New York City Ride-Sharing Lyft's Plans Postponed

 New York City Ride-Sharing Lyft's Plans Postponed

Associated Press

The on-demand ride-sharing app Lyft postponed its scheduled Friday launch in New York City while a state judge will wait until next week to consider whether its planned operations violate state and local laws.

The state attorney general's office and the Department of Financial Services sued only hours before San Francisco-based Lyft planned to enter the market. Their joint lawsuit said the company actually operates as a traditional for-hire livery service using mobile technology, not a peer-to-peer transportation platform as claimed.

The company operates "in open defiance" of state and local licensing and insurance laws, according to the suit filed in Manhattan. Authorities allege Lyft began operating in Buffalo and Rochester without authorizations in April and already violates various laws, another issue they expect to further argue Monday.

Justice Kathryn Freed told The Associated Press she agreed to consider Lyft's response Monday afternoon provided the company not launch in the meantime.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and Department of Financial Services Superintendent Ben Lawsky are seeking a court order to stop the company's New York service until the suit is resolved, plus a civil penalty and loss of profits.

"We pursued this action only after repeatedly offering to work with Lyft in order to ensure that its business practices complied with the law," they said in a statement. "Instead of collaborating with the state to help square innovation with statute and protect the public ... Lyft decided to move ahead and simply ignore state and local laws."

A day earlier, the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission posted a notice that, in light of Lyft's announced plans to offer free rides in Brooklyn and Queens starting Friday evening, its so-called ride share service is unauthorized in the city, that it has not complied with the commission's safety requirements and other licensing criteria "to verify the integrity and qualifications of the drivers or vehicles used."

Company spokeswoman Katie Dally said Lyft will not launch its peer-to-peer model in New York City unless it complies with New York City Taxi and Limousine regulations. Company officials will meet with the city commission starting Monday "to work on a new version of Lyft that is fully licensed by the TLC, and we will launch immediately upon the TLC's approval," she said.

Commission Chair Meera Joshi said they're gratified the company will be working with them on a service fully compliant with rules protecting public safety and consumer rights.

In April, the on-demand ride-sharing app, best known by the fuzzy pink mustaches on its cars, said it was launching its service in 24 new locations, nearly doubling the startup's U.S. markets.

Meanwhile, its rival Uber agreed with Schneiderman's office on Tuesday to limit prices during emergencies, natural disasters or other unusual market disruptions consistent with New York's law against price gouging. Uber later said it was adopting that policy in its other markets nationally. Its rates rise and fall with demand. On Monday, Uber said it was temporarily cutting New York City pricesin a bid to compete with taxis.

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'Brain Games' leads own genre at Nat Geo Channel

'Brain Games' leads own genre at Nat Geo Channel

DAVID BAUDER

Associated Press

NEW YORK — Given that David Rees has written a book on how to sharpen a pencil, he seems the perfect choice to host a new National Geographic Channel series that elevates mundane activities into the subject of deep investigation.

So, for those inclined, Rees' "Going Deep" over the next two months will tell more than you ever thought you could know about digging a hole, tying a shoe, making ice cubes, shaking hands or throwing a paper airplane.

The series debuts Monday (10 p.m. EDT) following a new episode of "Brain Games." It's part of what has become a new programming genre at National Geographic that explains how the world works. Think of it as Geek TV, although the network works very hard to make shows that will appeal to the channel surfer.
"Brain Games" started it all. Host Jason Silva guides viewers through experiments designed to show how the brain perceives things like motion, space or time. The new season gets more abstract; tests measure compassion, anger, addiction and intuition.

A three-hour "Brain Games" special in 2011 did so well the network quickly ordered a series, which became National Geographic's most popular program, said Courteney Monroe, the network's chief executive.
"It remains unique on the television landscape," she said. "That was what kind of ignited it for us. As we watched the performance continue to grow, we said, 'What else can we get in this space?'"

Other shows were launched to appeal to the same taste. In "None of the Above," host Tim Shaw conducts experiments and asks people to predict the outcome. "The Numbers Game" uses statistics, role play and experiments to answer questions like "are you a risk taker?" or "can you be a hero?"

One series soon to come, "Mind Over Masses," was inspired by YouTube clips. It explores ways to make people change behavior, like painting stairs to look like a piano so people use them more than an elevator. The upcoming "You Can't Lick Your Elbow" examines the human body. "Mapology," due next year, uses data analysis to uncover some of the world's unexpected realities.
The network has also given the go-ahead to a miniseries about inventors, "American Genius," produced by the same company that made "The Men Who Built America."
It's enough to make the brain hurt.

