NEW YORK (PNN) - October 6, 2014 - A company has installed beacons inside hundreds of downtown New York City pay phones that ping the smart phones and tablets of New Yorkers walking by. The beacons are able to gather information about the locations of passersby, the time they passed the beacon, and what websites they visit, among other information. The beacons exchange data over Bluetooth.

ODENSE, Denmark (PNN) - October 4, 2014 - Using specially synthesized crystalline materials, scientists from the University of Southern Denmark have created a substance that is able to absorb and store oxygen in such high concentrations that just one bucketful is enough to remove all of the oxygen in a room. The substance is also able to release the stored oxygen in a controlled manner when it is needed, so just a few grains could replace the need for divers to carry bulky scuba tanks.

By Jeff Berwick

ACAPULCO, Mexico (PNN) - October 1, 2014 - It all started over a month ago, right here in Acapulco, Mexico, when I commented to a good friend, "Have you noticed how much better traffic has been lately?"

He responded, "Yes, traffic flow has been so much better, because the transit cops went on strike."

It turned out that was the case. The transit cops in Acapulco had gone on strike and all of a sudden many local residents were noticing how much better traffic, which can get in to gridlock levels during peak holiday periods, had become.

CUPERTINO, Kalifornia (PNN) - October 1, 2014 - FireChat is a chatting app. After registering with a name - no email address or other personal identifiers required - you’re dropped into a fast-moving chatroom of “Everyone” using it in your country. The interesting aspect, however, is the “Nearby” option. Here, the app uses Apple’s Multipeer Connectivity framework, essentially a peer-to-peer feature that lets you share messages (and soon photos) with other app users nearby, regardless of whether you have an actual Wi-Fi or cellular connection.

by Brent Johnson

In Washington, D.C., the seat of government and the heart of corruption and tyranny in the Fascist Police States of Amerika, there is one principle overshadowing everything else that happens in politics. Newcomers to the political scene learn to apply this principle before anything else. Elected or appointed officeholders, attorneys, law enforcement officials, bureaucrats at every level of government find out that if you want to survive in politics, you must adhere to this single, primary principle… plausible deniability.

MADRID, Spain (PNN) - September 30, 2014 - The regional government of Catalonia says it will heed a decision by Spain's top court suspending its plans to hold an independence referendum but vows to continue efforts to hold a vote.

ROCHESTER, New York (PNN) - September 26, 2014 - Watch out Harry Potter; you are not the only wizard with an invisibility cloak.

Scientists at the University of Rochester have discovered a way to hide large objects from sight using inexpensive and readily available lenses, a technology that seems to have sprung from the pages of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter fantasy series.

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (PNN) - September 26, 2014 - Maritime smugglers will often hide contraband in false hulls or propeller shafts within their boats. While there are ways in which port authorities can search for such stashes, the smugglers often have time to ditch their illicit goods before those searches can be performed. However, what if there were stealthy, inexpensive, underwater hull-hugging robots that could check the boats out, without the crews even knowing they were there? That's just what a team at MIT is developing.

WASHINGTON (PNN) - September 19, 2014 - The failed Scottish vote to pull out from the Fascist United Kingdom stirred secessionist hopes for some in the Fascist Police States of Amerika, where almost a quarter of people are open to their states leaving the union, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll.

EDINBOROUGH, Scotland (PNN) - September 19, 2013 - With the results in from all 32 council areas, the "No" side won with 2,001,926 votes over 1,617,989 for "Yes".

Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond called for unity and urged the unionist parties to deliver on more powers.