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MSNBC.com: Technology & Science

Samsung says TV sales stronger; plans to launch low-end TVs

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 11:56pm MST

Samsung Electronics Co, the world's top television manufacturer, has seen TV sales firming up so far this year and plans to introduce cheaper TVs, as demand for lower-end models increase, the head of its TV business said on Wednesday.
Aurora extravaganza glows in space

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 7:44pm MST

Science editor Alan Boyle's blog: Colorful videos prove that the astronauts aboard the International Space Station had the best seats in the house for last month's northern lights.
Why there are so few fish in the sea

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 6:47pm MST

Most saltwater fish may have evolved from a freshwater ancestor, according to a new study that traces the family tree of both marine and freshwater fish.
Fireball over Texas caught by police video cam

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 6:36pm MST

A bright fireball streaked across the nighttime sky over eastern Texas and Oklahoma last week, and was caught on video by a police car camera.
World's highest-pitched primate calls out like bat

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 5:43pm MST

A huge-eyed little primate of the Philippines can communicate in pure ultrasound — issuing calls so high-pitched that human ears can't detect them.
Janice Voss, veteran astronaut, dies at 55

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 5:25pm MST

Astronaut Janice Voss, a veteran of five spaceflights and a former science director for a NASA exoplanet-hunting spacecraft, has died after a battle with cancer. She was 55.
Video: Trick out your console using Vault

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 5:21pm MST

The case that adds an extra layer of awesome gaming goodness to your Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. In-Game’s Todd Kenreck reports. (In-Game)
Top 6 Facebook annoyances—and how to fix them

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 5:10pm MST

Here are six annoyances Facebook users run into that can really grind our gears. But we have the solutions for each.
First photos of tiger taken in India corridor

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 4:58pm MST

Conservationists snapped the first known images of a Bengal tiger in an area of northern India that is important habitat for the endangered species.
Loggerheads tracked to feeding hotspots

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 4:32pm MST

Satellite tracking of a threatened species of sea turtle has revealed two new feeding hotspots in the Gulf of Mexico that are an important habitat for at least three separate populations of the turtles.
NASA calls for new taxis to fly to Space Station

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 3:53pm MST

NASA is looking for at least two U.S. firms to design and build space transport systems for ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station, program managers said Tuesday.
Chrome comes to some Android phones, tablets

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 2:02pm MST

Google's Chrome Web browser in Beta is available for Android phone and tablets users — but for now, that is going be a small number of them who have the latest version of the Android operating system, 4.0 (also known as Ice Cream Sandwich), on their devices.
Tiny sensors that measure amplitude are big step

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 2:00pm MST

Anyone who watched the recent X-Games coverage heard commentators obsess about "amplitude" — how high snowboarders such as Shaun White soar above the lip of the superpipe to perform aerial tricks. Tiny sensors can use amplitude to detect chemicals in the air, new research shows.
What Antarctic seal mummies can tell you...

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 1:52pm MST

Mummified seals now reveal that communities of microbes in Antarctica can change much faster than previously thought, scientists find.
Investor: Facebook’s Zuckerberg has too much control

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 1:52pm MST

One of America’s largest pension funds with an investment portfolio valued at around $145 billion wants to talk to the social-networking site about its corporate governance rules.
The history of video games, via Michael Winslow

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 1:40pm MST

Winslow from "Police Academy" takes on the history of video games.
'Wreck-It Ralph' is like 'Toy Story', but for games

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 1:38pm MST

Due later this fall from Disney Animation Studios is "Wreck-It Ralph." The basic premise is similar to "Toy Story"; it's another behind the scenes look at a world us humans are somewhat familiar with, but not really.
'Doomsday Preppers' are ready for anything

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 1:25pm MST

"Doomsday Preppers," a weekly TV documentary premiering on the National Geographic Channel Tuesday, takes viewers on a shocking tour of modern-day apocalypse paranoia.
Deals of the day: 'The Office,' TVs and more

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 1:01pm MST

Here's what's worth considering today: A season of "The Office" on Blu-ray for $13, discounted TVs, deals on headphones and more.
Real 'Big Miracle' story is frozen in time

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 12:55pm MST

Almost 25 years ago, the world's attention was rapt on three gray whales stranded by encroaching sea ice off the coast of Alaska and the effort to free them.
Security camera video flaw lets voyeurs see all

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 12:45pm MST

Video feeds from some home users' Internet security cameras — including children's rooms and bathroom scenes — are being seen by others around the world because of a coding error that is part of the cameras' software.
Apple's mysterious iTV: What we think we know

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 12:40pm MST

We recently compiled the most significant iPad 3 rumors, but the tablet isn't the only yet-to-be-announced piece of Apple gear on everyone's collective mind. So let's chat a bit about the other elephant in the room — the mysterious Apple iTV.
Apple weeds out game clones