Monroe needs to balance the interest in viewers unleashed by "Brain Games" with oversaturating the market, keeping in mind that competing networks will surely develop copycats. "We're always worried about that," she said.
Within the genre, "Going Deep" is a little risky, Monroe said. Rees is a former political cartoonist and a comedian who — honest! — maintains a side business sharpening pencils for money. He and the show have an edgy New York wit.
"He's quirky," Monroe said. "The show is quirky. The sensibility is quirky. I don't know if it's going to work. I love that we're trying it."

As the title suggests, "Going Deep" uses each show's question to take intriguing side trips. An episode on how to strike a match delves into the science of fire, which Rees finds not as haphazard as he thought. He finds a scientist with striking new designs for real airplanes to talk to on his show about paper airplanes, and is shown glacial ice hundreds of thousands of years old in his ice cube program. Producers flew in an expert on knots from Australia for the shoelace episode.

"I think that was our entire travel budget," he said.

Rees believes his show has found the right home in the geeky corner of National Geographic Channel.
"We had three networks saying, 'We're out there looking for a new 'Duck Dynasty,'" he said. "I said, 'This is not your next 'Duck Dynasty.'"

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Headband Trend For Guys:

Stylish headbands aren't just for the girls — and our favorite male celebs must know how good they look in bandanas and sporty hair bands!

 Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson have fun with bandanas and athletic hair bands on stage and off, and they've inspired the rest of the group to get creative with their accessories.

But the guys of One Direction aren't the only stars embracing this trend. Justin Bieber puts his headbands to practical use by keeping his hair back in skinny bands. 

Zac efron also looks cool with headband.

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Stars : Favorite Look of the Week:

Favorite Look of the Week:

Monday, July 21:

Credit:Splash News

Cher Lloyd looked cool rocking a gray sweater, skinny jeans, and edgy boots in London. She gave her casual look a little added glam by accessorizing with a sparkly pendant necklace. 

Saturday, July 13:

Credit:

Getty Images

Emma Watson looked really cool At a Dior dinner in Paris, France wearing black top with black jeans.

Saturday, July 12:

Credit:

GC Images

Taylor Swift looked SO  sporting an edgy and modern suit walking around in New York City. The dramatic all-black style is definitely a different look that we're used to seeing on Taylor, but her fashion risk definitely paid off!


Friday, July 11:

Credit: Courtesy of Hasbro

Austin Mahone looked so cool  on the red carpet meet and greet for the Simon Swipe Presents Austin Mahone Live event at the iHeartRadio Theater in NYC. We love his totally stylish black and white striped hoodie and colorful sneakers!


Wednesday, June 9

Credit: Twitter

Harry Styles looked incredible rocking a turban-like headband and cool white shirt with black stripes in Barcelona, Spain. He made his look even more casual by unbuttoning a bit of his linen shirt (swoon) and rocking aviator sunglasses.

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Crews battle wildfires in Washington, California

Crews battle wildfires in Washington, California

ENTIAT, Wash. (AP) — Several hundred firefighters worked Friday to contain a fire that has burned grass and brush across nearly 32 square miles in central Washington.

The blaze threatened more than 200 homes and damaged a few outbuildings in Chelan County near Entiat, roughly midway between Seattle and Spokane.

Residents of several dozen homes have been told to evacuate, fire operations spokeswoman Laurie Dowie said. The fire was partially contained by Friday evening. Also, a stretch of highway near the blaze reopened after a temporary closure because of firefighting work in the area. Worried that hot, dry conditions would increase fire dangers, state officials extended an outdoor burn ban to include all 13 million acres of lands that the state protects.

Meanwhile, firefighters aggressively attacked a California wildfire that was spreading fast after starting Friday afternoon in a remote part of the Sequoia National Forest.

U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Cindy Thill said that the fire started around 2 p.m. and within a couple of hours had burned more than one square mile of the Kiavah Wilderness area. The blaze burned through shrubs and in some places skipped across the treetops, she said.

No homes or giant Sequoia trees were in danger from the fire, but air crews were hitting the flames with tankers and helicopters while hundreds of firefighters head to the scene. The Sequoia National Forest, where the fire started, is south of and geographically separate from the Sequoia National Park east of Fresno, which is home to giant Sequoia trees.

A blaze burning near Spokane was held at less than 2 square miles and was partially contained, spokesman Chuck Turley said Friday afternoon.

Firefighters working the blaze near Ford in Stevens County hope it doesn't flare up in the hot, dry conditions forecast for the weekend, Turley said.

