Google unveils unified email for Android users

SAN FRANCISCO — Google said Monday it was updating its mobile Gmail app for Android device users to allow them to manage multiple email accounts from a single program.

“Starting today, you’ll be able to view all your mail at once, regardless of which account it’s from, using the new ‘All Inboxes’ option,” Google software engineer Regis Decamps said in a blog post.

“This way, you can read and respond to all your messages without having to hop between accounts.”

The new app will aggregate email from rival services such as Yahoo and Microsoft Outlook, among others.

Gmail had allowed users to access multiple accounts from desktop computers, but the new app aims to seamlessly integrate the various email services in a unified inbox with search and preview capability.

source: interaksyon.com

Australia moves toward joining China-led bank

SYDNEY - Australia said it will sign an agreement to become a prospective founding member of a China-backed infrastructure bank, but continued to express concerns about how the institution is governed.

China and 20 other countries signed a memorandum of understanding last October to establish the Beijing-headquartered US$50 billion Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) bank.

Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and Russia have also announced plans to join, despite skepticism about the AIIB in Washington and Tokyo.

South Korea on Thursday became the latest country with close ties to the US to say it would also seek membership.

"Good progress has been made on the bank's design, governance and transparency over the past few months, but we still have issues that we will address through ongoing consultations," Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Treasurer Joe Hockey and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said in a joint statement.

"Key matters to be resolved before Australia considers joining the AIIB include the bank's board of directors having authority over key investment decisions, and that no one country control the bank."

The government said it would sign a memorandum of understanding which will allow Australia to take part in negotiations as a prospective founding member to set up the bank.

The ministers added that the AIIB "has the potential to play a valuable role in addressing infrastructure needs and boosting economic growth in the region with potential benefits for Australia."

The new multinational lender is seen as a threat to the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, two institutions under strong US influence.

Washington has voiced concern about whether the bank would meet international governance, environmental and social standards.

source: interaksyon.com

Life after Zayn

MANILA, Philippines - Right now, you probably already know what went down in the wee hours of March 26, Thursday morning. Zayn Malik, Bradford bad boy and token diva of One Direction, left the boyband for good so he could focus on fixing his private life. His announcement was made exactly a week after he walked out in the middle of the Southeast Asian leg of their world tour. To the fans of the boys, and fans of bands in general, losing a member is monumental. Think of the Beatles sans John Lennon or the Spice Girls minus Geri Halliwell — history’s shown that sudden departures can end a band’s successful run. Will 1D meet the same fate?

In the case of N*Sync, where the brunt of the vocals was primarily juggled by Justin Timberlake and JC Chasez, the option of continuing as a band was rather unlikely. Justin’s voice was distinctive and carried most of their tracks to their climax. Without him, it would’ve just been JC and three backup dancers. In 1D, the distribution of parts is more or less equal and interchangeable. If you take Zayn out of the equation, the other four boys (Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson) would be there to pick up his slack. The concerts last weekend proved they could manage just fine without him. Although the remaining quartet couldn’t exactly hit all the otherworldly notes Zayn had set for them (let’s face it, the boy was vocally blessed with a golden falsetto), they were still able to deliver respectable and enjoyable performances.

In terms of songwriting, Zayn’s a lightweight. He only managed to co-write 10 of the band’s 73 songs. That’s meager compared to Liam’s 27 and Louis’s 30. There have been rumors that Zayn’s original compositions were not good enough to make the final cut of their latest album, “Four,” spurring him to collaborate with outside producers like Naughty Boy. Whether this is true or not, we’ll see its fruits in the future. But for now, it’s safe to say that the rest of the 1D boys have nothing to worry about regarding songwriting. After all, they still have a company-provided team of songsmiths to help them out.

#ALWAYSINOURHEARTSZAYNMALIK 

Thursday’s Twitter trends were full of hashtags and lamentations dedicated to Zayn’s abrupt goodbye. Fans begged him to come back. Others sent their best wishes. The rumor mill spun like mad. It’s undeniable how Zayn was adored. The boy brought something different to the plate. He was simple and meek. He was of color and of a different religion. He opened up the band to audiences who wouldn’t have normally taken notice of a generic bunch of singing white boys.

For many fans, Zayn was the sole reason they even joined the fandom. With his long lashes, chiseled features, and insane vocals, he lured them into the craziness that is One Direction only to leave them behind when the times got tough. To see him go like that must have felt like betrayal. Nothing made this more evident than the fan reaction to the news that he would be M.I.A. for the Manila shows. Friends of mine threatened to sell their tickets. Some opted for downgrades. And yet, come concert day, all of them still showed up with their original tickets in hand because despite all the pre-concert drama, there was still a chance of Zayn’s triumphant return once he got things sorted out. It was a possibility that never came to pass. Zayn is gone.



A couple of friends and I were lucky enough to see him perform in Singapore, one of his final shows with the whole band. His ad-libs were inhuman, and they left me and everyone in the stadium floored. He had a few good laughs with the boys onstage, but for the most part, his eyes were glazed over, staring into oblivion. I didn’t notice it at that time, but he was probably mulling over his next steps. Two shows later, in Bangkok, he took his final bow. “Thank you,” he said, “We have been One Direction!” And that was that.

Boybands have a limited shelf life, and 1D is nearing its expiration date. It’s only a matter of time before their fans find other acts to gush about, but until then, they still have a tour to finish and an album to release. Life for the boys after Zayn will be different, definitely. It will be new. It will be a gamble. Fans, like myself, can only hope it’ll pay off. It would be sad to see them just fade away.

source: philstar.com

Zayn Malik quits One Direction, wants normal life

LONDON | Singer Zayn Malik said on Wednesday he was quitting the best-selling pop band One Direction because he wanted to live a normal life and apologized to fans of the hugely popular British-Irish group for doing so.

The decision by Malik to quit came after he dropped out of an Asian tour due to what he said was stress when pictures of the singer, who is engaged to Perrie Edwards of Little Mix, were published showing him partying with another woman in Thailand.

“I’d like to apologize to the fans if I’ve let anyone down, but I have to do what feels right in my heart. I am leaving because I want to be a normal 22-year-old who is able to relax and have some private time out of the spotlight,” Malik said in a statement on One Direction’s Facebook page.

