Topic: Technology

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After Oklahoma tornado: Five steps to prepare for a natural disaster

In the wake of the May 20 tornado in Moore, Okla., it's important to review how best to be prepared for a natural disaster. Here are five action steps for personal preparedness from the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health.
Kepler epitaph? Eight most intriguing finds of troubled telescope.

Kepler, the space telescope designed to help us find other Earth-like planets, is on the fritz. Scientists hope they will be able to fix it remotely, but if they can't, its brief, brilliant career could be over. Here are eight of its most important discoveries.
What kind of an eater are you?

From locavores to femivores, to fast food junkies and punk domestics, here are 11 labels for every kind of person at the dinner table.
China's growing military might: top 4 concerns for the Pentagon

In a report issued this week, the Department of Defense for the first time directly accused China’s military of using cyberattacks to spy on US networks. In this arena and others, “China’s military buildup shows no signs of slowing,” said David Helvey, deputy assistant secretary of Defense for East Asia, who presented the report.Here are Pentagon officials’ top four concerns as they carefully monitor the growth of China’s military.
Fortune 500: Top 10 companies in 2013

Fortune has released its annual list of the largest corporations in the United States, and there were a few notable changes in this year’s group. Here are the Top 10.

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Energy Voices What determines energy abundance? Flow.

Energy abundance depends entirely on the rate of the flow of oil, gas and other resources, Cobb writes. It is not, as many suggest, dependent on supposed, but often unverified, fossil fuel reserves in the ground.
Horizons Has Facebook figured out smart phones? Wall Street thinks so.

Facebook announced a $219 million quarterly profit. What has the social network done right?
Horizons UK loophole: Why your Facebook photos may show up on a billboard

New UK law has artists and social media users uneasy. The act would allow companies to use some images without the photographer's permission.
In Gear General Motors signs call for climate change action

General Motors is the first automaker to sign onto the Climate Declaration, a statement drafted by Ceres and its Business for Innovative Climate & Energy Policy project. General Motors has dramatically cut energy usage at its facilities and owns two of the world's five largest rooftop solar arrays.
Energy Voices Verizon to invest $100 million in clean energy

Verizon Communications will spend $100 million to green up its facilities with solar panels and fuel cells, Alic writes, putting it in the big leagues with clean energy followers like Google and Yahoo.
Decoder Wire North Korea almost done building new reactor. Is that a big deal? (+video)

While all things in North Korea are cloaked in secrecy, it appears that this new reactor could produce material for nuclear weapons – potentially expanding North Korea's small stockpile.
Change Agent Protecting land rights using Wikipedia-style maps

Building data bases of land ownership, Wikipedia-style, would be a cheap and easy way for poor, rural communities to compile a record of property rights and land use, reducing corruption and helping to lessen illegal land grabs.
Twitter-hacking Syrian Electronic Army: How much state support does it have?

The Twitter hacks by the Syrian Electronic Army – the most recent hit The Guardian – reflect a shift toward disseminating propaganda and attacking Syria’s perceived enemies in the media.
How NASA dodged a derelict Soviet spy satellite

In March 2012, NASA's Fermi space telescope could have collided with a Russian naval signals satellite, were it not for an untested maneuver.
IBM and the world's tiniest film

IBM has created the world's smallest film. "A Boy and His Atom" features, you guessed it, atoms as the main stars.
Energy Voices Light bulbs and the pitfalls of 'green' marketing

A recent study on the effect of 'green' marketing on light bulb purchases underscores the role ideology plays in energy efficiency. To sell more energy efficient products, companies should rethink eco-advertising.
In Gear Electric car company Coda files for bankruptcy

Electric-car startup Coda Automotive has filed for bankruptcy. In the end, Coda failed to capture the imagination of the motoring public, Read writes, which is exactly what an electric-car startup must do if it wants consumers to switch from pumps to plugs.
Opinion: Six ways to boost electric vehicles

Getting more American drivers into electric vehicles carries both environmental and national security benefits. But to get Americans to really buy EVs, the Obama administration needs to learn from the past and plan better today.
10 best books of May, according to Amazon's editors

Amazon staffers say these books are the cream of the crop among May releases.
Focus Spanish urban entrepreneurs yield to the lure of rural living

Spain's rural development is on the rise, thanks in part to entrepreneurs and professionals like Juan Hurtado, who is transforming an old train station into a cooperative living community.
$70 million per seat: Is NASA getting ripped off?

$70 million per seat: Now that the Russians have the only vehicle capable of shuttling astronauts to the Space Station, they can charge whatever they want for the ride — and they want $70 million per seat.
Energy Voices China: World's largest polluter also leads clean-energy push

China remains the world’s largest polluting nation while leading the fight against climate change, according to a new study. China has made such efforts to reduce its emissions, and reduce growth in electricity demand, that it is far ahead of any targets it set itself, Kennedy writes.
Energy Voices US oil and gas workers see pay fall. Sign of trouble for energy?

Average compensation for oil and gas professionals in the US fell 4 percent last year, according to a new study. The decline in pay coincides with a slowdown in the energy's industry's growth, but the industry may simply be catching its breath.
3-D printers bring new edge to fashion

With 3-D printers, shoes, bikinis, and even platinum wedding rings can be printed out to fit your exact measurements.
What's a monster hurricane doing on top of Saturn? (+video)

A monster hurricane at Saturn's north pole, spotted by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, has an eye 1,250 miles wide and inner eye wall winds of 330 miles an hour. Its energy source is a mystery.
$70 million per seat: Russia raises price for NASA astronauts on Russian rockets

The $424 million deal between NASA and the Russian Space Agency represents flights to and from the International Space Station aboard Russian Soyuz spacecraft, as well as training, for six astronauts in 2016 and the first half of 2017.
Blue helmet drones? UN prepares to send drones over Africa.

High-tech, unarmed drones in Central and West African states can track guerrillas and swing the intelligence battle; UN chief Ban Ki-moon favors the idea.
Focus Was Shane Todd murdered over high-tech secrets?

Shane Todd, a US citizen working in Singapore, believed he had access to restricted tech. His death in 2012 was by suicide, say local authorities. But his family, suspecting murder, wants the FBI to take part in the investigation.
Mars One will look for — and hide from — life on Mars

Mars One plans to put four astronaut-explorers on Mars by 2023, but they will take steps to avoid contaminating any lifeforms already on Mars.
Energy Voices Prague blast: How big a threat are natural gas explosions? (+video)

An explosion in Prague follows by a day a blast in France, both thought to linked to natural gas. Big natural gas blasts like the one in Prague are rare in the US, but more could be done to avoid them, experts say.