Adidas Wilson's Blog, page 40

YouTube launches YouTube Kids App in India with Parental Control

On 10th of November YouTube, the world’s largest video-sharing website, announced the launch of its latest new app for kids in India, YouTube Kids. This is a welcome step with a win-win situation for both parents and the children.

The app is available for download on both the Apple App store & Google Play store. The app comes with children-centric videos on topics such as Music, Shows, Learning, and Explore. YouTube has specifically made sure that the app has larger and bolder images and icons. It is to ensure that kids find it attractive and at the same time easy to navigate.

The YouTube kids’ team is continuously adding new content to the site. Already present content includes learning shows from ‘Kids TV’ and ‘ChuChu TV’, the latest season of ‘Cat & Keet’, the ‘Gummy Bear’ song in Hindi and a new season of ‘Appu-The Yogic Elephant’. As the time flies by more content will be added and this app might just be a big educator in the coming years.

During the launch, Malik Ducard, YouTube’s Global Head of Family and Learning, expressed his views by saying, “India already has a very diverse and rapidly-growing creator base for kids and learning, with content in this category growing 100% year over year.”

Malik Ducard also added that “YouTube Kids comes to India at a great time for millions of Indian families, as it provides children access to content that will enrich their lives and create new opportunities for learning. It also provides the perfect platform to showcase India’s incredibly vibrant, growing community of content creators, from animation studios to edu-tubers.”

This app comes with a Parental Control setting in which the parents can control the search filters thereby deciding what the children search. Another important setting is the ‘Timer’. The timer allows parents to set a time to limit the time kids use the app by sounding an alert. Passcode and Restriction control are also possible on certain content. It also offers voice search functionality. Small kids facing difficulty in spelling a word can directly provide a voice command to search for the required video. This makes it more children-friendly.

The app can be ‘Cast’ on big screens by using a basic Raspberry Pi, Apple TV, Chromecast, Gaming Consoles or a Smart TV.

It was definitely the need of the hour for the Technology savvy Indian kids. This app can prove itself to be a big knowledge provider to such kids. With the safety and control features, parents too are happy and pleased with the Kids’ App. YouTube has managed to bridge a much-needed gap in India.

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How to Win Startup Business Loans

Borrowing money for a business is never easy. Even if you’ve got an established business generating profits, the process is long and complicated. If you’re borrowing for a startup, things get even more difficult.

Traditional Lenders

Most lenders are unwilling to lend to startup businesses. That doesn’t mean you can’t borrow, but it might not work out exactly as you imagined. If you’ve already been turned away by traditional banks and credit unions, there are still several avenues to explore.

SBA Loans: before you completely give up on traditional lenders, ask about using loans and lines of credit guaranteed by the US Small Business Administration (SBA). These loans provide a guarantee to the bank, which means less risk for the bank. Qualifying and getting approved is a complex process – lenders usually require you to provide detailed information about your business and your personal finances. You should also plan to provide a personal guarantee pledging your home, investment accounts, or other assets as collateral for the loan (and putting your personal credit on the line).

Still, this might be your best option.

Startup Options

Most startups need to get more creative. Traditionally, you’d rely on friends, family, and other willing investors. Fortunately, today’s entrepreneurs have more options available that don’t just depend on your built-in connections or your ability to sell.

Unfortunately, your personal finances are probably the most important factor in getting approved. You’re trying to get funding for your business, but lenders can’t look at your business’ history because there is no (or very little) history to look at. What’s more, the vast majority of startups fail within the first few years.

As a result, your personal credit scores are important – although there are exceptions. If you’ll get funding from non-traditional lenders (such as people you know, venture capitalists, or crowdfunding), your credit is less important.

Online lenders are a good option for inexpensive loans and quick approval. Especially if you have good credit, non-bank lenders (including peer to peer lenders) should be at the top of your list. There might not be as much choice for loan terms, but money is available, and getting funded is relatively easy – so you can move on to more important things.

Credit Cards have long been the tool of choice for entrepreneurs with limited options. Unfortunately, credit cards are notoriously expensive, and a large debt at a high-interest rate can drag you down quickly. If you’re able to find attractive balance transfer offers (and you’re confident that you can pay everything off before the promotional period ends), credit cards might still work. Just remember that it’s hard to predict the future.

When using credit cards, it’s best to apply for them in the name of your business. Sure, they’ll only be approved based on your personal credit, but using business cards is a step towards building business credit. Plus, it looks more professional and helps you present an “established” image – showing banks, vendors, and others that you’re serious about your business.

Venture Capitalists are investors who have money to help you grow your business. These individuals and organizations are hard to find, and you need to present a compelling case before they hand over money. However, your business might be a great fit for an investor. With venture capitalists, you’ll often have to give something up in return for the money (not surprisingly). Read through all agreements carefully, and get a clear understanding of what you’re “paying.” You might have to give up a portion of ownership, some decision making control, or something else.

