4:58 PM
Boeing 737 was struck by lightning, crashed and split into 3 pieces...and 130 of the 131 people on board survived! The only fatality was a 65-year-old man who suffered a heart attack and died on the way to the hospital:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2010/08/17/miracle-as-130-survive-plane-crash-115875-22492888/
The latest worry for airline security is the lithium batteries in so many electronic devices--there is no limit right now for how many small lithium-ion batteries a passenger can bring on an airline and a terrorist can rig the batteries together to start a fire. In fact, a single cellphone battery can cause a fire if a terrorist knows what he/she is doing:
http://homelandsecuritynewswire.com/new-airline-safety-worry-lithium-ion-batteries
The Rutgers PhD grad student who breached airport security to give his girlfriend a goodbye kiss has to pay a $3,000 fine, $658 in court costs, and do 100 hours of community service. His security breach shut down an airport terminal for 6 hours, stranded 16,000 passengers, delayed 100 flights, and canceled 27 flights!
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/08/rutgers_student_who_caused_new.html
Insurance companies may soon raise the cost of insurance for hybrid vehicles--there are fewer third-party companies offering replacement parts for specialized hybrid components and the repair work is often done at dealerships that charge more for labor than other repair shops:
http://green.autoblog.com/2010/08/17/study-hybrid-insurance-rates-will-rise/
Article about how smart fabrics will be made via rapid printing processes to generate electricity through the wearers' movement and body heat:
http://www.theengineer.co.uk/news/smart-clothing-could-power-electronic-devices/1004390.article
New study at Berkeley Lab shows that ozone can react with the nicotine in secondhand tobacco smoke to form ultrafine particles that may be a bigger threat to asthma sufferers than nicotine itself: These results also show that the practice of using ozone to remove the smell of tobacco smoke from indoor environments (such as hotel rooms) and vehicle interiors could be a bad idea. The study also found that the ultrafine particles become major components of thirdhand smoke--the residue from tobacco smoke that remains long after a cigarette or cigar has been extinguished:
http://newscenter.lbl.gov/news-releases/2010/08/16/ozone-and-nicotine-a-bad-combination-for-asthma/
Study found that 11 hours of learning a meditation technique induces positive structural changes in brain connectivity by boosting efficiency in a part of the brain that helps people achieve their goals by regulating their behavior:
http://www.rdmag.com/News/2010/08/Life-Sciences-Imaging-Eleven-hours-of-meditation-training-found-to-boost-brain-connectivity/
Adobe's CEO says that they have moved on from Apple's decision now to allow Flash on the iPhone and iPad. Adobe is now working with 19 of the world's top 20 mobile phone handset companies (only Apple is not included) and is bringing Flash to Android, BlackBerry, webOS, Windows Phone 7, Symbian, MeeGo, LiMo, etc.:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/apple/7945715/Adobe-chief-Shantanu-Narayen-believes-he-doesnt-need-Apple-or-the-iPad.html
Study found that 3G networks carry 72% of video traffic from Android smartphone users in the US while iPhone users only rely on 3G for 53% of their video traffic, using WiFi much more (and AT&T's network much less). This is probably one of the reasons why Android users on Verizon use more 3G data than iPhone users on AT&T:
http://www.fiercemobilecontent.com/story/study-3g-networks-carry-72-android-mobile-video-traffic/2010-08-17#ixzz0wsx70pag
The Big 10 might get $20 million for the TV rights to their football championship game, plus increased TV money after Nebraska joins their conference:
http://www.ibj.com/big-ten-wants-20-million-in-tv-money-for-football-title-game/PARAMS/article/21726
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