Free money (~$100) from B.C. Lottery for British Columbians

I don’t like to encourage gambling even indirectly (on a statistical “sure thing”) so I didn’t report on this loophole/free money (~$100) until CBC reported it yesterday in “B.C. lottery loophole pays out $100“. The following is an excerpt (emphasis and comments added). By the way, also have a read of my engineer blog friend Horace’s article about his BCLC exploit posted on 2nd Spet, 2010.

“A lottery spokesperson said the apparent loophole is actually part of a promotion for the site, in which newly registered players who sign up before Oct. 5 get a $100 bonus deposit in their accounts from the lottery corporation.

Some players say the promotion seems too easy to exploit to be intentional.

If a player deposits $100 of his own money into an account, goes to the baccarat game and bets $50 on both the player and the banker, he essentially breaks even.

Because he has wagered $100, however, he automatically qualifies for the free $100 deposit bonus.

The player then has to play the same bets one more time, in order to be able to cash out their deposit bonus. If the player continues to play at that point, he risks winning or losing, according to the normal terms of the game.

If the player stops at that point, he then has at least $197.50 in his account, after a $2.50 commission. The player can transfer the whole amount to his own bank account and walk away with the extra $97.50 after a few minutes play.

The lottery spokesperson, who declined to be quoted by name, said the $100 bonus works because most players do not cash out after one hand, even if they win. The explanation that it’s a promotional tool doesn’t make sense, according to online marketer Todd Maffin.

“I can’t imagine this was a marketing ploy,” Maffin told CBC News. “To spend almost $100 to get a customer and hope they wouldn’t cash out … there are cheaper ways to do it, [such as] buy a Google ad.”” [Kempton's note: I am not sure if I understand the facts and stats to agree with Todd. I don't run online casino, but running a Google ad is very different from actually hooking someone to setting up an account, connect it to his/her credit card, and actually getting the person to start gambling with real money. The thrill of winning may be enough of an addiction/hook to get the person to keep gambling in the long run.]

Here are questions interested British Columbian taxpayers may want to ask their provincial government:

- How much money did BCLC lose from this loophole?

- How effective is this BCLC promotional program?

- What programs the BC government has in place to combat online gambling addiction problems?

James Cameron, storyteller & Avatar director, puts focus on Alberta Oilsands

Whether you agree with Avatar director James Cameron or not, it is good to see him spending time trying the understand the issues related to the explorations of Alberta oilsands. Lately, there has been much media attention and some misunderstanding of the benefits and challenges.

It will be a serious miscalculation for the Alberta and Canadian governments to not take Cameron‘s concerns seriously as he is smart, has the abilities to study hard problems and push for advances (scientific deep sea explorations, special effects, 3D filmmaking, etc) and most important but possibly overlooked by some is that he is one great storyteller that can shape and change people’s minds.

Here are some news stories,

- Oilsands need more regulation: Cameron, CBC News with videos

- Q&A: Avatar Director James Cameron on Oil Sands and Environmentalism, TIME magazine

- Cameron vows to watch over oilsands, Toronto Sun. Here is a very telling quote,

“”I know sometimes Hollywood people get accused of drive-by environmentalism,” Cameron said Wednesday at an Edmonton news conference with aboriginal leaders, and the tail end of a three day visit to Alberta.

“This is a lifelong commitment for me at this point.

“I was active in environmental causes and energy policy and so on before Avatar, it’s 10 times that now.

“Now it’s personal. So many people have approached me for help.”

While Cameron described the oilsands as an important resource, he said it’s also critical to look at “the fallout from this.”"

- Premier Ed Stelmach dismisses James Cameron’s oilsands critique, Calgary Herald. Here is a telling quote (emphasis and comments added),

With Alberta’s oilsands in the spotlight like never before, Premier Ed Stelmach said Wednesday “quiet diplomacy” is the province’s best counter to negative publicity — rejecting a Hollywood director’s warnings the resource could become “a curse.”" [Kempton's note: "Quiet diplomacy"? Sadly, I am not sure if Premier Stelmach is getting the seriousness of what Cameron can and will do. I am afraid Premier Stelmach and his advisers really have no idea of how far and how determined Cameron was for him to get Titanic and Avatar done and be as successful as they were. As a proud Albertan, I think Premier Stelmach really need a rethink/change of mind and get some serious help. Not to "battle" Cameron, but take the concerns posted by Cameron and others serious and have answers or have plans to address the concerns.]

