Mild Electric Shock To Brain May Boost Spatial Memory

An anonymous reader writes "A mild electrical shock to the brain before learning a new task may enhance memory, researchers reported on Wednesday. A team of neuroscientists demonstrated that electrical stimulation to a critical junction in the brain appeared to boost memory in a few patients with epilepsy, a surprising finding that have implications for Alzheimer's disease treatment."

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from Slashdot http://science.slashdot.org/story/12/02/09/2032204/mild-electric-shock-to-bra...

5 Essential Spreadsheets for Social Media Analytics


Ann Smarty is a search marketer and full-time web entrepreneur. Ann blogs on search and social media tools. Her newest project, My Blog Guest, is a free platform for guest bloggers and blog owners. Follow Ann on Twitter @seosmarty.

Social media analytics and tracking can be very time-consuming and expensive. You’ll find quite a few smart social media monitoring tools, but what if you can’t afford them?

That’s why many social media marketers and power users are in constant search of free, efficient alternatives. Here, we’ll share a few ready-made spreadsheets you can copy (navigate File + Make a copy) and use for social media analytics. They are free, highly customizable and extremely easy to use.

Most of the scripts that run the spreadsheets are “public,” meaning you can access them from the Tools + Script Gallery menu (this also means they were reviewed and approved by Google Spreadsheets team).


1. Fetch Twitter Search Results


GetTweets is a simple and fast Google Spreadsheet script that lets you quickly export Twitter search results into a spreadsheet. You can play with the spreadsheets in two ways.

  • Increase the number of results returned — up to 1,500. I managed to fetch about 1,300.
  • Twitter search operators can help you filter out links (search “-filter:links“) and find tweeted questions (search “?“). Check out this article on advanced social media search as well as this list for more search terms.

Spreadsheet details:


2. Count Facebook Likes and Shares


FacebookLikes script evaluates Facebook user interaction for any given range of URLs. It will display:

  • Facebook like count.
  • Facebook share count.
  • Facebook comment count.
  • Overall Facebook interaction.

Additionally, the spreadsheet’s embedded chart lets you compare Facebook interaction for the number of pages provided.

Spreadsheet details:


3. Compare Facebook Pages


Like the previous spreadsheet, FacebookFans is a Google macro based on Facebook API. For any Facebook page ID, it fetches the number of fans. It also visualizes the data with a pretty pie chart. Track your as well as your competitors’ Pages using the script, and the numbers will update each time you open the spreadsheet — easy!

Spreadsheet details:


4. Monitor Social Media Reputation


This spreadsheet not only generates Google search results for the term you provide, but also fetches Twitter and Facebook counts for each page returned. Anyone can easily run a search for his or her brand name and see how actively it’s being discussed in social media.

Try using a few search Google operators, for example:

  • ["brand name" -intitle:"brand name"] to find in-text brand mentions you are most likely to have missed.
  • [inurl:"guest * post" search term] to find recent guest blogging opportunities on the topic of your interest. Note: if you are getting a “too many connections” error, try another search to refresh the scripts. Or re-save the scripts from Tools + Script Manager.

Spreadsheet details:

  • Public scripts? Yes.
  • Copy the spreadsheet here.
  • Spreadsheet credit here.

5. Extract and Archive Your Followers


This spreadsheet is the hardest to set up, but also has the most complex functionality. It lets you extract your friends and followers to easily search and filter your Twitter contacts.

The script requires your own Twitter API key (which is pretty easy to get), and provides easy-to-follow set up instructions. Try running the scripts a couple of times to get them working. Go to Tools + Script Manager and run Test script.

If you have done everything correctly, a Twitter Auth will pop up. Then, you’ll be able to authenticate your own application. After, go to Twitter + Get Followers and you should see the tool importing your following list. However, if you have large following, you likely won’t be able to import it all (for me, that meant about 5,000 recent followers).

Spreadsheet details:

from Mashable! http://mashable.com/2012/02/09/social-media-analytics-spreadsheets/?utm_sourc...

Where to Find Mashable at Social Media Week 2012


Social Media Week 2012 begins on Monday, Feb. 13 and extends to 12 cities worldwide. Mashable staff members will once again be taking part in various panels across New York City.

Now in its fourth year, Social Media Week continues to grow, with 60,000 people attending events annually. Just like last year, we here at Mashable are excited to participate. You’ll find Mashable staff discussing a variety of topics throughout the week including nonprofits, startups, photography and marketing.

