Windows Phone 7 (WinMo7)

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Windows Mobile 5 has always been a jerk. Seriously like I wouldn’t want to get a WinMO even though the ActiveSync will be one of the Microsoft greatest invention. We can sync not only contact, but emails, blackerry and etc.

Here are some details about Windows Phone 7 from taken from PPCGeeks

-The User Interface is based upon codename “METRO”. It will be very similar to the Zune HD User Interface with a complete revamp of the “Start” screen. The UI is “Very Clean”, “Soulful” and “Alive”
-Unfortunately there will be no Flash support at the get go as there was not enough time to implement these features.
-Windows Phone 7 will only support application installation through service based delivery. (i.e Marketplace). Application installation via storage card will not be possible.
- No Multi-Task support. Applications will “Pause” when in the background, however will support notifications via push notifications.
-Marketplace will now support “try before you buy” as well as an API
-No NETCF backwards compatibility. This means the original rumor of no backward compatibility for applications holds to be true. That being said, there are high hopes of porting the NetCF to the newer platform easily.
-Microsoft is confident that devices will be ready by September 2010
-Full Zune Integration
-Windows Mobile Device Center will no longer be used. Zune software to take over syncing via PC.
-OEM Interfaces will not be allowed to run on the device. Say goodbye to Sense UI / SPB Mobile Shell / Point UI / Infinity, etc, etc
-Full XBOX Gaming Integration (Gamer tag, achievements, friends, avatars, merchandising, etc)
-Full support for social networking

I personally think that they are trying to mimic the features of an iPhone into the Windows Mobile 7. Look at the “No-Multicast Support” and cannot install from hard disk?
This would be interesting…

Popularity: 2% [?]

Terrorists Engineering Degree

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Nope. There is no such degree, if you happened to Google for the course above. I read an interesting article and hence wanted to share an insights of the question posed “Why do so many terrorists have engineering degrees?”

The writer I taken his entire post from here – Isegoria

Engineering is not a profession most people associate with religion. The concrete trade of buildings and bridges seems grounded in the secular principles of science. But the failed attack this Christmas by mechanical engineer Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was a reminder that the combination has a long history of producing violent radicals.

The anecdotal evidence has always been strong. The mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, Mohamed Atta, was an architectural engineer. Khalid Sheikh Mohamed got his degree in mechanical engineering. Two of the three founders of Lashkar-e-Taibi, the group believed to be behind the Mumbai attacks, were professors at the University of Engineering and Technology in Lahore.

A paper released this summer by two sociologists, Diego Gambetta and Steffen Hertog, adds empirical evidence to this observation. The pair looked at more than 400 radical Islamic terrorists from more than 30 nations in the Middle East and Africa born mostly between the 1950s and 1970s. Earlier studies had shown that terrorists tend to be wealthier and better-educated than their countrymen, but Gambetta and Hertog found that engineers, in particular, were three to four times more likely to become violent terrorists than their peers in finance, medicine or the sciences. The next most radicalizing graduate degree, in a distant second, was Islamic Studies.

So what’s with all the terrorist-engineers? The simple explanation is that engineering happens to be an especially popular field of study in the countries that produce violent radicals. But Gambetta and Hertog corrected for national enrollment numbers in engineering programs and got similar results. Even among Islamic terrorists born or raised in the West, nearly 60 percent had engineering backgrounds.

Another possible explanation would be that engineers possess technical skills and architectural know-how that makes them attractive recruits for terrorist organizations. But the recent study found that engineers are just as likely to hold leadership roles within these organizations as they are to be working hands-on with explosives. In any case, their technical expertise may not be that useful, since most of the methods employed in terrorist attacks are rudimentary. It’s true that eight of the 25 hijackers on 9/11 were engineers, but it was their experience with box cutters and flight school, not fancy degrees, that counted in the end.

Gambetta and Hertog propose that a lack of appropriate jobs in their home countries may have radicalized some engineers in Arab countries. The graduates they studied came of age at a time when a degree from a competitive technical program was supposed to provide a guarantee of high-status employment. But the promises of modernization and development were often stymied by repression and corruption, and many young engineers in the 1980s were left jobless and frustrated. One exception was Saudi Arabia, where engineers had little trouble finding work in an ever-expanding economy. As it happens, Saudi Arabia is also the only Arab state where the study found that engineers are not disproportionately represented in the radical movement.