- ‘Avatar’ director Cameron now in the Alberta tarsands picture, MarketWatch

- Cameron pledges help ‘until it’s fixed’ – Movie director commits legal, financial support to aboriginals, Calgary Herald. Here is an excerpt (emphasis and comments added),

“When asked after the meetings what his long-term commitment to the issue was, Cameron said: “Until it’s fixed.” He said he’ll do what it takes. [Kempton's note: There, coming from Cameron, are not empty words. Cameron is not the types that will randomly say stuff for the publicity and then forget about his promises. Time will tell.]

“The next step is get to the problem, talk to the premier about it tomorrow, talk to government about it tomorrow and then follow up. Follow up with the non-profits, follow up with the leaders that came with me today and with the leaders here in Fort Chip and just stay on it.”"

- Cameron is gone, but the battle is just beginning, Don Braid, Calgary Herald

- Cameron admits awe at scale of Alberta oilsands operations – Province made its green points, Renner says, Calgary Herald. Here is an excerpt (emphasis and comments added),

“Outfitted in a green hardhat, fluorescent vest and rubber boots, Cameron said he had not yet formed any firm conclusions on his “fact-finding mission” about the oilsands. His initial plan was to have conducted his visit more “stealthily,” but the increased media attention around it has been good because it has given people in the region, including aboriginal groups, the opportunity to have their perspectives heard on a wide stage, he said.

“I’m still in sponge mode, finding out how all this works and getting my arms around it, conceptually,” he said over the background sound of noise cannons, which fire every so often to scare birds away from the tailings ponds. [Kempton's note: "sponge mode"]

“The reclamation task is on the one hand quite daunting, and on the other hand absolutely necessary.”"

- Avatar’s Cameron doesn’t slag oilsands – Sounding at times like a cabinet minister, director gives measured response, Edmonton Journal. Here is a telling excerpt (emphasis added),

“Cameron talked for 30 engaging minutes without notes or a teleprompter, proving he knows this topic better than many cabinet ministers and he hit all the important issues without sounding like he was giving Albertans a lecture.

He politely argued for a moratorium on any new open-pit mines or new tailings ponds. He believes the future of the oilsands lies with an experimental method of in situ mining where bitumen is extracted by injecting relatively cold solvents — not heated water — underground. At times he sounded like a Syncrude executive.

Afterwards, in a sit down interview with The Journal, Cameron acknowledged his black eye comment last April was “ill-informed” and this trip has changed his opinion: “I understand one thing clearly that I didn’t understand before, the upside of this thing is enormous, financially. That gives me a little bit of hope. It also scares the hell out of me because it means we’re going to stampede after those profits as fast as possible.”

Not a black eye now, perhaps, but it could be: “It has the capacity to be the biggest black eye in Canadian history or it’s got the capacity to be a place in which Alberta and Canada rise to a challenge and show leadership.”

What difference will this make to the oilsands? Not much if Premier Ed Stelmach’s defensive comments are any indication: “We are doing our part to move the world toward a clean energy future.”"

- Q&A – James Cameron talks oil sands with the Globe, Globe and Mail

- Collective shrug greets Hollywood mogul – Fort McMurray residents skeptical of what will come of James Cameron’s visit, Edmonton Journal.

Q&A – James Cameron talks oil sands with the Globe, Globe and Mail

For the record.

Q&A – James Cameron talks oil sands with the Globe, Globe and Mail

By appearing here, are you effectively lending your name to the people of Fort Chipewyan who have long complained about water quality, in an effort to get them some more attention?

I don’t know if you lend your name. I think you have to lend your energy. You’re not lending, you give your energy, give your personal resources, in the sense that if I call a press conference and people show up, and I can do that in a way that’s helpful to the plight of first nations people who really need that voice, I’m going to do it. As long as people keep showing up, why not?

Your visit was greeted with some hostility; namely, Wednesday’s Edmonton Sun featured your photo on its front page above the word “Dipstick!” Some have suggested this is Hollywood eco-tourism. Were you surprised by that reaction?

