J. Palmer – Page 485 – …just another random person's thoughts & digressions.

Spam Lawsuit's Last Laugh is at Hormel's Expense

Brian Cartmell writes “An article at the Minneapolis — StarTribune site covers a significant setback for the Hormel food company, in a case that’s being closely watched by security companies across the country. Seattle-based Spam Arrest has gone up against the creator of the food substance in court, fighting for the right to use the word spam in its company name. The US Trademark Trial and Appeal board has sided with the spam fighters, agreeing that consumers of the Spam product would never confuse the food with junk email. ‘Derek Newman, Spam Arrest’s attorney, said the decision opens the door for many other anti-spam software companies … “Spam Arrest fought this battle for the whole software industry,” Newman said.'”

Abuse Suspects Play The Blame Game In Jailhouse Interview

Three of four people arrested for allegedly holding a Perry County woman against her will and abusing her for months tell their sides of the story.

I just had to share this story, because I heard it on Z-Rock 103.3 this morning. I have to agree with Twitch in saying that it seemed like during the interview the family was trying to create an episode of Springer…

Facebook faces "60 Minutes" inquisition (Media Relations)

Facebook has bigger problems than the possibility of an FTC inquiry. 60 Minutes correspondent Lesley Stahl recently visited the company’s Palo Alto offices, says Kara Swisher of AllThingsD. According to Swisher, Stahl interviewed CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Chris Kelly, the network’s chief privacy officer. Which can only mean one thing: A major exposé on Facebook coming soon on the hard-hitting CBS news show. Don’t think it’s serious?

Then just remember Razorfish. What’s that? You don’t remember Razorfish? Exactly. Jeff Dachis, former CEO of the online ad agency, was crucified on television by a 60 Minutes episode in which he proved unable to define what, exactly, his dotcom did to earn its keep. “We’ve asked our clients to recontextualize their business,” said Dachis. Gotcha. While the 60 Minutes appearance wasn’t the only thing that did Razorfish in, Dachis’s company, once worth $4 billion, was soon sold for $8.2 million. Let’s hope Zuckerberg fares better on camera.

Article Source: Valleywag.
URL: https://web.archive.org/web/20081210163144/http://valleywag.com:80/tech/media-relations/facebook-faces-60-minutes-inquisition-328112.php

Facebook reevaluating Beacon after privacy outcry, possible FTC complaint (Updated)

Facebook’s Beacon, an advertiser feature that broadcasts users’ off-Facebook activities to their Facebook friends, has generated quite the backlash since its implementation earlier this month. Now Facebook is rumored to be revamping Beacon, but there’s no word on whether those changes will be enough to stave off a threatened FTC complaint.

The Secret to Raising Smart Kids

Hugh Pickens writes “Scientific American has an interesting article on the secret to raising smart kids that says that more than 30 years of scientific investigation suggests that an overemphasis on intellect or talent leaves people vulnerable to failure, fearful of challenges and unwilling to remedy their shortcomings. In particular, attributing poor performance to a lack of ability depresses motivation more than does the belief that lack of effort is to blame. One theory of what separates the two general classes of learners, helpless versus mastery-oriented, is that these different types of students not only explain their failures differently, but they also hold different “theories” of intelligence. The helpless ones believe that intelligence is a fixed trait: you have only a certain amount. Mistakes crack their self-confidence because they attribute errors to a lack of ability, which they feel powerless to change. Mastery-oriented children think intelligence is malleable and can be developed through education and hard work. Challenges are energizing rather than intimidating offering opportunities to learn.”

Coffeebreak – 11/29/07

On this morning’s Coffeebreak:
Rick’s guest was Jim Furnish, President of the Harrison County Football Alumni Association.
Mention was made of this Friday’s game being THE FINAL game to be played at Ingles Stadium. The Breds have been continuing to play outside of the “regular” season, due to triumphs that have led them to play toward the 4A semi-finals. Unfortunately, this historic game has been struck with a terrible event, which took place Tuesday evening. Two of the teams starting players were injured in a car accident, removing them from the line-up.
WLEX has reported the story:
High School Players Hurt In Crash
Hard Not To Pull For Harrison Co.
Announcement was also made of a tribute for former football coach Bill McKee. The event will take place in the high school cafeteria on Sunday, December 9th, at 2p.m.