"As heat hit this area, some of the areas will have a tendency to rekindle," Turley said.

The Lake Spokane campground will be closed at least through the weekend, he said. Officials are urging people to be vigilant as hot and dry conditions increase fire risks throughout the state.

A burn ban, which has already been in effect in Eastern Washington, now includes Western Washington. The ban is in effect through Sept. 30.

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Mozilla Kicks-Off Global 'Digital Literacy' Program

Mozilla Kicks-Off Global 'Digital Literacy' Program

Agence France-Presse

The Mozilla Foundation is expecting more than 100,000 people to participate in a series of events worldwide over the next two months teaching basic Internet use and other digital skills.

The "Webmaker" events which run through September 15 aim to boost so-called digital literacy skills, including computer coding, designing Web pages, and creation of apps and videos.

The kickoff begins this weekend in Kampala, Uganda, and includes events in at least 368 locations, from New York and San Francisco to cities in India, Indonesia and several African countries.

"Digital literacy is as important as reading, writing and math in modern society," Mozilla Foundation executive director Mark Surman told AFP in a telephone interview.

"We set out with these parties to teach the world how the Web works."

Surman said the effort is part of a broader goal to help get more people around the world connected to the Internet, and to help them use it in more active ways.

The events tie in with the "maker movement," which according to Surman "is the idea that technology should be something we all can take control of, not something that is given to us by companies."

This is the third year of the campaign, Surman, said, and he hopes to double the participation level of last year of around 60,000 people. The maker parties are mostly locally organized with volunteers, with some technical help from Mozilla.

This campaign is bigger and broader than efforts by other organizations to teach children to code. And it is based on the premise that most of the world's population will be online soon, with traditional computers or mobile devices like smartphones.

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Billionaire Elon Musk Giving $1 million to Tesla Museum

Billionaire Elon Musk Giving $1 million to Tesla Museum

Associated Press

The billionaire owner of Tesla Motors is giving $1 million to a New York museum dedicated to preserving the legacy of the inventor who inspired its name.

The Tesla Science Center announced Elon Musk's donation on what would have been Nikola Tesla's 158th birthday.

The museum said Thursday that Musk will also install a Tesla supercharging station.

The museum is being built on the 16-acre site of Tesla's Wardenclyffe laboratory in Shoreham, Long Island. The Serbian scientist began an unfinished project there to send messages and electricity around the world wirelessly.

Tesla is known for his work with alternating current and experiments with X-rays.

Musk co-founded PayPal and also runs space contractor SpaceX. His donation comes after a request from Tesla fan and museum backer Matthew Inman of TheOatmeal.com.

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Softbank in Deal to Merge Sprint, T-Mobile: Report

Softbank in Deal to Merge Sprint, T-Mobile: Report

Agence France-Presse

Japan's SoftBank and Deutsche Telekom of Germany have reached a basic agreement for a merger between their US affiliates Sprint and T-Mobile US, the business daily Nikkei reported Saturday.

Eight financial institutions, including Japan's top three megabanks Mizuho, Mitsubishi UFJ and Sumitomo Mitsui, will provide a credit line of around four trillion yen ($39 billion) for SoftBank's purchase of T-Mobile through Sprint, according to the report.

The combined customer base of Sprint, ranked third among US mobile phone firms, and fourth-ranked T-Mobile roughly equals those of the sector's two leaders top-ranked Verizon Wireless and AT&T, the daily said.

The US Federal Communications Commission will examine the proposed merger from a communications policy standpoint while the Department of Justice will scrutinise it for antitrust issues.

SoftBank chief Masayoshi Son has been actively lobbying in Washington to win over regulators, who appear content to keep the market dominated by four players, the daily said.

Sprint, acquired by SoftBank for $21.6 billion in July last year, was the only one of the top four US carriers to log a net decrease in subscribers over the January-March quarter.

Having been less aggressive to invest in its wireless network, the company has not been able to shed the perception that its network is slow and has poor coverage, the Nikkei said.

T-Mobile, owned 67 percent by Deutsche Telekom, enjoyed the largest net increase in subscribers over the three-month period.

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Hot spot: Yellowstone road melts, sites closed

Hot spot: Yellowstone road melts, sites closed

CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The ever-changing thermal geology of Yellowstone National Park has created a hot spot that melted an asphalt road and closed access to popular geysers and other attractions at the height of tourist season, officials said Thursday.

