E-book sales, devices soar[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 19:48:05 GMT ]The "e" in e-books isn't just for "electronic" — it's also for "electric," as in expected sales of both e-book readers and digital books themselves.

Will Europeans and Russians be first on Mars?[ Fri, 19 Aug 2011 01:25:21 GMT ]Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: The European Space Agency's chief says ESA and the Russians will take on the first human mission to Mars, but he refrains from naming a date.

IBM unveils brain-like chip[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 18:07:46 GMT ]Future of Tech: Computer chips with worm-like intelligence were unveiled today by researchers at IBM, a breakthrough, they say, on the road to creating computers that function like the human brain.

R.I.P. webOS, we hardly knew ye[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 21:15:11 GMT ]When Palm introduced the Pre, it represented a major threat to the iPhone. Today, after two scant years, the phone and subsequent tablet are dead, and any hope for future webOS products would be foolish. How did good technology fall so far so fast?

SpaceX looks for an extra rocket base[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 23:30:47 GMT ]Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: Even as SpaceX prepares for its first visit to the International Space Station, it's looking for another spaceport to handle future launch traffic.

This Day in Tech: HP saying goodbye to WebOS, PC unit[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 17:25:53 PDT ]Too busy to keep up with the tech news? Here are some of the more interesting stories from CNET for Thursday, August 18.

HP has suffered from Apple envy[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 17:48:44 PDT ]With Hewlett-Packard today announcing that it plans to spin off its PC business and discontinue its WebOS operations, can Apple be blamed?

Apple seeks EU-wide ban on Samsung's Galaxy line[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 18:00:29 PDT ]Filing in The Netherlands seeks a ban on importation and sales of Galaxy smartphones and tablets, as well as a stock recall within 14 days, according to a Dutch publication.

Yelp to pull critical reviews of anti-gay marriage bridal store[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 19:20:28 PDT ]A bridal store refuses to sell a wedding dress to a gay woman because of her sexual orientation. The store quickly receives a backlash on Yelp. But do these reviews break Yelp's guidelines? Yelp says yes and is pulling the reviews.

NASA: Aliens might destroy us because of our gases[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 20:12:18 PDT ]A NASA report suggest that the Earth's rising greenhouse gases could make aliens believe we are an ever-increasing, ever-expanding threat.

Don't play victim to your smartphone[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 07:23:23 EDT ]If you're sick of your friend flicking around with his iPhone at dinner, tell him to shut the damn thing off and return to reality.

San Fran's BART transit system hacked again[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 05:54:22 EDT ]A hacker publicly posted Wednesday the home addresses and other information of all 102 police officers with San Francisco's Bay Area Transit system, the second hacking incident against one of its websites since Sunday, a spokesman said.

Police fighting flash-mob mayhem[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 14:46:38 EDT ]This week in Germantown, Maryland, it took less than a minute for a flash mob of smiling teenagers to descend on a 7-Eleven, ransack shelves and make off with hundreds of dollars of stuff.

Non-human DJ gets radio gig[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:06:39 GMT ]Future of Tech: A non-human DJ will take to the airwaves next week in San Antonio, Texas, in what may mark another step on the path that puts flesh-and-blood radio personalities out of a job.

The best apps for taking notes in class[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 12:04:29 GMT ]It's far more efficient today to keep notes on a computer. Not only does it cut down on cut down trees, but when it comes to the end of the semester and crunch time for course work and exams, digital notes are much easier to search and sort through

Hair Wars! 'Mass Effect' heroine needs a hair color[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 00:53:15 GMT ]When you think of an alien-fighting, galaxy-saving heroine, do you imagine a blond? A brunette? Fancy her a ginger? BioWare wants your vote on the hair color for the female hero of the "Mass Effect 3" game. But is this poll creepy ... or cool?

Where do GOP hopefuls stand on science?[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 23:15:37 GMT ]Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: Texas Gov. Rick Perry's controversial views about climate policy highlight differences between the leading GOP presidential candidates on science issues.

