Thursday, November 6, 2008

Fatal Mobile Technology

Cell phone towers have come in for a lot of flack since the inception of mobile technology. People who live near them have a long list of complaints ranging from a continuous buzzing or humming noise, which is annoying, to an increased risk of cancer, which is dangerous. Lately, however, a new danger has been brought into the spotlight, as a number of cell phone tower workers have plunged to their deaths.

In April, 5 workers died within 12 days, and in May another worker fell to his death. Craig Lekutis is the president of the online newsletter Wireless Estimator, and has 27 years experience in the communications construction industry. He says that these kinds of accidents often occur in spurts, which is strange enough, but that a concentrated run of deaths such as this one is extraordinary. Last year 10 people died from falling off "elevated structures" including water towers and electricity pylons, which makes the fact that 6 people have died from cell phone towers all the more remarkable.

The strange cluster of deaths has been attributed to AT&T's push to upgrade its network so that it will be able to support the new 3G iPhone that is to be released soon. So far only three of the six people who have died have been identified as AT&T employees. Nevertheless, people are claiming that in its quest for speed, AT&T has thrown safety concerns out of the window.

AT&T denies that there is any connection between the deaths and their tight upgrade deadline. A spokesperson claims that the upgrade only requires workers to adjust the software at the base of each tower and that climbing the tower is unnecessary. Others contend, however, that workers may need to climb the towers to test the upgrade or remove redundant and out-dated equipment.

Regardless of whether the events are related, AT&T has taken steps to try and address the issue. After the death of the first two AT&T employees, they called for a halt to all construction projects and ordered all subcontractors to hold a safety refresher training course. They added that they expected their subcontractors to conduct random safety checks at all construction sites to ensure that the safety measures are being enforced.

AT&T says, "We consider the safety of our contractors and our employees to be our first priority."

Recommended sites:

http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/05/28/3g-iphones-at-any-cost-cell-tower-deaths-on-the-rise/

Sandra wrote this article for the online marketers MediaVision Interactive ZA SEO marketers leading SEO marketers and experts in the field of search.

Steven Ridenhour poses for a photo at his kitchen table Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2008, in Eureka, Mo. Ridenhour was recently laid off from the nearby Chrysler plant. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)AP - A vicious cycle of vanishing jobs and stresses on American consumers is spelling deeper trouble for the already sinking U.S. economy.

Video Game Awards 2006

The video game award for 2006 where held on Spike TV on Wednesday December 13th, the result are list below.

GAME OF THE YEAR

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Winner

Gears of War

Guitar Hero II

Tom Clancys Ghost Recon Advanced Warfigher

BEST ACTION GAME

Dead Rising Winner

New Super Mario Brothers

Okami

Saints Row

Bully

BEST INDIVIDUAL SPORTS GAME

Rockstar Games presents Table Tennis Winner

EA Sports Fight Night Round 3

Tony Hawks Project 8

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07

Top Spin 2

BEST TEAM SPORTS GAME

NBA 2K7 Winner

Madden NFL 07

NCAA Football 07

FIFA Soccer 07

NHL 07

CYBER VIXEN OF THE YEAR

Laura Croft - Tomb Raider

Alyx Vance - Half-Life 2 Episode 1 Winner

Princess Peach - Super Mario Brothers

Enrica - Tom Clancys Splinter Cell Double Agent

Jen - Prey

BEST GAME BASED ON A MOVIE

Lego Star Wars II: The original Trilogy Winner

The Godfather

Scarface: The World is Yours

The Sopranos: Road to Respect

Family Guy

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A HUMAN MALE

Seth MacFarlane - Family Guy

Gerry Rosenthal - Bully

Patrick Stewart - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Winner

Johnny Depp - Pirates of the Caribbean: The legend of Jack Sparrow

Kiefer Sutherland - 24: The Game

BEST SUPPORTING MALE PERFORMANCE

Seth Green - Family Guy

James Woods - Scarface: The World is Yours

James Caan - Godfather

James Gandolfini - The Sopranos: Road to Respect Winner

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A HUMAN FEMALE

Vida Guerra - Scarface: The World is Yours Winner

Tia Carrere - Saints Row

Emmanuelle Vaugier - Need for Speed Carbon

Keely Haws - Tomb Raider: legend

Rosario Dawson - Marc Eckos Getting up: Content under pressure

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE PERFORMANCE

Rachael Leigh Cook - Kingdom Hearts II Winner

Elisha Cuthbert - 24: The Game

Brittany Murphay - Marc Eckos Getting up: Content under pressure

Mila Kunis - Family Guy

Lynda Carter - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

Best Cast

Godfather

Family Guy Winner

Scarface: The World is Yours

Saints Row

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

Loco Roco No Uta - Loco Roco

Lights and Sounds by Yellowcard - Burnout Revenge Winner

Bloc Party - Helicopter - When I get up

AFI - Summer Shudder - Madden 07

Heavenly Star - Lumines 2

BEST SOUNDTRACK

Madden NFL 07

Scarface: The World is Yours

Grand Theft Auto Vice City Stories

Guitar Hero II Winner

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Winner

Bully

Elektroplankton

Okami

Final Fantasy XII

STUDIO OF THE YEAR

Clover Studio (Okami)

