Archive for January, 2007
He may have been dead for some time but by no means is he forgotten. This man who once ruled France has kept the people actively debating. What about? Why they wonder what really caused his death. Did he die of natural causes in exile or was he indeed poisoned with arsenic?
Dr. Robert Genta and a team of US, Canadian and Swiss researchers have tried to determine the cause of death for themselves. Dr. Genta, senior author of the study is a professor of pathology and internal medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He is also an expert on stomach cancer.
The team had nothing to use but the previous reports filed. So they worked with the autopsy report and applied modern pathological and clinical methods as best they could on these reports. Their conclusion is that Bonaparte had a tumor measuring the length of his stomach. He appeared to have third stage stomach cancer and probably had mere months to live. There was no hemorrhage of the heart that would have been present if Napoleon had indeed been poisoned.
Dr. Genta hopes that Napoleon may spark renewed study on gastric cancer just as Betty Ford inspired the interest in breast cancer. How many more famous personages in our history died of stomach cancer? The scientists will have to tell us.
An 8.2 magnitude earthquake in the Pacific triggered fears of another tsunami. Japan, the Philippines, Guam, Indonesia, Russia and Taiwan were all on alert and preparing to evacuate. The epicenter of the quake was located in the Northern Pacific ocean about 1,700 km off Japan’s shores.
Thankfully no tidal waves have resulted from the quake. The largest wave came in 3 hours after the quake. It was a mere 40 cms. This wave hit the island of Chichi-jima and caused no damage. In fact the quake was not felt by most of the people, but only by the sensitive equipment built to track the earth’s movements. This is good since no one wants the people to panic.
Things are pretty much back to normal all over the pacific basin. The scientists remain vigilant. No one wants a repeat of the tsunami disasters two years ago. All is once again normal.
Here it is at last! After much hype and speculation Apple’s CEO Steven Jobs has presented Apple’s latest gadget: the iPhone to the general public and it looks good. It boasts a touch screen and functions as a music player, mobile phone and computer functions that had the crowd cheering.The iPhone has almost no buttons. Almost everything functions through its touch screen – yes, with your bare fingers.
While many are excited over the presentation of the iPod many questions have been raised as well. Though it is a music player it isn’t capable of downloading songs from iTunes yet. Also, typical of Apple, the software is limited to Apple manufactured or approved ones which are very few. The phone itself is not a 3G handset which is the current standard for mobile phones.
It is also very expensive. The iPhone is projected to cost $500 to $600. Is it worth that amount? That has yet to be proven.
There is also a dispute over the name iPhone. Cisco released their iPhone way back in 2004 and are now suing apple for this breach in their trademark.
All in all, Apple’s iPhone isn’t the top of the line in mobile phone technology but ithas the consumers excited that hopefully good changes and innovations are coming this 2007.
It is a moment that any individual would be proud to have – their own star on Hollywood boulevard. Hilary Swank is definitely over the moon that her star has now landed on the walk of fame.
Swank says she still remembers when she arrived in LA with her mother, Judy. They only had $75 to their name. Her mom made calls to various agents using the payphone, telling them that they should hire Hilary. It all paid off.
Hilary Swank has come a long way from “The Next Karate Kid” where she first appeared. She is now a two time Oscar Award winning actress – the first she got for “Boys Don’t Cry” and the second for “Million Dollar Baby”. She hasn’t let the awards go to her head though and continues to be a hard worker.
The actress hasn’t allowed herself to be boxed into any particular stereotype which has been to her advantage. She has shown true versatility and Hollywood has recognized that she truly is a star.
Barely into the new year and already there are new toys and gizmos for us to enjoy. One of the most eye catching is the partnership between Ford and Microsoft. They have put together an in-dash tool that is practical and really cool.
Called Sync, the new offering of Ford-Microsoft is built into 12 Ford models. Sync is a wireless, voice operated system in-car computer system that allows you to easily access your mobile phone and music player. A driver would easily be able to make calls, send text messages and select songs without having to take his hands off the wheel. Sync can even read back text messages received. This provides increased safety for people driving – one less distraction while on the road.
The 12 vehicles slated to have Sync built in are:
- Ford Focus
- Fusion
- Five Hundred
- Edge
- Freestyle
- Explorer and Sport Trac
- Mercury Milan
- Montego and Mountaineer
- Lincoln MKX and MKZ
No final price has been released yet but this definitely looks like the next wave in car entertainment systems.
