The Oscarologist’s Picks for Who Will Earn Oscar Nominations

The Oscarologist’s Picks for Who Will Earn Oscar Nominations

Call it bad luck or foolish optimism, but the decision by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to double the size of its Best Picture Oscar field from five to 10 nominees this year has put it at risk of not having a full ballot when nominations are announced Feb. 2. And it has given itself an absolute assurance of having nominees that don’t belong.

The Academy’s screwy preferential voting system begins by separating ballots by movies listed first. Every ballot with ‘Avatar’ as No. 1, for instance, goes in one stack, every one with ‘The Hurt Locker’ first goes in another, and so on. That’s no problem for those two movies, or for ‘Inglourious Basterds,’ ‘Up in the Air’ and ‘Precious,’ all slam-dunk Best Picture nominees.

But to be eligible for a nomination — to have its own stack — a movie has to have at least one first place vote, and the movie with the fewest first-place votes is thrown out. (Huh, even if it’s in the top 10?) With 5,777 voters, it’s likely that there will be at least 10 stacks, but God help us, what can they be? Veteran Oscar watchers who normally bite their tongues rather than utter the name of a locker room comedy like ‘The Hangover’ or of a sci-fi action film like ‘District 9′ are, gulp, uttering them.

If there had been the traditional five spots on the Best Picture ballot, it would have been a snap to predict them, as I already have above. To fill out 10 slots, the voters had to consider doubling-down on ‘Up’ and ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox,’ a pair of fabulous animated features that are sure to be on the ballots for Best Animated Feature. If Michael Moore’ latest documentary, ‘Capitalism: A Love Story,’ had been as popular as his ‘Fahenheit 9/11,’ it might have made the Best Picture list, too.

I’ll return to the Best Picture category later in this forecast of the nominations. As you read through, bear in mind that nominations for individual craft awards — acting, directing, writing, film editing, etc. — are made by members of that branch of the Academy. Only for Best Picture do all members vote.

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Google Founders in $6.1bn Sell-Off

Google Founders in $6.1bn Sell-Off

GOOGLE co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin will share about $US5.5bn ($6.1bn) in cash under plans revealed at the weekend to lighten their stake in the internet search giant.

Under a five-year stock trading plan, Mr Page and Mr Brin, who met at Stanford University in the US in 1995 before starting Google, each intend to sell about 5 million shares.

The plan would cut their combined holding from about 18 per cent to 15 per cent and reduce their voting stake from 59 per cent to about 48 per cent.

“These pre-arranged stock trading plans were adopted in order to allow Larry and Sergey to sell a portion of their Google stock over time as part of their respective long-term strategies for individual asset diversification and liquidity,” Google said in a filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Such trading plans are widely used by company founders to gradually diversify their investment portfolios.

Google said Mr Page, who serves as president overseeing products, and Mr Brin, who is president overseeing technology, were “both as committed as ever to Google and are integrally involved in our day-to-day management and product strategy. The majority of their net worth remains with Google.”

In November 2004, the pair revealed an 18-month plan under which they each sold 7.2 million shares. The pair are tied at No 11 on the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans.

Google last week reported a 13 per cent rise in December quarter revenue to $US4.95bn, which disappointed investors.

Google shares, which made their stock exchange debut at $US100 in 2004 and more than doubled last year, slumped 5.7 per cent to $US550.01 in New York on Friday night. In after-hours trading, they were lower again at $US548.10, valuing the California-based business at almost $US175bn.

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Top Model Admits Being Transsexual

Top Model Admits Being Transsexual

Taiwanese model Alicia Liu (Xun Ai) has admitted that she is a transsexual.

The 24-year-old model-cum-actress, nicknamed Xiao Ai, said she underwent sex-change surgery at the age of 18.

“My ex-boyfriend paid for it,” she said in an interview with a Taiwan magazine on Friday.

Liu, whose original name was Zi Hua, became popular following her appearances on a parody television programme.

She was described as having a face as innocent as an angel with sexy curves and a sweet voice.

