Facebook Remembers Its First Chef, Josef Desimone, After Tragic Motorcycle Accident

I have some very sad news to share.

This morning Josef Desimone, our executive chef, was involved in a motorcycle accident and I’m sorry to report that Josef has passed away.

Josef was a Facebook legend and institution. “Chef Josef” joined us in 2008 and built our culinary team from a handful of employees in a single café into a global team with dozens of world class restaurants. He never compromised on quality while maintaining total attention to detail. Josef played an incredibly important role in defining our culture during those first years and right up to the present.

Away from Facebook, Josef was just as energetic and driven. Almost every weekend he was volunteering with veterans’ organizations, hosting firefighter breakfasts or supporting some other valuable cause. He had a strong belief in giving back more in life than he took, and it shows in all the people who mourn him today.

We will find a way to permanently honor Josef’s legacy at Facebook soon. For now, let’s remember and celebrate the passing of a great friend, devoted mentor and inspirational leader.

Many Facebook employees are posting memories of Desimone. Current employees referred me to the press department and I’ve reached out to former employees as well. Facebook hasn’t added anything beyond Zuckerberg’s statement yet.

In any case, people remember him as someone who valued high quality and who was deeply caring and empathetic. He joined Facebook five years ago and set up the company’s culinary teams in multiple offices around the world. Said one early Faceboook engineer Wayne Chang, Desimone would often exclaim, “I have the best job in the entire world!” on countless status updates.

He also took care to be inclusive of many cultures in Facebook’s menu and daily meals. One time, when an engineer asked him to host a feast in honor of a Persian festival named Nowruz, he went out of his way to research Iranian cuisine by going out to local restaurants and asking for advice from employees of Iranian descent. The menu ended up including: lavash bread, a white fish dish called mahi sefeed, lamb and chicken kebabs, a cucumber and tomato salad along with spinach and yogurt.

Elliot Schrage, a very longtime Facebook employee who is the vice president of communications and public policy, said:

I’m one of many people who’s life was improved by knowing Josef L. Desimone. He was an extraordinary person — passionate, dedicated, inspirational. He helped shape the culture that exists at Facebook today and built a team (indeed, a company) that will carry on his legacy. We’ll miss him greatly

David Recordon, an engineer manager at Facebook, also said:

Sitting next to Chef Josef throughout 2010 was such an amazing experience. Always going out of his way to bring people together across the company, super caring to those around him and was a mentor whether that’s around cooking or the leadership which went into doing it really well at scale.

Corey Owens, who was a public policy manager at Facebook before joining Uber, wrote:

Chef Josef L. Desimone was one if the very first people I met at Facebook. He struck up a conversation with the awkward new kid, filled his belly with the feeling of home, and was a constant reminder of the things in life to be thankful for. Struck down way, way too soon – but somebody who made every moment count and made a lot of lives better along the way. Thanks for everything Chef.

Audrey Kim, who was an account strategist at Google when Desimone worked there, wrote:

Thank you, Josef L. Desimone for sharing your incredible culinary gift and generous heart with me. My life is better because I knew you, was nurtured by and learned from your kind, loving spirit. Heaven is so lucky now to have your sweet potato fries and garlic mac&cheese. Can’t wait for your big big hugs when we all see each other again.

If you knew Desimone personally and have any more memories you’d like to share, please post them in the comments and we’ll add.

Tope Folarin Wins 2013 Caine Prize For African Writing

Tope Folarin, winner 2013 Caine Prize for African Writing

Nigeria continues dominance in the Caine Prize for African Writing as another Nigerian, US-based Tope Folarin has won this year’s prestigious award. Last year’s winner was Rotimi Babatunde for his story Bombay’s Republic – about Nigerian soldiers who fought in the Burma campaign during World War II.

Folarin received the £10,000 ($15,000) prize for his short story Miracle, set in an evangelical Nigerian church in the US city of Texas.

The judges described it as a “delightful and beautifully paced narrative”.

Mr Folarin was among five writers short-listed for the prize, regarded as Africa’s leading literary award.

