Wozniak to be neutered in attempt to curtail chronic buffoonery

Cupertino, CA — Heeding a chorus of demands from friends, family and colleagues, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak will soon attempt to stop embarrassing himself.

He will be neutered Thursday, July 1st, at Stanford Medical Center.

“Really, there are only two options for a condition such as Mr. Wozniak’s,” explains Dr. Gurtaj Sukhija, chief surgeon on Team Woz. “You can attack the brain, an undertaking fraught with complications — or you can aim a bit lower.”

The Woz has built a portfolio of embarrassing moments leading up to his decision to seek treatment (click to enlarge)

While neutering is a behavior-altering staple in veterinary medicine, it is less commonly used in the treatment of humans. However, Mr. Wozniak’s condition has deteriorated markedly in recent years.

According to sources, it was Woz’s appearance on Dancing With The Stars that got the ball rolling. “That was the real wake-up call,” says one of Woz’s inner cricle. “He’d embarrassed himself often before, but never in front of so many millions of people — and never so proudly.”

Indeed, it was the increasing brazenness of Wozniak’s lapses that got his associates talking about an intervention.

“If we tried hard enough, we could laugh off Segway polo matches, camping out at Apple Stores, titling the book iWoz when he had zero involvement with i-anything,” says a colleague. “But the Argentine Tango — I still have the nightmares.”

Woz himself is surprisingly upbeat about the pending procedure. “The way I look at it, this is just a great opportunity to try out some really cool technology. As a bonus, I’ll wake up a new man.”

A bit less of a man, perhaps, but hopefully a new one too.

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Wozniak to be neutered in attempt to curtail chronic buffoonery

Apple introduces iHand: the right way to hold your iPhone

Cupertino, CA — Ladies and gentlemen, a big hand for iPhone. Literally.

Responding to complaints that the new iPhone 4 loses signal when held by a human hand, Apple today launched iHand — a synthetic appendage that makes it easy for anyone to “get a grip” on iPhone and remain connected.

iHand is so easy to use, it doesn’t require a manual. Simply insert iPhone 4 into iHand’s adjustable fingers, raise it to your ear and start talking. With iHand, you get all the functionality of the human hand, without the signal-sucking biology that encumbers most iPhone owners.

“If you’re serious about using iPhone, there’s a right way and wrong way to hold it,” Apple explains in its press release. “iHand guarantees the proper grip first time, every time.”

Featuring Apple’s unibody design, iHand is precision-carved from a single piece of European beechwood. So it’s lighter than a standard medical prosthesis, yet 12x stronger. You can grip iHand either of two ways: by placing your fingers around its palm, or by grasping the aluminized Extender that telescopes from the wrist socket.

iHand’s built-in Extender provides the perfect reach

The Extender adds up to 24 inches of reach, allowing the user’s biological hand to be positioned anywhere between ear and waist for maximum comfort. You can even use the Extender to hold your iPhone up to a friend’s or colleague’s ear.

iHand is available through the Apple Store for $69, and comes in ten popular pigmentations. Third-party “skins” for iHand offering additional colorings, beauty marks, scars and a “hairy hand” option will be available by the end of July.

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Apple introduces iHand: the right way to hold your iPhone

AARP RATES BOQUETE PANAMA IN THE TOP 5 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE ABROAD

Tuesday July 26, 2010
Written by Laurie Bella
AARP The Magazine

AARP The Magazine Travels the Globe to Reveal the Top 5 Best Places to Retire Abroad

1.  MEXICO—Puerto Vallarta

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico is the undisputed number one destination for American retirees.  With its rich Indian and Spanish culture, lavish beaches and affordable real-estate, Puerto Vallarta offers the low-cost, laid back lifestyle retirees seek to find in a community.

Some Reasons we love it:

• Climate: Winters—sunny, pleasantly warm; summers—rainy, humid hot
• Expat Community: Estimated at 50,000 American retirees
• Access to the U.S.: Excellent

2.  FRANCE—Languedoc-Roussillon

Once remote, the Languedoc-Roussillon region is now just three hours from the bright lights and bustling energy of Paris via high-speed train.  The area is steeped in history and art.  Languedoc-Roussillon is also a destination for the outdoor crowd with picturesque hills and beach along its Mediterranean seashore.

Some Reasons we love it:

• Climate: Mediterranean—hot and dry summers; cool winters
• Cost of Living: Not cheap, but a comfortably frugal life can be had for $30,000 a year
• Heath Care: Excellent.  French health care has been named the best in the world by the World Health Organization

3.  PANAMA—Boquete

Panama is a smart choice for retirees who want it all.  Not only does it feature attractive retiree destinations, Panama also offers an unbeatable package of retiree benefits and discounts. Boquete has a unique range of back-home amenities, from a golf course to high-end gated communities.

