Thursday, January 21, 2010

Tour the new Firefox 3.6
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 17:20:26 PST ]
In this First Look video, we cover what's new in Firefox 3.6. Most of it is under the hood, but that doesn't mean it's not important.

Video games blamed for return of rickets
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 17:21:01 PST ]
Rickets, caused by a vitamin D deficiency, has returned to the UK and scientists worry it's because kids are spending time indoors on their consoles and computers.

Wednesday whales take down Twitter
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 10:07:03 EST ]
The popular site Twitter crashed again on Wednesday morning.

Man to fly around the world in solar craft
[ Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:56:33 EST ]
When Bertrand Piccard came up with his audacious plan to fly around the world in an aircraft powered only by the sun, he found that airplane manufacturers were skeptical such a plane could be built.

Is this how we'll move in the future?
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 11:12:40 EST ]

Oprah: Stay off your phone while driving
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 12:57:20 EST ]
Shelly and her husband, Daren Forney, were the happily married parents of three beautiful girls, 13-year-old Jessica, 9-year-old Erica and 4-year-old Valerie. "Erica is my little sunshine because she lit up the house," Shelly says. "She was making us laugh before she was a year old."

Hunt for Earth-like worlds looks in the mirror
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 17:35:53 GMT ]

A sun glint on Earth is captured (center of the black circle) in this image taken by NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft as it looked at the north pole. The reddish area is North America, and the glint is coming from a body of water in California. To find Earth-like worlds around other stars, scientists should take a page from our own planet, a new study found.


‘Iron snail’ inspires new armor
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:36:31 GMT ]

This "iron snail" can keep crabs and other predators at bay with its protective shell.Next generation armor could be modeled after the shell design of this iron-plated snail.


Meteorite strikes doctor's office in small town
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:57:26 GMT ]
Doctors at a small U.S. medical practice got a big surprise when a tennis ball-sized meteorite punched a hole through their roof. No one was injured.

Cosmic Log: Good moves on Mars
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 07:47:09 GMT ]

Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: If you're a fan of NASA's Mars missions, there are a few things that appear to be heading in the right direction — including a rover that's been stuck in a sand trap for months.Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: If you're a fan of NASA's Mars missions, there are a few things that appear to be heading in the right direction — including a rover that's been stuck in a sand trap for months.


Haiti brings out the Internet's best
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:02:01 GMT ]

Jan. 17: Msnbc.com Technotica columnist Helen Popkin discusses how texting has emerged as a major force in fundraising for the disaster in Haiti.  (Other)The Internet: Just a whole bunch of banal, self-important jibber jabber … until something of actual substance occurs.


Seesmic makes Twitter pretty, with Look
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 07:00:00 PST ]
Now you can consume Twitter without contributing, or even logging in.

Google's challenge in China
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 07:47:00 PST ]
roundup A blunt declaration by Google on censorship and surveillance underscores the troubled history--and uncertain future--for Internet companies doing business in China.

Apps on the Kindle
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 08:03:43 PST ]
Amazon opens up the Kindle for third-party applications, Nokia brings free turn-by-turn navigation to all its phones, and Bill Gates wants to share his feelings with you.

Nokia launches Ovi Maps
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 08:16:22 PST ]
Nokia launches Ovi Maps, a free turn-by-turn navigation service available on all Nokia GPS-enabled devices.

New year, new policy push for universal broadband
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 08:25:00 PST ]
Newly apparent D.C. focus centers on widespread and faster connectivity, seemingly at the expense of strict Net neutrality regulation, Stanford law fellow Larry Downes observes.

Bill Gates thinks big on energy and climate
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 08:33:00 PST ]
His new Gates Notes site reveals how deeply he is researching the topics of energy and environment, areas he says are ripe for technology innovation.

Final Fantasy and FF II coming to iPhone
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 08:53:21 PST ]
Major titles don't always make their way to the iPhone. But all that might change. Square-Enix has announced that Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II are on their way to Apple's App Store.

Your local park: Bad for the planet?
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:20:00 PST ]
Study finds that maintenance for grass lawns and athletic fields emits four times the amount of carbon stored by the lawn itself.

Apple, Nokia dominate worldwide mobile market
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:24:00 PST ]
Apple's holds the top mobile market share in Western Europe and America, while Nokia takes the lead in Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe, says new report from AdMob.

Bankers warming up to offshore wind
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:52:47 PST ]
Europe's offshore wind capacity is expected to see a big leap over the next several years thanks to increased investment from the banking industry, according to a report.

Journalists in China face e-mail hijacking
[ Mon, 18 Jan 2010 22:31:54 EST ]
Foreign correspondents in at least two Beijing, China, bureaus of news organizations have had their Google e-mail accounts attacked, with e-mails forwarded to a mysterious address, according to the Foreign Correspondents' Club of China.

Tech camp yields programs for Haiti
[ Tue, 19 Jan 2010 08:27:47 EST ]
A weekend meeting of technology pros looking to help victims of the Haiti earthquake yielded some ready-to-roll projects and a few more nearing completion.

'Pants' becomes first viral video of 2010
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 10:30:41 EST ]
A 62-year-old's rhythmic fashion review has become the Internet's first viral sensation of the new decade.

Wednesday whales take down Twitter
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 10:07:03 EST ]
The popular site Twitter crashed again on Wednesday morning.

Man to fly around the world in solar craft
[ Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:56:33 EST ]
When Bertrand Piccard came up with his audacious plan to fly around the world in an aircraft powered only by the sun, he found that airplane manufacturers were skeptical such a plane could be built.

