Pick a particle that's new – He may be a genius but Stephen Hawking needs to lay off the gambling for a while, because the existence of the Higgs boson particle has cost him a cool $100. This was the amount he bet physicist Gordon Kane that the Higgs boson would never be found. Science proved him wrong and now his wallet is a little lighter. We sure he isn't too conCERNed though, as his bet that the sun and the moon would never make out, even if forced into a dark cupboard, is still looking strong. [Gizmodo]
Robo crop – Google employees will have the chance to buy up an inflatable moving Android mascot come September. Apparently they are over two feet tall and actually move forwards, backwards and can do a 360-degree spin – so expect to see one of them on the next series of Strictly. [
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Not so smartphones – 20 per cent of the UK population hate smartphones, according to a new survey by mobile site Recombu. The reason for the hate has nothing to do with them being expensive – because they are – but because 53 per cent of those who answered Recombu's call reckon they only use their phone to phone people with. How quaint. [Recombu]
The car's the star – Self-driving cars will ease traffic congestion by 2017, according to the forward-thinking folks at Ford. Apparently the main reason for traffic jams is nothing to do with road works and the like, but poor driving and Ford is hoping its Traffic Jam Assist technology will help ease traffic chaos around the world. Well, everywhere except the M25 obviously. [Kurzweilai]
Sky split – Sky has announced some new functionality for its Sky Sports app for iPad, which offers up a splitscreen view for those watching the F1. Essentially you can watch what the driver is seeing on one half of your iPad screen, while viewing the rest of the race on the other. Wearing a helmet is optional, obviously. [App Store]
Free Wi-Fi extravaganza: part one – A London cab firm is offering up free Wi-Fi in all 300 of its vehicles. This is courtesy of Greentomatocars, which reckons it has a 7.2Mbps 3G hotspot within each of its cars – perfect for those who want to check Google Maps to make sure their driver isn't taking the long way round to Oxford Street. Now, all of this isn't done by magic – the tech behind the hotspots comes courtesy of the nice folk at Wireless Logic. [Gizmodo]
Free Wi-Fi extravaganza: part two – Alton Towers has decided that it is to give all its customers something to do when they are waiting in line for its rides by making Wi-Fi free in the park. There's no word yet on when this is set to happen, which may mean that, by writing up this news, we are actually being taken for a ride by the amusement park. If that's the case Camelot, it's the worst ride ever! [Yahoo]
Totally rad – a new gadget made by British company Kromek reckons it can check out the radiation levels in your area and distinguish between man-made hazardous radiation sources in the environment. It all sounds a tad scary but Kromek is hoping that it will be of use in Japan – which is still recovering from a nuclear disaster – where it will be launching the innovative kit. The little box is compatible with your smartphone via a range of apps and it's the first time this sort of tech has been made available to the general public. [PR]
Amazon finally put on the map – Electronic retailer Amazon has dipped into its deep pockets and bought up a 3D map firm. Called UpNext the service offers up detailed three-dimensional maps of cities and venues – so expect this functionality to come to the Kindle Fire sometime soon. Which will be nice if the UK ever gets to actually play with the thing (hint, hint Amazon). [GigaOm]
Apple plays leapfrog with Sony – Sony has dropped to third place in 2012's Asia's Top Brands report, with Apple overtaking the brand for the first time. Samsung has nabbed the top spot but we are sure Cook and co are creating some shiny new catapult now to jump ahead of them as well. [AppleInsider]
What if…? – What if Apple and Samsung put their differences aside and team up to make a smartphone. What features would it have? What would it look like? Would it cause fanboys to self-combust? Well, TechRadar has put on its hard hat and dared to merge the brands together to create the iSung!
