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Scientists announced Monday that they have developed a high-tech T-shirt that turns the strumming of an air guitar into music.

The T-shirt has motion sensors built into its elbows that pick up the wearer's arm motions and relay them wirelessly to a computer which interprets them as guitar riffs, said Richard Helmer, an engineer who leads the research team from the government's Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization.

One arm is interpreted as picking chords while the other strums. The "wearable instrument shirt" is adaptable to both right and left-handed would-be rock stars.

"It's an easy-to-use, virtual instrument that allows real-time music making even by players without significant musical or computing skills," Helmer said in a statement.

"It allows you to jump around and the sound generated is just like an original MP3," he added, referring to the digital audio file format.

The shift is a collaboration between CSIRO researchers in computing, chemistry, electronics, music composition and textile manufacture.

Helmer said sensors could be used in the future to reproduce a person in the virtual world so they could get feedback on their actions and improve their sporting techniques.

So far as the yet very quiet forums are claiming, a new app called FairUse4WM can be used to strip Windows Media DRM 10 and 11 (i.e. PlaysForSure, but not WM DRM 9). Yes, yes, we know, we've heard this song and dance before. But before we proceed, let's just be totally clear on how the system works: providers like Napster and Yahoo Music Unlimited provide subscription service for unlimited access to Windows Media DRMed files; stop paying the fee, stop getting access to the files -- but you already knew all this. We tried FairUse4WM and we can verify that it quickly and easily stripped the DRM from our Napster To Go tracks, and made them freely available to play on our Mac (which, of course, has Flip4Mac installed). In other words, it's a simple, apparently lossless, one-step method for making your files playable after you're no longer paying fees on your subscription service. The app didn't work on our Vongo videos, but we can verify with all certainty that yes, Windows Media DRM can now be easily and quickly stripped from PlaysForSure media services. Now watch as Microsoft shuts down the forums and runs damage control in order to prevent an digital media entire platform from collapsing. Click on for a couple more pics of the app in action!

http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/25/fairuse4wm-strips-windows-media-drm/

Microsoft UK apparently commissioned Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant to do a (spoof) training video with Gervais playing David Brent.

 The first part runs for 20 minutes and the second for 17 minutes.

 They've been uploaded to Google Video and the good thing about this service is that you can download them. It's like watching the lost episode of The Office.

 http://blogs.smh.com.au/mashup/archives//005589.html

Thanks to Zander, I’ve been informed that apparently this is all urban legend: http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/hippoeatsdwarf.asp

...but, check this out (way cool): http://hippoeatsdwarf.orcon.net.nz/about.htm

so if any of you might be wondering how the Italians actually made it to the World Cup final... all you need to do is watch this video detailing their rigorous training regimen:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=0do5xlE9C_A&search=italian%20soccer

‘nough said

In what might just well be the ‘most amazing statistic I’ve ever heard,’ I recently discovered that Tom Glavine, one of the top 5 pitchers of my generation was selected ahead of both Luc Robatille and Brett Hull in the 1984 NHL entry draft. Now we’ve all heard of multi-sport uber-athletes Danny Ainge (baseball, basketball), Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders (football, baseball), Antonio Gates (football, basketball)… but baseball and hockey – unprecedented!

Kudos, my good man

A funny from my good friend BVM…

You may have heard that Ben Roethlisberger, the quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers, was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident yesterday.  Investigators are still looking into the cause of the accident.

Regardless, the Seahawks will be penalized.

To which Michael Griffin responded…

As well they should.  Initial reports indicate the driver of the car that hit Ben fled the scene as fast as he could waddle.  Witnesses described the driver as a tall, angry, fat man who looks shockingly like a walrus only much less attractive.

The first police sketch (see picture).

4/18/06

"According to New Scientist, Philips has filed a patent for technology to force viewers to watch the ads in a program. Basically they plan to add extra flags to the Multimedia Home Platform that would stop controls from working until the ads are finished." From the article: "Philips' patent acknowledges that this may be 'greatly resented by viewers' who could initially think their equipment has gone wrong. So it suggests the new system could throw up a warning on screen when it is enforcing advert viewing. The patent also suggests that the system could offer viewers the chance to pay a fee interactively to go back to skipping adverts."

http://www.riaa.com/news/newsletter/pdf/2005yrEndStats.pdf