Sturgis Rally

It's the time of year when people start thinking about the Sturgis Rally! Summer is near and thoughts about activites are on everyones mind. The Sturgis Rally this year is featuring Kenny Chesney, Sugarland, Kellie Pickler, ZZ top, Kid Rock, and Stained are some of the performers coming to Glencoe campground. Rocking the rally is the stage that the perfomers will play on. Some of the events include no panties Wednesday (haha), mayors ride, and poker run are just a few. This summer will be full of activites, concerts, and fights out at the Sturgis Rally i'm sure.

www.buffalochip.com

Thoughts About This Class

Since this is my last time to blog (for this class of course) I wanted to share a few things that I enjoyed about the class. I learned a lot throughout the semester. I never knew blogging could be so much fun and at the same time informative. I would have never looked up news stories if it was not for blogging. I never have used the final cut program so I learned everything pretty much from scratch in that. I had a hard time at first but as the semester went on I slowly progressed until I could pretty much put a movie together by myself and quick. I found the lecture material to be interesting because it is not like any other class. I enjoyed coming to class and lab and learned many new things that I can continue to build on.

Dolphin Dies in Sea World Trick

A 30-year-old dolphin dies after colliding with another dolphin at Sea World in Orlando, Florida. The two dolphins collided while performing aerial tricks. According to the article Dolphin dies after collision during Sea World trick, spokesperson Becca Bides for Sea World quoted, The incident occurred about 4:30 p.m. Saturday at the Discovery Cove area of the park. The animals were in the center of the lagoon and not near guests. The dolphin that died was named Sharky. Sea World is looking into the situation and trying to figure out ways that could prevent this from happening again. This is an unfortunate incident. I am a big animal lover so I find this story very sad.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/28/dolphin.death/index.html

Daughter and Three Kids See Light of Day

Three children and a daughter, that was rapped and imprisoned, by 73-year-old Josef Fritzl were freed after being in a cellar for 24 years. The mother remembered how the outside looked but the other three children never saw the light of day. Fritzl kept the secret by telling everyone that his daughter, Elisabeth, ran away. The three children were Kerstin, 19; Stefan, 18; and Felix, 5. The prison in which they four were held was soundproof and ran underneath the house and part of the garden. The entrance was hidden by cupboards in the basement. The four were revealed when Kerstin was taken to the hospital after falling and the mother hid a SOS note on her. Elisabeth told the police that Fritzl started to abuse her sexually at the age of 11. She also said that they had twin babies but one died a few days later due to neglect. Fritzl took the babies body and burned it in the oven. Fritzl took Elisabeth out of the cellar to tell the doctors about the daughters situation. Elisabeth was told by Fritzl to say she had just returned home after 24 years. This is the worst story I have ever heard. I can not even imagine being trapped in a cellar for 24 years. Crazy to think that stuff like this happens around the world and there are people like Fritzl out there that still have no been caught. This is a very sad story and I hope that nothing like this happens ever again.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/04/28/austria.cellar/index.html#cnnSTCPhoto

Bodies Found In Bahamas

Twenty bodies were found floating in open waters near the Bahamas. The bodies were discovered on Sunday. According to the article Haitians' bodies found near Bahamas, "Authorities received an alert about 5 a.m. ET Sunday of people stranded and screaming in the water 15 miles northwest of Nassau, Bahamas, the Coast Guard said. Helicopters, jets and patrol boats were deployed in a search, and about 20 people were located by 3:45 p.m. Sunday." They actually found three surviors but are still looking for more. They have not found the boat that stranded the people yet. This is a tragic thing that would happen. Hopefully they can find more surviors and hopefully it was just an accident and not a criminal action.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/04/21/bahamas.bodies/index.html