Pre-caffeine: Spies! Jeggings! Pug cake![ Mon, 1 Aug 2011 14:20:24 GMT ]The latest news on social media, gadgets, Internet culture and more.

Amazon Instant hits 100,000 movies, TV shows[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 07:21:00 PDT ]Still, the e-commerce heavyweight will have a long way to go to match, or even approach, Netflix's popularity in the U.S.

Android users prefer mobile apps over mobile Web[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:10:46 PDT ]Android device owners spend twice as much time using mobile apps as they do using the mobile Web, according to a new report from Nielsen.

Verizon tops among Android carriers; AT&T gaining[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:25:17 PDT ]The carrier has a dominant lead over other carriers in terms of Android traffic, but its share has dropped 10 percent since March.

Meet Connor, a 7-year-old iPhone app developer[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:26:16 PDT ]Connor Zamary may be just 7, but he's already thought up the Toaster Pop iPhone game app, pitched it to investors, overseen development, and launched it in the App Store. What were you doing at 7?

Skype Wi-Fi launches[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:55:21 PDT ]Researchers say cell phone radiation may lower sperm count, AT&T cuts its texting plans down to one, and Skype launches an app for iOS that lets world travelers use Wi-Fi hot spots on a per-minute basis.

Cutting social media no answer to flash mobs[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 06:32:57 EDT ]In the past, people seemed to require a massive "cue" to form a mob. The New York blackouts of the summer of 1977 resulted in citywide looting, not just because alarm systems were down, but because a whole lot of hot, angry, frustrated people had an excuse to act en masse. Likewise, the verdict on the Rodney King trial served as a spark, synchronizing simultaneous explosions of mob behavior in a dozen North American cities.

Why most people don't finish video games[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 08:00:34 EDT ]Once considered a cult pastime, video games have grown immensely in the last 30 years to become a mainstream fixture alongside movies and music.

Don't play victim to your smartphone[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 07:23:23 EDT ]If you're sick of your friend flicking around with his iPhone at dinner, tell him to shut the damn thing off and return to reality.

San Fran's BART transit system hacked again[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 05:54:22 EDT ]A hacker publicly posted Wednesday the home addresses and other information of all 102 police officers with San Francisco's Bay Area Transit system, the second hacking incident against one of its websites since Sunday, a spokesman said.

Non-human DJ gets radio gig[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:06:39 GMT ]Future of Tech: A non-human DJ will take to the airwaves next week in San Antonio, Texas, in what may mark another step on the path that puts flesh-and-blood radio personalities out of a job.

The best apps for taking notes in class[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 12:04:29 GMT ]It's far more efficient today to keep notes on a computer. Not only does it cut down on cut down trees, but when it comes to the end of the semester and crunch time for course work and exams, digital notes are much easier to search and sort through

Hair Wars! 'Mass Effect' heroine needs a hair color[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 00:53:15 GMT ]When you think of an alien-fighting, galaxy-saving heroine, do you imagine a blond? A brunette? Fancy her a ginger? BioWare wants your vote on the hair color for the female hero of the "Mass Effect 3" game. But is this poll creepy ... or cool?

Where do GOP hopefuls stand on science?[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 23:15:37 GMT ]Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: Texas Gov. Rick Perry's controversial views about climate policy highlight differences between the leading GOP presidential candidates on science issues.

Pre-caffeine: Spies! Jeggings! Pug cake![ Mon, 1 Aug 2011 14:20:24 GMT ]The latest news on social media, gadgets, Internet culture and more.

Amazon Instant hits 100,000 movies, TV shows[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 07:21:00 PDT ]Still, the e-commerce heavyweight will have a long way to go to match, or even approach, Netflix's popularity in the U.S.

Android users prefer mobile apps over mobile Web[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:10:46 PDT ]Android device owners spend twice as much time using mobile apps as they do using the mobile Web, according to a new report from Nielsen.

