LG Unveils Next Generation Televisions

LG Unveils Next Generation Televisions
LG announced the launch of its 2011 TV range for the Singapore market, delivering cutting edge innovations that promise to transform the way consumers enjoy televisions at home. Featuring LG’s proprietary CINEMA 3D technology and LG Smart TV functions, the new 2011 range will feature 11 series of LED, LCD and Plasma TVs to suit the entertainment needs of every individual, with more to be rolled out throughout the year.

Leading the lineup is the new LG LW6500, a Full HD edge LED CINEMA 3D TV equipped with LG Smart TV. The sleek TV brings 3D enjoyment to a new level with the employment of 3D technology similar to that used in cinemas, thus bringing to consumers greater comfort and convenience while enjoying their favourite 3D titles. With Smart TV, consumers are also able to access content and applications without hassle through a specially designed user interface as well as the new Magic Motion Remote Control that simplifies control with a simple point and click.
LG CINEMA 3D TV – evolution of 3D for homes

Taking 3D to new heights, the LG CINEMA 3D TV looks set to greatly improve 3D experience for home viewers with crisper images and wider viewing angles that was not previously possible with active shutter technology. The use of Film Patterned Retarder (FPR) technology in LG’s CINEMA 3D TVs brings about a more comfortable viewing experience with a polorised plate on the panel, coupled with the use of polarised glasses by viewers. The technology optimises the separation of images for the left and right eye, and the images are then filtered through the glasses to give viewers a better 3D effect with minimal cross talk.

The new LG CINEMA 3D TV is also able to display brighter and clearer 3D pictures than conventional 3D displays with the inclusion of the new Light Boost technology. This brightness enhancement film maximises lighting from LED backlight to maintain the full brightness and picture quality of the original source. Compared to conventional 3D displays, the Light Boost technology is able to deliver brightness of 150 nits, twice of what conventional 3D TVs can deliver, without increasing power consumption. For the reproduction of smoother 3D images, TruMotion 200Hz is featured on the flagship LG LW6500 series, which results in elimination of image blur and enables consumers to enjoy even the fastest action sequences in 3D. Consumers who are worried about the loss of image quality of high-definition content in 3D need not worry with the new LG CINEMA 3D range, as the new TVs are able to ensure no signal loss in Full HD 3D source with LG’s very own 3D picture enhancement algorithm.

A common challenge faced by consumers using active shutter 3D technology is the inflexible viewing positions and limited viewing angles. With LG’s CINEMA 3D TV, consumers can experience 3D images without restrictions on positions as the viewing angle has been increased to 180o horizontally. Users may sit, lean or even lie comfortably on their couches to enjoy true-to-life 3D images, and up to 20 viewers are able to enjoy 3D on LG CINEMA 3D TVs .

For users who find discomfort in viewing 3D on active shutter models, LG’s CINEMA 3D technology delivers a virtually blur-free and flicker-free 3D picture, which reduces the possibility of dizziness or nausea. Also, LG’s CINEMA 3D TVs are the world’s first 3D TVs to be confirmed to deliver flicker free and crosstalk free images by TüV and Intertek. The new LG CINEMA 3D TVs also employ the use of affordable, lightweight polarised glasses that weigh only 16 grams, almost half the weight of conventional active shutter glasses. These glasses do not need to be powered by batteries, helping consumers to save in the long run. Additionally, the LG LW6500 (LG 47LW6500) series with CINEMA 3D has been awarded with the CNET Asia Editor’s Choice Awards for delivering “one of the best 3D performances around” .
LG Smart TV - “Point, Click, Control, Simply Smarter”

Along with LG CINEMA 3D TVs, LG has also rolled out TVs equipped with LG Smart TV technologies. As consumers are growing to be more connected than ever before, LG Smart TVs brings the best of the Internet straight into televisions, so individuals can have access to a wealth of content with simple controls.

