Posted on

Marvel Finally Gives Out More Details About ‘Black Panther’ Film

The upcoming Black Panther Marvel film has been shrouded in rumor and speculation, but Marvel has finally blessed its fans with some more confirmed information about the movie.

Marvel fans got their first look at the movie by getting to see the current concept art for the film at Marvel’s press conference Tuesday during an event at El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, CNET reports.

So far, it looks like Marvel won’t disappoint.

The movie art features the Black Panther looking incredibly strong, fierce and rather intimidating – just as he should be.

The artist has managed to capture the hero’s incredibly athletic and muscular build flawlessly and only time will tell if that same build is captured on screen.

In addition to releasing the movie art, Marvel finally gave insatiable fans a release date for the movie, but it’s still far too early for the countdown to begin.

Black Panther won’t be hitting theaters until November 2017.

That doesn’t mean fans won’t get to get a glimpse of the prince-turned-superhero before then.

Marvel had already previously announced that the Black Panther will have his introduction to Marvel’s big screen universe in the upcoming Captain America: Civil War.

The new Captain America film is scheduled to hit theaters in May 2016.

Chadwick Boseman will take on the role of Black Panther in Captain America: Civil War, but that doesn’t necessarily confirm his role for the actual solo film.

Producers behind the film will likely have a close eye on fans’ reactions to Boseman in the Captain America film.

It certainly will be a different role for Boseman, who has been taking on more historical roles lately.

He is best known for playing iconic baseball player Jackie Robinson in 42 and taking on the role of soul music legend James Brown in Get On Up.

Either way, Boseman doesn’t seem to be too nervous and said he’s excited about the upcoming projects.

“I’m blessed to be a part of this Marvel Universe, and to work with you both, and I look forward to making magic together,” Boseman said while he was on the stage with Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans who play Iron Man and Captain America, respectively.

Unfortunately, that’s about all the information fans were able to get out of the press conference, and there is still no confirmation about who will taking on the role of Doctor Strange.

Rumors have already attached Benedict Cumberbatch to the role, but Marvel has not responded to the rumors.

Deadline.com reports that Cumberbatch is already in negotiations with the studio, but that also has not been confirmed by Marvel.

Cumberbatch is known for his roles in Sherlock in 2010, Star Trek Into the Darkness in 2013, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug in 2013, and he will be starring in the upcoming Hobbit film as well as Penguins of Madagascar.

Meanwhile, Marvel also revealed an impressive roster of films that are scheduled to be released over the next few years.

In addition to Captain America: Civil War, fans can be on the lookout for Guardians of the Galaxy 2”to hit theaters in May 2017, Thor: Rangnarok to hit theaters on July 28, 2017, Captain Marvel to debut on July 6, 2018, Inhumans to hit theaters on Nov. 2, 2018, and Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 to hit theaters on May 4, 2018.

Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 is scheduled to hit theaters on May 3, 2019.

 

Posted on

5 Ways to Get Black Kids Excited About STEM

Knowledge of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) can open up a wide array of doors for Black youths. By getting them interested early, they will perform better in school and potentially develop a love and aptitude for math and science. Here are five ways to get Black kids excited about STEM, according to Ebony Magazine. 

ph-stem-faq

Connect to after-school STEM programs happening at your child’s school or in your local community center. 

Classroom lessons, plus the increasing time dedicated to prepare for high-stakes tests, rarely give curious students a chance to do the science and engineering activities that captivate their interests in these subjects. Academic extra-curricular activities such as Robotics Competition Teams, Science and Math Clubs, as well as Scouting Programs sponsored by civic organizations, are ideal outlets for youths interested in STEM. These programs and clubs host activities that reinforce classroom lessons, foster critical thinking and allow students to interact with mentors and other science-engaged students.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5
Posted on

12 of the Most Accomplished Black People in Technology

Although Blacks are underrepresented in tech careers, this list of the most influential Blacks in tech highlights men and women who are making it big in the field, according to Business Insiders’ article Important Blacks in Tech.

Denise Young Smith, Head of Human Resources, Apple

In February 2014, Apple appointed Denise Young Smith to lead its worldwide human resources division. Smith replaced Joel Podolny, who now focuses on Apple University full time. Smith previously led Apple’s human resources division for its retail operations. Apple is currently valued at $471.5 billion and employs more than 10,000 people.

 2-david-steward

David Steward, Co-founder and Chairman, World Wide Technology

David Steward co-founded World Wide Technology, one of the largest African-American-owned businesses in the country, back in 1990. WWT is a systems integration company that helps large and private companies plan and deploy relevant IT products and solutions. Today, WWT has an annual revenue of $6 billion and more than 2,400 employees worldwide.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6
Posted on

Could Amazon’s New Fire TV Stick Help It Recover From Epic Smartphone Failure?

Amazon may have made a major misstep when it comes to its flagship smartphone, but could the company’s Amazon Fire TV Stick actually go head-to-head with Google Chromecast and Roku Streaming Stick?

The major failure that followed after the launch of Amazon’s first smartphone was painful to watch for many tech lovers and fans of the company.