Relic (Company of Heroes)

Cliff Bleszinski /Epic Games - Gears of Wars Winner

Todd Howard /Bethesda Softworks - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Winner

Harmonix (Guitar Hero II)

PONTIAC BEST DRIVING GAME AWARD (Viewers Choice)

Burnout Revenge (XBox 360) Winner

Need for Speed Carbon

Toca Race Driver 3

GTR 2

MOST ADDICTIVE GAME FUELED BY MOUNTAIN DEW (Viewers Choice)

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Winner

Brain Age: Train your Brain in Minutes a day

Gears of War

Guitar Hero II

Company of Heroes

BEST FIGHTING GAME

Mortal Kombat Armageddon Winner

Dead or Alive 4

Tekken Dark Resurrection

Street Fighter Alpha Anthology

God Hand

BEST ACTION Game

Dead Rising Winner

New Super Mario Brothers

Okami

Saints Row

Bully

BEST MILITARY GAME

Company of Heroes Winner

Tom Clancys Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter

Call of Duty 3

The Outfit

Battlefield 2142

BEST GRAPHICS

Gears of War Winner

Okami

Tom Clancys Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

Company of Heroes

BEST Wireless GAME

Dinner Dash

Swat Force Winner

Tower Bloxx

Super KO Boxing

BEST MULTIPLAYER GAME

Gears of War Winner

Company of Heroes

Metal Gear Solid 3: Substance

Tom Clancys Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter

Tom Clancys Splinter Cell Double Agent

BEST BREAKTHROUGH TECHNOLOGY

Wii Winner

Xbox 360 (Microsoft Game Studios)

PS3

DS Lite

Elecktroplanton

BEST PC GAME

Company of Heroes Winner

Half-Life 2: Episode 1

Battlefield 2142

Star Wars: Empire at War

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

BEST RPG

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Winner

Final Fantasy XII

Kingdom Hearts II

Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria

BEST Handheld GAME

New Super Mario Brothers Winner

Brain Age: Train your Brain in Minutes a day

Grand Theft Auto Vice City Stories

Tetris DS

Loco Roco

Kirk Jensen

Owner of:
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Rep. Rahm Emanuel D-Ill., center, talks on his cell phone before leaving his local congressional office for the night, Thursday, Nov. 6, 2008 in Chicago. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)AP - Barack Obama is signaling a shift in tactics and temperament as he moves from candidate to president-elect, picking sharp-elbowed Washington insiders for top posts.

Video Game Violence - What Do You Think About It?

Ever since video game designers were able to put red pixels on their imaginary characters that had recently deceased, there have been people crusading against their subversive ways. The outrage at video games seems to be cyclic, fading very briefly before exploding into the public eye once more with renewed frenzy. The controversy seems to have sparked up again in recent times, with numerous crimes being blamed on the corruptive influence of video games. There have also been various "controversies" surrounding recent video games and their content in the areas of both violence and sexuality.

The first game to receive widespread criticism and media attention was the martial art fighting game "Mortal Kombat". This game included large spurts of blood emitted from attacks and also "Fatalities" that could be performed on stunned opponents after their defeat. These Fatalities were gruesome animation sequences showing the victorious player killing their defeated opponent in a vast variety of ways. Gamers revelled in this new experience and the controversy surrounding the violence caused mass hype that informed the less informed gamers that the game was out there. Consequently gamers played the new game just to find out what all the talk was about, thereby greatly increasing revenue.

One of the largest sparks of controversy has been the recent "Hot Coffee" modification for "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (GTA:SA)". This involved unlocking a sexually oriented mini-game that had been removed from the game before release, although evidently not from the source code. The creators of the game, Rockstar Entertainment, obviously realised that this particular part of the game was not appropriate for the video gaming public and removed access to it. An enterprising fan of the game found out and modified the original code to give access to the content once again. Lawsuits were brought against Rockstar for including such content in their game, although the validity of the lawsuit has to be questioned. If the game is simply purchased and played as intended by the developers, this admittedly tasteless and inappropriate mini game would never be encountered. It is not until the user-made modification is downloaded and installed that the player is able to access the content.

Regardless of who's to blame, "GTA: SA" was re-rated in America and banned from sale in Australia. Oddly enough the gratuitous and encouraged violence in the game went largely unnoticed in the wake of the "scandalous" sex scenes involving clothed, cartoonesque people.

When examined objectively almost all games contain a certain amount of violent content. The kid-friendly bright and colourful "Mario" games by Nintendo feature a character stomping on animated creature's heads. In fact the majority of games, even children's games, involve the protagonist crusading against an enemy horde of some sort and generally "disposing" of them in some manner, whether it be striking them with a weapon or body part (feet, hands, possibly a tail depending on the nature of the character). The only real stand out difference is that in a children's game the 'bad' characters will generally bounce backwards in a cute manner and explode with a humorous puff sound (or simply disappear) whereas in a game oriented towards older mature players, the characters are more likely to be (somewhat) realistic, spraying a gusher of red upon their demise.

