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MSNBC.com: Technology & Science

Small moves add up in commercial space

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 10:12pm MST

Science editor Alan Boyle's blog: Commercial ventures have been taking lots of small steps toward the next giant leap in spaceflight — and the federal government is helping them out.
Megaupload founder refused bail in New Zealand

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 7:30pm MST

A New Zealand court refused an appeal by the founder of online file-sharing site Megaupload.com to be freed on bail, Friday, agreeing with prosecutors there was a risk he would attempt to flee before an extradition hearing.
Check out the Red Planet's craziest colors

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 6:54pm MST

Science editor Alan Boyle's blog: A picture from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter paints the Red Planet in shades of blue, yellow and green — but there's a method in the madness.
Asteroid Eros draws skywatchers in Earth flyby

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 6:06pm MST

Amateur astronomers and students around the world are taking a close look at the asteroid Eros as part of a hands-on experiment to measure solar-system distances.
Video: Arcade sticks for that perfect K.O.

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 5:18pm MST

These two fight sticks from Hori may just be the edge you need in your next match. In-Game's Todd Kenreck reports. (In-Game)
PhotoBlog: For photographers,tablet apps are alternative to publishing photo books

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 5:13pm MST

Veteran photographer Gerd Ludwig publishes an app instead of a book to showcase his long-term documentation of Chernobyl's fallout.
Jellyfish are taking over!!! Oh ... never mind

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 4:41pm MST

Jellyfish have become the subject of what resembles a modern myth, some say.
Internet piracy suit asks: Can you even copyright porn?

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 4:38pm MST

A California woman is fighting a porn piracy case by arguing that porn can't be copyrighted in the first place.
Post SOPA, it's time to protest ACTA (on Feb. 11)

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 4:35pm MST
Special Forces seek to halt copter crashes

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 4:15pm MST

Deadly helicopter crashes have killed dozens of U.S. Special Forces operators who flew risky missions to hunt insurgents and terrorists in Afghanistan and Iraq since 2001. Now the U.S. military is looking to equip its elite warriors' helicopters with airborne laser mapping capable of seeing through fog and dust to find safe landing zones.
Math tells NFL teams to go for it on 4th down

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 3:47pm MST

Are fourth-down attempts really a bad decision? Mathematics pounds this sort of conventional wisdom into the turf. Statistical analyses have shown that to give their team the best chance of winning, coaches should go for it more on fourth down. A lot.
Some used Xoom tablets sold with owners' data

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 3:11pm MST

About 100 refurbished Motorola Xoom tablets wound up being resold to new owners with the old owners' personal information still on them.
First fossil of 'vampire' bat fly discovered

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 2:30pm MST

A one-of-a-kind fossil shows that so-called bat flies — tiny vampire insects that survive on the blood of bats — have been parasitizing the winged mammals and spreading bat malaria for at least 20 million years, scientists report in a pair of studies Friday.
Space voyages shouldn't be politically incorrect

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 2:19pm MST

Why should politicians support trips beyond Earth orbit? It's good for jobs in the short term, and good for our survival in the long term. Commentary by NBC News' Jay Barbree.
NASA flooded with astronaut applications

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 1:59pm MST

NASA may not have space shuttles to launch people into the final frontier anymore, but that hasn't stopped Americans from lining up in droves for the chance to join the agency's iconic astronaut corps during the latest recruitment drive.
Apple hires yet another high profile game executive

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 1:38pm MST

Robin Burrowes is yet another brand new Apple employee.
Video: Be mesmerized by the future of glass

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 1:34pm MST

Corning, the company known for its innovation in glass, has just put out another mesmerizing video exploring how its interactive display technology could mate with the computers and gadgets of the tomorrow.
Yet another study confirms your tech addiction

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 1:32pm MST

Scientists, online dating sites, your constantly irritated significant other and Wilhelm Hofmann at University of Chicago's Booth Business School could all save a lot of time over whether we are "addicted" to social media and/or our cellular devices.
Anonymous goes after Marine in Haditha case

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 1:31pm MST

Anonymous posted 3 gigabytes' worth of email correspondence by attorneys involved in the case of U.S. Marine Frank Wuterich, who recently pleaded guilty to killing two dozen unarmed Iraqi women and children in 2005.
Xbox 360 tops in yearly global sales for first time

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 1:20pm MST

Microsoft’s Xbox 360 has been dominating monthly sales charts for the U.S. video-game console market for years, but now it's the top-selling home console worldwide, as well.
Future drones may fly like butterflies

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 1:17pm MST

High-speed video cameras are allowing university researchers to document how butterflies gracefully flutter through the air. The U.S. military funded findings may lead to more agile insect-sized drones sent to spy on enemies.
Experiments look at how to fight fire in space

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 1:01pm MST

New experiments on the International Space Station may reveal tips on fighting fires in space, and back here on Earth, too.
Is social media spreading twitching hysteria?

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 12:31pm MST

In the case of nearly 20 teenagers with a twitching disorder in upstate New York, doctors say the symptoms may be spreading faster through the girls' own use of Facebook and other forms of social media.
Deals of the day: Toshiba, TVs and more

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 12:22pm MST

Here's what's worth considering today: Discounted Toshiba gear, a lot of deals on HDTVs, a copy of "Groundhog Day" on Blu-ray for $10 and more.
Hackers take over law enforcement websites

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 12:20pm MST

Saboteurs stole passwords and sensitive information on tipsters while hacking into the websites of several law enforcement agencies worldwide in attacks attributed to the collective known as Anonymous.
Latest robots eat — and poop — to power up

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 12:20pm MST

Today's robots that fly, jump or roll around must refuel or recharge as does any gadget that runs out of energy. Tomorrow's new generation of self-sustaining robots might keep going nearly forever by grazing on dead insects, rotting plant matter or even human waste.
Google Wallet now for AT&T Nexus phones

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 11:41am MST

Google Wallet, the app that lets you pay for goods with a swipe of your phone, now works with Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus owners who are on AT&T's network. Until now, it only was available on the Nexus S on Sprint's network.
Internet helps turn 'Tiger Bread' into 'Giraffe Bread'

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 11:40am MST

UK-based supermarket chain Sainsbury's sold something called "Tiger Bread" until Jan. 31. But on that day the bakery product was renamed to "Giraffe Bread," thanks to a 3 1/2-year-old girl's astute observation, a couple of letters and some help from the Internet.
Chasm widens in East-West 'Cyber Cold War'

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 11:18am MST

Chasm widens in East-West 'Cyber Cold War'
Sphero, the robotic ball, to blast (virtual) meteors

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 11:01am MST

Fans of Sphero, the robotic ball that you control with your smartphone, will soon be able to use the ball to navigate fields of flying space rocks as they blast them apart with an anti-matter cannon, the makers of the gadget entice on their website.
Corpse sits in gamer cafe for 9 hours

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 10:45am MST

In what is beginning to be a disturbingly common phenomenon, a young man in Asia has died, apparently due to prolonged gaming. According to Sky News and the AFP, the latest incident took place in New Taipei, Taiwan.
Guinea pigs: Easy-to-pack pets for explorers

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 10:14am MST

It may seem a prestigious post for a rodent, but the guinea pigs that are fixtures in elementary school classrooms today were once ambassadors from a new land.
Mac OS X update brings major security fixes, some issues

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 10:03am MST

Apple released a major security update for Mac OS X on Tuesday. The good news is that this update patches 51 vulnerabilities in the operating system. The bad news is that it appears to be causing pesky issues for some users.
Survey: Kindle Fire owners like cost, but have gripes

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 9:42am MST

A new survey shows that Kindle Fire owners are happiest with the low cost of their devices, but among their gripes are a lack of volume buttons and a camera as well as a short battery life.
Hubble captures Milky Way galaxy's twin

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 9:38am MST

An uncanny twin of our own Milky Way galaxy takes center stage in a new cosmic portrait by the Hubble Space Telescope unveiled Friday.
Apple stops selling some devices online in Germany

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 9:23am MST

Apple stopped offering older models of its iPhone and 3G-based iPads at its German online store on Friday in a response to an injunction won by Motorola Mobility in December.
Pre-caffeine tech: Facebook power users, killer kittens!

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 8:33am MST

Our pre-caffeine roundup is a collection of the hottest, strangest, and most amusing stories of the morning. Here's everything that you need to know before taking that first sip of coffee today.
Hackers attack Greek Justice Ministry website

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 7:57am MST

Hackers have attacked the Greek Justice Ministry website to protest the government's signing of a global copyright treaty and its handling of the financial crisis.
Hackers: We intercepted FBI, Scotland Yard call

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 7:32am MST

A sensitive conference call between the FBI and Scotland Yard was recorded by the very people they were trying to catch, the hacking group known as Anonymous claimed Friday.
EU probes new Google privacy policy

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 7:11am MST

The European Union's data protection authorities have asked Google to delay the rollout of its new privacy policy until they have verified that it doesn't break the bloc's data protection laws.
Your Facebook friends have more friends than you: survey

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 7:00am MST

The average Facebook user gets more from their friends on Facebook than they give to their friends. Why? Because of a segment of "power users," who specialize in different Facebook activities and contribute much more than the typical user does, a Pew survey finds.
Winter survival app helps ditched drivers

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 6:58am MST

Making the wrong decision in a winter driving emergency can have deadly consequences. Here's how to make sure you're prepared.
Iran reports launch of small satellite into orbit

Posted: February 3rd, 2012, 5:49am MST

Iran successfully launched a new small satellite into orbit early Friday, state media reported, the latest in the country's ambitious space program that has raised concerns because of its possible military applications.