As they examined possible fixes, park officials warned visitors not to hike into the affected area, where the danger of stepping through solid-looking soil into boiling-hot water was high

"There are plenty of other great places to see thermal features in the park," Yellowstone spokesman Al Nash said. "I wouldn't risk personal injury to see these during this temporary closure."

Naturally changing thermal features often damage Yellowstone's roads and boardwalks. Steaming potholes in asphalt roads and parking lots — marked off by traffic cones — are fairly common curiosities.
However, the damage to Firehole Lake Drive is unusually severe and could take several days to fix. The 3.3-mile loop six miles north of Old Faithful takes visitors past Great Fountain Geyser, White Dome Geyser and Firehole Lake.

Unusually warm weather for Yellowstone — with high temperatures in the mid-80s — has contributed to turning the road into a hot, sticky mess.

"We've got some ideas. We're going to try them. Our maintenance staff has really looked at the issue," Nash said.

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Best new rides coming to U.S. theme parks in 2015

Best new rides coming to U.S. theme parks in 2015

Brady Macdonald, Los Angeles Times

At first I thought it was too early to look ahead at the new attractions coming to U.S. theme parks in 2015, but then I realized a number of big rides have already been announced and many more are already in the planning stages.
It already seems like 2015 is shaping up as a good year for ride enthusiasts and theme park fans. Big industry players have announced major projects and several smaller parks are planning to roll out significant additions.
Since it is still early, I'll update my Top 15 over the coming months as new projects are announced. Until then, here's my list of most anticipated rides for 2015:


1) Universal Studios Hollywood — Fast & Furious Supercharged

Following on the success of King Kong 360 3-D, Universal Studios Hollywood will add another massive drive-through movie attraction to the back-lot tram tour. Fast & Furious Supercharged will take tram riders inside a 50,000-square-foot attraction that combines a motion-based simulator platform and a 400-foot-long tunnel-like movie screen for a 3-D experience based on the street racing film franchise.

2) Knoebels — Impulse looping coaster

Pennsylvania's Knoebels amusement park will add a steel coaster with a chain-driven vertical lift hill and four inversions, including a cobra roll and an inline twist. The new Impulse looping coaster from German-based Zierer will be similar to Wicked at Utah's Lagoon park, which features an electro-magnetic vertical launch.

3) Universal Studios Hollywood — Simpsons' Springfield land

Universal Studios Hollywood will bring the fictional animated town of Springfield to life with a Krusty Burger, Moe's Tavern and Duff Brewery next to the park's existing Simpsons ride. A similar expansion at Florida's Universal Orlando included a spinning ride themed to the long-running cartoon's Kodos and Kang alien characters.

4) Miracle Strip — Starliner wooden coaster

The Starliner wooden coaster will return to its roots after several near-death experiences. Florida's first roller coaster was originally designed by renowned ride builder John Allen and built by Philadelphia Toboggan Company in 1963. After the Miracle Strip amusement park closed in 2004, the Starliner was relocated to Cypress Gardens (which eventually became Legoland Florida and again shuttered the ride). The new Starliner will be reborn at the new Miracle Strip with an altered lift hill but the rest of the coaster's out and back layout.

5) Kentucky Kingdom — T3 suspended looping coaster

In 2015, the recently reopened Kentucky Kingdom in Louisville will convert the standing-but-not-operating T2 inverted coaster into T3, or Terror to the Third Power. Back in 1995, T2 was the first suspended looping coaster built in the United States by Vekoma Rides.

6) Universal's Islands of Adventure — King Kong dark ride

Construction has already begun on a new ride at Universal's Islands of Adventure in Florida known only as Project 340. Speculation has focused on a King Kong dark ride attraction that would take riders to Skull Island. Back in 2010, Universal Studios Hollywood opened the King Kong 360 3-D attraction on the back-lot tram tour that combined 3-D technology with a massive drive-through movie experience.

7) Carowinds — Giga coaster

Carowinds has already begun clearing space along the North Carolina and South Carolina border for what is widely expected to be a $30 million roller coaster. Coasters and More reports the border-straddling park will receive a Swiss-based Bolliger & Mabillard Giga coaster about 300 feet tall and 5,000 feet long. Parent company Cedar Fair filed a trademark for Centurion, which could turn out to be the name for the new ride.

8) Busch Gardens Williamsburg — Vertical coaster

Busch Gardens Williamsburg has filed permits with a local government agency to build a 156-foot-tall attraction in the Festa Italia area of the Virginia park. Blueprints posted by BGW Fans indicate the new attraction will be similar to the Superman: Ultimate Flight vertical coaster built by Premier Rides at Northern California's Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. Parent company SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment filed a trademark for Tempesto, an Italian word that loosely translates to "storm."

