XIAM007

Making Unique Observations in a Very Cluttered World

Thursday 18 April 2013

Semen Has Anti-Aging Benefits? Heather Locklear Says So... -


Semen Has Anti-Aging Benefits? Heather Locklear Says So... - 


It's already been proven that Heather Locklear is doing a bang-up job aging with grace. (Seriously, she looks the same age as her 15-year-old daughter.) So when the 51-year-old actress offered up the secret to her great skin, we listened closely... and were subsequently grossed out.

In an on-camera conversation with TMZ reporters, she was asked if she had any recommendations for anti-aging skincare products. Her reply? "You just put semen on your face."

Leaving aside the fact that we can't tell if she's kidding, we have reason to actually take this one seriously. Sure, the thought is gross (as are TMZ's puns on the matter -- "shot to the face," anyone?) but the research is there: Semen may have anti-aging benefits.

Semen as an anti-aging treatment saw a spike in popularity (or at least curiosity) around 2009. Turns out spermine, one of the components of semen, is high in anti-oxidants and can be used to smooth out wrinkles. An enterprising Cosmo reporter even went and got a sperm facial at a swanky New York spa, confirming that her skin did feel smoother afterwards.

None of which convinces us to start incorporating spunk into our beauty routines. But hey, have you seen Heather Locklear lately? Her skin looks amazing.

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Iceland Incest App Determines If Couples Are Too Closely Related To Have Sex -


Iceland Incest App Determines If Couples Are Too Closely Related To Have Sex - 



Avoiding incest in Iceland just got easier. A new app determines if hookups on the close-knit island nation are sharing too many roots in the family tree, News Of Iceland reports.

The "Islendingabók" ("Book of Icelanders") app allows amorous users to tap into a bloodline registry that judges whether romance is advisable.

The app's slogan, "bump the app before you bump in bed," invites would-be couples to bump their smartphones together for a verdict to prevent problems later.

Watch a demonstration of the app, above.

The database, which draws from 1,200 years of genealogical info, has been around since 1997, according to the New York Daily News. Before the app was developed, couples in Iceland had to search the database by typing in their names and Icelandic ID numbers. In the heat of the moment, that might be difficult.

Now, all it takes is a phone kiss.

As previously reported, the possibility of romancing a too-close relative is relatively high in Iceland, given that the island has around 300,000 mostly native residents.

According to GlobalPost, a little verbal investigation also helps to avoid inbreeding. "Hverra manna ert þú?" ("Who are your people?") is a common question exchanged.

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Google Glass will SELF-DESTRUCT if flogged on eBay - Techno-specs are for life, not just for Christmas -


Google Glass will SELF-DESTRUCT if flogged on eBay - Techno-specs are for life, not just for Christmas - 



Buyers of Google Glass have been warned they cannot sell their pricey new techno-spectacles on eBay or anywhere else.

In terms of sale posted on its website, the advertising giant said a Google Glass was for life, unless you wanted to give it away for nothing. Anyone who failed to follow the rules will have their devices remotely shut down.

The first Google Glass Explorer editions are rolling off the production lines and into the hands of early adopters who each paid $1,500 for an early version of the headgear. The hardware projects information into the wearer's field of view.

Google stated: "You may not commercially resell any device, but you may give the device as a gift. Recipients of gifts may need to open and maintain a Google Wallet account in order to receive support from Google. These terms will also apply to any gift recipient."

Then, tucked away in the footnotes, the Chocolate Factory added: "Unless otherwise authorized by Google, you may only purchase one device, and you may not resell, loan, transfer, or give your device to any other person. If you [do this] without Google’s authorization, Google reserves the right to deactivate the device, and neither you nor the unauthorized person using the device will be entitled to any refund, product support, or product warranty."

Google Glass is about as powerful as a mid-range smartphone. Although details of which processor its uses have not yet emerged, we do know it has a 5-megapixel camera, can shoot 720p video and features about 12GB of usuable storage from a total of 16GB. A battery charge will last the best part of a day, unless the wearer conducts video chats or records a lot of footage.

Apparently, the display is equivalent to watching a 25-inch television from eight feet away, we're told. Perhaps its strangest feature is its bone-conduction transducer, which generates sound by sending vibrations through bones in the ear.

It has already been banned from several places, including some strip clubs, over fears it could be used to film people without their knowledge.

A group called Stop the Cyborgs has launched a campaign against Google Glass after warning the device will create a world where "privacy is impossible and corporate control total".

Google is reportedly planning to set up stalls in America to sell Glass and big up the web giant's other products.

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US Mint Sells Record 63,500 Ounces Of Gold In One Day - a whopping 2 tons on April 17th, 2013 -


US Mint Sells Record 63,500 Ounces Of Gold In One Day - a whopping 2 tons on April 17th, 2013 - 


One of the more curious revelations of the New Normal is the fundamental dichotomy when investing between paper "investors", or those who chase returns based on intangible, fiat-based and central bank-backed promises, such as capital appreciation or cash flow streams, and those who would rather convert their paper money into hard assets, even if said assets can not be, in the immortal words of Warren Buffett, fondled, or otherwise generate a cash-based return. Such as gold.

Today provides perhaps the perfect example of how the former increasingly trade on nothing but momentum and speculative mania (such as the previously reported record inflow of foreign capital into the Japanese stock market well after the bulk of the easy upside has already been made and at this point there is mostly downside) and where buying begets only more buying, while rampant selling only leads to liquidations, while those who invest in hard assets (and thus have little to no leverage) have become the true value investors, purchasing more as the price of the underlying asset drops. Yes, a novel concept to most High Frequency Trading vacuum tubes, and the momentum-chasing, equity trading "expert" du jour, but nothing new to Indians, Australians, Chinese or the Japanese.

And apparently to at least some Americans.

According to today's data from the US Mint, a record 63,500 ounces, or a whopping 2 tons, of gold were reported sold on April 17th alone, bringing the total sales for the month to a whopping 147,000 ounces or more than the previous two months combined with just half of the month gone.

Punchline number one, as the chart below shows, is that the more the price of gold fell, the more aggressive the purchases of physical gold through the Mint became, rising to 96,500 oz in the last two days alone. Buying more of something you want when the price drops: what a stunning concept - explain that to the algos who nearly crashed the German stock market overnight.

Punchline number two, of course, is that the US mint charges a hefty premium for purchases: much more so than traditional vendors like Apmex or Gainesville Coins, and is usually the last resort for when nobody else has any physical at a lower premium to spot (or any metal in inventory).



So how long until the US mint "runs out" of American Eagles and Buffaloes in inventory, along with the depletion of all other precious metal vendors? And what happens if the price of paper gold hits zero (or goes negative) courtesy of bank and financial institution liquidation selling of paper derivative contracts nebulously referencing some yellow metal somewhere, even as suddenly there is no physical to be delivered to anyone, anywhere?

Inquiring minds really want to know.

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