Lol33t: marzo 2012

viernes, 30 de marzo de 2012

Nason Moretti #1

Sorry, readability was unable to parse this page for content.

How perceptions of presidents might have been different

Other journalists are openly accusing Robert Fisk of making things up

Friedrich Hayek on why freedom does it better

A bipolar expedition

Accounts of expeditions throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries rarely mentioned episodes of psychiatric disturbance or interpersonal conflict, as such was not in keeping with the image of polar explorers, who were expected to have specific qualities and characteristics, such as strength and resilience. Nevertheless, equally rare was the polar expedition that did not have at least one member who was debilitated by depression, anxiety, paranoia, alcoholism, or sleep disorders. During Sir Douglas Mawson's second Antarctic expedition (1910–14), that person was Sydney Jeffryes, the radio operator, whom Mawson believed "surely must be going off his base. During the day he sleeps badly, gets up for dinner looking bad, husky; mutters sitting on his bunk in the dark afterward."

Frequently, the entire crew of a polar expedition would experience melancholy and depression, as was the case of the Belgica expedition to Antarctica in 1898–99. As described by the great polar explorer and expedition physician, Frederick A Cook, "The curtain of blackness which has fallen over the outer world of icy desolation has descended upon the inner world of our souls. Around the tables, in the laboratory, and in the forecastle, men are sitting about sad and dejected, lost in dreams of melancholy from which, now and then, one arouses with an empty attempt at enthusiasm."

Cook tried to treat these symptoms by having crew members sit in front of large blazing fires. This baking treatment, as he called it, could be the first recorded attempt to use light therapy to treat symptoms of winter depression or seasonal affective disorder. Other expeditions, such as the Greely expedition of 1881–84, met a far worse fate than the Belgica exploration. In their attempt to establish a scientific base on Ellsmere Island in the Arctic, the crew of the Greely expedition was driven to mutiny, madness, suicide, and cannibalism, leaving six survivors of a crew of 25 men.

Will Ferrell Announces Anchorman 2, Which Is Great News For Thick People

Will Ferrell is one of the worst things ever to happen to anything. He's up there with Adam Sandler, Sarah Silverman and Robert Mugabe. And all of these people are mystifyingly popular with gawping idiots.

Ferrell, presumably mugging in someone's face and making farting noises right now, has a criminal record of tawdry comedy as long as your hecklerspray's face.

And our face is so very long because Ferrell has announced that he's bringing newscaster Ron Burgundy back in a sequel to Anchorman.

Ferrell made a surprise, in-character appearance on Conan to play a flute solo and a deal with Paramount Pictures, which confirms that the long discussed sequel to 2004?s Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy will be happening.

Ferrell informed host Conan O'Brien:

"It's official, there will be a sequel to 'Anchorman.'"

Paramount had previously declined a musical plan put forth by Ferrell and director Adam McKay that also included a proposed Broadway stage show.

There's mercifully no details on that project, but as far as Anchorman 2 goes, it looks like McKay, producer Judd Apatow, and co-stars Paul Rudd and Steve Carell will return.

Great news for incredibly thick people who like watching dreadful comedies.

STUDY: Are photo apps the most annoying thing about Facebook?

Stop blurring, cropping and adding 465,874 borders and filters to that photo. Put down your iPhone. Just drink your coffee. It's official. Your lame Instagram shots are the most annoying thing about Facebook.

So what's REALLY the most annoying thing about Facebook? Incessant pregnancy updates complete with measurements, weights and ultrasound images? "I love you forever" public messages between couples? CRZY TXT SPK INNIT FRM YR MATEZ FRM SKOOL? Vain outfit of the day shots (not guilty)? Well no, it seems we're most angered and annoyed by people who share too many photos they've edited using the likes of Instagram and Hipstamatic.

The research comes from photo book website MyMemory.com, which aimed to find out what we're most annoyed by when it comes to Facebook sharing, and the blurry, retro photos that many of us love to share take the top spot, with 61% of those asked admitting it's their number one pet peeve about the social network.

Unsurprisingly baby photos came in second, with 58% of those polled admitting cutesy kid shots really annoy them. Further down the list are food snaps and holiday photos too, which we assume is more to do with us all being insanely jealous of that girl we know getting to go to Thailand with work more than anything else.

Interestingly, the main reason we're so annoyed by Instagram-like photos is apparently because 55% find the effects and filters "unnecessary". Well yeah, of course they're not necessary, but COME ON they make it look like we're from the 70s and they get rid of our uneven complexion.

It worries us that people are SO annoyed by these kinds of photos, with 76% saying they've taken action to hide them from their feed and 21% have even deleted the culprit as a friend. Woah, let's all calm down now shall we. But we get it, we'd rather you unfriended us than develop a heart problem later in life because we want to add a blurry filter to a photo of that plate of macarons.

We're pretty surprised to be honest, if a couple of pretentious Instagram snaps are the most annoying thing about your Facebook news feed, you're obviously not following the same nutcases we are.

MyMemory.com polled 1,671 Facebook-using Britons.

Into fitness and health gadgets? Check out our new site, Connected Health

Check out the best iPhone 4 accessories here ,

Ashley Cole! Read The Lyrics To ‘Screw You’ By Cheryl Cole

Despite the rumours that persist about Ashley Cole, he went and got married to Cheryl from Girls Aloud (despite the rumours that persist about her too). All was going swimmingly until Ashley started fooling around.