Three other Nigerians were short-listed – Elnathan John for Bayan Layi, Abubakar Adam Ibrahim for The Whispering Trees and Chinelo Okparanta–the only female contender–for America

Desperado: Female Fan Forcing A Kiss On Singer Davido

The love these ladies give to entertainers is amazing, i mean without having to say a word male artistes can get laid just by blinking.

Anyways, a hilarious photo has surfaced online. It’s a photo of a female fan trying to plant a kiss on singer Davido’s lips by force.

You can see the surprised Yoruba man expression on Davido’s face as the female fan stretched her lips to collect some smooches.

What Would OJB Do? – Now He Has Excess Money

When OJB turned to the general public to seek for financial help (100,00 dollars) in order to pay the medical bills of the ailment he is sadly afflicted with, he trusted that Nigerians, irrespective of the general hardship which we live in, would answer. And answer they did.

A lot of individuals made private donations to either of the 2 bank accounts (in his name) that was provided. And not just ordinary Nigerians, we have heard that some fellow entertainers came to his aid with the likes of Don Jazzy, D’Banj, PSquare (who gave 5 million naira), etc donating to the loving and humane cause of ensuring that OJB survives this trying period of his life.

Considering that he asked for 100,000 dollars and has not been clear with the public concerning how much he has raised, the public do not know whether the expected figure has been reached or even exceeded. Today we have been told that the Rivers State governor has donated the entire 100,000 dollars that the young man needs in one lump sum.

So, the question arises, should OJB pull down his banners and request cards for donations to him considering the amount of money he has already received?
Now that he has gotten all these money and in excess of what he asked for, should he return the rest to the donors or better still find causes in Nigeria – people who need help just like him, and hand the excess over to them because he did not earn the money neither did he work for it. It is simply donations and you are not meant to enrich yourself with donations.

10 African teams, others battle for Imagine cup at St Petersbur

The 2013 edition of Microsoft Imagine Cup Competition, the football World Cup equivalent in software design attracted no fewer than 309 students from 71 countries who have gathered in St. Petersburg, Russia to compete in three main categories like World Citizenship, Games and Innovation.

The Microsoft Imagine Cup is the world’s premier student technology competition where students to use their imagination and passion to create a technology solution in one of the Microsoft competitions and challenges.

Meanwhile, more than 60% of projects on showcase at the ongoing 2013 Microsoft Imagine students’ software competition were housed in the cloud through windows Azure,

The Windows Azure marketplace is an online market for buying, and selling finished software as a service (SaaS) applications and premium data.

This is even as four software incubators from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ilefe, (OAU) and Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, (Lautech) Ogbomoso, Oyo respectively are  flying Nigerian flag in St Petersburg, Russia in the ongoing worldwide finals of the Microsoft Imagine Cup software competition.

10 African teams on showcase:

However, out   of the 87 finalists teams currently competition, 10 teams are from Africa, including Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Egypt, Morocco, Ivory Coast, Botswana , Tunisia among others

From left: Akinlaja Solomon, Oluwole Michael, Afolabi Olamide and Adewale Adeyinka at the presentation of prizes to Team Lifesaver, National Winners of the Microsoft Imagine Cup Competition held in Lagos before their departure to Rusia. Photo By EMEKA AGINAM

The Microsoft Imagine Cup is the world’s premier student technology competition where students to use their imagination and passion to create a technology solution in one of the Microsoft competitions and challenges.

More than $1m in cash and prices are  available to student competitors. Over the past ten years, more than 1.65 million students from more than 190 countries have participated in the Imagine Cup.

Team Nigeria:

With great supports from National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA, Dell, Nokia and  MainOne, members of Team Life Saver from Nigeria  including Afolabi Olamide, Oluwole Michael, Akinlaja Solomon and Adewale Adeyinka   had competed in  the national finals  in the category of World Citizenship.

Application developed:

The team developed an application called CardioLife, which helps prevent heart attacks by monitoring heart readings on the fly via the Microsoft Windows Phone.

The team’s solution which   provides a rehabilitation programme for stroke patients using the Kinect sensor Nigeria team has developed an application called CardioLife, which helps prevent heart attacks by monitoring heart readings on the fly via the Microsoft Windows Phone. It also provides a rehabilitation programme for stroke patients using the Kinect sensor.