The announcement said Malik’s decision had come after five years with the band, which came to prominence for its performance on the popular televised singing competition “The X Factor” in 2010.

One Direction’s biggest hits include “Best Song Ever”, “Kiss You”, “What Makes You Beautiful” and “Story of My Life”.

The remaining band members, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson, will continue on their current world tour as a foursome and will release their fifth album later this year, the statement said.

“We’re really sad to see Zayn go, but we totally respect his decision and send him all our love for the future. The past five years have been beyond amazing, we’ve gone through so much together, so we will always be friends,” the band members said.

Simon Cowell, the British music and television impresario who launched the band, said:

“I would like to say thank you to Zayn for everything he has done for One Direction. Since I first met Zayn in 2010, I have grown very, very fond — and immensely proud — of him.

“I have seen him grow in confidence and I am truly sorry to see him leave. As for One Direction, fans can rest assured that Niall, Liam, Harry and Louis are hugely excited about the future of the band.”

The announcement instantly made Malik’s name one of the top trends on Twitter and produced anguished reactions from fans.

“I KEEP HOPING THAT @zaynmalik LEAVING IS SOME EARLY APRIL FOOLS JOKE BY @onedirection,” tweeted one American fan.

source: interaksyon.com

Asian shares erase gains, China factory weighs

TOKYO - An index of Asian shares erased its early gains on Tuesday after a measure of Chinese factory activity unexpectedly skidded to an 11-month low.

The flash HSBC/Markit Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) dipped to 49.2 in March, below the 50-point level. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a reading of 50.6, slightly weaker than February's final PMI of 50.7.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down about 0.1 percent.

The private survey signaled persistent weakness in the world's second-largest economy that is likely to add to calls for more policy easing from Beijing.

"A renewed fall in total new business contributed to a weaker expansion of output, while companies continued to trim their workforce numbers," Annabel Fiddes, an economist at Markit said.

The Shanghai Composite Index, which has recently pushed to seven-year highs, sagged 0.3 percent in early trading. Japan's Nikkei stock average slipped about 0.5 percent, pulling away from the previous session's 15-year highs.

The U.S. dollar edged slightly higher on the day, but still remained well off its recent highs as investors bet that the U.S. Federal Reserve will stay its hand on hiking interest rates in the months ahead.

Underscoring that the long-term view remains intact but the near-term is unclear, Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer, the central bank's second-in-command, said on Monday that the Federal Reserve is "widely expected" to begin raising interest rates this year though the policy path remains uncertain.

Fischer said the stronger dollar and weaker oil prices figure in U.S. policymaking, but said the central bank is "trying to look through those phenomena."

The dollar plunged last week after the Fed cut its inflation outlook and its growth forecast. The market consensus is that the Fed will hold off raising rates until at least September, rendering short-term directional bets difficult to make.

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, edged up about 0.2 percent to 97.179 .DXY, but remained below its 12-year peak of 100.390 struck on March 13.

The dollar was up 0.1 percent on the day against its Japanese counterpart at 119.80 yen, but remained well below Friday's session high of 121.20 and levels above 122 yen touched earlier this month.

The euro stood at $1.0923, down about 0.2 percent from the previous session but still well above a 12-year nadir of $1.0457 plumbed last week before the Fed's statement.

The euro got a lift against the dollar on Monday after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said he expected consumer prices to rise gradually by the end of the year even if they might remain very low or negative in the months ahead.

Some market participants took this as a sign that the ECB might wrap up its bond-buying scheme early, though Draghi said it intended to carry out purchases at least until end-September.

The weaker dollar lent support to dollar-denominated commodities, though some investors took profits on recent rallies. U.S. crude futures edged down about 0.4 percent to $47.28 a barrel after soaring 1.9 percent in the previous session.

Spot gold edged down about 0.2 percent after a four-day rally, to $1,187.10 an ounce.

source: interaksyon.com

Sierra Leone orders three-day lockdown against Ebola

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone - Sierra Leone's President Ernest Koroma ordered the country's entire population Saturday to stay in their homes for three days in a bid to stem the spread of the deadly Ebola epidemic.

"All Sierra Leoneans must stay at home for three days," he announced, expanding a previous order for a lockdown in the capital Freetown and northern areas of the country nationwide.

"I have made my personal commitment to do whatever it takes to get to zero Ebola infections and I call on every Sierra Leonean in every community to pull together," he added.

People will be ordered to stay home from 0600 GMT March 27 to 1800 GMT March 29, with "no trading activities across the country".

Authorities in the Muslim-majority state will lift the lockdown for part of the day to allow church services on Palm Sunday.

Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone -- which have been the centres of the outbreak which has killed more than 10,000 people -- have set a goal of cutting off the  disease's spread by April 16.

"The economic development of our country and the lives of our people continue to be threatened by the ongoing presence of Ebola in Sierra Leone. The future of our country and the aspirations of our children are at stake," the president said.

One of the deadliest viruses known to man, Ebola is spread only through direct contact with the bodily fluids of the recently deceased or an infected person showing symptoms, such as fever or vomiting.

The worst-ever outbreak of the virus has claimed almost 3,700 lives in Sierra Leone, one of three impoverished west African nations that have seen their economies and healthcare systems wrecked  by the crisis.

source: interaksyon.com

Windows 10 coming in 190 countries, 111 languages

WASHINGTON — Microsoft says its new Windows 10 operating system will be coming “this summer” in 190 countries and 111 languages.

In a blog post late Tuesday, Microsoft executive vice president Terry Myerson said the operating system designed for multiple devices would also have a “small footprint” for connected devices.

“We continue to make great development progress and shared today that Windows 10 will be available this summer in 190 countries and 111 languages,” he said.

Microsoft has yet to provide a precise date for the launch of the operating system, which is aimed at powering PCs,smartphones and also connected devices such as bank machines and medical equipment.

“For the first time, a new version of Windows for small footprint IoT (Internet of Things) devices will be available — for free — when Windows 10 launches,” Myerson said.

“Windows 10 will offer versions of Windows for a diverse set of IoT devices, ranging from powerful devices like ATMs and ultrasound machines, to resource constrained devices like gateways.”

Microsoft is also working with fast-growing Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi to test Windows 10 on its devices.