James Bond Car Crashes into Lake

On the way to the the set of the next James Bond movie, the stunt car crashed into a lake in Italy. The car's driver Ashton Martin was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. According to the article 'Bond' car plunges into Italian lake, "They say James Bond's iconic car was being delivered to the filming unit in heavy rain on Saturday morning when it went off the road and plunged into Lake Garda." The movie that car was been driven to is called "Quantum of Solace" which later this year will be released. This is an interesting article because that does not happen everyday. The stunt driver must have been going too fast, even though that is their job usually.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/Movies/04/20/bond.car.ap/index.html

Boy Convicted of Killing Grandparents

Christopher Pittman who was 12 years old at the time went into his grandparents bedroom and shot both of them. He was given 30 years in prision for the double murder and the court denied his request for another court date. Defenders argued that the boy's punishment was too harsh for him being only 12 at the time. According to the article Supreme Court turns down boy killer's appeal, Michele Deitch quoted "have recognized a growing national trend against sentencing young children to harsh mandatory terms in prison, and wants to give state legislatures the opportunity to correct this problem before it rules on the issue." Pittman has been passed around homes for years and was abandoned him as a child. During the time of the crime, christopher was taking antidepressant pills. The boy days before the started a new antidepressant pill which might have caused the boy to have violent outbreaks. What a sad story. It is too bad that antidepressant pills may have had to do with the crime. Doctors should be a lot more concerned about what they give kids because kids bodies are different and still maturing different than adults.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/04/14/juvenile.killer/index.html

Who Stole the Last Doughnut?

Virginia Tech Shooting Settlement

A $11 million settlement was made with the state on Thursday. Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 students at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007. According to the article Settlement reached in Virginia Tech shootings, lawyers say, "Earlier this year, a settlement proposal called for representatives of each of the 32 people killed by a student gunman last April 16 to receive $100,000. A pool of $800,000 was set aside for the injured in the plan, with individuals eligible to receive up to $100,000 each." The families victims are going to meet with the governor and university officials to talk about the shootings. The shootings were a horrible deal that should never happen. Too much crime is going on in the world today and I believe more action and protection needs to take place to prevent crime.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/04/10/va.tech.settlement.ap/index.html

Two Men With Infared Cameras Arrested

Two men attempting to board a plane in China on Saturday were arrested for holding on to a dozen infared cameras. Federal agents stopped the plane in time that was going to Beijing. The men had actually been in the United States for nearly two years prior to that. According to the article Men with "hightly sensitive cameras arrested at airport, "Yong Guo Zhi, a Chinese national, and Tah Wei Chao, a naturalized U.S. citizen, were arrested for investigation of trying to take thermal imaging cameras with potential military use to China without the proper export licenses." They told authorties that they told the seller that they were for domestic use only. The measurements of the cameras were about 2 inches square while the cost was about $5,000. It is too bad that the two men lied to the seller about using them only in the United States. They were going to use the cameras for military use which is illegal.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/05/airport.arrests.ap/index.html

Airlplane Number Three Shuts Down This Week

Airline Skybus is the third to shut down this week. They announced the shut down on Friday. According to Skybus becomes third airline this week to close, Skybus company quotes, "the combination of rising jet fuel costs and a slowing economic environment. These two issues proved to be insurmountable for a new carrier." The airline was created in 2004 and them being a low-cost carrier they will stop operating on Saturday. ATA airlines, an Indiana based airline, and Aloha airlines are the other two low-cost carriers that shut down because of bankruptcy problems. Aloha airlines, an Hawaii airline, has even been in business for 61 years. This is too bad that the economy and gas prices has caused businesses to shut down. It is an never-ending cycle because the economy depends on businesses. When businesses have to shut down because of the economy both suffer and neither the economy nor the business gets better. I hope that no more airlines need to shut down because of the economic hard times the country is going through now.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TRAVEL/04/04/airlines.bankruptcy/index.html

