Microsoft Xbox 360 Premium Edition System, Game Console

You’ve all seen the outrageous technical capabilities, amazing pictures, fabulous game line-ups, etc. But there is something no one is talking about – The numbers of Xboxes to be released in North America is being dropped from 1 Million to around four hundred thousand. Don’t take my work for it, got to Google and type in “Xbox 360” and check out the news. Here are some excerpts: 1) Xbox Circle: “Microsoft has revised the allocation of Xbox 360 launch units to 400,000 for North America according to an EB Games employee. That number is under 50% of the 1 million units expected at the launch window and much graver than recent estimates. The EB Games employee, who works out of the brick and mortar retail shop in Southern California, said the store will be able to fulfill only 14 of 43 pre-orders. Another shipment is expected to arrive before Christmas, however the employee did not see entire fulfillment of pre-orders until March of next year.” 2) CNN/Money: "...He (Mr.McNealy) expects Microsoft to send roughly 900,000 to 1 million units to North American retailers ... Mr. Cooper's prediction is more dire, saying there will only be between 300,000 and 350,000 units available in the U.S. on Nov. 22..." 3) Punch Jump: “A local Game Rush store in Southern California will receive 10 Xbox 360 premium edition units and does not expect any further stock. Retail chain Toys R Us will receive as few as 12 units per store.” In short there is a good chance that some of the Xboxes being offered for sale won’t be available on the 22nd of November, and may not be available before Christmas. My advice is to wait until the 22nd and then buy. After the 22nd sellers will know how many units are available. Sure the prices might be higher, but at least you won’t have a holiday nightmare on your hands; “How do I get the six, seven or eight hundred plus dollars back that I spent on an Xbox 360 that won’t ship until March 2006 so I can buy something else for Christmas.” Just thought you should know.

Total Lunar Eclipse

Times and Phases of the Total Lunar Eclipse of August 28, 2007
From start to finish, August's lunar eclipse lasts about three hours and thirty-three minutes (not including the penumbral phases which are very difficult to see). The partial eclipse begins as the Moon's eastern edge slowly moves into the Earth's umbral shadow. During the partial phases, it takes just over an hour for the Moon's orbital motion to carry it entirely within the Earth's dark umbra. The color and brightness of the totally eclipsed Moon can vary considerably from one eclipse to another. Dark eclipses are caused by volcanic gas and dust which filters and blocks much of the Sun's light from reaching the Moon. But since no major volcanic eruptions have taken place recently, the Moon will probably take on a vivid red or orange color during the total phase. After the total phase ends, it is once again followed by a partial eclipse as the Moon gradually leaves the umbral shadow.
The total phase of a lunar eclipse is called totality. At this time, the Moon is completely immersed within the Earth's dark umbral shadow. During the August 28 eclipse totality will last 90 minutes. This is less that the maximum possible duration of 107 minutes (see: Total Lunar Eclipse of July 16, 2000).
The major phases of the eclipse occur as follows (all times are GMT or Greenwich Mean Time). The partial eclipse commences with first umbral contact at 08:14 GMT. Totality begins at 09:52 GMT and lasts until 11:22 GMT. The partial phases end at 12:23 GMT. Eclipse times for time zones in the United States and Canada are shown in the following table.

Ryan Sheckler

Sheckler was born in San Clemente, California to Randy and Gretchen Sheckler. He has two brothers Shane and Kane. At the age of 18 months, Sheckler found his dad's old school skateboard. Sheckler taught himself to push it around by using one knee, and eventually stood up on the skateboard. Since the age of 6, he spent up to 22 hours a week practicing tricks in his backyard - which includes a half pipe, table tops and several grind rails. He developed his own trick called the Sheck-lair - an indy kickflip flyout. [1] He turned professional in 2003 after winning in the X Games, Gravity Games, Vans Triple Crown and Slam City Jam. [2]

