elnathan Blog

Mac users steered to pricier hotels on Orbitz Published June 26, 2012 The Wall Street Journal Orbitz Worldwide has found that people who use Apple's Mac computers spend as much as 30 percent more a night on hotels, so the online travel agency is starting to show them different, and sometimes costlier, travel options than Windows visitors see. The Orbitz effort, which is in its early stages, demonstrates how tracking people's online activities can use even seemingly innocuous information -- in this case, the fact that customers are visiting Orbitz.com from a Mac -- to start predicting their tastes and spending habits. Orbitz executives confirmed that the company is experimenting with showing different hotel offers to Mac and PC visitors, but said the company is not showing the same room to different users at different prices. They also pointed out that users can opt to rank results by price. Orbitz ...

Common Memory Problems Solved By Hallie Levine Sklar Published June 26, 2012 Health.com So you keep misplacing your keys and walking into the living room without remembering why. That doesn't mean you've got early Alzheimer's: "Normal memory problems—like being a little forgetful—start as early as age 27," said Dr. Majid Fotuhi, chairman of the Neurology Institute for Brain Health and Fitness in Baltimore and author of The Memory Cure. Luckily, your memory is like a muscle, Fotuhi says—you can exercise it and improve it at any age. Here are some smart moves to help you do just that. Problem #1: Stress The lowdown: "In our fast-paced, wired world, many of us live our lives in chronic stress," said Dr. Gary Small, director of the UCLA Longevity Center and author of The Alzheimer's Prevention Program. That means we're perpetually bathing our brains in stress hormones like corti...

Dangerous business: Libya, UAE, Indonesia and more sell wares at military tech event By Allison Barrie War Games Military supply companies from Russia, China, UAE, Indonesia, Korea, and Libya showed off tanks, missiles and other weapons in Paris at Eurosatory 2012, the largest international military technology show focused on land warfare. At the event, 53 countries were represented by more than 1,400 exhibitors for the 55,000 visitors, the United States leading with 158 companies. But a surprising trend was evident: This year, the number of companies from non-Western countries that showed off new weaponry boomed -- especially Russia and China. Indeed, three new countries were on display at the Eurosatory 2012 show from June 10 to 15: Pakistan, Cyprus and Libya all had companies with booths showing guns, vehicles and more. There were thirty-four national pavilions with Indonesia, South Korea, Pakistan, Turkey and UAE presenting national pavilions for the first time and reportedly mo...

10 Personal Finance Tools That'll Put You in Control of Your Money By U.S. News Posted 3:52PM 06/20/12 Posted under: Personal Finance By Kimberly Palmer A few years ago, Trevor Flannigan decided to start managing his budget using the online tool Mint.com. The 20-something suspected he could be spending less money each month , but he needed help organizing his various credit, debit, and other bank accounts . So he entered his nine accounts into the website and started tracking how much he spent. The website now warns him when he approaches the limit of his monthly budget in different categories, such as eating out. "When I see I already spent x amount of dollars, I say, 'It looks like I'm having soup for the last week of the month,'" says Flannigan. Flannigan is among the thousands of consumers who have incorporated online per...

Solved: Why email scammers say they're from Nigeria By Claire Connelly Published June 21, 2012 news.com.au AP You've seen the email. A terminally ill Nigerian prince or director of a massive corporation contacts you urgently asking you to move a large sum of money, promising you can keep a share. All you need to do is provide your credit card number and banking PIN. It looks like a scam, sounds like a scam -- it is a scam. But who on earth actually believes these things? If you've ever wondered why these scams are so blatant, here’s why If you, like thousands of others, were just too smart for your attacker and saw through the tricky plot - it simply means that you were never the target anyway. 'Far-fetched tales of West African riches strike [people] as comical.' - Principal researcher Cormac Herley A recent study found that email scammers really aren't interested in a...

Microsoft's new tablet: the great copier surfaces again. By John R. Quain Does the world really need another tablet? Microsoft finally revealed this week that it will introduce its own tablet called Surface . The Microsoft tablet -- still in prototype form only -- looks sleek and slick with a built-in stand and a thin cover that doubles as a keyboard. It won't go on sale until the fall when the next version of the company's operating system, Windows 8, is set to debut. Pricing also has yet to be determined (translation: don't expect it to undercut the iPad). The market may not need a Windows tablet, but Microsoft desperately does. The company has been steadily -- some might say, inexorably...

Foods not to ditch when you diet By Rachel Meltzer Warren Published June 15, 2012 Prevention Magazine iStock How Your Favorite Foods Can Help You Lose You want to shed some pounds, and immediately your personal list of no-no's grows. No bread or potatoes—too many carbs. No chocolate—too fattening. Sound familiar? Diets don't have to be so strict: In fact, forbidding certain foods can backfire, said Milton Stokes, a Connecticut-based dietitian. "Thanks to fad diets that aren't based in solid science, I often see clients avoiding foods that would help them control overeating or fight belly fat and ultimately lose weight," Stokes said. "Worse still, having an off-limits list is like stuffing your cravings into a plastic bag. Eventually it's going to burst open, unleashing all your food urges at once, which leads to bingeing." The rea...

            Cardiovascular Activity The ideal: Do 30 minutes most days of the week. The surgeon general advises this near-daily regimen will help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol, raise HDL (good) cholesterol, and improve cardio health, reducing the risk for diabetes and heart disease. The next best thing: Take three 10-minute walks each day. Short bursts have real health benefits, says Cris Slentz, Ph.D., a senior research scientist at Duke University Medical Center, in Durham, North Carolina. Assuming the intensity is identical to that of a 30-minute workout, you’ll burn the same number of calories and get the heart-health benefits. A few ideas: • Devote 10 minutes of your lunch hour to a brisk walk. • Climb a few flights of stairs several times a day instead of using the elevator. • Offer to take a friend’s (energetic) dog for a walk.            Fresh Fruits and Vegetables The ideal: H...