Overnight, the heartache meant that Cheryl Cole because the people's princess. We forgot all about that toilet attendant business. Ashley Cole was public enemy number one!

And so, after a quiet spell, Chezza is back with a new song called Screw You and, well, while there's no official word on it, it does sound a lot like a barbed attack on a certain ex husband. And the lyrics are rather fruity too!

The words to the tune from her third solo album have leaked online and seem to be aimed at Ashley following their public, ugly split.

Cheryl sings:

"Can't believe all the shit I did for you, was so caught up in the love I felt for ya / I was never enough, I never got your love."

Crumbs chief! She continues:

"I love you so much but you never gave a fuck, so screw you / I can still remember our first date, never thought I would scream I hate ya."

Cheryl Cole there, with the swearing and the shouting and the dignified retort to someone who isn't very pleasant.

You wouldn't get Nicola Roberts acting like that would you?

Sir Elton John Is Pregnant

Amazing news! Sir Elton John is planning to have another baby, apparently! That's right, the bitch is back and he's pregnant with his second child. Of course, his partner David Furnish has had something to do with it.

When Elton gives birth, it'll be a delightful sibling for 14-month-old son Zachary.

We do worry about Elton John's wee-way though. How does one go about squeezing a child out of your little wang? With him being a celebrity, he'll probably have a C-section won't he? How terribly fashionable.

A source says:

"The wheels are in motion. David and Elton have never hidden their desire to extend their family, and believe the time is right for another child. By the end of this year, or the beginning of next year, there will be a fourth member of the John-Furnish clan"

"They are incredibly excited and loving every minute of parenthood."

The team of nannies and carers meanwhile, are exhausted and hating every minute of Elton John's parenthood.

When Elton and David had their first baby, Furnish gushed:

"For many years we have talked about fulfilling one of our greatest wishes by becoming parents. And now this wish has been granted to us, we feel so blessed and lucky"

However, this next child sees strange semen admin.

"For the time being we don't have a clue who the biological father is."

Crivens! The slag!

Snoop Dogg To Make Reggae Album Which Might Just Contain A Few Weed References

Snoop Dogg likes to smoke a little of that sticky icky icky. We know this because he talks about almost nothing else. Remarkably, he hasn't proclaimed a fondness for reggae yet, so the rapper has decided to create yet another ode to weed by announcing that he's making a reggae LP with Diplo.

Yes, really.

It'll be all blunts-this, chong-that… light-'em-up and gorging on as many packets of 10p crisps at the 24 hour garage as he can.

Diplo told MTV:

"Snoop Dogg is an icon, man; he's bigger than the music. What we're doing is a reggae record. It's all reggae and he's singing and he's doing a fucking awesome job and I never knew it, but he had his heart in every song."

He added:

"We're going to get back into the production of it next month, and I'm really proud of that record. It's the first record I've ever executive-produced and his crew is amazing."

Of course, this isn't the first time Snoop has ventured away from rap into other musical genres.

Hands-up if you remember his song, My Medicine, which he did with Willie Nelson? Yes, THAT Willie Nelson. Another dirty stoner if ever there was one.

While Snoop disappears into his latest haze of green smoke, have a listen to what happens when he ventures into new musical territories and see if you think this reggae LP is going to be any good.

UPDATED: WTF: Of course Kanye West has launched a tech startup

UPDATE: So it IS an April fools day joke. Or just a random hoax, no one's quite sure.

When we read on Gizmodo this morning that Kanye West was setting up his own tech company we were excited.. Really excited. This is it, the first step in Kanye taking over the world. Next there'll be Kanye snacks, Kanye clothing, Kanye housing. Our imaginations are running wild. The sensible ones in the office told us (ok me) to hold our horses. Could this be a prank for April fools day they said. No I said. This is it. This is the beginning. First whodat.biz, next the globe. Scrap that. The universe.

Luckily i wrote that it could well be a prank (see, in the final paragraph) and a number of sources have revealed that yes, it was all one big joke. We're sorry for falling for it. But admit it, you did too. However, rather than being embarrassed, we're actually just really disappointed. Come on Kanye, you owe us a tech startup and you owe us it NOW.

[Via The Huffington Post]

Although Watch The Throne is one of Shiny Shiny's all time favourite albums, we haven't been sure what to make of Kanye West since he replaced his teeth with ACTUAL METAL and then began the most insane Twitter tirade in which he shared his arrogant (yet kinda creative) views about tech, architecture, design, education. Oh let's just elect him as KING OF THE WORLD and be done with it already.

Well now according to Gizmodo, details of his first venture since he set up his start-up Donda Media have been revealed.

Drum roll please... It's called WhoDat.biz (of course it is) and the tagline is "the Facebook of websites", which is so fabulously cryptic. It basically tells you who owns websites, which we're pretty sure a LOT of other companies do already. But, we're hoping Kanye has something pretty special up his sleeve with this one and doesn't think he's come up with the idea himself.

Here's Kanye's explanation, which is of course IN ALL CAPS:

"EVER WONDER WHAT IT WOULD BE LIKE TO BE ABLE TO FIND OUT WHO'S BEHIND YOUR FAVORITE WEBSITES? WHODAT DOES JUST THAT. SIMPLY ENTER THE WEB ADDRESS OF A WEBSITE IN THE BIG-BAR-BELOW AND DISCOVER THE CREW BEHIND ANY WEBSITE ON EARTH."

At first we thought this might be some kind of April Fools' Day joke, but we're now convinced that it's such a strange move it could have only come from the mind of Kanye West.