Crowdfunding is an option if you can get people excited about your product, service, or business. Individuals can provide money, typically without any review of your credit – so this is a good option if you have bad personal credit. In exchange, you’ll often provide products or service, although other options might also be available. For more details, read about the basics of crowdfunding from Zack Miller.

Other Loans: If none of the options above are viable, you might be able to borrow personally. Again, most banks will use your personal credit anyway (just review your plans with a local attorney before mixing your business and personal affairs). Unsecured personal loans are a good option to avoid pledging collateral. Some entrepreneurs even tap their home equity using second mortgages – but this is risky. If your business fails and you’re unable to repay the loan, you could lose your home in foreclosure.

Business Credit Basics

Credit is your ability to borrow money (or get something now and pay later). You’re probably familiar with the concept when it comes to your personal credit scores, but credit for your business is separate from your personal credit – at least it should be.

If you run a business, get familiar with business credit, and start building it so that you can leave your personal credit out of the equation.

Why Use Business Credit?

You can borrow money as an individual, so why go to the trouble of borrowing in the name of your business?

Keep things separate: even if it’s not a big deal now, someday you’ll thank yourself for separating your personal and business finances. To get a loan as a new business, you probably need to apply using your Social Security Number, which means lenders pull your personal credit reports to determine your creditworthiness. That also means that any problems will go on your personal credit reports – making it more difficult to borrow for important purchases like a home or automobile.

Even if all goes well, loans for your business can eat up your ability to borrow as an individual, and that will affect you and your family. Lenders evaluate how much you can borrow based on your income and your existing debt payments (using a debt to income ratio). You can easily get maxed out if you borrow for business.

Until you establish business credit, lenders will require a personal guarantee, even if they approve a “business loan.” You’ll need to put assets such as your home on the line, and those assets serve as collateral for the loan. This can lead to disaster, and it makes it harder to move or refinance while your business loans are still outstanding.

Better terms: a solid business credit score makes it easier to operate. Suppliers are likely to allow more time for repayment, and you’ll have more choices – you can work with high-quality, dependable firms instead of whoever will take you as a customer.

Better financing: when you borrow, you’ll pay less if you have strong business credit. Loan pricing is typically based on risk. The more likely you are to repay, the lower your interest rates and other finance charges. It improves profitability and provides more breathing room.

Increased sales: your credit isn’t just about borrowing – it can also impress potential customers. Customers want to know whether or not you can deliver on their orders, and your business’ credit score is one way to evaluate your operation. If you always follow-through for suppliers, customers are more comfortable placing a big order.

Unlike your personal credit scores, anybody can view your business credit – it’s not confidential, and they don’t need a reason to ask.

How to Build Credit

Building business credit is similar to building personal credit – pay on time – with some additional aspects.

Get legitimate: to start a business credit profile, you’ll need to actually have a business. Do everything you can to separate your personal and your business affairs.

Get an Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS, and use that instead of your SSN in business situationsYou may also need or want to incorporate – speak with an attorney to learn what’s bestOpen accounts in the name of your business (some banks offer free business checking to get you started)If possible, get a credit card, small loan, or credit line from your bank in the name of your business

Get credit: “credit” doesn’t have to be a formal loan – you can also get (and build) credit by working with suppliers. When you buy on credit, you get goods and services today, but you don’t have to pay until later. That model applies to numerous services including office supplies and warehouse space. Anytime you can pay within 30 or 60 days, you’re getting credit.

If possible, work with suppliers and partners who report your credit to business credit bureaus. Even if they don’t report, it’s possible to add these trade lines as “references” to your Dun & Bradstreet report (D&B provides suggestions).

Always pay on time, and pay early for potentially better scores – Dun and Bradstreet’s score is based on how quickly you pay, with a slight bump for fast payment.

Provide information and monitor: building your business’ credit isn’t exactly effortless. You may need to provide information to the credit bureaus, and you’ll certainly want to make sure they have accurate information on your company. Review your credit reports periodically and fix any errors you find.

Business Credit Bureaus

Depending on your definition, there are dozens (or more) of credit bureaus out there for individuals, covering everything from your borrowing history to your medical history. Business credit rating companies are similarly abundant, so focus on the three major bureaus as you build credit: Dun & Bradstreet, Equifax, and Experian.

Each bureau has its own scoring model, and they all use different information. This is where business credit scores differ from individual credit scores – your individual credit scores are similar (although perhaps not identical), based on your payment history, public records, and other information. Even custom scoring models will put you in more or less the same category from lender to lender.

With business credit scores, information comes from totally different sources. At Dun & Bradstreet, for example, you provide much of the information to fill out your profile and your DUNS number. Scores might range from 1 to 100, or they’ll fall on another scale.