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 11:44am MST

The very public war between Zynga and its critics in recent weeks has led many to wonder how and why such blatant copycats are allowed to be part of Apple's App Store, the ecosystem in which they are distributed and thrive, in the first place.
Fortress is proof 'Hill of Jonah' was inhabited

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 11:44am MST

Remains of thick stone walls uncovered recently atop a hill in Israel — where tradition says the prophet Jonah was buried — indicate the site was occupied during the time of the prophet, almost 3,000 years ago.
Obama calls for funding to boost science education

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 11:27am MST

President Barack Obama called on Tuesday for millions of dollars in new funding to improve math and science education, an effort he said would be crucial to the nation's long-term success.
Personal concerts streamed to hospitalized kids

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 11:21am MST

The Melodic Caring Project, a nonprofit startup, was founded with the mission of using music and technology to help kids heal. It's good medicine.
Motorola Droid 4 coming to Verizon on Feb. 10

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 11:03am MST

It's official: The Motorola Droid 4, that slender beast of a smartphone, is headed to Verizon's speedy 4G LTE network on Feb. 10.
Defendant may have forgotten password

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 11:02am MST

A Colorado woman, recently ordered by a judge to turn over her password to decrypt her hard drive, may not remember what that password is.
Time for Snow Moon — February's full moon

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 10:43am MST

The full moon of February will hit its peak Tuesday night in what Algonquin Native American tribes have traditionally called the Snow Moon since heavy snowfalls typically occur in the northern regions this month.
Google pays tribute to Dickens with a special ‘doodle’

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 10:42am MST

Tuesday marked the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens, a titan of English literature whose vivid stories confronted the injustices of Victorian life. Google celebrated by adding a special "doodle" their homepage featuring beloved characters from the author's work.
Hidden dwarf galaxies may swarm nearby

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 10:20am MST

Tantalizing hints of tiny, hard-to-see galaxies on the outskirts of our cosmic neighborhood may help astronomers solve a longstanding mystery.
German police use Facebook to nab crooks

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 9:59am MST

Police in the German state of Lower-Saxony will soon use their networks of Facebook "friends" to find missing persons and hunt out suspected criminals, according to the state's interior minister.
Concerns over Zuckerberg’s control of Facebook

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 9:51am MST

One of America’s largest pension funds with an investment portfolio valued at around $145 billion wants to talk to the social-networking site about its corporate governance rules.
10 new Canon PowerShots: Wi-Fi, rugged and more

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 9:33am MST

Canon is refreshing its PowerShot series with 10 new point-and-shoot cameras. Yes, that means there are a lot of options — but they only exist because there's something suited for almost everyone in the line-up.
Facebook to release user data practices: lobby group

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 9:08am MST

U.S. social media network Facebook has promised to release more information about the data it collects from millions of users, an Austrian group lobbying for respect of privacy laws said on Tuesday.
Hackers sought $50K for stolen anti-virus code

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 8:58am MST

A hacker released the source code for antivirus firm Symantec's pcAnywhere utility on Tuesday, raising fears that others could find security holes in the product and attempt takeovers of customer computers. The release followed failed email negotiations over a $50,000 payout to the hacker calling himself YamaTough to destroy the code.
Pre-caffeine: Cats love Puppy Bowl!

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 8:47am MST

Photos you thought you deleted from Facebook, even years ago, may still be hanging around.
Microscopic marvels captured on video

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 8:19am MST

Science editor Alan Boyle's blog: What could be more wonderful than pictures of microscopic marvels? Brace yourself for some award-winning movies showing those marvels in action.
36.3-megapixel Nikon D800 coming in March

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 7:41am MST

Nikon has made its latest high-end camera official. The full-frame DSLR is — predictably — called the D800 and its specs should be appealing to photographers and videographers alike.
Flying cars roll a little closer to take off

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 6:45am MST

Fifty years after “The Jetsons” introduced the concept to American TV viewers, where are the flying cars we were promised? The answer? Still a ways off but, just maybe, about to get a bit closer.
Marine's lawyers call Anonymous "cowards" after hack

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 6:40am MST

Lawyers for a U.S. Marine court-martialed for his role in killing Iraqi civilians in Haditha slammed the international hacking collective Anonymous as "cowards" on Monday after they knocked out the firm's website and published internal emails on the Web.
Looking for work? There may be an app for that

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 6:34am MST

Looking for a promising career in a lousy economy? A new study suggests you're apt to find it in apps — the services and tools built to run on smartphones, computer tablets and Facebook's online social network.
Designing Windows 8 — or redesigning a religion

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 5:35am MST

Sam Moreau just might have the hardest gig at Microsoft — redesigning the operating system used by like a billion people all over the world.
Mail your valentine a card using these apps

Posted: February 7th, 2012, 5:32am MST

Merge your love of technology, your love of genuine mail and your love of a loved one into a Valentine's Day card using phone apps.