CERN, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, is abuzz with activity. Scientists are focussing all their attention on making best use of the LHC, Large Hadron Collider, which had to be shut down last year. The infrastructure can now recreate the conditions that immediately followed the Big Bang.

To successfully carry out the research, a huge network of scientists, from 34 countries, has combined its computing resources. In fact, it is certainly necessary to deal with the 15 million gigabytes of data produced each year by the LHC!

The White House on Tuesday described leaked and graphic video of a US helicopter strike in Baghdad three years ago which killed two Reuters employees and others as “tragic.”

But President Barack Obama’s spokesman Robert Gibbs stressed after the previously classified video was released by whistleblower website WikiLeaks that US forces in war zones take pains to avoid civilian casualties.

The gun camera footage, posted on the Internet, includes audio conversations between Apache pilots and controllers in which they identify the men in a Baghdad street as armed insurgents and ask for permission to open fire.

“I do not know whether the president has seen the video that was released on the Internet. Obviously, it is very graphic in nature and it’s extremely tragic,” Gibbs told reporters.

“Our military will take every precaution necessary to ensure the safety and security of civilians, and particularly those that report in those dangerous places on behalf of news organizations.”

Gibbs referred all questions about investigations into the July 2007 incident to the Pentagon.

WikiLeaks said that it had obtained the video “from a number of military whistleblowers” and decrypted it. It posted the video at collateralmurder.org.

The footage shows an aerial view of a number of men on a Baghdad street including two later identified as Reuters employees Namir Noor-Eldeen and Saeed Chmagh.

At least two individuals in the video appear to be carrying weapons but most are unarmed. The Apache pilots also appear to mistake a camera carried by one of the Reuters employees as a rocket-propelled grenade launcher or RPG.

At one point, the Apache pilots tell controllers they have spotted “five to six individuals with AK-47s” and ask for permission to “engage.”

The Apache pilots open fire with the helicopter’s cannon after which one says there are a “bunch of bodies lying there.”

“Look at those dead bastards,” one says. Another replies: “Nice.”

Shortly after the initial shooting, a van pulls up to pick up the dead and wounded and is fired upon by the Apaches. Two children in the van were injured and evacuated by US ground troops who arrived later on the scene.

A US military official did not dispute the authenticity of the video but said it “doesn’t give new information, it just gives footage.”

“We had insurgents and reporters in an area where US forces were about to be ambushed,” the official added. “At the time we weren’t able to discern whether (the Reuters employees) were carrying cameras or weapons.”

Cybercafes in China that admit three or more underage patrons will have their licences revoked under the government’s latest effort to tighten controls on web access in the world’s largest online market.

The measure will also be applied to establishments that give rise to “major malignant cases” through admitting any number of underage customers — those under 18 — according to the rules posted on the culture ministry’s website.

The new regulations, posted on Tuesday, did not specify what would constitute a “major malignant case.”

China has taken a number of steps in recent years to tighten the screws on Internet cafes as it struggles to keep pace with an explosion in the country’s online population, now at 384 million.

The campaign has been framed by the government as a bid to protect the nation’s youth from “malignant” online content.

However, critics say it also is meant to block access to information deemed politically sensitive by ruling Communist Party authorities.

China has more than 81,000 Internet cafes with 4.7 million computers.

Last month, Yan Qi, a member of China’s national legislative advisory body, made waves by voicing support for a nationwide ban on Internet cafes.

Angry hackers subsequently paralysed the website of the restaurant chain she owns, according to state media reports.

Communist authorities operate a vast system of censorship dubbed the “Great Firewall of China” that blocks access to content seen as politically or morally unacceptable.

To provide sports people with the best performing equipment, in this day and age we call on innovative new technology. Just to prove the point, Callaway has unveiled its latest range of golf clubs.

This collection of clubs, given the name “FT iZ”, has been manufactured from materials developed for aerospace technology. So you have an idea of how the carbon fibres and titanium elements of these clubs have a quality that is truly amazing!