[Via Gizmodo Image via Socialisbetter]

Tulisa Runs Away To USA Where They Don’t Have The Internet Or Sarcasm

Leave it! Two two's naaah! Tulisa Contostavlos is fleeing the UK to hide away in the US after being repeatedly mocked over her sex tape with MC Ultra. Mainly because she doesn't appear to be very good at giving gobbles.

The X Factor judge is planning to escape by heading to Miami to visit Terius Nash (or, The-Dream to you) who clearly doesn't have the clout to be sarcastic about her sex tape and indeed, mustn't have an internet connection like the rest of America.

So what's The Female Boss (Female Nosh more like) saying about it all?

She wrote on twitter:

"As if I'm goin bed n @MrTeriusNash is bout 2 go on stage … tear it up G! see ya in a few weeks #STATESIDEBOUND"

Sources close to the former N-Dubz singer have advised that she should get her head down and lay low in America. Hur hur… 'head'. Leeeave it!

A friend of the singer said:

"It has been the worst period of Tulisa's life. She can't face going outside."

Worse than when she was poor, suicidal and looking after her sick mother? This is honestly worse? Really? It is pretty bad (she recently ran away from her private box at a Drake concert at London's O2 Arena on Tuesday after it looked like the JLS lads might start teasing her – imagine! JLS thinking that you're beneath them in some way!). LEAVE IT! Two two's naaaaaah.

The friend added:

"The Drake gig on Monday night was a real struggle for her as she thinks everyone is laughing at her."

And so, in America, where no-one has the internet and doesn't ever watched leaked celebrity sex tapes, Tulisa will rest her weary shame and doss about while all this promotes her latest single for free.

Will Pearson’s 360 panoramic tours

"I grew up in the Peak District, Derbyshire and after a post-university stint in Nottingham headed south to London and have been a fixture here ever since. I've been a professional panoramic photographer since the mid-nineties. I love my job and each day is different, the opportunity to capture these images is a privilege and sometimes an obsession."
— WILL PEARSON

Will Pearson panoramic tours
From the summit of the Shard London Bridge

Will Pearson panoramic tours
Overlooking Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai

Will Pearson panoramic tours
Arisaig, Scottish Highlands

Will Pearson panoramic tours
From the base of the Jin Mao Tower, Grand Hyatt, Shanghai

View these (and other) panoramic shots in full screen and interactive glory on Will Pearson's website.

Absolutely stunning.

Prints are available for sale at 1 metre plus.

Via The Partners.

Subscribe to new posts via RSS or email. Follow on Twitter.

Rihanna Is Not Dating Ashton Kutcher, Stopping Advent Of World’s Most Ghoulish Couple

Did you hear the one about Rihanna being romantically linked to Ashton Kutcher? If you didn't, you've not been reading hecklerspray and, frankly, we hate you for that. There has been reports that the two were knocking their uglies together though.

A dreadful, honking notion, don't you think?

Well, it seems RiRi isn't letting The Kutch part her lips with his long, coyote-esque peen which is great news for Demi Moore who looked for all the world like she was going to top herself over the whole thing. So what does Ri have to say about it all?

At a London press conference for Battleship – that'd be the stupid film that is based on one of the most boring board games on Earth - a reporter used her one question with the pop star to ask about the alleged rendezvous which took place the other week.

"Wow, how disappointing was that question. I'm happy and I'm single, if that's what you're really asking."

Disappointing? Would she have preferred something more hard hitting like; 'So, Chris Brown. What's the deal with letting him completely off the hook when he knocked 40 shades of shit out of you three years ago?'

Or maybe: 'So, Rihanna, ever considered keeping your clothes on and NOT talking about sex for one second in your life?'

No, RiRi would much rather talk about her fondness for public transport in London (because she's quite clearly insane – no-one in their right mind likes being stuck in an underground metal tube filled with Londoners).

Talking about her getting papped on the Underground on the way to a Drake gig, she said:

"There's so much traffic. It's approximately an hour and a half to the O2 every time. … I hate waking up early and I'm always late, so the tube is like 10 minutes"

And when she's done there, she can blink into the light while smelling of year-old cockerny B.O.

HURRAY!

A month of Saturdays

Latest stories

» A month of Saturdays

» A Newsdump for 29 March 2012: From Demi Lovato making vidfans wait to Azealia Banks EP release date

» BEHOLD the A*M*E horsehat and other exciting horse-related imagery

» So Plug.dj is basically amazing

» A Newsdump for 28 March 2012: From 1D's sex ban in the USA to Ke$has blood for Record Store Day

» Popjustquiz 3: April 10

» A Newsdump for 27 March 2012: From Madonnas Q&A to Mariah Careys birthday

» A Newsdump for 26 March 2012: From a Party Rock remix to Gotye being eclipsed

» "Forgive us for what we have done, cos we're young"

» The new song by The Recording Artist Bright Light Bright Light is Popjustice-approved

» The problem with Nicki Minaj's 'Starships' is that it is not quite ridiculous enough.