Fees, Fees, Fees

Cost is another major difference between your personal credit and business credit scores. Be prepared to pay for information – whether you’re asking or providing information. You don’t get free credit reports every year (like you do as an individual consumer under federal law). Instead, you’ll pay a modest fee to see your credit. If there’s any silver lining, the costs of managing your business credit might be a deductible expense.

Facebook Stored Hundreds of Millions of User Passwords in Plain Text for Years

Hundreds of millions of Facebook users had their account passwords stored in plain text and searchable by thousands of Facebook employees — in some cases going back to 2012, KrebsOnSecurity has learned. Facebook says an ongoing investigation has so far found no indication that employees have abused access to this data.

Facebook is probing a series of security failures in which employees built applications that logged unencrypted password data for Facebook users and stored it in plain text on internal company servers. That’s according to a senior Facebook employee who is familiar with the investigation and who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.

The Facebook source said the investigation so far indicates between 200 million and 600 million Facebook users may have had their account passwords stored in plain text and searchable by more than 20,000 Facebook employees. The source said Facebook is still trying to determine how many passwords were exposed and for how long, but so far the inquiry has uncovered archives with plain text user passwords dating back to 2012.

My Facebook insider said access logs showed some 2,000 engineers or developers made approximately nine million internal queries for data elements that contained plain text user passwords.

“The longer we go into this analysis the more comfortable the legal people [at Facebook] are going with the lower bounds” of affected users, the source said. “Right now they’re working on an effort to reduce that number even more by only counting things we have currently in our data warehouse.”

In an interview with KrebsOnSecurity, Facebook software engineer Scott Renfro said the company wasn’t ready to talk about specific numbers — such as the number of Facebook employees who could have accessed the data.

Renfro said the company planned to alert affected Facebook users, but that no password resets would be required.

“We’ve not found any cases so far in our investigations where someone was looking intentionally for passwords, nor have we found signs of misuse of this data,” Renfro said. “In this situation what we’ve found is these passwords were inadvertently logged but that there was no actual risk that’s come from this. We want to make sure we’re reserving those steps and only force a password change in cases where there’s definitely been signs of abuse.”

A written statement from Facebook provided to KrebsOnSecurity says the company expects to notify “hundreds of millions of Facebook Lite users, tens of millions of other Facebook users, and tens of thousands of Instagram users.” Facebook Lite is a version of Facebook designed for low speed connections and low-spec phones.

Both Github and Twitter were forced to admit similar stumbles in recent months, but in both of those cases the plain text user passwords were available to a relatively small number of people within those organizations, and for far shorter periods of time.

Renfro said the issue first came to light in January 2019 when security engineers reviewing some new code noticed passwords were being inadvertently logged in plain text.

“This prompted the team to set up a small task force to make sure we did a broad-based review of anywhere this might be happening,” Renfro said. “We have a bunch of controls in place to try to mitigate these problems, and we’re in the process of investigating long-term infrastructure changes to prevent this going forward. We’re now reviewing any logs we have to see if there has been abuse or other access to that data.”

Facebook’s password woes come amid a tough month for the social network. Last week, The New York Times reported that federal prosecutors are conducting a criminal investigation into data deals Facebook struck with some of the world’s largest tech companies.

Earlier in March, Facebook came under fire from security and privacy experts for using phone numbers provided for security reasons — like two-factor authentication — for other things (like marketing, advertising and making users searchable by their phone numbers across the social network’s different platforms).

Apple’s new gaming service might be announced Monday

The focus at Apple’s much-anticipated media event set for Monday will be largely on the company’s updated Apple News service as well as its plans for original TV shows offered through a Netflix-like package available exclusively to Apple device owners. We may, however, also get fresh details about the iPhone maker’s planned game subscription bundle, for which new details have emerged over the weekend suggesting that Apple doesn’t intend to use the gaming package as a way to directly compete with rival offerings like Google Stadia.

Bloomberg is out with a new report suggesting that Apple may discuss its gaming-related plans as soon as Monday’s media event, though it might also wait to unveil the package at WWDC in June. Either way, it seems what the company is leaning towards is a kind of paid games-focused subscription to the App Store, excluding free-to-download games as well as games that allow for in-app purchases.

Apple’s plans here have been referred to as a kind of Netflix-for-games, but based on Bloomberg’s reporting it sounds like Apple’s offering will work more like Spotify. The way it would work is Apple would collect the recurring revenue from the gaming bundle and then split it among participating game developers based on how much time users spent playing their respective games, per this new report.

All that said, even if we do get a peek at this bundle on Monday the lion’s share of attention is still no doubt going to fall on Apple’s video plans. As we and others have reported, Apple has been hiring A-list Hollywood talent and commissioning TV projects from the likes of everyone from Oprah to Steven Spielberg and Reese Witherspoon. Likewise, Apple has been assembling a team of Hollywood veterans who know how to gin up Oscar and Emmy interest for awards season.

