Student Jailed For Hacking School's Grading System

Jose Bautista, a high school senior in Northwest Miami-Dade School, USA was arrested for allegedly hacking the school's report card database and changing his grades and his four friends. He now faced charges of intellectual property offense, modifying programs and an offense.

The school's Principal informed the police that Bautista gave him a written confession.

The student is now under house arrest with GPS monitor while the case is awaiting judgement.

As of this writing, it is unclear if the busted students would be allowed to graduate  or if they will face any punishment.

Kids these days are too smart for their own good. Well, I guess some company would be interested to hire him for his guts and great skills.


Via CBS Miami

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Australia Tops Best Place for Teens

Australia is the best place to be a youth, says a recent study with Sweden and South Korea ranked as second and third among the 30 countries examined.

The Global Youth Wellbeing Index assessed the teens in areas such as education, economic opportunity, citizen participation, access to health and technology, safety and security. 

The top countries whose teens are living better lives are :

1. Australia
2. Sweden
3. South Korea
4. United Kingdom
5. Germany
6. United States
7. Japan
8. Spain
9. Saudi Arabia
10. Thailand

The bottom five countries were India, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Nigeria

For a complete report, you may refer to Youth Index website 

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Should You Watch or Boycott The "Noah" Movie?

Noah Movie, the latest Hollywood take on an epic Bible tale is under scrutiny. Many religious purists call for boycott claiming Hollywood has twisted a sacred story. In some Middle Eastern countries, the film was banned for contradicting the teachings of Islam with its portrayal of a prophet.

The question posed by most Jews, Christian, and Muslim believers is : should one watch or boycott the Noah movie?

As a Christian and a movie fan, I am inclined to watch this flick for a number of reasons. As a believer I know what is the real story. And nothing can persuade me to doubt what really happened. Director Darren Aronofsky who is an atheist has in fact made it clear that the movie is merely "inspired by" the Biblical story. And the producers have tried to convey the message of repentance and God's mercy. You may want to watch the featurette below.

This is even a good opportunity to tell our non-believer friends our faith. I have friends who are non-christians and over lunch we had a nice conversation about the story as what is written in the Bible.

The movie seems to be well crafted. Based on early reviews, critics have praised the excellent acting of Russell Crowe, Anthony Hopkins, Emma Watson and other actors. The action scene and visual effects were also impeccable.

I will definitely watch this movie. How about you? Are you watching the Noah movie?

Featurette about the Biblical accuracy.

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Hospitals in UK Burn Aborted Babies For Heat

This is real and not just some script in a horror movie.

The Telegraph reports that thousands of aborted and miscarried babies in UK hospitals were burned for use in heaters.

Most parents who lost their children in early pregnancy were not even aware of this barbaric act. Some medical practitioners who discovered thought this was unacceptable.

The investigation will be aired in UK's channel 4 program tonight at 8pm - Amanda Holden : Exposing Hospital Heartache.


Via [ The Telegraph ]

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Singapore Banks Introduce Real-time Interbank Transfer

Rolled out yesterday, fourteen banks in Singapore has introduced real-time interbank funds transfer. The new service dubbed as FAST ( Fast and Secure Transfers ) was introduced "in response to the increasing demand from consumers and businesses for funds transfer that is faster and more efficient", says The Association of Banks in Singapore.

The new function is currently free of charge for retail customers and $0.50 for corporate accounts. But starting June 2014, fees could be increased to $10 per transaction.

FAST has currrently capped transfers of up to $10,000 which could be done online, on mobile apps and some ATMs.

Previously, instant funds transfer is only available between accounts of the same bank and transactions of different banks would take two to three working days.

The 14 banks included  are ANZ Bank, CIMB Bank, Citibank, DBS Bank, Deutsche Bank, Far Eastern Bank, HSBC, Maybank, OCBC Bank, RHB Bank, The Royal Bank of Scotland, Standard Chartered Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp and United Overseas Bank.

This advanced payment system is 3rd in the world after South Korea and the UK. The Association of Banks in Singapore did not disclose the cost of  FAST system, but analysts estimate that this kind of infrastructure could be worth more than S$100 million. 

