Entertainment: August 25, 2013-Not (Entirely) A Miley Cyrus Twerking Day

Pictured: Puberty gone wrong.

From a couple of days, weeks and months from now, many will remember this date as the day Miley Cyrus twerked on Robin Thicke on her performance on the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards. It wasn't much about Justin Timberlake's reunion performance with his former boy band N'Sync, wasn't about Taylor Swift's alleged murmuring of swear words but the shocking performance brought about by the former Disney sweetheart herself. But let us not talk about that. Let us not let this one thing be the focus of that memorable day for a lot of people. And with that, I give to you 3 of the events that happened in August 25, 2013 that would somehow make you forget about Miley (for a while).


3. California Fire Continues to Grow
Well if you thought there are other alarming news that occurred on August 25, 2013 other than Miley Cyrus being somebody that a lot of people had not expected of her, it turned out there actually is. In California, several firefighters are still battling what seems to be a wildfire that is estimated to be as large as the city of Chicago. These brave firefighters are doing the best they can to prevent the spread of this somewhat unstoppable force of nature into residential areas where a lot of people might get hurt.


2. Man Finally Claims His Part of the $448 million lottery jackpot in the USA
More on the lighter and better news that happened on the 25th of August, 2013, a man from New Jersey finally claimed his own share of the lottery jackpot that amounted to about $448 million. The man is one of the very lucky three who's combinations have stuck the big jackpot.



1. Go Topless Day 2013
Need I say more? Actually, this Go Topless Day event is held every year and is usually the nearest Sunday to the Women's Equality Day which commemorates women's right to vote and to support gender equality. Hundreds and thousands of participants from North America, Canada and all over the world gather in several cities to show their advocacy towards gender equality especially women's right to go topless. These people strongly believe that wherever a man is deemed okay to go topless, so shall a woman. This is why a lot of women and men who support such belief gather and exercise this right and has been a tradition since the day it started.

So there you are folks. Those are just some of the less disturbing news that occurred on August 25, 2013 that would hopefully keep your mind away for the twerking incident. Got some other interesting news that occurred on August 25, 2013 as well? Don't be shy! Feel free to share and comment!

Tech: Flooded Gadgets-5 Useful Tips To Salvage Your Electronic Devices

Due to the heavy rain that have devastated a lot of towns and cities in the Philippines for the past week, the chances of having our electronic gadgets like laptops, tablets, cellphones and even appliances like television have become casualties of the disaster. For a lot of people, this could only mean the end of these electronic device's lives as it has become filled with dirt and even mud. However, this does not entirely get our precious and hard earned devices to not work again. Most of the time, it's the things that we do after they get soaked and wet that destroys these gadgets. So I have compiled a few useful tips that you can use when your gadgets ever get wet and soaked by flood or any other means.

5. Remove the battery.
Mobile devices have batteries on them so you would still be able to use them without plugging in to a power source (hence the term "mobile", heh). And for majority of these gadgets, the battery is oftentimes removable such as in most cellphones, laptops, gaming consoles, some tablets, etc. When your gadget comes in contact with water, it is always best to remove the power source to prevent short circuits within the gadget. As we all know, water is a good conductor of electricity (in most case, we'll get to that later) and it allows the electricity coming out of the battery to be distributed to areas that do not need the energy, or it needs to be regulated. Allowing this to happen by turning on your gadget and not removing the battery could potentially destroy your unit causing it to be unusable at all.

4. Rinse it with distilled water.
Yes. You might think this is a direct contradiction to the first step but in actuality, it isn't. A water that has undergone the distillation process contains none of the impurities that normal water has, especially flood water. These "untreated" water contains minerals that helps in conduction thus aiding in the uneven distribution of electricity throughout the device. Rinsing or soaking your flooded gadget in distilled water flushes these residues out of your electronic device.

3. Let it dry.
This part, my friends, requires your utmost patience. As you will have to leave your precious gadgets alone to dry for a good few days or even weeks to actually let the water evaporate from all parts of your device. And because your have rinsed your device with distilled water, you will be sure that there are no residues left on your gadget. Do not let your itchy fingers ruin this moment! As this will be one of the crucial moments of your gadget's life and may be the deciding factor of your gadget's fate. Another thing you can try is to dip your gadget on a bowl of rice. Rice is know to absorb moisture, and can help in your cause of letting your flooded gadget dry.