Apple’s move to these kinds of premium, subscription packages is an outgrowth of the company putting a new emphasis on services as a way to mitigate any hardware sales slowdown. Services like these and others are a way to keep Apple users tied to their devices — and for the company to tap into new and potentially lucrative revenue streams that it didn’t have before.

The True Story of Pocahontas

Pocahontas had a Native husband and Native child; never married John Smith.

Despite what many people believe due to longstanding and inaccurate accounts in history books and movies such as Disney’s Pocahontas, the true story of Pocahontas is not one of a young Native Powhatan woman with a raccoon friend who dove off of mountain-like cliffs off the coasts of Virginia. (Note: there are no cliffs on the coast of Virginia.)

It is time to bust up the misconceptions perpetuated over 400 years regarding the young daughter of Powhatan chief Wahunsenaca. The truth—gathered from years of extensive research of the historical record, books, and oral histories from self-identified descendants of Pocahontas and tribal peoples of Virginia —is not for the faint of heart.

Pocahontas’ Mother, Also Named Pocahontas, Died While Giving Birth to Her

This is in many historical accounts, though not always. It is important to note that Pocahontas was born to her mother, named Pocahontas and her father Wahunsenaca, (sometimes spelled Wahunsenakah), who later became the paramount chief.

Her name at birth was Matoaka, which means “flower between two streams,” and according to Mattaponi history was likely given to her because she was born between the two rivers of Mattaponi and Pamunkey (York).

Due to his wife’s death, Wahunsenaca was devastated and little Matoaka became his favorite because she looked like her mother. She was raised by her aunts and other women of the Mattaponi tribe at Werowocomoco.

As was custom at the time, as the Paramount Chief of the Powhatan Chiefdom, Wahunsenaca had other wives from the other villages and little Matoaka had many loving brothers and sisters.

Because of his lingering grief and due to the reminder she gave to him of her mother, Wahunsenaca often called his daughter the endearing name of Pocahontas.

John Smith Came to the Powhatan When Pocahontas Was about 9 or 10

According to Mattaponi oral history, little Matoaka was possibly about 10 years old when John Smith and English colonists arrived in Tsenacomoca in the spring of 1607. John Smith was about 27 years old. They were never married nor involved.

Pocahontas Never Saved the Life of John Smith

The children of the Powhatan were very closely watched and cared for by all members of the tribe. Since Pocahontas was living with her father, Chief Powhatan Wahunsenaca, at Werowocomoco, and because she was the daughter of a chief, she was likely held to even stricter standards and provided with more structure and cultural training.

When she was a child, John Smith and English colonists stayed near the Powhatan on the nearby Jamestown Island, but later began to explore outlying areas. Smith was feared by many Native people because he was known to enter villages and put guns to heads of chiefs demanding food and supplies.

In the winter of 1607, the colonists and Smith met with Powhatan warriors and Smith was captured by the chief’s younger brother.

Because the English and Powhatan feared the actions of the Spanish, they formed an alliance. Eventually and according to oral history and contemporary written accounts by the Mattaponi, Wahunsenaca grew to like Smith, eventually offering him the position of ‘werowance’ or leader of the colonists as recognized by the Powhatan as well as a much more livable area for his people with great access to game and seafood.

Years later, Smith alleged that Pocahontas saved his life in the four-day process of becoming a werowance. But according to Mattaponi oral and contemporary written accounts, there would be no reason to kill a man designated to receive an honor by the chief.

Additionally, children were not allowed to attend any sort of religious ritual similar to the werowance ceremony.

She could not have thrown herself in front of John Smith to beg for his life for two reasons: Smith was being honored, and she would not have been allowed to be there.

Pocahontas Never Defied Her Father to Bring Food to John Smith or Jamestown

Some historical accounts claim Pocahontas defied her father to bring food to the colonists of Jamestown. According to the history of the Mattaponi tribe as well as simple facts, these claims could not be true.

Jamestown was 12 miles from Werowocomoco and the likelihood that a 10-year-old daughter would travel alone are inconsistent with Powhatan culture. She as well as other tribal members did travel to Jamestown, but as a gesture of peace.

Additionally, travel to Jamestown required crossing large bodies of water and the use of 400-pound dugout canoes. It took a team of strong people to lift them into the water.

It is likely Pocahontas served as a symbol of peace by simply being present as a child among her people to show no ill intentions when her people met with the Jamestown settlers.

Pocahontas Did Not Sneak Into Jamestown to Warn John Smith About a Death Plot

In 1608 and 1609, John Smith’s role as the werowance (chief) of the colonists had taken an ugly turn. The colonists made inadequate attempts to plant crops to harvest, and Smith violently demanded supplies from surrounding villages after once again holding a gun to the heads of village leaders.

