It's been more than a year since Nokia, Apple, RIM, Motorola and just about every other major cellphone manufacturer agreed on a micro-USB cellphone charger standard for Europe, but the two key European standards bodies have just now finally followed up on their end of the bargain. CEN-CENELEC and ETSI have today published harmonized standards for a universal cellphone charger based on micro-USB, which has now put the ball back in the manufacturers' court to actually produce phones that rely on the newly standardized chargers. According to the European Commission, the first of those are expect to arrive sometime "in the first months of 2011," and it expects the chargers to be "predominant" within two years. Head on past the break for the official announcement. [Thanks, Pavel]Continue reading European standardization bodies formalize micro-USB cellphone charger standard
European standardization bodies formalize micro-USB cellphone charger standard originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Dec 2010 13:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Continue reading Hanger is a fun, gruesome physics Time Waster
Hanger is a fun, gruesome physics Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Sun, 26 Dec 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2010/12/26/hanger-is-a-fun-gruesome-physics-time-waster/
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This year, nobody defied description quite like Ke$ha, the pop oddity who shows no signs of slowing down.
By James Montgomery
Ke$ha
Photo: Venturelli/ Getty Images
In January, when "Tik Tok" was just starting to hit, I described Ke$ha as "a 22-year-old pop confectionary/cautionary tale." By November, when "We R Who We R" debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, I had crowned her an "outcast icon." The truth probably lies somewhere in between those two statements, but if there's a better way to sum up the pop star's rather incredible rise to fame, I am unaware of it.
Because in 2010, there really was no one else who came close to matching Ke$ha, whether in terms of sheer chart dominance ("Tik Tok," enjoyed the year's longest run at #1, spending nine weeks atop the Hot 100), or pure WTF-ery. She began the year as a belching, squelching, booze-swilling party monster and ended it as perhaps the most unlikely of role models — an unrepentant oddball who not only dared to speak her mind, but defy conventions, too. And through it all, she remained largely unclassifiable, shifting between genres (pop, hip-hop, rock) and personas (dumpster-diving diva, Topanga Canyon bohemian, DayGlo star child) with each successive hit. And because of that, Ke$ha became one of the year's most interesting characters, the kind of pop oddity that leaves critics alternately grasping at adjectives and scratching their heads.
"I think 'What is Ke$ha?' is definitely the question, more than 'Who is Ke$ha?' because the 'What?' is really the thing," New York Times writer Jon Caramanica told MTV News. "When she first came into the game, she was this pop singer with a little bit of a country background, but [doing] this sort of whiny, white-girl rap ... but, if anything, 'Tik Tok' proved there's an entire audience of people who are pop fans, but who have a really high tolerance for rap music. Maybe they're not going to buy a Kanye West record, but they're not unafraid of hip-hop. And with Ke$ha, and her loose, 'I don't give a f---' approach to making these songs resonates with the loose, 'I don't give a f---' approach of the fans in listening to the songs. They hear something of themselves in her."
Of course, Ke$ha suffered for her, uh, art, becoming one of the year's most popular punching bags — particularly following a pair of bizarre performances on "Saturday Night Live" — but as the year draws to a close, her grip on the pop world seems to be permanent. Not only is she the unlikeliest of stars, she's also one of the most persistent ... and love her or hate her, you've got to admit that she made 2010 just a bit more bearable, even if it was with her willingness to push the boundaries of absurdity. Well, her songs were pretty great, too. And she did it entirely her way.
"I think Ke$ha's definitely gone way past her 15 minutes of fame, [but] the appeal with her is that there's an honesty," Noah Callahan-Bever, editor in chief of Complex magazine, said. "In a market of totally prefab pop stuff, there's almost a sloppiness to her whole persona, and I think that realness appeals to people. I think it doesn't hurt that she works with the best producer in pop music, either," he said, referring to right-hand man Dr. Luke.
In 2010, thanks to that winning combination of pitch-perfect pop and pure, unfiltered weirdness, Ke$ha pretty much conquered the world. She won over fans and earned begrudging respect from the critics. And she wore dead animals on her head. Wherever she goes in 2011, I'll follow. And I'll likely be just as perplexed as the rest of you.
Do you expect Ke$ha's party to stop or keep rocking in 2011? Let us know in the comments.
