You’re invited to a intimate house party among late twenty somethings. You’re asked to just bring yourself, but of course we all know it would be impolite to show up empty handed, especially if you’re known arond these parts as a lush. While a bottle of expensive liquor is always appreciated, for most occasions, the sublime strength of a quality wine is all that’s needed to get the conversation going. Unlike a grand dinner party, you generally want to spend less on a wine meant for a house party or even casual cocktail party, say on the deck. The good news is you needn’t spend a fortune these days to come impress your host with an excellent drink. Here are our recommendations, in order of category:
Photo: Taking credit for your good jokes. NYC
Credit: PSE/NYHerald
With mobile phone technology, consumers are spoiled. The Blackberry Storm, The Palm Pre, the Samsung Omnia HD, Nokia N97, so many innovative, top notch devices have come onto the market that it is astounding that iPhone is still the King. But like Labron James dunking over an All Star Team, the next iPhone killer is none of the above, but the still rumoured third iPhone. We have alot of beef with the iPhone, things like the lack of flash really get our goat around here, but after a couple of tough spills on the sidewalks of Brooknam, the shiny fella is still ticking, cracked glass, exposed chip board but absolutely no dents. It’s not just an iPhone, its a Mercedes Benz, at least when it comes to taking a hit.
The next iPhone is expected to be announced June 8th. How do we know? Their most ambitious rival, the Palm Pre, is expected to launch June 7th. There are alot of rumours that are being put out there by corporate operatives, in our opinion, for example, the rumour that iPhone is going to Verizon in 2010. While possible (Verizon gets a new network and the iPhone would be a perfect way to launch), more likely represents the two parties talking — the potential scenario is then played out in the blogosphere as a sort of focus group marketing. We love the idea, AT&T’s signal isn’t quite up to par, here in New York City, and Verizion is famous for occasionally letting you talk all the way down in the subways.
There are also wild rumours of the iPhone having super video capabilities (shoot video, edit it then text somebody with it attached, etc). To that we say, Apple needs to prove itself in this area with the basics first. The iPhone still camera sucks, and a rumoured upgraded to 3 megapixels isn’t a good sign. If there’s still no xenon flash, you know’ll that the imaging portion of the iPhone is still its soft spot.
In terms of video, if its not 720 HD, it’s behind the curve for a high end product that’s just coming out. The other area is its steadfast refusal of a QWERTY keyboard. Frankly we don’t get it, if margins decrease due to complexity and cost of additional keyboard hardware, why not just have a more premium ‘netpad’ type product? The missing ability that embarrasses an executive who dares to rely on an iPhone, is long-form typing.
Yes, real office work – the kind where memos and reports are created and exchanged. The iPhone is no joy when it comes to more than paragraph of typing. Besides speculative renders of an iPhone with a keyboard, many other manufacturers have come out with hardware that combines both beautifully. To Steve Jobs, this is the beauty of the iPhone – “no compromises”, and the formula’s worked well so far. There is perhaps one real challenge to the iPhone, a properly bespoke touch screen Android. We’re not talking the G1 or even the upcoming HTC Magic. More along the lines of the gorgeous (but said to be unavailable in the US) Samsung i7500 (pictured). Once Samsung is in the game, iPhone will be properly challenged. Their Omnia HD is a mega powerhouse of a device (its camcorder shoots 720 HD video), and combined with Android, it would be hard to deny on feature set alone. Yet the window opens June 8th, and iPhone will once again be the newest toys to have.
Behold the Panasonic, cough, Lumix GH1, the successor to the popular G1. The takeaway on this camera is that it promises everything, 1080/24 fps or 720/60 fps video recording with DSLR like depth-of-field yet with new micro four thirds technology that cuts the weight down. The lense has been completely redesigned to shoot either stills or HD video equally well, and sample footage provided by Panasonic was impressive. Add in a mic input and Canon 5D Mark II-beating $1,500 price tag and you have the makings of a super camera. Did we mention that Gray Lady’s gadget critic David Pogue is a big fan?
Our biggest quibble? While Panasonic’s AVCHD format is very efficient, doubling the HD recording time compared with Motion JPEG, it is quite compressed. The top end of AVCHD’s recording bit rate, 17 Megabytes per second, is significantly less than HDV — the price for getting rid of those pesky tapes. Panasonic of course doesn’t think it matters, and David Pogue says the footage looked remarkable.
Whether this camera will be the hybrid hit of the summer or simply a sign of things to come, Panasonic should he commended for their ambition in producing a camera that almost does it all at a relatively reasonable price point.
Popular gadget blog Gizmodo has in-depth advice on specific technologies you can use to not only reduce your home’s carbon footprint, but also save you some serious cash in the process. Much of the technology presented does have a big upfront cost, but these have come down quite a bit and Uncle Sam (as well as state governments) are incentivizing like never before.