Wind tunnel tests were performed on these futuristic models by the designers. The Callaway “FT iZ” clubs benefit from the very latest acquired knowledge by specialist engineers in aerodynamics.

The Japanese firm Nintendo has discreetly announced the launch of a 3D Nintendo DS in Japan by March 2011.

The Nintendo DS “dual screen” console was first released in late 2004 in Japan and North America. At the time, it included many innovative features for a portable video game player, such as two screens, including one touch-screen, a microphone, two surround sound speakers, integrated Wi-Fi, etc.

The DS is the brand’s star product. As at 31st December 2009, it was the world’s second biggest-selling console with over 125 million sales, behind Sony’s PlayStation 2 with some 145 million, but outstripping the ever-present Game Boy, originally released in the late 80s, with 118 million units sold.

Company President Satoru Iwata revealed the news in a brief press release in March 2010. For the time being, only a few general details about the new console have been unveiled, and there is no image yet, as the 3D console is still at the embryonic stage. The only certainty about this future product is that special glasses will not be required: “Games can be enjoyed with 3D effects without the need for any special glasses.” The 3DS consoles will also be back-compatible with older DS and DSi games.

The technology to be used has not been revealed in detail, but some specialists have been suggesting possible options for the company. The first is that the 3D Nintendo DS (or “3DS”) will use the same technology as the Nintendo DSi, that is a sophisticated algorithm enabling a camera to constantly follow the user’s eye movement, in order to adjust the image and make it 3D. The system functions through the use of a particular material, not requiring any kind of filter for the screen. A second solution would be to project an LCD image through a filter adapted for the screen. However, this would be inconvenient for users, as they would have to constantly stay in the same position, without moving. Finally, the third possibility would be to achieve the effect of 3D depth by displaying one pixel per eye, via a piece of film dividing the screen. This solution is also not so convenient for users however, as they would only be able to perceive the 3D effects when directly facing the screen.

Nintendo’s launch of a 3D console constitutes its reaction to the launch of 3D for the PSP3, by its eternal rival PlayStation, and reflects the increasing intensity of the competitive environment. According to a survey published by Web Flurry, the US market leaders have been attacked by a new entrant, Apple with its iPhone, which grabbed 19% of the US market in 2009. Although Nintendo has lost 5%, the Japanese manufacturer remains the uncontested leader with a market share of 70%, overwhelming Sony, which has been more deeply affected by the new arrival, experiencing a drop in its market share from 20% to 11%.

Further information will be revealed by Nintendo at the annual video game convention E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo), due to take place from 15 to 17 June in Los Angeles.

The “Fist of the North Star” manga, with its intimidating and in your face protagonist Ken, has this year been the subject of a new videogame adaptation. The title, with a good deal of time devoted to martial arts and set in a post apocalyptic future, was released at the end of March in the land of the rising sun.

Published by Koei, “Fist of the North Star” was a big hit from day one. In just four days it sold more than 400′000 units on PS3 and Xbox 360. To find out whether this game will generate as much enthusiasm elsewhere in the world, we’ll have to wait

An undeniable event over the Easter weekend: the release of the iPad in the United States. Apple’s tablet is selling better than expected. On the actual launch date, 3rd April, 300,000 units found a buyer.

First impressions on blogs and specialist sites are proving very positive. Globally, the iPad, despite being less magical than Apple claimed, has more than one ace up its sleeve. Being comfortable to use, making the interaction between man and machine a more intimate experience, has been a prime consideration, as well as the speed with which applications are executed. In addition, its screen has won through, especially thanks to its 180 degree angle of vision, allowing several people to watch at the same time. Apple has once again come out fighting!

The internet ranks in third place as the most popular news platform. According to a survey carried out by the “Pew Internet American Life Project” and “Project for Excellence in Journalism”, affiliates of the Pew Research Center: it was established that the popularity of the internet as a source for news has increased.

The survey reveals that the internet follows closely behind local and national television news as well as national and local print newspapers and local radio. The report explains that this recognition can be linked to the fact that the internet is convenient for many people. The pattern of news consumption in America corresponds greatly with the acquisition of news from the internet. It was established that in a typical day about 59% of Americans will get news from a mixture of both online and offline sources.