Woman in Love Helps Two Inmates Escape

Twently-four year old Amber Lynn Goff fell in love with one of the inmates in Wichita, Kansas. She helped two men escape later finding out she was just used. According to the article Lovestruck guard helped inmates escape, Laurie Ann Nutter, Amber's mom, quotes, "She feels like one of the world's greatest fools. She realizes now there wasn't anything real in the relationship. She feels so extremely foolish, she is angry about it." Goff pleaded guilty for reduced charges. She is said to have 5-years in prision, three years' probation, and a fine of $11,000. Jess Bell, 34, and Steven Ford, 27, were the two Goff helped escape. They were found a few days later in Grants, New Mexico. I believe Goff deserves the sentence she gets but it is unfortunate that she was blinded by fake love. Sad that a man would do that to a girl but I am glad that the two men were found again. This is quite an interesting article and suprises me a lot that somebody would do that.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/04/04/escape.plot.ap/index.html

Children Freed From Polygamist Ranch

Fifty-two children ranging from 6 months to 17 years were removed from a poylgamist ranch. Warren Jeffs is the sect leader of the West Texas ranch. Troopers were called in with search warrants. According to the article Dozens of children removed from poylgamist ranch, "They were responding to a report of "physical abuse" and neglect involving a 16-year-old girl. At this point in the investigation, she added, the abuse does not appear to be sexual." Eighteen girls were put in state custody after reports of abuse. The children were placed on church buses and taken to a civic center. Fifty-two year old Warren Jeffs bought the land for the ranch four years ago. He was convinced a year ago of rape and illegal perfomance of a marriage in 2001. I am glad the ranch was taken over. Many of those children do not even know the difference between what is right and wrong because they grew up in those conditions. Many think arrange marriages to much older men is what they have to do. They have no choices and must do what the "prophet" of the ranch, Warren Jeff, tells them to.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/04/04/texas.ranch/index.html

Airlines Attempt to Lighten Load

With fuel prices skyrocketing, airplanes have been trying to figure out ways to lighten loads. Manufactures have taken the first step by constructing the planes with lighter material. According to the article, With fuel prices high, airlines lighten the load, "The pressure is immense to cut weight," said John Heimlich, chief economist for the Air Transport Association of America. "Every penny more per gallon adds $195 million to the industry's expenses per year. You simply cannot make all of that up with fare increases." In December 2007, 27 percent of operating expense was due to fuel. The airlines have been able to keep gas prices down by signing contracts with other companies. They have even changed first class silverware to something more light weight. The change includes using plastic instead of glass for cups. According to a survey issued to passengers, using plastic was not a top concern. According to Shamblin, "Twelve pounds is significant when you run anywhere from six to 35 carts on an airplane. The lighter carts will save the airline $1.7 million a year in fuel costs." The next step to conserving fuel would be cutting back in areas of service, flights, and seat spots. I believe that the airlines are headed in the right direction as being concerned about fuel prices and how it affects their company, but I think that they need to put a stop to it before it reaches the change of service and seat availability. Many airplanes as it is today already have full planes.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TRAVEL/03/31/airlines.lighter.plane.ap/index.html

Three Kids Found Dead in Hotel Room

Sunday at the Marriott Hotel in Baltimore, Maryland, three kids were found dead in their hotel room. Mark A. Castillo, the father of the three kids, drowned them in the hotel bathtub. The father is currently at the hospital getting treatment for several cuts he has on his neck but is also in custody. Following the death of the three children, Castillo called the hotel's front desk to report the deaths. According to Police: Dad killed kids in hotel, then called front desk, Clifford a police officer said, "Why he brought them here to do this is something we don't know yet." Anothony, 6, Austin, 6, and Athena, 2, were identified as the children who were killed. This is a very tragic story that should never happen to anyone. It is sad how people get so angry or confused about life that they feel the need to take someone else's life.


http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/03/31/children.killed.ap/index.html