Green technologies covered include the solar canopy, pictured above, as well as home-sized wind turbines, gray water systems, which re-use spent kitchen and shower water on your lawn, as well as more modest fare like the eco powerstrips that reduce watt leakage during standbye. Useful links include both a Texas utility’s rebate program and Uncle Sam’s. Like DVD players, Plasma TVs and microwave ovens when they were first introduced, the price of green technology starts high but is expected to continue falling – if you’d like to be an early adopter and role model for the rest of us, the government is ready to help you green tech your home and lifestyle.
Image Credit: Solar canopy courtesy Florian Solar Products.
By An Channthla & An Sithav
Economics Today
As Cambodia’s other sectors reel from the onslaught of the global economic crisis, the agricultural sector was initially seen as a safe haven. But waning agricultural exports and falling prices have left small holders and the barons of agro-industry alike hurting and worried about the future.
According to an International Labor Organization (ILO) report, commodity prices that are dependent on international market will inevitably fall during a downturn. In Cambodia, cash crops such as maize, cassava, and pepper sold to Thailand, Vietnam and China are at risk as the global economic slowdown reduces demand for manufacturing products from these economies, leading to fewer sales at lower prices for Cambodian farmers, the report said.
Though only a fraction of the kingdom’s agricultural output is exported (about 20 percent), the farm gate price-the price paid to farmers for their produce by buyers- changes in line with export prices. Thus a fall in export demand causes a drop in the export price, and a further drop in farm gate prices.
Dr. Theng Vuthy, program coordinator at the Cambodia Resource Development Institute (CDRI), said that the prices of popular cash crops have been savaged by the economic crisis. Comparing export crop values from November, 2007 with prices from November, 2008, total soybean exports lost US$8.1 million in value, maize lost US$4.1 million, rubber US$36.9 million and cassava lost a staggering US$95.1 million. Cassava and rubber are “severely affected by the crisis,” Dr. Vuthy added.
Rice, soybean, maize, cassava and rubber have indeed plummeted in price, confirmed Chhim Vichara, deputy director of the Department of Agriculture in Battambang province. These crops were aggressively promoted as a way out of poverty for farmers, leading many to plant them. But as the economic crisis broke, demand for agricultural fell markedly, he said, especially the cassava usually exported to Vietnam and Thailand. Farmers in Battambang could unload only half of their cassava harvest, he lamented, with little chance of a sale later on because of cassava’s short shelf life.
Heng Bonhor, the director of the Banteay Meancheay Provincial Department of Agriculture, said the situation is even worse in some areas of his province. The few exports to Thailand, such as the dry cassava sent from Malai district, receive only rock bottom prices, though other areas, such as Svay Chek and Thma Puok districts, cannot find buyers at all. Rice and cassava crops are the main income for Banteay Meanchey farmers who have become used to exporting to Thailand every year, he added, leading many to rely on the income from exports.
Pao Suy, representative of farmers from Thnot commune, Prey Veng province, was familiar with such a scenario. Farmers mostly sell to neighboring countries because Cambodia lacks infrastructure to process crops, and “anyway, [farmers] grow all their crops because of foreign demand [in Vietnam],” he told Economics Today.
“Increasing agricultural outputs is [in theory] … a good thing in terms of increasing rural income,” he said. “But the most pressing problem that farmers face is that there is no market for their agricultural products.”
Yin Kimly, representative of another farmer association in Kandal province, said that the lack of a market leads around 2,500 families to leave paddies fallow in the dry season, despite their potential to deliver more than just a single harvest. “The rest of the time … they grow some vegetables to just to survive,” he said.
Withering Demand
Source: Impact of High Food Price in Cambodia, CDRI, 2008; AMO Price Bulletin, 2007-Jan, 2009
Even major exporters like Mong Reththy and TTY Tapioca complain about a slump in demand for cassava and rubber.
The price of tapioca starch this year fell by about US$185 per ton, a far cry from the US$ 330-340 per ton of 2007, said Tan Kosal, administrative director of TTY Agricultural Plant Development. The price of tapioca starch continued to increase through the first half of 2008, he added, before fading at the end of 2008. In 2007 the company exported 10,000 tons, stopping tapioca starch production in 2008 to Farmers Hit by Falling Demand, Prices Falling prices have produced a glut of cash crops like corn 18 Economy & Business April 16-30, 2009 Economics Today increase production capacity with new plant machinery. The company projects only 5,000 tons of exports this year.
Vietnam is the largest export market for TTY’s tapioca starch, with China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippine, Korea and European countries smaller buyers. The far lower prices offered by Vietnamese buyers for tapioca starch, led Tan Kosal to voice concern over the amount of money lost. Future prices and market demands are unclear, he said.
Plummeting oil prices have caused a sharp contraction in Chinese demand for cassava used to produce ethanol fuel, said Chan Sophal, president of the Cambodian Economic Association (CEA). Most Cambodian cassava export to Thailand and Vietnam also ends up in China for fuel so these markets will also dry up, he added.
