By J. D. BIERSDORFER via NYT Technology http://ift.tt/1rogL7T
Tuesday, 30 September 2014
Buzzfeed
I’m a high-functioning sociochat.
BuzzFeed / BBC One
BuzzFeed / BBC One
BuzzFeed / BBC One
BuzzFeed / BBC One
Buzzfeed
If you earn less than $200,000, you’re too poor for this app.
This week, a new dating app has launched that promises wealthy people the chance to fall in love with other wealthy people in their sad, lonely, rich world.
It claims its members include "CEOs, entrepreneurs, investors, millionaires, beauty queens, fitness models, Hollywood celebrities, pro athletes, doctors, lawyers and successful people, just [to] name a few."
"It works just like Tinder," the anonymous CEO of Luxy says in the press release. "With one big exception: Our app allows users to weed out the poor and unattractive."
According to the statement, the average income of users is over $200,000 and those who are "unable to keep up financially" are removed from the app immediately.
When signing up, you are asked to create a profile card.
Rossalyn Warren's iPhone
To complete your profile card, you are asked to pick your favourite hobbies from a weird mix of everyday activities alongside things like Animal Fancy and Gourmet Dining.
Rossalyn Warren's iPhone
Buzzfeed
The company is releasing a major update to its 400,000-plus watches in the wild. It’s also selling its watches with retailers internationally.
Alissa Holland/flickr Editorial / Getty Images
With Apple unveiling a luxury-skewed smart watch, and Android releasing software to many manufacturers making their own smart watches, one startup, Pebble, is betting there's more than enough room for a third major manufacturer.
To that effect, Pebble — known for having a battery that lasts and a screen that's always on — is adding activity and sleep tracking as part of a software update to all of the more than 400,000 smart watches it has shipped. With today's update, Pebble owners will be able to track their activity — even swimming — and sleep using software created by other activity-tracking companies like Jawbone and Misfit. Overnight, what was once a smart watch with a portfolio of apps will also become an activity tracker, CEO Eric Migicovsky said.
"Apple is taking one smart watch strategy which revolves around the luxury angle, creating a really high-end quality product with good materials. I think they've made a very Apple-y stab at the problem," Migicovsky told BuzzFeed News. "I'm the first to admit it's a great-looking product, it's beautiful, I could see someone swapping out their Rolex. [Google's approach is] a little like strapping an Android phone to your wrist, they're still figuring out the use cases. We've been working on it for several years and we know what people do with smart watches, which is tell the time. We're the smart watch that's affordable that does the right things, it's not an overly complicated smart phone on your wrist, and it gets better over time."
Many wearable device creators are placing increased importance on sleep-tracking, as previously detailed by BuzzFeed News. Whole companies, like San Francisco-based startup Hello, are springing up with devices centered around sleep-tracking, and the addition to Pebble comes at a time when smart watches like the Apple Watch and Android Wear devices have batteries that need to be recharged every night. That makes them unreliable for sleep tracking, while the Pebble smart watch will only see a marginal reduction in battery — about a half day of its typical week-long battery, Migicovsky said.
Migicovsky said the addition of sleep tracking was partly inspired by his own odd sleeping hours, and tracking his sleep helped get him in the right mindset. Others have agreed: "Every day, it seems, there's a new study speaking to the irrefutable benefits of sleep on our health, our productivity, our creativity, and our decision-making ability," Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington told BuzzFeed News in an earlier interview.
Activity-tracking, too, has become a core part of most smart devices, including smartphones. Apple's latest operating system, iOS 8, includes a swath of software tools called HealthKit that help iPhone owners track their overall health and activity. Still, sleep-tracking is not something that appears included, and seems to otherwise be limited by the Apple Watch's requirement to be charged often. Pebble is opening up some of the watch to activity-tracker developers in order to run apps in the background, but anyone is actually able to develop apps for the watch — which has more than 4,000 apps available.
The company also said it would drop the price of its smart watch to $99 for the standard edition, and $199 for the higher-quality production Pebble Steel smart watch. That puts it at roughly one fourth of the cost of the Apple Watch at its lowest estimated price point, and cheaper than many Android Wear devices, while being compatible with most major smartphones instead of being dependent on a single operating system like iOS and Android.
