Rosie Vela

Today I got curious about the female singer who is singing with Jeff Lynne in ELO. It turned out to be quite  a story. Roseanne “Rosie” Vela, born in the coastal city of Galveston, Texas,  stayed with her boyfriend Jimmy Roberts, and married him in the hospital before he died of cancer. He sang her a song he wrote on the last night before he slipped into a coma and died. One story says he died in her arms.

Following that tragedy, she landed a modeling job and appeared on the cover of Vogue 14 times before she decided to focus on her music (and a bit of acting).

Her story gives the lyrics to the ELO song “Turn to Stone” (released October 1977)  new meaning.

“Through all I sit here and I wait I TURN TO STONE I TURN TO STONE
You will return again some day TO MY BLUE WORLD”

I had no idea that one of my favorite bands of all times included a red-headed supermodel with heart of gold.

In my band Xenophilia, I had many fun years performing with the super hot and talented Amy Anne, who I’m sure could have been a model if she was so inclined. I believe I took this photo of Amy Anne myself.  I think she’d give Rosie a run for her money, so to speak. 

Getting an early start on my 2012 New Year’s Resolutions: After I finish writing and recording my 100 original songs in 2011 — I resolve to find my supermodel musician girlfriend, get a fantastic band together, book a bunch of shows, entertain people and enjoy many years of fun!

I like what Rosie said about playing music until you are 100 years old. Yes, I’d like that.

Who can say how long any of us have, really, but I believe in this dream. It feels like what I am supposed to do.  Do you know the feeling?

This is why I’ve never married.  I’m in love with someone I haven’t met yet. I saw her once in a dream. She was at a party on some steps, wearing an over-sized white men’s dress shirt.  I’ll know her when I see her, or when I hear her sing.

The tragedy–and the comedy–is that I’m one of the most stubborn and idealistic people you’ll ever meet and if I can’t have what I envision, I will just wait and wait. I’ll search forever, passing up so many good things. I already have. Wish me luck.

Apple’s iPhones and Google’s Androids Send Cellphone Location

Apple Inc.’s iPhones and Google Inc.’s Android smartphones regularly transmit their locations back to Apple and Google, respectively, according to data and documents analyzed by The Wall Street Journal—intensifying concerns over privacy and the widening trade in personal data.

Google and Apple are gathering location information as part of their race to build massive databases capable of pinpointing people’s locations via their cellphones. These databases could help them tap the $2.9 billion market for location-based services—expected to rise to $8.3 billion in 2014, according to research firm Gartner Inc.

In the case of Google, according to new research by security analyst Samy Kamkar, an HTC Android phone collected its location every few seconds and transmitted the data to Google at least several times an hour. It also transmitted the name, location and signal strength of any nearby Wi-Fi networks, as well as a unique phone identifier.

Google declined to comment on the findings.

Until last year, Google was collecting similar Wi-Fi data with its fleet of StreetView cars that map and photograph streets world-wide. The company shut down its StreetView Wi-Fi collection last year after it inadvertently collected e-mail addresses, passwords and other personal information from Wi-Fi networks. The data that Mr. Kamkar observed being transmitted on Android phones didn’t include such personal information.

Apple, meanwhile, says it “intermittently” collects location data, including GPS coordinates, of many iPhone users and nearby Wi-Fi networks and transmits that data to itself every 12 hours, according to a letter the company sent to U.S. Reps. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and Joe Barton (R-Texas) last year. Apple didn’t respond to requests for comment.

The Google and Apple developments follow the Journal’s findings last year that some of the most popular smartphone apps use location data and other personal information even more aggressively than this—in some cases sharing it with third-party companies without the user’s consent or knowledge.

Apple this week separately has come under fire after researchers found that iPhones store unencrypted databases containing location information sometimes stretching back several months. …

Unlike many cell-phone-enabled violations of your privacy, whose purpose is mainly to enrich the app maker, the storage of location data on iPhones and the gathering of location data by Android phones at least provide benefits to users and are under user control.