What else might account for the radical, violent politics of so many former engineering students? Is there some set of traits that makes engineers more likely to participate in acts of terrorism? To answer this question, Gambetta and Hertog updated a study that was first published in 1972, when a pair of researchers named Seymour Lipset and Carl Ladd surveyed the ideological bent of their fellow American academics. According to the original paper, engineers described themselves as “strongly conservative” and “deeply religious” more often than professors in any other field. Gambetta and Hertog repeated this analysis for data gathered in 1984, so it might better match up with their terrorist sample. They found similar results, with 46 percent of the (male American) engineers describing themselves as both conservative and religious, compared with 22 percent of scientists.

Gambetta and Hertog write about a particular mind-set among engineers that disdains ambiguity and compromise. They might be more passionate about bringing order to their society and see the rigid, religious law put forward in radical Islam as the best way of achieving those goals.

Then with the Piao Meis coming to Malaysia to study, for what purpose? Of course for Hospitality. We, Malaysian are famous for that right? :P

Popularity: 1% [?]

Nude Beach Guide

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I stumbled upon the link here.

Nude beaches, hot springs, and other public nudist locations from all over the world are being documented here. We provide pictures, directions, impressions and even a map! This is an enormous task and we need your help. Please email us with any information, corrections, updates and pictures and may have.

Visit http://www.edenism.com/

Malaysia got such place?

Popularity: 2% [?]

New Currency Declaration

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Declaration is required as effective 1st January 2010 for the carrying an amount exceeding equivalent to USD10,000 must make a declaration in form Customs No. 22 be it in cash, or cheques and etc.

Here’s the article from Bank Negara Malaysia

New Currency Declaration Requirement at All Entry and Exit Points of Malaysia

In line with the global effort to combat money laundering and terrorism financing, effective 1 January 2010, travellers entering or leaving Malaysia with cash and/or negotiable bearer instruments (e.g. traveller’s cheques, bearer cheques) exceeding an amount equivalent to USD10,000 must make a declaration in form Customs No. 22. The forms will be made available at counters located before the Customs Checkpoints at all entry and exit points of Malaysia.

This is a requirement under section 23 of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001 (AMLATFA) and is in line with the Special Recommendation IX by the Financial Action Task Force which requires countries to have measures in place to detect the physical cross border transportation of cash and negotiable bearer instruments. Travellers could be fined up to RM1 million and/or face imprisonment not exceeding a term of one year if they fail to declare or make a false declaration.

For further information, members of the public can contact the Royal Malaysian Customs Department or Bank Negara Malaysia at the following contact points:

Royal Malaysian Customs Department

Public Relations Division
Royal Malaysian Customs Department Headquarters
Tel: 1-800-88-8855/+6 03-8882 4803/+6 03-8882 2929 or
E-mail: kastam@customs.gov.my/aduan@customs.gov.my
Website: http://www.customs.gov.my

Bank Negara Malaysia

BNMTELELINK (Customer Service Call Centre)
Tel: 1-300-88-5465 or
E-mail: bnmtelelink@bnm.gov.my
Website: http://www.bnm.gov.my

Source :BNM

Others :-
Announcement in PDF
Sample Form No. 22

Additional Notes:-
1. The Minister of Finance has given his approval for the invocation of section 23 of the Anti Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001 (AMLATFA) effective 1 January 2010.

2. This new requirement is in line with global efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing activities. Countries like Canada , United Kingdom , Australia , New Zealand , Japan , Philippines and Singapore have also adopted the same declaration requirement on the physical transport of cash and negotiable bearer instruments.

3. The Royal Malaysian Customs is the competent authority responsible for enforcing this new requirement.

Popularity: 3% [?]

Avatar Cheat List

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With the latest news that the movie ‘Avatar’ has reached its $73 million since its debut, everyone will begin to talking about it. With the buzz created, there is no doubt that the movie will continue to gain ratings.

Serving in 2D and 3D, the effect is nonetheless second to none.

Managed to compile the few cheat lists to allow you having the spoiler first. Heh!

Movie review by ars
5 reasons why you must watch Avatar by cinemablend
10 things you need to know – techland

Finally the best of all, MTV Cheat Sheet

MTV Cheat Sheet for Avatar

and the weekend box office mojo, (link) crazy huh?

With the storyline being predictable, what is the gist of the movie?

The film was shot proprietary FUSION digital 3-D cameras developed by Cameron in collaboration with Vince Pace, and offers a groundbreaking mix of live-action dramatic performances and computer-generated effects. The revolutionary motion-capture system created for the film allows the facial expressions of actors to be captured as a virtual camera system enables them to see what their computer-generated counterparts will be seeing in the film, and Peter Jackson’s Oscar-winning Weta Digital visual-effects house supervises Avatar’s complex visual effects.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Malaysia Scholarship Opportunities

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A lot of times, we wanted to go for the better education. But without money, what can be done? Just seek for scholarships.

