Join The TechCrunch Greece Meetup With This Live Video Feed

greek-tcSo you couldn't make it to our Greece meetup. No worries. Here's a live video feed sponsored by Open Coffee and Microsoft Innovation Centre so you can catch all the action from Benaki Museum in Athens.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/ppHDpTWcJQ8/

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Utah school stops musical with Elvis songs as racy

(AP) ? A parent who was "All Shook Up" about Elvis Presley songs in a high-school drama prompted educators to cancel the production, deeming it too sexually suggestive.

Presley warbles over a sweetheart whose "lips are like a volcano that's hot" in his 1957 song. "I'm proud to say she's my buttercup. I'm in love. I'm all shook up."

Presley's song lyrics and a scene suggesting cross-dressing were deemed offensive by school administrators in a Salt Lake City suburb.

Rehearsals for "All Shook Up" were canceled before the play was made ready for production at Herriman High School, said Sandy Riesgraf, spokeswoman for the Jordan School District.

The American jukebox musical borrows from Presley's songbook and puts a modern twist on William Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night."

Some think school administrators folded too easily.

"I'm at a loss," Jill Fishback, whose daughter worked on the production, told The Salt Lake Tribune. "They're singing Elvis songs. A girl dresses up as a boy and kisses a boy. ... It's not promoting homosexuality. It was supposed to be a farce."

It wasn't the first time some Utah parents put an end to a school drama. In August, the family values group Eagle Forum got Jordan School District administrators to cancel a production of "Dead Man Walking," a play about a Catholic nun who counsels a death-row inmate in Louisiana.

"Dead Man Walking" was scratched even though administrators said much of its profanity had been stripped from the script.

The unidentified parent who got all hot and bothered over "All Shook Up" alerted officials to parts of the script that were deemed offensive.

"We want our drama to be a great experience not just for our students but the theater-goers. We don't want to offend anyone," Riesgraf said Wednesday. "What was communicated to us, they were upset with sexually explicit language and some other aspects of the play ? what they deemed cross-dressing."

The backlash over "Dead Man Walking" prompted policy changes that allowed administrators to quickly eliminate "All Shook Up" from production.

Jordan officials gave parents a greater role over student plays. They required actors to secure a parent's permission and drama teachers to seek clearance for plays not on an approved list.

It wasn't immediately clear Thursday how "All Shook Up" got off the ground. It had been in rehearsal for months. Riesgraf said another drama yet to be selected will replace it.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-01-03-Elvis%20Musical-Sexual%20Content/id-ebb74b39445241038ec36d149d52f852

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(MCCC-Tenure Track) Accounting Faculty - HigherEdJobs

Company Description:

Holyoke Community College: the opportunities you want; the future you're looking for.

For over 63 years, Holyoke Community College has been a gateway to quality education and career advancement. Seeking to realize their dreams and aspirations, more than 100,000 students have come through the open doors of the College. HCC offers over 100 different academic options.

The Commonwealth's oldest community college, Holyoke Community College serves more than 12,500 students annually in credit and noncredit programs and courses. The college has the highest transfer rate of any community college statewide, holding articulation agreements with more than 27 colleges and universities. Recognized for its Honors Program, distance learning curriculum, learning communities, and service to students, HCC also offers business development opportunities through the Kittredge Center for Business and Workforce Development.

Job Description:

Under the direction of the Dean of Business, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, teach a full-time load of accounting, computer applications in accounting, and business related courses; advise students; assist in curriculum development, participate in program review, department meetings and division meetings, perform college service and recruit students.

DUTIES:

  1. Teaches core accounting courses utilizing a wide variety of teaching methods, including online teaching.
  2. Develops working relationships with internal support groups and external agencies.
  3. Participates in the systematic evaluation of business courses and programs and in curriculum development.
  4. Maintains professional expertise in areas of specialization.
  5. Implements and evaluates general education goals within academic programs.
  6. Recruits and advises students.
  7. Participates in cluster, division, and college meetings; serves on College governance committees and other committees as requested.