The database works behind the scenes mainly to improve wireless data service, traffic maps and other basic functions of a smartphone.

Location data isn’t even gathered if location services are turned off.

Yes, the storage of unencrypted location data on your phone is a potential privacy breach waiting to happen. But there’s a whole list of privacy violations taking place through your phone every day.

The hard reality is that there’s only one way to guarantee privacy with a cell phone: Remove the battery.

via Apple’s iPhones and Google’s Androids Send Cellphone Location – WSJ.com.

US drone raid ‘kills 25′ in Pakistan

At least 25 people have been killed in a US drone strike in the troubled Pakistani tribal region of North Waziristan, officials told the BBC.

Missiles were fired on a large compound in the town of Spinwam, but five women and four children in a nearby house were also killed.

The area is a haven for al-Qaeda and Taliban militants.

Meanwhile, at least 13 soldiers died when hundreds of insurgents attacked a checkpoint near the Afghan border.

Pakistani security officials told the BBC that Afghan militants had crossed the border and stormed the army post in the Lower Dir area.

Security forces temporarily abandoned the post but now, residents say, they are back in control and have placed the entire area under curfew.

Pakistani-US tensions

Pakistani officials say four missiles were fired on a large compound occupied by supporters of local militant commander Hafiz Gul Bahadur, in Spinwam, 40km (25 miles) north-east of the tribal region’s main town of Miranshah.

Several people were also wounded in Friday’s attack, a local intelligence official was quoted as telling AFP news agency.

The US does not routinely confirm it conducts drone operations in Pakistan.

But analysts say only American forces have the capacity to deploy such aircraft. US drone attacks have escalated in the region since President Barack Obama took office. More than 100 raids were reported last year. …

via BBC News – Pakistan: US drone raid ‘kills 25′ in N Waziristan.

Switzerland: Smelly corpse flower draws thousands

Thousands of people are flocking to the northern Swiss city of Basel to see a giant, stinky flower bloom for the first time.

The amorphophallus titanum – known as corpse flower because it exudes a smell of rotting flesh – is the first to blossom in Switzerland in 75 years.

The Basel Botanical Gardens expects the 6.6ft (2m) plant to attract 10,000 people whilst in bloom.

The bloom is set to wilt late Saturday or Sunday.

Worldwide, there have been only 134 recorded blooms from artificial cultivation, according to AP news agency.

The flower first began to poke out of the soil in March, and in the past few days it had been growing at about six centimetres a day, according to Swissinfo news website.

Its mother plant last bloomed in the Frankfurt Palm Garden in 1992.

Originally native to the tropical rainforests on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, the plant requires a humid climate to grow and rarely blossoms, even in the wild.

The flower’s smell, said to be a cross between burnt sugar and rotting flesh, is designed to attract insects for pollination.

via BBC News – Switzerland: Smelly corpse flower draws thousands.

Police investigate Charlie Sheen’s high-speed escort

Police in Washington DC are investigating who authorised a controversial high-speed police escort for actor Charlie Sheen.

He was apparently escorted from an airport outside the city to his stage show, Violent Torpedo of Truth: Defeat is Not an Option, on Tuesday.

Police chief Cathy Lanier told a local TV station the escort appeared to violate department policy.

Police spokeswoman Gwendolyn Crump said the department was investigating.

Sheen posted a photo to Twitter of a speedometer reaching about 80mph (129km/h) and wrote: “In car with Police escort in front and rear! Driving like someone’s about to deliver a baby! Cop car lights #Spinning!”

Sheen was reportedly running late for the one-man show. It is not clear for how much of the journey he had a police escort.

Sheen’s spokesman, Larry Solters, declined to comment on Friday.

Phil Mendelson, who chairs the DC Council’s committee on public safety, said on Friday he considered the escort inappropriate and was glad it was being investigated. …

via BBC News – Police investigate Charlie Sheen’s high-speed escort.

