Technology Slice Blog

Sinkholes Open Up in Oklahoma - A large sinkhole has opened up near Sayre, Okla., and people in the region are wondering if it's related to a string of small earthquakes shaking the region. The hole opened up a couple of days after one of the earthquakes about two weeks ago, the property caretaker told NBC station KFOR. "Kind of spooky. You don't want to mess with it today," Jack Damron told KFOR. "Glad my house wasn't over it," neighbor Tony Bills told the station. KFOR reported that geologists are dubious of a connection between the quakes and the sinkhole. Scientists at the Oklahoma Geological Survey said the sinkhole could have been caused by drought conditions, the dissolving of salt or rock formations, or draining of an old coal mine. Also, Sayre is across the state from the area where the quakes have been centered. That area, about 40 miles northeast of Oklahoma City, was struck on Nov. 5 by a magnitude 5.6 quake, the strongest ever recorde...

Hillary Clinton Visits Myanmar - "I am obviously looking to determine for myself and on behalf of our government what is the intention of the current government with respect to continuing reforms both political and economic," Clinton told reporters before her arrival here. Activists and citizens of Burma, also known as Myanmar, welcomed the visit but cautioned that Burma's military-backed, nominally civilian government is unlikely to allow full democracy to develop. "It's hard to understand the Myanmar government; they do not speak what is in their hearts," warned U Htaung Ko Thang, a leader of the Chin ethnic group, who was elected a member of parliament in the 1990 elections, whose results the ruling junta annulled. "Unless we establish a democratic government, there is no opportunity for the Burmese people." Burma's parliament approved a law guaranteeing the right to protest, which had not previously existed, and had opened up some polit...

iPhone Explodes Mid Flight - Apple’s iPhones are always among the hottest gadgets of any holiday shopping season, but for one passenger on an Australian flight, the phone was too hot to handle — literally. While on Australian flight Regional Express ZL319 Friday, a passenger’s iPhone 4 (not the iPhone 4S, which is Apple’s latest model) suddenly started “emitting a significant amount of dense smoke, accompanied by a red glow,” according to a Regional Express statement. The plane, which was flying from Lismore to Sydney, was in the midst of landing when the incident occured. “In accordance with company standard safety procedures, the flight attendant carried out recovery actions immediately, and the red glow was extinguished successfully,” according to Regional Express’ statement. After landing, the iPhone was handed over to officials at the Australian Transport Safety Bureau. There’s no official word yet on what caused the phone to combust. Exploding Apple products are rare, but ...

Ringling Circus Pays Record Fine - Feld Entertainment Inc., of Vienna, Virginia, did not admit wrongdoing or violating U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations in settling the dispute over handling of performing animals, it said in a Monday statement. "We look forward to working with the USDA in a cooperative and transparent manner that meets our shared goal of ensuring that our animals are healthy and receive the highest quality care," Kenneth Feld, chief executive of Feld Entertainment, said in the statement. The USDA said the $270,000 fine was the biggest assessed under the Animal Welfare Act (AWA). Feld also agreed to set up a compliance officer's position on its staff by the end of February 2012. Employees who work with animals also must undergo AWA compliance training, the USDA said in a statement. In one episode logged by USDA inspectors, Banko, a 35-year-old female Asian elephant, was required to perform in July in Los Angeles despite pain from probable san...

Third Woman Speaks Out Against Herman Cain - She alleges she received unwanted comments from Mr Cain during his tenure as head of a restaurant lobby group. She told the Associated Press Mr Cain had commented on her attractiveness and invited her to his corporate apartment. The unnamed woman is the third former employee to make such allegations in recent days. The Cain campaign blamed the leak on an aide to Republican rival Rick Perry, who worked alongside Mr Cain on a failed Senate bid in 2004 and was said to have learned about the allegation. Rick Perry's campaign denounced that allegation as "reckless and false". Mr Cain's aides have been fighting sexual harassment claims since Politico reported on Sunday that at least two other women had complained of inappropriate behaviour from Mr Cain while he was head of the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s. A Cain spokesman, JD Gordon, told reporters on Wednesday: "Mr Cain has said over the past two day...

$2 Million Christmas Tree in Tokyo - A jewelry store in Tokyo's posh Ginza district teamed up with flower arrangement artist Shogo Kariyazaki to create the lavish Golden Christmas Tree. Twelve kg (26 lb) of gold were used to make the 2.4 metre (8 foot) tree, which is adorned with ribbons, hearts and orchids, also made of gold. The value of the gold is about $700,000 but the total value of the tree is much higher because of labour costs, said Naoto Mizuki, marketing general manager at the store. "Considering the time it took to make, the designer and hard work put into it, we can assume that the cost of this tree would be approximately 150 million yen ($2 million)," he said. The gleaming display caught the eyes of passersby. "When you're looking at the tree, it really jumps out at you," said window-shopping housewife Kisoko Sakabe. The tree is not for sale. It will be on display at the store through to Christmas Day. $2 Million Christmas Tree in Tokyo

Prince William Joins Irish Rescue - The second in line to the British throne, who is a Royal Air Force helicopter and known professionally as Flight Lt. William Wales, was aboard an aircraft which rescued two crewmembers early on Sunday, after their vessel suffered a cracked hull in gale force winds off the coast of north Wales. Britain's ministry of defense said William had been co-pilot of the helicopter, which carried two people back to his base RAF Valley, on the Welsh island of Anglesey. Authorities said five people remain missing after the Swanland cargo ship, which had eight people on board and was carrying thousands of tons of limestone, sent a mayday call. Holyhead Coastguard said one body had been recovered from the sea, but that the fate of the other crewmembers was not yet known. "We know that at least some of them are wearing immersion suits and have strobe lighting with them, however sea conditions are challenging at best," said Jim Green, a coastguard ...