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Preschoolers Show Support for Missing Aircraft MH 370

People all over the world took to social media to show support. For instance, Twitter hashtag "#PrayForMH370" has been used by users  who either tweeted their personal prayer for the missing plane or created drawings or phrases to show  they were thinking of the missing passengers. 

In Singapore, despite a glimmer of hope, there's a group of innocent kids who wish to join the world with prayers and inspiring messages.

Preschoolers from PCF Punggol East  composed positive remarks such as "Please wait for them" and Don't worry, your family members will come home".

The activity is part of children's learning to empathize. They were asked to imagine how they would feel if the victims were their family member. Most of them said they would feel sad and afraid. 

So they conducted a brainstorming on how they would comfort the grieving family members. Some suggested giving a hug and kiss and others thought of writing a letter. 

Below are some of their heartfelt and moving words of encouragement that will melt your hearts. 

They wish that it will reach those who are affected. Please share to help them fulfill that.

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Study Shows Religion Is Good For The Brain

Just want to share these interesting articles which says religious activity benefits a person's mental and physical well being.

One recent study  found that people at risk of depression were much less vulnerable if they are religious. Stress are lowered through prayer and meditation.

“One of the worst killers of brain cells is stress,” said Dr. Majid Fotuhi, founder and chief medical officer of NeurExpand and a lecturer at Harvard Medical School. “Stress causes high levels of cortisol, and cortisol is toxic to the hippocampus. One way to reduce stress is through prayer. When you’re praying and in the zone you feel a peace of mind and tranquility.”

Listening to sermons and reading religious books like the Bible also proved benificial.

“There’s something magical about socializing,” Fotuhi said. “It releases endorphins in the brain. It’s hard to know whether it's through religion or a gathering of friends, but it improves brain health in the long term. And it’s also been shown that people who are introverted and don’t participate are more likely to get Alzheimer’s.”

Harold G. Koenig is co-director of the Center for Spirituality, Theology, and Health at Duke University Medical Center said , " The benefits of devout religious practice, particularly involvement in a faith community and religious commitment, are that people cope better. In general, they cope with stress better, they experience greater well-being because they have more hope, they're more optimistic, they experience less depression, less anxiety, and they commit suicide less often. They don't drink alcohol as much, they don't use drugs as much, they don't smoke cigarettes as much, and they have healthier lifestyles. They have stronger immune systems, lower blood pressure, probably better cardiovascular functioning.

Read more at Discovery Magazine and Beliefnet.com

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Analysis Says MH 370 Crashed in Indian Ocean ( Video )

CNN reported that a classified analysis of electronic and satellite data suggests the flight likely crashed either in the Bay of Bengal or elsewhere in the Indian Ocean.

Based on radar data and satellite pings, theories of hijacking or pilot suicide were being considered.

Malaysian officials said yesterday that the hunt for the plane was spreading deeper into both the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea.

As of Friday, 57 ships and 48 aircraft from 13 countries were already involved in the search.

With this expanded search , Cmdr. William Marks of the USS Kidd destroyer said "I, like most of the world, really have never seen anything like this," "It's a completely new game now. We went from a chess board to a football field."

Via [ CNN ]

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Weibo, "China's Twitter" Enters US Stock Market

Weibo, China's largest Twitter-like service has filed yesterday to raise $500 million via share sale on the US stock market. It hired Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse to manage the initial public offering.

Owned by Sina Corporation, Weibo has over 129 million monthly active users and generated $188 million profits in 2013.

Internet market in China is booming with more than 500 million users. Major social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter are not allowed in the country which benefits local firms.

"We expect our advertising and marketing revenues to increase in the foreseeable future as we continue to introduce new advertising and marketing solutions and attract more customers", Weibo said in its filing.

This is an exciting trend to see in the world's fastest growing major economy.

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Zuckerberg To Obama : Government Damaging Future

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has called President Obama to express his confusion and frustration with the repeated reports of US government's internet spying activites. In a post yesterday, Zuckerberg described the behavior as  damaging to the future of internet.

"The US government should be the champion for the internet, not a threat. They need to be much more transparent about what they're doing, or otherwise people will believe the worst." Zuckerberg said in a statement.