The US tech giant also announced partnerships with Chinese-based Tencent and Lenovo to help customers in China upgrade to Windows 10.

The company also said Tuesday that Windows 10 will allow users to sign in to a device without a password by using biometrics, including facial recognition.

source: interaksyon.com

The ‘Afghan Bruce Lee’ dreaming of Hollywood

KABUL | Framed by the dramatic backdrop of Kabul’s ruined Darulaman palace, Abbas Alizada throws kung fu punches, kicks and spins, watched by an eager young crowd.

Dressed in a white vest, black trousers and light shoes despite the bitter Afghan winter, Alizada bears a striking resemblance to his idol — legendary martial arts movie star Bruce Lee.

Alizada twirls his nunchuks in front of the shell-blasted walls of the former royal palace, an evocative monument to the 35 years of war that have ravaged Afghanistan.

Then he leaves the enclosure, smiling, sunglasses on his nose, his fans can finally meet him, shake his hand — and take selfies with him.

He is a member of Afghanistan’s Hazara community, an ethnic group with distinctively Central Asian features that add to his resemblance to Hong Kong star Lee.

With more than 50,000 followers on Twitter and 40,000 likes on Facebook, Alizada has become quite a celebrity in Afghanistan, known locally as “Bruce Hazara”.

He has become a familiar face on local media and now he is dreaming of Hollywood stardom.

“When I was eight years old I saw the Bruce Lee movies, and I was hooked,” he told AFP in his brother’s office in Kabul, sitting round a traditional “sandali” stove for warmth.

“I said I will be the Bruce Lee of Afghanistan one day. I know I cannot be Bruce Lee, but I follow in his path,” he said.

LOCAL HERO

Alizada is the youngest of 10 children and his older brothers have followed his career closely. One of them, 25-year-old Ahmad Zia, works as his manager, coach and secretary.

“I’m very hopeful that my brother will become a member of Hollywood,” Zia said.

Alizada dreams of working with Hong Kong martial arts movie star Jackie Chan — who he respectfully refers to as “Mr Jackie”.

He also idolizes action stars such as “Mr Rambo” — Sylvester Stallone — Chuck Norris and Jean-Claude Van Damme.

But his biggest ambition is to complete “The Game of Death”, the film Lee left unfinished when he died in 1973.

“Bruce didn’t finish his last movie, he did half of the movie. My project is to complete this movie,” Alizada said.

Hollywood or no, Alizada is already the pride of the Kabul district where he lives.

“Abbas is a hero, he’s a superstar for us,” engineer Mohammad Ali Mokhtar, 25, said.

“Our country faces difficult problems, like drugs, security, and so on. We hope Abbas will raise the name of our country.”

Apart from the country’s reputation, Mokhtar also hopes Abbas can fly the flag for the Hazaras, a largely Shiite Muslim community that has suffered sectarian discrimination and violence in the past from Sunni hardliners.

“It’s important for us Hazaras especially, because we like to live in a peaceful environment,” he said.

Fellow fan Ramin, a politics student, said the first time he saw him on the TV, “I was shocked how much he looked like (Lee). I’m so pleased that we have such a character in Afghanistan.”

When he’s not training at Darulaman or in his martial arts club, Alizada looks after his father, who is paralyzed down his left side.

The old man encourages his youngest son and hopes he can become a Hollywood star.

source: interaksyon.com

Can Christi Lynn McGarry compete in Miss Intercontinental again?

It seems that almost year in and year out, the Binibining Pilipinas beauty pageant never runs out of controversial issues.

Christi Lynn McGarry was crowned Bb. Pilipinas-Intercontinental 2015 Sunday night. However, it turned out that she had already competed for the Miss Intercontinental title in 2010 when the local franchise was not yet under the fold of the Binibining Pilipinas Charities, Inc.

Alerted by InterAksyon, BPCI immediately acknowledged the potential conflict on Monday and furnished us this statement: “The Binibining Pilipinas Charities, Incorporated is studying the issue about Christi Lynn McGarry who then competed for Miss Intercontinental 2010. We will update everyone should we arrive at anything final.”

McGarry, who listed Nabua, Camarines Sur as her hometown in this year’s Binibining Pilipinas, represented the Filipino Community of East Coast, USA back when she competed in the Mutya ng Pilipinas 2010.

As the winner of the Mutya ng Pilipinas Asia-Pacific title in that pageant, the 24-year-old stunner earned the right to represent the Philippines in the 2010 Miss Intercontinental contest where she finished among the Top 15 semifinalists and also won the special award, Miss Asia Oceania Intercontinental.

A check with Miss Intercontinental’s official website states that delegates should be “at least 18 years old and under 27 (in the year they participate in the telecast).” Pageant rules are not posted in detail so it is not known if contestants who already participated in previous pageants are allowed to compete again.

If McGarry can’t compete anymore in Miss Intercontinental, would she forfeit her Binibining Pilipinas-Intercontinental crown?

Would this pave the way for 1st runner-up Hannah Ruth Sison, who was reportedly heartbroken after her three-year campaign for a Binibining Pilipinas crown fell short for the third and final time on Sunday? Pageant insiders feel that this is an unlikely scenario and point to McGarry switching titles with Binibining Pilipinas-Supranational Rogelie Catacutan as a more plausible solution.

For now, the issue remains unresolved as there is no scheduled date yet for Miss Intercontinental 2015. Last year, the pageant was won by Thailand’s Phataraporn Wang while Binibining Pilipinas-Intercontinental 2014 Kris Tiffany Janson won 2nd runner-up—the country’s best finish in the pageant’s 42-year history.

source: interaksyon.com

Pope Francis declares special Holy Year of mercy

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis announced on Friday the Roman Catholic Church will mark an extraordinary Holy Year, one of its most important events, in which faithful make pilgrimages to Rome and other religious sites around the world.

During the last Holy Year -- or Jubilee -- in 2000, millions of pilgrims came to Rome to take part in religious festivities throughout the year.

Making the surprise announcement in St. Peter's Basilica on the second anniversary of his election, Francis said the Holy Year will focus on the topic of mercy, one of the most important themes of his papacy.

It will start on December 8 of this year and end on November 20, 2016. This will be only the 29th Holy Year in the Church since the tradition started more than 700 years ago.