» A Newsdump for 22 March 2012: From Katy Perry becoming a Marine to Nicki Minaj performing on US TV

» Say I'm in W1

» That Engelbert Humperdinck Eurovision entry listening experience 'in full'

» A Newsdump for 19 March 2012: From Lana Del Rey in black and white to Lady Gagas rodent plight

A Newsdump for 29 March 2012: From Demi Lovato making vidfans wait to Azealia Banks’ EP release date

Demi Lovato has generously released a second video teaser 'snippet' for cultural behemoth 'Give Your Heart A Break', which shows her looking fairly windswept while hugging a man. (YouTube)

In 'music business' news, Justin Bieber and 'Till I Collapse' rapper Eminem have become "embroiled" in a legal battle with South Korean company Moonstone Management for allegedly being booked for a show they never turned up to. (Contactmusic) We can 'reveal' that it was to perform separately, not as a double act. (Although that would, we are sure you will agree, be quite something.)

'Drop Down (Do My Dance)' hitmaker Afrojack has 'revealed' that his new collaborator Shakira is loving dance music at the moment. (Billboard) He notes "when a beat drops, she makes this like…face. She's feeling it". That is good to know.

Stop all the clocks, pour away those stockpiled bottles of piss: the 'highly anticipated' concert featuring Adam Lambert and Queen might not be happening anymore, after it was announced on the band's website that Sonisphere Festival is cancelled. (Ace Showbiz)

Fazer would like to collaborate with either Danny from The Script, lute-playing borelord Sting, or Kelis. (Daily Star) Out of all of them, we think the Sting is the most likely one to happen.

'Apparently' Take That's Howard Donald is "getting stick" from rival DJs because the fanbase he attracts to his sets is so old. (The Sun)

A woman dressed as Lady Gaga has been arrested on drink driving charges while she was wearing "yellow-caution tape that was wrapped around her neck, inner thighs and buttocks and glued to her skin". (Sun Sentinel)

Next time you bump into Rihanna, don't ask her about any potential romances she's having as she'll probably shoot you down rum pu pu pum etc. (MTV)

And finally, demure artiste Azealia Banks' EP '1991' will be released on April 17, while she has been getting fairly excited about collaborating with Kanye West. (NME) She quietly noted "!!!!!! Aaaaaaaahhhh!!!! LMFAOO I just got a Kanye west beat. I'm gassed!" No further detail on the LMFAO collaboration as yet.

THAT WAS some of THE NEWS.

The right to be offensive and wrong

One of the things that any reasonably consistent defender of freedom realises is that freedom means the freedom to do or say stupid, offensive or silly things. (A key proviso, of course, being the freedom to do that so long as you are not imposing your views on others, such as by entering private property and spraying graffiti on the walls, or posting offensive comments on a privately run blog such as this in violation of the blog-owner's house rules). The recent case of Liam Stacey, a young man jailed for up to 56 days for making offensive comments about the Bolton footballer, Fabrice Muamba, is a particularly bad case.

Mr Muamba is a black footballer who, over a week ago, suffered a heart attack during a football match. He had to be rushed to hospital and is in a critical condition, but it is hoped he will recover. His case has touched the hearts of even the most partisan supporters of the game; people from across the sport, not just in this country, have posted messages of support. Some might sneer that this is typical sentimental guff, but I disagree and it seems genuinely meant and rather a good reflection on a game that often gets its share of abuse.

Now this young student who used Twitter to make crass remarks is obviously an idiot. But it seems to me to be utterly nonsensical to suggest that he should be punished for it by the law. (We don't have big enough jails to hold all the bigots in this country, let alone anywhere else). He has not, as far as I can tell, incited violence against Mr Muamba or his family and friends. If he had done that, then there might be more of a case.

And where exactly are we going to draw the line? Those internet users who post messages hoping for the death of Tony Blair, Margaret Thatcher or other political figures - are they going to be prosecuted? (I can think of a few people who might be in quite serious trouble on that score). Should the odious Baroness Tonge, whom I denounced for her anti-semitic remarks the other day, be slung in jail? (No). Should those who preach that non-believers in some god or other will burn in hell be put away? Should people who send jokes to friends and inadvertently offend someone be sent to jail? (I offended someone once many years ago this way and got carpeted by my then boss, to my shame). What about stand-up comedians like Frankie Boyle or Jimmy Carr who say nasty things, such as about the Queen, Scotsmen or children with Down's Syndrome? I personally think these "jokes" are bloody awful but I certainly don't think people should be sent to the slammer. Instead, we just make sure we don't pay to watch these characters again.

Of course, in making the case for freedom of speech for yobs, idiots and bigots, it is important to be crystal clear that tolerance for such behaviour is not the same as approval of it. We tolerate that which we do not ourselves approve. There is no doubt that this rather ignorant and unpleasant young man has learned a painful lesson, but it would have been far better had this student learned the perils of making unpleasant comments not by going to jail - places which should be occupied by genuine criminals such as robbers and rapists - but by incurring the ridicule and contempt of those who rightly regard racism and bigotry with scorn.

Defending liberty, if it means anything, means defending the freedoms of those you might personally regard as repulsive. Being a libertarian sometimes demands that we take such a stand, however uncomfortable.

Life For Dr. Conrad Murray Really Is Poo In Jail

Poor Dr. Conrad Murray, we can imagine that he's not having the best of times in prison at the moment. Despite being convicted of the manslaughter of a certain Michael Jackson, he knows that, when he's released, he'll be battered with abuse from fanatical Jackson goons.

We don't imagine prison to be an exciting place, especially in America. Our yank buddies seem a bit stricter on discipline and prefer to harbour inmates in cells without luxuries such as TV, radio and concealed weapons.

