Brian Gongol
Apple files patent-infringement lawsuit over the iPhone
It's going after HTC, which makes a smartphone similar to the iPhone, but built on the Google Android operating system. At least one observer thinks it's a warning shot across Google's own bow, since Google is now making its own iPhone-similar smartphone. Apple itself says the infringements are mainly related to the user interface, which is a sign they're mainly interested in swatting away any competitors that try to make a phone that "feels" like an iPhone to the user.
Russia's grumblings about a US missile-defense system may have backfired
Though there was a lot of backpedaling last year over where the US would station anti-missile defense technology in Europe, it appears that the US and its allies may end up with a much more comprehensive defense system as a result. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Clinton may have inadvertently torqued off the British by suggesting that Argentina might have a right to the Falkland Islands. The islands are a relic of a bygone era of British imperialism, to be sure, but the UK is one of America's closest allies, and the Falklands have some degree of self-determination which probably leaves them better off (with the protection of the British armed forces and self-government) than they would likely get as part of Argentina.
Hard to tell what flooding Iowa will experience this year
The ground is saturated and covered with more snow. But how that hydrology will play out remains in question.
French seawall failure kills dozens
