Global Media News

Can a reality show that is banned on Iranian TV influence people in a negative way

As X Factor is taking over the world by storm and even visiting the United States last year for the first time. Many are enjoying the singers and the stars that become of it. But in one country in particular the show is banned and not even aired by the government on its networks.

According to Guardian.Co.Uk the Iranian version of XFactor, Googoosh Music Academy, which is is aired by Manoto TV transmitted from London. Manoto TV is a Persian -language entertainment channel that is based in London. Manoto TV is only available in Iran by using illegal satellite dishes that are installed on rooftops.

In the Dailymail.co.uk nearly 700,000 likes have hit the shows facebook page. Forums has been setup talking about the show. What has people in uproar discussion and arguments is the latest winner of Googoosh Music Academy, Ermia, a 31-year-old mother and wife from Iran. The talks are not the fact that she is a woman, but because she is a mother, wife, and most importantly is the fact she wore a hijab during her duration on the show. Many are now saying that the show is fraud and might have been rigged because she won.

In Iran there are religious restrictions and one in particular does not not allow a married woman to sing in public. But with Ermia recieving blessings from her husband to join the show she did it and won. The secular and ultra conservatives are both throwing stones at the show and at Ermia. One group stating she didnt cover enough, while another is saying are we going backwards to a time where women covered up everything in everywhere.

Ermia just wanted to sing and now she might have started something even deeper in Iran.

Visualizing The Medical Data Explosion

     Due to the many advances in science and technology there are becoming even more advances in medicine. From medical scans that can produce thousands of images and terabytes of data for a patient in little time, to virtual MRI’s, these advances have a tremendous impact on our medical future.

    In a TEDTalk entitled “Anders Ynnerman: Visualizing The Medical Data Explosion”, Swedish scientific visualization expert, Anders Ynnerman spoke about the effect visual graphics have on the medical field. According to TED, “Ynnerman studies the fundamental aspects of computer graphics and visualization, in particular large scale and complex data sets with a focus on volume rendering and multi-modal interaction”.  During the TEDTalk, Ynnerman spoke about a computer tomography machine that uses x-ray beams to generate information about the body. According to Ynnerman, “this machine can be used to improve healthcare…and looking at what we are doing today with the machines that we have, we can get in a few seconds about 24,000 images of the human body”.

    These medical scans produce thousands of images and data that can help individuals in the medical field in various ways. These advances in technology can help find a tumor on a patient, or it could even help with finding the cause of a patient’s death. Virtual autopsies allow the doctors to virtually go through the skin, flesh, and bones of a person’s body to see what is going on with them internally. These virtual autopsies could help distinguish metal artifacts in the body, damages in bone structure, bullet wounds, and knife stabbings.  This not only helps with distinguishing ones cause of death, it helps to direct the criminal investigation in the right direction.

    In the talk, Ynnerman then goes into more detail about advances that may come about in the future that will allow doctors and scientists to virtually touch data, and receive resistance and a feedback from what they touch. For example, a scientist would use their pen to virtually touch the heart and feel the heartbeat and how to heart valves are moving.

    Another way of the future that Ynnerman addressed is a functional MRI, which would allow doctors and scientists to measure the structure of the brain, and the difference in magnetic properties of oxygenated blood, and blood that is depleted. These advances will allow doctors to virtually visualize his brain in real time.

    Advances like these are truly a way of the future, and are extremely exciting to learn about because once these advances are widely implemented life would become so much easier for both doctors and patients. This is mainly because the doctors will have more access to beneficial information that could possibly save a patients life. 

Below is the TEDTalk on Anders Ynnerman that I watched: 

 

Is Wearable Computing the Future?

Recently, Google has come forward with an exciting new venture they call Project Glass.  While the project exploded when Google recently released a concept video of how the "Google goggles" might possibly work, New York Times reported back in February (despite lack of comment from a Google spokesperson) that Google was set to begin selling the revolutionary new headgear by the end of 2012.

Gaming Industry giant, Valve Software has recently caused quite a stir in gaming news by posting job listings for hardware engineers, stating that they are looking for individuals experienced in Hardware design, prototyping, testing, and production across a wide range of platforms." In light of the recent "Project Glass" news, it came as no surprise that when Michael Abrash, a game developer and representative from Steam, stated the slight possibility of a wearable gaming device a great deal of excitement was caused on gaming and technology forums across the net. 

Although Abrash has tried to keep the hype to a minimum by releasing this statement to The Verge, the concept of a wearable gaming device is still an exciting prospect; 

To be clear, this is R&D – it doesn’t in any way involve a product at this point, and won’t for a long while, if ever – so please, no rumors about Steam glasses being announced at E3. It’s an initial investigation into a very interesting and promising space, and falls more under the heading of research than development. The Valve approach is to do experiments and see what we learn – failure is fine, just so long as we can identify failure quickly, learn from it, and move on – and then apply it to the next experiment. The process is very fast-moving and iterative, and we’re just at the start. How far and where the investigation goes depends on what we learn.

Even if what Abrash says is true, and Valve never ends up monetizing on a wearable computing/gaming device, that fact that two major companies are currently working on a similar project makes this idea all the more plausible. Will wearable computing be the next big thing? If so, does this mean we will be just a little bit closer to taking the next big technological leap?

TV is now smart!

    Thanks to companies like Apple and Kindle, it is possible to have tablets that allow us to use apps and social media websites easily on an  everyday basis.  Besides the new Netflix app that has just recently been advertised for tablets such as the Ipad and now Kindle, your everyday television never had internet access.  Until Now.

    The brand new Samsung Smart TV has just reinvented  the use of the television.  First of all, it is very rare to find a TV that has built in WIFI to get internet access never mind built in apps like Facebook, Twitter, Skype and Netflix.  This new TV allows someone to use all these.  You can update your twitter while making a video call to your family in California!  Even the new remote is revolutionary. According to some Samsung employees;

"The new Samsung Smart Touch Control makes it even easier to navigate a world of Smart Content. With a fully functional touchpad, it allows you to control multiple services and devices together. It even has a built-in microphone that you can use to give your TV voice commands."

     Its pretty clear that the ability to use Facebook and watch TV at the same time on the same screen is pretty clear but that's only half the reason that this TV is smart.  You actually have the ability to you hands as the remote and by moving your hands you control the cursor.  Because of its dual core processor all of this is possible.  Check out this video from World Star Hip Hop and see for yourself just how amazing this TV really is. 

    This Samsung Smart is making some really big news across the country and pretty soon that will be the standard for all televisions.