Pretty surprised, pretty surprised. You know, I don’t think it’s just about me showing up here. I think it’s the fact an outsider showed up to form an opinion. And I think everyone was leaning forward to find out what would happen there, what would oil say, what would government say, what would first nations say, what would the scientists say. Everyone had a story to tell and it was fascinating. And I want to be clear – I don’t feel that I’m some independent arbitrator, you know, completely unbiased, coming down from some Tibetan mountaintop to arbitrate on this thing. I’ve got my own opinions. I don’t want to say an agenda, because I didn’t really come here with a strategy per se. But I did come here with a very, very strong set of opinions – you might even say passions – about what we need to be doing to save ourselves, and to save the natural world around us. Everything I learned I had to fit into that framework, and nothing that I saw challenged it.

Christine Cheung artist site

My friend Christine Cheung, an award-winning painter, has launched her website christinecheung.ca where you can check out her beautiful portfolio of paintings and artist statement. Quoting Christine’s bio,

She has been artist-in-residence at Red Gate Studios (Beijing), Compeung (Thailand), Jogja National Museum (Indonesia), Struts Gallery (New Brunswick), AIR KREMS (Lower Austria) and Norway (Agder Kunstnersenter). In 2008, she was awarded a production grant from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts and Canada Council of the Arts. She recently won the Alberta Lieutenant Governor General’s Emerging Artist Award. She is now living and working in Berlin.

P.S. By the way, I should mention Christine’s lovely paintings featured in City of Calgary’s street banners in Chinatown and the centre street bridge.

Matt Palmer photography site

My friend Matt Palmer, documentary filmmaker and photographer, has launched a photography site mattpalmer.photoshelter.com where you can buy prints or digital downloads. Have a look and check out the beautiful photos at mattpalmer.photoshelter.com.

For the great teachers in our lives

The US government has created the Teach.gov site to try to encourage more people to make an impact and become teachers. Here are some of the clips I enjoy.

Secretary of Energy Steven Chu talks about the influence of his physics teacher

Bill Gates talks about the impact teachers have had on his life and career

Julia Louis-Dreyfus talks about her high school physics teacher

Oprah Winfrey reflects on her favorite teacher

“Out of Infamy: Michi Nishiura Weglyn” documentary review & film talk

Good documentary is a great way to get to know someone. In the 2010 Calgary International Film Festival, the wonderfully made Out of Infamy: Michi Nishiura Weglyn introduced me to Michi Weglyn.

Here is an excerpt from Huffington Post’s detailed and insightful review of the film,

In Out of Infamy, Sharon and Nancy, using archival film footage and stills, tell the story of the camps by focusing on one particular detainee, Michi Nishiura Weglyn, who spent an impressionable part of her youth during World War II in the Gila River War Relocation Center near Phoenix, Arizona. Her story is especially interesting because she later became a successful fashion designer, probably best known for doing the costumes for The Perry Como Show on network TV during the 1960s. Several years after leaving the Como show, Weglyn took a bold turn in life and did extensive research on the concentration camps and wrote a definitive history called Years of Infamy that exposed this shameful stain on America’s recent past. The book’s road to publication was fraught with resistance from American publishers who didn’t want to touch the story. Weglyn should be known as a hero to all Americans for her tireless struggle to reveal such an unpopular truth.

Watching Michi in Out of Infamy reminded me of Audrey Hepburn as I think both ladies shared the same sense of grace and beauty and both did wonderful work for the greater good. If you have a chance, go watch Out of Infamy: Michi Nishiura Weglyn.

Here is Sharon Yamato, co-director of Out of Infamy, giving a film talk and doing Q&A in Calgary. Also check out the film synopsis and trailer.

Liz Canner, director of documentary Orgasm Inc., at ideaCity10

Have a watch of Liz Canner‘s, director of documentary Orgasm Inc., insightful and interesting talk at ideaCity10. I am glad that I am starting to discover some interesting ideaCity talks.

Check out Orgasm Inc. and have a look of the trailer. In fact, if you live in Canada, you can watch the full Orgasm Inc. documentary online at CBC The Passionate Eye.

Here is an earlier (pre-trailer) clip with some additional materials.

Alison Gopnik, developmental psychologist, at ideaCity10

Here is a video of developmental psychologist Alison Gopnik speaking at ideaCity 2010. Enjoy.

