Today's Amazon gaming Gold Box is for grown-ups | Joystiq

Today's gold-coated, quick-fire deals from Amazon seem to have one thing in common: plenty of moider. A good portion of the deals are for games that get a bit angry and violent; we spot a mouth-frothing line-up that hints at Halo 4, Hitman: Absolution, and Dead Space 3 deals among others. Then there's the not-especially-calm Gears of War: Judgment, which is going for $34.99 until 8AM ET (5AM PT), tempestuously fidgeting as it revs its chainsaw.

At least the all-day deal brings peace and serenity in the form of God of War: Ascension. The latest PS3 whimsy starring the gentle, philanthropic demigod Kratos politely requests $39.99 for its individual services, or $279.99 for its 500GB Garnet Red PS3 bundle, which also includes God of War: Saga and a cuddly Kratos plushie (or at least it should).

Source: http://www.joystiq.com/2013/04/23/todays-amazon-gaming-gold-box-is-for-grown-ups/

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Velodyne vTrue

Velodyne is more known for its subwoofers than it is for making headphones, but the Velodyne vTrue takes the company's expertise in deep bass in a new direction. Velodyne refers to the $399.00 (direct) vTrue as a pair of "studio headphones," although we found them to be far too leaky to be considered for serious recording applications. In every other regard, they are solid, though, so we'll review them here as simply high-end, powerful headphones. In that regard, they perform quite well?if you love gobs and gobs of boosted bass and crisp, sculpted highs. Audio purists can probably stop reading now, but if you're looking for a powerful, bass-heavy headphone pair, the vTrue is a strong option.

Design
The vTrue headphones are strikingly designed, with an aluminum contour on the earcups and a brown padded leather headband and earpads. Everything from the precision-friendly headband slide adjuster to the deep blue padding over the 50mm drivers inside the earcups feels thoughtfully designed. The vTrue strikes out only on a comfort level?these headphones are bulky, and after a while, you're likely to feel some pressure on your scalp.

The audio cables are detachable, and split to connect to each earcup. One included cable has an inline remote and microphone designed for use with Apple iOS devices and all iPods 3rd-generation and up. Both cables are clothbound in deep blue and measure four feet in length.

Call clarity through the inline mic is strong enough that your call partner will understand you, and you'll understand them just fine, but it's not excellent?the mic sounds a bit muffled at times, and we're also dealing with cellular fidelity.

Also included with the vTrue: a ?-inch adapter for larger headphone jacks and a black drawstring carrying pouch.

Performance
On tracks with deep, sub-bass content, like the Knife's "Silent Shout," the vTrue is able to show off a bit. Audiophiles seeking flat, accurate response should look elsewhere, as the vTrue is a bass-boosted powerhouse. At maximum volume, the vTrue sounds as if it is just about to distort, but never really reaches the breaking point?and these headphones get quite loud. At safer, more reasonable listening levels, the bass response is intense and clean.

Luckily, Velodyne has the good sense to add some serious mid-high and high frequency tweaking so the sound signature isn't a muddy, undefined mess. On Bill Callahan's "Drover," the vTrue graces his vocals with a nice treble edge which helps it stand front and center in the mix. This is important, because the boosted bass response arms the constant drumbeat with some serious low-end thunder, making it also stand out quite a bit. Without the sculpted treble, his vocals would get lost and the mix would be too focused on the low-mids and lows.

Jay-Z and Kanye West's "No Church in the Wild" benefits from the high frequency sculpting, as well?the kick drum loop has a nice punchy attack, while the sub-bass synth hits that sit beneath the loop in the mix are delivered with some serious throttle. The vocals in this dense mix stand out in the same way Callahan's do on his track?the crisp edge they get from the vTrue helps separate them from the powerful lows and mids.

Classical tracks, like John Adams' "The Chairman Dances," can sound a tad too tweaked and sculpted. The highs are boosted, which occasionally makes the higher register strings and brass sound a bit too bright, but the lower register strings absorb the added bass response nicely. The large drum hits at the end of track sound a bit too bass-boosted, however?almost as if they are amplified instead occurring naturally in a concert hall.

