Cell phone use becoming a major problem for some, expert says

For a growing number of people across the globe, the idea of being out of touch, even just for a 90-minute movie, is enough to induce anxiety, says a University of Florida psychologist who studies addictions to the Internet and other technologies.University of Florida News -- '' A Japanese study revealed that children with cell phones often dont make friends with their less tech-savvy peers. -- A Hungarian study found that three-fourths of children had mobile phones -- An Italian study showed that one quarter of adolescents owned multiple phones and many claimed to be somewhat addicted to them. -- A British study also recently found that 36 percent of college students surveyed said they could not get by without cell phones. But this may be more a sign that students view cell phones as a modern necessity like a car, said David Sheffield, a psychologist who conducted the study at Staffordshire University in England. The most shocking figure was that 7 percent said the use of mobile phones had caused them to lose a relationship or a job, Sheffield said.

Electrosmog in the clear with scientists

Studies show that it's not mobile phones and electric fields making people ill - so what is the cause of 'electrosensitivity'? It's still very much an open question. The Guardian reports. ''Estimates of how many people suffer from it are scarce, but they range from 3.2% in California to 8% in Germany. In the UK around 4% of people claim to experience symptoms. ''There's a lot of ES sufferers around,'' said Denis Henshaw, a physics professor who is head of the human radiation effects group at Bristol University. ''They are otherwise sane and sensible people. They are not all nutcases.'' Yet the scientific case for ES is almost non-existent. ''It's still an open question about what is the problem. People are certainly ill, and experience real symptoms,'' says Dr James Rubin, a researcher at the Institute of Psychiatry in London. The World Health Organisation backs up his view. A position statement drafted in December 2005 says: ''There is no scientific basis to link ES symptoms to EMF exposure. Further, ES is not a medical diagnosis, nor is it clear that it represents a single medical problem.''

The Plants Have Your Number

botanicalls allows thirsty plants to place phone calls for human help. When humans phone the plants, they orient callers to their habits and characteristics, including how they like to be watered and cared for. botanicalls opens a new channel of communication between plants and humans, in an effort to promote successful inter-species cohabitation and understanding. Based on sensor information, plants are able to place outgoing phone calls to a nearby telephone to express their needs. When a plant's microcontroller determines that the plant needs to make a phone call, it contacts a PHP script with the plant's ID number and type of need. PHP then packages this information and passes it on to Asterisk (an open-source telephone system) which generates the call. When the call is placed, an audio file in played in the voice of the plant expressing its need.

Indian chess player banned for 10 years after cheating with Bluetooth

An Indian chess player has been banned for 10 years for cheating after he was caught using his mobile phone's wireless device to win games, reports Reuters. ''The player, Umakant Sharma, had logged rating points at a rapid pace in the last 18 months and also qualified for the national championship, arousing the suspicion of officials and bemusing rivals. Sharma was finally caught at a recent tournament when officials discovered that he had stitched a Bluetooth device in a cloth cap which he always pulled over his ears. He communicated to his accomplices outside the hall, who then used a computer to relay moves to him, Indian chess federation secretary D.V. Sundar said on Wednesday.''

Chinese government demands all handsets be rechargeable via USB

Following South Korea's lead, the Chinese government is now demanding that future handsets, regardless of brand, be able to recharge via a standard USB port. The Ministry of Information Industry (MII) hopes that the mandate will slash phone costs for users, eliminate proprietary hassles, and more importantly, eliminate waste within the country. Considering nearly ''100 million'' folks in China alone replace their phone annually, that's a lot of antiquated chargers hitting the junk pile, and this new standard hopes to cure the problem and cut back on waste before it gets too out of hand. While we've no idea when this mandate will actually be enforced, these head honchos sound pretty serious, and considering the estimated USD306 million the country will be saving, we wouldn't doubt their earnestness.

Pics to replace alphanumeric passwords on (stupid people's) smartphones

The Inquirer has written a funny post on new security software called Mnemonic Guard for smartphones, which replaces passwords with pictures. The Inquirer's slant is that it's for ''the stupid people''. Hey, I think it's a great idea! If remembering a sequence of pics is really easier. ''Japanese software developer Mnemonic Security recognised that increasingly people are too thick to remember a four digit security codes. So now its invented a picture security code. ... Mnemonic Guard replaces alphanumeric passwords with ''pass-symbols'', a series of pictures or illustrated images that are easy for the user to remember''.