Below is a list of all the panels that Mashable staff will be a part of. A complete schedule of events worldwide can be found on the Social Media Week calendar.

 


Mashable at New York Social Media Week 2012

Monday, Feb. 13

Tuesday, Feb. 14

Wednesday, Feb. 15

Thursday, Feb. 16

Friday, Feb. 17

Will you be attending Social Media Week?  Which panels interest you the most?

 

More About: mashable, new york, Social Media, social media week

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from Mashable! http://mashable.com/2012/02/10/mashable-social-media-week-201/?utm_source=fee...

Snapstream industrial-strength DVR gets Mac browser client

Snapstream is an enterprise-level TV monitoring service. It's used mostly by news organizations and companies to keep an eye on what's happening on television every night, looking for a certain piece of video or bit of text or speech (the Daily Show famously uses it to keep track of all of that news footage John Stewart makes fun of every night). And despite its popularity, it's only been available on Windows -- until now.

Unfortunately, there's still not a dedicated Mac client, but there is a new web interface that Macs can access and use through the browser. The browser client will do everything the full client can, which means even users on Macs can search through TV broadcasts and find what they need.

Users can grab that video and transcode it on the server off to a more web-friendly format. If your company uses Snapstream (or has been thinking about using it), but was waiting for a Mac client, now's your chance.

Snapstream industrial-strength DVR gets Mac browser client originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 10 Feb 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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from TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog http://www.tuaw.com/2012/02/10/snapstream-industrial-strength-dvr-gets-mac-br...

Skin Cancer Drug Reverses Alzheimer's Symptoms In Mice

An anonymous reader writes "A skin cancer drug may rapidly reverse pathological, cognitive and memory deterioration associated with Alzheimer's disease, according to new research published on Thursday. Bexarotene, a drug that is currently used to combat T cell lymphoma, appeared to reverse plaque buildup and improve memory in the brains of mice with Alzheimer's disease by reducing levels of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain that cause mental deficits in Alzheimer's disease."

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from Slashdot http://science.slashdot.org/story/12/02/10/2120255/skin-cancer-drug-reverses-...

How to Structure Your Startup to Avoid Double Taxation


Creating a legal entity for your startup will establish much-needed separation between you and your business. Shielding your personal assets is the first and foremost reason to think about incorporating.

But let’s face it. When it comes down to choosing a business structure, small business owners are typically concerned about one thing: taxes.

There are a whole host of reasons to incorporate as a C Corporation. For example, the C Corp is the preferred structure if you intend on seeking VC funding or taking the company public. But forming a C Corp involves more paperwork, legal fine print and potential double taxation.


Understanding the Pitfall of Double Taxation


From a legal stance, a C Corp is a separate entity that can sue and be sued. When it comes to taxes, a C Corp is a separate tax payer that files its own federal and state (where applicable) tax returns. This means that profits are first taxed with the corporation. Then, if the corporation decides to take that profit and distribute dividends to shareholders, the dividends are taxed again (this time, on each shareholder’s personal tax statement).

To better understand the potential of double taxation, let’s look at an example: Carl owns a graphic design business and formed a C Corporation (he’s the only shareholder at the moment). His business took in $90,000 in profit in 2011. As a C Corporation, the business would first be taxed on the profits, paying $19,000 (assuming $13,750 plus 34% of the amount over $75,000).

Carl wants to take that money home, and decides to distribute it to himself as a dividend. He will also owe taxes (at the 15% qualifying dividend rate) on the dividend payment.

Carl’s total tax payments amount to $19,000 (corp) plus $13,500 (personal), totaling $32,500.


Avoiding Double Taxation: Pass-Through Tax Treatment


Two business structures are often preferred for small businesses, since they avoid this double taxation burden: the LLC (limited liability company) and S Corporation. With these business structures, the company is taxed more like a sole proprietor or a partnership than as a separate entity, like the C Corporation.

Company profits are “passed through” and reported on the personal income tax return of the shareholders.

Here’s what it would mean for Carl and his graphic design business: Carl incorporates his graphic design business as a C Corporation, then chooses to elect “S Corporation Status” by filing form 2553 with the IRS in a timely manner (note: the S Corporation deadline is 75 days from the day your company is formed, or March 15 for existing companies).