Presidential Succession

Russia: Ghosts Of 1999 Haunt Presidential Succession By Brian Whitmore
Boris Yeltsin thanks Vladimir Putin for his services
(TASS)
August 9, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- It was the summer of 1999, and Boris Yeltsin's boozy and tumultuous presidency was drawing to a close.
Prosecutors were investigating Yeltsin's cronies -- and even members of his immediate family -- for graft. Russia was reeling from an economic crisis. Voters were in an angry and surly mood. And elections were looming. Such was the atmosphere when Yeltsin went on television eight years ago this week, on the morning of August 9, 1999, to tell the country that he was firing his government -- for the third time in less than a year. Yeltsin replaced his prime minister, Sergei Stepashin, with Federal Security Service (FSB) head Vladimir Putin. The president then shocked Russians -- and much of the world -- by anointing the dour and obscure former KGB officer Putin as his chosen heir. Putin's unlikely ascent followed months of chaos, turmoil, and uncertainty as rival clans ruthlessly battled to control Russia's first post-Soviet transition of power. And the events surrounding his meteoric rise in 1999 proved decisive. It was at this time when Russia's clumsy, fleeting, halting, and tentative experiment with Western-style liberal democracy ended. New Game, New Rules
It was also when the new rules of the game -- the ones Russia's political elite plays by today -- were established: outgoing presidents name their successors, the bureaucracy is expected to march in lockstep to support the heir to the throne, and the Kremlin will use any and all means necessary, no matter how brutal, to get its way. The Yeltsin-Putin succession and its aftermath also provides a lesson that is haunting Russia's current political elite. Once they are embedded in the Kremlin, Russian presidents become virtually all powerful and are impossible to control -- even by the patrons who orchestrated their rise to power. "The Russian presidency is so strong according to our archaic constitution that it is impossible to trust anybody with it," says Moscow-based political analyst Vladimir Pribylovsky. "It is dangerous. It turns a person practically into a Tsar. This is dangerous even for a short term."
In Focus: Dark Horses Emerge In Presidential Transition
Putin said at the time that he hadn't planned to run for president, but added that he was accustomed to following the president's orders -- and would obey this one as well. "Sergei Vadimovich [Stepashin] and I are military men. The president has made a decision, and we will carry it out," Putin said.
Months later, on March 26, 2000, Russian voters would make Putin their president in an election that looked more like a coronation. Putin is widely expected to be able to anoint any successor he so chooses. According to recent polls, a startling 40 percent of Russian voters are prepared to cast ballots for Putin's chosen candidate in next March's election -- regardless of who that person is. A More Popular Spymaster
When the deeply unpopular Yeltsin anointed Putin his heir eight years ago, however, it looked like the longest of long shots. In August 1999, the most popular Russian politician was a steely former spymaster who talked about cleaning up graft, punishing the corrupt, and restoring Russia's lost pride. That savior's name, however, wasn't Putin. It was Yevgeny Primakov, who served as Yeltsin's prime minister from September 1998 until he was fired in May 1999.
Primakov had teamed up with Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov and other regional leaders under the banner of the newly formed political party Fatherland-All Russia. The alliance appeared to have all the elements for political success -- a popular leader and a nationwide political machine that could deliver votes on election day.

Britney Spears goes out with no pants on

Britney Spears is the hotest news today also. here is one sample


Britney Spears goes out with no pants on
Atlanta, GA, USA8/30/2007 3:03 PM GMT (FINDITT)
Among reports of Britney Spears making a musical comeback, comes shocking reports of the troubled singer going out not wearing any pants.
Spears has been photographed numerous times scantily clad, but this time she is apparently wearing only a top and a pair of boots.

The ‘Toxic’ singer has displayed erratic behavior over the past year including shaving her head, a topless romp in the pool with a college student, asking a dentist to whiten her toddlers teeth and leaving interviews in tears. She is currently in a messy custody battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline. The pair share joint custody of their two sons, but Federline is seeking primary custody saying Spears puts the young boys in unnecessary danger.

Spears is also being investigated for child abuse on allegations that she neglects her sons. The boys reportedly do not have good dental hygiene, eating or sleeping habits.

Meanwhile, Spears is working on a musical comeback. Her first single since ‘Toxic’ will reportedly be released to radio stations next week. The single, titled ‘Gimme More,’ is said to have a “new funky dance sound.”

“People are going to love this new track,” a source said.

www.finditt.com

Are Your Teens Getting Junk Sleep?

I think we all know the kind of sleep you get when you decide to go to bed with a TV blaring. It's not good. But I like the name The Sleep Council in Britain gives to the kind of sleep teens get when they go to sleep watching TV, listening to music, or using other electronic gadgets: "junk sleep."
A poll of 1,000 kids, ages 12 to 16, found that 30 percent go on four to seven hours of sleep a night, far from the recommended eight or nine or more that teens often get when they can. As Reuters reports, nearly all of the teenagers surveyed had a phone, music system, or TV in their bedroom and two-thirds of them had all three. What, no PC, too? A 2005 Pew Internet & American Life project study found that 26 percent of U.S. teens spent time online in their bedrooms, and that's two years ago.
As Helene Emsellem, a sleep physician, told the NPR's Allison Aubrey, "As we have more and more ways to stay connected at night, we've seen an exaggeration of the night-owlism in teenagers." Research shows that teens' internal clocks shift toward much later sleep times, and tech that keeps teens engaged and not relaxed doesn't help—especially when they have to get up early for school.
Check out Emsellem's recommendations to help teens sleep better in the article. (Link below) For starters, she tells parents to take TVs out of teens' bedrooms, enforce turn-off times on PCs and phones—every tech gadget except music players. Ensellem encourages teens to listen to music at night—but tune into a soothing playlist, on low volume, that helps them relax and go to sleep.
If you've got more tips to help kids de-tech at the end of the day and get the sleep they need, please post them below.
LINKS: "Junk sleep" damaging teenagers' health [Reuters via Yahoo! News]Helping teens make peace with sleep [NPR]