THE MEN SPA

2008-05-05T21:44:00.000-07:00

Rendering technology from ARTVPS has helped one student win a prestigious design award. Jonathan Punter was awarded this year’s ‘Best Design Interpretation Award’ at The Pilkington Vehicle Design Awards.

Jonathan, a student on the Royal College of Art’s Masters (MA) Vehicle Design course designed a concept vehicle for his final year project. His brief focused on designing a family car of the future with an interior optimised for social interaction between family members and combing functionality with design in order to create a stunning and realistic end result.

Jonathan, who is a Bentley Motors-sponsored student, took four months to perfect the design of his concept car entry which was modelled using Maya from Autodesk and rendered using ARTVPS’ leading edge technology, RenderDrive®.

artvps.com

Mariah's Vibe Cover & 38th B-Day

2008-05-05T21:40:00.000-07:00

This month’s cover story was shot on-location on Eagle’s Landing, a private Caribbean island off the coast of Antigua where VIBE joined Carey for her lavish 38th birthday celebration. In the magazine, Associate Editor Shanel Odum scribes a daylong journal narrating her encounter with the Grammy Award-winning singer. Odum provides an hour-by-hour account of the day’s events:

2PM: Mariah Carey’s $12,500-a night villa on the 300-acre tropical island is alive and almost antsy…A gang of hairstylists, fashion assistants, photographers, and makeup artists race around the open-air bungalow, each on their own mission to please.

5PM: The 5-foot-9 mirage prances past the overly attentive pack and heads towards a rickety boardwalk, which instantly transforms into her runway. A magenta silk robe whips against those endless, copper legs; black Christian Louboutin heels stab the sand; a wild halo of corkscrew curls flies.

7:30PM: Mariah Carey’s 38th birthday banquet is a Sweet 16 dream…Beckoning palms welcome guests to the entrance of the veranda…The scene inside is a strawberry-frosted pubescent fantasy: purple, pink, and white balloons dance in the balmy Caribbean breeze…And then Mariah’s posse begins to appear.

Longtime confidante Shawntae “Da Brat” Harris breezes past…Recent acquaintance/music video director (“Bye Bye”) Nick Cannon grabs his laptop and goes to the buffet to fix a plate…Fuchsia feather boas drip from arms of every chair…Kitschy gold crowns, tiaras, and noisemakers adorn each place setting…As her guests fawn, Mariah drifts from friend to friend, beaming and blowing kisses.

ucraveblogging.com

Virus Death Toll Climbs

2008-05-05T21:25:00.000-07:00

The death toll from the spread of an intestinal virus rose to 26, and all of the dead were children younger than 6, according to Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency.

The virus, known as hand, foot and mouth disease, has also infected nearly 12,000 others, more than triple the number reported Friday, the news agency said. Health officials have recorded cases far beyond the central province of Anhui, where the outbreak began, with infections as far south as Guangzhou and as far north as Beijing.

The virus is not usually fatal, and health officials are at a loss to explain why so many children have died. The outbreak began in early April, but was not reported by health officials until last week, provoking accusations of a cover-up.

On Monday, the government in Anhui Province punished 10 health officials for inadequate medical care or for mishandling the outbreak.

thenewyorktimes.com

Mendenhall robbed at gunpoint

2008-05-05T21:15:00.000-07:00

Pittsburgh Steelers first-round draft choice Rashard Mendenhall was robbed at gunpoint while walking along the city's lakefront, his agent and mother said.

The former Illinois running back was with another companion along the South Side walkway when he was robbed of his wallet, phone and cash, sources familiar with the investigation told the Chicago Sun-Times.

Mendenhall was taken with the 23rd pick in the first round by Pittsburgh after he set University of Illinois single-season records for rushing yards, touchdowns and points.

Last year, both New York Knicks center Eddy Curry and then Miami Heat forward Antoine Walker were robbed at gunpoint in their homes.

espn.com

Take Two Sues CTA Over GTA 4

2008-05-05T21:00:00.000-07:00

Take-Two Interactive Software sued the Chicago Transit Authority on Monday for allegedly pulling its ads promoting the latest version of the action-driving and crime game just days after the ads began appearing, thus violating its free-speech and contractual rights, according to a Reuters report.

The suit, which was filed in Manhattan federal court, seeks reinstatement of the ads on buses and display spaces, as well as monetary damages of at least $300,000, the reported value of the contract, according to the report.

The suit claims that ads for the game, which has been criticized as excessively violent, were removed after a television news report questioned why the advertisements were allowed to run following a crime wave in the city, according to the report.

In 2004, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich criticized the transit authority for agreeing to run ads for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, leading the CTA to remove the ads, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune.

Take-Two hasn't yet released the game's first-week sales figures, but analysts are expecting sales to top last year's record $300 million first-week sales of Halo 3. The game is expected to sell more than 9 million copies.

cnet news.com

Iron Man's BIG WEEKEND

2008-05-05T01:17:00.000-07:00

“Iron Man” blasted into the box office stratosphere over the weekend, selling an estimated $100.8 million in tickets at North American theaters and almost certainly establishing a new movie franchise for Marvel Entertainment.

