Top 10 Fastest Cars for 2010 – 2011

1. Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport

267 mph, 0-60 in 2.2 seconds – This is a lightweight super car powered by 8.0-liter W16 engine with 1200 horsepower. It sells at $2,400,000, easily the highest priced car in the top 10 list.  The car produced by Volkswagen Group subsidiary Bugatti Automobiles was introduced in 2005 as the fastest production car in the world.

2. SSC Ultimate Aero

257 mph, 0-60 in 2.7 seconds – This car was acknowledged by Guinness world records as the fastest car in March 2007. It is powered by a twin-turbo engine that packs an astounding 1183 horsepower. Only 24 cars were produced from 2006-2007 at a price of US $485,000.

3. Koenigsegg CCX

250 mph+, 0-60 in 3.2 seconds – This Sweden-made fast car packs 806 power from its 90 degree V8 engine. The CCX was first unveiled on February 28, 2006 at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show although its existence was announced earlier.  At a price of $1,820,000 and $2,050,000 for top of the line model, exclusivity is guaranteed.

4. Saleen S7 Twin-Turbo

248 mph, 0-60 in 3.2 seconds – This super fast car is powered by an 100% aluminum V8 engine packing with 750 horsepower. This twin-turbocharged monster went on sale for $585,296 USD in 2005 , replacing standard non turbo S7 production. Saleen offers an optional competition package with 33% increase in power.

5. McLaren F1

240 mph, 0-60 in 3.2 seconds – It is power driven by powerhouse V12 engine that packs 62y horsepower. It is popular with its trademark doors that resemble bat wings. Up until 1998, when McLaren produced and sold the standard F1 models, they had a price tag of around 970 000 USD. Today the cars can sell for up to nearly twice that of the original price.

6. Gumpert Apollo

220 mph, 0-60 in 2.7 seconds – This super car is produced by a German automaker in Altenburg. It is a mid-engined, rear wheel drive two-seater constructed on a tubular chromoly frame, with fiberglass or optional carbon fiber body panels. There are 3 engine types available with the race version rated at 789.06 bhp. The production of the Apollo started in October 2005 with a starting price of $400,000 USD.

7. Ascari A10

220 mph, 0-60 in 2.8 seconds – Although designed for racing A10 is intended to be a usable car or on the road. It is engineered and hand built in Banbury, England featuring a modified 5.0 L BMW V8 engine producing 625 bhp at a price of approximately $650,000 USD. Only 50 A10s lucky owners will have a chance to own one.

8. Ferrari Enzo

217 mph, 0-60 in 3.2 seconds – It is driven by a F140 V12 workhorse with 660 horsepower. It is currently one of the most powerful naturally aspirated  production cars in the world. There are only 399 of these cars worldwide and the price of a unit shoots up every time someone crashes one. This Ferrari typically trades above $1,000,000  at auction.

9. Jaguar XJ 220

217 mph, 0-60 in 4.0 seconds – This fast car is driven bya V6 engine that packs 542 horsepower. This is one of the oldest as being released in 1992 but still got what it takes to remain the round of ten of hot wheels. Total of 281 cars were made and by 1997, few of these remained available for sale new at £150,000.

10. Pagani Zonda F

215 mph, 0-60 in 3.5 seconds –  It’s no mistake that Pagani chose to use the “F” badging to represent the first step up in performance for the Zonda above the stock Zonda S. This fast car is driven by Mercedes Benz V12 engine packing 650 horsepower. Base price for this dream car is $694,000.

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How to Use Google+ Hangouts for Teaching

Google+ is the latest social media platform which has caught the imagination of professionals in all walks of life. And fortunately for educators, features like Circles, Sparks, and Hangouts are of immense value – for an educator teaching at institutions located in different places, a lot of time is lost in travelling from one location to other, not to mention the strain involved in alternatively travelling and teaching.