Some might argue that criminals deserve nothing, though they need some basics if they're expected to see out a sentence given to them without hanging themselves with their shoelaces. One such thing is clean drinking water and the last time we checked, the BBC has held no telethon to raise money for dirty drinking water in LA. But if reports are to be believed, we might have to help America out. 'Sexy' Dr. Conrad Murray is blaming an embarrassing problem on what he drinks.

Normally, if something tasted or smelled bad, you'd be put off from putting it in your mouth. Though prison imposes a few restrictions upon you. Gone are the days when you could stuff yourself with Chinese food, instead you make do with whatever slop is given to you. This is when kebabs start to look like a Michelin star food.

So what exactly has upset everyone's favourite doctor? According to the man himself, he's been ill thanks to supposedly dirty water. So ill in fact, that he's lost around thirty pounds.

All through his rectum.

That's right, sitting on a prison toilet which he might have to share, he'll have been squatting and clenching until his bowels are emptied. We've heard that:

"Murray has been extremely sick since becoming an inmate last November. He claims the water smells and tastes bad, and believes it has given him a horrible case of dysentery. Murray says the bad water, along with a bad diet, is ruining his health."

Clearly he's missing a dash of Fruit & Barley juice to make that dirty taste change into something sweet. And if that wasn't bad enough our sexy doctor even claims he's been forced to eat cat food. This is his alleged prison diet:

"Murray buys canned tuna for $4.25 a pop, salmon flakes for $3.50 and canned mackerel for $2.50. Murray is telling friends that aside from cats, he's the only human being forced to eat canned mackerel."

Okay, so it isn't actual cans of cat food, but fish isn't that bad for you. Granted, it would taste better if deep fried, served with chips, mushy peas and a blob of red sauce, but criminals can't be choosers can they?

Well we guess he could be. All Murray needs to do is wave a syringe around and tell a guard he'll do administer a daft amount of knock out drugs.

jueves, 29 de marzo de 2012

Nason Moretti #2

Sorry, readability was unable to parse this page for content.

untitled #133

Sorry, readability was unable to parse this page for content.

Dino the camel face

Sorry, readability was unable to parse this page for content.

The seers and oracles

An evocative passage from the 1976 book Hallucinogens and Shamanism about the use of the hallucinogenic Psilocybe mexicana mushroom by the Mazatec people of Mexico.

The Mazatecs say that the mushrooms speak. If you ask a shaman where his imagery comes from, he is likely to reply: I didn't say it, the mushrooms did. The shamans who eat them; their function is to speak, they are the speakers who chant and sing the truth, they are the oral poets of their people, the doctors of the word, they who tell what is wrong and how to remedy it, the seers and oracles, the ones possessed by the voice.

Link to details of book.

Fit and proper

Android users can sign-up for Instagram NOW

Rumours have been circulating for some time now that the Instagram team have been quietly working away at an Android version of their popular iPhone app. Android users then breathed a sigh of relief at SXSW earlier in the month when the app's co-founder, Kevin Systrom, revealed that the highly anticipated app is in fact set to be released for Google's OS "soon".

There's been no official word on how soon is "soon", but over the weekend Instagram launched a landing page allowing Android users to sign-up to be one of the first to test the new app when it finally arrives. We're not entirely sure whether users will just be sent an email when the app lands, or whether they really will be granted early access before anyone else in the near future, but if you're an Android user and you've been dying to get your hands on the app for some time, we're sure you'll be pretty excited either way and get your name down ASAP.

Into fitness and health gadgets? Check out our new site, Connected Health

Check out the best iPhone 4 accessories here ,

GALLERY: Gadgets for the elderly from the Geriatric Care Fair in Hanover, Germany

The health and fitness gadget market is rapidly expanding, but there are plenty of interesting tech innovations specially developed for the elderly that are often overlooked in favour of fancier gizmos. So, Shiny Shiny has been exploring a few of the tech developments unveiled at the Geriatric Care Fair in Hanover, Germany this week.

We love health and fitness gadgets here at Shiny Shiny, we even started a new blog dedicated to them over at Connected Health. But at the moment we're really interested in some of the innovations we're seeing that have been developed specially for the elderly.

A number of tech brands have launched products over the past few years with a more elderly audience in mind, just take a look at all of the mobile phones over at Hearing Direct, from the likes of Doro and Amplicom.

There are a number of specialist trade shows dedicated to geriatric health care across the globe (we saw some interesting demonstrations at CES too), but the most recent fair in Hanover, Germany has revealed some very interesting new gadgets and tech advances, like crazy dancing robots and a 'gentle' outdoor exercise wheel...

[Images via Press Association]

Into fitness and health gadgets? Check out our new site, Connected Health

Check out the best iPhone 4 accessories here ,

Will there really be THREE Amazon Kindle Fire 2 models?

We all breathed a sigh of relief when we found out the Amazon Kindle Touch had finally been given a UK release date, but where oh where is Amazon's tablet, the Kindle Fire?!

Well it seems while we sit and wait for it there are lots of rumours flying around the web about its sequel, which may come in not one, not two, but three different versions.

Despite the fact previous rumours had suggested the next Kindle Fire would come in 10 and 7 inch models, numerous Taiwanese publications are now contradicting that, stating that the Kindle Fire 2 will come in an 8.9 inch size and two slightly differing 7 inch models instead.

The main difference between the two 7 inch versions is said to be screen resolutions: an entry level model will kick off proceedings with a 1024 x 600 resolution, with the mid-range model offering a 1280 x 800 screen.