Accordingly, the software incubators from Nigeria and 309 students from 71 countries who have advanced in this competition from local, online and regional finals are currently showcasing their creativity, ingenuity and technological prowess.

For one thing, African representatives will have a world stage on which to highlight the role the continent’s local developers play in addressing the most critical issues of the developing world.

It would be recalled that the Developer and Platform Evangelism Lead, Microsoft Anglophone West Africa, Mr. Shina Oyetosho had told the Team Nigeria during a farewell party before their departure for the competition  to make the country proud  by showing their best innovation.

“Do not be intimidated by  students from other countries. You are the best. Do your best. Show your best. Show your passion. Make friends. Dell, Nokia, NITDA and MainOne have given you the tools. Microsoft has given you the opportunity and knowledge. Bring the Cup to Nigeria” he said.

Earlier in in his remarks during Press and Sponsor’s reception, President, Central and Estern Europe of Microsoft said that students who have gathered for this competition were the winners.

According to him, the students should not relent in taking further their solution to the next level after the showcase. The competing students should be their own boss in software entrepreneurship after graduation, he said.

Highlights of projects on showcase:

Meanwhile, out of the 87 teams on showcase, 12 teams use gamification for personal improvement, including interactive learning and physical rehabilitation.

This is even as 90% of finalist games were created for the Windows OS, showing the popularity of the PC as a gaming platform for young developers.

While more than 30% of all projects focused on inspiring fun, 36% of teams use Windows, Windows phone and Windows Azure together crossing platforms and devices to show how software can make hardware interesting.

Even  as 38 teams have Windows store apps that are or will soon be available for download, 15 teams use Microsoft technologies in projects that monitor the well being of people and things in real life time, such as heart ratem sun exposure and bee hive health.

Interesting, all three Windows 8 challenge apps combine education and fun, including a social tourist guide and an interactive vocabulary.

Similarly, 10 innovative projects combine the NET framework, Windows 8 and Windows Azure to boost productivity.

Health solution:

Nearly 40% of world citizenship teams use technology in innovative ways in the medical field, with more than half of those using the Kinect SDK.

What is new?:

Imagine Cup centers around three Competitions: World Citizenship, Games and Innovation. This new structure builds on the elements that have been so popular with students in the past 10 years — social impact and gaming while expanding the competition’s focus on innovation and entrepreneurship

First-place prizes for World Citizenship, Games and Innovation will each be $50,000.  This year, there will be no elimination rounds at the Worldwide Finals.

Instead, all Worldwide Finalist teams will remain in the competition until winners are announced on the last day of the event. In addition, students competing in online Challenges that advance to the Worldwide Finals will compete onsite for first, second and third place.

Students can compete in the World Citizenship, Innovation and Games Competitions or technology Challenges that lead to the Worldwide Finals for Windows Azure, Windows Phone or Windows 8, or in themed Challenges such as the Women’s Athletics App Challenge or the Imagine Cup Kodu Challenge that result in other awards and prizes and do not include a trip to the Worldwide Finals.

How it works:

Students compete in teams of up to four people in Competitions including World Citizenship, Games and Innovation, and in online Challenges focused on specific technologies and platforms, including Windows 8, Windows Azure and Windows Phone.

Students advance through various rounds of the competition either online or through in-person local finals events until they are selected to compete at the Worldwide Finals, where winners will be awarded travel, cash prizes and partnership awards totaling more than $1 million

Fast Facts:

This is the 11th year of Imagine Cup — it started in 2003 with just 2,000 students from 25 countries. This year’s motto is “Dream it. Build it. Live it.”

This marks the third year of the three-year Microsoft Imagine Cup Grants program. This year, teams with projects that focus on social good can apply at the end of calendar year 2013 to be part of the $3 million investment by Microsoft to help students turn their ideas into reality.

Competitions:

Competitions span the full year and are the cornerstone competitions for Imagine Cup, requiring students to create complete applications built on Microsoft technology. They can be presented in person at local finals events or submitted online in countries without in-person events; finalists advance to compete at the Worldwide Finals.

World Citizenship.