Whenever some young person somewhere commits a violent crime these days it seems to get blamed on a video game, from "Duke Nukem" and "Quake" being accused for the Columbine High massacre, to a more recent incident involving a group of minors attributing their violent actions to the "Mortal Kombat" video games. Without any solid evidence either way it's hard to say whether or not video game violence actually has much of an influence on players. To really be sure you'd probably have to have a control group of isolated children that have never seen a violent movie or played a bloodthirsty video game. History does however show that brutal crimes were committed long before video games or even movies came into existence.

Children are quite easily influenced by something that they're excited about and I've seen this happen a lot. Playing a wrestling video game with a group of eight year olds often leads to the eight year olds screaming raucously and trying to pin each other down on the ground. Pre-teens will often punch and kick their way out of a cinema in terrible combat stances after having viewed a martial arts movie. The current content rating system in place is not geared towards consumer restriction; it is largely aimed at simply informing the public about what they are going to experience. Legal restrictions are not actually put in place until the higher, more severe ratings like in x-rated films. Parents, guardians, and society in general need to start taking an interest in who is viewing certain types of content. Instead of complaining about the entertainment a child is enjoying, the parent could be there at the beginning looking at the rating that is printed clearly on the packaging of all entertainment. A simple "I don't think that's suitable, how about this game? It has a lizard!" distracts the child a surprising number of times. In my experience, children genuinely just want people to take an interest in what they're interested in, not just murmuring indistinctly, "Yes dear, that's nice." as the child installs the newest violent game.

What about the children that are playing the games in the restricted ratings categories? The only way that they can even get the game into their possession is if a parent (or someone of legal age) purchases the game for the child, or if the store disregards the rating guidelines in place and sells it to them regardless. Either way the fact that a game's content has fallen into a minor's hands is not the fault of the game developer.

I'm not out to defend the integrity of artistic vision presented in video games as many other gamers are. Frankly there seems to me to be little artistic integrity in rendering blood that is ever more liquid in appearance. I do however enjoy playing some games that are quite violent in nature and in many cases the violent nature of the game increases my enjoyment. Video games are escapism, there's (arguably) no point in playing a video game that simulates something you can just walk outside and do (and yet sports games somehow consistently sell in large numbers... curious...). Interestingly I have never yet felt the overwhelming desire to break down into a kung fu stance and commit murder. Perhaps more important than simply banning questionable content in video games would be studying why this content is so appealing to today's society?

About The Author
Daniel Punch
M6.Net Web Helpers
http://www.m6.net

Same-sex couple Kristina Haas, center,and Jennifer Briz, right, are denied marriage by a city clerk at San Francisco City Hall in San Francisco, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2008.  Voters put a stop to same-sex marriage in California, dealing a crushing defeat to gay-rights activists in a state they hoped would be a vanguard and putting in doubt as many as 18,000 same-sex marriages conducted since a court ruling made them legal this year. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)AP - In a heartbreaking defeat for the gay-rights movement, California voters put a stop to gay marriage, creating uncertainty about the legal status of 18,000 same-sex couples who tied the knot during a four-month window of opportunity opened by the state's highest court.

How to Find a Good Gold Guide

When playing World of Warcraft, gold is one of the most important resources that you need to have a lot of. Gold is required for basically every aspect of the game. It is difficult to ever have enough gold, especially if you desire to get your coveted mount now available at level 30. This article is going to tell you how to find a good gold guide.

Recently many people have turned to purchasing gold illegally from Chinese gold farmers. This will get you a lot of gold for you account, but you could end up getting band. This is explicitly against the rules of the game.

The alternative to this it to purchase a WoW gold guide. There are many available on the internet. With so many being available how do we know which one to choose. Here is some criteria to help.

You should try to buy a guide that is being sold from clickbank. This means that the guide will have a 60 day money back guarantee. This will allow you to try the methods in the guide out and if it doesn't work simply contact clickbank for a refund.

Try to choose a guide that shows real evidence in the form of videos that the person who has written the guide actually has a lot of gold. Make sure that there are other characters in the game during the video to be positive that it is not on a private server.

This article was written to help you learn how to find a good gold guide. Good Luck in the game.

Angela Wade is a professional writer who researches and writes on a variety of topics.

There's no reason you shouldn't have more than enough WoW gold. Click Here to get the information you need to make WoW gold fast. Read our reviews of the best methods for gold making on our website!

U.S. Republican presidential nominee Senator John McCain (R-AZ) stands with his wife Cindy as he delivers his concession speech after U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) defeated him, during his election night rally in Phoenix November 4, 2008. REUTERS/Rick Wilking (UNITED STATES) US PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN 2008 (USA)AP - So much for a lasting Republican majority.