Related:

Google fined $5m over Linux patent row

A judgement by a Texas jury against Google could have major implications for the search giant and the open source world said experts.

The internet titan was found guilty of infringing a patent related to the Linux kernel and fined $5m (£3.2m).

The software is used by Google for its server platforms and could also extend to its Android mobile platform.

The kernel is at the core of the open-source operating system meaning this verdict could be far-reaching.

The case resulted in a victory for a firm called Bedrock Computer Technologies which has also sued Yahoo, MySpace, Amazon, PayPal, Match.com and AOL.

“The amount of the fine is not what makes this an important issue,” intellectual property activist Florian Mueller told BBC News.

“This is a modest amount considering Google is probably the largest scale Linux user in the world.

“The implication here is really that there is a huge number of Linux users who will be required to pay royalties if this patent holder knocks on their doors in the US. This is definitely a major impediment to the growth of Linux and makes companies, including Google, that rely on open source code particularly vulnerable to patent threats.”

That is also the view of other industry watchers who expect a flood of lawsuits against companies who rely on open source code.

“Those looking to cash in on buried patents need only spend time poring over code and looking for infringements,” said Christopher Dawson of technology blog ZDNet.

“It costs a lot less than $5m to hire a team of programmers in India to do code review. This, I’m afraid, is just the beginning and stands to do a fair amount of harm to industry momentum and to the private companies that provide vast incentive for the advancement of open source software.”

But Google has said it will continue to defend against such attacks like this one on the open source community.

“The recent explosion in patent litigation is turning the world’s information highway into a toll road, forcing companies to spend millions and millions of dollars defending old, questionable patent claims and wasting resources that would be much better spent investing in new technologies for users and creating jobs,” said Google. …

via BBC News – Google fined $5m over Linux patent row.

Do Aliens Speak Particle-Tongue?

Extraterrestrials may have a better way to communicate across space than radio waves or optical beams. A team of scientists suggests ET could encode neutrinos, for example.

These particles of matter are similar to electrons, but since they have no electric charge, they can pass through anything. This makes them ideal for long-distance travel, as neutrinos are undisturbed by gas, dust and other matter that can block radio waves and other types of electromagnetic radiation.

Astronomers have been scouring the galaxy for decades for alien-produced radio signals — and more recently for non-naturally occurring light pulses, as well — to no avail.

“We really have no clue as to how some advanced civilization might want to transmit to us, nor do we have any really good idea why they would want to transmit to us,” physicist John Learned, with the University of Hawaii, told Discovery News.

“Everything that we’re doing is exploratory science: You don’t know the game; you don’t know if you’re in the game; you don’t know the rules of the game… which is what makes it so much fun,” said Learned, who, along with colleagues, has written a series of articles about how neutrinos could be used for communication.

ET could, for example, send out a neutrino beam at precise (and non-naturally occurring) energy levels that would be sure to catch a scientist’s eye.

“If there’s a civilization, like our civilization, which is at the stage of setting up large neutrino detectors, then one would see this signal of a unique signature and you would right away say: ‘What the heck is going on here? This is certainly not a natural signature.’ This is something that would really get your attention on the very first (detection.) …

via Do Aliens Speak Particle-Tongue? : Discovery News.

Pope Benedict appears in TV question-and-answer show

Pope Benedict XVI has made history as the first pontiff to take part in a televised question-and-answer session.

The pre-recorded programme was broadcast on the Italian Rai channel on Good Friday afternoon.

Seven questions were chosen from thousands submitted for the Pope to answer during the 80-minute programme.

Most of the questions, from people across the world, dealt with the struggle with suffering.

TV viewers saw a split screen, with the Pope sitting in the Vatican library and those asking the questions filmed near their homes.

The first question was asked by a seven-year-old Japanese girl traumatised by the recent devastating earthquake and tsunami.

She asked why she and other children should have to feel afraid. The Pope replied that he had also asked himself the same question.

“We do not have the answers but we know that Jesus suffered as you do,” he said.