Holy Years normally take place every 25 years unless a pope decrees an extraordinary one to bring attention to a particular topic or need. The next one had been scheduled for 2025.

Francis, who says he wants his Church of 1.2 billion members to be more merciful and less rigid towards sinners, said the Jubilee would be an occasion for all members -- and the Church itself -- to rediscover the need to be forgiving and generous.

"The Church is the home that accepts everyone and refuses no one ... the greater the sin, the greater the love that the Church should show towards those who convert," he said.

During a Holy Year, one of the entrances to St. Peter's Basilica, which is known as the Holy Door and normally bricked up, is opened so pilgrims can pass through it. The Holy Doors of Rome's other basilicas are also opened.

According to the Vatican website, a Holy Year should be a time of reconciliation with adversaries and an occasion to promote solidarity, hope and justice in the world.

Faithful who make pilgrimages to religious sites or do good works during a Holy Year can receive indulgences, or the remission of punishment for sins, under certain conditions.

The Vatican said the official proclamation of the Holy Year, known as a papal bull, will be published next month. Cathedrals and other religious venues around the world are expected to be designated at national pilgrimage sites.

The last extraordinary Holy Year was called in 1983 by Pope John Paul II to mark the 1,950 years after the death of Jesus.

source: interaksyon.com

Manny Pacquiao embraces underdog tag: ‘It gives me more motivation’

Floyd Mayweather at 38 could be the perfect target for Manny Pacquiao, the Filipino ring icon’s trainer Freddie Roach said Wednesday.

As Mayweather and Pacquiao turned out for their only joint press conference in the build-up to their May 2 mega-bout, Roach said the unbeaten Mayweather’s vaunted defensive abilities are waning.

“His legs are little bit shot. He’s slowed down quite a bit,” Roach said, adding that he believes Mayweather would have had a better chance of beating Pacquiao five years ago, when attempts to make the fight fell apart.

“He is going to have to exchange more,” Roach added — with a pithy dismissal of the idea that Mayweather has recently become more willing to go toe-to-toe in an effort to please fans.

“That’s bullshit,” Roach said. “He doesn’t care about the fans. He has to exchange more because his legs won’t take him out of the way … if he has to exchange with Manny Pacquiao he is in trouble.”

Mayweather brings a record of 47-0 with 26 knockouts to the bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Although Pacquiao is two years his junior, it was the Filipino whose career appeared to be on the wane after back to back defeats in 2012.

Since then, however, the southpaw has won three fights in a row to take his record to 57-5 with two drawn and 38 knockouts.

He’s the underdog, but said Wednesday that just adds fuel to his competitive fire.

“I like that,” Pacquiao said. “It gives me more motivation, more determination to focus on the fight and prove something.”

source: interaksyon.com

Women with close male kin with prostate cancer more likely to have breast cancer - study

Women with close male relatives with prostate cancer are more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer, a new study confirms.

These findings, from the large Women's Health Initiative, reinforce the results of a 1994 study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, the authors write.

“This is not the first study to examine this relationship, but it is one of the larger to date, if not the largest study,” said lead author Jennifer L. Beebe-Dimmer of Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit.

Cancer is a disease of the DNA, she said, and family clustering indicates that breast and prostate cancers may have genes in common,

Beebe-Dimmer and her colleagues used data for more than 78,000 women in the Women’s Health Initiative who were over age 50 and cancer-free when the study began in 1993. At the start they had comprehensive physical exams and gave detailed personal and family medical histories.

Most women remained in the study for more than 10 years.

By 2009 there had been 3,506 new breast cancers in the original group.

Overall, more than 11,000 women had a first-degree relative – mother, sister or daughter - with breast cancer, and this was more common for those who were eventually diagnosed themselves. Twenty percent of women with breast cancer had first-degree relatives with the disease, compared to nearly 15 percent of those who did not develop breast cancer.

There was a similar, but very slight, association with prostate cancer, the researchers reported in Cancer.

More than 11 percent of women who developed breast cancer reported a first-degree relative with prostate cancer, compared to about 10 percent of women without the disease. Having a father, brother or son with prostate cancer increased the risk of breast cancer by about 14 percent.

Compared to women with no family history of breast or prostate cancer, those with a family history of both were 80 percent more likely to develop breast cancer, the authors found.

“We know that the major breast cancer susceptibility genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 are also linked to prostate cancer,” Beebe-Dimmer told Reuters Health by email. That may explain some of the clustering, she said.

Researchers have been reporting on familial links between breast and prostate cancer for 40 years, said Mary-Claire King of the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle, in email to Reuters Health.

“It is good to see the link confirmed” in the Women’s Health Initiative, said King, who was not involved in the new research.

“Both of these cancers are relatively common, so that it is possible when cancers are diagnosed in multiple family members it may be due to chance,” she said. “It may also be an exposure to something in the environment.”

The decision to increase breast cancer screening will depend on how many male relatives have been diagnosed with prostate cancer and at what age, she said, with more diagnoses at young ages being particularly telling.

“Knowledge of breast cancer family history is still extremely important,” Beebe-Dimmer said. She would not recommend BRCA1 or 2 genetic testing for women with a family history of prostate cancer but no history of breast or ovarian cancer.

source: interaksyon.com

Apple debuts $17,000 watch, some waiting for killer app

SAN FRANCISCO — Apple Inc launched its long-awaited watch on Monday, including yellow or rose gold models with sapphire faces costing up to $17,000, but some investors questioned whether Chief Executive Tim Cook’s first product would be a breakaway hit.

Apple’s first new device since Cook became CEO will be available for order on April 10 and in stores on April 24, including chic boutiques in Paris, London and Tokyo.

In a nod to both fashion and technology, Cook shared the stage with model Christy Turlington Burns, who used it to train for a marathon, and Apple engineers who showed how to send drawings, pictures and even heartbeats with the watch.

Apple shares barely budged, however. Investors and analysts agreed that Apple would sell millions to fans but questioned whether it had a “killer app” that would engage a broader audience. Apple in September gave a sneak peek of the watch which included many features shown on Monday.

