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Lindsey MastisLindsey Mastis Lindsey Mastis is a Digital Correspondent for WUSA 9 News Now in Washington, DC. She covers Government 2.0 and Social Networking.

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New Robot Girlfriend Used For Sex

Posted on : 11-01-2010 | By : Lindsey Mastis | In : Misc

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We all knew this was coming. A company called TrueCompanion has created a sex robot. It’s called “Roxxxy” and thanks to artificial intelligence, the machine has five different programs that simulate female personalities. The “personalities” range from shy to wild.

We don’t have to ask why this “pleasure machine” was created. But the mastermind said something in an interview that has got me scratching my head.

Here’s the excerpt from Popular Science (POPSCI):

“Oddly enough, the inspiration for Roxxxy stems from the September 11 attacks, during which artificial intelligence engineer and Roxxxy inventor Douglas Hines lost a close friend. An attempt to preserve that friend’s personality forever laid the groundwork for what later became Roxxxy’s AI.”

I have trouble believing anyone would truly want their memory to be preserved in the form of a sex robot. I did a little more digging (not much) and found a better explanation. But again– I’m scratching my head on this one. The inventor– Douglas Hines– says he began to create this version of the robot after his buddy died during 9/11. Yes– the buddy was a man. And somehow, the creator got Roxxxy. Complete with boobs. (And whoever buys the robot can determine the size of the boobs.)

Of course, they are creating a male version of Roxxxy. Right now, the female version costs about $7,000. The robot is anotomically correct, but cannot walk. It’s supposed to be able to hold full conversations, and you can even e-mail it. So, what happens if she gets mad?

Popularity: 17% [?]

2010 New Year’s Resolutions

Posted on : 17-12-2009 | By : Lindsey Mastis | In : Misc

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I’m still formulating my personal New Year’s resolutions. I love making new goals each year and checking back at the end to see if I accomplished them. It’s perfectly find to modify my original plans. My big goal this year was to run five races. The plan was to end with a full marathon, but I realized I wasn’t ready to go a full 26.2 miles. I still accomplished my goal. I ran the Cherry Blossom, Frederick Half, Virginia Beach Half, Baltimore Half, and Vegas Half. Splendid!

This year, I’m looking to run more races. I’d love to complete my first marathon, but quite frankly, I’m happy doing halves. I’ll be getting married this year, so another goal is paying for the wedding a saving up for a house. That’s not going to be easy.

And I’d love to read more books. I’m a bit obsessed with reality shows and can sit in front of the TV for hours catching up and watching re-runs of all the drama. It would be wonderful to sit in my chair, and read a few good non-fictions.

There are also some words of wisdom I’d like to keep in mind during 2010. My uncle Robbie e-mailed me some suggestions, and I’ve chosen the ones I like best:

-Eat breakfast like a queen, lunch like a princess, and dinner like a beggar.
-Play more games
-Read more books than you did in 2009
-Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day
-Sleep for seven hours
-Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about
-Dream more while you are awake
-Forgive everyone for everything
-Spend time with people over age 70 and under age six
-Try to make at least three people smile each day
-What other people think of you is none of your business
-Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Keep in touch
-Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful, or joyful

Popularity: 12% [?]

VIDEO: 87 Year Old Grandmother Uses Fax Machine To Twitter

Posted on : 16-12-2009 | By : Lindsey Mastis | In : Misc

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Way cool! This granny says her daughter talks too much, so she’d rather communicate via Twitter. She uses a service called Celery. She hand-writes a note, faxes it in, and they post it to her Twitter account. Then, they fax her a timeline of all her tweets. Here’s the video:

Popularity: 12% [?]

Why TV Ads Don’t Work Online

Posted on : 23-11-2009 | By : Lindsey Mastis | In : Misc

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We’re not watching TV like we used to– especially since we got TiVo and Hulu. Advertisers are looking for other ways to make money, like targeting us on our laptops and iPhones. But so far, their attempts to make money online haven’t worked. Why?

I came across this tweet from @ChrisAbraham a few days ago: “New blog post: An epiphany about epiphanies

I clicked on the link and watched the video from Epipheo on YouTube. I was amazed. It demonstrates why advertisers are having trouble reaching the same audience that so willingly sat in front of the glowing box, hanging on every word. It’s obvious we’ve changed. We expect more from advertisers. And if it doesn’t make something easier, faster, better, simpler, smarter, or stronger… well, we don’t care.

This is worth five minutes of your time. If you own a business, it’ll give you a better understanding of what people want. If you don’t, you’ll simply learn about why you like what you like.

Popularity: 33% [?]

One Of My New Favorite Shows: Hoarders

Posted on : 15-11-2009 | By : Lindsey Mastis | In : Misc

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junkhouseWhat if your house was deemed an illegal dumping site? While working at WSIL in Southern Illinois, I covered a story about a lady who collected so much junk, it spilled onto the main road. When the county wanted to expand the road, they had to move her out. She received $64,000 for property that failed to include indoor plumbing (she would use an out house), and to re-locate.