Changing Light Bulb Perceptions

Changing Light Bulb Perceptions 
In just a few months time, Americans can start saying goodbye to Thomas Edison's incandescent light bulb, an invention that's been lighting millions of homes around the world for the last 100 years or so. Due to U.S. federal legislation passed in 2007, incandescent light bulbs between 40 and 100 watts will be phased out between January 2012 and January 2014, and will be replaced by more energy-efficient lighting solutions such as halogen lamps, compact fluorescent lamps (more commonly known as CFLs) and LED (light-emitting diode) light bulbs.

As with any piece of American legislation, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 have been met with some resistance. For one, the phase out of cheap, but energy-inefficient light bulbs will mean that consumers will have to spend more in order to light their homes. CFLs today normally cost around $2 to $3. Halogen lamps and LED light bulbs on the other hand, normally cost $10 and $20 to $30 respectively. Of course, what most people forget is that the initial cost of purchasing new bulbs is definitely worth the savings that can be gained in the long run.

Interestingly enough, CFLs have long been adopted by many homeowners, even before the legislation became official. In fact, statistics show that close to half of the bulbs sold in America are made of CFLs, LEDs and halogens. Most contractors even point out that the legislation will have little effect on home lighting, particularly recessed lighting.

What needs to be done now to convince consumers to make the switch is to spread information on what they should check for when buying light bulbs. In the old days, consumers would look at a bulb's wattage to determine its brightness; that standard no longer applies today, as most 10-watt CFL bulbs produce the same lighting power as a 60-watt incandescent bulb. Instead, the lumens rating of a bulb is what buyers need to look out for, as this will be the main indicator of the strength of light generated by a bulb.

Miami Heat Melodrama Doubled TV Ratings

Miami Heat Melodrama Doubled TV Ratings
The Miami Heat have yet to win any championships with the Big Three of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh, but they have already proved to be among the elite in one category: local television ratings.

Sports Business Journal obtained local TV ratings for 28 of the 30 teams in the NBA this week, and the Heat were the third highest-rated team in the league this season, behind the San Antonio Spurs and Utah Jazz.

Technically that would make the Heat the most watched team in the NBA located in a city that actually has entertainment options and a night life.

The Heat averaged a 4.94 local rating, a 99.2 percent improvement from the 2009-2010 season. That doubling of TV ratings is also the second biggest ratings jump of the past year, behind the L.A. Clippers (whose ratings rose 130 percent thanks to the Blake Show).

In the 2009-2010 season, when D-Wade led the Heat to a 47-35 record and playoff berth, the team drew a 2.48 rating.

What made matters worse is players on the team like Michael Beasley would have rathered tuned in to SpongeBob Square Pants than watch his own team struggle to beat the Toronto Raptors.

But oh how times have changed. And no one likes a good melodrama like a Miami sports fan.

Miami has long been called a bandwagon sports town, where local teams can only draw fans when they win. Now we have more proof.

And what Heat victory would be complete without a mention of the toils of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

LBJ's former team saw their ratings fall 54 percent to 3.93, the steepest decline in the NBA. Not even Anderson Varejao's hair could keep Clevelanders from tuning out the Cavs and turning the tube to see what the fuss is about on South Beach.

Tucson team is selected for art project

Ross Avenue underpass to be filled with "Happy Shapes" after Tucson team is selected for art project


"Happy Shapes" - a proposal for colored glowing sculptures in "evocative shapes" -- was selected for a $112,913 public led spotlight art project to turn the Ross Avenue underpass into a gateway between East Dallas and the Dallas Arts District.

The artist team of Joe O'Connell and Blessing Hancock  of Tucson, Ariz., proposed 30 sculptures made of translucent polyethylene with internal LED lights to be anchored near the walkways on each side of the highway underpass.

Their proposal uses geometric shapes taken from architecture around the Arts District, but the shapes would be made more intriguing by adding tails, mustaches and other "evocative" features, O'Connell said. They will also be raised up on four legs. "We felt it was important to include real objects," he said. "There's a great popular affection in Dallas for more figurative sculpture - the Pegasus, the steers downtown, and we learned from the Nasher [Scuplture Center] that the exhibits with human or animal forms are more popular than abstracts."