Google Plus's Hangouts is a tool that takes the travelling strain out of the teaching process. Teachers can use that time to conduct more virtual classrooms at a greater number of places. This enables institutions to teach more students with a lower number of teachers, thereby saving costs and placing institutions in a position to reward teachers in better ways. The biggest advantage is that the Google Hangouts allows a teacher to teach to ten classrooms at a time. In case there are more, each of the receiving classrooms can relay it to ten more classrooms in turn.

Classes can be interactive and students at any center can ask questions through FM mikes. The speaker's image will always be bigger so that there is no confusion as to who is speaking. You don't have to search faces to find out who is speaking. Here are some suggestions for using Google+ Hangouts to improve your teaching experience.

EditSteps

1. 1
   Before getting started, ensure that:
   
   
   • You have computers with the latest configurations.
   • You have a high speed internet connections at each node.
   • Your internet connection works even without power supply.
   • You have an alternate source of power to ensure continuous transmission even during power outages.
   • All your systems are connected to an inverter, so that the transmission is not lost during the switchover form one power source to another.
2. 2
   
   

    Google plus
   Create Google+ accounts at the transmission and reception levels. These are the places from where the teacher is teaching (transmission) and where the students are located (reception). The first prerequisite for creating a Google+ account is having a Gmail account. Log into your Gmail account.On the left side of your Dashboard bar(The strip at the top)you will have an icon "+you" by clicking the icon you can create a Google+ account.
   • Create Gmail accounts for all the nodes (transmission and reception). The Google+ accounts operate through Gmail accounts.
3. 3
   
   

    Network the nodes
   Network the Google+ nodes once the accounts are created. It is necessary to connect the various nodes with each other by sending and accepting contact requests.
4. 4
   Create relevant circles. The transmission node should create subject-wise circles and include the relevant reception nodes in the circle. Similarly, the reception nodes should also create each subject circle and include the relevant transmission node in the circle. The process is very easy – just drag and drop the relevant nodes in the circle.
   • You can create an unlimited number of circles but be sure you can manage the amount you do create.
   • Have a clear and specific classification for the circles and ensure that all the nodes follow the same classification. This will avoid confusion between nodes.
5. 5
   
   

    Connect the reception node (computer) to an LCD projector.
   Connect the reception node (computer) to an LCD projector. This will enable the entireclassroom to view the Hangouts and to hear the audio.
6. 6
   Integrate your You Tube, Picasa accounts with your Google+ account. This way you can transmit videos & Photos.You can also transmit Power Point presentations,or any file from your screen by clicking the option "share your screen"
7. 7
   Conduct dry runs. Test the system and the network at each node. View the audio and video quality and clarity. Make any necessary adjustments to perfect the connections.
8. 8
   Run a few trial sessions. Conduct a few trial sessions on topics of general interest to enable the students and teachers to get acclimatized to the system.
   • The transmission node should select the relevant circle before starting the hangout.
   • All the nodes should log in to their Google+ accounts at least fifteen minutes before the schedule of the virtual class. The relevant reception nodes will automatically get the transmission once they are logged in.
   • The transmission node should ensure that all the reception nodes are logged in before requesting the teacher to start teaching.
9. 9
   
   

    Virtual classrooms
   Start conducting virtual classrooms withGoogle Hangouts. And when you succeed, share the methodology and success stories with other teachers, to encourage more educators to make use of this easy and enjoyable method ofinformation sharing and learning. If convenient, you might even like to write a few "How to" articles on virtual imparting to help others to learn more from your own experiences.

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The New List of 2011 Richest person in the world

The New List of 2011 Richest person in the world
No.1 Carlos Slim Helu
$53.5 billion
Telecom, Mexico.

Telecom tycoon who pounced on privatization of Mexico’s national telephone company in the 1990s becomes world’s richest person for first time after coming in third place last year. Net worth up $18.5 billion in a year. Recently received regulatory approval to merge his fixed-line assets into American Movil, Latin America’s biggest mobile phone company.

