life.
This silent cancer is only known when it's on its advanced stages. He could have lived more, but chances of survival are between 6 and 10%.
I know I enjoyed to see every new product he would bring up. Every professional has something to learn with him.
Kid browses the Internet. Illustration by trrent
Facebook has never been much of my thing because I'd rather read the world wide news on Twitter. It sounds reasonable to me. Since people I know are stored on FB I don't have the need to check them all of the time.
Mark Zuckerberg proposes that people stay connected 24/7 on the new Facebook profile. He is gonna provide all you can think of on Facebook. Uhh, Internet within the Internet. I don't think it's something for me. I'm not engaged to Facebook in a way that makes me stay connected to it all day. Google is almost the same: it's everywhere on the Internet - everything seems to be floating around the giant web company.
Regarding Google it's a bit difficult to stay away as I have a gmail account. Nothing much against it - I don't have a Facebook email, though. Nonetheless, both companies, through interaction, provide charitable support, jobs, revenue and web services.
The new Facebook's profile is gonna revolutionize the market as we know it. It is gonna give marketers the chance to find the exact profile they are looking for. If you are really a Facebook user, prepare to be induced in whatever people are watching, listing, wanting. Facebook knows you want it too.
picture from http://photobucket.com/images/nirvana%20smiley/
What a weekend. After studying my ass off for a while, I got some time off watching Nirvana's specials on MTV all along. Yeah, I don't listen to those tunes anymore, they don't play on the radio as well, so get to watch/ listen them back again felt really good.
At the moment I'm tracking down whatever Nirvana tunes were released until now. I'm also listening to other bands from the 'Grunge' years - it represents a lot to me. It was a breath of fresh air listening to Nirvana and bands that came after, cuz there was nothing really innovative at that time - at least of what was available!
This celebration of Nevermind can be checked here too; it's a Spin magazine special for the curious ones, hehe. I'll drink to that! Cuz it's always good to listen to great music.
Federation Square in Mel: Building is at the top ten ugliest in the world.
Picture from http://allcity7.com/showthread.php?t=95
I just can`t get it. Melbourne is the most liveable city in the world? Yes, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s liveability ranking, in a recent Economist blog post. Incredibly, they say infrastructure and entertainment are some of the analysed topics.
Man, trains and trams are heavily crowded during rush hour period and beyond. You have no trains after 12am on weekends and it`s not difficult at all to have cancelled or delayed trains any time of the day. I lived in Perth and from there I could hear, along with the whole country, how bad public transportation in Melbourne really is .
It`s crowded, indeed, and costly too. Okay, i`m not writing this to be controversial, but it feels weird to be living in a city that doesn`t make up for the statistics. There`s culture, but from time to time, it`s not everywhere and it`s not all the time. The city may be a bit effusive when you think of clubs, perhaps, but not to the actor Ashton Kutcher, who has mentioned Melbourne`s mid-week as lame.
Back in Brasilia, Brazil, where I grew up, so much has changed in some years while I was away. I think there`s more diversity in culture here than in Melbourne (!!?) Lots of festivals, concerts, plenty of exhibitions. You just have to pick one and go.
Nevertheless, I feel blessed to have lived in Australia, and Melbourne is a lovely place. So I know now how is it to live in the most liveable city in the world (at the year 2011.)
Cartoon by Matador. Email: matadorcartoons@gmail.com
Steve Jobs quit, but not the way we think. His illness is the reason why he "leaves" Apple, but soon we gonna see him in October launching the new iPhone and in 2012, offering one more iPad.
His story is quite phenomenal; A garage-company turns to be a big rival of Microsoft.
Tim Cook, the "replacement" person, is someone markets are going to respect, but he doesn't quite properly fill Jobs' shoes.
What we gonna see next is Apple's stocks shaking a bit, but steady, as the second most valuable company in the world.
Internet at a far distance. Illustration by Trrent
As I stated on Twitter sometime ago, I thought internet in Brazil was alright, but, no, it's not. I used to complain a lot in Australia, whether the internet was 3G or else, but in Brazil it is no good either. Checking on Google, it`s not hard to notice internet in both countries is quite deplorable.
In Brazil, internet is expensive - over 445 dollars a Megabit in Manaus, Amazonas, compared to 1 dollar and 15 cents in Japan, according to a Cisco's survey in 2007. Brazilian government recently spread the news that it plans on bringing down broadband connection costs. A Megabit, which is now an average of 45 dollars across the country at the moment, might be 22 dollars until October 2011.
I just tested my internet speed at Internet Speed Test website. My download speed is a good deal lower than the world speed - 1644 kbps against 4079 kbps. In Switzerland alone it is 8422 kbps. Im not even stating my download rate, upload speed and upload rate, cuz they are out of proportion as well.
Brazil needs to invest a lot more, foreseeing increased demand in the years ahead, according to Folha, Brazilian newspaper. Companies should be looking forward to an 11,25 Mpbs download speed.
Australia is another example how things turn out to be bad too. As far as I would remember, internet was not available everywhere. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean aboriginal ancient lands, just the nearby surburbs! Yeah, I worked in telemarketing there ( what a pity ) and would listen to people complaining about no internet connection at all.
Things are not so up to date till now. Internet speed over there is an average of 1,5 to 2Mbps upload and download. The country has a lack of investment in infrastructure; internet providers use phone wires to connect dwellers to the internet, the ADSL.
Australia has a plan in place to offer internet to all Aussies (in time) at reasonable costs, the National Broadband Network - or NBN. It has started slowly in Tasmania, but people disagree on lots of things. They argue about the costs, for example. A heading at the Australian website Adelaide Now says: NBN price higher, PM's promise 'flawed'. People would then rely on the same old ADSL again. Some days later the NBN was hacked by a fellow citizen of theirs.
Much alike Australia, Brazil has the PNBL, Plano Nacional de Banda Larga, which means National Broadband Plan, it is taking time as well to adjust things. The connection costs can be similar, but the Australian plan is deemed to reach 93 % of all homes, businesses and so on by 2020. In Brazil, the Plan is supposed to make internet available to 40 million homes by 2014 - not all of them yet. Maybe in 2020?