In other words, these headphones don't offer a flat response in any sense?there's tons of bass, and lots of liberties are taken with the high-mids and highs, as well. The result is something bass lovers will enjoy and purists will probably want to avoid. If you're looking for headphones in the price range with a bit less boosting in the lows, the?Sennheiser Momentum?is a solid option and less bulky, while the TDK ST750 is a powerful pair that focuses more on the high-mids and highs.?If you like big bass, but the vTrue's price tag is too high, the?Denon Urban Raver AH-D320?offers a similar sound signature for a significantly lower price. And if it's a true studio headphone pair you seek, you can spend quite a bit less and still have top quality?Sennheiser's HD 280 Pro?is an excellent flat response option. The Velodyne True offers clean, bold performance with booming low-end, and it comes with two top-notch, detachable cables?if it were less expensive, it would get a higher rating.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/kJz9ceGXD9g/0,2817,2417924,00.asp

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Box Office Guru Wrapup: Oblivion Easily Takes Top Spot in Debut

Now in his fourth decade of scoring number one hit movies, Tom Cruise enjoyed one of the best openings of his entire career with the futuristic science fiction film Oblivion which topped the box office worldwide. Universal saw its latest hit film open to an estimated $38.2M in North America from 3,783 theaters for a potent $10,085 average. 323 IMAX sites contributed a solid $5.5M, or 14% of the gross.

That was an impressive performance for an original 2D sci-fi film opening outside of summer. In fact, it was the second best sci-fi opening ever during the month of April after the $61.2M of 2010's 3D remake Clash of the Titans. Overall, it was the seventh best for the month but third biggest for a live-action non-sequel.

Directed by Joseph Kosinski (TRON: Legacy) and co-starring Morgan Freeman, Oblivion earned mixed reviews from critics, however paying audiences were not pleased. The CinemaScore grade was a disappointing B- indicating a rocky road ahead. Adult men made up the core audience - not surprising for a sci-fi film and for a Cruise actioner as the actor has lost some of his female fan base in recent years. Studio research showed that 57% of the audience was male and a very high 74% was 25 or older. Teen appeal was minimal here.

But for Cruise, Oblivion delivered the second biggest opening of his career outside of his signature Mission: Impossible franchise trailing just one other science fiction picture -- 2005's summer smash War of the Worlds from Steven Spielberg, which bowed to a holiday-boosted $64.9M. And it more than doubled the $15.2M debut of the actor's last film Jack Reacher from this last December.

Produced for a reported $120M, Oblivion is just one of many big-budget apocalyptic movies from some of Hollywood's hottest male action stars that will compete for the public's attention over the coming months. Next up, Will Smith stars in After Earth opening May 31, then Brad Pitt offers up World War Z in June, followed in August by Matt Damon's Elysium. The end of humanity is also a topic in the raunchy comedy This Is The End with Seth Rogen and James Franco arriving in June.

Made for a global audience, Oblivion pulled in a healthy $33.7M from 60 international markets this weekend dropping 42% from its overseas launch last week. The offshore take now stands at $112M with the global gross at $150.2M on its way to much more as major markets like Japan and China have yet to open.

After a spectacular opening weekend, the baseball drama 42 held up well in its second frame dipping 34% to an estimated $18M for a ten-day total of $54.1M. Warner Bros. should find its way across the $100M mark with this one. Breaking the $150M mark this weekend was the hit animated comedy The Croods, which continued to take advantage of no competition for kids with an estimated $9.5M in its fifth round. Off just 28%, the Fox release had the lowest decline of any film in the top ten and boosted its domestic cume to $154.9M. With $23.4M from offshore markets this weekend, the international total soared to $274.5M, putting The Croods at $429.4M worldwide.

The sequel flop Scary Movie 5 tumbled 56% in its sophomore frame to an estimated $6.3M giving The Weinstein Co. $22.9M after ten days. A final gross of $30-35M seems likely which would be about one-third of the $90.7M that part 4 in the franchise did seven years ago.

The action sequel G.I. Joe: Retaliation followed in fifth with an estimated $5.8M, down 47%, for a $111.2M total for Paramount. Overseas action got a boost from a gigantic opening week in China where the American soldiers took in $33M from 7,000 screens over seven days including over $3M from 101 IMAX sites. That drove the international weekend to $40M, the overseas cume to $211.7M, and the global tally to a muscular $322.9M. With Japan yet to open, Joe could find its way to nearly $450M worldwide -- 50% more than the first movie in the franchise.