Some Reasons we love it:

• Expat Community: An estimated several thousand
• Housing Costs: A small house goes for $175,000; in a gated community, $250,000 and up.  Rentals: about $600 a month for a two bedroom house
• Culture and Leisure: Rainforest hiking, river rafting, bird watching and coffee plantation tours keep Panama a bustling location for leisure

4.  PORTUGAL—Cascais

Many wonder why Portugal has long been overlooked by American retirees.  A plentitude of golf, beaches, resorts and trendy cafe life makes Portugal one of Europe’s most pleasant surprises for retirees.

Some Reasons we love it:

• Cost of Living: A comfortable life can be had on $25,000 a year
• Health Care: Good.  Nearby hospitals include the well-regarded British Hospital in Lisbon
• Access to the U.S.: Excellent.  Direct flights to-and-from the U.S. fly out of Lisbon

5.  ITALY—Le Marche

Le Marche, bordering the Adriatic, is beautiful region with vineyards, snow-capped mountains and beaches a plenty.  It also prides itself on the best fish dishes in the country and is trendy enough to have snagged Dustin Hoffman as a tourism spokesperson!

Some Reasons we love it:

• Climate: Mostly sunny
• Expat Community: Relatively few; an international mix
• Culture and Leisure: An incomparable mix of open-air opera festivals, Renaissance painting and architecture, wine tasting and nature reserves

Plus:  To avoid red tape, culture shock and language barriers, AARP The Magazine shares seven questions future retirees MUST ASK THEMSELVES before starting the exciting process of retiring abroad.   And visit www.aarp.org/magazine to check out our five “additional” affordable, fun places to live the good life, plus FAQs and a resource guide.

For more information and an extended list of AARP The Magazine’s “Best Places to Retire Abroad,” visit www.aarp.org.

About AARP The Magazine

With more than 35.1 million readers nationwide, AARP The Magazine (http://www.aarp.org/magazine) is the world’s largest circulation magazine and the definitive lifestyle publication for Americans 50+. Reaching over 23.5 million households, AARP The Magazine delivers comprehensive content through in-depth celebrity interviews, health and fitness features, consumer interest information and tips, book and movie reviews and financial guidance. Published bimonthly in print and continually online, AARP The Magazine was founded in 1958 and is the flagship title of AARP Publications.

About AARP

AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization that helps people 50+ have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial and affordable to them and society as a whole. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to either political campaigns or candidates. We produce AARP The Magazine, the definitive voice for 50+ Americans and the world’s largest-circulation magazine with over 35.1 million readers; AARP Bulletin, the go-to news source for AARP’s millions of members and Americans 50+; AARP VIVA, the only bilingual U.S. publication dedicated exclusively to the 50+ Hispanic community; and our website, AARP.org. AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity that provides security, protection, and empowerment to older persons in need with support from thousands of volunteers, donors, and sponsors. We have staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

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Photo credit: Matt Coats

Boquete Panama Geisha coffee sells for a whopping $170.20 per pound

May 25, 2010
Boquete, Panama
Reuters

Panama’s coveted geisha coffee, often described as the champagne of coffee for its subtle jasmine-like flavors, broke an auction record on Tuesday, selling for $170.20 a pound.

The winning lot, sold at an online auction, was from the Hacienda La Esmeralda farm known as the prime grower of the coveted beans. It was bought by Japanese bidder Saza Coffee for more than 100 times the average coffee price, now hovering around $1.30 a pound on New York futures markets.

Enthusiastic Japanese buyers have fueled most of the new demand for Central America’s highest-end coffee as U.S. buyers, more frugal after the financial crisis, have shied away from expensive coffee-shop drinks in favor of brewing at home.

But the record price for 400 pounds of geisha coffee — a total of $68,080 — still surprised the farm owners.

“We were not expecting this at all this year,” said Daniel Peterson of the family-owned La Esmeralda finca, high in the western mountains of Panama. In 2007 the farm sold its prized coffee for $130 a pound, setting an earlier record.

Geisha coffee trees are a rare variety with Ethiopian heritage brought to Panama in 1963 from Costa Rica.

The coffee was sold on the Stoneworks coffee auction platform as part of an offering of some of Panama’s highest-rated beans from this season’s harvest.

Last week, a La Esmeralda-exclusive auction netted between $20 to $36.50 a pound but Peterson said the farm’s best was reserved for Tuesday’s auction.