“I think there’s a niche market for these kind of Apple tech people who love Apple and will buy anything they come out with. But I just don’t know if it’s going to be the power product that everyone’s looking for,” said Daniel Morgan, senior portfolio manager at Synovus Trust Company in Atlanta, Georgia, who described Wall Street as “scratching its head”.

Members of the style establishment, in Paris for shows from the glittering likes of Chanel, Givenchy and Hermes mostly said they saw the watch as a gadget, not this season’s must-have accessory.

The Edition price tag which is inexpensive compared with a Patek Philippe Nautilus at just over $42,000 on 11main.com, inspired plenty of jibes on social media, including many who questioned whether it would become outdated and compared the price to a car’s. “Wonder what kind of gas mileage it gets,” asked Twitter user Christopher Caruso.

Nevertheless many made clear they wanted it. “My birthday is gonna rock this year… :-) #applewatch,” wrote Jay Runquist.

The Apple Watch sport will start at $349 for the smaller, 38-mm model. The standard version of the watch will start at $549 and the high-end “Edition” watch will be priced from $10,000, said Cook, who loved the Dick Tracy ability to hold phone calls by watch.

“I have been wanting to do this since I was five years old,” said Cook.

The different models reflect different materials. A $17,000 Edition in the smaller, 38-mm size, has a case made from a customised version of 18-karat rose gold, which is especially hard, along with a sapphire display. It comes with a magnetic charging case.

A $349 Sport model the same size has an aluminium case, a ‘sport band’ and a magnetic charging cable, and no case.

All the watches share digital faces that can look like traditional time pieces, show the heart beat of a friend, and display photos and interfaces for apps.

“Apple’s been very good at personalizing its products,” said Angelo Zino, an analyst at S&P Capital IQ, who said the “intimacy” of the watch was appealing. He saw 10 million in sales this year.

In the presentation, Cook described the watch handling many functions currently associated with the iPhone, which tethers wirelessly to the watch and connects it to the Internet.

The watch will track exercise and remind wearers of events with a tap on the wrist.

Cook also laid out other product successes and launched a new MacBook notebook computer that starts at $1,299 and weighs as little as 2 pounds.

Every major car brand had committed to delivering Apple’s CarPlay entertainment system, and the new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have 99 percent customer satisfaction rates, he said. The Apple Pay payment system is now accepted at 700,000 locations, and Time Warner Inc’s HBO in April will debut its streaming HBO NOW service on Apple TV.

Apple also is offering researchers new development tools, called ResearchKit, to help medical researchers design apps for clinical trials, the company said.

No “wow” factor?

source: interaksyon.com

Actress Emma Watson urges more men to fight for gender equality

LONDON | British actress Emma Watson urged more men and boys on Sunday to take a stand for women’s rights and be proud to be feminists in a bid to add momentum to a global campaign to unite men and women for gender equality.

Watson, 24, a goodwill ambassador for U.N. Women, used International Women’s Day to add impetus to the HeForShe campaign that was launched in September last year and encourages men and boys to join the fight for equal rights.

So far around 240,000 men have pledged their commitment online, according to the HeForShe website, including U.S. President Barack Obama and actor Matt Damon, but there is a target to mobilize one billion men and boys by July this year.

“There has been a ground swell of support but we need more men to take a stand for gender equality,” Watson told a discussion on gender equality at Facebook’s London headquarters.

“Men often think that feminism is a women’s word … but if you stand for gender equality, you are a feminist.”

Watson, who rose to fame as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films, said the campaign was not about men saving women and also called upon women to support the campaign.

“It’s uncomfortable and awkward for women to acknowledge there is a problem, but we need to understand we are complicit,” she said.

The actress said she was pleased with the response to the IMPACT 10X10X10 initiative, a one-year pilot project launched in January seeking commitments from governments, companies and universities on women’s empowerment and gender equality.

Several countries, including Sweden, the Netherlands and Sierra Leone, have backed the campaign, Watson said.

When asked about gender equality on a global scale, Watson praised the power of social media to allow girls and women to interact with others who can provide advice and support.

Audience members chosen by U.N. Women to attend the event submitted their stories online of what they had done to advance gender equality.

Jacob Anderson, 24, a Swedish designer, said he was an active supporter of women’s rights on online forums and social media.

“Gender equality should be talked about far more than it currently is … it doesn’t make sense that women and men don’t have equal rights,” Anderson told the Thomson Reuters Foundation at the event in London.

source: interaksyon.com

Brent drops toward $59 as dollar firms on U.S. jobs data

SINGAPORE - Brent crude fell toward $59 a barrel on Monday as a promising U.S. jobs report pushed the dollar up, offsetting geopolitical tensions and the threat of output cuts in Libya and Iraq.

The dollar hit a more than 11-year high against a basket of currencies after data showed the U.S. unemployment rate fell to the lowest since May 2008 in February, making commodities priced in the greenback costlier for holders of other currencies

Brent eased 43 cents to $59.30 by 0445 GMT, after dropping 75 cents in the previous session. It fell 4.6 percent last week in its biggest decline since the week ended Jan. 9.

U.S. crude was down 27 cents at $49.34. It closed down $1.15 on Friday to complete a third week of declines.

Goldman Sachs  said in a note that oil prices would reverse recent gains on rising global inventories, with U.S. crude expected to drop to around $40 a barrel.

Oil prices rose by almost a third between January and February on the back of Middle East supply disruptions, strong winter demand and high refinery margins.

But the focus is now on the dollar, analysts said.

"The U.S. dollar is continuing to strengthen. In the short-term it's more about the dollar than anything else," said Ben LeBrun, market analyst at Sydney's OptionsXpress.

U.S. economic data to be released on Tuesday could lead to a further strengthening of the U.S. dollar which would be negative for commodities including oil, said LeBrun.

He said geopolitical issues in North Africa and the Middle East "are all playing second fiddle to the U.S. dollar".

Goldman said in its note that "absent further unexpected OPEC disruptions, we expect Brent oil prices and timespreads to reverse their recent strength".

Members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) should not cut output to "subsidize" higher-cost shale, OPEC Secretary-General Abdullah al-Badri has said.

In Libya, up to 10 foreign workers are missing in the latest attack on the country's oil fields by Islamist militants and there is a possibility they have been taken hostage, Czech and Libyan officials said on Saturday.

