Random

Every time there dawns a new era of airport safety, we the citizens and passengers of the world bow in wonder at the latest new technology that will save us from our fellow man.

So it was at Australia's Sydney Airport yesterday, where the well-meaning authorities launched a shiny new full-body scanner that would not only ensure that you are not armed, but could also tell what you had for lunch last Tuesday. (That's merely a slight exaggeration, of course.)

News.com.au sniffed out a certain snafu, however, in the scanner's nervous system. For it seemed … Read more

Should you have ever wished to throttle a texter in the movie theater, this might be a sobering story for you.

It seems that in a movie theater in Grapevine, Texas, a gentleman called Dale Fout felt the urge to send a text. As related by the Fort-Worth Star Telegram, the lady sitting behind him, Brenda Godwin, was a little disturbed by this self-centered rudeness.

In Godwin's version, she reportedly reached forward and tapped Fout with her finger on his shoulder. Fout allegedly found this alleged tap so preposterous that he leaped up and declared he would be charging … Read more

If computers can create friends for you, why can't they create ministers?

This was the philosophical question that inspired Miguel Hanson, a Houston-based web developer and IT consultant as he contemplated his wedding.

As the Associated Press tells it, Hanson couldn't find an associate who would officiate at the betrothal to high school teacher Diana Wesley. So he said to himself: "Wait a minute, I am a Web developer and IT consultant. I am a Master of the Universe. One minister, coming up."

The first thought you might have if you were to create a virtual … Read more

Do you happen to be one of those rare people who believes that a little marijuana can improve your shooting skills?

It's an important question as, on Friday, the government declared that pot has no medical benefits whatsoever. Indeed, its opinion is that it should remain in the same class of drug as heroin.

Others, however, argue that the drug isn't completely without merit. Simultaneously, you see, the gaming and marijuana communities have been debating whether pot makes video game players more at one with their controllers.

Culture magazine, for example, insists that using marijuana while gaming is … Read more

There's no line, so you figure you'll try it. You put your shopping basket down, then you begin to scan the items. That part generally works fine. But then there's the bananas. How much do they weigh? How much are they per pound? Which button are you supposed to press?

No, you're not reading a hacked cell phone conversation between myself and my mother. I'm just describing the irritating technological phenomenon known as the self-checkout, an idea which, it seems, may have already had its glimpse of notoriety.

In a move that might stun those … Read more

Your spouse has been working late in the office. You fear it might be the office cupboard.

Your spouse suddenly has a friend who needs a lot of comfort after a bereavement. You suspect the comfort might have slipped beyond the cuddle.

So, please, get yourself a GPS and track that spouse wherever he or she may roam.

This is not merely my suggestion for your peace of mind. It is that of a New Jersey court that decided that following your husband or wife is not an invasion of privacy. It's more of a loving gesture of concern. (… Read more

You're sitting at dinner. The phone rings. You don't recognize the number. Who can it possibly be?

Either the lover of your dreams or, slightly more likely, someone trying to sell you a landline to add to your cable package.

And yet, it might well be that this won't be some ordinary telemarketer. It might be the infamous "Jeopardy" player, Watson, the IBM supercomputer.

The way ExtremeTech tells it, Watson is being groomed for even lower things than game shows.

For IBM reportedly has a dream of turning him into the world's most efficient (… Read more

When people go to the movie theaters, they seem delighted when lasers are able to blow things up all over expansive galaxies. Then they go home and wonder why this doesn't seem to be all that possible in real life.

The answer is that lasers are not so efficient when taken into this mundane world. They need to be vast, suck up huge amounts of power, and enjoy perfect atmospheric conditions in order to effect due damage on, say, architecture from the Communist era.

However, some very clever people at a company called TeraDiode believe they might have taken … Read more

Is it fair to imagine that some people just don't want to know about how certain things are done? If they did, perhaps their irrational side might overwhelm the blinkered side that helps them get through each and every painful day.

Does everyone want to know, for example, that the Boeing 737 in which they are strapped is flying on the detritus of some very fine french fries?

In the last few days, KLM and Thomson Airways, two European airlines, announced that they would be flying a plane or two using cooking oil.

In KLM's case, the BBC reported … Read more