Accounts from Mattaponi histories tell of one tribal woman proclaiming to Smith, “You call yourself a Christian, yet you leave us with no food for the winter.”

Pocahontas’ father, who had befriended Smith, once said to him, “I have not treated any of my werowances as well as you, yet you are the worst werowance I have!”

Smith claimed Wahunsenaca wanted to kill him, and asserted he knew of the plot because Pocahontas had come to warn him.

Due to the icy conditions at the time and because of the many watchful eyes attending to the daughter of a chief, as well as gestures of peace by the Powhatan to include additional provisions, Native historians rebuff the historical claims of Smith as completely fabricated.

To further prove Smith’s tale was a fabrication, a letter by Smith written in 1608 was published without Smith’s knowledge. The letter makes no claim of Pocahontas trying to save his life on two separate occasions. It wasn’t until Smith published his book General Historie of Virginia in 1624 that he claimed Pocahontas had twice saved his life. Any of the people who could have refuted Smith’s claims by that time were no longer alive.

As Colonists Terrorized Native People, Pocahontas Married and Became Pregnant

The early 1600’s were a horrible time for tribes near Werowocomoco. Native tribes once comfortable wearing clothing suitable for summer — including exposed breasts for Native women and little or nothing for children — found themselves being sexually targeted by English colonists.

Young children were targets of rape and Native women in the tribe would resort to offering themselves to men to keep their children safe. The Powhatan people were shocked by the behavior and were horrified that the English government offered them no protections.

In the midst of the horrible and atrocious acts committed by the colonists, Matoaka was coming of age. During a ceremony, Matoaka was to choose a new name, and she selected Pocahontas, after her mother. During a courtship dance, it is likely she danced with Kocoum, the younger brother of Potowomac Chief Japazaw.

She married the young warrior at about 14 and soon became pregnant.

It was at this time rumors began to surface that colonists planned to kidnap the beloved chief’s daughter Pocahontas.

Pocahontas Was Kidnapped, Her Husband Was Murdered and She Was Forced to Give Up Her First Child

When Pocahontas was about 15 or 16, the rumors of a possible kidnapping had become more of a threat and she was living with her husband Kocoum at his Potowomac village.

An English colonist by the name of Captain Samuel Argall sought to find her, thinking that a captured daughter of the chief would thwart attacks by Natives.

Hearing of her whereabouts, Argall came to the village and demanded Chief Japazaw, brother of Pocahontas’ husband, to give up Pocahontas or suffer violence against his village. Overcome with grief at a horrible choice, he relented with a hopeful promise that she would only be gone temporarily. That was a promise Argall quickly broke.

Before Argall left the village, he gave Chief Japazaw a copper pot. He later claimed to have traded it for her. This “trade” is still taught by historians. This is akin to the way that Smith ‘traded’ for corn by holding a gun to the heads of chiefs.

Before leaving the village, Pocahontas had to give her baby (referred to as little Kocoum) to the women of the village. Trapped onboard an English ship, she was not aware that when her husband returned to their village, he was killed by the colonists.

The tribal chiefs of the Powhatan never retaliated for the kidnapping of Pocahontas, fearing they would be captured and that the beloved daughter of the chief and the “Peace Symbol of the Powhatan” might be harmed.

Pocahontas Was Raped While in Captivity and Became Pregnant With Her Second Child

According to Dr. Linwood Custalow, a historian of the Mattaponi Tribe and the custodian of the sacred oral history of Pocahontas, soon after being kidnapped, she was suffering from depression and was growing more fearful and withdrawn. Her extreme anxiety was so severe her English captors allowed Pocahontas’ eldest sister Mattachanna and her husband Uttamattamakin to come to her aid.

Dr. Custalow writes in his book, The True Story of Pocahontas, The Other Side of History, that when Mattachanna and her husband Uttamattamakin, a spiritual advisor to Chief Wahunsenaca, Pocahontas confided in her sister.

When Mattachanna and Uttamattamakin arrived at Jamestown, Pocahontas confided in that she had been raped. Mattaponi sacred oral history is very clear on this: Pocahontas was raped. It is possible that it had been done to her by more than one person and repeatedly. My grandfather and other teachers of Mattaponi oral history said that Pocahontas was raped.

The possibility of being taken captive was a danger to be aware of in Powhatan Society, but rape was not tolerated. Rape in Powhatan Society was virtually unheard of because the punishment for such actions was so severe. Powhatan society did not have prisons. Punishment for wrongful actions often consisted of banishment from the tribe.

Historians differ on where Pocahontas was held, but tribal historians believe she was likely held in Jamestown, but was relocated to Henrico to when she was pregnant.

Pocahontas had a son, Thomas.