Pebble also said it was rolling out to retailers internationally today as well. The company has shipped its smart watches to customers in more than 150 countries, and Migicovsky said adding the device to retailers is the best way to help it spread with word of mouth marketing from existing customers.
Historically, there has been room for a cheap option in the smartphone market, with cheaper Android phones helping Google capture a dominating share of the number of smartphones shipping with its operating system. Apple has traditionally been seen as a higher-priced, higher-end device — and that has continued with the Apple Watch, with luxury editions estimated to be priced in the thousands of dollars.
Buzzfeed
They also have a connection to Ryan Gosling.
This is Dave Hockey, his partner, Shawna Bigelow, and, in the middle, their sex doll Bianca.
Hockey, 59, and Bigelow, 47, have spent over £20,000 on sex dolls and claim the silicone models have made their love life better than ever.
The pair now have five, including a male doll called Terry.
Appearing on This Morning on Tuesday, Hockney said he initially "stumbled" across the dolls on the internet.
REX USA/Ken McKay/ITV / Rex
Now he and his partner take their dolls into the bedroom to engage in threesomes.
Hockey has made a documentary about his collection of dolls.
Bianca has even starred alongside Ryan Gosling in the 2007 film Lars and the Real Girl.
Speaking to hosts Phillip Schofield and Amanda Holden, the pair admitted there was sometimes jealously between them because of the dolls.
Describing how they deal with it, Bigelow revealed: "You've got to realise she [Bianca] is only a doll, that’s really not real...who has the perfect body?"
Buzzfeed
Socks are “making a move from commodity to fashion piece,” says market research group NPD Group. The foot garments now represent a $5.6 billion industry.
The big boom in men's fashion is happening in socks, according to market research firm NPD Group.
Sock sales grew by 2% into a $5.6 billion industry in the 12 months ending August 2014, outpacing growth in the $206.7 billion global apparel market, the firm said in a statement today. Men drove the trend, as "over the past year years, socks have become yet another outlet for expressing the extra splash of pattern and color they seek," said chief industry analyst Marshal Cohen.
Socks have become a way for men to express themselves in recent years though they might not yet be the "new 'necktie,'" as NPD suggested. The trend has given rise to multiple sock subscription services such as Foot Cardigan and Sock Panda, and Nordstrom sells socks that cost as much as $80 a pair. (That's for Alexander McQueen creations.) Retailers like J. Crew sell many of its men's socks for $14.50 to $35 a pair.
About 73% of men wear socks almost every day, versus 41% of women, NPD says. Men also tend to spend more on socks.
This represents a missed opportunity for the retail industry, Cohen says.
"Retailers and manufacturers should find ways to reinvigorate this category for women by setting a new fashion statement, one that treats socks as an accessory, something special, and not a basic commodity," he said. "If women will wear shorts with tights in colder weather and boots during warmer seasons, they will find more room for socks in their wardrobes."
Buzzfeed
What time is it? It’s crying time!
You go about life thinking everything's fine.
When suddenly you hear the much dreaded words...
"I can't give you what you want."
And so the tears begin.
You try to drown your sorrows with alcohol but soon realize that doesn't really work.
Buzzfeed
And lying to your parents about your secret-high-school boyfriend doesn’t count.
There's nothing wrong with telling a little white lie every now and then.
New Line Cinema / Via reactiongifs.us
Let's be real here: we're all guilty at some point in our lives of bending the truth.
Ha. Ya, right.
DreamWorks / Via persephonemagazine.com
Like that one time in high school when that party got really weird and you couldn't bring yourself to tell your parents what really went down?
Columbia Pictures / Via hakunaisland.tumblr.com
Or how about that time you sneaked the cutie from AP Chem into your house when no one was home?
You rebellious thang, you.
MTV / Via whatshouldtheatrecallme.tumblr.com
Buzzfeed
Buzzfeed
You know FALL is actually a very delicious time to eat things.
Pan-Seared Sausage With Lady Apples And Watercress
Corn And Sauteed Leek Pizza Boats
5-Ingredient Easy White Chicken Chili
Buzzfeed
They want their tea back, and they definitely don’t remember the Alamo.
We asked the BuzzFeed UK office to answer a few simple questions about American history.
It didn't go terribly well.
NBC / s3-ec.buzzfed.com
Correct answer: John Adams.
