Weird Black Tea

Today marked the official launch of ASST, short for Advanced Super Sonic Travel. Since the use of Concordes was abandoned more than 10 years ago, Japan and Europe have cooperated in developing the first usable ASST model.

 

The plane seats 250 people, possesses a cruising range of 10,000 kilometers, and can fly from Tokyo to New York in roughly 4 hours; a considerable reduction from the current 14 hour trip. Although a day trip to NYC i no longer a mere dream, to make this dream come true will require some serious cash. 

 

The current price of a one-way NY-Tokyo is 3,200,000 yen, or roughly $30,000. A round trip is double that. It's enough to make the old "expensive" Concorde prices feel like pocket change in comparison

 

 

However, there appears to be no shortage of people to be no shortage of people desperately seeking tickets despite the high prices. The moment ASST flights were announced, New Ace Airlines' phones began ringing off the hook with requests for tickets, causing the phone lines to become jammed. One NAA employee remarked that he just hopes his company can keep going at this rate.

(C Today)
 

Notes:
A round trip Concorde flight between London and New York costs between 9,000 to 13,000 dollars

The belief that Japan was a safe society has long since been destroyed. Now a new study reveals that over 50% of parents want to have microchips embedded in their children's bodies to prevent them from getting lost or kidnapped.

 

Currently, the "Safety Chip" from Horizong Inc. is being widely distributed. The chip's size is less than a half of a grain of rice, and by scanning the area it's embedded in (usually the neck) with a special scanner, all the information contained in the chip can be easily downloaded.

 
 

The chip costs $115, and a monthly fee of $10 is required to access and manage the database. Once a chip is embedded, the embedee can use it as they would a cell phone, in order to get cash, buy groceries, enter passwords, and so on.

 

However, the chip can also be used to view personal history and/or criminal record, and pinpoint their exact location using GPS technology.

 

Furthermore it is also possible to use the chip to pay for train tickets and highway tolls, and to send information to a computer or cell phone by pointing it towards them.

 

However, many people are strongly opposed to implanting a chip into children, who are unable to make their own decisions.

 

Calling parents who choose to do so egotistical and invasive. In response to those complaints, Horizonq Inc. is developing a new model called a "Guard Bangle," which is a bracelet with a chip embedded in it. But this option leaves itself wide open to theft, defeating the purpose of having one for safety purposes.

 

Many teenagers desire to have one of these chips implanted for the "cool factor," but in a survey of children who have had these chips implanted, over 80% say they regret it. It seems that these chips have a long way to go before they'll be accepted by society. 

(C Today)

 

It refers to the third generation of computers. The first generation was Mainframe (1 computer per household) and the second was the personal computer (1 for each family member).

 

In the current third generation, using a computer in daily life has become almost as natural as eating. We can connect to the Internet without effort or even conscious thought, anywhere, anytime.

 

 

Home electronics are now managed by a personal home server, and we are now able to watch over everything, from the contents of our refrigerator to the temperature of our bathtubs, programming TV shows onto our HD recorders, and even checking if our doors are properly locked, from any terminal anywhere, including cell phones. 

 

Furthermore, progress made in voice and handwriting recognition has opened up computers to a more active, flexible method of working, and users are no longer rule by a strict list of settings managed by a machine.

 

While it comes as no surprise that the most active members of the Ubiquitous Family are in their 20s, what is surprising is that the next largest group is made up of senior citizens.

 

The Ministry reports that the main reason for this is the added simplicity such connectivity allows the elderly in managing their homes.

(Co-Op Communications)