O'Connell said he expects the 30 forms to be something that pedestrians could interact with (they will be able to led spotlight touch a metal feature and change the color), but also visible to motorists as they approach and pass through the intersection. Plus, he expects the glowing sculptures would be visible during the day where 12 lanes of highway darken the road below. "Even at about 11 o'clock on a sunny day it was dark enough in there," said O'Connell, who visited the site a couple times with his partner.

Solar-powered lights to dazzle city crossings

 Get ready to follow solar energy based traffic signals in the city. Solar powered signalling system would be installed at 22 crossroads over next three months. Once completed the crossings will wear a brand new look.

The installation work, traffic officials said, is being done by a Delhi-based firm under public-private-partnership model.

Traffic Inspector Bipin Chandra Pandey told TOI: "As a part of its pilot project, installion work is first taken at Maharana Pratap crossing and would be further taken to other crossings. The work of laying cable lines and setting up booth too is underway."

He added that the work on the solar run traffic light signalling system would be done in a phased manner.

Pandey further added that solar run traffic signalling system has been quite successful in cities like Agra and Bareilly. As far as working of solar run lights are concerned, solar traffic lights original lights are equipped with the latest technology and use photovoltaic cells.

A solar panel located on the top of the pole converts sunlight into electrical power. A solar charger regulates the voltage coming out of the solar panel. The regulated power obtained is used to charge a battery.

Lighting is produced by an array of extra bright LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) that are much brighter than bulbs. LEDs usually last for years and are very energy efficient. LEDs are small in size, but they can produce a significant amount of light. If solar lighting is progressing very fast, it is mainly due to LED technology.

Meanwhile, the authorities concerned have already removed the defunct traffic lights. The officials have also sought public cooperation in the same regard.

A solar run traffic signalling light costs around Rs eight lakh and is an efficient alternative, provided enough energy is stored.

Napping controllers spotlight shift work dangers

A wake-up call. That's one way to describe the recent spate of cases in which air led spotlight traffic controllers working the graveyard shift were caught napping on the job.

"Over the last few weeks we have seen examples of unprofessional conduct on the part of a few individuals that have rightly caused the traveling public to question our ability to ensure their safety," said FAA chief Randy Babbitt.


But the incidents - which led to the suspension of several controllers as well as the resignation of  the head of the agency's air traffic organization - may have more to do with human biology than with personnel problems.

It's not clear that the suspended controllers were experiencing this, but people who work nights or who rotate shifts often develop led spotlight sleep problems - insomnia or excessive sleepiness - along with headaches, difficulty concentrating, and other health problems, according to the Cleveland Clinic website.

Doctors have a name for this constellation of symptoms: shift work sleep disorder (SWSD).


The disorder can cause big problems, and not just for the people who have it. In addition to irritability and mood problems, SWSD can lead to work accidents. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine puts the problem in stark terms: "Those who work night shifts are likely to become very tired on the job. They may feel a strong urge to take a nap. They also may not think clearly because of a reduced level of alertness. They are more likely to make mistakes."


No aircraft went down and no injuries were reported in conjunction the spate of sleeping controller cases. But investigators said controller fatigue may have played a role in Kentucky plane crash led spotlight that occurred nearly five years ago. The crash claimed 49 lives.

Lack of sleep is believed to have played a role in other tragedies, including the Exxon Valdez oil spill, the Challenger disaster, and the Chernobyl nuclear accident, according to CNN.

What's the remedy for shift work sleep disorder? Avoiding shift change and giving workers regular rest periods and exercise breaks can help, says the academy. In some cases, exposure to bright lights can be helpful.

Can someone please hit the switch?

