World Science Festival

Friendly reminder - geeks unite.

World Science Festival June 2-6 in NYC.

The events and exhibits are super cool and many are free! 40 events total and here are just a snapshot of some that appear awesome!

'Modern McGyvers; Innovations for a Developing World'
'Black Holes and Holographic Worlds' - An odyssey through one of natures most amazing creations
or just for funs 'From the City to the Stars' - Stargazing in Battery Park.

The Best Kind Of Medieval Romance.

And...the best geeky commercial I've seen in a while! Must watch all the way through.

How Much Is Your Facebook Page Worth?

Copy your url and generate!

http://evaluator.vitrue.com/

Did You Know? Its National Geek Pride Day!

It's National Geek Pride Day! Encouraging everyone to let their inner nerd shine.

Geek Pride Day was established in 2006, made its American debut in 2008 and since then has really gone global.

So get coding, perhaps install some new RAM or just embrace your allergies. Its all about showing your true colors.

I've attached the Manifesto for your consideration.

Rights:
1.The right to be even geekier.
2.The right to not leave your house.
3.The right to not like football or any other sport.
4.The right to associate with other nerds.
5.The right to have few friends (or none at all).
6.The right to have as many geeky friends as you want.
7.The right to be out of style.
8.The right to be overweight and near-sighted.
9.The right to show off your geekiness.
10.The right to take over the world.

Responsibilities:
1.Be a geek, no matter what.
2.Try to be nerdier than anyone else.
3.If there is a discussion about something geeky, you must give your opinion.
4.To save and protect all geeky material.
5.Do everything you can to show off geeky stuff as a "museum of geekiness."
6.Don't be a generalized geek. You must specialize in something.
7.Attend every nerdy movie on opening night and buy every geeky book before anyone else.
8.Wait in line on every opening night. If you can go in costume or at least with a related T-shirt, all the better.
9.Never throw away anything related to geekdom.
10.Try to take over the world!

Taking On Autism With Technology.

Tonight on CNN Newsroom with the fabulous Don Lemon we discussed Speaks4Me. Check out my full article to learn more.

Stephen Lodge is the father of a severely autistic 11 year old boy named Callum who cannot communicate. Callum is able to use a small amount of sign language but for years it was mostly guesswork to try to understand Callum’s cues. It was very difficult for Callum’s parents to watch him struggle – was he upset, tired, hungry?

Speech and language professionals said Callum was incapable of using a high-tech communication aid, but that just did not add up to Callum’s father - afterall he had been using his 15” LCD touch-screen at home to play his favorite Disney DVDs and access the Sesame Street website for years. So Callum’s dad took matters into his own hands. With 15 years of programming and engineering skills and all of his savings Stephen hoped to create a solution – not just for Callum but for thousands of other parents with autistic children.

Stephen created Speaks4me - a revolutionary breakthrough in gadgetry designed to help children with autism, a disease affecting 1 in 110 children. By using drag and drop technology on a portable, lightweight, touch-screen tablet, Callum is able to string together thousands of images and form sentences that the program then reads aloud. The program uses picture images that Callum cognitively understands, such as “drink”, “toilet”, “toast”, etc. Stephen unveiled the prototype of Speaks4Me on Callum’s tenth birthday.

The device can be used not only by the autistic but also by any nonverbal child or adult. The team is also creating new specialized devices for those disabled by stroke, cerebral palsy, motor neuron disease or muscular dystrophy.

Insert Coin.

Before, up up down down left right left right select start -ruled the gaming world, there was another game in charge. A yellow dot that ate fruit to be exact.

Nearly 30 years ago on May 22nd the amazing Pac-Man was born. The creator, Toru Iwatani, got the idea from his pizza (after he ate a slice) and the rest was history.

Now, before its too late visit the Google homepage to view their first interactive Doodle. You have the option to 'Insert Coin' instead of 'Feeling Lucky'. Tip*- hit the Insert Coin twice to get Mrs. Pacman on the screen!!

It's the little things...

Today something amazing happened. I reached Starbucks Gold Level. (Yes, I shamelessly still heart the corporate coffee even though I live above one of New Yorks most amazing coffee shops.)

Few times in my life have left me emotionally speechless. This might be one of them. It was extra awesome because I didn’t even know this existed. When I opened the personalized card in the mail to find said aquired gem it sparkled and shined like C-3PO, and I nearly cried. Did I mention it HAS MY NAME ON IT!! I am pretty sure Cash4Gold will be emailing me any second.