John Rolfe Married Pocahontas to Create a Native Alliance in Tobacco Production

Mattaponi history is clear that Pocahontas had a son out of wedlock, Thomas, prior to her marriage to John Rolfe. Prior to that marriage, the colonists pressed Pocahontas to become “civilized” and often told her that her father did not love her because he had not come to rescue her.

Pocahontas often tore off her English clothes, because they were uncomfortable. Eventually, Pocahontas was converted to Christianity and took the name Rebecca.

Pocahontas as Rebecca Rolfe.

In the midst of her captivity, the English colony of Jamestown was failing. John Rolfe was under a 1616 deadline to become profitable or lose the support of England. Rolfe sought to learn tobacco curing techniques from the Powhatan, but curing tobacco was a sacred practice not to be shared with outsiders. Realizing the political strength of aligning himself with the tribe, he eventually married Pocahontas.

Though some historians claim Pocahontas and Rolfe married for love, it is not a certainty, as Pocahontas was never allowed to see her family, child or father after being kidnapped.

After the two were married, the Powhatan spiritual leaders and family to Pocahontas shared the curing practice with Rolfe. Soon afterwards, Rolfe’s tobacco was a sensation in England, which saved the colony of Jamestown, as they finally found a profitable venture.

The Powhatan tribal lands were now highly sought after for the tobacco trade and the tribe suffered great losses of life and land at the hands of greedy tobacco farmers.

It is worth noting that though it was custom for a Powhatan father to give away his daughter at a marriage, Wahunsenaca did not attend the wedding of his daughter to Rolfe for fear of being captured or killed. He did send a strand of pearls as a gift.

Although Wahunsenaca did not attend the wedding, we know through sacred Mattaponi oral history that he gave Pocahontas a pearl necklace as a wedding gift. The pearls were obtained from the Chesapeake Bay oyster beds. The necklace was notable for the large size and fine quality of the pearls. Pearls of the size were rare, making them a suitable gift for a paramount chief’s daughter. No mention of this necklace has been found in the English writings, but a portrait of Pocahontas wearing a pearl necklace used to hang in the Gov.’s mansion in Richmond.

Pocahontas Was Brought to England To Raise Money and Was Then Likely Murdered

Rumors of the colonists desire to bring Pocahontas made its way to the Powhatan, who feared for her well-being and considered an attempt to rescue her. But Wahunsenaca feared his daughter might be harmed.

Rebecca “Pocahontas” Rolfe traveled to England with John Rolfe, her son Thomas Rolfe, Captain John Argall (who had kidnapped her) and several Native tribal members, including her sister Mattachanna.

Though many settlers were committing atrocities against the Powhatan, many elites in England did not approve of the mistreatment of natives. The bringing of Pocahontas to England to show friendship with Native nations was a key to continued financial support for the colonists.

According to the accounts of Mattachanna, she realized that she was being used and desperately desired to return home to her father and little Kocoum. During her travels in England, Pocahontas did meet John Smith and expressed outrage due to the mistreatment of his position as leader of the colonists and the betrayal to the Powhatan people.

After the journey and showing off of Pocahontas to the English elites, plans were made to return to Virginia in the spring of 1617. According to a recounting by Mattachanna, she was in good health while in England and on the ship preparing to go home.

Shortly after a dinner with Rolfe and Argall, she vomited and died. Those tribal members who were accompanying her, including her sister Mattachanna, said she was in previous good health and assessed she must have been poisoned due to her sudden death.

According to Mattaponi oral history, many of the Native people accompanying Pocahontas were sold as servants or carnival attractions or sent to Bermuda if they became pregnant after being raped and sold into slavery.

Wikipedia Pocahontas grave, St. Georges Church Kent UK.

Pocahontas was just under 21 at the time of her death. Instead of being taken home and laid to rest with her father, Rolfe and Argall took her to Gravesend, England, where she was buried at Saint George’s Church, March 21, 1617. Though Virginia tribes have requested that her remains returned for repatriation, officials in England say the exact whereabouts of her remains are not known.

Wahunsenaca learned from Mattachanna that his beloved daughter had died but had never betrayed her people, as some historians claim. Heartbroken that he had not ever rescued his daughter, he died from grief less than a year after the death of Pocahontas.

The Descendants of Pocahontas

Oral histories of both the Mattaponi and Patawomeck and historical references say she mothered two children, Thomas Rolfe, who was left in England after the death of his mother, and ‘little Kocoum.’

According to Deyo, Little Kocoum was the name that Dr. Linwood Custalow used for the purpose of his book to reference a small child whose name was not yet known. In the sacred oral history of the Mattaponi, the child was raised by the Patawomeck Tribe. The name of that child was passed down in the Patawomeck oral history was discovered to be Ka-Okee, a daughter.

This lineage to Ka-Okee includes the world famous entertainer Wayne Newton, a member of the Virginia state-recognized Powhatan Patawomeck tribe.