Sales of the device were less than impressive, and AT&T, who partnered with Amazon to push the phone, quickly lost its enthusiasm for the product.

Despite the flagship phone flop, Amazon has had some technology successes in the past (take the Kindle, for example) and the company is hoping to mimic that success with the launch of its Fire TV Stick.

The tiny stick is able to plug directly into consumers’ TV’s HDMI ports and will be able to bring a world of viewing pleasure to those who purchase it.

The Fire TV Stick will support Amazon Prime Instant video and music, Netflix, Pandora, Spotify, Hulu and more, according to Mashable.

It will also be able to support the needs of the average gamer. Nothing quite as extensive and demanding as the console-level gaming that is supported by Amazon’s Fire TV box, but still pretty impressive for the little stick that can slip into one’s back pocket.

Of course, if the product is sounding pretty familiar to you – a simple stick that allows you to stream a large variety of media content on multiple supported platforms – there is an obvious reason for that.

Amazon’s Fire TV Stick isn’t necessarily innovative, as it is simply Amazon’s take on Google’s Chromecast and the Roku Streaming Stick.

Amazon’s version does, however, come with a few perks.

Amazon’s product does boast more storage than Google’s Chromecast.

Google’s product gives consumers 2 GB of storage in Google Chrome while Amazon’s Fire Stick will give consumers an impressive 8 GB of storage.

Then there is also that nifty little remote.

While this is a perk that Chromecast users don’t get, it’s not too great of an advantage and it is something that Roku has already delivered on in the past.

As for Chromecast users, they have to use an app that will allow them to use their cellphones as remote controls and, quite frankly, most consumers don’t mind that at all.

Amazon’s Fire TV Stick may also deliver slightly short on its promise of wonderful arrays of content. The content that is available is certainly impressive and there is more than enough available materials for the average TV watcher, but some of the most popular titles won’t be making their way to the device just yet.

The Fire TV Stick does not support HBO Go.

While Google’s stick also doesn’t support Amazon content, it’s  more likely that consumers will be more upset over not having HBO Go than they will over not having access to Amazon’s content.

Of all the competitors, however, it seems like Amazon’s Fire TV Stick has the upper hand when it comes to gaming, according to Time.

Time also points out that there is no way anyone can lose by purchasing any of the three sticks.

What this means is that Amazon may have a product that can indeed keep up with its pre-existing competition, but the company may have needed a little more edge to its product in order to really beat out its counterparts.

Posted on

The iPhone 6 Plus Could Be the Worst Nightmare for Nintendo 3DS, PS Vita

Apple has boasted about the new features its iPhone 6 Plus brings to the world of cellular devices, but it seems like the latest iPhone could also revolutionize the gaming world as well.

Slowly but surely, Apple was on a clear path to disrupt the gaming industry in a major way.

Apple’s iPads were the first major steps to making the devices more gamer-friendly, but even those sleek tablets can’t hold up to the promise of the iPhone 6 Plus.

While some consumers worried about the new iPhone’s larger screen size, gamers have found that the screen is perfect for on-the-go gaming.

In addition to boasting more screen real estate than previous cellular devices by Apple, the Retina display makes a spectacle out of every image that comes across the device’s screen.

According to the New York Daily News, watching The Avengers was a particularly beautiful experience with “flawless” visuals and “little details, such as the veins in the Hawkeye’s arms” being easy to spot.

Of course, the beautiful resolution and a larger screen aren’t enough to push the Nintendo 3DS and PS Vita off the market.

What does pose a larger threat, however, are the number of games that are making their way to the App Store.

Incredibly popular titles such as Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and certain versions of Final Fantasy are already available for iPhone users – something that Android devices don’t have the same access to.

Many of the major video game titles don’t seem to pop up on the Google Play store, which puts the latest Galaxy devices at a major disadvantage.

Even more exciting for Apple users is the fact that the iPhone 6 Plus has not even tapped into its full potential just yet.

The device will give developers the ability to push game play and graphics to the next level.

Of course, there are still some downsides to the device – none of them being incredibly major.

As a video released by TechCrunch pointed out, the placement of the speakers can be a little annoying for most gamers.

For many games, the phone will actually be held on its side by both hands, which forces the users to cover the speakers with their hands.

To make matters worse, plugging in headphones isn’t a much better solution.

TechCrunch’s Kyle Russell demonstrates in the video, the placement of the headphone jack can be inconvenient for gameplay.

Another disadvantage of the iPhone 6 Plus compared to the 3DS and Vita is the fact that it can be difficult to see the full screen once users place their hands on either side of the device.

Fortunately, this has a much simpler solution.

Developers have released wireless controllers that sync to the iPhone 6 Plus through Bluetooth.

This means that all gamers would have to do is prop up the device, connect the controller and suddenly they can take full advantage of all that gorgeous screen real estate.

It’s still too early to say that the new iPhone will become the new king of portable gaming, but it certainly boasts enough impressive features to have Nintendo and PlayStation scrambling for new ideas.