Y Combinator Adds Four Part-Time Partners, Including Groupon's Andrew Mason (Who's Also Starting A New Company)

Y Combinator's Paul Graham revealed a bunch of personnel news in a just-published blog post. Let's see if I've got everything: The incubator has added one full-time partner (Wufoo's Kevin Hale) and four part-time partners (Socialcam's Michel Seibel, Hipmunk's Steve Huffman, imeem and App.net's Dalton Caldwell and Groupon's Andrew Mason). Current partner Harj Taggar, meanwhile, is leaving "to start a new startup (in the long term) and travel the world (in the short)," but Graham writes that Taggar will stay on as a part-time partner.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/L8730xyebWg/

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Panasonic refreshes Toughbook H2 with faster processor, bigger storage and stronger shell

We've never understood why Panasonic chose to brand its top-line tablet as the Toughbook H2, but given the hairy-chested types who build and use the gear, we're not gonna challenge 'em. The company hasn't messed too much with the Windows 7 slate, except pushing the top chip to a 2.8GHz Intel Core i5-3427U and to swap out the 320GB 7,200RPM shock-mounted HDD for a 500GB model. Panasonic has also tweaked the hardware's polycarbonate-encased magnesium alloy chassis, with MIL-STD-810G1 ensuring that the gear will survive drops from six-feet, as well as IP651 weather-proofing. The 3.5-pound unit also sees its battery life pushed to seven hours and also gains boosted WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.1+EDR connectivity. Once you've selected a unit, there's a hefty list of possible add-ons, including barcode scanners, smart card readers, Gobi-running 3G, LTE and GPS options. There's even a model that meets MIL-STD-461F standards for electromagnetic protection -- useful if your day job involves battling superheroes. The standard unit will set you back $3,349 and comes with a three-year international warranty, so you'd better get buttering-up your procurement manager now.

Gallery: Panasonic Toughbook H2 (2013)

Filed under: Tablets

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/QDZUqRYUZEY/

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Evolution shapes new rules for ant behavior, research finds

May 15, 2013 ? In ancient Greece, the city-states that waited until their own harvest was in before attacking and destroying a rival community's crops often experienced better long-term success.

It turns out that ant colonies that show similar selectivity when gathering food yield a similar result. The latest findings from Stanford biology Professor Deborah M. Gordon's long-term study of harvester ants reveal that the colonies that restrain their foraging except in prime conditions also experience improved rates of reproductive success.

Importantly, the study provides the first evidence of natural selection shaping collective behavior, said Gordon, who is also a senior fellow at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment.

A long-held belief in biology has posited that the amount of food an animal acquires can serve as a proxy for its reproductive success. The hummingbirds that drink the most nectar, for example, stand the best chance of surviving to reproduce.

But the math isn't always so straightforward. The harvester ants that Gordon studies in the desert in southeast Arizona, for instance, have to spend water to obtain water: an ant loses water while foraging, and obtains water from the fats in the seeds it eats.

The ants use simple positive feedback interactions to regulate foraging activity. Foragers wait near the opening of the nest, and bump antennae with ants returning with food. The faster outgoing foragers meet ants returning with seeds, the more ants go out to forage. (Last year, Gordon, Katie Dektar, an undergraduate, and Balaji Prabhakar, a professor of computer science and of electrical engineering at Stanford, showed that the ants' "Anternet" algorithm follows the same rules as the protocols that regulate data traffic congestion in the Internet).

Colonies differ, however, in how they use these interactions to regulate foraging. Some colonies are likely to forage less when conditions are dry. These same, more successful colonies are also more likely to forage more steadily when conditions are good.

Gordon found that it's more important for the ants to not waste water than to forage for every last piece of food. There's no survival cost to this strategy, even though the colonies sometimes forgo foraging for an entire day. Instead, not only do the colonies that hunker down on the bad days live just as long as those that go all out, they also have more offspring colonies.

"Natural selection is not favoring the behavior that sends out the most ants to get the most food, but instead regulating foraging to hold back when conditions are bad," Gordon said. "This is natural selection shaping a collective behavior exhibited by the entire colony."

Gordon's group is still investigating how the ants gauge humidity, but they have determined that the collective response of the colony to conditions is heritable from parent colony to offspring colony. Even though a daughter queen will establish her new colony so far from the parent colony that the two colonies will never interact, the offspring colonies resemble parent colonies in their sensitivity to conditions.

Although the foraging activity of the offspring colonies and the parent colony didn't entirely match up on all days, they were similar on extreme days: parent and offspring colonies made similar judgments about when to lie low or take advantage of ideal conditions.

While the region has experienced 10 to 15 years of protracted drought, and the more restrained colonies will most likely fare better reproductively as that trend continues, Gordon can't yet say whether the emphasis on sustainability evolved in response to climate change pressures.

"What's evolving here are simple rules for how ants participate in a network that regulates the collective behavior of the colony," she said.

