INFOGIFT.INFO

If you are a first time visitor: once you read this article, scroll down past a comment form, for a list of related items. Also, please check our categories for more information. You may sign up for free updates by RSS or E-mail. Thanks for visiting!

Guggenheim Museum in Las Vegas is closing its doors on May 11, 2008.
 
 
Initially, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation opened two Las Vegas locations in 2001, but mere 15 months later had to close the larger one, because of shortage of funds and the luckluster attendance.

  
“Guggenheim Hermitage, a partnership between the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia, was the smaller of the two”, located in the Venetian Hotel and stayed open for the next 7 years, until now.

  
Guggenheim Hermitage had 10 major exhibits in seven years. Visitors could see works by Degas, Picasso, Chagall, Kandinsky, Rothko, Modigliani, Klee and others.

  
“It’s a big loss to not have the great works of art on display and in our community,” said Libby Lumpkin, executive director of the Las Vegas Art Museum.
“…We sent our finest collections, our masterpieces,” she said, “masterworks that we committed to long periods of time in Las Vegas, things that were not available for loan to other museums anywhere in the world or even for us. I think that’s a pretty profound commitment to very high standards of exhibition in Las Vegas in a space designed by one of the world’s leading architects. I don’t see how that can be interpreted to anything but caring.”

  
Many factors, combined together, brought on the demise and the closure of this fine museum, which will be missed by many.

 
The museum will stay open until May 11 and will offer free admission.
Source: Art Knowledge News and Las Vegas Sun.

 
While Las Vegas has other art galleries, it will only have one on the Strip: the fine arts gallery at the Bellagio.

Do you drink 8 glasses of water a day to keep yourself hydrated? Do you think it helps you in any way? Do you look better? Do you feel better? Does it help you to curb your appetite? Not really?

 
If you are doubting the rule of 8 glasses of water a day - you are correct.
The article, published by Telegraph, is debunking this myth.

 
“…no studies have found any benefit to the organs of increased water intake.
no single study indicated average healthy people needed to drink this amount of water - a total of 3.3 pints - each day.

 
…The authors said that while dehydration can decrease skin stiffness, no studies have shown any clinical benefit to skin tone as a result of increased water intake.
This is replaced through drinks but a large amount is also contained in food, so it is not necessary to drink an equivalent amount to replace water levels.
Too much water can affect the balance of salts in the body causing “water intoxication”, which can be fatal.”
For more details read the article at Telegraph

 
In December of 2005 the Snopes pages posted an article, where drinking 8 glasses of water a day was pronounced a myth, but it remained largely ignored. 
Read this article at Snopes

 
Actually, there’s been cases, where people died from from water intoxication. The very high profile case involves a women, who died trying to drink as much water, as she could hold. It happened last year, when a radio station in Sacramento, CA organized a contest “How much water a person could drink without going to the bathroom”
Read about it at msnbc news.

Do you know what is Skype? 
For whatever reason I don’t see or hear much marketing of this great service from the media, but I do hear about it from friends.

 
Skype is a telephone service you can use for free. Yes, that is correct: talk with friend locally or in other states for free, make international calls any time, too. You may have a camera connected to your computer and have a video session as well. How does it work? Actually, easy.

 
The only requirement is: have a computer, an Internet connection and a free software, which you download from Skype. The person on the other end of the world or the city, should have it, too. That would be a Skype-to-Skype call. That’s it. Enjoy.

 
A headset and a microphone are recommended for better clarity. You may buy these things online, at RadioShack, or at any place, that sells electronics.
To make a call to a regular or mobile phone you’ll have pay, but the rates are very good.

  
Find out more by visiting  http://www.skype.com/getconnected/

 
P.S. I already wrote, that 1-800-FREE411 is available on Skype, too.
Get Directions by Text Messaging and Other Ways to Find Information/

ChaCha is a new service oriented on helping you find information without spending time on the research. The service is especially helpful, if you are on the go or visiting unfamiliar places.
Service is powered by human guides, so you may ask all kinds of questions: from  “what is the origin of a certain word?” to “Where is the most expensive restaurant in the this city?”.

 
“Simply text your question to 242-242 (spells ‘ChaCha’) or call 1-800-2ChaCha (800-224-2242) from your mobile phone to ask any question and you will receive the answer as a text message. If you have a web browser on your phone, just click on the short website link that’s also included with your answer to see a reference website with more information. Since ChaCha uses human guides, you can easily reply with follow-on questions as if you are exchanging messages with a friend.”

 
Find out more About ChaCha , see home page: ChaCha.com

On April 2, 2008 www.amazon.com introduced a new service: Amazon TextBuyIt.  This service is designed to help a mobile device users to order products by text messaging Amazon.

 
Here is how it works: while shopping at the a store, a shopper sees the products and wonders if he can buy it from Amazon for less. From his mobile phone he can send a text message with an item name (for example, iPod) to 262966 (Amazon), get back a text reply with a few items listed, and press 1 or 2, indicating a choice. Next, get a call from Amazon, confirming an order. Done.
(You can search on any keyword: item name, author, USBN or UPC code).

 
Read more about this service at the: Amazon.com

Do you think you have an eye for art? Have you ever experienced a feeling, where you just couldn’t tear yourself off the art gallery’s window and wished you had enough money to buy the painting displayed there? Have you ever regretted of not living in France, at the rise of the expressionists movement and not being able to pick up the painting, which would live on to become a family heirloom or a less glamorous prospect: a vehicle to the lavish lifestyle?

 
If you answered “Yes” to at least one of these questions, you should visit a site, which might prove to be an answer to all of your problems and help you to achieve the dream: www.tinyshowcase.com.

