Ryuta Kawashima, the researcher behind Nintendo’s Brain Age series of games for the DS portable system, would rather be working than enjoying $11 million in royalties he could have earned from his creations.

Instead, he used the proceeds to help fund $6.5 million in construction projects on Tohoku’s campus.”My hobby is work,” he said.

“Everyone in my family is mad at me but I tell them that if they want money, go out and earn it.”

Game researcher ducks millions in royalties - Video Game Feature - Yahoo! Video Games

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Tags: BrainAge, Nintendo DS, Charity

Having a tornado demolish her home was bad enough. But when Ann Beam received a $2,000 cable bill a few weeks later, she was floored. “I just couldn’t believe it,” Beam said. “I was like, ‘What are they thinking?’”

Time Warner Cable billed a number of Wheatland residents for equipment destroyed in the Jan. 7 twister that struck the southeast corner of the state. Beam’s bill covered five cable boxes and five remote controls.

She immediately called the cable company, but a man who identified himself as a manager said there was nothing the company could do.

Tornado victim billed for cable devices - Yahoo! News

I am not sure what’s odder in this story.  That the person in question had 5 cable boxes or that they are $400 dollars each.

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Tags: WhenBureaucracyAttacks, WTF?, TimeWarner

Flying well-equipped for business and pleasure gets a bit more complicated on Jan. 1, as the U.S. Transportation Department bars travelers from packing loose lithium batteries in checked luggage.

The move is designed to help minimize the risk that such batteries could overheat and catch fire on board, the agency’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration said in a statement on Friday.

The new rules say travelers can bring a laptop computer, digital camera, cellphone and other equipment on board or in checked luggage if their lithium batteries are installed in the items.

And flyers can bring spare batteries in carry-on luggage if they’re stored in plastic bags or if they’re in the original retail packaging. But travelers can bring only as many as two such spare batteries, and each must be packed separately.

Travelers Advisory: U.S. limits lithium batteries on flights - MarketWatch

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Tags: Airlines, Security, Hysteria, Travel

 Boston officials freaked out over marketing stunt to promote late-night programming on Cartoon Network.  The devices caused officals to shut down bridges and major roads.

“It had a very sinister appearance,” Coakley told reporters. “It had a battery behind it, and wires.” 

 The light-bright looking device featured the mooninite with a  raised middle finger.

 Err was quoted as saying, “It was all a mistake, I was trying to cash my Uncle’s welfare check.”

From the same people that brought you YOU-CAN-SPAM, give you DOPA. The Deleting Online Predators Act has passed the U.S. House of Representatives. The overly broad law would ban, “any site that allows users to edit a profile, chat to users or post personal data as a social networking site”, from libraries and public schools.

The American Library Association opposed DOPA saying,

“Under DOPA, people who use library and school computers as their primary conduits to the Internet will be unfairly blocked from accessing some of the web’s most powerful emerging technologies and learning applications. As libraries are already required to block content that is “harmful to minors” under the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), DOPA is redundant and unnecessary legislation.”

DOPA is championed by the likes of Senator Ted Stevens, who recently referred to the Internet as a “Series of Tubes” that can be clogged by information.

Save Your Space is hosting a petition to be submitted to Congress on September 5, 2006. Not that it will do any good, the only public opinions they listen to are the ones that further their agenda.

May I suggest the slogan, “Keep your congressman off DOPA.”

The creator of Lotus Notes and former CEO of Iris Associates is about to replace Bill Gates as Microsoft’s Chief Software Architect. Before joining Microsoft, Ozzie created a new groupware package called Groove. Microsoft aquired Groove in March 2005.

On June 15, Gates announced that he would step down from day-to-day operations and Microsoft. He will still remain part-time Chairman and technical advisor.

External Links:
Ray Ozzie Weblog
Profile

Still waiting on your SkyCar? Why not get a personal tank to pass the time? Amazon has listed, the JL421 Badonkadonk Land Cruiser/Tank, or The Donk for short. For $19,999 you can drive your own tank into battle.

• Carries cargo or a crew of up to five internally or on the roof.
• Piloted from within the armored shell or from an exposed standing position through the hatch.
• 6hp Tecumseh gasoline engine, top speed 40 mph.
• Includes head/tail and turn signal lights, trim and underbody lighting.
• 400 watt premium sound with PA system, plush interior, and external camera.

For a good laugh, try reading the reviews of this thing.

I’ll admit it. Shopping for a personal tank can be a bit daunting. Many times in the past I’ve purchased overpriced, so-called “battle tanks”, then driven them into battle only to be wrecked in ten minutes by the first blow off of some insurgents home-made morter.

Daniel Edwards is preparing to unleash his latest sculpture in a Brooklyn art museum in April. The sculpture in question is a life-size statue of Britney Spears

“…naked and pregnant, crouching face-down on a bare-toothed bear rug as the baby’s head appears on the opposite end.”

There has been considerable criticism of Edwards’ odd pro-life sculpture. And his work is now the subject of a podcast, Send2Press.

In the wake of Yahoo’s recent disappointing earnings, CFO Susan Decker said in an interview, “We don’t think it’s reasonable to assume we’re going to gain a lot of share from Google. It’s not our goal to be No. 1 in Internet search. We would be very happy to maintain our market share.”

While not a surrender flag, it is disappointing to hear that Yahoo! is all but given up trying to compete with Google in the search arena. Latest reports indicate Yahoo! handles 19% of Internet searches, down from 27% last year, while Google handles 60% up from 47% last year.

It’s no wonder users have been switching to Google, with their innovative applications (GMail, Google Earth, etc.) and “Do no evil” slogan. Google has even resisted US Government efforts to force the search engine company to turn over web search information. While competitors such as Microsoft and Yahoo! have already released.

According to the survey, entitled “Should Google Release Information to the Government,” 41% of the respondents who do not want search company to hand over the information said they would stop using Google if it turned over their information on their Web searches. Another 18% said they’re not sure what they would do if Google released the information.

MacDailyNews is reporting that Levi Strauss is debuting their iPod compatible jeans. Have iPod accessories gone to far?

Design features include:
• Easy Pocket Storage — An iPod docking cradle is built into the jeans and is “invisibly” housed within a side pocket. The Levi’s design team took special care to ensure the iPod unit remains neatly and securely stored in the jean, while the iPod “bump” in the pocket is virtually eliminated. The cradle is equipped with sophisticated technology housed in a red conductive ribbon that allows users to quickly and easily remove their iPod from the pocket to view its screen while staying connected. The jean is machine washable once the iPod is removed.
• “Hip” Controls — A special joystick remote control is externally designed into the jeans’ watch pocket to enable operation of the iPod. Four-way controls allow the wearer to easily play/pause, track forward, track back and adjust the volume control without ever removing the iPod from the pocket.
• Handy Wire Retractor — A handy retractable headphone unit has been built directly into the jean to help prevent tangles and efficiently manage the iPod earphone wires.

Before you upgrade your jeans however, jump over and update your iTunes to 6.02 and the iPod (with video) to 1.1.

New features in iTunes.

• MiniStore New in iTunes 6.

  Discover new music as you enjoy your collection or import new CDs with MiniStore — right from your iTunes library.

• Sync Home Movies New in iTunes 6.

  Create iPod-compatible versions of your own movies using iTunes.

• AirTunes Enhancement New in iTunes 6.

  Simultaneously stream the same song wirelessly to up to three home stereos or powered speakers — using AirPort Express with AirTunes.