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Melinda Gates Opens Up

SavvySugar — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 12:37:31 -0800

Three Ms come to mind when I hear the name Bill Gates: Microsoft, money, and Melinda.

The first made him wealthy, the second keeps him in the news, and the third recently opened up to Fortune for her first-ever profile! Besides talking to Fortune, Melinda has been dedicating 30 hours a week to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. She explained her time commitment when she said, “As I thought about strong women of history, I realized that they stepped out in some way.”

Here are some interesting facts about the Gates:

Melinda has a BA and a MBA from Duke University, while Bill was a Harvard dropout.
She started working for Microsoft in Seattle when she was 22 years old, and four months into the job she was seated next to Bill at a dinner. She was attracted to his humor - what girl doesn't love a guy that makes her laugh - and he thought she was a looker.

Three more so, read more

Melinda kept office life professional and was promoted several times at Microsoft, refusing to accompany Bill to any work-related events.
She's a very compassionate woman and really got the ball rolling with their foundation work. The foundation has already given away $14.4 billion.
Melinda says she and Bill will follow Warren Buffett's philosophy in considering the distribution of their weatlh: "A very rich person should leave his kids enough to do anything, but not enough to do nothing."

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Heidi and Seal Get Schooled Together in LA

Molly — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 07:00:00 -0700

Heidi Klum draped her baby bump in a chic dress at the Get Schooled initiative conference hosted by Bill and Melinda Gates and their foundation in LA last night. Heidi looked especially happy considering she had Seal as her date for the event after recently talking about her "gentle giant" husband and her body in the final month of pregnancy. Her due date is right around the corner but she has three other kids to remind her of the importance of education especially during back to school time.

Daily Tech: Bill Gates Sr. Talks About Raising a Tech Mogul

GeekSugar — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 12:01:43 -0700

Bill Gates Sr., who acts as cochair of the the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, sat down to chat with the Wall Street Journal about his life and discusses the trials and tribulations of raising Microsoft's cofounder Bill Gates Jr.. - The Wall Street Journal
Firefox 3.5 beta is now available for download and offers better performance and stability as well as improved private data tools like Private Browsing Mode. - Gizmodo
These simple yet effective keyboard shortcuts are guaranteed to save you so much time. - Switched
Get to know MySpace's new CEO Owen van Natta, who will replace former CEO, Chris DeWolfe. - The Silicon Alley Insider
Belkin's new CushDesk for your laptop may not be worth the $30. - Engadget

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Conservative Imagines Dream Obama Administration

CitizenSugar — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 10:30:00 -0800

Conservative columnist David Brooks has outlined his vision for an Obama Administration all Americans could get behind. In today's New York Times he painted a picture of an American leadership free from extreme partisanship and ideology:

Walking into the Obama White House of my dreams will be like walking into the Gates Foundation. The people there will be ostentatiously pragmatic and data-driven. They’ll hunt good ideas like venture capitalists. They’ll have no faith in all-powerful bureaucrats issuing edicts from the center. Instead, they’ll use that language of decentralized networks, bottom-up reform, and scalable innovation.

Brooks went on to suggest that Obama appoint Republicans to crucial positions, push policy with broad support such as middle-class tax relief and an energy package, and hold off on health care reform until success in fixing the economy and reducing the budget defect has helped gain the trust of most Americans.

Do you think the Obama Administration can succeed in pleasing both conservative and liberal Americans? What does change you can believe in look like?

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Bill Gates' Last Day at Microsoft Gets Documented on Video

GeekSugar — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 12:45:40 -0800

During his keynote address last night at CES, Bill Gates announced that he will be stepping down as a full-time employee of Microsoft starting this July. He is already brainstorming about what he is going to do with his time, aside from working on the Gates Foundation. Gates played a hilarious star-studded video portraying what his last day would be like, making this his most entertaining keynote speech yet. Check out the video below!

Video: Bill Gates' Last Day CES Clip

Bill Gates Talks About Vista on John Stewart

GeekSugar — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 18:09:03 -0800

I have to say, I've seen Bill Gates speak a couple times regarding the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and he has always been passionate, charming and awesomely geeky. Last night, Gates went on John Stewart's Daly Show to talk about today's release of Microsoft Vista and honestly, he just wasn't as funny as I wanted him to be. Perhaps my standards are too high.

What I learned: Gates has couple computers, one of which is the Tablet. Bill Gates' screen saver: family photos. Want to know more? Watch Gates describing his favorite Vista features.

Geek Love: Tech Giants and Their Ladies

GeekSugar — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 10:13:34 -0700

Last week I asked if you like young Bill or young Steve more (71 percent of you are like me and think Steve is the bigger catch), and it got me thinking about tech giants and the love in their lives. We all know about Bill and his wife Melinda Gates because of their Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, but who do the other big men in tech snuggle up to at night? Check out my slideshow to find out! Source

View Slideshow ›

Daily Tech: Bill Gates Works His Last "In-Office" Day at Microsoft

GeekSugar — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:00:54 -0700

Now 52, Microsoft cofounder and high-school dropout Bill Gates will work his last day at Seattle's Microsoft office before turning his undivided attention to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation he established with his wife. - Engadget
Check out this funny video about how to cheat at the Wii Fit without breaking a sweat! - Crave UK
Unfortunately the rumors are true. Virgin Mobile USA announced today that it is set to purchase Helio, paying $39 million in stock for it. - The New York Times
Apple will soon be providing a free iTunes remote control application for iPhone and/or iPod Touch owners. - The Boy Genius Report
Colorful SPECK cases for iPhones, iPods, MacBooks, PC notebooks, cell phones, BlackBerrys, and GPS navigation devices are now on sale for 50 percent off! - Popgadget
Trying to figure out a way to sync your BlackBerry Curve 8330 with your Mac? Unplggd will walk you through the process. - Unplggd

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Does It All Add Up? Who Should Save Public Schools?

CitizenSugar — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 08:00:30 -0700

Testing, testing. Is No Child Left Behind working for anyone? It's standardized its way through schools since 2001, troubling seemingly every teacher, parent, and student in its formulaic path. Getting all children above the mean score by 2014 is its ultimate goal even if teaching for tests is its consequence. Good magazine this month takes a look at the state of public education, how it's changing, and how it can be saved.

Philanthropists have poured well-meaning money into schools, but the question is, are they helping? The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's effort to create smaller schools has seen mixed results. Smaller classes mean more attention, but it's also been hard for schools to maintain electives and extracurriculars.

On the other hand, billionaire Eli Broad's effort to run schools like businesses is even more controversial. He favors increased standardized testing, scripted curricula, merit pay, and replacing school administrators with managers, and so does his money. He even has academy that trains school leaders in the Broad way.

Money is changing the way public schools operate, and those with money, regardless of qualifications, are making the decisions. If public schools are a national treasure, shouldn't we treat them accordingly? Good calls parents to action and asks them to make noise, take a stand instead of opting out or sending their kids to nearest private school.

Is this too idealistic? Or in this age of hope, is change from the bottom up possible? Anyone, anyone? Bueller?

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Link Time!

SavvySugar — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 11:08:34 -0700

Businessmen stereotypically fly in private jets, but those chartering jets are increasingly businesswomen focused on using their time efficiently. - The New York Times
Paying dues means more than working long hours and performing tasks that seem meaningless. It can be about spending time alone, figuring out who your true friends are, and overcoming your fears. - Employee Evolution
Donald Trump thinks the only thing better than a good handshake is no handshake at all. - The Trump Blog
In following his plan to donate most of his wealth, Warren Buffet has given away $2 billion in stock with the majority of shares going to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. - CNN Money