Brent should trade within a range of $55.36-$63.04 this week, said Singapore's Phillip Futures in a note on Monday.

U.S. crude should trade between $48.45-$55.02 although prices could move sharply upwards if the U.S. refinery strikes end this week, Phillip Futures said.

source: interaksyon.com

Messi’s hat trick, Suarez’ double put Barca on top of La Liga

Barcelona moved to the top of La Liga for the first time since early November as Lionel Messi struck his 32nd hat-trick for the club in a 6-1 thrashing of 10-man Rayo Vallecano on Sunday.

Champions Atletico Madrid remain seven points off the top, though, after they were held to a 1-1 draw by Valencia at the Vicente Calderon.

Real Madrid’s 1-0 defeat at Athletic Bilbao on Saturday handed Barca the chance to overtake the European champions and Luis Suarez wasted no time in taking advantage as he slotted home his sixth goal in as many games.

Gerard Pique doubled the hosts’ advantage just after half-time before Messi added a third from the penalty spot at the second attempt thanks to a reprieve from the referee after his initial effort was saved by Cristian Alvarez and Tito had been sent-off for a second bookable offence.

There was no controversy over the Argentine’s final two goals, though, as he moved level with Cristiano Ronaldo on 30 league goals for the season.

Both sides ended with 10 men when Dani Alves was shown a straight red card for bringing down Alberto Bueno inside the area and Bueno converted from the spot.

However, Barca had the final word when Suarez slammed home his second of the afternoon from Messi’s through ball.

“The objective is to be the leader when the season ends,” said Barca boss Luis Enrique.

“I have always said the big teams will lose throughout the course of the season and it will continue to happen, therefore we have to be very careful.”

Suarez has found his scoring touch in recent weeks after a slow start to life at the Camp Nou and was razor sharp in front of goal just six minutes in as he rolled his defender before flicking the ball past Alvarez with the outside of his right foot.

Impossible task

Enrique’s men had to wait until after the break to make the game safe as Jordi Alba’s header from Xavi’s corner came back off the post and Pique was on hand to force the ball over the line.

Rayo’s task became impossible seven minutes later when Suarez was pulled down by Tito inside the area and the defender was shown a second yellow card.

Messi’s yips from the penalty spot continued as, after missing five of his last 10 for club and country, Alvarez comfortably saved his first effort.

However, referee Jesus Gil Manzano ruled there had been encroachment by Rayo players and gave Messi a second opportunity which he didn’t pass up.

The four-time World Player of the Year was in the right place to slot home his second moments later after Alvarez had made a fine save to deny Suarez.

And Messi completed a 12-minute hat-trick with a lovely feint to leave Alvarez on the floor before rolling the ball into an empty net.

The action continued in the final quarter as Manzano levelled up the numbers by sending off Alves for a foul on Bueno inside the box nine minutes from time and the former Real Madrid midfielder converted from the spot.

However, it was Suarez who rounded off the scoring in style in stoppage time when he latched on to Messi’s neat pass to round Alvarez and turn the ball home from a narrow angle.

Any chance of a title challenge to the big two has faded after the spoils were shared in the battle between third and fourth at the Calderon.

Spanish international Koke fired Atletico into the lead on his return to the starting line-up from a hamstring injury just after the half hour mark.

Tiago then missed a great chance to make it 2-0 after the break when he smashed the ball against the bar from barely three yards out.

And that miss was to prove vital as Miguel Angel Moya misjudged Dani Parejo’s free-kick from the right and when the ball rebounded off the bar, Shkodran Mustafi was on hand to head home the rebound.

Elsewhere, Villarreal bounced back from their Copa del Rey elimination at the hands of Barcelona in midweek with a 4-1 win over Celta Vigo.

David Moyes’s Real Sociedad also continued their march away from the relegation zone with a 1-0 win over Espanyol.

source: interaksyon.com

Mandarin Oriental says hackers stole credit card data

NEW YORK — Hackers broke into the Mandarin Oriental luxury hotel group’s database and stole credit card information from “an isolated number” of its properties in the United States and Europe.

“The incident is a direct result of an unauthorized cyber-attack,” the Hong Kong-based group said in a statement Thursday.

“Unfortunately incidents of this nature are increasingly becoming an industry-wide concern and therefore we have also alerted our technology peers in the hospitality industry.”

The hotel group said the breach came from malicious software that was “undetectable by all anti-viral systems.”

Mandarin said it had removed the malware and was “coordinating with credit card agencies, law enforcement authorities and forensic specialists to ensure that all necessary steps are taken to fully protect our guests and our systems across our portfolio.”

The luxury lodging group did not identify the hotels affected but said none of them were in Asia.

“We can confirm that only an isolated number of hotels in the US and Europe have been affected,” the statement said.

“Moreover, from the information we have to date, the breach has only affected credit card data and not any other personal guest data, and credit card security codes have not been compromised.”

Part of the Jardine Matheson group, Mandarin Oriental operates some 45 hotels in 25 countries.

source: interaksyon.com

Prince plans U.S. tour of spontaneous shows

NEW YORK | Prince, never one to tie himself down to music industry practices, is planning a U.S. tour. But how to find out where the shows are taking place is another question.

Prince’s promoters announced Friday that the rock icon will bring his “Hit and Run” tour to the United States, which last year saw him play across Europe in a series of shows revealed at the last minute — including two a night in both Paris and London.

The 56-year-old “Purple Rain” creator gave details about the Europe shows on Twitter. But in a problem for the U.S. tour, he abruptly left social media in November.

Prince’s promoters revealed only that his first U.S. show for “Hit and Run” will take place on March 14 somewhere in Louisville, Kentucky.

The city may seem aptly random, but it is the hometown of Hannah Welton, the drummer of his all-female collaborating band 3rdEyeGirl, and the show will raise money for local charities.

The tour comes after Prince showed up with no prior announcement at last month’s Grammys to present the Album of the Year.

Prince last year released two albums simultaneously — “Art Official Age” and “Plectrumelectrum,” the latter performed with 3rdEyeGirl.

The twin release marked Prince’s return to the Warner Brothers label two decades after he famously protested his contractual terms by writing “slave” on his cheek and changing his name to the unpronounceable “love symbol.”

source: interaksyon.com

McDonald's to cut back on chicken fed with antibiotics

WASHINGTON - Fast-food giant McDonald's announced Wednesday it would stop serving chicken raised with antibiotics that are important to human health, as worries grow over resistance to crucial drugs.