TCassidy / Getty Images / iStockphoto / BuzzFeed
Buzzfeed
These big rocks in the desert will blow your mind.
ULURU IS THE MOST AMAZING SIGHT IN AUSTRALIA!!!
Parks Australia
The spectacular shapes of Uluru and nearby Kata Tjuta are the culmination of geological events stretching hundreds of millions of years.
Archeological research suggests that there has been human settlement in the region for at least 22,000 years.
Uluru is the exposed tip of a huge vertical slab of rock that continues below the surface for up to 5km.
Buzzfeed
Go ahead and cheat on Dino Nuggets. You deserve it.
We all know that chicken tenders are precious.
NBC / Via dgloveraintnothingtofuckwith.tumblr.com
And that there's only one way to react when someone tries to take what's yours.
Lionsgate Television / Via welshlinguist.tumblr.com
Buzzfeed
BuzzFeed has an exclusive first look of the Emmy and Tony award winner as she rehearses for the New York premiere of I AM HARVEY MILK , co-starring lyricist and composer Andrew Lippa.
Timmy Blupe
Andrew Lippa's oratorio about the life of America's first openly gay politician to be elected to public office is finally making its way to New York, for one night only, at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. The piece, which premiered in July 2013 with the help of the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus, follows the life of Milk from childhood through his assassination. "Harvey Milk himself was a very uplifting hopeful, person. Leaping, trying something before you know what the end result is going to be. Moving, you might soar. It's great lesson for us all today," Chenoweth told BuzzFeed.
The production will feature Lippa in the title role along with Chenoweth and a chorus of over 125 singers. "I've now rehearsed it for several weeks and it still brings me to tears, and always in different spots," Chenoweth added of the show which benefits the Harvey Milk Arts Fund and includes a committee of stars supporting the production including Senators Tammy Baldwin and Kirsten Gillibrand as well as stars like Hugh Jackman, Julianne Moore, Jonathan Groff, and Alan Cumming. "I love that Harvey Milk single-handedly changed the gay community with his love and hope. And because of him, in his death, it was truly the beginning of change. And I'm proud Andrew chose to write about him."
Check out the exclusive clip of "Leap" here:
Buzzfeed
A roundup of recent favorites we’ve reviewed in the BuzzFeed Books newsletter .
Raymond Sultan / BuzzFeed
Harper Perennial
Jay Grabiec
Buzzfeed
Tasty, nutritious and ready in less than thirty minutes. As dinner should be.
Deena Shanker / BuzzFeed
Recipe by Deena Shanker
Serves 2 – 3
INGREDIENTS
4 bell peppers, any color, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 head of broccoli, cut into bite-sized florets
3 tablespoons of olive oil, divided
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup of uncooked brown jasmine rice
2 ¼ cups of vegetable stock (water is okay if you don't have stock)
½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon of parsley, chopped
PREPARATION
Preheat your oven to 450°F, and line two large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the chopped peppers and broccoli, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss everything together and then spread on the baking sheets.
Roast the vegetables for about 20 — 25 minutes. You want the broccoli to be slightly charred and the peppers to start to blacken around the edges.
Meanwhile, make your rice. In a large saucepan, heat the third tablespoon of olive oil and toast the uncooked rice for a minute. Add the vegetable stock and bring to a boil. (If you're using water, add some salt, too.) When it starts to boil, close the lid, turn down the heat to medium-low and simmer for about 20 – 30 minutes, or until all of the liquid is absorbed.
When the vegetables are done, add them to the rice, as well as the Parmesan and parsley. Stir it all together.
To serve, divide between 2 or 3 bowls, depending on how hungry you are. Garnish with extra parsley and/or Parmesan, if you want.
Deena Shanker / BuzzFeed
Buzzfeed
He has already apologized.
John Berman, host of This Hour somehow used the phrase "anyway you slice it" three times in 10 seconds while discussing the Oklahoma beheading:
Buzzfeed
Kids these days just don’t understand. All quotes overheard at the Harry Potter Studio Tour in Leavseden, England.
A mother to her tween son: "Shut the fuck up, Dumbledore's speaking."
holyhorcrux.tumblr.com / Via Warner Bros
Wife to her husband: "If we ever meet Gary Oldman, I'm playing the threeway card."
Warner Bros
College student: "What spell do you use so none of your dorm mates hear you masturbate furiously?"