The Ryan Gosling pic The Place Beyond The Pines tripled its theater count and jumped from tenth to sixth place but saw its average drop down to a soft amount. The Focus release grossed an estimated $4.7M from 1,542 locations for a weak $3,078 average and $11.4M total.

Still on its way into the century club, the action hit Olympus Has Fallen placed seventh dropping 38% to an estimated $4.5M putting the year's first of two White-House-under-attack flicks at an impressive $88.8M for FilmDistrict. Sony's horror remake Evil Dead fell 57% to an estimated $4.1M and has scared up $48.4M to date.

Close behind with an estimated $4M was the 3D re-release of Jurassic Park which declined by 55% for a cume of $38.5M. The Universal blockbuster's lifetime gross has now shot up to $395.6M. Rounding out the top ten was 2013's biggest hit, Oz the Great and Powerful. The Disney smash held up well with an estimated $3M in its seventh weekend, off 37%. The wizard and trio of witches have now amassed $223.8M from North america and a stellar $478.6M worldwide.

The top ten films grossed an estimated $98.1M which was down 18% from last year when Think Like A Man opened at number one with $33.6M; and down 14% from 2011 when Rio stayed in the top spot with $26.3M.

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Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1927299/news/1927299/

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Video: Schieffer: What politicians should learn from Bostonians (cbsnews)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/300554960?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Living with a Chronic Disease - Mental Health and Anxiety Blog ...

hank?s point? of view in this video is THE ?new normal?.

Thanks so much, I have a chronic disease that means I lose allot of my hair, and its been almost a year that? I have been dealing with it and im becoming more accustomed to my ?new normal?

Not being able to tie my hair up without the people around me seeing hideous bald patches, or walking or running on windy days when my hair flicks back..

To other people it seems like such a tiny thing, its ?just hair?, but especially as a girl? It can be really degrading

?That?s the thing about being a person.?

The older I get the more I realize that my? happiness is ultimately connected to my ability to adapt to my new normal.

i have a chronic disorder called Hypopituitarism. which is caused when pituitary? glands don?t produce the right amount of hormones. it makes it basically impossible to loose weight, and you gain weight almost insistently. i was diagnosed at 13. i am 15 now. up until my diagnoses i did everything in my power to loose weight. being the fat one in the family wasn?t fun. now i have a disorder that makes it impossible to stop being the fat one in the family. the most i can do is maintain my weight.

Thank you so much for this? video. My daughter has several incurable diseases and she was diagnosed at 15. She is so strong everyday. People who have not been touched by these life events can be so utterly clueless and frustrating. In the world of the new normal, just getting through an average day is often a heroic effort. It is inspiring to hear from someone who has achieved success while dealing with an incurable medical condition.

Hank blushing/getting emotional? when he talks about Katherine. Damn, I wish I had love like that.

I?m only fifteen and I?ve racked up some pretty severe scoliosis, a touch of pain amplification syndrome, and I?ve just recently been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. It sucks but thankfully some of the symptoms I have that are caused by fibromyalgia are eased with aqua therapy. If only they could invent? some drug that made my nervous system stop freaking out?

I was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder (like schizophrenia + bipolar disorder) about a year and a half ago. Helping my friends and family to understand what I am experiencing is also not easy. We have such a stigma about mental illnesses in our culture that I often feel very uncomfortable trying to explain my panic attacks, mood swings, and delusions to my close friends, even more? so to the students I tutor. I really appreciate hearing your thoughts on this issue, Hank.

I loved this video. I?m sixteen years old and I got diagnosed with Crohn?s about 5 months ago. It? sucks and is scary, but hearing other peoples similar stories really helps.

I cannot thank you enough for this video! I myself have? Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue and Immune Deficiency Syndrome, which is EXACTLY as much fun as it sounds. I?m brewing up a video response but for now, just a very heartfelt thank you from someone (myself) dealing with chronic illness every day.