Moving up to the 8.9 incher, it'll be Amazon's top of the line model, offering a full HD screen resolution, with only the new iPad offering more impressive display tech from within a teeny tablet.

Of course, as ever, it's all rumour and speculation at this point. But should the rumours regarding the HD 8.9 incher prove true, the Retina Display of the latest iPad may have a new, cut price rival quite soon.

[Via Tech Digest Via Unwired View]

Into fitness and health gadgets? Check out our new site, Connected Health

Check out the best iPhone 4 accessories here ,

Moonpig and Zappar create augmented reality greeting cards

Quirky card company Moonpig has teamed up with augmented reality specialist Zappar to create a range of video-enabled greeting cards.

The Moonpig website is a treasure trove for greeting cards, whether you need one for a birthday, Bar Mitzvah or Halloween (really?). But now the website has joined forces with Zappar, a team known for its clever augmented reality and entertainment products, to create video-enabled cards.

From this week, users are now able to visit the site over at Moonpig.com, pick a card, upload a personal video message, choose an image for the front and send it in a matter of clicks.

The recipient can then view the message if they've got the Moonpig app on their mobile (available for iOS and Android devices) and watch it again and again. As the person you're sending your quirky card to will need the Moonpig app, it may be a little restrictive, so do think twice about picking a card for that great aunt who doesn't even know how to use a TV remote.

We love seeing the mobile and offline worlds come together in this way, particularly when this new move is so accessible and allows regular users to take advantage of Zappar's clever technology. Caspar Thykier, managing director for Zappar, said:

"This will be the next step in how people receive and view greeting cards, providing purchasers and recipients with a whole new way of creating personal messages. We feel implementing AR in such an everyday item as a greeting card is a great way to use the Zappar platform. It really demonstrates how the technology can truly enable a product in a commercial context with a tangible consumer benefit."

It also really adds to Moonpig's silly, fun and quirky branding, offering users the very latest in greeting card technology, if that's even a thing?! Iain Martin, MD for Moonpig, said:

"Since we first launched we have continued to add new features and content that enable our customers to send the very best cards - the video card is a major step forward."

We don't doubt that some users will add ridiculous, silly and possibly filthy videos to their cards, but we still think it's a really interesting partnership and in many ways a match made in heaven. Awh.

New Total Recall Trailer Has A Trailer All Of Its Own [Video]

Have you seen Total Recall? Stupid isn't it? The only good bits are the woman with 3 boobs, the robot taxi driver, Arnie's woman disguise, the funny Krang-esque stomach face and Arnie pulling that massive thing out of his nose.

Hang on. Total Recall is clearly brilliant.

Going from apathetic to furious, the film is being remade and the trailer for the trailer has been unleashed online. The full thing is coming on Sunday, but it'll be awful. It's got Colin Farrell in it for a kick off.

A teaser trailer for the new film seems to set up a rather action packed version of events, clearly inspired hugely by the Arnold Schwarzenegger/Paul Verhoeven original.

That said, it'll probably be less camp and more dark and brooding, as is the want for most directors these days.

The film comes out at the end of a summer and the proper trailer will premiere during the NBA game between Miami Heat and Boston Celtics (or, if you're not in America, it'll appear online at some point and everyone will be tweeting about it).

Sony Pictures' Marc Weinstock commented on the choice of premiere, saying:

"We're thrilled to be working with the NBA and ABC to give millions of fans all across the country this exciting first look at the trailer."

Total Recall stars Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, Bill Nighy and Ethan Hawke and hits the silver screen in August.

It better have three boobs.

The Amazon Kindle Touch gets a UK release date of April 27th

Despite the fact Amazon's highly-anticipated Kindle Touch eReader was launched in the US late last year, it's only just been given a release date of April 27th here on the other side of the pond. But hey, better late than never, eh?

We've been waiting for news about Amazon's Kindle Touch eReader (and the even more elusive Kindle Fire tablet) for what seems like YEARS now, but this morning it's been announced we'll be able to get our hands on it at the end of April.

The eReaders will be almost identical to their US counterparts apart from some software tweaks prior to a larger global firmware update. Interestingly, the Kindle Touch does away with both the physical keyboard and page turn buttons of earlier models in favour of software buttons and gesture-based swiping page turns.

Each still features a six inch screen and promise up to two months of battery life per charge. The Wi-Fi version weighs in at 213g, with the 3G edition slightly heavier at 220g.

The new Kindles also bring the new "X-Ray" feature with them, allowing readers to quickly view all mention of characters, ideas or places in a book, as well as leaping out to Wikipedia for more in depth information.

Jorrit Van der Meulen, Vice President, Kindle, Amazon EU Sàrl, said:

"UK customers have been asking us to make Kindle Touch available on Amazon.co.uk and we are excited to do so today.

"Customers continue to choose Kindle because they love the world-class reading experience, the vast selection of Kindle books available at great prices, and the convenience of downloading their books in just 60 seconds. We continue to see that people read more with Kindle--readers in the UK buy an average of 4 times the number of books they purchased prior to owning a Kindle. With the launch of Kindle Touch and Kindle Touch 3G we expect to see this reading renaissance continue."

Both the Wi-Fi only and the Wi-Fi and 3G models will launch simultaneously in the UK, priced at £109 and £169 respectively. 3G data costs remain free (subsidised by the cost of each unit) with Vodafone handling network data. Pre-orders open today.

Those waiting for the UK launch of the Kindle Fire tablet however will have to wait a bit longer, as Amazon makes no mention of the new slate. Boo.