The work is published in the May 16 issue of the journal Nature.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/INyGGv6Ez-8/130515131602.htm

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Moths Drive Car & Model Behavior For Robots (VIDEO)

Angler Fish

It's almost impossible to catch a male angler fish. Why? They don't exist for very long. When a male angler fish is born, it is a tiny creature with no digestive system. As such, it must swim to find a female angler fish as soon as possible. When it does, it bites and releases an enzyme that removes a part of her flesh allowing the male to fuse. Soon it becomes nothing but a small bump on the side of its partner. This lump stores the sperm needed for fertilization when the female is ready to reproduce. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/helder/" target="_hplink">http://www.flickr.com/photos/helder/</a>

Garter Snake

When a female garter snake is ready to mate, it releases a strong sex pheromone that drives hundreds of male gartner snakes to her location. Once there, the snakes form an intertwined pile of slithering bodies, covering the female and attempting to mate with her at the same time. This not only provides the female with a vast plethora of potential suitors, but also warmth and protection during the process.

Hippopotamus

Hippos might look lackadaisical, but don't be fooled. They're among the most dangerous animals in the world, and are highly territorial. During mating, the male will empty his bladder and bowels in the surrounding water and use his powerful tail to splash the fecal water at a female of interest. Skip to 1:35. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SCOTTIESPINSERVE?feature=watch" target="_hplink">http://www.youtube.com/user/SCOTTIESPINSERVE?feature=watch</a>

Camel

Male camels who are sexually aroused attract females through excessive salivation, covering their mouths in a drooling white froth. But that's not all: they also expel a pink sack from the roof of their mouths called the doula, which hangs out from the side of their mouths to attract females. Skip to 1:13 to see the mating ritual.

Manakin

The manakin is a small bird with a startling, stage-worthy mating ritual; the Moonwalk.

White Fronted Parrot

As a part of their mating ritual, the white fronted parrot kisses its partner much like two humans might - except without the beaks. But unlike the standard french kiss, the male parrot adds a secret ingredient: vomit. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jroldenettel/" target="_hplink">http://www.flickr.com/photos/jroldenettel/</a>

Bean Weevil

The bean weevil's penis is covered in sharp spines. Its genitals severely damage the inside of the female's reproductive tract, a phenomenon known as "traumatic insemination." <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/bramblejungle/" target="_hplink">http://www.flickr.com/photos/bramblejungle/</a>

The Porcupine

During courtship, porcupine males stand on their hind legs and spray their partners with urine. If a female is ready to mate she will then allow the male to mount. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/gander178/" target="_hplink">http://www.flickr.com/photos/gander178/</a>

Honey Bee

After ejaculation, the male honey bee's genitals break away from the body and lodge themselves inside the queen bee's reproductive tract. This acts as a plug that blocks any other worker bees from mating with the queen. This insurance, however, comes at a cost, as the male honey bee dies soon after. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sheepies/" target="_hplink">http://www.flickr.com/photos/sheepies/</a>

Praying Mantis

The praying mantis is infamous for its mating ritual. During coitus a hungry or stressed female will bite off the head of its mate and use it for nourishment. Unlike common belief however, this form of "rough" mating only occurs less than a third of the time. Nevertheless, the male mantis takes a definite risk in each attempt at procreation. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jasonscottmeans/" target="_hplink">http://www.flickr.com/photos/jasonscottmeans/</a>

The Giraffe

To check if a female giraffe is ready to mate, the male will nudge her behind with his head to induce urination. He will then taste the urine to see if she is in heat. If so, he will follow her around until she allows him to mount. Interestingly, females that find a male to be particularly attractive have been observed to urinate more. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/cabagg?feature=watch" target="_hplink">http://www.youtube.com/user/cabagg?feature=watch</a>

Argonaut

Male argonauts have a specialized tentacle, known as a hectocotylus, that holds a ball of spermatozoa on the end. In the vicinity of a female, this tentacle actually detaches from its host and swims towards the prospective mate. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/saspotato/" target="_hplink">http://www.flickr.com/photos/saspotato/</a>

Echidna

The porcupine-like echindna has a four-headed penis. Even more surprising is the coordination between the heads; they work in pairs, with only one pair active at any one time. The other pair rests, in preparation for the next round of mating. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/denis_fox/" target="_hplink">http://www.flickr.com/photos/denis_fox/</a>

Banana Slugs

Banana slugs have extremely long penises, some as long as their own body length. As hermaphrodites, two slugs will form the arrangement shown above in order to try to fertilize one another. In some cases however, a penis can get stuck in the middle of the attachment, holding two slugs together. The solution? The other slug chews it off.

The Frigate Bird

A male frigate bird inflates a large throat sack, a mating ritual that takes a lot of effort and some time. Once it inflates, the sack looks like a big pink heart. To complete the ritual the male will shake its wings and sing a mating call.