Again, but where? Here’s the list of the websites that offer scholarship

MARA Scholarship Programs

http://www.mara.gov.my/english/division/BPP/default.htm

Yayasan Proton Scholarship

http://www.malaysia-scholarship.com/yproton.html

PTPTN Education Loan

http://ptptn.gov.my/

The Star Education Fund

http://thestar.com.my/edufund

Astro Scholarship Award

http://www.astro.com.my/v5/astrolife/scholarship/

PETRONAS Education Scholarship Programs

http://esu-spmtrial.petronas.com.my/

2007 MNRB Scholarship Fund

http://www.mnrb.com.my/

OCBC Bank Scholarship

http://www.ocbc.com.my/global/aboutOCBC/Gco_Abt_Community.shtm

Bank Negara Scholarship

http://www.bnm.gov.my/

ABM 50th Merdeka Scholarship

http://www.abm.org.my/

Curtin Sarawak Scholarship

http://www.curtin.edu.my/

The University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus High Achievers Scholarships

http://www.nottingham.edu.my/students/MISC/High%20Achievers%20Scholarship%202006-July06.pdf

HELP University College

http://www.help.edu.my/scholarships/index.php

Adelaide Achiever Scholarships International (AASI)

http://www.international.adelaide.edu.au/future/scholarships/ug/

Curtin University of Technology Scholarship

http://www.emaac.org/

Charles Darwin University Scholarship

http://www.malaysia-scholarship.com/www.cdu.edu.au/engineering/scholarships_ug_int_eng.htm

Kolej Disted-Stamford Degree Scholarships

http://www.disted.edu.my/

Leeds University Scholarships

http://scholarships.leeds.ac.uk/

Loughborough University Human Science Scholarships

http://www.lboro.ac.uk/

MAAC Scholarship – La Trobe University 2006

http://www.latrobe.edu.au/international/courses/ug.html

NUS / Asean Undergraduate Scholarship

http://www.nus.edu.sg/admissions/undergrad/scholarship/nus_asean.htm

UCL Pathfinder Scholarships

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/

University of Sheffield Scholarship

http://www.shef.ac.uk/malaysia/entry.html

UTAR Scholarships

http://www.utar.edu.my/

Nanyang Technological University Scholarship

http://www.ntu.edu.sg/oad/scholarships/nanyang.htm

Tasmanian International Scholarships

http://www.international.utas.edu.au/documents/internationalApplication.pdf

University of Malaya Fellowship Scheme

http://ips.um.edu.my/

Universiti Malaysia Sarawak Scholarship

http://www.unimas.my/

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST Discovery Scholarship)

http://apply.embark.com/kaust/discovery/

Universiti Malaysia Sabah Scholarship

http://www.ums.edu.my/pasca

Popularity: 19% [?]

The Human Torch

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torch The Human Torch

Maybe CK wanna try it out?

Popularity: 3% [?]

Coffee Mona Lisa

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Amazing what people can do with such common things like a cup of coffee!

Artist assistants stand next to 3,604 cups of coffee which have been made into a giant Mona Lisa in Sydney ,
Australia. The 3,604 cups of coffee were each filled with different amounts of milk to create the different shades!!

image0012 Coffee Mona Lisa

image0022 Coffee Mona Lisa

image0031 Coffee Mona Lisa

image0051 Coffee Mona Lisa

Popularity: 5% [?]

The Shoebox Project

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Let put our hands together for the society and not just for the namesake charity. Put some love into other people lives.

It is much nicer to do it when you’re doing it for a cause. Thanks to a friend whom helped to summarize the shoebox project.

THE SHOEBOX PROJECT (a Christmas Community Service)

  1. Donations to refugee children under the care of United Nations Malaysia (which receives no funds for these incentives), aged 2-12 years old.
  2. Targeted 160 children.
  3. If there are more than 160 shoeboxes, the extras will be donated to the underprivileged children living in Sentul and Setapak area.
  4. Collect a (or a few) shoebox(s) and fill it will gifts for these children, tie / wrap nicely and put a note if it’s for a “Boy”, “Girl”, “Unisex”.
  5. Gifts could be: Stationeries, Stickers, Toys (non-battery/electrical operated), Clothes, Food, Hygiene Products, etc.
  6. Can also contribute cash to Ee Lynn and a committee will assemble a shoebox on your behalf or donate the cash
  7. We will get someone to pick up all the shoeboxes / donations from Menara OCBC (Jessica Ng as liaison) on the 30th November 2009 (Monday) after work or contact Ee Lynn directly for other arrangements.