P.S. You may want to skip the intro. To me, the setup/intro seems excessively long (over 1:30).

Funny Natalie Tran at ideaCity10

Here is a pretty funny video of Natalie Tran at ideaCity 2010. Enjoy.

P.S. You should skip the first 1:44 of intro. It may be somewhat informative but I would rather listen to Natalie directly. See full list of 2010 presenters.

Canadian census change challenge heads to Federal Court

From CBC “Census change challenge heads to Federal Court” (emphasis added),

“The Federal Court will hear a complaint Monday by a French-Canadian group that opposes the government’s move to replace the mandatory long-form census with a voluntary survey.

The Federation of Francophone and Acadian Communities of Canada has asked the court in Ottawa to void the new policy from Stephen Harper’s government, but it also wants an injunction that would keep the new voluntary national household survey from being distributed this year.

The federation, which has also filed a complaint with Canada’s official languages commissioner about the census change, argues that the government’s new policy violates not only the Official Languages Act, but also the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.“

I totally agree with this bit (emphasis added),

“Our fear is that government will no longer have the information it needs to design and elaborate programs and services,” said Marie-France Kenny, the federation’s president.

“This data is needed across the country,” she said. “We’re Canadian citizens. We’re not just French citizens, so of course we understand the need for this information for the entire country.“

More news,

“Group launches court case against census decision” Canadian Press

“Census takes centre stage on heels of gun registry debate” TorStar

“Census controversy in court” Toronto Sun

2010 CIFF Picks: Sweetgrass

Here is a new addition to my 2010 Calgary International Film Festival Picks: Sweetgrass (CIFF screening info: Globe, Sunday, Sept 26, 4:45pm) (film website).

I am going to sit back and enjoy the beauty of this documentary film, a film that the husband and wife filmmaking team spent 10 years in making.

Here is the film’s synopsis from CIFF (emphasis added),

“An unsentimental elegy to the American West, SWEETGRASS follows the last modern-day cowboys to lead their flocks of sheep up into Montana’s Absaroka Beartooth Mountains for summer pasture. This astonishingly beautiful yet unsparing film reveals a world in which nature and culture, animals and humans, vulnerability and violence are all intimately meshed. The colourful characters and beautiful mountain scenery will at once feel familiar to Albertans who are acquainted with “Big Sky Country” and the lives of “real” cowboys—individuals who are distinctly a breed apart from the ones usually seen on the big screen at a multiplex. The husband and wife team of Ilisa Barbash and Lucien Castaing-Taylor spent 10 years filming the 150-mile trek into the mountains; of the nine films composed from hundreds of hours of footage shot, SWEETGRASS is the only one intended for theatrical exhibition.“

Here is the film’s trailer.

2010 CIFF Picks: Leave Them Laughing

Here is a new addition to my 2010 Calgary International Film Festival Picks: Leave Them Laughing (CIFF screening info: Eau Claire, Sunday, Sept 26, 12:30pm) (film website). Here is the film’s synopsis from CIFF (emphasis added),

“When comedians get huge laughs from an audience, it’s referred to as having “killed it;” when a comedian tanks, they “die” on stage. When Canadian comedian Carla Zilbersmith is diagnosed with ALS (commonly known as Lou Gerhig’s Disease), she kills it while dying. Academy Award-winning Canadian filmmaker John Zaritsky (JUST ANOTHER MISSING KID) aims his lens directly into the abyss of death again, as he did in THE SUICIDE TOURIST, only this time it isn’t about the right to die—it’s about dying right. Films from her final tours abroad are intercut with interviews, confessionals and skits that form a portrait of a brave woman prepared to drink deep from the cup of life, savour every moment and, when the curtain falls, leave them laughing.”

Here is the film’s trailer. Warning: Coarse Language & Mature Subject Matter

*** Spoiler alert. *** Please skip the following if you want to watch the film without knowing how things turn out.

As part of the research I’ve done, I went to check out Carla’s blog and I was sad to find that she has passed on. Her final blog video is a funny must see and her her son Mac’s eulogy is loving and very touching.

A good documentary will touch us and sometimes change how we see the world and live our lives. I look forward to watching this film even though I expect the audio quality of the film might not be the best at places.