Thomas Rolfe stayed in England and was educated there. He later returned to the Powhatan as an adult. He was married and had many descendants.

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North Wind Picture Archives via AP Images Statue of Pocahontas at the original site of Jamestown, in Colonial National Historical Park, Virginia.

Mattaponi Tribal Historian, Dr. Linwood ‘Little Bear’ Custalow, and Angela L. Daniel “Silver Star’ for the book The True Story of Pocahontas, The Other Side of History

Pamunkey Chief Robert Gray

Patawomeck Chief John Lightner

Powhatan Patawomeck Tribal Historian Bill Deyo

Countless council members and tribal members of the 11 Tribes in Virginia, who have been gracious in sharing their stories.

Follow the author of this article, Vincent Schilling (Akwesasne Mohawk) – ICMN’s Arts and Entertainment, Pow Wows and Sports Editor – Follow@VinceSchilling

Selena Quintanilla Collection Unveiled At Forever 21

Twenty-two years ago, filmmaker Gregory Nava released “Selena,”the acclaimed biopic based on the life of Selena Quintanilla, the belated queen of Tejano music who was tragically killed in 1995.

On Thursday, fast-fashion retailer Forever 21 launched a new clothing collection to commemorate the film’s anniversary and honor the legacy of the Grammy-winning singer.

“The White Rose” collection incorporates images of the iconic Tejano star, alongside various quotes and lyrics throughout graphic tees, hoodies, biker shorts and other accessories.

“As an artist, Selena is a legend that resonates so deeply with our customers. We [already] have Selena product in our stores on a constant basis, and they are some of our highest performing styles. Because of this, we wanted to do something special,” according to a statement from Forever 21 provided to NBC News.

According to the retailer, the size-inclusive limited edition collection features styles for women and men. The apparel retails somewhere between $7 and $40 — and is available online, as well as in Forever 21 stores nationwide.

March 31 also marks the anniversary of the iconic Mexican-American singer’s death at a time when Selena’s songs continue to climb up the Billboard music charts, even 24 years after her death.

The “Queen of Tejano” finished 2018 nabbing five positions across charts, including the third spot on both the “Top Latin Female Artists” chart and the second spot on the “Top Latin Albums chart.”

CBS Plans To Debut ‘Zion Cam’ But Duke Star Won’t Get Paid

No. 1 seed Duke against No. 16 seed North Dakota State doesn’t have the flair of other games on Day 2 of the NCAA men’s tournament.

But it does have Zion Williamson, the freshman forward who took college basketball by storm. He’ll continue to wow the nation through March and CBS intends to capture every single moment of it beginning with the matchup at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, South Carolina on Friday night.

CBS is watching 24/7

Duke’s first game of the tournament will air on CBS at approximately 7:10 p.m. ET and the network has a special new toy for the occasion.

“Because of Zion [Williamson], we have added a camera dedicated to him the whole time he is on the floor,” CBS coordinating producer of college basketball Marc Wolff told The State. “We hired a cameraman, a camera, a digital tape machine to record everything he does.”

Wolff, who has covered the tournament for CBS for 35 years, said the move is a first for him and likely a first for the tournament.

CBS started its coverage of the superstar during the 40-minute practice session Thursday, per the report.

“We are monitoring Zion 24-7,” Wolff said.

ESPN used a “Zion Cam” last month after Williamson’s injury against North Carolina. The station was blasted by viewers for showing a splitscreen of the star on the bench with the actual game on the other side.

From video to photo

 detailed the lengths photographers go to for those perfect Williamson dunk shots. Some photographers, he wrote, will set up remote cameras to get more depth and fan reaction in the photo.

“A remote camera can turn any Zion Williamson dunk into a Greek tragedy,” he writes.

The unanimous ACC player of the year has all eyes on him. From remote cameras around the arena, to dozens of photographers on the sidelines, media members with smartphones and thousands of fans wanting even a snippet of the star.

A star made for March

The first regular-season game between Duke and North Carolina took on even more of a flair than it usually does. It was the most watched weeknight game in ESPN history with 4.34 million viewers, even though Williamson took an early exit after his shoe exploded.

The freshman from Spartanburg, South Carolina is averaging 22.1 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists over 29 games. He’s shooting 69.3 percent from the floor.

 to watch on Day 2 of the men’s NCAA tournament, and while Duke vs. North Dakota State isn’t high on the list, it’s at least worth the watch for potential Williamson highlights.

Everything you need to know about Direwolves: And Which Are Still Alive?

Along, long time ago (circa the very first episode of Game of Thrones) the Starks stumbled across an orphaned pack of puppy direwolves and took it upon themselves to look after the small survivors. One for each of the six Stark children.

Before long, the bond between the ‘pets’ and their respective owners had grown as quickly as the direwolves themselves. The ‘wolves’ had become faithful companions, if not comrades.

