6:17 PM
http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNews/idCATRE5AI2BL20091119
The US is now equipping some MRAP vehicles with autonomous guns that shoots down antitank rockets headed for it while shooting at enemy soldiers without any human input:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/11/19/mrap_crosshairs_trials/
Fly paper captures insects, and a new device can grab cancer cells in the blood to guide cancer treatment:
http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/ucla-researchers-create-fly-paper-112652.aspx
The Texas population is expected to nearly double over the next 50 years, and their water supply cannot come close to keeping pace. Officials estimate that almost every Texas will not have sufficient water and that Texas will have $90 billion in economic losses:
http://www.miamiherald.com/business/nation/story/1337802.html
More than half of the energy consumed worldwide is wasted, most of it in the form of excess heat. New MIT technology will allow conversion of waste heat into electricity--heat from things like car engines and computer chips can be converted to electricity!
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-11/miot-mbw111809.php
University of Colorado study found that there is no performance advantage for athletes that use a prostheses made for running:
http://www.coloradodaily.com/cu-boulder/ci_13795879
SMU study found that using a prostheses gave a double-amputee Olympic hopeful a clear and major advantage over his competition, taking 10 seconds or more off his 400-meter time:
http://blog.smu.edu/research/2009/11/researchers_pistorius_artifici.html
Vodafone wants Verizon Wireless to pay a dividend to get value from its 45% ownership, but Verizon wants to have Verizon Wireless reduce its $32 billion in debt ($10 billion owed to Verizon). Speculation is that Verizon wants Vodafone to get frustrated and sell its 45% of Verizon Wireless at a reduced price to Verizon (which owns the other 55%):
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/3/141bb5bc-a687-11de-bd14-00144feabdc0.html?catid=67&SID=google
A T-Mobile UK employee stole the customer data of 100,000s of T-Mobile's customers and sold the information for a substantial amount to a third party:
http://www.fiercewireless.com/europe/story/t-mobile-worker-sold-100-000s-customer-names-substantial-amount/2009-11-18?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal
Arkansas policeman used a taser on a 10-year-old girl with her mother's permission:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,575494,00.html
A woman left $40k of rare US coins in bags near a Catholic shrine so that the Virgin Mary could watch over her life savings while she was out of town. The shrine thought they had received a huge anonymous donation, but 6 days after the shrine found the coins the woman returned from her trip and claimed them:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/11/18/ap/national/main5697577.shtml?tag=cbsnewsLeadStoriesAreaMain;cbsnewsLeadStoriesHeadlines