Although Zuckerberg's post does not point out National Security Agency's ( NSA ) surveillance programs, the statement was triggered by a recently leaked documents from Edward Snowden that NSA has impersonated a Facebook server to infect surveillance targets' computers and get files from a hard drive. 

Zuckerberg has assured the public with his statement. "To keep the internet strong, we need to keep it secure. That's why at Facebook we spend a lot of our energy making our services and the whole internet safer and more secure. We encrypt communications, we use secure protocols for traffic, we encourage people to use multiple factors for authentication and we go out of our way to help fix issues we find in other people's services.

The internet works because most people and companies do the same. We work together to create this secure environment and make our shared space even better for the world."

I certainly hope that the government will now become more transparent with what it has been doing.

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Malaysia Airlines' Boeing 777 With 239 People Missing

Malaysia Airlines announced it has lost contact with its Boeing B777-200 aircraft travelling from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 227 passengers, including two children and 12 crew members on board.

The airline said in a statement that flight MH370 disappeared at 2:40 am Saturday. It was expected to land Beijing at 6:30 am. " Malaysia Airlines is currently working with the authorities who have activated their search and rescue team to locate their aircraft.

According to China's state news agency, the plane lost communication over Vietnam with control department in Ho Chi Minh City at 1:20 a.m. The radar signal also was lost.

Malaysia Airlines CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said in a statement. "Our team is currently calling the next-of-kin of passengers and crew. Focus of the airline is to work with the emergency responders and authorities and mobilize its full support. Our thoughts and prayers are with all affected passengers and crew and their family members."

I wonder the aircraft is equipped with high speed internet and a lot of sensors. How can they not know where to find it? We shall know the details later today as Malaysia Airlines planned to conduct a press conference.

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Oscars Pizza Guy Had His 15-Minute Fame And More

Edgar Martirosyan is, certainly, now the world's most famous pizza delivery guy after appearing at the recently concluded Academy Awards 2014.

In an interview with Ellen, Edgar had no idea he would be serving Hollywood's biggest stars at the Oscars ceremony. He thought the pizza were for some writers at the Dolby Theater. He was told to wait.

When Ellen, who was hosting the awards show, came backstage and asked him to follow her, he then had the biggest shock of his life.

It was a once in a lifetime experience to be envied by millions of fans who witnessed him delivering pies to celebrities like Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts and Meryl Streep.

Lucky him. CNN reported that his pizza family business has suddenly become so famous. All of its branches are busy with orders.

Watch his interview here.

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And The Oscar Goes To...

The awards season ended with the most anticipated 86th Academy Awards.  It was an exciting night. As Ellen Degeneres said "Anything could happen tonight. So many possibilities. Possibility number 1, 12 Years A Slave wins Best Picture. Possibility number 2, you are all racists." And she was right to predict it would win.

Here are the winners :
  
Best Picture: "12 Years A Slave"

Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron, "Gravity"

Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years A Slave"

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Principal Lost $80,000 Because Of Daughter's Facebook Post

This story is another classic example where parents need to worry about what their children post on social media.

When Dana Snay learned her father had been awarded an $80,000 cash settlement in an age-discrimination lawsuit against his former employer, like any teenager, she turned to Facebook and brag about it. " Mama and Papa Snay won the case against Gulliver. Gulliver is now officially paying for my vacation to Europe this summer. SUCK IT."

The problem was Patrick Snay signed a confidentiality agreement. Gulliver Preparatory School now refused to pay him a single dime as he violated the terms of the agreement.

Too bad for them. Looks like the teenager won't be going to Europe. She's grounded! Or worse could be banned to use Facebook for life.


Via [ Miami Herald  ]

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Facebook Buys WhatsApp For $19 Billion

If all matters are resolved, this is the biggest acquisition of Facebook. It announced yesterday that it reached an agreement to buy WhatsApp, the most popular mobile messaging app, for $16 billion in cash and stock plus additional $3 billion in restricted stock units to the founders ( former Yahoo engineers Jan Koum & Brian Acton ) and employees.

In a statement, Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said, " WhatsApp is on a path to connect 1 billion people. The services that reach that milestone are incredibly valuable. I've known Jan for a long time and I'm excited to partner with him and his team to make the world more open and connected."