Despite Setbacks, Arizona Sheriff Won’t Yield the Spotlight

It is not uncommon for law enforcement agencies to have helicopters and planes to patrol from above, but Joe Arpaio, the sheriff of Maricopa County, has created what he calls his own air force: a collection of 30 private planes that his “air posse” uses to track illegal immigrants and drug smugglers.

In what Mr. Arpaio is calling Operation Desert Sky, private pilots have begun flying over central Arizona to act as spotters for Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department deputies. The overhead surveillance has not yet led to any arrests, two weeks after it began, but Mr. Arpaio said it would have a deterrent effect.

In short, Sheriff Joe — as he is widely known — is still at it.

Despite court setbacks to Arizona’s aggressive illegal immigration law, two continuing federal investigations into his law enforcement practices and an audit of his budget released this week that found that millions of dollars had been misspent, the sheriff — as vividly highlighted by the creation of the Arpaio air force — is not backing down in his pursuit of illegal immigrants, or the limelight.

“This is just another controversial program that I don’t think is controversial,” Mr. Arpaio said in his characteristic gruff way.

On Wednesday, budget officials in Maricopa County — a sprawling place as large as some states that includes Phoenix, the country’s sixth-largest city — found that Mr. Arpaio’s department had used nearly $100 million in funds meant to run the jails for other activities, including paying the salaries of deputies assigned to his contentious efforts to uncover human smuggling and public corruption.

Mr. Arpaio, who blames accounting errors for the audit finding and accuses critics of trying to exploit it, skipped the budget hearing and instead showed up outside Monte Carlo Dry Cleaners here, where his deputies led away six women who were charged with using false identification to get jobs, a state crime.

As always, the news media were called to capture the tough-talking sheriff, who declared that this represented the 44th business he had raided in search of illegal immigrants in recent years. If he was feeling the heat from the growing criticism of his department, Mr. Arpaio, dressed in a uniform jacket with four gold stars on each shoulder, was not showing it.

Before the dry cleaners, Mr. Arpaio’s deputies had raided a string of Pei Wei Asian Diners, detaining scores of workers and prompting the chain to take out a full-page help-wanted ad to keep its kitchens going. Across the region are fast food shops, car washes, furniture stores and other establishments that have had sheriff’s deputies unexpectedly rush in demanding papers.

“We’re creating vacancies so these businesses can hire people legally,” Mr. Arpaio said. “I’ve just done something for the economy. I don’t get enough credit for that, from the Justice Department and the rest of the critics. They just think it’s the bad sheriff going in and grabbing dishwashers.”

Maricopa has a love-hate relationship with Mr. Arpaio, 78, an 18-year veteran who has regular protesters outside his downtown offices but still receives kudos from fans on the street and invitations from politicians eager for his endorsement.

Outside the dry cleaners, a man who was not able to drop off some shirts on Wednesday morning, because the store was not accepting new laundry, lauded Mr. Arpaio’s raids and declared of the detained workers: “If they were in the country illegally, they need to get out of here.”

But a woman who was picking up her cleaning was fuming as she waited for the commotion to end. “We’re tired of Sheriff Joe,” said the woman, who like several others at the scene declined to identify themselves. “These workers were supporting their families. They weren’t violent. This is ridiculous.”

The criticism was just as fierce last month when Mr. Arpaio allowed the actor Steven Seagal to ride in an armored vehicle to execute a search warrant in a major raid on a suspected cockfighting operation.

“I’ve never seen a bigger spectacle,” said Robert J. Campos, the lawyer for the accused man, Jesus Llovera. “You had Steven Seagal on a tank and a SWAT team swarming a home, but the reality is they arrested an unarmed man.”

Top 5 IBD 50 Tech Stocks By RS Rating Led By Sina

Top 5 IBD 50 Tech Stocks By RS Rating Led By Sina

The IBD 50 looks at many of the “main” factors, such as sales growth and profit growth, in determining the top 50 stocks each week. The list is ranked by what we call our Composite Rating, our most broad-based rating.

The items determining the CR include one of IBD’s key gauges, the Relative Price Strength Rating. The RS is a feature of our stock coverage, and subscribers can easily re-order the IBD 50 by RS (or by many other different ways.)

The RS rates stocks by how they’ve performed vs. all other stocks in the past 12 months, with extra weight given to the most recent three months. It’s showing you the strongest stocks.

In general, IBD advises that you focus on stocks with RS ratings of 80 or above. A stock with an 80 RS has performed in the top 20% of all stocks over the past 12 months. On the other side, you want to be careful with any stocks below 70 RS.

As it turns out, the lowest RS in the current IBD 50 is the No. 50 stock, Oracle (ORCL) , at a 72. All of the other 49 IBD 50 companies have an RS of 77 or higher.

The latest IBD 50 includes just two 99 RS stocks, and both are techs: Sina and Travelzoo. Three other techs have RS numbers of 97 or higher. Here are the top 5 IBD 50 tech stocks by RS ranking, listed by their IBD 50 ranking.

Breaking the Speed Limit

Last week it was the throwers. Next week it just might be the multi-eventers. But today, at the 25th Annual Pomona-Pitzer Invitational, it was the Cougar sprinters who took center stage and enjoyed their day in the spotlight.

Junior All-American Zachary Keene led the way for the Cougars speedsters, putting together arguably the best-ever regular-season meet in his collegiate career. Keene was the undisputed sprint champion of the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational, winning both the 100- and 200-meter dashes with season-best times. In fact, his winning effort in the 200 – a 21.19 – was a personal-best and the seventh-best mark in Azusa Pacific history. Keene grabbed the early and as he came out of the turn he pulled away from the field, beating his nearest competitor by .43 of a second.

Earlier in the meet he won the 100 with a windy 10.58, holding off Jordan Taylor of Cal State Bakersfield who was second with a 10.70. For Keene, it was his first 100 of the season, and the effort bodes well for a man who is trying to become the third Cougar ever to win the NAIA 100- and 200-meter national championships later this year.

Keene opened the meet by anchoring the Cougars’ 4x100-meter relay to a season-best 41.86.

On the women’s side of the sprints, Cougar senior Mandy Ross, an All-American as well, finished second in both the 100- and 200-meters, and in keeping in line with her individual performances she anchored the Cougars’ 4x100 relay to a second-place showing with a 47.46, teaming with Anita Fung, Breanna Leslie and Tiffeny Parker to clock the fourth-fastest relay in Azusa Pacific history.

Ross recorded a very fine early-season 12.11 in her first 100 of the outdoor season. She then ran a 24.76 in the 200.

While Keene and Ross were clearly the stars of the meet, they weren’t the only Cougars to shine on the track. Sophomore Poppy Lawman completed a fantastic week of racing by narrowly finishing second in the women’s 800-meters with a season-best time of 2:10.63. Canadian high school phenom Jenna Westaway edged Lawman by .02 of a second. The day before Lawman ran a 4:30.22 in the 1500 meters at the Jackie Joyner-Kersee/Rafer Johnson Invitational at UCLA. In her first 1500 of the season, Lawman posted a time less than 2 seconds off her personal-best.

In the men’s 800 meters at Pomona, senior Montrail Brooks blazed a personal-best 1:53.67, finishing sixth in the 82-man field with a time just off the NAIA qualifying standard.

All-American Staphon Arnold led Azusa Pacific’s showing in the field events, finishing second in the men’s high jump with a clearance of 6’ 9 3/4”, easily qualifying for the NAIA outdoors in his first competition of the year.

Back at UCLA on Friday, Lawman’s performance was one of just several excellent times posted by Azusa Pacific distance runners. NAIA champion Lauren Jimison recorded the second-fasted 5000-meter run in Azusa Pacific history with a 16:38.91, trailing event winner Danielle Tauro of Michigan by 6 seconds.

Senior Abednego Magut finished second in the men’s 1500-meters with an NAIA-qualifying 3:51.87.