Making of the Redbox kiosks

For people who think manufacturing and assembly lines are dead in America, “Flextronics plant uses Lean manufacturing to produce redbox kiosks” is a really interesting and insightful read. Here is an excerpt,

“International manufacturer Flextronics this May joined with its customer Coinstar to announce its manufacturing plant in Creedmoor, N.C., had built and shipped 25,000 redbox kiosks to locations all over North America. Since then the plant has built and shipped a couple of thousand more of the devices that had a hand in changing the way consumers obtained, paid for and returned movies and video games. And right around Labor Day redbox reported it had rented its 1 billionth DVD.

Most folks passing the Flextronics plant on Interstate 85 on the way to Raleigh-Durham International Airport probably don’t think twice about it, other than notice its size, nearly 300,000 square feet. It’s just off an unremarkable exit with gas stations, fast food joints and mini-malls. “

Also check out this slide show of the plant.

Disclosure: I was one of those people who incorrectly thought manufacturing and assembly lines are dead or close to dead in North America.

World’s Smallest stop-motion animation character filmed with Nokia N8 and CellScope (a diagnostic-quality microscope)

World’s Smallest stop-motion animation character filmed with Nokia N8 and CellScope (a diagnostic-quality microscope). Really cool. [HT Discovery News]

Dot. The world’s smallest stop-motion animation character shot on a Nokia N8

Cool looking: Nokia N8 TV ad – It’s not technology, it’s what you do with it.

Jeff Chiba Stearns – shares his “Yellow Sticky Notes” animation magic at 2010 CIFF

In the following interview/demo, Jeff Chiba Stearns, filmmaker of “One Big Hapa Family“, shows us how he use the “Yellow Sticky Notes” (viewed over 1.4 million times) style of animation to draw and create his magic. Also check out my video interview with Jeff.

P.S. I really appreciate Jeff openly sharing his creative work-in-progress here. It reminds me of my 2008 interview with painter Christine Cheung where she chatted with me about her abstract painting and let me interviewed her and filmed her painting.

Jeff Chiba Stearns interview – One Big Hapa Family – 2010 CIFF Calgary International Film Festival

I had a great time interviewing Jeff Chiba Stearns, filmmaker of “One Big Hapa Family“, last night and I am looking forward to watching his feature-length documentary One Big Hapa Family on Sunday, Sept 26, 2:45pm.

In the interview Jeff and I chatted about what inspired him to make the documentary, why he thinks may explain the stats of 95% of Japanese-Canadian marries inter=racially or Japanese of non-Japanese decent (South Asian is 13%), why can we learn from this difference. Jeff and I also talk about the animation techniques he used, what inspired him to draw some of the scenes in his over 1.4 million views “Yellow Sticky Notes“, his recommended animation book “The Illusion of Life“, and other animation/filmmaking ideas. Enjoy.

2010 CIFF Picks: One Big Hapa Family

New 2010 Calgary International Film Festival Picks: One Big Hapa Family by Jeff Chiba Stearns (CIFF screening info: Sunday, Sept 26, 2:45pm, Globe Theatre) (film website at Meditating Bunny). (Short film  ”Out of Infamy: Michi Nishiura Weglyn” is also screening at the same time.)

Jeff‘s award winning “Yellow Sticky Notes“, viewed close to 1.5 million times, is a very charming animation short film and I love it. So I am very excited and looking forward to watching One Big Hapa Family on Sunday.

Check out this film trailer. (added on Oct 11th, 2010)

Here is ”Yellow Sticky Notes“.

Check out Jeff’s interview on MTV LIVE , a creative and fun Post-It note ad, and Jeff’s 2010 Emily Carr Award acceptance speech. I will be interviewing Jeff later tonight, so stay tune for that.

Here is Meditating Bunny Studio Reel 2010

Cool Ad: Ode to a Post-it Note

Ode to a Post-it® Note is a cool ad by Jeff Chiba Stearns, it is lovely to see Arthur Fry, inventor of Post-It, acknowledged as it is a wonderful way to encourage inventors and scientists of the future.

Stephen Colbert congressional subcommittee opening statement

Stephen Colbert testified today on Capital Hill about the plight of illegal farm workers in US but in his TV funny man character. Here is a video of Stephen‘s congressional subcommittee opening statement. Read more reports from Toronto Star, NYT, CNN, and AP.