9) Six Flags Magic Mountain — Iron Colossus

Six Flags Magic Mountain has announced plans to retire Colossus and replace the 1978 wooden racing coaster with a new ride coaster community has centered on a potential transformation by Idaho-based Rocky Mountain Construction that would turn the twin 4,325-foot tracks into a record-setting 8,000-foot-plus looping wood-steel hybrid coaster dubbed Iron Colossus.

10) Lagoon — Vertical lift coaster

Lagoon amusement park has already begun installing a one-of-a-kind coaster with a vertical lift hill and multiple inversions. The still unannounced 200-foot-tall steel ride will be designed by an in-house team, just like the Utah park's BomBora coaster.


14) Disneyland — Nighttime parade

A clone of the "Paint the Night" parade debuting this year at Hong Kong Disneyland will be part of Disneyland's 60th anniversary celebration in 2015, reports Disney and More. The Main Street USA nighttime parade would include floats from "Cars," "Toy Story," "Monsters Inc.," "Beauty and the Beast," "Little Mermaid" and "Peter Pan."

15) Indiana Beach — New thrill ride

Indiana Beach amusement park located between Chicago and Indianapolis has promised to replace the 1971 Galaxi coaster with a new thrill ride in 2015.

16) Idlewild — Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood trolley ride

Pennsylvania's Idlewild theme park will update the one-of-a-kind "Mr. Roger's Neighborhood" trolley ride with a new theme based on "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood," a spinoff of the original PBS children's television show

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New: Two Games Google Introduces on Maps to Keep You Busy

 Two Games Google Introduces on Maps to Keep You Busy:

What is the best thing you can do when you’re in command of the world’s best mapping service? You turn the whole world into a game, of course. That’s what Google is doing: turn the whole world into the game and in return also get a bit of publicity.

For that, it has added two new games to Maps, called Smarty Pins and GeoGuesser.

The first one, which is much simpler, judges your general knowledge skills. You’re given a question (“The mega hit song by Psy is about the entitled nouveaux-riches of which posh South Korean district?) and a limited number of kilometres. You initially start with 1609 km (or 1000 miles). You lose them with every wrong answer (more if your guess was farther from that locality) while answering them quickly will earn you rewards, i.e. kilometres.

You can choose from a total of six categories: Featured Topic, Arts & Culture, Science & Geography, Sports & Games, Entertainment and History & Current Events. The game has also a bit of humour induced into it (“Not bad Sherlock”) so expect it to get the best of you for quite a bit of time.

GeoGuesser is much tougher. You get transported to a location, and are asked to guess it on the world map. In our opinion, it is not quite as amusing as standing in a forest or a highway with the map of the world just sounds silly. Which it is.

There are a few location-specific, and (optionally) time-based, challenges which we feel most people will like.

But regardless of anything, you have to give Google credit for these nifty time-wasters. They are a bit late to the party but are welcome anyway, especially since they’re so amusing.

For sure, they are concentrated mostly in North America which makes them tougher but people will enjoy them anyway.

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New : To Bring Wi-Fi To More American Schools FCC Approves Billions

 To Bring Wi-Fi To More American Schools FCC Approves Billions:

Alex Wilhelm

TechCrunch 

American schools are set to receive billions in federal dollars to bring wifi to more kids.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) today approved, by a 3-2 vote, a new plan that will deploy $2 billion over a two year period to bring increased wireless Internet capabilities to schools. The program will impact at least 10 million kids each year.

The larger E-Rate program that helped get nearly all American school Internet access has an annual budget of $2.4 billion. The wifi monies come on top of that tally.
It almost didn’t happen. Republican members of the Commission found the original $5 billion plan too expensive, and Democrats wanted the full amount. The smaller figure failed to unit the opposing sides, and the final vote was executed according to party affiliation.

The FCC, in an email, noted that the passed plan does “target” the original $5 billion amount that Commissioner Ajit Pai stated would “blow a $2.7 billion hole” in E-Rates’ budget.
Complaint was also raised about how the money would be spent in terms of the breakdown of its rural and urban divide, and if the new plan sufficiently reformed its the bureaucratic overhead that the E-Rate program currently endures. Spoiler: Not everyone is convinced.

Despite complaint from various angles, the Democratic portion of the Commission managed to find enough common ground to pass the effort.
In the end, FCC Chairman Wheeler stated that passing the plan was a “good day’s work,” given the impact it will have on kids. That’s correct, but the is enough tang in the vote to indicate that something bigger was perhaps within rea

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