Is this how we'll move in the future?
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 11:12:40 EST ]

Oprah: Stay off your phone while driving
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 12:57:20 EST ]
Shelly and her husband, Daren Forney, were the happily married parents of three beautiful girls, 13-year-old Jessica, 9-year-old Erica and 4-year-old Valerie. "Erica is my little sunshine because she lit up the house," Shelly says. "She was making us laugh before she was a year old."

Jackson tribute at Grammys to be in 3-D
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:27:40 EST ]
A planned tribute to Michael Jackson at the upcoming 52nd Grammy Awards will feature the first-ever 3-D performance on an awards show.

Haiti efforts backed for Twitter Oscars
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 08:19:01 EST ]
In the thick of awards season, there is at least one prize ceremony where the speeches are guaranteed not to over run -- the Twitter Oscars.

Clinton: Cyber attack is an attack on all
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 11:59:35 EST ]
The Internet is critical to foreign policy, and those who engage in cyber attacks or Web censorship should face international condemnation, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a major speech Thursday.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Experts: Haiti at risk for another big aftershock
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 19:59:27 GMT ]

A UN soldier patrols next to a destroyed building on January 20, 2010 in Port-au-Prince. A 5.9-magnitude aftershock rattled Haiti on Wednesday, and scientists say more may be coming. Haiti can expect more aftershocks in coming weeks, and while the usual pattern suggests they will become weaker and less frequent, another one as strong as Wednesday's jolt is certainly possible, scientists say.


Report: Bing may replace Google on iPhone
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 19:39:40 GMT ]
Apple is talking with Microsoft about making it the default search engine provider for the iPhone, replacing Google, BusinessWeek reported on Wednesday.

Tetris reaches 100 million mobile milestone
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 00:00:42 GMT ]
Tetris is the best-selling mobile game of all time, with more than 100 million paid downloads on cell phones around the world.

Newsweek: Google CEO talks China, Web monitoring
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:22:22 GMT ]
Google CEO Eric Schmidt has long defended his company's decision to do business in China despite the restrictions that Beijing imposes on Internet freedom. He explains why the company threatened to pull out of the country after hacker attacks last week.

U.S. Army launches Facebook-like site
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 21:55:38 GMT ]

Say, is that Facebook? Nope, it's a screenshot of milBook, the new social media site for U.S. Army personnel. A new Facebook-like social media site aimed at the U.S. Army tech community aims to make discussion of sensitive information easier and safer.


Joan of Arc 'relics' confirmed to be fake
[ Thu, 21 Jan 2010 01:29:54 GMT ]

The so-called "relics of Joan of Arc" actually consist of a mummified cat leg bone and human rib, according to a new study. The so-called "relics of Joan of Arc," overseen by the Archbishop of Tours in Chinon, France, do not contain the charred remains of the Catholic saint.


New royalty program for Kindle books
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:48:50 GMT ]
Amazon.com Inc. said Wednesday it will begin offering do-it-yourself authors and publishers a bigger cut of book sales on its Kindle e-reader — but with strings attached aimed at keeping prices down for consumers.

Cosmic Log: Big brains for video games
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:40:30 GMT ]

Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: Psychologists say they can predict how well you'll learn a video game by looking at three little structures inside your brain. The bigger they are, the better you’ll do.Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: Psychologists say they can predict how well you'll learn a video game by looking at three little structures inside your brain. The bigger they are, the better you’ll do.


Facebook a preview of world without secrets
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 14:15:35 GMT ]
Privacy experts continue to be amazed as hundreds of millions of adults around the globe do things online, and on Facebook in particular, that they would never do in person.

Cosmic Log: Solar salvation for Haiti?
[ Tue, 19 Jan 2010 23:49:30 GMT ]

Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: Donors are gearing up to send solar-powered cell phones, streetlights and even audio Bibles to earthquake-hit Haiti.Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: Donors are gearing up to send solar-powered cell phones, streetlights and even audio Bibles to earthquake-hit Haiti.


Clinton plans to stump for global Net freedom
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 15:06:00 PST ]
CNET has learned that Secretary of State Clinton will elevate Internet freedom as a departmental priority in speech Thursday. She'll also address the Google-China flap.

Apple, labels talk music in the cloud
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:05:00 PST ]
iTunes customers who dream of storing their music on someone else's servers could get their wish, according to several music industry sources.

Kids pack in nearly 11 hours of media use daily
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:12:06 PST ]
A study from the Kaiser Family Foundation shows a "dramatic" rise in the amount of time children and teens spend using entertainment media. But is it all bad?

YouTube gets rentals, starting with Sundance films
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:15:00 PST ]
The popular video provider gets into the rental business with a small selection of titles from the Sundance Film Festival.

Opera 10.50 preview crawls forward
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:44:00 PST ]
The significantly faster public pre-alpha build doesn't introduce any major new features, but it does include several important bug fixes from the last pre-alpha.

Want to be a better gamer? Size matters
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:55:00 PST ]
A multi-institutional research team finds that the volume of three specific structures in the human brain can predict video gaming performance in men and women.

YouTube begins HTML5 rollout
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:11:00 PST ]
YouTube has begun rolling out support for HTML5 video, a spec that will let users view YouTube videos in most modern day browsers without Adobe's Flash.

View and manipulate your browser cache
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:13:00 PST ]
Forget about exploring your Firefox or Google Chrome cache. When it comes to browser cache, the biggest problem that most users face is figuring out just which folder the elusive cache resides in.

Grounded teen tries Facebook to embarrass parents
[ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 19:26:18 PST ]
A 15-year-old is grounded by her parents for breaking their rules. So she goes where all fine teens go to pout--Facebook--where she creates the group "1,000 to get Tess ungrounded."