Ken Burn Movie

Ken Burns Movie

Ken Burns Movie

Columbus Ohio Hit Hard

Columbus, Ohio had 20 inches of snow fall on Friday and Saturday. The storm cut down power lines, delayed over 90 percent of flights, and cancelled various activities. The previous record of snow fall of Columbus was 15.3 inches which happened in February of 1910. Two traffic deaths have been reported and four men have died shoveling snow. Flooding and ice covered roads as caused traffic to be hard because of blocked off roads. Vermont homes have been without electricty since Sunday. The electrition crew can not make it to homes because of fallen trees and icy roads. In New Jersey and New York wind has been recorded at 65 mph. We have been lucky not to have such harsh weather conditions yet here in South Dakota. Usually we are the ones to get hit hard but South Dakota weather is so unpredictable that anything could still happen. It is very unfortunate when deaths happen due to weather conditions.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/weather/03/09/march.snowstorm.ap/index.html

China Keeps One Child Policy

China has decided to keep their each family can have one child policy for another decade. The policy came into play in 1970 when the population of China was a rising concern. According to the article China to keep one-child policy, "Nearly 200 million Chinese will enter child-bearing age in the next 10 years, minister Minister Zhang Weiqing told the China Daily newspaper. He said abandoning the policy during this period would cause serious problems and add extra pressure on social and economic development." China's poplution is 1.3 billion people and could reach around 1.6 by 2050. The policy was designed because of the fear of not being able to feed all the people. Problems with the law are having more older citizens compared to younger and also a gender imbalance. I think this article was interesting because I never would thought that people have the power to say how many kids you can have. Even though i think it is a good idea because China's population is large and may have trouble finding resources to supply all the people.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/10/china.onechild/index.html

Woman Found On Ice

In Newport Beach, California, a woman's body was found in a hotel room. A man was convicted and told the newspaper that he kept the womans body on ice for religious reasons. Stephen David Royds was arrested at the Fairmont on Thursday when investigators found 33-year-old Monique Felicia Trepps body in a Rubbermaid container. As of now they are still trying to determine the cause of death. Trepp herself has been convicted of many past felonies including possession of a controlled substance. While Royds has had a criminal background also by being convicted in 2002 of four drug charges. Royds is now in Orange County jail in Santa Ana where he denies bail because of the concern of possible probation violation. This is a sad and sick story. Religion has always been a top issue but whenever someones life is on the line I believe any religion saying that killing is okay is not good.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/03/10/frozen.body.ap/index.html

Memphis Shootings

Six people were killed monday in Memphis, Tennessee. Two out of the six were children and three more were wounded in the attack. The shootings were reported at 6:11 p.m when the bodies were found. The children that were wounded was a 7-year-old boy, a 4-year-old not identified yet, and a 10-month-old girl. They were rushed to the Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center. Their conditions have not yet been reported. This is such a tragic situation and should never happen. There has been too many reports of children getting involved in these horrible positions.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/03/03/memphis.killings/index.html

New England Holds Moss

Randy Moss has signed a three year contract with the New England Patriots for $27 million. After Moss posted on a personal webpage the signing happened. According to the article Moss Will Stay in New England, ''I want to take time out to thank all of the fans for their support and for wishing me well in my return to New England, I'm ready to get back." We have some unfinished business to take care of" (therealrandymoss.com). Because of Moss's record breaking year, he is very excited to start a new season. With Randy Moss and Tom Brady paired up, it will be a another competitive and maybe perfect season. Even though Moss has been in several bad situations, such as being fined $10,000 for pretending to the moon the Greenbay Packers, he will still play for the Patriots. I am a huge fan of the Vikings and since Randy Moss used to play for them I still enjoy following his career. He has great potential and has shown the NFL that he is a great player. I hope to see him progress even more throughout the next season.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/sports/AP-FBN-Patriots-Moss.html?_r=1&ref=sports&oref=slogin
Related Links: http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3274806
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=nfl&id=3275451