“It was our best coffee of the year,” Peterson said.

(Reporting by Sean Mattson; Editing by David Gregorio

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Specialty Coffee Association of America Awards 2010 Coffees of the Year

Roasters Guild Coffees of the Year Competition Identifies Some of the World’s Best Coffees

April 23, 2010
LONG BEACH, California
Specialty Coffee Association of America

The Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) awarded nine specialty coffees with the “Coffees of the Year” title at its 2010 Roasters Guild Coffees of the Year Competition, which was held at SCAA’s 22nd Annual Exposition & Symposium, April 16 – 18, 2010 in Anaheim, Calif.  SCAA cupped, evaluated and ranked some of the finest specialty coffees from a geographically diverse range of coffee producers, and nine distinct coffees were selected as the leaders of this prestigious competition. SCAA is the world’s coffee authority and largest coffee trade association.

SCAA’s 2010 Roasters Guild Coffees of the Year Competition winners include (each are classified as Best of Origin for their country):

Coffee Producer: Carlos Imbachi
Farm Name: Buenavista
Country: Colombia
Region: San Agustin, Huila
Score: 90.5

Coffee Producer: Juan Carlos and Gregg Meza
Farm Name: El Recuerdo
Country: El Salvador
Region: Apaneca/Ilamatapeq Mountain Range
Score: 87.375

Coffee Producer: Ricardo Zelaya
Farm Name: Puerta Verde
Country: Guatemala
Region: Antigua Guatemala, Sacatepequez
Score: 89.625

Coffee Producer: Fabio A. Caballero
Farm Name: La Isabela
Country: Honduras
Region: Mogola / Marcala / La Paz
Score: 89.313

Coffee Producer: Gikanda Farmers Co-Operative Society
Farm Name: Gichathaini
Country: Kenya
Region: Nyeri
Score: 89.222

Coffee Producer: Luis Alberto Balladarez
Farm Name: Un Regalo de Dios
Country: Nicaragua
Region: Mozonte/Nueva Segovia
Score: 85.558

Coffee Producer: Peterson family
Farm Name: Hacienda La Esmeralda
Country: Panama
Region: Boquete
Score: 89.125

Coffee Producer: Wilson Sucaticona Larico
Farm Name: Tunki
Country: Peru
Region: Puno
Score: 89.2

Coffee Producer: Will and Grace Tabios
Farm Name: The Rising Sun
Country: USA/Hawaii
Region: Ka’u
Score: 87.563

In addition to the nine winners, Wilson Sucaticona Larico, of the coffee farm Tunki in Peru, was presented with the People’s Choice Award. The People’s Choice Award was determined after SCAA Exposition attendees tasted and voted upon the nine winners of the 2010 Roasters Guild Coffees of the Year Competition.

About the Competition

For the competition, more than 130 specialty coffee submissions, representing 22 countries, competed in the prestigious annual event to be recognized as the best specialty coffees from around the globe from the 2009/2010 crop. More than 30 experienced judges choose the winning coffees by cupping or thoroughly evaluating the sensory attributes of each coffee sample entered in the competition. The judges specifically assessed six distinct qualities of the coffee samples, including: fragrance, aroma, taste, flavor, aftertaste and body.

Cupping is a systematic method of evaluating the aroma and taste of coffee and is used by growers, buyers and roasters to assess the quality and flavor profile of coffee. To properly gauge the taste of the samples, the judges swished and swirled a soupspoon-sized portion of brewed coffee evenly over their palate. By saturating as many sensory nerves as possible, cupping judges are able to better analyze the coffee samples.

Coffee is graded on a scale of one to 100. In order to be considered a specialty grade coffee, the coffee must score at least 80 points. Only coffees scoring 84 points or higher are eligible to compete in the Coffees of the Year Competition. Once qualified, the coffees are vetted by Q-Graders, professionally accredited coffee graders and cuppers, and other experts.

The Roasters Guild is a trade guild of the Specialty Coffee Association of America that consists of specialty roasters dedicated to the craft of roasting quality coffee. The Roasters Guild is just one of two trade guilds within the Specialty Coffee Association of America. One guild is for coffee roasters and the other is for baristas. Through collaboration, professional certification and training opportunities, the members of the Roasters Guild and the Barista Guild of America are able to hone their skills and gain a deeper understanding of their professions.