She is 171cm in height and weighed 50kg with a vital statistics of 34C-25-34.

Liu’s “real” identity was exposed when a schoolmate a year her junior revealed her “secret” on the Internet recently.

The schoolmate had also attached a photo taken from the school’s graduation album, in which Liu was placed in the male category.

After that, Liu called for a press conference to state that she was happy with her current name and identity.

“As far as I can remember, I love being a woman. The past is not important,” she said while showing reporters her identity card, which stated that she is a female.

She neither denied nor admitted the rumour at that press conference.

However, on Friday, a week after the press conference, she admitted that she was a transsexual, reported China Times.

Liu said she had always been treating herself as a woman. She wore a skirt to school and used the female toilets.

She had five boyfriends and it was her second lover who paid for her operation.

The model also said she had a normal sex life like any other women. Some of her ex-boyfriends did not know of her true gender.

Her fifth lover, also a model, had shouted vulgar words upon finding out that she is a transsexual.

She thanked her family for their support.

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Jacques Tati Back in Paris

Jacques Tati Back in Paris

A SWARM of vintage 50s Citroen DS cars and a bunch of lookalikes of Oscar-winning film-maker Jacques Tati took over an iconic Paris square on Saturday as Kenzo showed his latest menswear at Paris Fashion Week.

Traffic near the late 17th century Place des Victoires, one of the city’s rare circular squares, came to a halt as the once futuristic cars labelled by some as the most beautiful of all time slowly circled a smaller circle of male models dressed to mirror Tati’s Mr Hulot.

Tati, who won an Oscar for ‘Mon Oncle’ (My Uncle) in 1959, himself played the dreamy Hulot character who starred in several of his films, pacing about with an umbrella in a raincoat and a hat. ‘He had an inimitable silhouette,’ said Kenzo designer Antonio Marras. ‘I liked his eccentricity and anarchism.’

Marras, known for putting on fashion spectaculars, sent out many of his models in stunning short jackets and short trousers – one of the trends that have emerged at the Paris men’s shows that end Sunday evening.

Jackets at many shows have come cut just above the crotch while pants are sliced anywhere from mid-calf to above the ankle, giving socks and shoes fashion prominence.

Kenzo, who went for exquisite heavy tweeds and wools as well as hi-tech denims, harked back to the 50s too with houndstooths and Prince of Wales, checks, zigzags and lots of hats, umbrellas and glasses.

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Latest News on Apple, BT, Nokia and Samsung

Latest News on Apple, BT, Nokia and Samsung

Latest news on Apple, BT, Nokia and Samsung

The latest news on BT’s superfast broadband, new Samsung digital cameras, Nokia turning its mobile phones into sat navs, the Orange T-Mobile merger and Apple iSlate tablet rumours.

Which? brings you its top five technology news stories of the week in one easy roundup to keep you up-to-date on the latest happenings in the world of technology.

1- Top ten Apple iSlate tablet PC rumours

Apple has long been rumoured to be launching an Apple tablet PC, variously called the Apple iSlate, Apple iTablet, Apple Slate or Mactablet.- check out the latest Apple tablet PC rumours making the rounds.

For more portable computing options check out the wide range of Which? Best Buy laptops.
2- Samsung confirms pricing for NX10 hybrid camera

Samsung has announced prices for its new NX10 hybrid camera, a smaller, mirrorless alternative to a DSLR which offers interchangeable lenses. Check out our latest news and video review of the NX10.

Don’t invest in a new digital camera without reading the latest Which? digital camera reviews.
3- Nokia mobiles become free sat navs with Ovi Maps

Nokia plans to add free turn-by-turn GPS sat nav to its mobile phones running the Symbian operating system – including access to Lonely Planet and Michelin travel guides.

Discover more about Nokia’s Ovi Maps system, or choose a high quality sat nav using Which? sat nav reviews.

4- BT launches 40Mbps superfast broadband

BT has announced BT Infinity – a high-speed broadband service that it claims has download speeds of up to 40Mbps. Read more about BT Infinity and how BT’s broadband speeds compare to rival Virgin Media.