Catching ZZZ's

A survey of 1000 people was taken by the National Sleep Foundation to find that the average person is getting about six hours and 40 minutes of sleep a night. The amount of sleep a person should be getting to be at full potential is seven hours. In the last month how many people have become sleepy or even fell asleep on the job? About one-third of the people surveyed! At a Pennsylvania nuclear plant people noticed that security guards were sleeping on the job. According to the arcticle Survey: One-third of workers catching zzz's on job, "It wasn't until a videotape of guards sleeping in a "ready room" at the Peach Bottom plant in south-central Pennsylvania surfaced several months after it got the tip that the NRC announced in September a special investigation." Many people blame the fact that work is keeping them up late at night because of the longer days they put in. According to the survey average wake up time was 5:35 a.m. while bedtime was 10:53 p.m. This is an interesting case study because sleep is very important but many do not get enough. People try to function on only six hours and that hurts their performance, physically and emotionally, during the day.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/03/03/sleep.job.ap/index.html

Doctor's Accused of Death

Dr. Hootan Roozrokh, 34, a doctor from San Luis Obispo, California, is accused of giving a patient too much drugs. Ruben Navarro, 25, was suffering from delilitating nerve disease. When hearing word that Navarro was a donor, Dr. Roozrokh hurried with a transplant team to him, when he was taken off life support. Dr. Roozrokh gave him morphine which he should not have had. He was accused of "dependent adult abuse" and issuing a drug called Betadine in his feeding tube. According to the article Doctor accused of hastening death for patient's organs, "The standard of practice is for the transplant surgeon to be outside the operating room until death has been declared," said Thomas Mone, president of the Association of Organ Procurement Organization. "The unfortunate error in this case was the transplant surgeon being in the room and that's highly, highly unusual." If he is accused he can serve up to eight years. I believe this is a very serious issue. Everybody needs health care and if we can not trust our doctors that is a big concern. He should serve those eight years if he is quilty. No family needs to go through a situation like this because of a doctors "mistakes".

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/03/03/transplant.trial/index.html
Related link: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Ruben+Navarro&btnG=Google+Search
http://www.mahalo.com/Ruben_Navarro

Basketball Sound

Gas Prices at All Time High

The subject of gas prices has seemed to be on everyone's mind lately. Over the last weekend 2 cents has been added on. Gas went from $3.115 to $3.137 a gallon. Oil prices rose also to $100 a barrel. By this spring anaylsts believe prices may vary from to $3.75 to $4. According to Tim Evans, an energy analyst at Citigroup Global Markets, "We have record high prices, but we don't have record tight inventories. The gasoline market is not physically in bull market territory. Whether traders acknowledge this or not, these are bear market conditions." Gas supplies has rose over the last 15 weeks. This article applies to everyone who drives. Gas prices has become a hot subject among everyone. It really concerns me and what activities I can do because of the driving part. Gas prices has limited me and probably everyone from doing everything they want to.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/81360

Indonesia is Hit Hard by Second Quake

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/02/25/indonesia.quake/index.html

Indonesia is Hit Hard by Second Quake

Just off the coast of Sumatra Island, an earthquake hit. It is reported as being the ninth quake striking at about 5.0 magnitude. The earthquake was 6.7 magnitudes. No deaths or injuries have occurred because of the recent earthquakes. According to the article Second quake in 10 hours hits Indonesia, "The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a tsunami warning after determining that a destructive widespread tsunami threat does not exist." The earthquake struck just a little after 1 p.m which was just seven hours after the eighth quake hit. I find this article rather interesting because I think weather is fasinating especially earthquakes because we do not experience them.