Sponsors for this morning’s Coffeebreak were:
Joe Cochran – State Farm Insurance, the Harrison County Board of Education, Jetubs, Cockrell’s Auto Center, Eastside Pharmacy, Whalen & Company, PC Problems, Country Candle Gift Shop, and the Cynthiana Harrison County Chamber of Commerce.
WCYN makes available to the public audio copies of Coffeebreak, however recordings are only archived for a period of five business days. Cassette copies are $5 and CD copies are $10. The views and opinions expressed on today’s Coffeebreak have been those of the guest and host and are not necessarily those of WCYN staff, management, or advertisers.

Exploding Cell Phone Battery Kills

LingNoi writes “A man in Korea, was found dead at his workplace Wednesday morning and his mobile phone battery was melted in his shirt pocket. No one knows for sure yet but a doctor who examined the body said, “He sustained an injury that is similar to a burn in the left chest and his ribs and spine were broken” We have heard of other dangerous battery products here on Slashdot.”

Coffeebreak: Christmas Angels

On this morning’s Coffeebreak:
Rick’s guests were DeeGee Fischer and Judy Feeback of the Harrison County Board of Education. Discussion focused on the Christmas Angels Project.
It had been announced in late October/early November that the project would not take place, due to mitigating circumstances; however, due to great public outcry, primarily from those persons/organizations/companies that give donations, the project was picked back up, and announced in The Cynthiana Democrat and on the Community Education Center’s blog.
The Christmas Angels Project aims to aid families with low income (those who are on the “free lunch” program in the school system) with gifts during the holiday season.
According to Judy Feeback, there are currently 687 students on the roster whose parents had applied for the donation program before the deadline, and a good number of students on a waiting list. There is also a large number of angels available for the public to purchase gifts and clothing for. Angels may be picked up at the CEC building, the schools, and at a few area businesses. Monetary donations may also be made at these locations.
For more information, please contact:
The Community Education Center at 859.234.7160
Please make your gift or money donation soon–the deadline for donations is December 14.

Sponsors for this morning’s Coffeebreak were:
First United Methodist Church, the Harrison County Board of Education, Jetubs, Cockrell’s Auto Center, Eastside Pharmacy, Whalen & Company, PC Problems, Aurora Information Systems, Country Candle Gift Shop, and the Cynthiana Harrison County Chamber of Commerce.

Coffeebreak – 11/27/07

On this morning’s Coffeebreak:
Rick’s guest was Pat Grenier, of the Cynthiana Harrison County Chamber of Commerce.
Main topic for this morning’s discussion was the Christmas Parade, which will take place on Saturday, December 1^st [happy b-day to me!]. The parade will roam through town at 4:00 p.m., taking the same route as in years past. [Sorry, I missed the exact route when it was announced, and cannot remember it. I would imagine that it will be published in this week’s Democrat.]
When the parade finishes, Santa will stop at the courthouse, and sit to visit with all the children. The fun and excitement at the courthouse will draw to an end at 6:00 p.m., when the community’s Christmas tree is lit.
Spectators in the area will also find that most downtown businesses will have extended their operating hours on Saturday, to allow for browsing and shopping. The Rohs Opera House is also scheduled to have Christmas caroling at the theatre – specific information has not been released yet.
Other topics that were discussed in this morning’s program were the Chamber of Commerce’s role in the community, the progression of efforts and projects at The Rohs, and the outcome of last Monday’s meeting on the Harrison County Tomorrow project.

Sponsors for this morning’s Coffeebreak were:
Country Candle Gift Shop, the Harrison County Board of Education, Jetubs, Cockrell’s Auto Center, Eastside Pharmacy, Whalen & Company, Joe Cochran – State Farm Insurance, and PC Problems.

And, in an update to a post I had made a few weeks ago, the pricing structure of archived recordings of Coffeebreak have changed. Cassettes are now $5, and CDs are $10. Archives are kept for only five days.

Kentucky colleges to offer incentives to lure back ex-students

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) – Kentucky colleges will team together to offer incentives aimed at luring back former students who were well along the path toward obtaining a degree before leaving school.

It’s part of the strategy by the state Council on Postsecondary Education to double the number of college graduates in Kentucky by 2020.
Read more at: