Ball lightning could be hallucination, say physicists

Ball lightning may be all in the mind, according to scientists at the University of Innsbruck.

NBC streamed 4.4 million hours of Olympic video

The company that killed, nay, murdered, Law & Order, makes kissy face with Microsoft and Silverlight.

AMD fights bloat, accelerates Office 2010


Are you concerned about Microsoft's infamous creeping feature syndrome? Do graphics-heavy PowerPoint files and endless Excel spreadsheets keep you awake at night?

Sony, Intel, Google to make Internet-powered TV a reality

The Wall Street Journal reports that Google's interactive TV software, which will be powered by a tailored version of its Android operating system, is expected to be officially announced at its "I/O" event on Thursday.

Epic blames piracy for the decline of PC gaming

Epic boss Mike Capps believes rampant software piracy is to blame for the noticeable decline of PC gaming and the rise of the console as a lucrative platform.

ViewSonic goes green with new PC Mini

ViewSonic is going ultra-green with its new Mini, which reportedly consumes up to 90% less energy than traditional, power-hungry tower PCs.

Nanotechnology: An Audi that repairs itself

Got a couple of dings and scratches in your car? Paint chipping away a bit? These would never be problem again if a very high-concept Spanish designer had his say.

Boeing preps next-gen GPS for launch


Boeing has completed prelaunch testing for the first of 12 next-generation Global Positioning System (GPS) IIF navigation spacecraft.

Nvidia Tesla drives IBM iDataPlex servers

IBM has selected Nvidia's Tesla 20-series GPU to power a new line of HPC iDataPlex servers.

Overseas iPod factory consults exorcist after rash of suicides

Foxconn, the Taiwanese manufacturer that is responsible for creating iPods, Xboxes, Kindles, and cell phones, has brought in an army of counselors and even an exorcist to figure out why dozens of people continue to attempt suicide, and more than a handful have succeeded.

$15,000 robot takes your place at the office

Do you have $15,000 to spend on a rather useless robot? No? Well, neither do we. But some greedy and clueless corporate types might.

Seagate says 3TB drive requires 64-bit OS

Seagate has confirmed plans to release a 3TB hard disk drive later this year. However, the 3TB drive will only be recognized by 64-bit operating systems, such as Windows 7, Vista and Linux.

Entry-level MacBook gets 10 hour battery life

Apple has updated its entry-level $999 MacBook with a 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, Nvidia GeForce 320M graphics and a 10-hour battery.

Skype app goes live on Panasonic TV

Owners of Panasonic's high-end Viera TV models can now make Skype calls directly from their TV without any additional hardware.

Microsoft aims to take on Gmail with major Hotmail revamp

Microsoft's announced a new version of Hotmail, adding information management features that are in many cases similar to those found in Gmail.

iPhone users most likely to make embarrassing Facebook posts

iPhone users are an impulsive lot - they're nearly twice as likely to have regretted making a Facebook post as the population at large.

Climate change was major cause of mass mammal extinction

Climate change has been a significant factor in mass mammal extinction over most of the last fifty thousand years, according to an international team.

American Heart Association gets into games product endorsement

Maybe persuading people to get outdoors and play real sport is just too much hard work - the American Heart Association has announced it's to work with Nintendo to promote 'the benefits of active-play video games'.

Microsoft pays up in VPN lawsuit

Microsoft has agreed to pay VirnetX Holding $200 million to settle a patent dispute over virtual private network (VPN) technology.

Browsers leave fingerprints that identify users

Even without cookies, the vast majority of browsers leave unique signatures that can be used to track a user's online activity, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).