Requirements:

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:?Masters degree in Accounting or MBA with concentration in Accounting; at least three years teaching and/or work experience in accounting; excellent written and oral communication skills; excellent teaching skills including varied pedagogical styles (i.e. collaborative, inquiry-based, computer-assisted, and/or multimedia methods of delivery, including experience integrating course management software as a supplement to classroom learning). Individual should be familiar with computer applications such as spreadsheets, computerized accounting, and commercial accounting software packages. Knowledge of the mission of a community college and the ability to work effectively with a diverse faculty, staff and student body is essential.

NOTE: A teaching demonstration will be part of the interview process.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: CPA or CMA; bilingual (English/Spanish); strong community college teaching experience in introductory, managerial, intermediate, and tax accounting. Additional teaching experience in finance and business math.

COMPENSATION: Salary Range: $41,470 - $64,154, plus a comprehensive State benefits package.?

STARTING DATE: September, 2013

EQUIVALENCY STATEMENT: Applicants who do not meet the minimum requirements are encouraged to put in writing precisely how their background and experience have prepared them for the responsibilities of this position.

Additional Information:

Holyoke Community College is committed to excellence and opportunity through diversity in education and employment. Holyoke Community College is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, religion, color, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, genetic information, maternity leave, and national origin, in its education programs or employment.

All candidates must have legal authorization to work in the United States.

Application Instructions:

Applicants interested in applying MUST submit the following documents via online:

  • Resume/CV
  • Letter of Interest (Cover Letter) - When preparing your cover letter, please refer to the minimum and preferred qualifications as pertaining to this position and, if applicable, include an equivalency statement.
  • List of references with names, addresses, & telephone numbers of three professional references

DEADLINE: Applications will be reviewed beginning February 4, 2013- Additional applications may be considered until position is filled.

Returning applicants -?https://hcc.interviewexchange.com/login.jsp?to check completed application.

Source: http://www.higheredjobs.com/details.cfm?JobCode=175706866

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Your brain on Big Bird: Sesame Street helps to reveal patterns of neural development

Jan. 3, 2013 ? Using brain scans of children and adults watching Sesame Street, cognitive scientists are learning how children's brains change as they develop intellectual abilities like reading and math.

The novel use of brain imaging during everyday activities like watching TV, say the scientists, opens the door to studying other thought processes in naturalistic settings and may one day help to diagnose and treat learning disabilities.

Scientists are just beginning to use brain imaging to understand how humans process thought during real-life experiences. For example, researchers have compared scans of adults watching an entertaining movie to see if neural responses are similar across different individuals. "But this is the first study to use the method as a tool for understanding development," says lead author Jessica Cantlon, an assistant professor in brain and cognitive sciences at the University of Rochester.

Eventually, that understanding may help pinpoint the cause when a child experiences difficulties mastering school work. "Psychologists have behavioral tests for trying to get the bottom of learning impairments, but these new imaging studies provide a totally independent source of information about children's learning based on what's happening in the brain," says Cantlon.

The neuroimaging findings are detailed in a new study published Jan. 3 by the Public Library of Science's open-access journal PLoS Biology, by Cantlon and her former research assistant Rosa Li, now a graduate student at Duke University.

For the investigation, 27 children between the ages of 4 and 11, and 20 adults watched the same 20-minute Sesame Street video. Like the regular program, the recording featured a variety of short clips focused on numbers, words, shapes, and other subjects. The children then took standardized IQ tests for math and verbal ability.

To capture the neural response to the show, the researchers turned to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans. Unlike X-rays, CAT scans, and other types of brain imaging, fMRI involves no risks, injections, surgery, or exposure to radiation. Using magnetic fields, the scans virtually segment the brain into a three-dimensional grid of about 40,000 pixels, known as voxels, and measure the neural signal intensity in each of those tiny sectors. The study produced 609 scans of each participant, one every two seconds, as they watched Big Bird, the Count, Elmo and other stars of the educational series. Using statistical algorithms, the researchers then created "neural maps" of the thought processes for the children and the adults and compared the groups.

The result? Children whose neural maps more closely resembled the neural maps of adults scored higher on standardized math and verbal tests. In other words, the brain's neural structure, like other parts of the body, develops along predictable pathways as we mature.

The study also confirmed where in the brain these developing abilities are located. For verbal tasks, adult-like neural patterns in the Broca area, which is involved in speech and language, predicted higher verbal test scores in children. For math, better scores were linked to more mature patterns in the intraparietal sulcus (IPS), a region of the brain known to be involved in the processing of numbers.