His company earned $90,000 in profit in 2011. As an S Corporation, the business itself pays no income tax. Since Carl is a shareholder and also works in the business, he must pay himself a reasonable wage for his activities. This will be subject to his personal income tax rate.

Then, he can distribute the rest of the profits to himself as a dividend, which are taxed at a 15% qualifying dividend rate.

Please bear in mind that these examples are over-simplified to introduce the concept of double taxation at the highest level. As expected, nothing is ever so simple when it comes to the world of business taxes. Discussing your particular situation with a trusted tax advisor or accountant can go a long way to helping you determine which business structure and tax treatment is optimal for you.


The LLC and S Corporation


Both the LLC and S corporations offer the pass-through tax treatment explained above. And both will protect your personal assets from any potential liabilities of the company (whether from an unhappy customer, unpaid supplier or anyone else who might pursue legal action).

Yet, the LLC and S Corp feature some key differences as well. Stay tuned for my next post, when I explore these differences and how they impact your business.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, bluestocking

More About: Business, corporate, features, LLC, Startups, taxes

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from Mashable! http://mashable.com/2012/02/09/business-incorporation-taxes/?utm_source=feedb...

Boozeton, Massachusetts: The North End, Chinatown & Harvard Square Like to Drink [Maps]

Given that Boston was just ranked the drunkest city in America (woo!), these latest maps from our friends over at Bostonography are very fitting. The site’s cartographers, Tim Wallace and Andy Woodruff, analyzed liquor licenses across the state of Massachusetts, both by neighborhood and by population.

Here’s a look at the density of liquor licenses across the Boston-area. The redder the area, the more liquor licenses exist in that area. Basically, if you wanna get drunk, head to the North End, Chinatown or Harvard Square.

Here’s another map that analyzes each block’s proximity to an establishment with a liquor license, based on walking distance. Again, the deeper the red, the closer that location is to a liquor license. Keep this map near and dear to your heart — it will certainly come in handy when choosing the location of your next apartment.

Finally, this last map is a people per license map, which shows the local areas where supply is exceeding demand, explains Wallace. Again, the darker the red, the more liquor licenses per person. And again, a great map to have on handy when choosing a place to call home. Also, the airport has a lot of booze. Duh.

For more liquor license maps, check out Bostonography’s full Boozeton post here.

All images via Bostonography

from BostInno http://bostinno.com/2012/02/09/boozeton-massachusetts-the-north-end-chinatown...

When Should You Go All-In on Your Startup? [VIDEO]

From bootstrapping his company, to raising a seed round last year, to his company’s recent $8 million A round, Neil Capel exemplifies the grit and hustle typical in successful entrepreneurs. Capel founded Sailthru, an enterprise software-as-a-service company that uses clickstream data to individually tailor marketing emails to each user, which Capel says will exponentially increase the lifetime value of a customer email address.

Check out our interview with Capel to find out how he went from a consultant at Morgan Stanley to founding a company that will soon be expanding globally and his thoughts on when you should consider going full-time on your startup.

This Venture Studio Classic was originally released on September 22, 2011.

Follow Venture Studio, in association with Mashable. The show is hosted by Dave Lerner, a 3x entrepreneur and angel investor. To join Venture Studio’s Facebook page, click here.


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More About: email marketing, entrepreneurship, mashable video, Startups, Venture, venture studio, Video

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from Mashable! http://mashable.com/2012/02/09/neil-capel-startup-video/?utm_source=feedburne...

Linking correlation to causation with power laws and scale free systems

An essential part of science involves finding correlations between two sets of measurements and seeking explanations for those correlations. However, relationships can be suggested by data even when they don't actually exist, and correlations may occur due to random fluctuations rather than a deep underlying principle (as the infamous "correlation does not equal causation" cliché suggests). These errors are easy to make, and the scientific literature is full of them.

So how can researchers establish if a correlation is both real and meaningful? In a Perspective in the February 10 issue of Science, Michael P.H. Stumpf and Mason A. Porter examine the type of correlation known as a power law, where one set of measurements is related to a second via an exponent. They argue that two things must be in place for a power law to be valid as a predictive model: it must hold over a wide range of data to eliminate chance associations, and it must have a plausible mechanism to explain why the correlation showed up in the data.

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from Ars Technica http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2012/02/seeing-a-power-law-in-data-doesnt...