Verizon tops among Android carriers; AT&T gaining[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:25:17 PDT ]The carrier has a dominant lead over other carriers in terms of Android traffic, but its share has dropped 10 percent since March.

Meet Connor, a 7-year-old iPhone app developer[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:26:16 PDT ]Connor Zamary may be just 7, but he's already thought up the Toaster Pop iPhone game app, pitched it to investors, overseen development, and launched it in the App Store. What were you doing at 7?

Skype Wi-Fi launches[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:55:21 PDT ]Researchers say cell phone radiation may lower sperm count, AT&T cuts its texting plans down to one, and Skype launches an app for iOS that lets world travelers use Wi-Fi hot spots on a per-minute basis.

Cutting social media no answer to flash mobs[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 06:32:57 EDT ]In the past, people seemed to require a massive "cue" to form a mob. The New York blackouts of the summer of 1977 resulted in citywide looting, not just because alarm systems were down, but because a whole lot of hot, angry, frustrated people had an excuse to act en masse. Likewise, the verdict on the Rodney King trial served as a spark, synchronizing simultaneous explosions of mob behavior in a dozen North American cities.

Why most people don't finish video games[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 08:00:34 EDT ]Once considered a cult pastime, video games have grown immensely in the last 30 years to become a mainstream fixture alongside movies and music.

Don't play victim to your smartphone[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 07:23:23 EDT ]If you're sick of your friend flicking around with his iPhone at dinner, tell him to shut the damn thing off and return to reality.

San Fran's BART transit system hacked again[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 05:54:22 EDT ]A hacker publicly posted Wednesday the home addresses and other information of all 102 police officers with San Francisco's Bay Area Transit system, the second hacking incident against one of its websites since Sunday, a spokesman said.

Judge throws out sex ads suit[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 22:10:41 GMT ]A federal judge in St. Louis has thrown out a lawsuit accusing Village Voice Media of knowingly allowing a pimp to advertise a teenage prostitute's sexual services on one of its websites.

'Borderlands 2' will unleash millions of weapons[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 21:31:09 GMT ]New guns, new locales, new characters, new enemies. 2K Games and Gearbox Software have taken the wraps off their highly anticipated game "Borderlands 2" and they promise it will arrive with 'millions upon millions' of unique weapons blazing.

Hair Wars! 'Mass Effect' heroine needs a color[ Thu, 18 Aug 2011 00:53:15 GMT ]When you think of an alien-fighting, galaxy-saving heroine, do you imagine a blond? A brunette? Do you imagine her with black hair? Or (gasp) might you fancy her a ginger? BioWare is asking people to vote on the hair color for the female hero of their "Mass Effect 3" game. But is this poll creepy ... or cool?

Non-human DJ gets radio gig[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:06:39 GMT ]Future of Tech: A non-human DJ will take to the airwaves next week in San Antonio, Texas, in what may mark another step on the path that puts flesh-and-blood radio personalities out of a job.

Scientists solve mystery of space blob's glow[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 17:44:26 GMT ]Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: Astronomers report that the glow of a giant space blob is powered by the galaxies hidden within it.

British consortium building Morgan electric sports car[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 17:58:54 PDT ]Morgan, Zytek, and other British companies are combining forces to electrify a Morgan Aero. The consortium will build two Morgan EV concepts in 2012.

Boeing completes flight certification testing for 787[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:44:41 PDT ]After 20 months of tests, Boeing has completed flight certification for some of its 787 Dreamliner aircraft. The airplane is now set for its September delivery.

Software can tell if you're mean and ugly[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:57:29 PDT ]Researchers create a tool they say can predict character traits such as dominance and meanness with an accuracy above 90 percent. It can also tell you where you land on the scale of perceived attractiveness.

Google launches music discovery site[ Wed, 17 Aug 2011 19:45:12 PDT ]Magnifier is designed to help Music Beta users grow their online music libraries while discovering new artists and genres.