How would this deal affect us? Not much. WhatsApp will continue to operate independently, just like what happened to Instagram when it was bought by Facebook. Furthermore, the founders have been firm on declining advertisements in its platform. Instead, it will continue with its $0.99 yearly subscription after the first year free use.

This is indeed a big risk for Facebook. $19 billion is a huge money. Is WhatsApp really worth that? In comparison, Instagram was bought for $1 billion in 2012 and Microsoft paid $8.5 billion for Skype in 2011.

I certainly hope that Facebook will not exploit the current set-up of WhatsApp. Currently, it is doing well unless of course they will introduce more useful features like voice call.

What do you think of this acquisition? Is WhatsApp worth $19 billion?

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Some of the Best Quotes on Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's day everyone! In celebration of the day of hearts let me share with you some of the best and most romantic quotes that will make your day sweeter.

"They do not love that do not show their love." - William Shakespeare

"Today is February 14th -- St. Valentine’s day. Women call it Love day, while men name it as extortion day."

Love is the flower you've got to let grow. -John Lennon, The Beatles

There is no remedy for love but to love more. - Thoreau



"Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward in the same direction." -- Antoine de Saint-Exupery

"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart." -- Helen Keller

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Police Spends 5k Daily For Security of Janet Napoles

The Philippine National Police said it is spending Php 5,000 everyday or a whopping P150,000.00 of taxpayer's money to provide security for Janet Napoles, alleged pork barrel scam mastermind. An additional 120,000.00 could be spent when she will be called again to appear in the Senate.

It seems that the case is being handled slowly. It looks like it's not going anywhere. If it continues like this, in the end its the Filipino people who will still suffer. The real culprit would again go unpunished. I feel bad for us  who work hard and pay our taxes to support the government. And this what we get.

What do you think of this? To save costs, should Napoles still de detained by Fort Sto. Domingo Police Special Action Force camp or be transferred to a regular city jail?

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Disposable Organic Sensor Unveiled by Japanese Researchers

A disposable organic sensor capable of monitoring wetness, pressure and temperature was unveiled by Japanese researchers. The chip can be embedded in a diaper and notifies the caregiver that it needs changing.

This is another practical innovation developed by a team led by professors Takayasu Sakurai and Takao Someya at the University of Tokyo.

This seems convenient but rather impractical. If the price is affordable this could be a hit.

What do you think of this idea? Share with us your thoughts.

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Has Shia LaBeouf Gone Crazy or This is Just a Publicity Stunt?

Transformers movie star Shia LaBeouf has gone crazy. After being asked in a press conference, he made an unrelated answer then walked out. Her co - stars Uma Thurman and Christian Slater from the movie Nymphomaniac, were seen laughing about his comments. Later at the Berlin Film Festival red carpet, he was seen wearing a paper bag with words "I am not famous anymore".

Do these actions reflect LaBeouf's current state of mind or just part of a publicity stunt for his latest movie?

I would think both. His weird actions actually were publicly known  he was accused of plagiarism in December. Then in January he made an announcement that he would retire from public life.




Via [ LA Times ]

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Michael Christian Martinez, 1st Filipino Figure Skater to Compete in Winter Olympics 2014

Michael Christian Martinez, "Asia's golden boy of Figure Skating", is another talented Filipino who has given honor to his country. He is 17-year-old from Muntinlupa, Philippines and will be the first Filipino figure skater ever to compete in a Winter Games and the first Olympian since 1992.

So far, he has won over 140 medals in local and international competitions including a gold at 2012 Senior International Ice Skating Competition. Let's all wish wish him well in the scheduled Figure Skating Competition to kickstart on February 14, 2014.

Martinez has overcome asthma in youth. In an interview with TV talk show Kababayan Today ( see video below ), one day he asked his mother to try skating while at a shopping mall and was hooked after just an hour. He has been competing since 2008, but has struggled to maintain the funding to allow him to practice six hours a day — typical for Olympic contenders. 

For now, let's watch the incredible performance below that qualified him to compete in Winter Olympics 2014.

To see more of his videos, you can watch his YouTube Channel here.

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