It would make sense that people listen to music for the sheer pleasure of it, right? That’s what we thought, but apparently there’s a scientific reason for this. Scientists have discovered that when Earthlings listen to pleasurable music, one particular chemical is loosed in the gord. The study, conducted by Robert Zatorre and Valorie Salimpoor of McGill University in Montreal, concluded that when the participants tuned into instrumental pieces they were familiar with, their brains released dopamine into the striatum — an area of the noggin linked with anticipation and predictions. According to PET scans, the members of the study unleashed the chemical 15 seconds before a climaxical moment in a song, signaling the possibility that humans may actually release it in anticipation and not as a reaction to a wailing solo. Bonus point? Chopped and screwed tracks unleashed forty times more dopamine. Just kidding, but it’s probably true. Study shows love for music relates to brain chemical, not to My Chemical Romance originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Jan 2011 01:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …A judge on Tuesday ordered the personal physician of Michael Jackson to stand trial for involuntary manslaughter after hearing testimony that he administered a dose of a powerful anesthetic and other sedatives then left the pop star alone. (Jan. 11)
Continue reading …Investigators on Tuesday revealed more disturbing details about the events leading up to the assassination attempt against US Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, including a menacing handwritten note in the suspect’s home. (Jan. 11)
Continue reading …It’s been less than a week since Intel announced their 2nd Generation Core processors , and the little guys are already hard at work. Deep in the heart of another convention — the National Retail Federation Convention, to be exact — Intel unveiled the Connected Store concept: a futuristic storefront for retailers looking to up their digital game. The store, powered in part by the “visibly smart” processors, is packed with interactive demos and proof-of-concepts that look like something out of the Jetsons. Among the systems sporting the new processor’s 3D graphics capabilities are a virtual search engine-equipped wall of Adidas sneakers — the thing packs up to 8,000 different styles — and the Intel Digital Signage Endcap, which does some creepy big brother stuff, using gestural sensors to target you specifically. Also on display are a number of beefed-up and interactive self check-out kiosks and point-of-sale systems. Intel’s already got the big guns interested, including Proctor and Gamble and Kraft Foods, but we just want to know who’s going to make this wall of shoes a reality. Video of the Connected Store after the jump. Continue reading Intel announces Connected Store concept, makes us hungry for shoes Intel announces Connected Store concept, makes us hungry for shoes originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Jan 2011 00:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Imagine the Saturday morning of congressional aide Mark Kimble. Kimble told of going to a Safeway for a typical meet-and-greet event with his boss, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Kimble said he went into the store for coffee, and as he came out, Giffords was talking to a couple about Medicare and reimbursements, and federal judge John Roll had just walked up to her and shouted “Hi” – when a gunman opened fire. Nobody in America should greet this scene with any other initial reaction than horror. Six people were killed, including Judge Roll, several retirees, and a nine-year-old girl. Over a dozen others were seriously injured in the carnage. Giffords was shot in the head and remains in critical condition. Sadly, shamefully, within just minutes, a nasty political spin was kicking in without any brake for decency or evidence. Conservatives were to blame. read more
Continue reading …Looking a bit like a universal Sony Party-shot , the Satarii Star is up on fundraising site IndieGoGo right now with a simple goal: finding enough people who are willing to pay for an action-tracking base for their camera to get the thing produced. The concept is simple enough — use the included iPhone and standard tripod mounts to insert the camera of your choice, grab the remote sensor and attach it to the object, animal, or human you want to track, and let ‘er rip — as long as you stay within 8 meters (roughly 26 feet), the base station with camera attached will rotate up to 180 degrees to keep the action in the frame. As of this writing they’re about halfway to their goal to $20 grand — and they’ve already slapped together a functional prototype, so you know you’re not funding pure vaporware. Follow the break for a demo, and while you’re at it, go ahead and tell off all your friends — you won’t need ‘em to hold your camera while you film magic tricks for YouTube anymore. Score! Continue reading Satarii Star camera base follows your every move, might exist if the money’s raised Satarii Star camera base follows your every move, might exist if the money’s raised originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Dylan Ratigan’s guest column at the Daily Bail calls out “corporate communism” and makes some pretty powerful arguments: If you allow weak, outdated players to take control of the government and change the rules so they are protected from the natural competition and reward systems that have created so many innovations in our country, you not only steal from the citizens on behalf of the least worthy but you also doom them by trapping the capital that would be used to generate new innovation and, most tangibly in our current situation, jobs. We are losing the opportunity cost of all the great ideas that should be coming from the proper deployment of that 23.7 trillion in capital. Everything from innovation in medical delivery systems to accessible space travel, free energy to the driverless car; all of these things may never come to bear because those powerful individuals who have failed, been passed over by technological advancements, innovation and flat-out smarts, have commandeered our government to unfairly sustain their wealth and power. Unfortunately, they use our wealth and laws not only to benefit their outdated, failed companies, but also spend a small pittance of their ill-gotten gains lobbying and favor-trading with politicians so the government will continue to protect them from competition and their well-deserved failure. The massive spike in unemployment, the utter destruction of retirement wealth, the collapse in the value of our homes, the worst recession since the Great Depression have all resulted directly from the abdication of proper government. Even with all that — the only changes that have been made, have been made to prop up and hide the massive flaws on behalf of those who perpetuated them. Still utterly nothing has been done to disclose the flaws in this system, improve it or rebuild it. Only true rules-based capitalism ensures constant adaptation and implementation of the latest and best practices for a given business, as those businesses that don’t adapt fail, and those who deploy the latest innovations to their customers benefit, prosper. The concept of communism is rightly reviled in this country for the simple reason that it is blind to human nature, allowing a small group of individuals near-total control, while sticking everyone else with the same crappy systems — and the bill. America spent countless lives and half a century fighting against this system of government. So why are we standing for it now? Sounds like Ratigan’s right in line with an essay George Soros wrote back in 1997, “The Capitalist Threat” in which he called “untrammeled capitalism” the biggest threat to an open society. I thought it was an interesting idea at the time, but now? Can’t argue a bit.
Continue reading …LTE’s great… but only if it’s got phones and modems that can take advantage of it. Though MetroPCS beat Verizon to become the first American carrier to launch the technology, it’s been scraping by so far with nothing other than the Samsung Craft , a middling dumbphone without the chops to attract the powerusers that would normally want to be involved with a 4G network anyway. Looks like that’s finally about to change, though, because BGR ‘s scored a shot of a so-called SCH-R510 — also from Samsung — that’s running Android 2.2. It’ll allegedly have backward compatibility with MetroPCS’ CDMA network (naturally) along with a 1GHz Hummingbird core and 5 megapixel camera — not a blockbuster by any stretch, but still on a whole new plane than the Craft. Rumor has it we’ll see this before the end of March for somewhere between $330 and $400 contract-free; question is, will it beat Big Red’s first LTE phones to market? MetroPCS finally prepping Android smartphone with LTE from Samsung? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Jan 2011 22:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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