What is more, the survey also revealed that people’s relationship to news is changing. More and more people prefer personalized, portable and participatory news. As a result, it showed that about 33% of people use their cell phones to get news. 28% of individuals using the internet frequently have their home pages customized to incorporate news about their topics of interest and from their preferred sources. 37% of individuals who frequently use the internet are said to have contributed, commented or passed along news material on the internet.

Further still, the Pew survey reveals that about 75% of individuals receive news via forwarded emails as well as shared posts on social networking sites. About 52% forward links relating to news material and sources. It is estimated that about 55% of individuals consuming online news find it easier to stay abreast with current affairs as compared to five years ago. On the other hand, 70% claim that the quantity of news received or accessible from various internet sources is overwhelming.

Apple is acknowledging complaints that its new iPad computer has trouble connecting to the Internet.

And it’s offering some possible solutions.

“Under certain conditions, iPad may not automatically rejoin a known Wi-Fi network after restart or waking from sleep,” Apple said in a post on its technical support site late Tuesday.

The post came after a day in which a growing number of people who bought the computer over the weekend said they weren’t able to get a Wi-Fi connection or that the connection kept getting dropped.

The iPad, a touch-screen, tablet-style computer that occupies digital turf somewhere between a laptop and a smartphone, went on sale Saturday.

The model available now connects to the Internet over a Wi-Fi connection. Later this month, Apple also will start selling an iPad version that connects to the Internet via 3G wireless service from AT&T.

Apple said this week’s connection problems can happen with third-party Wi-Fi routers that are dual-band capable if more than one network has the same name or someone had different security settings for the different networks.

The company suggested users create separate names for different Wi-Fi bands and make sure that multiple networks have the same security settings.

If problems continue, the post suggests resetting the iPad’s network settings. iPad users can find those settings under the following file path: Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network Settings.

The company also advised users to make sure they are using up-to-date wireless router software.

On Tuesday, some users were saying their Wi-Fi connections were weak, while others were saying they weren’t able to connect with Wi-Fi at all.

Some said that other wireless devices were working fine at the same spot where the iPad was failing. Several, on a message board on Apple’s support site, said laying the iPad on a flat surface made the problem worse.

Apple did not respond Tuesday to a request from CNN.com about the complaints or immediately respond to an e-mail Wednesday morning asking about the proposed solutions.

On Saturday, when the company reported selling 300,000 of the devices, Apple posted a Web page outlining troubleshooting tips for “occasional problems” that included weak Wi-Fi connections or not being able to find a signal.

The tips include moving closer to a Wi-Fi router or hot spot and making sure the Wi-Fi router is plugged in and the power is turned on.

As a judge debates the final outcome of Google’s settlement with book publishers and authors, photographers are ready to prolong the debate.

 The American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP) filed a copyright-infringement lawsuit Wednesday against Google, claiming that Google’s Book Search project was undertaken without negotiating rights to their images with the photographers. That’s the same argument originally leveled against Google in 2005 on behalf of book authors, who wound up settling with the company in 2008.

However, that settlement has yet to be approved, as many authors have objected to the terms of the deal. According to the Financial Times, Judge Denny Chin told representatives for photographers that joining that lawsuit at this point would throw a wrench into the entire process and advised them to file their own suit.

“We are seeking justice and fair compensation for visual artists whose work appears in the twelve million books and other publications Google has illegally scanned to date,” said Victor Perlman, general counsel for the ASMP, in a press release. “In doing so, we are giving voice to thousands of disenfranchised creators of visual artworks whose rights we hope to enforce through this class action.”

For its part, Google said in a statement: “We are confident that Google Books is fully compliant with U.S. and international copyright law.”

The ASMP’s suit was also filed on behalf of the Graphic Artists Guild, the Picture Archive Council of America, the North American Nature Photography Association, Professional Photographers of America, photographers Leif Skoogfors, Al Satterwhite, Morton Beebe, Ed Kashi and illustrators John Schmelzer and Simms Taback.