The crash in the automotive industry has sent the demand for rubber skidding downwards, so rubber exporters such as Cambodia should expect the industry to shrink, said Chan Sophal. Cheaper crude oil has also led many factories to use oil-derived raw materials instead of rubber, further reducing demand and driving down prices.
Sowing the Future
Source: AMO Price Bulletin, 2007-Jan 2009, MAFF
With around 80 percent of the population farmers and agro-industry hoped to be one of the few areas of Cambodia’s narrow industrial economy to survive the crisis, experts are concerned about the possible consequences of sustained low prices.
Many local farmers borrowed money from microfinance institutions (MFIs) to increase production and replant fallow land. Much of this year’s agricultural harvest has gone unsold, leaving many farmers with debts, said Heng Bonhor.
Unfortunately, Cambodia cannot intervene in the short-term to increase prices and boost agricultural exports because of its free market economy, where everything is driven by market demands, said economists.
The World Bank has advised that finding a “market for the crops is very significant while the other sectors (garments, tourism and construction) are affected from the global economic crisis.”
In the short-term, “developing countries have to seize opportunities for agricultural products in both ASEAN markets and other developing countries”, said the Sustaining Rapid Growth in a Challenging Environment report. “For the long-term, expand the range of options by upgrading [infrastructure and skills].”
For Dr. Vuthy, Cambodia’s underutilized, sparsely populated land holds great promise. “There is significant potential to expand production areas,” he said. “Like most developing countries, Cambodia’s endowment structure is characterized by a relative abun
dance of natural resources and unskilled labor and a scarcity of human and physical capital … Downturn in other sectors may provide labor for the agriculture sector so Cambodia now has potential to boost economic growth.” Finding additional markets through bilateral agreements with Middle Eastern and African countries, and nations in East Asia will also be crucial, he stressed.
Chan Sophal also cited the potential but said that irrigation, roads, affordable credit, machinery and know-how will be the necessary foundations for any agricultural revolution. Some projects already agreed upon are lagging, he continued. “Cambodia has … 65 land economic concessions with the total area granted are about 1 million hectares [but] most companies have not yet implemented their projects.”
In the medium- to long-term, Cambodia must expand its secondary industries so that crops can be refined and processed domestically, said Son Chhay, a parliamentarian for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party. The kingdom should try to avoid depending on neighboring countries in future, he added.
Farmers’ representative Pao Suy agreed. Markets in countries besides Thailand and Vietnam are needed before Cambodians will receive a fair price for their products, he said. Currently, he claimed, agricultural products are sold to Vietnam through Cambodian middlemen who pocket most of the profits. 
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Economics Today, a publication based in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Reprinted with permission.
Photo: Falling prices have produced a glut of farm products, like corn.
Credit: Economics Today
The problem – duplicate content all over the web. The solution, as envisioned by the big Three (Google, Microsoft, Yahoo): canonical tags. Canonical tags is a line of code that tells the crawlers which permalink is the most authoritative. You basically add <link rel=”canonical” href=”that authoritative url”/> and the crawlers will give it more weight.
Read: SearchEngineLand’s take on Canonical Tags announcement
Action Item: download canonical tags plugin for Wordpress by Yoast.
Watch: Here’s Matt Cutts of Google to explain. (no he’s not picking his nose)
In a dangerous sign of Thailand’s growing restlessness, red shirted United Front for Democracy anti-government protesters swarmed around a car carrying Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. They smashed a window before the car sped off. The Prime Minister was not injured.
The protesters, supporters of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, converged on the coastal town of Pattaya where Prime Minister Vejjajiva was staying. With the urging of Thaksin who is leading them via video hook up from an undisclosed place, these protestors are scheduled to hold a massive rally Wednesday in an effort to shut down the current government and force elections.
Mr. Abhisit himself took office after similar protests by yellow shirted Royalists forced a pro-Thaksin government to step down late last year. The rally is expected to bring as many as 300,000 protesters onto Bangkok’s streets. This after a violent shooting between Thai and Cambodian forces in the Preah Vihear temple zone that left both sides with fatalities, and an upcoming ASEAN conference that Thailand is set to host on April 10th.
The Prime Minister warned on television that violence would be quelled, “We cannot allow a civil war or a people’s revolution,” he said. “If the situation leads to a riot, the government cannot stand still.” he said.
Photo: Thailand’s Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, taken on 12/26/2008.
Credit: central_vietnam via Flickr CC
Like any benevolent dictatorship, Facebook has its share of detractors, even if Mark Zuckerberg means well. After a site re-design that makes you even more ambiantly aware of what your friends and friends of friends are doing and saying, some are starting to sour on the most popular social networking site on the planet. NYMag’s Vanessa Grigoriadis for one, has 8 pages worth of issues.
Our take: Facebook’s big mistake is shoving everyone’s business into our collective faces. We just want to keep up with our friends – not their friends and their friends of friends. Geesh! Oh yeah, the photos we upload really ought to be bigger. Nothing worse than uploading a beautiful 8×10 only to see it shrink to a measly 3×5.
Illustration: Jason Lee, NYMag