About SCAA

For more than a quarter of a century, the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) has offered its members education, training, resources and business services. It is the world’s largest coffee trade association, with members representing more than 40 countries and every segment of the specialty coffee industry, from growers to roasters and retailers. The SCAA has also been at the forefront of developing and promoting specialty coffee, and is committed to meeting the challenges of a rapidly changing industry by setting and maintaining standards, expanding professional certification programs, conducting industry-specific research, and providing even more opportunities to connect, exchange, and work together so our industry continues to thrive.

photo credit: nate steiner

Panama vs. Costa Rica: The Bean

April 8, 2010
Posted by adena

I sip tea more often than coffee, and not because I am taming a caffeine addiction – I’m simply picky.  It’s hard to find the good stuff.  I’m not seeking it for a jump-start to my morning, for that, I’m sure Folger’s could incite a heart attack.  I’m looking for a dark afternoon dream…something that I found while traveling to Central America.

Costa Rican coffee is more widely known than Panamanian.  Coffee has been Costa Rica’s number number 1 cash crop for decades, and it has been grown in the region since the 1700’s.  There was a law passed that requires that every Costa Rican employee is entitled to one free cup of coffee per day.

Coffee plantations are more prevalent in the north of the country, near the volcano and in the hills surrounding San Jose.  Though the plantations are a major source of income for the country, and employ a large percentage of the population, the industry is certainly not without it’s negative effects on the environment.  Everything is better in moderation.

The coffee itself though is strong and dark.  Even the ‘cheap stuff’ that you’ll find in the grocery store and at the complimentary hotel breakfasts is wonderful – as long as it says ‘100% pura’ on the package, you’re golden.

Though coffee growing has a long history in Costa Rica and even Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, Panama had been left out of the equation until recent years.  Now Panama brings some of the best cup of joe to high level competition.  Crisp, light and floral is how Panama likes it’s coffee.  Most of the plantations are located around Volcan Baru and Boquete in northern Panama. This type of coffee is known as the Geisha variety, sought after by high bidders in the industry.

I brought some of both back, organic and rain forest friendly…and maybe after all of this i shouldn’t tell you that my preferred sweetener is Vermont maple syrup. Up here in Vermont, it’s all I can do to get the best of both worlds.

Read original article here…

AAC to award Enrique Malek (David, Panama) airport expansion tender by April 9

Wednesday, April 7, 2010 16:28
By Business News Americas

Panama’s civil aviation authority (AAC) will award the tender to expand the Enrique Malek airport, in Chiriquí province capital David, by the end of this week, an official from AAC told BNamericas.

A total of nine firms presented technical and financial proposals for the tender, which was launched on March 24 with an estimated US$30mn price-tag.

An evaluating committee is currently studying the proposals and verifying the documentation, the official said. Authorities will award the tender based on the lowest financial bid, as well as the firms’ technical qualifications.

The lowest bid was made by an Argentine construction firm Riva, with US$27.4mn, said the official.

Other companies that presented bids were local firms Cedeño & Cedeño, PBSJ, Constructora Urbana (Cusa), Constructora Corcione, MCM Global, Colombian firm Conalvías, Costa Rican construction firm Meco, and a Panamanian-Puerto Rican consortium Omega Engineering.

The expansion project involves the design and construction of the airport’s runway, customs area and passenger terminals. The runway will be expanded from the current 2,100m to 2,600m.

“The company has to start construction 30 days after the order to start work is given,” the official said, adding that works are scheduled to finish 18 months after the start date.

Once the expansion is completed, AAC expects to handle 1,000 arrivals and departures each day.

Read original article here…
photo credit: lrargerich

Over 18 firms interested in US$100mn David-Boquete highway tender

Wednesday, April 7, 2010 12:07
By Business News Americas

More than 18 local and international firms have expressed interest in the tender to improve the David-Boquete highway in Panama’s western Chiriquí province, local paper La Prensa reported.

The tender has an estimated budget of US$100mn and is scheduled to be launched on April 26. Interested companies include local construction firm Constructora Urbana (CUSA), Brazilian firm Odebrecht and Mexican construction giant ICA, according to the public works ministry MOP.

The project involves rehabilitating the existing 45km David-Boquete road and its expansion to four lanes from Vía Porras to Los Algarrobos town, and from the David river to Boquete district. Access bridges, connecting roads and pedestrian crossings will also be built. MOP is meeting with interested companies this week and carrying out site visits to the area where the project will be carried out.

Read the original article here…

Government Will Spend $180 Million To Widen Highways in Chiriquí

Monday January 25, 2010
Editor

According to an article in the Panama Guide dated January 10, 2010, the Panamanian government is poised to allocate $180 million toward widening the roads from David to Boquete and from David to San Felix.

Full article here.