Of course, the story doesn’t end there. Deadly political machinations are a bastion of the Seven Kingdoms and the direwolves have suffered as much as anyone.

After all, this is Westeros, not 101 Dalmations.

Out of the original six direwolves, only two are left: Ghost, the direwolf belonging to Jon Snow (Kit Harrington), and the long-lost direwolf of Arya Stark (Maisie Williams), Nymeria.

Although we found out that Nymeria was alive through a chance encounter last season, Arya actually sent her direwolf away six seasons earlier, after Nymeria defended her against Prince Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) on the Kingsroad.

Knowing Nymeria would be killed for attacking the prince, Arya forced Nymeria to run away by freeing and throwing stones at her.

Unfortunately, Queen Cersei (Lena Headey) chose to make an example out of a direwolf for attacking her son and forced Ned to kill Lady, the well-behaved direwolf belonging to Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner).

Five direwolves remained until Season 3, when Grey Wind and Robb Stark (Richard Madden) met their devastating deaths. Grey Wind was locked up for the entirety of the Red Wedding and sadly witnessed Robb being betrayed by the Freys and Boltons before being shot through his kennel bars.

By the time we all (just about) got over the massacre, Summer – the direwolf belonging to Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead Wright) – was slaughtered in season six. Summer attempted to protect Bran from the undead as White Walkers attacked the Three-Eyed Raven’s cave.

Before long, Shaggydog was next. The youngest Stark’s direwolf actually only died a day or so prior to Rickon (Art Parkinson) – and many others. He and Osha (Natalia Tena) were captured by the Umbers and presented to Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon) with Shaggydog’s severed head as proof of identity.

In a cataclysm of chaos, Ramsay later brings young Rickon to the battefield in the Battle of the Bastards, manipulates him into a false sense of freedom, and shoots him to death as he runs towards Sansa and Jon.

Thankfully, the diredeaths end there. Ghost is hanging out in Winterfell after Jon made sure he wasn’t part of the Battle of the Bastards and Nymeria met Arya on the road north in season seven – albeit as the leader of a particularly terrifying wolfpack.

Though Arya asked Nymeria to come back to her, the direwolf moved on.

Do the direwolves die in sync with their owners?

Arguably, yes. And many now theorise that this means Jon and Arya will be the only Starks left standing.

Subjectively, each of the dead wolves may be killed by someone closely connected to their owners death – be it a literal or figurative death. Robb and his wolf were killed by Freys. Rickon and his wolf were killed for the ‘pleasure’ of Ramsay.

The theory would assume Bran will be killed by White Walker and Sansa will be killed by a Stark.

Personally, I believe the direwolves represent less literal parallels.

Jon, though he could technically be a ghost and not living at all, has been partnered with the outcast of the pack – actual Ghost – since the beginning.

Bran, who is arguably also ‘dead’ and living as the Three Eyed Raven, went white-eyed as soon as Summer was killed.

And, well, not to be too literal but winter came relatively quickly after Summer died.

Sansa’s wolf was also killed by the Hand of the King for the crimes of its sister-wolf. It wouldn’t bend a mind to see Tyrion killing Sansa as retribution for something Arya does.

Arya reunited with her direwolf, Nymeria CREDIT: HBO



Will Ghost be in season eight?

Game of Thrones visual effects supervisor Joe Bauer confirmed Ghost, at the very least, will return for season eight.

In an interview with the Huffington Post, he said: “Oh, you’ll see him again. He has a fair amount of screen time in Season 8.

He does show up… he’s very present and does some pretty cool things.”

Cool things like… teaming up with his feral runaway sister to beat the Night King?

Many fans suspect Nymeria’s short season seven cameo set the stage for something special.

In the books, author George R.R. Martin often calls back to the missing pup and her wolfpack through Arya’s dreams, including scenes of the pack attacking Stark enemies in Frey territory.

Shaquille O’Neal Added to Papa John’s Board of Directors

Basketball great Shaquille O’Neal has been added as a member of the Board of Directors at Papa John’s, according to reports.

Shaq announced the news on his Instagram account with a statement about the company and how much he loves their product, TMZ reported.

“I am so excited to be joining the Papa John’s family as a member of the Board of Directors, a soon-to-be investor in nine Papa John’s franchises in Atlanta and an ambassador for the brand,” Shaq wrote.

“I know that behind every large company, there are thousands of people that put their heart and soul into the business,” O’Neal said. “Papa John’s is no different, and it struck a chord with me that the company is putting in the work to do better within its walls and in the communities it serves across the country.”

The last time the pizza chain was in the news it was over the hubbub whipped up by former CEO John Schnatter’s use of the N-Word during a company training call. Schnatter disputed claims he used the word inappropriately but was eventually removed from the company he founded.

Schnatter later said that resigning from the company was a mistake.