alberta
Latest
Rural Canadian town developing nation's first 1Gbps internet service
All you cool city cats on DSL, eat your heart out -- a 1Gbps fiber internet service will soon be speeding up the lives of 8,500 residents in Olds, a rural community in Alberta, Canada. Around 60% of the populace can sign up for the $170 / month plan at the moment, but a new pricing scheme will bring it down to $57. That's cheaper than Google Fiber, folks, which is made possible by the fact that the town itself owns the service. In fact, it's the Olds Institute for Community and Regional Development (a non-profit) that took the bull by the horns, securing a $2.5 million grant from the Alberta government and a $6 million loan from the town itself to fund the fiber network construction. It's thanks to the town's authorities that the residents can soon rid themselves of crappy internet, while the rest of us can only look on in envy. [Image credit: Barta IV / Flickr]
Gamers more likely to experience sweet, lucid dreams
New research coming out of Grant MacEwan University in Alberta, Canada has left us feeling a little... creepy. It turns out that gamers and those who have lucid dreams -- in which the person is aware of the fact that they're dreaming and can sometimes control the dreams -- have a few things in common. Namely, both are usually less prone to motion sickness and possess better spatial skills, as well as demonstrating higher levels of concentration. This led Jayne Gackenbach -- whose previous work had been in the field of lucid dreaming -- to surmise that incessant gamers might just be more likely to also be lucid dreamers. And guess what? Her research corroborated that -- and a second study revealed even more interesting tidbits -- such as the fact that gamers are also more likely to switch from first person to third person "out of body" views in dreams, as well. So, where does all of this lead us? Gackenbach sees the data and findings as applicable in the treatment of persistent nightmares, which can often be "ended" if the dreamer is able to take control of the situation, and ultimately could help treat certain stress-related disorders like PTSD. We'll have to see what the future holds, but we certainly aren't surprised to hear that heavy gamers can be cool even as they sleep.
Telus TV nets Super Channel stations in Alberta / BC, Canada
Check it, Western Canada -- here's a spectacular early Christmas / Boxing Day present. Super Channel, the nation's premium national TV service, has just made itself available in British Columbia and Alberta on Telus TV. That's right, half a dozen new ones are now ready for viewing, with two of them being in glistening high-definition. The SD stations will be hosted on slots 230 through 233, while the HD variants will be delivered on 635 and 636. And hey, there's no wrapping paper to clean up, which is always a plus.
Two Canadian Apple Stores set to open
Rejoice, Apple-loving Canadians. Apple will open two new retail stores this weekend. One in Calgary, Alberta and the other in Toronto, Ontario. Apple Store Market Mall will be the 2nd store in Alberta when it opens at 9:30 AM on Saturday, 27th. It's located between 32nd Avenue NW and 40th Avenue NW on the West side of Shaganappi Trail NW. You can find full travel directions here. At the same time, Apple Store Fairview will open in Toronto at 1800 Sheppard Avenue East. Here are your travel directions. These will be the 8th and 9th stores to open in Canada. If you visit either location, please share your stories and photos. Have fun!Thanks to everyone who sent this in!
Apple Store West Edmonton: Your reports
Apple opened a new retail store in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada this weekend, number six for The Great White North. As usual, we asked any TUAW readers who may have attended to share their reports and/or pictures. So, did you go, and if you did, how was it? Let us know in the comments. Here's hoping you scored a T-shirt!If you haven't gone down to the store yet, grab your camera and add anything especially interesting to our Flickr pool!
Apple Store West Edmonton opens Saturday
Clear your calendars for Saturday, Edmonton Apple fans. Apple Store West Edmonton is set to open its doors at 10:00 AM. The store is located in the West Edmonton Mall, at 8882 - 170th Street, next to The Disney Store. You can get full travel directions here, but since the WEM is the largest shopping center in North America you shouldn't have too much trouble finding it.If you visit the store on opening weekend, please send us your stories and photos. This will be Canada's sixth Apple Store.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!
Alberta: Stop playing games, go out and hunt
While you sit around the couch plowing through Halo 3 today, the Canadian province of Alberta would like to remind you that there are other, more worthwhile pursuits than shooting virtual creatures. Like shooting real creatures, for instance!Alberta declared Sept. 22 "Hunting Day" to promote the province's hunting heritage and reverse declining interest in hunting among the populace. That's all well and good, but what got us was Alberta Minister of Sustainable Resource Development Ted Morton's assertion, reprinted in a Reuters story, that "hunting is more fun (than video games) and a lot healthier."More fun? While crouching in the bushes covered in mud for hours waiting for that perfect shot to come along might be some people's idea of fun, we haven't seen many people lining up at midnight launch events for new hunting gear. As for health, while hunting might be very beneficial for the hunter, it's decidedly less healthy for the prey being shot.[Via Button Mashing]