I tried walking around the property. It was difficult and hazardous. On one hand, it was someones home. On the other, it’s a dump site– even if it was junk dumped there by one person.

Hoarders1-300x268She was a hoarder. At the time, I didn’t know it and I certainly didn’t understand. Today, I watched three episodes of A&E’s program “Hoarders.” The show begins with this definition: ”Compulsive Hoarding is a mental disorder marked by an obsessive need to acquire and keep things, even if the items are worthless, hazardous or unsanitary.”

I had no idea people felt that attached to items that held no real value. To them, throwing something away would feel like throwing away a loved one. Some people seem to associate the items given to them by friends and family with those friends and family members. Example: If my mom gave me a box of chocolates, I would continue to keep the empty box even after the chocolates were gone because throwing away something she gave me would mean I didn’t love her.

pattykitchenhoarders copyOther people found value in everything. Many of the items are useful, but because there is so much stuff, it’s just junk. Sure, a stud finder is useful (Hoarders [2009] “Patty; Bill“), but you don’t need a ton of them. I kept hearing, “I don’t want to throw it away because someone could use it.” But they declined to donate the items to a person in need.

Some of the people– or hoarders– featured had to touch every single item before throwing anything away. One person (Lauren from Hoarders [2009] “Kerrylea; Lauren“) had to think about getting rid of an old nail repair kit for several minutes before coming to the conclusion that it’s useless.

I also learned that hoarders have to throw things away for themselves. If they left for a few days and came back to discover someone cleaned their home, they would have a melt down. Paul (of Hoarders [2009] “Paul; Missy & Alex“) started to talk about killing himself as crews tried to remove dozens of junkers from his front yard. He saw the monetary value of scrap metal. But instead of taking the metal to the junkyard for money, he only collected it until it filled every square foot of his two-acre property. He even went to jail for the clutter.

Other people have had their children removed from their home because of hoarding. When told to get rid of their junk or never regain custody of their children, the junk wins. It’s sad. It’s a disease– there’s no doubt about that. But how can it be treated?

After watching these six stories, it was apparent there is no cure. It’s hard to figure out if it’s part of depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, some other condition, or a combination of conditions. It’s also hard to tell whether it’s a skill they failed to learn during their childhood. In many of these episodes, professional organizers and cleaning crews had to wait around for hours while the hoarder sorted through one box. Agonizing!

I have several friends who are certified professional organizers. (Read my friend Deb Lee’s post about “Hoarders). I can’t imagine the situations they must face. How do you help a hoarder get organized? And even if a house is thoroughly cleaned and everything is put in its place, does it stay that way? Probably not.

I didn’t think I could relate to a hoarder. I’m one of those people who often gives things away or throws things away with the philosophy that if I had to, I could always buy new. But I too have hoarded before.

When I moved into an extended-stay hotel in Dallas, I began hoarding towels. Maids gave me four new towels, twice a week. I hid them in the closet because I was afraid that one day I wouldn’t get any more towels. I was ashamed of what they would think if they opened the closet and found stacks of clean towels. So one week before I moved out, I threw them in the bathroom so it looked like I had a pool party with a bunch of friends. The mound went up to my waist and it was hard to open the door all the way. Sounds weird, but it made perfect sense at the time.

And my fiancé tells me that his grandmother had a box labeled “strings too short to use.” She just couldn’t throw them away. The strings and the towels are little things. We are not considered hoarders. But when that type of collecting gets out of hand, it becomes a monumental problem.

It’s hard to watch Hoarders. You see loving parents who simply cannot help themselves. Families are torn apart. And the mess is often disgusting (Yes, you may see rats). But I hope you spend some time watching an episode or two. It will certainly change the way you look at clutter and interact with someone who loves to collect.

I set my TiVo to record the new season of Hoarders. It premiers November 30, on A&E. (Another one of my favorite program on A&E is Intervention.)

Popularity: 39% [?]

Crime and Punishment Museum

Posted on : 08-03-2009 | By : Lindsey Mastis | In : Featured, Misc

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crimeandpunishmentPatrick and I visited the Crime and Punishment Museum on Sunday. It was incredible. America’s Most Wanted is filmed there, so we got to see the studio. My favorite part was the history of crime and punishment. It started in the Medieval era with torture. One device they used was put around the neck, and would force two women to stare at each other until they resolved their argument. There were gruesome pictures of hangings and murders. There were also some bizarre items like the paints John Wayne Gacy used, or pieces of a room once lived in by a notorious Mafia Don. And in the gift shop, you could even buy prisoner art (with the profits helping victims families). I would definitely visit this museum again. Take a look at some of the pictures:

Popularity: 100% [?]