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There are plenty of clocks that "light" the room slowly, flooding your optic nerves with crisp morning luminosity in order to wake you the way Madre Natura wanted us to. But until now there's never been a mask that will wake you with the same soothing change in luminosity. This device, called the Lumimask, is currently on Kickstarter and $50 gets you a pre-order unit while $100 gets you the device and a pair of pajamas (pre-washed). If it doesn't get funded it doesn't get made, so this guy is sending out his heartfelt entreaty to you, the Internet, in hopes that someone out there will help him.Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/7yxrf9Kl5-c/
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Raising Sand, from Led Zeppelin vet and bluegrass superstar, wins five Grammys on Sunday night.
By James Montgomery with MTV News staff
Alison Krauss and Robert Plant accept the award for Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards on Sunday
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images
"I'm bewildered," Robert Plant said onstage as he accepted the Grammy Album of the Year award with Alison Krauss on Sunday night. "In the old days we would have called this selling out, but it's a good way to spend a Sunday."
He was probably one of the few who were surprised, because Raising Sand, which won five trophies at Sunday night's show, is in many ways the perfect Grammy album. It features two respected veterans, a critically lauded producer, some sandpaper-and-velvet vocals and a baker's dozen of time-tested standards.
You're probably familiar with Robert Plant from his Led Zeppelin days, and you might be aware of producer T-Bone Burnett's work on the "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack (it won the Grammy for Album of the Year in 2002). And if you don't know who Alison Krauss is, she possesses a haunting set of pipes and is one of the meanest fiddle players in the world. Oh, and she's won 21 Grammys, more than any other female artist and the seventh-most in history.
Really, she's the key to Sand's success, and not just because of her voice (or her fiddle playing). She and Plant first met in 2004, at a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame tribute to legendary bluesman Leadbelly, and the former Zeppelin man was amazed by her knowledge of American Roots music — so much so that they began kicking around the idea of recording an album together. Three years later, Sand was released.
And while Plant possesses the more famous voice, the album's finest moments radiate from Krauss. Whether she's getting bluesy on Little Milton's "Let Your Loss Be Your Lesson" or entwining with Plant's husky voice on songs like "Please Read the Letter" and Roly Salley's winsome "Killing the Blues," she more than carries her end of the bargain.
And perhaps that's also due to producer Burnett, who handpicked the 13 songs the duo cover on Sand. His arrangements are sparse — giving the two voices ample room to breathe — yet dense, warm and crackling at the same time. It's a testament to his work that he's often given just as much billing as Plant and Krauss on the project ... and it's certainly justified.
To date, Sand has sold more than 1 million copies, heaped tons of acclaim and actually earned a Grammy last year — "Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)" took home the award for Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals.
One expert was surprised not by the album's success, but by the fact that it's actually quite a good album.
"At first, the album seemed like a vanity project. ... Two names, clearly a one-off record, didn't have to be any good, you know?" New York Times music critic Jon Caramanica said. "Led Zeppelin fans would buy it because of Robert Plant, Alison Krauss would get a check. But it actually turned out to be a really thoughtful, really good record. So when you combine all that with the fact that the Grammys love to lionize one of their own, I could really see it taking home some awards."
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A Britney fansite reports that video will shoot in January.
By Jocelyn Vena
Britney Spears
Photo: Eric Charbonneau/ Le Studio/ Wireimage
Although Britney Spears' next album isn't set for release until March, her fans can start gearing up for new music now.
According to a Spears fansite, BreatheHeavy.com, a notice about auditions for a new Britney video was sent out by her camp.
Tryouts will reportedly be held on Wednesday (December 22), and Spears is looking for male and female dancers to join her in the video for the single, which is set for a January release, according to the notice. "Hold It Against Me" is rumored to be the title of the song, though no details regarding the single or video have been confirmed.
"The dates for the project are still to be determined but it will be happening on either the 9th and 10th of January with rehearsals anytime after Xmas and leading up to those dates or on the 15th and 16th with rehearsals leading in after Xmas as well," the notice reads. "He is looking for men and women with fabulous bodies and faces. They must be versatile. This is not for the tour at this time or even promo. It is just for the video."
Spears' choreographer, Brian Freidman, hinted about the auditions on his Twitter. He has worked with the singer on videos for "Toxic" and "Me Against the Music." "Countdown... 2 days till that very special audition I am holding in LA. Very exciting!!!" he wrote on Monday.
On Tuesday he wrote, "Breaking my body choreographing for 2moros casting. Get ready! I'm makin y'all work for this gig! The start of a new era! Stretch!!! I must go 2 bed NOW! Have 2 B up in 6 hours! Everyone who's auditioning get some rest & dress 2 impress! I want STARS not classroom dancers!"
Are you eager to hear new music from Britney? Tell us in the comments!
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