[Via Tech Digest]

Into fitness and health gadgets? Check out our new site, Connected Health

Check out the best iPhone 4 accessories here ,

POLL: Should a US school kid have been expelled for a sweary tweet?

sweary-kid copy.jpg A school kid over in the states has been expelled because he sent out a few tweets containing the F-bomb, even though he sent them at night from his personal account. That's a little harsh, right?

As Twitter is so public (unless you're weird and secretive and set it to private), it's probably not a good idea to say much that you wouldn't say in real life (we're talking to you Liam Stacey). Granted most normal people don't tweet anything too abusive or offensive, but unless your employers are particularly strict we'd assume the odd swear word is perfectly acceptable, right?

Well, no. Austin Carroll, a school kid from Indiana, has found out the hard way as he swore a few times in his tweets and soon found himself expelled from high school. The crazy thing is the tweets in question were sent late at night and weren't referring to other people or the school, or anything that really should have caused offence in this day and age.

We feel like we're on Carroll's side here, but the tweet actually seems pretty pointless and silly, we'd have at least hoped he'd be ranting or getting something off his chest. According to Digital Trends the tweet read something like:

"F*** is one of those f*** words you can f*** put anywhere in a f**** sentence and it still f*** make sense."

Awh, how poetic.

However, despite the fact the tweet reads like crazy ramblings and isn't offending anyone, the school has claimed that because he was using a school-owned computer he was very much in the wrong.

But dont fret too much for foul-mouthed Carroll just yet, despite the fact a number of students have protested about his expulsion he's just decided to go and finish high school somewhere that isn't so strict.

Although we stand by the fact a swear word shouldn't land you in lots of trouble, this should be a reminder that there's a chance everything you're saying online RIGHT NOW could be monitored and recorded. Even all of that stuff you think is much more private. Pretty scary, huh?

[Via Digital Trends Image via INC]

Into fitness and health gadgets? Check out our new site, Connected Health

Check out the best iPhone 4 accessories here ,

Broke Ass Dennis Rodman Is Not Paying Child Support

Oh, Dennis Rodman – the Easter Island statue of the NBA and various reality TV shows. He's not doing so well these days. In fact, he's broke. He's more broke than hecklerspray. People want dollars and pounds from Rodman because he had sex without a condom on.

Yep, Dennis is being asked to pay more than $800,000 in child support and he can't afford to pay it.

Dennis' ex-wife Michelle Rodman filed new papers this month, claiming The Worm owes $808,935 in unpaid child support for his 9- and 10-year-old children, with an additional $51,441 in unpaid spousal support. Alas, he's a sad old drunk.

Dennis' attorney has responded to the filing, insisting there's no way the Chicago Bulls legend can pay his bills because "Respondent Dennis Rodman is broke and cannot afford any additional fees."

According to his lawyer, Roddo is also "extremely sick" which is code for 'massive boozehound alcoholic'.

Rodman's lawyer also claims that the giant child support figure is based on an order Michelle obtained behind his back, which required the b-baller to pay $50,000 a month in child support.

Children are so bloody expensive aren't they? It seems Rodman hasn't got any of his Celebrity Big Brother money left either.

Dennis' lawyer insists the monthly amount is "unjustified" because it isn't based on Dennis' actual income, rather, it's based on wild estimates made by Michelle's attorney.

Even so, Rodman is due in court for a contempt hearing and could end up with a whopping 20 days in jail for failure to make payments.

So, former splendid person ends up broke, drunk and probably going to prison. That's funny right?

Lindsay Lohan To Appear As Herself On Glee (Tragic)

After getting in trouble with her mental dad, God, drugs, the law and a jewellers, Lindsay Lohan has been doing her darnedest to get back into everyone's good books. Then she nearly ran someone over in her Porsche.

At some point in all this, she thought she'd have a crack at comedy, appearing on Saturday Night Live. However, she got a royal kicking there, which surely left her weighing up a drink and drugs binge. Why bother getting good if you're just going to get slapped around?

Well, in what could potentially be Last Chance Saloon for LiLo, she's going to try and put her SNL fiasco behind her and appear on Glee. As herself. Does that mean shagging pornstars and crying onto an ankle tag? God we hope so.

Lohan's spokesman confirmed the move, saying in the most boring of fashions:

'Lindsay will be appearing in an episode of Glee.'

According to TVLine.com she will appear on the show as herself, being a celebrity judge when the Glee choir performs at a big contest near the end of this current season.

BOOOOORRRRRRRING.

That said, this Thursday could well be the last of Lindsay's probation days, which is nice. She's been in-and-out of court, rehab and jail since her arrest in 2007. Once she's off the leash, she'll be able to act like a wildchild again, right?

Because that's why we like her. Not for her stupid job.

Joining Lohan on Glee will be Whoopi Goldberg who will play a drama academy professor who auditions characters Lea Michele's Rachel and Chris Colfer's Kurt for a place at an arts college.

We hope Whoopi delivers a 'it's not rape, rape' comment during the show!

Will Pearson’s 360 panoramic tours

"I grew up in the Peak District, Derbyshire and after a post-university stint in Nottingham headed south to London and have been a fixture here ever since. I've been a professional panoramic photographer since the mid-nineties. I love my job and each day is different, the opportunity to capture these images is a privilege and sometimes an obsession."
— WILL PEARSON

Will Pearson panoramic tours
From the summit of the Shard London Bridge

Will Pearson panoramic tours
Overlooking Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai

Will Pearson panoramic tours
Arisaig, Scottish Highlands

Will Pearson panoramic tours
From the base of the Jin Mao Tower, Grand Hyatt, Shanghai

View these (and other) panoramic shots in full screen and interactive glory on Will Pearson's website.