McDonald's said it would work with poultry farmers to halt the use of what the World Health Organization has identified as "critically important antimicrobials" to feed the chickens it serves alongside its popular hamburgers.

Some antibiotics would still be allowed, but only poultry-specific ones not used on people.

"While McDonald's will only source chicken raised without antibiotics important to human medicine, the farmers who supply chicken for its menu will continue to responsibly use ionophores, a type of antibiotic not used for humans that helps keep chickens healthy," the company said.

"Our customers want food that they feel great about eating -- all the way from the farm to the restaurant -- and these moves take a step toward better delivering on those expectations," said McDonald’s US president Mike Andres.

McDonald's said that it hoped to implement the new restrictions at its 14,000 US restaurants over the next two years.

The move will help prod changes by the large industrial chicken suppliers which have fostered widespread use of human antibiotics among growers.

Over several decades livestock producers have increasingly fed a wide range of antibiotics to animals to prevent disease and boost growth.

McDonald's said it would not accept any poultry in which antibiotics are used to encourage growth.

It said it recognizes that farmers could use human-use antibiotics on sick animals, but that it would not accept those into its food supply.

The move comes in response to a growing number of health-conscious consumers who have shown in supermarket and restaurant purchases that they are interested and willing to pay for healthier food.

A year ago the Chik-fil-A chain, the largest fast food buyer of chickens, announced a plan to go completely antibiotic-free within five years.

Following that, Purdue, the third largest chicken processor, said it had stopped using human antibiotics on 95 percent of its chickens, and would no longer inject hatchery eggs with antibiotics as a preventative and growth booster.

Laura Rogers, director of the Antibiotic Resistance Project at The Pew Charitable Trusts, said it is crucial to slash the use of antibiotics in the livestock industry.

"Every time we use antibiotics... we have the potential to get antibiotic-resistant bacteria. We are running out of new antibiotics and new types of antibiotics," she told AFP.

But she said the changes are consumer-driven, after years of failed efforts by activists to get the US Food and Drug Administration to ban the use of critical human antibiotics.

"McDonald's made this change because that's what their customers wanted," she told AFP.

But she also noted McDonald's additional statement this week that their criteria in part come from the WHO push to prohibit the use in animals of antimicrobials defined as "critically important" to human medicine. 

"They are at least the first major food company that's talked about responsible use," she said.

Even so, McDonald’s made no mention of the beef used in its popular hamburgers, or pork.

Making the change in both could be more complicated, acknowledged Rogers.

"Raising beef is different from raising hogs or raising turkeys," she said.

But the activist group Food and Water Watch said it's not enough to wait for the industry to evolve with consumers.

"We're glad to hear McDonald's realizes the public doesn't want food from factory farms that overuse antibiotics," said executive director Wenonah Hauter.

"But voluntary measures are not enough. It's past time for the FDA to force the meat industry to eliminate its use of harmful antibiotics though enforceable, non-voluntary regulation."

source: interaksyon.com

EU bets on 5G to catch up in mobile technology race

BRUSSELS/BARCELONA — The European Union is looking to sign agreements with China, Japan, and the United States to cooperate on developing the next generation of mobile broadband as it seeks to help its companies catch up in the race to develop such technologies.

Europe, once a leader in the 1990s in the second-generation GSM technology standard for mobile phone networks moving into the digital era, has fallen behind the United States, Japan, and South Korea in the deployment of the latest 4G standard for mobile broadband services.

The region’s network operators including Britain’s Vodafone and Spain’s Telefonica were slower to move to 4G than Japan, Korea, and the United States and adoption in Europe remains lower compared to other advanced economies.

European policymakers are now trying not to repeat the mistakes of the past and are seeking to be at the forefront of developing the standards for 5G, which promises much faster video downloads, denser network coverage and the possibility of connecting billions of everyday electronic objects to create “the internet of things”.

“With 5G, Europe has a great opportunity to reinvent its telecom industrial landscape,” Guenther Oettinger, the EU’s Commissioner for the Digital Economy and Society, told the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on Tuesday.

In June last year the European Commission signed an agreement with South Korea in which the two sides committed to cooperating on setting technical standards and ensure the necessary radio frequencies are able to support the new network.

“It is our intention to sign similar agreements with other key regions of the world, notably Japan, China, and the United States,” Oettinger said.

The Commission will soon start formal discussions on 5G with China, according to a person familiar with the matter, which is also keen to have its say on what 5G should do. China is home to the world’s second-biggest maker of mobile network equipment, Huawei, and ZTE, the fifth biggest.

But the chief executive of France’s Orange said work remained to be done on 4G, whose rollout across Europe has been patchy and slow.

“We need to prepare for 5G but let’s not jump too fast. We should enjoy 4G,” he said.

Most industry experts expect the first commercial deployments of 5G in the run-up to the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.

Much work remains to be done to set technical standards for the technology, and figure out exactly what it is supposed to do that current 4G gear cannot, experts say.

In the meantime, companies that make mobile network equipment such as Sweden’s Ericsson, Huawei, Finland’s Nokia and France-based Alcatel-Lucent are jockeying for position and carrying out experiments with operators to prepare for 5G.

Japan’s NTT DoCoMo is already working with Nokia and Ericsson to develop networks running at high frequencies for use in the 5G wireless era – technology expected to be showcased at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Meanwhile Huawei has said it will invest $600 million in 5G research and expects to have a network ready for deployment by 2020.

“We are closely working with our customers to get to 5G. It is the only way to fully meet the demand of machine to machine technology,” said Huawei’s chief executive Ken Hu.

The head of Nokia, Rajeev Suri, said that he thinks the drive to develop 5G technology promises to be a “three-horse race” between Ericsson, Huawei and his firm, leaving out the fourth biggest equipment maker, Alcatel-Lucent.

“I don’t aspire only to be third,” said Suri on a panel on Tuesday. “We will move up.”

source: interaksyon.com

Huawei plans big push to sell its phones, wearable devices

SAN FRANCISCO/BEIJING — Two years after U.S. legislators branded it a national security threat, China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd is planning a campaign to win over U.S. consumers, rolling out new mobile phones and wearable devices backed by a marketing effort.

