Facebook, Pinterst and Box Announce Program to Help Women Break into Tech!

Good to see organization's offering opportunities for women break into tech roles.  If your in the Bay area (in California), you're in luck!

"Facebook, Pinterest and Box announced a new pilot program on Wednesday that will provide one-on-one mentorship to help women break into technical roles, and thrive in the industry.
The program, called WEST (Women Entering and Staying in Tech), will have have female staffers from the three tech companies available to serve as mentors for those women who sign up. The pilot program will launch early next year in the Bay Area."  More here.

Fast Company Is Looking For A Web Development Intern!

Fast Company is looking for interns!  More info here.
Thank me later!

Get Ready: Personal Drones Are Here! Would You Buy It?

From the folks at Venture Beat:  "You don’t need a friend to carry a camera to catch all those gnarly extreme-sports moves anymore. You just need this drone and a GoPro.

A Kickstarter campaign to fund the first batch of drones from startup Squadrone System is raking in money fast. The goal is $50,000. It debuted today, and people threw more than that at the campaign within two hours of its launch.

Sure, unmanned aerial vehicles can be fascinating, helpful, and sometimes even world-changing, but they don’t often have the distinction of being able to fly around and follow a fast-moving person without someone minding its every move. But Squadrone’s smartphone app changes all that. It lets people set rules about how far away and at what angle the drone will stay as you ski, skate, ride, run, or otherwise move."

.....The only thing I can say is I want this for Christmas.  Check out Venture Beat for the full scoop.

Inspiration: Single Mom Of 3 Graduates From UCLA With THREE Degrees

If this doesn't give you inspiration I don't know what will.

Deanna Jordan single mother of 3 children graduated from UCLA with THREE degrees.  

Folks, don't just chase your dreams, get them and  live them.

“I needed for my sons to see there was a legacy that preceded them with college. I am the first in my family to go to college,” the 28-year-old mom told CBS News of her accomplishment. Before graduating with two bachelor’s degrees and a master’s in African-American Studies, she spent two years at a local community college and three-and-a-half years at the University of California.  

Deanna, you inspire.  Full story here.

Congrats! Rapper Eve Gets Married in Ibiza, Spain

Its official! Rapper Eve, real name Eve Jeffers, is now a new bride.  She married her beau of three years, businessman and millionaire Maximillion Cooper in Ibiza, Spain.  Congrats to the newlyweds. http://bit.ly/1lvDquq

Photo credit: Bun B's Instagram

Bored at Lunch?: Watch Kenyan Sci Fi Short Film "Pumzi"

Don't be bored at lunch. Watch 20-min Kenyan sci-fi film Pumzi by filmmaker Wanuri Kahiu

Roombots: Robotic Furniture that Reconfigures Itself!

Photo credit: Biorobotics Laboratory, EPFL

by Monica Peters

There’s nothing better than robotic inventions that make everyday life easier.  

 The École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) or English translation: Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne)  has created something spectacular that I hope will be on the market in the US very soon:  Adaptive Self Organizing Furniture—furniture that moves around and changes structures on its own.

If you want to change the layout of your conference room or bedroom, simply program the layout from a tablet and the small robotic modules will configure themselves.  You don’t need to do anything except wait for the modules to complete the task.

EPFL scientists from the Biorobotics Laboratory invented the Roombot creation which emphasizes a hybrid model made up of the robotic modules and “solid passive elements” to ensure cost effectiveness and solidity of the structures.  The Roombot pieces have a wireless connection and  retractable claws to attach themselves to other pieces to make larger structures. The Roombot pieces, which are each 22 cm-long, have a motor and battery. 

It’s important to note that the scientists are still working on perfecting this project. As of right now, according to the site there are “four functional modules with an autonomy of one-hour - still not enough to create complete pieces of furniture, but enough to build simple structures and hybrid combinations.”

This invention is attracting much attention and investment to move the project further. EPFL received a grant from the Swiss National Science Foundation to start designing multifunctional and assistive robotic furniture starting in September 2014.  The new module will be able to interact with people such as monitoring health, helping a person recover from fall, helping humans move such as laying down, sitting or standing. 

In the meantime, take a look at how this works present day.

Avocado Date Shake!

by Monica Peters

Try out one of my favorite smoothes I love to make: Avocado Date Shake.  This sweet n' tasty shake is real simple to make and very nutritious. Although it is a shake, you can also eat with a spoon instead of using a straw. The dates are really sweet so you do not need to add sugar. Interesting fact: Avocado shake is a very popular Vietnamese drink!



Ingredients:

1 avocado (the biggest one you can buy)
One 5 oz can of carnation evaporated milk
5 pitted dates
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Peel avocado, and put in food processor (be sure to remove pit from avocado before placing in food processor). Add in dates, evaporated milk, cinnamon and nutmeg. Blend in food processor for about 15 seconds or when your desired texture is desired....Enjoy your sweet delicious drink!

Craig Venter: "DNA is the Software of Life." We Are Offically in the Age of Synthetic/Artificial Life

X-Men: Days of Future Past wasn’t totally science fiction. 

Did you know that in 2010 (in real life) world renowned microbiologist J. Craig Venter invented and created the world’s first synthetic life?  With a team of scientists, Venter created a synthetic bacteria designed on a computer with man-made DNA.   

In plain English, we can now create new forms of life in a laboratory. Check out 60 Minute’s interview with genius Craig Venter HERE.

Did you miss my X-Men: Days of Future Past movie review? Read it here.