Warner Bros
Mid 20's woman to her friend: "I would transfigure that into a dildo."
Buzzfeed
It will cut you deep.
The song is under Jaden's new pseudonym "Wilough" and samples Justin Timberlake's similarly-titled "Blue Ocean Floor".
"Man, I Met A Girl At Coachella/
I Like Her But You Know I Couldn't Tell Her/
Cause She Has Her Own Fella/
And I Met Her Own Fella/
He Told Ee He Was A Whole Seller/
And Flies Propellers/
And iI's Rainin' Umbrellas"
...
"He's The One With The Misfit Shirt With The Eyes
And Your Eyes Are Looking At Me With Such A Deep Surprise"
Buzzfeed
Mozzarella sticks? Oreo ice cream cones? Beer? AMERICA, GET ON THIS.
Bubblegum Squash McFlurry (Australia)
Don't freak out: There is no ACTUAL squash in this. It's blue bubble gum syrup and cute marshmallows mixed into the standard soft-serve.
Cono Oreo (Mexico)
OH MY GOD IT'S AN OREO CONE.
McPaneer (India)
Just one of McDonald's India's many vegetarian options, the McSpicy Paneer is a "burger" consisting of soft crispy coated paneer cheese, lettuce, and a tandoori mayonnaise.
Mozzarella Dippers (Britain)
That's right, British McD's has MOZZ STICKS. *organizes petition to bring these to America*
Buzzfeed
This isn’t real. It only feels like it’s real if you get email that’s in constant fake panic mode.
I'm sick.
I am literally sick with worry. This has been the single most difficult week of our entire lives. Democracy is dangling by Her fingertips.
Earlier today, [NAME], I emailed you with a message from the President. More than 8O,OOO people listened. Did you listen? I don't think you did.
And so I've been sitting here (I think I have a fever), thinking about this final FEC deadline. I am alone in the dark. (Okay, there's one light on.)
If we don't meet the deadline, then sure, the crust of the earth won't crack in half and send us all sliding into the horrible abyss. That would be a dramatic thing to say. But people like the Koch brothers, Karl Rove, and their cronies are going to be able to DESTROY Democrats with hundreds of millions of dollars in negative attacks like we've never seen before.
Am I angry? Not with you. But I am disappointed.
We have been trying so hard. Some nights I don't sleep. I am wracked with grief. And for what?
Do you think we want to put spaces between T H E L E T T E R S in our subject lines like we both have A P H A S I A, just so you open our emails at a H I G H E R F R E Q U E N C Y?
Do you think we like using capital o's instead of zeros to beg you for that last $5OO,OOO to stop John Boehner from impeaching Barack Obama?
Do you think we enjoy PLEADING with you?
We don't. We do this because this works. We do this because it's what you want based on our rigorous study of our open rates, click rates, and rate of return (we pull a lot of all-nighters for Democracy here at HQ). We have discovered the secret to fundraising through email and it's this. If I could cut my heart open to unlearn this secret, I would.
Because, unfortunately, it's not working on you. According to our records, it doesn't look like you've had a chance to reply to Our President's inspiring call-to-action yet. So, [NAME], let me ask you this:
Look — I'll be honest with you. No matter what I do, no matter what you do, no matter what basically anyone does — even though we've raised more money doing this than ever before, and I'm talking millions and millions of dollars from emails like these — the Democrats aren't getting the House of Representatives back this year.
Life is meaningless. But don't quit on us just yet.
24-HOUR DEADLINE: All Gifts Octo-Matched!
Chip in $5 immediately >>
Chip in $35 immediately >>
Chip in $50 immediately >>
Chip in $100 immediately >>
Chip in $250 immediately >>
Or click here to donate another amount.
Thanks,
Katherine
Sent from my iPhone
Buzzfeed
Show your hair some love with these easy as 1-2-3 styles.
Goddess Braid
Turn your braids into one mega braid. See the tutorial here.
Via youtube.com
Bow Locs
If you can make a ponytail, you'll have no problem creating this bow with an easy tutorial.
Via youtube.com
Twisted Updo
Go for an elegant updo thanks to this step-by-step guide from Jasmine Rose.
Via youtube.com
Side Swept Braids
Call it a bun or a pompadour, but it's an effortless 'do you can complete in minutes. See how here.
Via mercredie.com