Link Collection

Toyota has stopped all sales of its 2010 Lexus HS 250h hybrid and recalled all 13k sedans that have already been sold. The disturbing thing is that Toyota tested its Lexus sedan and did not find the problem, but NHTSA tests found that it had a problem with leaking fuel after rear-end collisions. So, Toyota's quality control did not spot such a basic issue and Toyota has no fix for the problem so they have to stop selling that Lexus model:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-lexus-recall-20100626,0,6906514.story

Article about how oil companies have spent billions to drill deeper and farther out to sea but relatively little money and research into finding new, improved ways to respond to oil spills in deep sea conditions:
http://license.icopyright.net/user/viewFreeUse.act?fuid=ODkwNzU0MQ==

BP is spending more than $10k per day to control the top search result on search engines such as Google, Yahoo!, and Bing. The first search result directs users to BP's official website to discuss what BP is doing regarding the spill. Toyota apparently spent a similar amount of money before to get the top search result when their problems were prominent in the media:
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/Broadcast/bp-buys-search-engine-phrases-redirecting-users/story?id=10835618

Scientists found a medical reason for the beneficial effects of acupuncture--acupuncture apparently triggers adenosine (a natural compound known for its anti-inflammatory properties), which acts as a natural painkiller:
http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/news/story/index.cfm?id=2880

Study found that people who do not regularly brush their teeth had a 70% increased chance of developing heart disease than people who brush their teeth twice a day:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/10176410.stm

Study found that money weakens the ability to enjoy life's little pleasures. It is interesting that even just having a photo of money on a page next to the questionnaire made people enjoy eating chocolate less than people who had a photo of a neutral object instead. The study concluded that even the (thought* of money makes us take mundane joys for granted:
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2010/05/25/money-weakens-ability-to-savour-life%E2%80%99s-little-pleasures/

Study found that people empathize less with the pain of others if they are from a different race. White people empathized when white hands were shown in pain while they empathized much less when black hands were shown in pain, and black people were exactly the opposite. The interesting thing about this study is that they found that both white and black people empathized when a person with a violet hand was shown in pain:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/7771834/We-are-