Hyena

Female hyenas are at the top of the hyena hierarchy. They are the more aggressive and dominate sex. This is because young female hyenas produce androgens, a similar hormone to testosterone, which increases aggression and competitiveness. It also enlarges the genitalia, creating a seven inch clitoris, or pseudo-penis. This gets tricky when a male tries to mate, and means that rape is extremely difficult. What's more, females have to give birth through their enlarged clitoris, which can cause serious complications for the mother. Skip to 1:23 in the video to get a better look. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/berenice881?feature=watch" target="_hplink">http://www.youtube.com/user/berenice881?feature=watch</a>

Brown Antechinus

The brown antechinus is renowned for its hyperactive sexuality. Male antechinuses have been known to engage in coitus for hours with a single partner, only to move onto another. Eventually the male dies, a sexual martyr, from a lack of food and rest.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/11/moths-drive-car-toward-smell-model-robots-video_n_3247423.html

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CrunchWeek: The ?Bang With Friends' Buzz, Yahoo's Acqui-hire Shopping Spree, Klout Gets Into Q&A

After a one-week hiatus due to Disrupt (did you miss us?) we're back in the trusty TechCrunch TV studio with a brand new episode of CrunchWeek, the show where a few of us writers chat up the most interesting stories from the past seven days.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/fRma_lzF9PM/

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Gigantour 2013 Releases Lineup and Tour Dates Featuring ...

Rock metal fest, Gigantour, has announced their lineup and tour dates for this summer.

The lineup features headliners Megadeth and Black Label Society. They?ll also be joined by Device, Hellyeah, Newsted, and Death Division. The bands will be hitting up the East Coast, some of Canada, and a little bit of the West Coast.

Different tier packages are available for general admission or VIP admission. Within VIP, fans can choose the Premier Guitar VIP package or a Gold VIP package. The VIP packages include a meet and greet with Megadeth, commemorative memorabilia, an open bar before the show, amongst other goodies. Tickets are available here.

Check out the bands in your town this summer:

July 03: Gilford, NH ? Meadowbrook
July 05: Uncasville, CT ? Mohegan Sun Arena
July 06: Canadaigua, NY ? Marvin Sands PAC
July 08: Clarkston, MI ? DTE Energy Music Theatre
July 09: Chicago, IL ? Allstate Arena
July 10: Youngstown, OH ? Covelli Center
July 13: Lubbock, TX ? Lonestar Amphitheatre
July 14: Corpus Christi, TX ? Concrete Street Amphitheatre
July 16: Oklahoma City, OK ? Zoo Amphitheatre
July 18: Bloomington, IL ? US Cellular Coliseum
July 19: Milwaukee, WI ? Eagles Ballroom
July 22: Winnipeg, MB ? MTS Center
July 23: Regina, SK ? Brandt Centre
July 25: Calgary, AB ? Stampede Corral
July 26: Edmonton, AB ? Rexall Place
July 27: Dawson Creek, BC ? EnCana Events Centre
July 29: Abbotsford, BC ? Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre
July 30: Everett, WA ? Comcast Arena
Aug 01: West Valley City, UT ? Maverik Center
Aug 02: Broomfield, CO ? 1^st Bank Center
Aug 04: Fargo, ND ? Scheels Arena
Aug 09: Camden, NJ ? Susquehanna Bank Center
Aug 11: Toronto, ON ? Molson Canadian Amphitheatre

By Elizabeth Hecker Posted in News Black Label Society, Death Division, Device, Gigantour, Hellyeah, Megadeth, Newsted

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Source: http://www.mxdwn.com/2013/05/11/news/gigantour-2013-releases-lineup-and-tour-dates-featuring-megadeth-black-label-society-device-and-more/

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US high school choir will back Rolling Stones

LAS VEGAS (AP) ? You can't always get what you want. Unless, perhaps, you're a member of the Green Valley High School choir and you want a chance to sing onstage with the Rolling Stones.

The Henderson school's choir will join the Stones at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night for the encore performance of their hit song, "You Can't Always Get What You Want."

Choir director Kim Ritzer said she thought it was a joke when she first got a message on Facebook from someone she didn't know inviting them to sing backup for the famous rockers. She later learned a friend who teaches music at the University of Southern California had recommended them.

"When I announced it to the kids, I think their parents were more excited than they were because some of them didn't even know who the Rolling Stones were," Ritzer told KLAS-TV (http://tinyurl.com/c7w3en4 ).

They sealed the deal with an audition via Skype for a representative of the band in London.

"I called my dad. He was screaming at me over the phone and said, 'Are you kidding me?'" said Kyle Sorenson, a freshman in the Green Valley High choir.

The 24 singers had only had two weeks to learn the song they'll perform with Mick Jagger and company Saturday night. The singers have to be at the arena by 1:30 p.m. for the 8 p.m. show, but nobody is complaining.

"I'm going around going, 'Hey, so who's performing with the Rolling Stones on Saturday?'" senior Alex Miller bragged.

"It's cool, like, a lot of my friends that are into the Rolling Stones are, like, 'Can you get me tickets?' And I'm like, 'No. sorry. It's an exclusive thing.'"

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/us-high-school-choir-back-rolling-stones-191347809.html

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