Another question came from the Italian mother of a boy in a long-term coma. She asked if he still had a soul, to which the Pope replied that, yes, his soul is still present in his body.

“The situation, perhaps, is like that of a guitar whose strings have been broken and therefore can no longer play,” he said.

“The instrument of the body is fragile like that, it is vulnerable, and the soul cannot play, so to speak, but remains present.”

To a Muslim woman in the Ivory Coast who asked his advice about how to cope with the conflict that has afflicted her country, he said people should look to Christ as an example of peace.

“Violence never comes from God, never helps bring anything good, but is a destructive means and not the path to escape difficulties,” he said.

He told Christian students in Iraq – when asked how to encourage fellow Christians not to flee the country – that the Church was encouraging dialogue between religions.

The BBC’s Duncan Kennedy, watching the programme, said it would be viewed by critics as very controlled and a little sanitised…

There was no opportunity to ask tough questions of the Church, such as about the priestly sex scandals that overshadowed the Church’s Easter celebrations last year.

But the Vatican will have viewed it as a first step in their overall effort to be more accountable and transparent, arising from accusations that the Church was failing to be open about the abuse scandal, our correspondent adds.

Until now, he has only ever taken questions from journalists on planes during foreign trips. …

via BBC News – Pope Benedict appears in TV question-and-answer show.

It’s about time the Pope pipped up. Plenty of people he oversees overseas could use practical prescriptions for peace.  What else is the purpose of the position? Not to placate people, nor to persuade a population of puppets they are protected by some prosperous papal pallium. Pope powers, activate!

Mostly fat diet ‘can reverse kidney failure’ in mice with diabetes

A controlled diet high in fat and low in carbohydrate can repair kidney damage in diabetic mice, according to US scientists.

The study, published in journal PLoS ONE, showed a “ketogenic diet” could reverse damage caused to tubes in the kidneys by too much sugar in the blood.

In the UK around a third of the 2.8m people with either type 1 or 2 diabetes go on to develop kidney damage.

Diabetes UK said it was “questionable” whether humans could sustain the diet.

Damage reversed

The researchers at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York used mice with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

Once kidney damage had developed, half the mice were put onto the ketogenic diet for eight weeks.

The highly controlled diet, which is 87% fat, mimics the effect of starvation and should not be used without medical advice.

After eight weeks the researchers noted that kidney damage was reversed.

Professor Charles Mobbs, who led the research at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, said: “Our study is the first to show that a dietary intervention alone is enough to reverse this serious complication of diabetes.

“I certainly think it has promise, but I can’t recommend it until we have done clinical trials.”

The researchers also need to figure out the exact process that leads to repair.

via BBC News – Diet ‘can reverse kidney failure’ in mice with diabetes.

Tornado closes Lambert-St Louis airport

The US airport of Lambert-St Louis has been closed indefinitely after a tornado ripped through its main terminal.

The storm tore off a large section of the terminal’s roof, shattering windows and sending debris flying.

Several people were being treated for minor injuries.

The storm, one of a series to pass through central and eastern Missouri, also flattened homes in the area, felled trees and tore down power lines.

Lambert-St Louis airport said all flights were cancelled pending full safety assessments, and a clean-up was under way.

“We have all hands on deck here,” said Mayor Francis Slay, speaking at the airport.

‘Grown men crying’

St Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch, who was at the airport as the storm approached, said people watching the tornado suddenly had to scramble for safety.

“About the time we came into the building, the doors blew off,” he said.

“Literally 10 seconds later, it was over. It’s amazing to me more people weren’t hurt.”

Dianna Merrill, who was waiting for a flight to New York, said she had been looking out of the window hoping her delayed flight would arrive.

“Glass was blowing everywhere. The ceiling was falling… the wind was blowing debris all over the place,” she said.

“It was like being in a horror movie. Grown men were crying. It was horrible.”

via BBC News – Tornado closes Lambert-St Louis airport.