Wal-Mart and Toys 'R' Us Crack Down on Safety

Milions of Chinese toys were recalled because of safety hazards. Both Wal-Mart and Toys 'R' Us are instructing tougher standards on manufactures of toys. The concern of too much lead in paint and other chemicals has both stores concerned about young childrens health. Toys are now supposed to meet a standard made and enforced by Congress. According to the article, Toys 'R' Us, Wal-Mart boosting safety standards, Gerold L. Storch, chairman and CEO of Toys "R" Us said, "We made a commitment to the world that we would push forward toy safety as a top priority. This is not the last improvement that we will put in place." Even though parents have seemed to calm down about toy safety, both companies do not want to risk anymore recalls. By March both companies hope to reduce the amount of different chemicals including phthalates and lead in their products. This is a great opportunity for the largest toy selling companies to show their dedication to their customers. Reducing lead in the products can illuminate health issues in children. I believe Wal-Mart and Toys 'R' Us are doing the correct thing by setting standards for their toys.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23184537/

Related Websites: http://wcbstv.com/consumer/lead.paint.toy.2.246583.html,
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/27/business/27toys.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=toys+%27r%27+us+and+wal-mart+toys+standards&st=nyt&oref=slogin,
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/18/business/18bibs.html?scp=1&sq=toys+%27r%27+us+and+wal-mart+toys+standards&st=nyt

Obama Vs. Clinton Showdown

While November draws near, Obama has won the last eight states to control the spot for the Democratic presidential nominee. Nasty comments between the two top Democratic nominees continues as Clinton blames Obama for being more talk than action. Competitive advertisments have critized Obama for refusing to discuse issues relating to retirement plans and health care. To help take the lead and slow Obama down, Clinton has emphasized the importance of economic development to middle and lower class citizens. According to the article Obama hits back as Clinton heads to Wisconsin, Clinton said, "It is time we had a president who was a fighter, a doer and a champion for the American middle class." The fight between the two Democratic nominees continues and will until a winner is announced. It's hard for me to distinguish between both Clinton's and Obama's issues because I do not agree with either. There seems to be more fighting between the two then working to establish the best ideals and government plans for America. I find it interesting to hear the different issues that both the Democratic and Republican nominees bring to the table. The months to come with be exhausting for both the canidates and also the United States citizens.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23198406/

Obama website: http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/semr?source=SEM-register-google-obama-search-national

Clinton website: http://www.hillaryclinton.com/?splash=1

Wal-Mart Vs. HD DVD's

Wal-Mart decided only to stock Blu-ray Disc players instead of HD DVD's. According to the article Wal-Mart puts stake through HD DVD's heart, Susan Chronister of Wal-Mart said, "By June, Wal-Mart will only be carrying Blu-ray movies and hardware machines and, of course, standard-def movies, DVD players, and up-convert players." Changing to strickly to only Blu-ray Disc is best for Best Buy. Consumers will be more willing to accept only Blu-ray players if the price continues to drop. There are rumors spreading that Toshiba, who is the owner of HD DVD, that they might pull out of Best Buy themselves but Toshiba denies this allocation. This is a really interesting case. Best Buy has millions of constumers so this will affect many people. It is one of my favorite stores so anything that changes directly concerns me.

http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9873029-7.html?tag=nefd.top

Related websites: http://www.crn.com/digital-home/206501657
http://twincities.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2008/02/11/daily8.html
http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/industries/technology/article/best-buy-recommends-bluray-hd-dvd_474731_12.html

Clemens Accused of Using Steroids

On December 13, 2007, Roger Clemens a pitcher for the New York Yankees, was accused of using steroids to enhance his game. Denying this allegation, Clemens is testifying to the House. Brian McNamee, Roger's trainer, denies giving Clemens this drug. According to the article Clemens says he got B-12 shots; ex-trainer claims steroids, "I've never given Roger B-12," McNamee told the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Clemens testimony did not match to what teammate Pettitte had to say. Pettitte testified that Clemenes told him in past years that he had taken steroids. A turning point arose when McNamee agreed that he has given players substances in the past. According to the same article, McNamee replied, "I just accepted it as the norm, and it was part of the culture in baseball." The fight to justice continues between the two men. I dislike when issues about performance-enhancing drugs comes up in the media. It takes away from the athletic competition between teams. Nobody likes cheaters and I believe thats exactly what steroids is; it cheats not only yourself but your team. Nobody really knows who the best team in the league truly is because of all the faulty drug use going on.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/02/13/steroids.baseball/index.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Clemens