No.2 Bill Gates

$53 billion

Microsoft, U.S.

Software visionary is now the world’s second-richest man. Net worth still up $13 billion in a year as Microsoft shares rose 50% in 12 months, value of investment vehicle Cascade swelled. More than 60% of fortune held outside Microsoft; investments include Four Seasons hotels, Televisa, Auto Nation. Stepped down from day-to-day duties at Microsoft in 2008 to focus on philanthropy.

No.3 Warren Buffett

$47 billion – Investments, U.S.

America’s favorite investor up $10 billion in past 12 months on surging Berkshire Hathaway shares; says U.S. has survived economic “Pearl Harbor,” but warns recovery will be slow. Shrewdly invested $5 billion in Goldman Sachs and $3 billion in General Electric amid 2008 market collapse. Recently acquired railroad giant Burlington Northern Santa Fe for $26 billion.

No.4 Mukesh Ambani

$29 billion- Petrochemicals, oil and gas. Indialobal ambitions: His Reliance Industries, already India’s most valuable company, recently bid $2 billion for 65% stake in troubled Canadian oil sands outfit Value Creations. Firm’s $14.5 billion offer to buy bankrupt petrochemicals maker LyondellBasell was rejected. Since September company has sold Treasury shares worth $2 billion to be used for acquisitions. Late father, Dhirubhai, founded Reliance and built it into a massive conglomerate.

No.5 Lakshmi Mittal
$28.7 billion – Steel, India.
London’s richest resident oversees ArcelorMittal, world’s largest steel maker. Net profits fell 75% in 2009. Mittal took 12% pay cut but improved outlook pushed stock up one-third in past year. Looking to expand in his native India; wants to build steel mills in Jharkhad and Orissa but has not received government approval. Earned $1.1 billion for selling his interest in a Kazakh refinery in December

No.6 Lawrence Ellison
$28 billion – Oracle, U.S.
Oracle founder’s fortune continues to soar; shares up 70% in past 12 months. Database giant has bought 57 companies in the past five years. Completed $7.4 billion buyout of Sun Microsystems in January; acquired BEA Systems for $8.5 billion in 2008. Studied physics at U. of Chicago; didn’t graduate. Started Oracle 1977; took public a day before Microsoft in 1986.

No.7 Bernard Arnault
$27.5 billion
Luxury goods, France.
Bling is back, helping fashion icon grab title of richest European as shares of his luxury goods outfit LVMH–maker of Louis Vuitton, Moet & Chandon–surge 57%. LVMH is developing upscale Shanghai commercial property, L’Avenue Shanghai, with Macau billionaire Stanley Ho.

No.8 Eike Batista
$27 billion
Mining, oil. Brazil.
Vowing to become world’s richest man–and he may be on his way. This year’s biggest gainer added $19.5 billion to his personal balance sheet. Son of Brazil’s revered former mining minister who presided over mining giant Companhia Vale do Rio Doce got his start in gold trading and mining.

No.9 Amancio Ortega
$25 billion
Fashion retail, Spain.
Style maven lords over Inditex; fashion firm, which operates under several brand names including Zara, Massimo Dutti and Stradivarius, has 4,500 stores in 73 countries including new spots in Mexico and Syria. Set up joint venture with Tata Group subsidiary to enter India in 2010. Betting on Florida real estate: bought Coral Gables office tower that is currently home to
Bacardi USA.

No.10 Karl Albrecht
$23.5 billion
Supermarkets, Germany.
Owns discount supermarket giant Aldi Sud, one of Germany’s (and Europe’s) dominant grocers. Has 1,000 stores in U.S. across 29 states. Estimated sales: $37 billion. Plans to open New York City store this year. With younger brother, Theo, transformed mother’s corner grocery store into Aldi after World War II. Brothers split ownership in 1961; Karl took the stores in southern Germany, plus the rights to the brand in the U.K., Australia and the U.S. Theo got northern Germany and the rest of Europe.

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