Kudos to Starbucks for thanking me for the minimum one coffee a day plus snax that Ive consumed for the past 3 years. ( I think it was easily a few more years but that’s just since I registered a card. )

So what are the perks? Well, you get a free drink after 15 stars which I’m guessing equals one drink, and free refills. Also no charge on syrups and soy milk and a bunch of others. But the real big deal is I have a gold card with my name on it.

Buckios iced double espresso with soy just has the keys to my heart and now I can purchase it with GOLD.

Forget Pick Up Lines, Use Props.

Just when you thought meeting people in a bar was difficult ... it got way more difficult. What a pick up line - "Hi there, put this on if you want to talk to me."

This invention from a Scottish student is as shown: a double-headed bubble helmet made to cut the noise in a public place.

No IKEA directions needed for this one - it's easy - you just have to wear a ginormous bubble helmet to communicate. Not weird at all.

Ctsy: techradar.com

Mothers Day Gifts of Gadgetry.

FLOTV- Mini units provide live TV experience on the go. Great for vacations, cooking in the kitchen or downtime waiting anywhere. $200 for unit and 6 months free service. Service is around $15 / mo. thereafter. (Just make sure to check where service is available. Couldn't get this for my mom because she is in a zero coverage area.)

Demy Touchscreen Digital Recipe Book – Store up to 2500 recipes on a sleek touchscreen device. Plus built in timers, unit converters and alternative ingredient suggestions. $199.95

FlipSlide HD - If you read my blog you know how much I love the Flip. No brainer gift for any mom or grandma. Pocket-sized, easy to operate, take vids like never before. (Stores up to 4hrs HD) And now with a built in 3" LCD screen. $279.99

One Tablespoon Deep Fryer - One of my favorites. Make 2lbs of fried goodness only using one tablespoon of oil! Promotes both eating healthy and modern cooking! $299.95

Kodak - EasyShare 10" Wireless Digital Photo Frame - digital photo frames are not exactly hot off the press but are always a good standby gift option. Perfect for older kids now away from home because via wifi you can surprise her with new pics all the time.... its the gift that keeps on giving. $179.99

*After writing these I realized a lot of these options were pretty expensive. Never underestimate the best gift ever... a handmade card. For serious.

Dear Vitaminwater, For Reals?

We've seen tons of celebs making their mark on Vitaminwater; Steve Nash, Carrie Underwood, Shaq, Kelly Clarkson, 50 Cent... and now Facebook?

Fans on Facebook voted in the newest flavor black cherry-lime earlier this year and it sports the name 'Connect'. Seeing it on the street definitely stopped me for a second. Interesting approach.

I'm just not sure? Maybe it should be called 'Privacy'.

Txting while driving :(

Okay, I admit it. I use to text all the time while driving. As a matter of fact it was the only time I hoped for a red light .. to finish that last few characters of the rest of what I had input speeding down a highway. I look back on that and think of how dumb that was. Now, when I hear that sound effect go off - I say "It can wait. Not worth it."

Unless you're living under a rock you probably have seen the months of press surrounding texting while driving. And if you haven’t, well, perk up – statistics don’t lie… and it's pretty scary.

Here are some bullets that pretty much sum it up. Courtesy of Kens5.com.

"***Those who text behind the wheel are 23 times more likely to get into an
accident.

***A report by the National Safety Council found cell phone use leads
to about 1.6 million crashes a year .

***About 200,000 of those
accidents are caused by texting while driving. Studies show teenagers are
especially prone to text and drive."

21 states ban texting while driving and all are likely to hop on board. Parents – what you can do? Take action - no excuses. Install apps. Love this blog from the NY Times’ David Pogue illustrating the array of options available - from disabling texting while over a certain mph to setting up phone parameters entirely. Sure it'll cost you a few bucks and your kid is totally going to be mad at you for a few days but its worth a life and an accident for that matter.

A Touch Of Critter.

In a city full of amazing artists it's awesome when something really just pops out at ya.

Meet the 'Critters' from Kudu-lah.

Saw these friends at the Union Square art market this past weekend.

A perfect little gift straight from the nyc, each creature measures 3.5" x 4.5" mounted to a 3/4" piece of wood. LIKE!

Find critters and prints here.