For more information about Roger Clemens: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3153509

Outdoor Labyrinth Fun

The City Museum located in downtown St. Louis is a main attraction for all ages. Crawling through a 10 story steel mesh tube towards a Sabre 40 airliner is daring but fun. You can fall through each steel floor through a two story slide of the outdoor three-dimensional labyrinth. The museum even has tunnels formed in concrete that wind throughout the building. According to a visitor of the museum, Ms. Rhodes said, “This place is incredible. I have two 22-year-olds, an 18-year-old and a husband, and they are all being gerbils.” Bob Classilly is the inspirational artist of the museum. My brother lives in St. Louis and I plan on going there during spring break. This would be a very interesting museum to be able to visit. It sounds fun for all ages.

Teenage Movie Goers

The television medium is very important to many teenagers today. Teenagers spend several hours a day watching tv. Research would seem to reveal that teenagers that go to movies would watch less television. In the contrary, a media research firm called IMMI determined that teens aged 13-24 who has went to four movies or more watch twice as much television a year than their other teens. The firm also found out that with increased age there is an increase in television watching. I thought this article was interesting because I am in that age group and I agree with the results. I believe teenagers that go to more movies have more time to watch television on the side also.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/11/business/media/11drill.html?ref=technology

Super Bowl

This year's Super Bowl against the New England Patriots and the New York Gaints' was watched by approximately 97.5 million people, making it the the most watched Super Bowl ever. This surpassed the game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Pittsburg Steelers in 1996 with a viewer audience of 94.08. It was an exciting game because of the surprising upset when the Giants won 17 to 14 beating the the Patriots who were goin to be the first unbeatable team in the NFL since 1972. The score was a tight throughout the game but an outstanding 32-yard catch by David Tyree kept the Giants alive and gave them a chance at the win.


http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs07/news/story?id=3229763

assignment 1

First assignment in 225

China Snowstorms Kill 60

The worst snowstorms in 5 decades have hit China hard. About $53.8 billion in damages and 60 deaths has taken a toll on China. Transportation has slowed due to the storms. People returning from the Lunar New Year have been left trapped in cars because of hazardous roads and waiting in line for crowded trains. The storms caused 5.8 million people between January 25-31 to be stuck in railway stations. Guangzhou has dealt with the worst travel problems. To help with the congestion, officials are trying to keep other travelers away from the Guangzhou station. Stocks have dropped in China because of the bad weather. Economic loss has also had an negitive impact on China but should only be short term. Further bad weather has been forcasted for China which holds a threat for the Olympic Games coming up.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22946800/

Microsoft Offers Yahoo $44.6 Billion

Friday Microsoft made a audacious move to buy Yahoo for $44.6 billion. Microsoft wants to take hold of the largest share in internet services which Google currently has. With a $31 a share this would be Microsoft's most expense purchase. The two companies working together would annually save $1 billion. Yahoo replied to the request saying they would look over their company's strategic plans. After reviewing negotiations and watching their shares for a year Microsoft believes the only way they can compete with Google is to combine their company and Yahoo. Secret meetings between the two companies continued throughout the year but some Yahoo board members disagree with the emergence because of Yahoo's new advertising system that could help to raise shares. Yahoo's stock continues to fall. Microsoft has also struggled with Google's dominance. They recently paid $6 billion for an advertising specialist called aQuantive. They are continuing to grow but still not profitable. Nonexecutive chairman Mr. Semel announced Thursday that he was leaving the Yahoo board after serving on it from 2001 to 2007. Roy J. Bostock was named the new chairman. I believe both companies can not overtake Google without combining. It is crucial if both companies do not want to see their shares to continue to go down.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/01/technology/01cnd-subyahoo.html?hp