Thank you for this vlog Hank, it has inspired me to leave my very first coment.
As a birthday gift to me this year, I went to the Dr over a rash I have and to my suprise the Dr wasn?t the least concerned. She was concerned with an unrelated area. I have a treatable, but chronic type of skin cancer, the meds are kicking my? butt and I can?t get too far from the toilet ect?
Thanks for showing me a beter way of looking at it.
I survived having kids, this should be able to do this too.
Again thank

i can?t say i know what you?re going through in the least, but i do hope that you find happiness in whatever normal it is you? live in and that you keep it.

poorly worded youtube comments made purely? out of emotion! ASSEMBLE!

i have bad incontinence issues, and until this video i have never in my life (i have spina bifida, so? this has been lifelong) been able to come to terms with it. i?m starting to come to now because of this video, which i find to be VERY courageous, especially given how? well, NORMAL your other videos seem to be. normal in comparison to how having something like having IBD must make you feel all the time. now i know that i CAN be normal, and not be ashamed of it. thank you hank.

U have ibd, I have ibs, I have the same bathroom needs. I?ve had it forever, sadly have to tell my teachers every year that I have to use the bathroom when needed however many? times as needed, I also have five other disorders which makes it more difficult lol

Thank? you for opening my mind to sufferers of IBD Hank. It?s a wonderful thing when the population is educated therefore (hopefully) sympathetic to chronic diseases such as this. God bless you x

I?ve had CVID for the past 4 years and I?ve been trying to have a better outlook on life since then and I connected with you on a lot of what you said and I guess what I?m trying to say is thank you for making this because I would never have guessed that a person as awesome as you and someone I look up to so much has had problems that made him feel like he wasn?t normal and that?s my goal: To be someone no one would ever guess has a chronic disease and I hope I can pull it off as well as you? did

They almost thought I had Celiac Disease but the? tests came out negative. You have no idea how much I want to give you a hug right now.

Same here. Dermatillomania as? well. People have a hard time understanding that it?s a compulsive disorder, and not a ?bad habit.?

?in case I poop in my pants? PMSL! Hank. I love you. You? have such a refreshing outlook on life. You make me smile

Wow, Hank. Thank you. Really, thank you. I?ve never thought of my situation as normal. I?ve actually always thought myself as not normal, and? I?ve wished multiple times that I could become normal. A long time ago, some things happened, and long story short, I don?t have parents anymore. I?ve always looked at people who are with their parents and thought ?I wish I were normal like them.? But with this ?new normal? concept you talked about, I realized I am normal. It?s different, but it?s normal.

Thanks Hank. I had UC for the first 27 yrs of my life, then I saw a specialist that told me it was actually Crohn?s Disease (in both small and large intestine). Yep chronic disease is really a trip (to the bathroom, a lot) Those of you with symptoms as Hank described, should not put off seeking help and getting a diagnosis from the BEST Gastroenterologist you can. It DOES make a difference, it can make ALL the difference in your life. Been there, did that, am doing better 20? yrs on.

I have trichotillomania?..for those of you who don?t want to look it up, it?s an? impulse disorder that causes one to pull their hair out.

omg. you might have just? answered my ailments exactly?guess im off to the Dr?s

I have chronic back pain. I just say ?Well I have a hernia so excuse me,? and I lay on the floor.

Constant pain is awful. Thank you so much for sharing!! I watch this whenever I start to go crazy from? ouch-ness.

I have Celiac Disease.?

I have familial polyposis but? won?t show symptoms until my 30?s..my dad and aunt have it too. It sucks because people don?t, and can?t understand. Thank you for making this so the diagnosis doesn?t seem so bleak.

When you said ?if you have IBD you know what im talking about? i felt? so much less alone in this world that revolves around Ulcerative Colitis all the time. Thank you.

I have a chronic disease called Retinitis Pigmentosa which is causing the rods and cones on my retina to slowly die away. It? sucks. Because it?s a degenerative disease, it will slowly continue to get worse over the course of my life until I go completely blind sometime over the next 20 years. Chronic diseases are terrible.

Source: http://mental-health.fitnessthroughfasting.com/personality-disorder/living-with-a-chronic-disease.php

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China rushes relief after Sichuan quake kills 179

YA'AN, China (AP) ? Rescuers and relief teams struggled to rush supplies into the rural hills of China's Sichuan province Sunday after an earthquake left at least 179 people dead and more than 6,700 injured and prompted frightened survivors to spend a night in cars, tents and makeshift shelters.