2. Turn it on.
After making sure that your device is completely dry, this is the time you can reattach your battery and turn it on. Now if you have left your gadget to dry long enough, the chance of it turning on again are high. If your device turns on after letting it dry long enough, congratulations. You have successfully saved your gadget from doom. If it does not turn on, then it's probably time to consider step number 1.

1. Insurance and data recovery.
If your gadget is still under the warranty period, you have a good chance of having your broken gadget replaced. If the device isn't covered by the warranty anymore, then you can consider consulting a specialist so that you can have your data recovered. Most of the time, any kind of data stored in your device can still be recovered, and for most of us folks, this is the most important thing.

So there you go, folks. These are just some of the things that you can do to save your precious electronic devices. Hope it helps.

Entertainment: 5 Reasons Ben Affleck Would Be A Good Batman

Warner Bros. and company announced that the next actor to don the cape and cowl for the next Man of Steel movie would be none other than the award winning Ben Affleck. He will be standing side by side with Henry Cavill who will reprise his role as Superman in 2015. And ever since the announcement the amount of uproar and rage over the internet over the casting decision has skyrocketed, even reaching the point of these so called "die hard Batman fans" to file a petition to hopefully reverse the decision. But as far as the movie goes, Ben Affleck is still going to play Batman in the Man of Steel sequel.

Personally, as a huge Caped Crusader fan, I am excited to see how this would turn out for Ben Affleck and the legacy of Batman. For this I present you 5 of the top reasons I can think of why Ben Affleck would likely to pull off a good Batman performance.

5. He was Daredevil.

Yes my friends. This is actually one of the main reasons why a lot of people were outraged by the decision. Ben Affleck disappointed everybody for his poor portrayal of the Daredevil. But for me, that will be one of the things that will fuel him to be better in playing the role of the world's greatest detective. Another good thing to point out is that Daredevil was a Marvel character, which I'll elaborate more later on. Batman is a DC character, and as far as DC using actors who were once deemed as "not fit" to play iconic roles such as Heath Ledger's Joker, I'm kinda seeing a good trend here.

4. He has reinvented himself over the years.

Probably after having made bad movies in the early 2000's, Ben Affleck has gone from being a disappointment to an award-winning actor and director over the course of a few years. This would probably have to do with his experience in directing successful films which changed his views on acting and stuff. Just try to look at his films Gone Baby Gone, The Town and Argo and you'll know what I'm talking about. I think what Ben Affleck needs to do for this movie is to get himself muscled up, train hard in martial arts and give out a unique and cool sounding Bruce Wayne/Batman voice and he'll do just fine. Which I think he is more than capable of doing.

3. This is a DC movie.

Relax, Marvel fans. I'm not trying to wage another never ending DC versus Marvel debate here. In fact, I'm a huge fan of how Marvel managed to create great movies out of Iron Man, Thor, Hulk (depends on your choice) and Captain America and still be able to come out with something bigger and better like the Avengers movie, which went on to become a huge success for the franchise. But I must say (and I think you'll probably agree with me on this one) that earlier Marvel movies had its own fair share of not so good superhero movies like Fantastic 4 and who could ever forget X Men 3, the death of Cyclops? Either way, DC and Warner Bros. have been quite successful in bringing back Superman in Man of Steel. I'm pretty sure they'll do fine on its sequel as well.

2. Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer

In case all of your hopes are gone for this movie (which for God's sake stop it), there is still hope. Christopher Nolan, the super-director for the recent Batman trilogy would still be part of the production team as well as screenwriter David S. Goyer, who was on that same team as well. And of course the director would still be Man of Steel's Zack Snyder. And if still that's not enough reason to trust Ben Affleck being Batman, there's still one more.

1. He knows the size of the shoes he's filling.

Or at least I hope he does. Over the years we all knew how big named actors have ruined a great comic book character in the movies and how some of them managed to actually pull it off. And I'm pretty sure Ben Affleck won't make the same mistake of having nipples on his Bat Armor, or overly roughing up the voice of the Caped Crusader which for a lot of fans was the only flaw in Christian Bale's otherwise superb portrayal of the Batman. And for an actor of his caliber, I'm pretty sure he'll do everything he can to be one of the most memorable actors who ever played Batman (at least in a positive way). After all, as Zack Snyder himself said, it's a Man of Steel sequel.

