iPhone 5 Sales in China

Apple has sold more than 2 million units of the iPhone 5 in China, setting a new record for best first-weekend sales in the country.

"Customer response to iPhone 5 in China has been incredible," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a statement. "China is a very important market for us and customers there cannot wait to get their hands on Apple products."

Locals responded to the smartphone with less enthusiasm than in previous years, according to the the Wall Street Journal. The news is a turnaround for Apple, which saw its stock drop 4% in early trading on Friday, falling to as low as $509 a share over concerns about low demand for the iPhone 5 in China.

"Apple's flagship store in Beijing's upscale Sanlitun shopping district began selling the iPhone 5 for the first time on Friday in what was arguably the least eventful launch of an Apple device in the company's four-year history in the Chinese capital."

Three days after the iPhone 5's initial launch on Sept. 21, Apple announced that it sold more than 5 million units of the device, which was then available in the U.S., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the UK.

The company also reported that demand for the iPhone 5 exceeded its "initial supply." Apple's flagship smartphone, which features a 4-inch Retina display, is its thinnest and lightest ever.

Considering earlier negative reports, are you surprised by Apple's successful iPhone 5 launch in China? Discuss in the comments below.

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Facebook Interns

Facebook has reclaimed the top spot of best place to work in the U.S., according to Glassdoor's Employee Choice Awards, and it's got perks even for interns.

Facebook's interns make between $5,600 and $6,300 per month -- the equivalent of $65,000 to $75,000 per year.

Are Facebook's interns making too much money? Tech interns are among the highest paid in the U.S., but summer banking analysts rake in roughly the same amount. Large salaries are a way for companies to lure top talent from schools early on, although Facebook seems to maintain this post-internship; a software engineering job brings in $114,000 a year.

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The end of the world

Worried the end of the world is coming on Friday? A new video from NASA will calm your fears, citing "the whole thing is a misconception from the very beginning."

According to news reports circulating for years, an ancient Mayan prophecy named Friday, Dec. 21 2012 as the day the world would come to an end. The NASA video says one cycle of the Mayan ends on this day, but that doesn't mean the Earth will cease to exist.

"Just as the calendar you have on your kitchen wall does not cease to exist after December 31, the Mayan calendar does not cease to exist on December 21, 2012," NASA said in a statement on its webpage dedicated to questions about Dec. 21. "This date is the end of the Mayan long-count period but then -- just as your calendar begins again on January 1 -- another long-count period begins for the Mayan calendar."

The video comes shortly after NASA held a Google+ Hangout to discuss the topic. NASA scientist Don Yeamans stated no known asteroids, comets or rogue planets are headed toward the Earth. (If this was the case, we would already be able to see it in the sky). And the sun isn't a threat now either.

"The world will not end in 2012," NASA said. "Our planet has been getting along just fine for more than 4 billion years, and credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012."

So will the world end on Dec 21? We'd soon find out

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Gangnam Style by PSY

"Gangnam Style" is a K-pop single by South Korean musician PSY. The song was released on July 15, 2012, as the lead single of his sixth studio album PSY 6 (Six Rules), Part 1. "Gangnam Style" debuted at number one on the Gaon Chart, the national record chart of South Korea. As of December 12, 2012, the music video has been viewed over 939 million times on YouTube, and is the site's most watched video after surpassing Justin Bieber's single "Baby."

The phrase "Gangnam Style" is a Korean neologism that refers to a lifestyle associated with the Gangnam District of Seoul. The song and its accompanying music video went viral in August 2012 and have influenced popular culture since then. "Gangnam Style" received mixed to positive reviews, with praise going to its catchy beat and PSY's amusing dance moves in the music video and during live performances in various locations such as Madison Square Garden, The Today Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and Samsung commercials. On September 20, 2012, "Gangnam Style" was recognized by Guinness World Records as the most "liked" video in YouTube history. It subsequently won Best Video at the MTV Europe Music Awards held later that year.

It became a source of parodies and reaction videos by many different groups, organizations, and individuals, including The Oregon Duck, midshipmen from the United States Naval Academy, and the North Korean government. By the end of 2012, the song had reached the number one position in more than 30 countries including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Although the song's reception in Japan remained lukewarm, the song topped China's Baidu 500 download list and was labelled by state-controlled media as having a "divine melody."

As the song continued to rapidly gain popularity and ubiquity, its signature dance moves were performed by many business and political leaders such as Google's executive chairman Eric Schmidt, British Prime Minister David Cameron, and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, who hailed the song as a "force for world peace". The song's influence on political activism was exemplified by the film Gangnam for Freedom. It was produced by the British sculptor Anish Kapoor to advocate the freedom of expression and had subsequently won the support of various human rights organisations including Index on Censorship and Amnesty International. According to the United Nations' news division, PSY has become an "international sensation" through his song "Gangnam Style."

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How and why PSY wrote the "Gangnam Style"

People who are actually from Gangnam never proclaim that they are. It's only the posers and wannabes that put on these airs and say that they are "Gangnam Style" so this song is actually poking fun at those kinds of people who are trying so hard to be something that they're not.

-PSY


Check out PSY's Gangnam Style video if you still haven't seen this video because at this rate, he gets 8 million views per day and soon he will reach the 1 billion benchmark before the end of 2012.

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12/12/12 or 12.12.12

For those who like to get a bit nerdy with their numbers, one of the century's most significant dates is approaching. Wednesday is 12/12/12, the last of the great repeating dates to occur in our lifetimes -- unless you're planning to live until Jan. 1, 2101, that is.

Despite its auspicious status, 12/12/12 doesn't seem to be quite as big a deal as 11/11/11 was. That milestone date had the added bonus of being a binary number; that's why it was also known as Nerd New Year (binary joke tagline: "it's ON!"). It was also Veteran's Day, of course, making 11:11 a.m. on that Nov. 11 even more sublime than normal.

So how to celebrate 12/12/12? Read all the signs in your daily horoscope? Bowl a perfect game in 12 strikes? Crank up "The 12 Days of Christmas" 12 times until your work colleagues run you out on a rail?

Well, first of all, there's the Concert for Sandy Relief, taking place at Madison Square Garden Wednesday night. The lineup is truly star-studded -- from Clapton to McCartney via the Stones, the Who and the Boss, Bruce Springsteen. It'll be streaming live on nearly 30 websites, including YouTube, MTV.com and Hulu. There are worse ways to spend an evening, and it's for a good cause.

So how are you going to celebrate 12/12/12 ? Are you gonna just share some 9gag pictures and post it in your Facebook wall " Brace Yourself, 12/12/12 posts are coming?" At least I made the 12/12/12 blog post and if you happened to stumbled to my blog, I hope you enjoyed reading this. 

:)

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5/12/2012

This is the day that marks another great chapter of my life. 1 year and approximately 6 months attached with one of the top web hosting company.

Due to different directions, we have to part ways and I must say, I have had one of the best experience and also it has taught me a lot. Time for a new challenge. So yeah

Challenge Accepted !!!

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How do you handle adversity?

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as when one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In

 the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans.

She let them sit and boil; without saying a word. In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, “Tell me what you see.”

“Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, “What does it mean, mother?”

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak.

The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened.

However, the ground coffee beans were unique. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water. “Which are you?” she asked her daughter.

When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?

Think of this: Which am I?

Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor.

If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another level?

How do you handle adversity?

Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

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