Including international sales “Iron Man” grossed an estimated $201 million, according to Paramount Pictures, which distributed the $135 million film. The totals were slightly short of first-weekend sales for “Spider-Man,” the 2002 blockbuster that holds the record for the top nonsequel superhero movie opening.

The weekend’s only other movie of significance, Sony’s “Made of Honor,” ran a distant No. 2 but was not trampled as many had predicted. That $40 million comedy, staring Patrick Dempsey as a guy in love with an engaged woman, sold an estimated $15.5 million in tickets at North American theaters.

Two holdover comedies from Universal also performed remarkably well against the competition. “Baby Mama,” starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, earned $10.3 million (for a total of $33.2 million), while “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” the latest from the producer Judd Apatow, earned $6.1 million ($44.8 million overall).

Rounding out the weekend’s Top 5 was “Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay” (Warner Brothers), with $6 million ($25.3 million overall).

CONSOLE WARS

2008-05-05T01:11:00.000-07:00

Both Microsoft and Sony are again acting very mature, stating that sales of Grand Theft Auto IV are biggest on their platform.

It all started with Aaron Greenberg, director of product management for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live, stating that according to claims from retailers, the game on Xbox360 was outselling the PS3 version with a ratio of 2 to 1 in the US.

On day one of release, the GTA IV on Xbox360 did outsell the PS3 version 335.000 versus 274.000 in the UK. Figures for the US aren't available yet until NPD releases them, but when asked whether the game's release is pushing hardware sales, Greenberg stated that we'll have to wait until May's figures are released.

Fragland.net

Obama's toubles equals joy for the republicans

2008-05-05T00:59:00.000-07:00

Republicans can hardly contain their glee as they watch Barack Obama battle through a rocky period.

"We've had a rough couple of weeks. I won't deny that," Obama said Friday.
Obama caught flak for claiming that small-town folks are bitter and thus cling to guns and religion. Then he turned in a lackluster debate performance. He ended up losing that primary to Clinton in part because he didn't attract enough white, working-class voters.

Now he finds himself in the midst of competitive contests in two more states. Losses Tuesday in Indiana and North Carolina would further weaken him. Even if he manages to hold off Clinton in those and the final primary contests, Obama would essentially limp to the nomination.

"The bark is stripped off him a little bit," said Reed Galen, a Republican who worked on President Bush's campaigns. "Are the folks on the Republican side of the aisle happy to let Hillary do that? Absolutely."

Liz Sidoti covers the presidential race for The Associated Press.

Microsoft's Failed Yahoo Bid Place Pressure on Google

2008-05-05T00:45:00.000-07:00

Microsoft Corp.'s decision to drop its pursuit of Yahoo! Inc. increases the pressure on Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer to make his money-losing Internet business succeed against Google

Ballmer informed employees Thursday about the company’s decision to announce, in ‘short order’, the path it would follow in its move to acquire Yahoo.

“We’re willing to pay for that at some level and beyond that level we’re not willing to pay for it. I know exactly what I think Yahoo is worth to me. I won’t go a dime above and I will go to what I think it is worth if that gets the deal done.”

Washington-based Microsoft, the largest software maker, offered to raise its $44.6 billion bid by about $5 billion, to $33 a share. Yang and Filo refused to accept less than $37 a share, the people said.

Google, owner of the most popular Web search engine and winner of the most online advertising dollars, will expand its dominance while Ballmer plans a new course. Google gained 10 percentage points of market share in Internet queries since June, providing 59.8 percent of the searches done in March, according to researcher ComScore Inc. in Reston, Virginia.

Microsoft was probably right to walk away because its return from the purchase would have been too small if it had paid more than $35, Di Bona said.

Blomberg.com

KOBE KOBE KOBE!!!!!!!!

2008-05-05T00:33:00.000-07:00

The Los Angeles Times' report that Kobe Bryant had won the NBA's Most Valuable Player award reached the Lakers guard at dinner.

While it hasn't been made official, the honor has been expected since the completion of the regular season 2½ weeks ago, when the Bryant-led Lakers finished with a Western Conference-best 57-25 record.

That being said, the 29-year-old Bryant didn't need much prodding to share his feelings.

"I'm very excited about it. I didn't know if it was going to happen in my career," he told reporters. "It's a great honor. It means a lot. To me, it's very special. It's very special to share it with these guys."

Austrian man accused of holding their daughter captive

2008-05-05T00:20:00.000-07:00

The wife of an Austrian man accused of holding their daughter captive for 24 years believed that daughter Elisabeth ran away from home as a 17-year-old to join a cult. That was about six months before police say she was locked into the windowless cellar.

The lawyer of the Austrian man who held his daughter captive and fathered her seven children said on Sunday his client was "emotionally a broken man".

Prosecutors are investigating Fritzl for rape, incest, coercion and the death of one of the children, a baby whose remains he burned in a furnace.

Fritzl has not been formally charged. He faces up to 15 years in prison if he is ultimately convicted on rape charges, the most grave of his alleged offenses, unless prosecutors can charge him with "murder through failure to act" in connection with the death of the infant. That is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.