The earthquake Saturday morning triggered landslides that cut off roads and disrupted phone and power connections in mountainous Lushan county, further south on the same fault line where a devastating quake wreaked widespread damage across the region five years ago.

Hardest hit Saturday were villages further up the valleys, where farmers grow rice, vegetables and corn on terraced plots. Rescuers hiked into neighboring Baoxing county after its roads were cut off, reaching it overnight, state media reported. In Longmen village, authorities said nearly all the buildings had been destroyed in a frightening minute-long shaking by the quake.

In the fog-covered town of Shuangli, corn farmer Zheng Xianlan said Sunday that she had rushed from the fields back to her home when the quake struck, and cried when she saw that the roof collapsed. She then spent the night outdoors on a worn sofa using a plastic raincoat for cover.

"We don't earn much money. We don't know what we will do now," said 58-year-old Zheng, her eyes welling with tears. "The government only brought one tent for the whole village so far, but that's not enough for us."

Along the main roads, ambulances, fire engines and military trucks piled high with supplies waited in long lines, some turning back to try other routes when roads were impassable.

Rescuers were forced to dynamite boulders that had fallen across roads, and rains Saturday night slowed rescue work, state media reported.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang arrived Saturday afternoon by helicopter in Ya'an to direct rescue efforts, the government's official Xinhua News Agency reported.

"The current priority is to save lives," Li said, after visiting hospitals, tents and climbing on a pile of rubble to view the devastation, according to Xinhua.

Xinhua, citing the China Earthquake Administration, said at least 179 people had died, and more than 6,700 were injured.

The quake ? measured by China's earthquake administration at magnitude 7.0 and by the U.S. Geological Survey at 6.6 ? struck shortly after 8 a.m. Saturday, when many people were at home, sleeping or having breakfast.

Tens of thousands of people moved into tents or cars, unable to return home or too afraid to go back as aftershocks continued to jolt the region. In Ya'an, the city that administers Lushan, residents sat in groups outside convenience stores watching the news on television sets early Sunday. Fourteen-year-old Wang Xing sat with her family on chairs by the roadside in the cool night air, a large blanket on her lap.

Wang and her relatives decided to spend the night in their cars. "We don't feel safe sleeping at home tonight," said Wang, a student. She said the quake cracked the walls of her family's house. "It was very scary when it happened. I ran out of my bed and out of the house. I didn't even have my shoes on."

As in most natural disasters, the government mobilized thousands of soldiers and others, sending excavators and other heavy machinery as well as tents, blankets and other emergency supplies. Two soldiers died after their vehicle slide off a road and rolled down a cliff, state media reported.

The Chinese Red Cross said it had deployed relief teams with supplies of food, water, medicine and rescue equipment to the disaster areas.

Lushan, where the quake struck, lies where the fertile Sichuan plain meets foothills that eventually rise to the Tibetan plateau and sits atop the Longmenshan fault. It was along the same fault line that a devastating magnitude-7.9 quake struck on May 12, 2008, leaving more than 90,000 people dead or missing and presumed dead in one of the worst natural disasters to strike China in recent decades.

"It was just like May 12," Liu Xi, a writer in Ya'an city, said via a private message on his account on the Twitter-like Weibo service. "All the home decorations fell at once, and the old house cracked."

The official Xinhua News Agency said the well-known Bifengxia panda preserve, which is near Lushan, was not affected by the quake. Dozens of pandas were moved to Bifengxia from another preserve, Wolong, after its habitat was wrecked by the 2008 quake.

__

Associated Press writer Didi Tang contributed from Beijing.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/china-rushes-relief-sichuan-quake-kills-179-021122893.html

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Pre-Workout Snack Ideas to Fuel Any - Fitness

You've got to have energy to have an effective workout, so let your pre-workout snack help you push yourself to do your best. What works for you the best will depend on when you eat your snack as well as any stomach sensitivity issues you have, but a good rule of thumb is make your snack a mix of mostly carbs and a little bit of protein for exercise success. Here are a few pre-workout snack ideas that do just that!

Source: http://www.fitsugar.com/Pre-Workout-Snack-Ideas-29593414

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