China’s second-largest smartphone maker, already with more than $40 billion in annual revenue from a wide range of telecom gear and products, is preparing to introduce Americans to several of its smartphones and wearable devices this year, including its youth-oriented “Honor” phone, Huawei officials told Reuters.

The company’s 2015 U.S. plans, which have not been previously reported, will encompass traditional advertising, online promotion and sports team sponsorships, said Huawei’s U.S. spokesman Bill Plummer.

Huawei is changing its approach to marketing as it tries to shed its image as a purveyor of cheap technology products – a common perception issue for many Chinese companies. It’s an important shift for a company that for years had been single-mindedly focused on engineering and relatively dismissive of consumer branding.

In December, it touted its new Honor 6 Plus phone on a billboard in New York’s Times Square. Plummer said that was “a sign of things to come.”

He declined to say how much Huawei will spend on its new marketing campaign or what sports team, or teams, it had in mind. It already sponsors London soccer club Arsenal, cricket teams in India and rugby clubs in Australia.

New smartwatch

At the Mobile World Congress over the weekend in Barcelona, Huawei took the wraps off a smartwatch that will be sold in over 20 countries including the U.S.

Huawei now intends to appeal directly to consumers with several new phone models, both low end and high end. It hopes to secure deals with carriers, selling online through marketplaces, such as the one operated by Amazon.com, and on its own fledgling gethuawei.com U.S. direct-sales website.

It’s unclear how open the carriers, who dominate U.S. sales, would be to carrying phones from Huawei, a brand that remains unknown to the majority of American smartphone users. Reviews of its high-end phones, which can cost hundreds of dollars without a plan, have been generally positive.

Still, the U.S. market is dominated by Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics. None of the four biggest U.S. carriers – Verizon, AT&T, Sprint or T-Mobile – currently sell Huawei phones on their websites and all declined to say whether they have had talks with the Chinese company.

Huawei said in 2013 it would focus on other markets after its products were labelled a national security risk in a U.S. Congressional report, which said Beijing could use Huawei equipment for spying. Huawei denied the report, but Chief Executive Ren Zhengfei, who founded the company after leaving the Chinese military, told reporters at the time he felt stuck in a U.S.-China trade war.

A White House-ordered review found no evidence of spying.

Lawmakers’ concerns revolve primarily around Huawei’s networking equipment. And analysts say that a lack of brand recognition is a bigger hurdle for Huawei’s smartphone ambitions than pressures from Washington.

Huawei currently has less than 1 percent of the U.S. market, according to research firm IDC. But it can perhaps draw inspiration from China’s ZTE Corp, which has gained 6.4 percent of the U.S. market by selling cheaper smartphones and working with second-tier carriers like Boost Mobile, according to Ramon Llamas, a research manager at IDC.

Online sales, particularly as no-contract plans that require consumers to purchase a full-price phone gain in popularity, represent perhaps the best option for Huawei, said Gartner analyst C.K. Lu, adding that he sees it having a tough time signing carriers.

“The U.S. market is tough for anybody except Apple and Samsung,” said Lu.

Huawei’s plan to broaden its U.S. offering is part of a campaign for “normalizing” perceptions of Huawei in America and elsewhere, said Plummer.

Though he declined to spell out what normalization entailed, most public discussion of the company has centered around the debate of whether its equipment allows China to spy on the United States, and until now Huawei has kept a low profile.

Other Chinese companies still prefer that route: another major Chinese handset maker, Xiaomi, has said it will take its first steps onto U.S. soil without smartphones, choosing instead to sell earphones and other accessories to test the market.

source: interaksyon.com

Asian firms challenge Apple with snazzy new smartphones

BARCELONA, Spain — Several big Asian phone companies launched new high-end smartphones and other wireless gizmos on Sunday, hoping to challenge US giant Apple in a big year for wireless gadgets.

Samsung, fellow South Korean firm LG and hip Chinese maker HTC timed their smartphone launches to grab the attention on the eve of the Mobile World Congress, the world’s biggest telecoms trade fair, in Barcelona, Spain.

In a head-on challenge to Apple’s popular iPhone 6 which was released last year, Samsung came out fighting on Sunday with the Galaxy S6, a smartphone with a touchscreen that curves around the edges and has a wireless charger.

It also presented the larger S6 Edge, a “phablet” somewhere between a tablet and a phone in size.

LG unveiled a new top-line phone with a curved back to sit snugly in the palm, the LG Flex 2, as well as a range of four new mid-range smartphones and two new luxury internet-connected watches.

At a noisy stage presentation before a crowd of hundreds, HTC chief executive Peter Chou meanwhile presented the HTC One M9, with a grey metallic handset moulded from a single piece of aluminium.

HTC also revealed a new connected “fitness band” body-monitoring bracelet and a virtual reality headset that it said it hoped to sell commercially by the end of the year.

Apple as usual was staying away from the Barcelona show but was reported to be preparing a coup with the launch next month of its new Apple Watch, reflecting a major trend in wearable gadgets this year.

The chief executive of Samsung’s mobile division, J.K. Shin, said the company aimed to set “a new standard to drive the global mobile agenda”, claiming his phones had the fastest processers and most high-performance cameras on the market.

Samsung is the world’s biggest seller of smartphones but saw its world market share fall last year from 34 percent to 20 percent, according to a report by tech consultancy IDC.

“There’s a risk Samsung’s 2015 flagship devices are insufficient for the company to regain brand leadership among consumers and businesses looking for high-end smartphone experiences,” said Thomas Husson, an analyst at another consultancy, Forrester, in a note after Sunday’s launch.

“Samsung’s lack of software DNA will still prevent it from delivering truly differentiated service experiences like Apple does.”

Also present at the congress were two of the world’s other biggest-selling smartphone makers, Chinese companies Huawei and Xiaomi.

Joining in the rush for big launches on the eve of the trade fair, Huawei unveiled its first “smartwatch”, a round luxury design that, like LG’s, can display incoming call and message alerts.

The companies refused to cite consumer prices for the new products. Top-end smartphones typically cost several hundred dollars.

source: interaksyon.com