Tech:The Benefits of Having a Power Bank

With the release of various mobile electronic devices out there such as new smartphones, phablets and tablets, were are always reminded of one thing and one thing alone: their batteries are always not enough for a day's long of use. Sure you can have a great gadget with gigatons of memory for storage, great IPS display from your Gorilla Glass screen, but you can never have enough juice for you gadget to make it last the way you would want it to, no matter how many battery saving apps and schemes you make. This is probably the reason why a lot of technology relying individuals thanked all the gods in the heavens when they finally came out with a solution for these energy hungry gadgets. The answer? The Power Bank.
What exactly is it?
Power banks are like external batteries for your mobile device. Well, they are actually batteries for your device except for the fact that you don't have to pry open the back of your device to put the power bank in to get your gadget back up and running again. It's a simple device with a simple mechanism: plug it to a trusted power source such as a laptop or a socket (if your power bank device comes with an adaptor for it), wait for it to fill up and it will be good to go. For people who travel a lot and don't have the luxury of a power source to charge their already drain phone or tablet, then having a power bank would be a very good purchase for you. Here are a couple reasons why.
Convenience
Because power banks enables you to power up your gadgets without having to plug it to a power source, it makes the lives of people who travel a lot a bit easier. Running low on battery while stuck on a train to a business meeting? No worries. Simply connect your phone to your power bank to be able to make that very important call you need to make. Stuck in the airport and can't find a portable socket anywhere? Just connect the power bank to your phone and voila! Your worries are done.
Versatility
Having an Android phone and an iPad running out of juice all at once? No problem. Because power bank can do it all for you. Because power bank manufacturers understands the need for all you gadget users out there, they have made special sockets designed to fit any kind of gadget you might have with you. Now you don't have to worry about having an iPhone and an Android gadget together because you will have a portable power source readily available for your gadgets to use.
Choosing the best name out there
Depending on your choices, there are actually a good number of reputable brands who have released their very own version of a power bank. Brands such as the Limeade Burst, Lepow Moonstone or Newtrent can definitely give you the best kind of power bank for your money. For those who are in a tight budget, you can always get your power bank at local tech stores located near you.

Moto: Benefits of Having Your Own Wheels

Here in the Philippines, majority of the people don't have their own vehicles. This is mainly the reason why there are a lot (and I mean a lot) of different kinds of public transportation readily available. From taxis, buses, jeepneys, pedicabs and a whole lot more, there is just a lot of different kinds of transportation that you can avail whenever you are in the Philippines. And I, among many of people out here, have grown sick and tired of using these public modes of transportation.

May it be the traffic, the hassle, the constant increase of fare, I have utilized all the different reasons I could ever think of to finally decide to have my own mode of transportation. That's when I decided to get a motorcycle. Nothing too fancy, just a simple Honda CB 110. But this baby, my friends, have been all but fun and convenience ever since I hopped on it. And as I was starting to live the life of a rider, I have realized a few things that would make other people take that next step and get their own private vehicle. Here are some of those.

Avoid Heavy Traffic

Back when I was still commuting, I had to wake up at least 2 hours before my work time just to avoid heavy traffic (I live in Davao City so it's probably less heavier than those of you who live in Metro Manila). And when things gets worse, I'd spend a good 30 to 40 minutes just sitting there inside the jeepney waiting for the traffic to move. When I had a motorcycle, I didn't have to worry about that much time wasted anymore! I could just zigzag my way through heavy traffic, cross streets right before the traffic light turns to red and boom! I'm right where I wanted to be. Having my own set of wheels drastically reduced my commute time.

Reach Places Faster

Now aside from avoiding heavy traffic, having my own transport vehicle has enabled me to go to different places faster that I could ever be when I'm using public transportation, even when riding a taxi. For example, when I want to go from Point A to Point B which would hypothetically be like 20 to 30 kilometers away, it would normally take me about 40 minutes to 1 hour of commute on light traffic. Why? Because jeepneys would have to like stop at almost every intersection to get enough passengers to get them through the day. But when I had the bike, my transport time had significantly dropped to half, or sometimes lesser.

Avoid Stress

Let's face it; sitting there, waiting for cars to move or worrying about how much you'll be paying the taxi driver when you get off is kind of stressful at times. These things however, I haven't thought about much by the time I had my own mode of transportation. Plus, you'll get to avoid drinking alcoholic beverages since its very dangerous to drink and drive thus making you live a healthier life! And if you do the math, you'll simply save more money when spend it on gas instead of spending it on taxis. Having your own set of wheels really has its good benefits. And it outweighs the pros more than the cons.

So my advice? Go out there and get your own vehicle, especially two wheels! Just don't forget to be always extra careful and ride safe.