The Imagine Cup World Citizenship Competition honors the software application with the greatest potential to make a positive contribution to the betterment of humanity. An entrant in the World Citizenship Competition might tackle a vexing social or medical problem, promote education or generally harness the power of technology to enrich lives. Prizes: First Place, $50,000; Second Place, $10,000; Third Place, $5,000.

Games.

The Imagine Cup Games Competition honors the best student games built on Microsoft platforms: Windows 8, Windows Phone 8, Kinect for Windows Software Development Kit and Xbox Live Indie Games. Microsoft is looking for fun, original games that are well-made and could find an enthusiastic audience. Game themes and content are up to the students, but content needs to be suitable for a broad, diverse audience. Prizes: First Place, $50,000; Second Place, $10,000; Third Place, $5,000.

Innovation.

The Imagine Cup Innovation Competition honors apps that deliver technology innovations that advance user experiences in major categories such as social networks, search, classifieds or online shopping — or that create entirely new categories. Prizes: First Place, $50,000; Second Place, $10,000; Third Place, $5,000.

Online Challenges

Challenges provide an opportunity for students to participate in Imagine Cup by learning, prototyping and creating applications using the newest Microsoft technologies. They occur online only, and the top three teams in each category will attend the Worldwide Finals to compete for first-, second- or third-place awards

The Windows 8 App Challenge.

This Challenge will test a team’s ability to design and build a Windows Store app that takes advantage of Windows 8 features and design principles to deliver an exceptional experience on the platform. Prizes: First Place, $10,000; Second Place, $5,000; Third Place, $3,000.  The Windows Phone Challenge. This Challenge seeks the best apps that feature startling functionality and device- focused utility combined with a delightful Windows Phone user experience. Prizes: First Place, $10,000; Second Place, $5,000; Third Place, $3,000.

The Windows Azure Challenge

This Challenge is about getting a team started on the “next big thing” by leveraging Azure platform features to build a Web application. Prizes: First Place, $10,000; Second Place, $5,000; Third Place, $3,000.

Brain Games Challenge:

In this Challenge, individuals compete in a monthly trivia quiz. Each quiz will have six rounds of timed questions as well as a topic such as innovation or citizenship. The top score for the month wins $1,000 and everyone who competes enters a sweepstakes where one winner will get a free trip to St. Petersburg.

Imagine Cup Grant program:

Now in its third year, Microsoft’s Imagine Cup Grant program awards cash, software, and access to resources to a select number of Imagine Cup Worldwide Finalists who are looking to take the next step and bring their solution to market to realize its potential to solve a critical global problem

The Imagine Cup Grants are part of Microsoft’s YouthSpark initiative that aims to create opportunities for 300 million youth over the next 3 years. The Imagine Cup Grants highlight student creativity and innovation and provides a springboard for taking their projects to the next level.

Microsoft Imagine Cup is the world’s premier student technology competition. Often referred to as the ‘Oscars of Innovation’, it serves as the platform for the brightest young minds across the world to assemble under one roof with a common motive – to create a better tomorrow with the help of software technology.

Ever since its inaugural launch in 2003, Microsoft Imagine Cup has seen ten venues (right from Barcelona, Spain to Sydney Australia), 1.65 million participants and thousands of ground breaking software applications and games committed to help improve education, healthcare, environment and more.

Over the past ten years, more than 1.65 million students from more than 190 countries have participated in the Imagine Cup. When you join the Imagine Cup community, you’ll connect with other whip-smart creative from all over the world to share ideas, have fun, and be there when the next big thing is unveiled.

- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/07/10-african-teams-others-battle-for-imagine-cup-at-st-petersbur/#sthash.8aAt8QGQ.dpuf

Return To Classroom, FG Begs ASUU

The Federal Government, yesterday, begged the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, to return to classrooms, as the union insisted that the strike would continue unless agreements between it and government were implemented.

The strike which began last week, entered its second week yesterday, even as the union and Education Ministry officials appear before the National Assembly today.

Minister of Education, Professor Ruqquayat Rufa’i, who made the appeal, said the union should call off its strike in the interest of students.