Cellphones finally cleared of cancer charges

We've seen so many chapters of the ''dangerous / not dangerous'' chronicles with regard to cellphone radiation that we've lost count, but thanks to a Danish study recently carried out on 420,000 avid mobile users, we can finally put those worries to rest (we hope). While it's no secret that mobile phone antennas emit ''electromagnetic fields that can penetrate the human brain,'' we've been yearning for a study such as this to quiet the tin-foil advocates (and ensure our own safety). Researchers from the Danish Institute of Cancer Epidemiology in Copenhagen looked at data on people who had been using mobile phones ''from as far back as 1982'' in order to draw their conclusions, and after all was said and done, they found ''no evidence to suggest users had a higher risk of tumors in the brain, eye, or salivary gland, or developing leukemia.'' Thankfully, a similar study published earlier this year by the Institute of Cancer Research also concluded that mobile phone use ''was not associated with a greater risk of brain cancer.'' So, there you have it folks, you can safely yap away without fear of mutating into some form of diseased being -- until the next study ''proves'' otherwise, of course.

Parents obsess with mobile messaging and ignore their kids

Parents obsess with mobile messaging and ignore their kids, reports the WSJ, spawning a generation of resentful children. ''As hand-held email devices proliferate, they are having an unexpected impact on family dynamics: Parents and their children are swapping roles. Like a bunch of teenagers, some parents are routinely lying to their kids, sneaking around the house to covertly check their emails and disobeying house rules established to minimize compulsive typing. ... Children fearful that parents will be distracted by emails while driving, concerned about Mom and Dad's shortening attention spans and exasperated by their parents' obsession with their gadgets. Some mental-health professionals report that the intrusion of mobile email gadgets and wireless technology into family life is a growing topic of discussion in therapy. ... Parents need to recognize that some situations require undivided attention. When you shut off the device, she says, You're communicating nonverbally that 'you matter and what's important to you is important to me.

i-mate launches PDAL Windows Mobile Pocket PC phones

i-mate is extending its product portfolio with the launch of two new products, the JAQ3 and PDAL, both use Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 for Pocket PC. Commenting on the launch Robin Bowler Global Marketing Director at i-mate said: ''Both the i-mate JAQ3 and PDAL will appeal to anyone who uses a Microsoft based PC at home or work, and who want to work and play on the move. Their familiar Windows Mobile-based user interface is intuitively simple and integrates seamlessly with the Windows PC operating system. Add to that the range of functionality options, the highly competitive pricing, and i-mates comprehensive range of value added services and support, and youve got a very compelling proposition for professionals and consumers alike.'' Both devices boast GPRS, EDGE and high-speed Wi-fi connectivity for excellent data download rates and a truly satisfying push email experience, that extends to attachments for opening and real-time working. The i-mate JAQ3 has a full QWERTY keyboard, five direction-control buttons and scroll wheel allow for easy navigation and use of services including email. The PDAL is also features a 5-way navigation pad. The PDAL has the option of portrait or landscape orientation so applications can be viewed to the user's preference. It will be available in a black and silver casing. i-mate PDA L Specifications:Windows Mobile 5.0 for Pocket PCGSM QuadbandProcessor: TI OMAP 800 200 MHZMemory: 64MB RAM / 128 MB ROMCamera: 2 megapixelDisplay: 2.4'' 256k colors TFTBluetooth, WiFi, GPRS, EDGEBattery: 1100 mAh4 hours talk time

Amazon

http://associates.amazon.com
Amazon is one of the first .com businesses, and one of the most successful. They survived the .com crash and have become a global brand to send shivers down the spines of any high street retailer, and with Amazon’s move into new areas such as groceries, furniture and basically anything you can legally buy in this world of ours; all high street retailers should be scared.
The great thing about Amazon though is that you can earn commission on anything anyone buys from your website. If you own a website about book reviews you can add direct purchase links to products on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk (they’re different schemes, so you need to sign up twice) and you’ll earn money as soon as anyone clicks through to buy the product.
Amazon used to pay out at the end of every Quarter, but had just moved to monthly pay-outs. You need to reach the minimum payout amount before any cheque is issued however. Amazon.co.uk do direct deposit into your account, but UK residents have to receive cheques from Amazon.com – which is annoying if you’ve ever had to pay a foreign cheque into your bank.

eBay

http://affiliates.ebay.com
Everyone uses eBay these days, surely? It’s the world’s biggest marketplace after all. Did you know though that you don’t need to actually sell anything on eBay in order to make money from it? Interesting eh? In fact you don’t need to ever browse eBay’s labyrinthine category structure or ever have to look at a listing for the latest Big Brother spin off merchandise. In fact anyone who makes money from eBay by actually trading in items is positively passé.These days the big money is in profiting from other people’s auctions. eBay even produces a variety of kits to aid you in this most capitalist of crusades. With the eBay editor kit and the product kit you can create dynamic auction listings direct onto your website, with the latest bid price, buy it now options and end date all displayed. So for example if you ran a website about Video Games featuring reviews of the latest games you can have auction listings for the games displayed dynamically on your reviews pages. This works superbly for conversion rates because visitors to your site will get to read about the product, and then be presented with a selection of related auction listings to purchase the item.You need to do no work whatsoever to get these dynamic listings, eBay does the rest.eBay, being the behemoth that it is, uses a variety of providers for its affiliate scheme, including Commission Junction who we’ll come onto in a moment.