Thinking of switching your broadband provider? Don’t make your decision without checking out broadband customer satisfaction in the Which? broadband review.
5- Latest news on merger between Orange and T-Mobile

Which? has called for the proposed merger of the T-Mobile UK and Orange UK mobile networks to be thoroughly scrutinised by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), so that UK mobile customers don’t suffer from the merger of the two mobile giants. Find out more about what Which? thinks of the Orange T-Mobile merger.

See how Orange and T-Mobile compare to rivals in the Which? review of the best mobile providers.
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Dec. 28 – Jan. 2: Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot…

Dec. 28 – Jan. 2: Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot…

Well, 2009 is over, and after a rough year in which way too many music legends passed away, the final week on the calendar was no different, with several musicians tragically not making it to see 2010.

The most shocking of this week’s deaths was that of wheelchair-bound singer-songwriter Vic Chesnutt at age 45. The critically heralded Georgia cult rocker, who was paralyzed in a car accident at age 18 in 1983 and went on to make a series of dark folk albums for nearly three decades, had worked with admirers like Michael Stipe of R.E.M., members of Widespread Panic and Lambchop, Throwing Muses‘ Kristin Hersh, Fugazi’s Guy Picciotto, jazz great Bill Frisell, and Van Dyke Parks. He was extremely prolific, releasing two albums in 2009 alone. Chesnutt died on Christmas Day, two days after lapsing into a coma after overdosing on muscle relaxants. The troubadour’s label, Constellation Records, posted a statement on its website that read: “Vic transformed our sense of what true character, grace, and determination are all about.”

While it is unclear whether Chesnutt’s death was the result of an accidental overdose or a suicide attempt, the Associated Press reported that Chesnutt had recently been hit with a lawsuit by a Georgia hospital over $70,000 in surgery bills that his medical insurance did not cover. A distressed Chesnutt told the Athens Banner-Herald that this legal battle shocked his Canadian bandmates, revealing to the newspaper in an October 2009 interview: “There’s nowhere else in the world that I’d be facing the situation I’m in right now. [My bandmates] cannot understand what kind of society would inflict that on their population. It’s terrifying.”

In other sad news, Jimmy “The Rev” Sullivan, drummer for metalcore band Avenged Sevenfold (who were currently at work on their fifth album), was found dead in his Huntington Beach, California home on Monday. He was 28 years old. “It is with great sadness and heavy hearts that we tell you of the passing today of Jimmy ‘The Rev’ Sullivan,” the band posted on its website. “Jimmy was not only one of the world’s best drummers, but more importantly he was our best friend and brother.” While Sullivan had a well-known reputation for rock ‘n’ roll debauchery, as of this writing authorities are reporting that he appears to have died of natural causes. The Orange County Coroner’s Office’s initial autopsy was inconclusive, and the results of additional toxicology, microscopic, and laboratory tests will not be ready for several weeks.

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Pi Buster: French Software Whiz Claims Record

Pi Buster: French Software Whiz Claims Record

PARIS (AFP) – A French software engineer said on Friday he was claiming a world record for calculating Pi, the constant that has fascinated mathematicians for millennia.

Fabrice Bellard told AFP he used an inexpensive desktop computer — and not a supercomputer used in past records — to calculate Pi to nearly 2.7 trillion decimal places.

That is around 123 billion digits more than the previous record set last August by Japanese professor Daisuke Takahashi, he said.

Takahashi, using a T2K Open Supercomputer, took 29 hours to crunch Pi to 2.577 billion digits.

Bellard took 131 days, comprising 103 for the computation in binary digits, 13 days for verification, 12 days to convert the binary digits to a base of 10 and three final days to check the conversion.

The gear cost “a bit less than 2,000 euros” (3,000 dollars), Bellard, who earns a living as a software consultant in digital television in Paris, said in an email exchange.

“It is a completely standard PC. The only unusual thing is that it has five 1.5-teraoctet hard disks. Mainstream PCs generally have only one 1-teraoctet disk.”

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