Thank you all for your generosity. No obligation to contribute, but please do spread the word to see if your family members, friends or colleagues would be interested.

Dear Friends,

Christmas is coming! My colleagues (UN) have an ongoing project to give out Christmas presents to the refugee children in December, because the kids have so little.

We’ve identified a target group of refugee children from the ACR. For now the number stands at about 160 kids. We’re currently working out the details and should finalise a plan soon.

What we want to do is called “The Shoebox Project“, i.e. put together a shoebox of fun/cool/useful items to give out as Christmas presents.

The reason we chose shoeboxes is because:
(i) the gifts will then be of the same size and no one feels inadequate for receiving a gift of a smaller size, and
(ii) because if we were to fill a shoebox with many different items, chances are the kids will have a use for at least a few of the items, whereas if we were to give the children 1 big present each, some of it may not be of particular use to them (e.g. unsuitable clothes, books [they are illiterate], battery operated toys when these have run out of batteries)

Suggestions of items to include in the shoebox:
1) Colouring books, crayons, felt-tip pens, pencils, stationery and stickers.
2) Small toys (e.g. McDs Happy Meal premiums) – early this year, our BID Unit gave out used toys (but in good condition) and the children were so happy!
3) New clothes (maybe undies and t-shirts?) rolled up small and fitted into the box.
4) Chocolate, candy, raisins, mini cereal packs.
5) Kiddie toothbrushes (esp the cartoon character ones) [NOT BATTERY-OPERATED OR ELECTRONIC, PLEASE!] and toothpaste. I think this is a pretty important thing to include.
6) Non-electronic games and puzzles — slinkies, pinball puzzles, jigsaws, building blocks, tops, magnet kits, play dough etc. Nothing that requires reading instructions, please. Most of the children and their parents are illiterate, and when you are having hard enough a time trying to pay the utility bills, an electronic toy becomes an additional burden.

You can either put together your own shoeboxes to give away (of a minimum value of RM15 – RM20) or we (and a taskforce of helpers, again feel free to volunteer) will put together the shoeboxes/presents and people can sponsor a shoebox to give away (or 2 or 10!).

If you would like to participate, any type of contribution you would like to make would be welcome, i.e. in cash via donating or sponsoring, or in kind, via helping to wrap presents, obtaining items, ideas etc.

I actually prefer contributors to fill up their own shoeboxes to give away, because you will then be putting thought and care into it, and because it would save us time! It is also good if you have children. Get them involved in the selection and purchasing process. It fosters thoughtfulness and they will be happy to know they assembled the box all by themselves.

If you are interested, to contribute, PLEASE:
1. Collect your clean shoeboxes. Clean them out and line with paper if necessary.
2. Fill them up with goodies, keeping in mind the recommended total value.
3. If desired, indicate if it is meant for a boy or a girl. I prefer no wrapping, or wrapping with material like old calendar sheets or used giftwrap instead of buying more giftwrap. Tie the box with a pink/red ribbon for a girl and a blue/green one for a boy. Attach a card or post-it that says ‘BOY’ or ‘GIRL’ so I know who to give it to. No such necessity if the gift is gender-neutral. Puzzles, blocks and play-dough are always good for all. The kids’ ages range from 2 – 12 years old.
4. Deliver the shoeboxes to me or get me to collect it from you.
5. I will take photos of the event to share with all!

If each person contributes just ONE shoebox of goodies, we would have enough for all the children.

If we have more shoeboxes than children, I will bring the surplus boxes to the underprivileged children living in Sentul and Setapak area and distribute it to them. (Yes, the same children that we are collecting school uniforms, school bags, shoes and school fees for) These are all children who have fallen through the cracks in the system and receive no help from their school PTAs or the government. So much for 1Malaysia! It doesn’t matter whether or not you celebrate Christmas. I don’t, but the objective of the project is to bring a little joy to children whose parents are too busy, too poor and too plagued with problems (health, legal status and others) to care for them adequately.

Thank you all for your generosity. No obligation to contribute, but please do spread the word and see if you family members and friends would be interested.

With appreciation,
Ee Lynn.

Appreciate your contribution.

Note : for verification, you can reach Jessica at JessicaNgHG@ocbc.com

Popularity: 5% [?]

‘99 Batch Setapakian Gathering

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By Karthi

“Hey bro. i gathering the boyz on 30th august 2009 for a drink. so far leroy and tan kee suan confirm. both of them helping me to get more ppl to join us. i would really appreciate if u can join us. contact me at 0129027676 for any enquiries.
thank u!”

So take note its for boys only. Anyway, I received the sms a couple of times and basically, I believe most of the gang will show up.

Popularity: 3% [?]

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