Sunday, June 20, 2010

Happy Father's Day!

Here are some pics of cool dads and their kids...make sure you tell your dad how much they mean to you!!






Saturday, June 19, 2010

Today's Inspiration: The Secret


Below is a confidence poem from the book "The Secret". It encourages me everyday to love, live and laugh.

It reads:
I PROMISE MYSELF
To be so strong that nothing can disturb my peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person I meet.
To make all my friends feel that there is something worth while in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make my optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best
and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of
others as I am about my own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the
greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful expression at all times and give a smile
to every living creature I meet.
To give so much time to improving myself that I
have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear,
and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
To think well of myself and to proclaim this fact to the world,
not in loud word, but in great deeds.
To live in the faith that the whole world is on my side,
so long as I am true to the best that is in me.

--Christian D. Larson

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

The Spelman College SpelBots are breaking down barriers


College junior Jazmine Miller showed off a soccer-playing robot to prospective members of the Spelman Robotics, or SpelBots, team.

"His name is Charles, he's very difficult. That's why it's a he," she laughed. "We kind of see him as human; we talk to him, we yell at him."

Creations such as Charles must be programmed to find and kick the ball and prevent an opposing team of robots from scoring in the annual RoboCup World Championship soccer competition. Since 1997 the matches have been held in Asia, Europe and the United States.

Once a competition begins, the robots are on their own. The team's programming skills have to account for every soccer player scenario, from kicking and blocking to getting up after falling down.

Spelman, the historically black women's college here, has been sending robots to the competition since 2005, often beating graduate students from prestigious tech universities from Germany to Japan. They had their best finish last year in Osaka, Japan, when the team tied for first place with Fukuoka Institute of Technology in Japan in the humanoid robot category.

"Around campus people do recognize our faces; they say, 'Oh, you're on the SpelBots, you're doing the robotics thing. I saw you in Jet magazine.' I really see it when I go abroad," said Miller, a computer science and engineering major.

Early Romance with Robotics
Miller's romance with robotics started early. A self-described "world-traveling military kid," she was on the robotics team at her high school in the Netherlands.

Jonecia Keels, from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., is Miller's co-captain. She was a little less sure of a computer career.

"For a long time I didn't think I was smart enough to get into computer science. I only saw males in the industry and I just didn't think I had what it took to be a computer programmer," said Keels.

Two things helped change her mind. First, the confidence she gained at this women's college.

"I know a big reason why there's not a lot of women in computer science is because of intimidation. At an all-women's school, they already know your capabilities. So it is easier to take leadership roles and go that step further without added stress," said Keels.

Lack of Role Models
"Looking back at my life, there were a lack of role models for me, being African American and Korean," Williams said.

So he sought out a teaching position at a historically-black college or university. Creating the team was a way to bring a new and creative challenge to his students.

"There's a big emphasis on creativity, collaboration, the social aspects of engineering and computer science. It would do great wonders for our country on a global scale if we maximize that pool of women, and underrepresented students like African Americans, in computer science," Williams said.

"The teams we were competing with were all male, all white," said Miller. "And the first thought that came to me was, we are going to blow their minds!" she laughed.

for more of the story, go to www.womensenews.org

All-girl, All-African American Robotics team is breaking barriers from Mari Fagel on Vimeo.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Why hasn't Brandy's daughter made an appearance on Brandy and Ray J?


In a recent interview with PARADE, Brandy reveals why her daughter hasn’t made an appearance on her new reality show.
That’s strictly because her father and I felt it was best for her to have as much of a normal life as possible. Of course, you’ve seen her on one episode on ‘For the Love of Ray J,’ but it wasn’t every day. You didn’t see her going to school, me combing her hair, or any aspect of our private, intimate moments, which sort of sucks because our relationship is so beautiful. I love being a mom and I’m raising her in a different way than how I was raised. Some things that my mom did with me, I do with my daughter — it’s just a different dynamic. I would love for people to see how I’m doing it because I think I could be a good example of a young, single mom.”

She also reveals that she has a unique mother/daughter relationship with her daughter Sy’Rai

“A lot of mothers feel like they’re the mom first, with that authority. But for me, I’m a friend first. I believe that just being there for my daughter as a friend more than ‘I’m in charge…’ causes her to be more open with me as a person. That’s just what our relationship is. Of course, there are times when I have to discipline her — I’m mom. But there’s still that nurturing and love there that we have. I know I’ll probably get flack for being a friend first, but it really works. She’s really honest with me. I’m just teaching her how to trust herself. I tell her all the time that my life is not your life — you have your own life.

“At the end of the day we’re going to be friends. When she grows up, it’ll be about that friendship that we’ll have. She’ll come to me for any problems that she has. If I have an authoritative wall up, she’s going to rebel and not come to me and I don’t want that.”

My mother and I had the same type of relationship and I could tell her anything. For that reason, I never was a rebel.



Read more: Brandy Attempts To Keep Her Daughter Out of The Limelight | Necole Bitchie.com

Jada says Willow is working on an album


Last week, actress Jada Pinkett Smith confirmed that her 9 year-old daughter Willow Smith is working on an album. No word on the type of music but check out what she said to AMBASSADOR MAGAZINE:

“I had always been too afraid to venture into music, but I decided when I was about 30 to just go for it. I started a metal band called Wicked Wisdom. I toured and I loved it. But soon after, my kids’ careers started taking off, so I sacrificed it. I am pleased to say my daughter, Willow, will be putting out an album soon and I look forward to enjoying music through her creations. I am excited about that, and she’s pretty awesome. She will be better at it then I ever could be anyway!”

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Keke Palmer Says TV Needs More Young Black Women


Keke Palmer became a star at just 11 years old, getting the attention of movie critics and Oscar-winning actors. But for the last few years she's been building a following of younger fans and peers. She tells CNN she wants to present a positive example for young girls in both her music and acting.

"There are not many young African-American women on TV. I want young girls to see that it's normal, that it's natural to see a young black girl on TV. If they see it enough times..then they'll know it's possible."

And she refuses to use sex appeal to build a career for herself. "I haven't been nude in anything in my whole life...You don't have to do anything crazy to make your dreams come true."

Of course at 16, she's still a few years to young to broadcast her sexuality for popularity. although that hasn't stopped stars like Taylor Momsen from doing exactly that.

Because of the positive messages she sends to young African-American girls, the NAACP honored Keke with an image award, earning her a nod from First Lady Michelle Obama.

That's right, the Obamas watch True Jackson, VP.

Why can't more young stars have the confidence to rely on their talent and work ethic instead of getting attention with sexuality or debauchery?

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Cover Girl: Nicki Minaj covers Vibe Magazine


Nicki Minaj's new June/July VIBE cover is here. The Barbie girl in the rap world is giving some interesting insight to her new found fame, female MCs before her, and her weird voices.