News
Bloodless Bank Heist Impressed Cybercrime Experts
May 13, 2013 9:42 am | by COLLEEN LONG, MARTHA MENDOZA, Associated Press | CommentsA bloodless bank heist that netted more than $45 million has left even cybercrime experts impressed by the technical sophistication, if not the virtue, of the con artists who pulled off a remarkable internationally organized attack. "It was pretty ingenious," Pace University computer science professor Darren Hayes said Friday.
Icahn, Southeastern Challenge Dell Takeover Plan
May 13, 2013 9:33 am | by TOM MURPHY, AP Business Writer | CommentsOne of the biggest critics of Michael Dell's plan to take the company he founded private has launched a fresh challenge to that $24.4 billion bid and says the slumping PC maker needs new leadership. Billionaire investor Carl Icahn has teamed with Dell's largest independent shareholder, Southeastern Asset Management, to pitch a deal that would let Dell shareholders keep their stake in the company and give...
Dish Chair Dares Softbank to Raise Bid for Sprint
May 10, 2013 10:50 am | by PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer | CommentsSoftbank can close the deal up to a year faster than Dish and brings industry expertise and cash to Sprint, he said. In addition, the combined Softbank and Sprint would be a huge purchaser of phones and network equipment, which should help it secure volume discounts, he said.
Panasonic Reports Big Loss but Forecasts Profit
May 10, 2013 10:47 am | by MALCOLM FOSTER, Associated Press | CommentsJapanese consumer electronics giant Panasonic Corp. on Friday reported a near-record net loss of 754 billion yen ($7.5 billion) for the fiscal year through March due to restructuring costs and slumping sales, but predicted a return to the black this year as it prunes unprofitable businesses.
UK Budget Airline to Test Ash Cloud Detector
May 10, 2013 10:46 am | by SYLVIA HUI, Associated Press | CommentsA U.K. budget airline will create an artificial volcanic ash cloud over Europe this summer to test ash detection technology. The experiment aims to avoid the kind of chaos that paralyzed air traffic during eruptions three years ago. Thursday's announcement was made by easyJet, which acquired a ton of ash collected...
Icahn, Southeastern Challenge Dell Takeover Plan
May 10, 2013 10:41 am | by TOM MURPHY, AP Business Writer | CommentsSoutheastern Asset Management and Icahn said in a letter sent Thursday to the Dell Inc. board that they want to let shareholders keep their stock and give them either $12 per share in cash or additional shares in a deal that keeps the company publicly traded.
Global Network of Hackers Steal $45M from ATMs
May 10, 2013 10:39 am | by COLLEEN LONG, Associated Press | CommentsThe sophistication of a global network of thieves who drained cash machines around the globe of an astonishing $45 million in mere hours sent ripples through the security world, not merely for the size of the operation and ease with which it was carried out, but also for the threat that more such thefts may be in store.
Flawed Diamonds Promise Sensory Perfection
May 10, 2013 10:31 am | by Paul Preuss, Berkeley Lab | CommentsFrom brain to heart to stomach, the bodies of humans and animals generate weak magnetic fields that a supersensitive detector could use to pinpoint illnesses, trace drugs – and maybe even read minds. Sensors no bigger than a thumbnail could map gas deposits underground, analyze chemicals, and pinpoint explosives that hide from other probes.
Engineers Fine-Tune the Sensitivity of Nano-Chemical Sensor
May 9, 2013 10:30 am | by University of Illinois at Chicago | CommentsThe sensors, made of an insulating base coated with a graphene sheet--a single-atom-thick layer of carbon--are already so sensitive that they can detect an individual molecule of gas. But manipulating the chemical properties of the insulating layer, without altering the graphene layer, may yet improve their ability to detect the most minute concentrations of various gases.
Scientists Develop Device for Portable, Ultra-Precise Clocks and Quantum Sensors
May 9, 2013 10:25 am | by Universities of Strathclyde | CommentsIn a joint project between the Universities of Strathclyde and Glasgow, Imperial College London and the National Physical Laboratory, researchers have developed a portable way to produce ultracold atoms for quantum technology and quantum information processing.
Microsoft Appoints New CFO from Office Division
May 9, 2013 9:57 am | by Associated Press | CommentsMicrosoft says its new chief financial officer is Amy Hood, previously CFO of the Office division. She replaces Peter Klein, who announced his departure three weeks ago. He has been CFO for four years. Hood, 41, joined Microsoft Corp. in 2002. Before that, she worked at Goldman Sachs. She has a master's degree in business administration from Harvard University.
U.S. Appeals Panel Speaks Well of Google Book Plans
May 9, 2013 9:54 am | by LARRY NEUMEISTER, Associated Press | CommentsThree judges on the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan were considering an appeal by Mountain View, Calif.-based Google of a judge's decision last year to grant class status to authors represented in an 8-year-old lawsuit by lawyers for the Authors Guild.
Huawei Founder Gives First Ever Media Interview
May 9, 2013 9:51 am | by NICK PERRY, Associated Press | CommentsThe telecommunications equipment company has suffered business setbacks in the U.S. and Australia due to fears it could be a security risk. Last October, a U.S. congressional panel recommended telephone companies avoid doing business with it. Huawei issued a pledge not to cooperate with spying, and argues the U.S. is engaging in trade protectionism.
Sony Back in Black, Healthier Sales
May 9, 2013 9:44 am | by YURI KAGEYAMA, AP Business Writer | CommentsIt reported Thursday annual earnings of 43 billion yen ($434 million), a reversal from a loss of 457 billion yen ($5.7 billion) the previous year — the worst in the company's nearly seven-decade history. Tokyo-based Sony expects the recovery to continue, and projected a 50 billion yen ($505 million) profit for the fiscal year through March 2014, up 16 percent.
GreenPeak Releases New Internet of Things White Paper
May 8, 2013 5:09 pm | by GreenPeak Technologies | CommentsGreenPeak Technologies has posted a new White Paper called “Sentrollers and the Internet of Things”. In this paper Sentrollers are defined as a new, all-encompassing term for sensors, actuators and controllers – the various devices that make up the new Internet of Things.