 
Created in 2004 by Jon Buonaccorsi and Shea’la Finch the Tiny Showcase is featuring works by an up-and-coming artists. By offering a limited edition prints in the price range of $20 to $30, where part of the proceeds is donated to a charity of the artist’s choice, they offer you a chance to acquire the work of art you like and have an opportunity to check and hone your artistic instinct.

 
If you are not comfortable with the unknowns, you may acquire the works of in-demand illustrators, which are featured on the site, as well.
Start your buying spree by being the first to notice a future gem by getting to the Tiny Showcase every Tuesday at 7:30P.M. ET, when the site presents a new butch of paintings.

 
By the way, if you ever wondered about art market’s health and stability, you should know, that Andy Warhol was the most sold artist in 2007, doubling his previous year’s demand, followed by Picasso and then, by Bacon. The experts predict a slowdown in sales in 2008, because of the financial crisis we are weathering, but as every phase, it shall pass, too.

 
You may read the assessment of the art scene (with the sales of artist’s works analyzed) in the article at Bloomberg

 
I hope this gift of information will help you on the road to happiness.

Update: 

 
The violin, known as The Penny, was sold to unidentified buyer for $1.3 million. 

 
Source:  Bloomberg 

 
Two years ago a 1729 Stradivari violin was sold at Christie’s auction house for $3.5 million, which was a record price for a musical instrument at the time. It still is.

 
On April 4, 2008 another Stradivari violin made in 1700 and known as The Penny, will be auctioned. This one has a rich history attached to it: it was owned by violinist and pianist Barbara Penny, “who was a first woman accepted in the string section of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra”. The estimated price is between $1 million and $1.5 million.
The Penny is described as “sweet and feminine” and has “…a good balance between the brightness and the sweetness”.
In his lifetime Stradivari made approx. 1,100 instruments and whereabouts of 650 of which are known.
Source: International Herald Tribune and Reuters

 
And now, since we are talking about musical instruments, I’d like to tell you about a very unusual orchestra: Vienna Vegetable Orchestra.

 
The Orchestra was formed in 1998 and consists of 11 musicians, a video artist and a sound engineer. For the duration of the performance they play with their food, and not only get paid by the watching audience in Europe and Asia, but have released 2 CDs as well.

 
The instruments sound as any instruments should, and the repertoire is consisting of jazz, classical and electronic/techno music.
“…the Vegetable Orchestra produce different categories of sound based on their shape and the method of playing them. There are percussion instruments: celeriac bongos, a clapper made from an eggplant, pumpkins to be pounded upon, and dry beans that are shaken to provide rhythmic effects. There are strings (a leek violin), woodwinds (a carrot recorder), and versions of brass instruments (a trumpet made from a red pepper)”.

 
What happens after the performance? I guess, the musicians get to eat their fresh instruments, er.. vegetables, every day.

 
For more details read Interesting Things of the Day.
 
 

The Villa Fontanelle on the shores of Lake Como, which before his tragic death on July 15, 1997, belonged to a famous designer Gianni Versace, is sold to yet another Russian - Arkady Novikov, reports The Times Online.

 
Mostly unoccupied for the last 10 years, it’s ready to open its doors to a new owner who, reportedly, paid for this privilege £26m (approx $50 million), which is £3m over asking price.
Trained as a chef, Arkady Novikov, known as the “blini baron of Moscow” owns a chain of finest restaurants and cafes for the elite in Russia. Restaurants are are famous for their unusual decor and excellent food.

 
He “…is credited with transforming the restaurant scene in the Russian capital. He has introduced sushi, caribou and nachos with deep-fried onion blossom to the menus of a culinary empire that includes 47 restaurants and a chain of cafes. He starred in the Russian version of the reality-television show The Apprentice.”

 
Mr. Novikov and the representatives of Real Estate agency, involved in the marketing of the property, had declined to comment on the  sale.

 
For more details read the original article at: Times Online

If you enjoy drinking wine and proudly display your collection of rare spirits or store it in carefully temperature regulated wine cellar, you, probably, know a lot about which wine to buy and drink right away, and which wine to hold on to.

 
If you wish you knew all this, but don’t, read an article in Times Online and learn how to invest in wine. A lot of interesting information, where you don’t have to pay for the education: only for the wine.

 
You could experiment with it: drink a bottle now, write down your findings. Open another bottle some time later and try to compare what have changed. You should know, that not all wine is intended for maturing, and if yes, then only for a certain number of years.

 
And the best advice is: if you don’t like the wine you got: drown your sorrow in it. Consider your money well spent, not thrown away, and learn from the experience. If your wine appreciates in value: sell it and enjoy something less expensive, if you can’t afford your own anymore.

If you already know all about “Photoshop” and how to use it, you probably, won’t get too exited from the news, that today Adobe announced a public beta version of Adobe Photoshop Express.

 
As for those of you who are wondering how to make a color photograph look black and white, a photo to resemble a sketch, how to mute a background, how to distort a face, so the wrinkles are not so prominent: you got something to explore, to learn and to enjoy working with.

 
“Even users with limited photo editing knowledge can simply select what looks best from a line-up of sample photos with visual hints showing different variations of the added effect.
…Photoshop Express allows users to store up to 2 gigabytes of images online for free, make edits to their photos, and share them online in creative ways, including downloading and uploading photos from popular social networking sites like Facebook.”

 
The landing page of this trial version has “a test drive” feature, so you can see all the tricks and get a feeling of this product. What’s most important: the program is not in your computer, so you can’t break anything.

 
It works with all major browsers, including Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari and others. (You need to have an up-to-date Flash® Player 9 for APE to work).  As of now, Photoshop Express is available to US residents-only in English.”

 
Now, go to Photoshop.com/Express landing page and have fun removing red eyes effect from from your favorite picture, make the edges of that photo jagged, and make your cat smiling, too.

 
Read Adobe’s Press Releases for more info.