Absolutely stunning.

Prints are available for sale at 1 metre plus.

Via The Partners.

Subscribe to new posts via RSS or email. Follow on Twitter.

Alicia Silverstone Likes Spitting Into Her Child’s Mouth

She was made famous by a series of awful Aerosmith videos before starring in a terrible Batman film. Apart from that, Alicia Silverstone hasn't done a great deal. Until now that is! Now, she's all about regurgitating her food and spitting it into her child's mouth!

That's right. Alicia is like some kind of seabird, honking up pre-chewed food into the gob of her hatchling.

Honestly. You may think this is hecklerspray's imagination running away with itself, but this is precisely how Silverstone feeds her 11-month-old son, Bear Blu. Yes, her child is called Bear Blu.

Silverstone said:

"I fed Bear the mochi and a tiny bit of veggies from the soup… from my mouth to his. It's his favorite… and mine. He literally crawls across the room to attack my mouth if I'm eating."

And if you think that this is some kind of awful hearsay where everyone is trying to make the actress look barking mad, you're wrong.

Here's a video.

There you have it. It looks for all the world like Alicia is 'making out' with her son, which isn't inappropriate at all.

Jackie Keller, executive chef of Los Angeles healthy food company NutriFit still thinks such behaviour is not really something human beings who have a perfectly good Knife And Fork System, should do:

"I've never seen anything like this – except in the animal world where birds and some other species pre-chew their offspring's food. I wonder what benefit there could possibly be to the child and the mom? Certainly there is no scientific literature that I'm aware of that promotes this type of behavior among humans."

A rep for Silverstone did not respond to a request for comment, while Alicia was probably sitting on the aerial on top of her house, squawking at passers-by, trying to pass an egg from her anus.

Sinitta Worries About Cowell’s Intruder (While Thinking She’s The Only Person Who Should Be Breaking In And Acting Weird)

Sinitta wants Simon Cowell to move house after an intruder was found in his wardrobe covered in blood. Sinitta probably thought she was the only person who was allowed to be found hiding in his house, acting like a lunatic.

The leaf-wearing maniac dated Simon in the '80s and has remained his close friend ever since, mainly by sheer persistence.

She's now very worried for Cowell and thinks he's not safe where he lives and wants him to get the blue hell outta there. She also thinks it's all about her. No, seriously.

She told Digital Spy:

"I think it's pretty alarming really. It's probably affected me worse. I think he should move and everything now. Change security, build a high gate around his house – or just move. What on earth were the security doing? Were they asleep?"

The intruder in question goes by the name of Leanne Zaloumis who is 29 (old enough to know better) and from Catford in London (and nothing good ever came out of south London) and appeared at West London Magistrates Court on Monday accused of aggravated burglary with intent.

She's in custody now. Full marks if you made a joke about custard when reading that.

But Cowell is alright. We don't need to worry about him. Despite having hair like a grizzly bear and an eerily still face, he's trying to get his leg over with the Britain's Got Talent make-up artist.

AND SHE LOOKS A BIT LIKE CHERYL COLE.

The make-up artist is called Francesca Neill and Simon has the hots for her.

He said:

"We have the new, cutest make-up artist. But I just can't talk to her, I'm kind of tongue-tied."

Just imagine him, fiddling with himself while thinking of Neill putting blusher on his gonads. Go on. Picture it really clearly in your mind's eye with all those veins and grunts.

You're welcome.

Demi Moore Understandably Devastated By Ashton Kutcher And Rihanna Having It Off With Each Other

In what universe is it okay to see Ashton Kutcher and Rihanna in a relationship? Just how did we smite thee god, to end up with such a repugnant pair, followed closely by a broken Demi Moore?

This is what is happening according to reports and rumours.

The vapid Kutch is rumoured to be having a thing with the odious, wearisome faux-nymph Rihanna, which of course, is ruining Demi Moore who has been looking rather unhinged and fragile since Bruce Willis left her some time in 4,000BC.

Demi is said to be feeling "sick to her stomach" over rumours her estranged husband Ashton Kutcher is dating RiRi. Its nice that Moore should hear these rumours while she was fresh out of rehab for a reported eating disorder and a reported drug mishap.

Ashton, of course, has impeccable timing. The reason he and Demi broke up in the first place because he stuck his dick into a young woman on the night of his wedding anniversary. And now this.

A source says:

"Demi is constantly keeping tabs on Ashton so when these pictures came up she was understandably devastated. Demi's convinced something happened between them and said she felt 'sick to her stomach'.

"[She's] been acting crazy ever since, trying to find out information about the pair. Demi is in such a fragile state, even the idea of them together has affected her quite badly."

It seems that Ashton is absolutely determined to see Demi so suicidal that she actually tops herself. Whaddaguy!

Rihanna was papped leaving Ashton's LA home at around 4am recently and according to reports, is so smitten with the hunk she's introduced him to her brother, Rorrey.

An insider told The Sun:

"Rihanna and Rorrey, who releases music under the name GQ, are close so him meeting Ashton is a big deal. Rihanna clearly thinks things between them are serious."

Meanwhile, rumours abound that Chris Brown is dead. So not all bad news today then.