Using normal activities, like TV watching, may provide a more accurate indicator of children's learning and brain development in the real world than the short and simple tasks typical of fMRI studies, the authors argue. Like the Sesame Street video, learning environments in schools are rich in complexity along with the academic lessons, write the authors.

To test that assumption, Cantlon and Li had the children perform traditional fMRI tasks by matching simple pictures of faces, numbers, words, or shapes. During these more limited activities with simple images, the neural responses of the children did not predict their test scores, unlike the more naturalistic task of watching Sesame Street.

Although the study does not advocate TV watching, it does show that "neural patterns during an everyday activity like watching television are related to a person's intellectual maturity," says Cantlon. "It's not the case that if you put a child in front of an educational TV program that nothing is happening-that the brain just sort of zones out. Instead, what we see is that the patterns of neural activity that children are showing are meaningful and related to their intellectual abilities."

Conducted at the Rochester Center for Brain Imaging, the study was supported by a National Institutes of Health grant (R01 HD064636) and by a James S. McDonnell Foundation grant to Cantlon.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of Rochester.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. Cantlon JF, Li R. Neural Activity during Natural Viewing of Sesame Street Statistically Predicts Test Scores in Early Childhood. PLoS Biol, 2013; 11(1): e1001462 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1001462

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/iTybV-joZbs/130103192348.htm

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It?s An Android World After All: Polaroid Launches $150 Kids Tablet, Expanding Its New Lease On Life As A Digital Media Company

Polaroid_7in_Kids_Tablet_FRONT_ScreenPolaroid’s newish image as a digital media company got one more boost today, with the launch of a new, $150 Android tablet aimed specifically at children. Simply/obviously branded the “Polaroid kids tablet,” the 7-inch device has sidestepped the holiday shopping rush to try its luck instead launching among the throng at the CES show later this month in Las Vegas. The news comes one day after Polaroid also announced a new retail strategy, the launch of at least 10 new stores this year dedicated to digital printing, which will also become a key place also to showcase its devices. You might legitimately criticize Google’s Android for breeding a lot of fragmentation in the mobile market, but what the open-source OS has also done is help make wireless devices like tablets and smartphones truly mainstream, and, by way of being a ‘free’ OS, pave the way for some interesting devices that cater specifically to particular market segments. The Polaroid kids tablet is part of both of those trends. The kids tablet, Polaroid says, will be made extra-durable — as you can see by the illustration here, that will include an extra-large bumper/bezel. Other hardware specifics for the Ice Cream Sandwich-loaded device, made in conjunction with Polaroid licensee Southern Telecom, include 8GB of internal storage with an additional external SD card slot; a 1.0 GHz CORTEX-A8 processor, a rear-only camera, and WiFi-only connectivity. And, like other connected devices aimed at the youth market, it will come preloaded with parent-controlled security features and links to educational and kids-specific content. This will include a “Kids Cam”, Music Studio and Draw features, as well as a couple of customized interfaces to deliver children-friendly content. These include a filtered video-streaming app called Kids Vids, as well as an interface called Free Play that presents all the free apps available from a child-filtered Android app store, the App Shop. As a parent of two young kids myself, I have to admit that I’ve been pretty disappointed with a lot of the “kid friendly” devices on the market to date, which are usually too restricted and closed-source to be truly useful. And kids, after all, like to use tablets and smartphones pretty much like adults do, as evidenced by this Harris Poll study out today on smartphone and computer usage across the U.S. I personally haven’t taken the time to “child proof” our own connected devices and so

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/no3mWSX57sE/

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Wall Street dips as investors lock in gains

3 min.

Stocks edged lower on Thursday as investors locked in gains after a rally Wednesday, which was spurred by a deal by U.S. lawmakers to avert a "fiscal cliff" of austerity measures that had been due to kick in this year.?

Losses were limited, however, by better-than-expected data that showed U.S. private-sector employers added 215,000 jobs in December. That was well above economists' expectations for a gain of 133,000 jobs, according to a Reuters survey.?

"The report now sets the stage as we expect a strong non-farm payroll reading on Friday," said Andrew Wilkinson, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak & Co in New York?