Overall for the weekend, Azusa Pacific punched a dozen more entries for NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championship Meet later this spring in Marion, Ind.

Cameron Carpenter: 'The King of Instruments'

Cameron Carpenter: 'The King of Instruments'


Cameron Carpenter rehearsing Wednesday in the Princeton University Chapel.

Staff photos by Ph il McAuliffe

‘    McCarter Theatre will present Cameron Carpenter, “the world’s most visible organist,” at the Princeton University Chapel tonight (Friday, April 1) at 8 p.m., as part of his six American cities Spring Tour, before he travels to Europe and Russia.

    Cameron Carpenter — “the most controversial organist alive” (Dallas Morning News) — is “one of the rare musicians who changes the game of his instrument” (The Los Angeles Times) with performances that are “alternatingly dazzling and subtle, and always fired by a profound musical intelligence” (The Wall Street Journal).

    Mr. Carpenter challenges the ways in which the organist is promoted and the organ — which Mozart dubbed “the king of instruments” — is played. His repertoire includes the complete organ works of Bach, Franck and Liszt, but he has adapted more than 200 works not for the organ: from the piano music of Liszt and Rachmaninoff to Debussy’s Prelude to “The Afternoon of a Faun” and Mahler’s Fifth Symphony, to music from animé and film (“Howl’s Moving Castle,” “Spirited Away,” and scores by John Williams and Bernard Herrmann), and re- imaginings of songs by Kate Bush, Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan and Annie Lennox.
    Bringing increased physicality to the organ as a former dancer, Mr. Carpenter has created supervirtuosic organ transcriptions of Chopin études that have led to comparisons as diverse as Vladimir Horowitz and Fred Astaire.

    Mr. Carpenter’s embrace of fashion on the concert stage includes concert wear of his own design. For this concert, his one-of-a-kind artistry will be projected on two screens, treating the audience to an up-close view of his virtuosic fingers and his dancing feet.

    A child prodigy who performed Bach’s complete “Well-Tempered Clavier” at age 11, Mr. Carpenter attended The American Boychoir School in Princeton from 1993 to 1995.

    “I have the warmest memories of my time there as of friends,” said Mr. Carpenter of his time spent in Princeton. He graduated from the Juilliard School in 2006 and currently lives in Berlin.

  

Augusta steals Tiger’s spotlight in PGA Tour 12

Tiger Woods’ name may be on the cover of the latest iteration of Electronic Arts’ PGA Tour series, but the famously troubled golfer isn’t the game’s star. That honour goes to Augusta National, a course widely recognized as one of the finest clubs in the world and which plays host to the prestigious Masters tournament.

Indeed, the game all but revolves around both Augusta and the storied competition that has attracted the globe's best golfers annually since 1934. The primary career mode is organized as a journey through qualifying school and several tours with the grand goal of competing in the Masters. A secondary mode has players trying to recreate some of the tournament’s most memorable performances, such as Gary Player’s blistering final back nine that led him to his third championship in 1978.

The upshot is that you’ll find yourself spending a lot of time on Augusta’s renowned real estate, and you probably won’t be disappointed by what you see. The course is extraordinarily well captured, with famous holes like the short but devilish par three 12th and the round-making (or destroying) par five 15th looking—and playing—just as you’d imagine.

It’s also one of the most difficult courses that Electronic Arts has ever simulated—and not just because of its treacherous greens and sadistically placed hazards. The game automatically removes any clothing or equipment bonuses you may have added when you play in the Masters Moments mode, and when you finally arrive at the tournament proper in the career mode you’ll find yourself prohibited from using some of the game’s most frequently used special abilities, such as power boosts and real time spin control. The upshot is that each green hit is earned, each birdie a satisfying accomplishment.

But we’re not left to face Augusta completely disarmed. The other star of the game (sorry, Tiger, still not you) is a caddy who proudly wears your name on the back of his shirt.