electrons

Cassettes' indie-tronic sound features deft interplay between pianos, guitars, and synths--which is either more or less impressive when you find out it's all just one dude. Regardless, this is a distinctly modern thing, echoing in the freshness of its approach.

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Water running down the drain backwards isn't necessarily a satanic omen, you could just be in the land of Muscles--the wacky Southern hemisphere where strange animals abound and gospel meets techno. Melbourne artist Muscles delights in fusing neo-soul-inspired techno with an eccentric taste for dance music.

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Check out Google CEO Eric Schmidt's keynote presentation at the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society conference (see the video below). He makes the argument for Google harnessing its search platform for dealing with the major inefficiencies and ills of the healthcare system.

The first principle, "It's the consumers data," Schmidt said. "Users can access the data and can control who can see it." And, because the data is in the cloud, it can be accessed anytime, anywhere.

With both Google and Microsoft, with its HealthVault, investing heavily in gaining converts to their respective … Read more

Samsung is back trying to reinvent the wheel once again, this time with a pair of 3D plasma TVs in 42- and 50-inch screen sizes. The results of a collaboration with Electronics Arts, these new panels are designed to deliver a high-end gaming experience with a staggering 1,000,000:1 contrast, according to Akihabara News--a level claimed by only one other set, Sony's petite OLED TV. Hype aside, these will ship with the usual icings such as HDMI 1.3 and USB terminals, as well as Samsung's proprietary DNIE+ video-processing engine.

(Source: Crave Asia)

Electronic Arts is not alone in its interest in buying Grand Theft Auto publisher Take-Two, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal (subscription required to read entire article).

SEC filings show that Take-Two says it has received other offers, but has spurned those as well as the original $2 billion offer EA made last Friday and announced last Sunday, the Journal reports.

EA issued a public statement on Sunday saying it had made an earlier offer to Take-Two that was rejected and that it was boosting the per-share price it was willing to pay to make the deal … Read more

Chord Electronics aren't exactly a household brand name, but the company has a strong presence in the pro sound field. The British company's electronics have been used at George Lucas' Skywalker Sound, BBC, Abbey Road, Sony NY, Decca, Quad, Dolby Labs, Toshiba-EMI Japan, MCA Studios, CBC, and The Royal Opera House London.

But that's not to say Chord doesn't also cater to the consumer high-end market. The CPA 3000 preamplifier and SPM 1050 power amplifier are the latest designs. When I was an audio salesman I sold Chord and I can tell you that even before … Read more

What WAW lack in originality--another lupine name, another Gang of Four sound--they make up for in execution. Post-punk's polyrhythmic slams and torqued guitars sound fresh again (and again) in the trio's abuzz production, blues-driven songwriting, and sheer belief in the cause.

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Imagine the game industry dominated by two giants.

That's what could happen if Electronic Arts succeeds in its $2 billion attempt to grab Grand Theft Auto publisher Take-Two Interactive and Activision's planned merger with Blizzard goes through.

As in so many other industries, an EA/Take-Two merger would indicate massive consolidation, especially in the wake of the December announcement that media giant Vivendi was buying Activision to become Activision Blizzard. But gamers probably shouldn't worry that an industry pyramid dominated by EA and Activision will mean less innovation.

After all, even with a wide gap between the … Read more