The ADP report beat forecasts partly due to "a snapback from (superstorm) Sandy, although we prefer to stick to our line of thought that says the economy is gaining momentum rather than losing it regardless of the impact of fiscal talks in Washington," he said.?

The key payrolls report is due on Friday. A Reuters survey forecasts non-farm payrolls rose to 150,000 last month, from 146,000 in November.?

A separate report Thursday showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose last week, but the data was too distorted by year-end holidays to offer a clear read of labor market conditions.?

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 45.92 points, or 0.34 percent, at 13,366.63. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 3.62 points, or 0.25 percent, at 1,458.80. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 8.15 points, or 0.26 percent, at 3,104.11.?

Wall Street began the new year Wednesday with a rally and their best performance in more than a year, sparked by a last-minute deal in Washington to avert a fiscal cliff of automatic massive tax hikes and spending cuts that, in the worst-case scenario, would have hurt the nation's economic growth.?

U.S. retailer Costco Wholesale Corp reported a better-than-expected 9 percent rise in December sales at stores open at least a year, mainly helped by an additional sales day in the reporting period. Costco shares rose 1.3 percent to $102.80.?

Gap Inc will buy women's fashion boutique Intermix Inc for $130 million to enter the luxury clothes market, the Wall Street Journal reported. The stock rose 3 percent to $32.28.?

Family Dollar Stores Inc reported a lower-than-expected quarterly profit as its emphasis on selling more everyday items like cigarettes and soft drinks put pressure on margins. The stock fell 12 percent to $56.47.?

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/wall-street-dips-investors-lock-gains-1B7812451

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New Fujifilm X-series cameras rumored for CES

1 hr.

Rumors that Fujifilm will be unveiling updates to its popular X series of cameras at CES next week gained steam as shots and specs for two new devices leaked to a Japanese website Friday. The new cameras boast a number of improvements over their already critically acclaimed predecessors.

The images and info posted to Digicame-Info haven't been confirmed, but they're in line with expectations.

The X100, which caused a splash in 2010 with its striking?design and high-quality sensor and lens, will get a successor in the form of the X100S. Supposedly it gets an upgraded hybrid viewfinder (combining an optical and LCD viewfinder), hybrid autofocus (uses multiple methods to speed up focus), and some helpful tools to improve manual focus.

The X20 will be the sequel to the well-reviewed X10, a lower-cost camera that used many of the aspects of the popular X100. The rumors say it will get a sensor of the highly-regarded X-Trans type, Fujifilm's pride, and will also get a number of improvements to focus. It will also have a duotone silver-and-black version, to the delight of those who thought the original was a bit too monochrome.

Advertisements for Fujifilm at the CES venue do not feature the new cameras, but we will be there in person to follow up and let you know.

Devin Coldewey is a contributing writer for NBCNews Digital. His personal website is?coldewey.cc.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/gadgetbox/new-fujifilm-x-series-cameras-rumored-ces-1B7831298

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Loudoun Freedom Basketball Tryouts | Ashburn Sports & Recreation ...

Belmont Ridge Middle School is located in a Leesburg ZIP code, but serves many Ashburn students. Belmont Ridge, which teaches sixth through eighth grades, is home to the River Hawks. Principal Timothy Flynn heads the school administration. A wide array of extracurricular activities, clubs and sports are available, with an activities bus to assist with transportation.

Source: http://ashburn.patch.com/events/loudoun-freedom-basketball-tryouts-cd012445

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MTV's New Show: 'Jersey Shore' Meets 'Honey Boo Boo'?

Pok Pok Closed Until January 18th - - Portland Food and Drink

Pok Pok Portland Oregon

Pok Pok Chicken Wings

It?s been such a year, we need a minute to re-coup! Our Division Street location will be closed until January 18th for a winter facelift. In the meantime, please visit Pok Pok Noi and Whiskey Soda Lounge for your Thai fix. See you soon!

"I have a wide-range of food experience - working in the restaurant industry on both sides of the house, later in the wine industry, and finally traveling/tasting my way around the world. Whether you agree or disagree, you can always count on my unbiased opinion. I don't take free meals, and the restaurants don't know when, or if, I am coming."

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Source: http://portlandfoodanddrink.com/pok-pok-closed-until-january-18th/

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