Rufa’i said: “We are going to meet with ASUU and all those that are concerned at the Senate today. We are going to appear before the Senate and the House Committee on Education and we are pleading with ASUU to go back to classroom and let our children go back to school.”

Speaking to Vanguard, ASUU President, Dr Isa Nasir Fagge Isa, however, said the strike would continue until the Federal Government faithfully implemented agreement in the Memorandum of Understanding, MoU reached between both parties.

Strike to continue unless…?

He said: “On whether the strike will continue or be called off is dependent on government’s decision. If the government does what is right, I assure you that we will call off the strike immediately, we will look at what government has and we will review the situation.

“We don’t have to inform anybody that we are taking an action when it becomes clear to us that what we are doing cannot make any headway. We looked at all the options available before embarking on the strike.

“I must remind you that a strike is a fundamental right of a worker, if it becomes clear to a worker that the dialogue with his employer is becoming the dialogue of the deaf and dump, the worker has the right to withdraw his services, that is a fundamental right, it is enshrined in the ILO conventions and it is part of the right of Nigerian citizens.

“We have realized that each time we reached an agreement with the government, government finds it difficult to implement the provisions of the agreement and that is the reason our members advised that we just go back to the trenches.

“You should ask the government, out of the nine provisions of the Memorandum of Understanding we had how many have been implemented?

“Out of the provisions, government had been able to implement two which is the “review of the retirement age of academics on the professional cadre from 65 to 70 years and the reinstatement of the governing council of universities”.

“It will be recalled that government without notice dissolved the governing board of universities, and we took it up that, the government action will not favour the university system.

“Of all the problems identified in the Need Assessment report, how many have been implemented? Our universities are still the way they are, we don’t want to continue deceiving ourselves. We expect that dialogue should produce results, we have been dialoguing for one and half years and we are tired of doing that, we want actions”, he insisted.

“What we need to do is to ensure that we implement the recommendations of that report, but sadly, we have had an agreement with the government in 2009 on four issues which include: Funding, University autonomy and Academic freedom and then conditions of service and other matters but four years after, the provisions of the agreement have not been implemented.

….ASUP wants FG, N-Assembly to review PolyAct

By PETER OKUTU & OKONKWO EZE

THE Akanu Ibiam Federal Polytechnic, Unwana, chapter of Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ASUP, yesterday, called on both the Federal Government and National Assembly to review the Act establishing federal polytechnics as a way of proffering solution to the over three months strike embarked upon by polytechnics in the country.

Chairman of ASUP, Akanu Ibiam Federal Polytechnic, Unwana, Comrade Edmund Onyeneho, who made the call at a briefing in Afikpo, in solidarity with ASUP, blamed the current impasse on Federal Government’s insensitivity to the plight of polytechnic lecturers and students.

He said his chapter was fully committed to the struggle by the National body of ASUP to liberate the polytechnic system from the current neglect which had culminated in the disparity and discrimination of products of the polytechnic system by the society

He said: “ASUP demands the speedy review of the Federal Polytechnics Act. The National Assembly should do more than lip service in this regard. There is now an urgent need to review this Act and reposition polytechnics to effectively fulfil the goals of technological growth and development in Nigeria.

For avoidance of doubt, no demand of ASUP in the present situation is selfish. ASUP is only asking for government’s attention to the debilitating state of polytechnics and also to treat the products of the system not as second rate graduates.

“In other words, ASUP is asking government to do the right things by relating to the products of the polytechnic system on the basis of their quality and not the environment that produced them.

“It is worrisome that the Polytechnics have no Commission like the Universities and Colleges of Education in Nigeria. More insulting in this regard is that even Nomadic Education in Nigeria has a Commission.

“The Government should stop this brazen discrimination by urgently establishing a Commission for polytechnics and monothecnics in Nigeria

”Most polytechnics in Nigeria today, more especially state-owned polytechnics have unqualified and incompetent Rectors”

Meanwhile, members of ASUP in the Polytechnic were seen around the institution and within Afikpo town carrying placards with inscriptions such as “We want a revised scheme of service for Polytechnics” Release of White paper on visitation” “Polytechnic Act… overdue” “NBTE rejected yes! to NPC” in support of the ongoing strike embarked upon by the union.