The international rule is intended to lessen the risk of lithium battery fires on airplanes.
By Elena Malykhina
Starting Jan. 1, airline passengers will no longer be allowed to pack loose lithium batteries in checked luggage, the U.S. Transportation Department's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration warned late last week.
Instead, passengers will be required to take loose batteries with them in carry-on baggage, packed in plastic bags. The new regulation, which will go into effect in order to lessen the risk of lithium battery fires, won't apply to lithium batteries that are already installed in electronic devices, such as laptops, cell phones, and cameras. Those can be checked in.
Additionally, only two spare rechargeable lithium batteries will be allowed on airplanes per passenger in carry-on bags.
The international rule will become U.S. law on Tuesday.
"Doing something as simple as keeping a spare battery in its original retail packaging or a plastic zip-lock bag will prevent unintentional short-circuiting and fires," said Krista Edwards, deputy administrator of the PHMSA, in a statement.
The administration is treating lithium batteries as hazardous materials since they're known for overheating and catching fire in some conditions. Tests conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration show ...   more »

By Amy Thomson and Susan Decker
Jan. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Qualcomm Inc., the second-biggest maker of mobile-phone chips, fell 2.4 percent in Nasdaq trading after a court barred it from selling semiconductors that infringe three Broadcom Corp. patents.
Qualcomm said today that it will appeal the decision and offer phone makers substitutes for some of the components. The San Diego-based company is reviewing the Dec. 31 ruling and will also request further clarification from the federal court in Santa Ana, California.
Broadcom has been challenging Qualcomm in federal and state courts for more than two years, seeking a bigger share of the market for Internet and multimedia mobile-phone chips. Qualcomm ranked second in sales of mobile chips last year, after Texas Instruments Inc.
``Other companies are going to try to use this court's order to gain some advantage,'' Qualcomm Chief Executive Officer Paul Jacobs said in a conference call. ``While there may be some near- term impact of the ruling, I think we can continue to execute extremely well.''
Qualcomm fell 96 cents to $38.39 at 4 p.m. New York time on the Nasdaq Stock Market. The shares have climbed 2.5 percent in the past 12 months. Irvine, California-based Broadcom ...   more »

Mark Sweney
Guardian Unlimited, Wednesday January 2 2008 The FBI is to use a nationwide network of digital billboards to flash "hot pursuit" alerts and "most wanted" bulletins to help catch criminals.
In a deal with Clear Channel Outdoor, the US law enforcement agency will use billboards to run messages about wanted criminals, crime in progress and "high security" alerts about homeland security.
The agreement, which follows a successful trial in Philadelphia that led to the swift arrest of three criminals, will primarily be used to run "most wanted messages" on more than 150 digital billboards in about 20 US cities.
Billboards will also be used to display "high security messages to relevant communities" and the FBI also plans to establish a "protocol" for high priority "hot pursuit" messages to run straight after crimes are committed.
"The success of our 'wanted' messages on Clear Channel's digital billboards in Philadelphia was an impressive testament to this new technology's effectiveness in aiding law enforcement," said Brett Hovington, community relations unit chief at the FBI.
He added that a key benefit of the billboards is that they allow a "degree of separation between the tipster and the authorities", helping the FBI to protect ...   more »

By Chris Flood in London
Commodity markets made a flying start to 2008 with gold, oil and platinum setting records during the first trading session of the new year.
Gold led the initial advance, rising 3.3 per cent to $861.10 a troy ounce, surpassing the previous high of $850 reached in January 1980. The metal later eased back to $858.10 in late London trading.
EDITOR’S CHOICE
Dollar fear sparks rush to oil and gold - Jan-03Energy Filter: Ed Crooks - Jan-03Lex: Peak no evil - Jan-02Oil chiefs told to focus on reinvestment - Jan-02Analysis: US faces prospect of recession - Jan-02Independent trader claims $100 oil record - Jan-03Traders said there was consistent selling pressure on gold in December as investors booked profits before the year-end, but that drag had cleared and Wednesday’s price rise indicated the strength of underlying sentiment.
Gold also found support from renewed dollar weakness after the influential ISM manufacturing survey indicated that industrial activity contracted in December, fuelling fears that the US economy could be dragged into recession as weakness in the housing market spreads into other sectors.
Gold’s strength spilled over into platinum, which rose 1.6 per cent to $1,544 a troy ounce.
Oil hit ...   more »

Behind the growing fascination with all things pagan, occult and magic
When the day's news is about "witches," many Americans reflexively conjure up images of ugly, wicked hags from stories like "Snow White" and "The Wizard of Oz" – or more recently, the smiling "good witches" of Harry Potter books and films. But none of these fictional fantasies has anything to do with the real thing.
The real thing – that is, the stunning phenomenon of more and more American housewives, students, professors, and even soldiers self-identifying as "witches" – is the topic of the January edition of WND's elite monthly Whistleblower magazine.  
Titled "WITCHCRAFT IN AMERICA," Whistleblower explores Wicca in particular, and the New Age movement in general, in this dramatic, entertaining, but powerfully eye-opening and mind-boggling investigation.
What is witchcraft? Is it the same as Wicca? Is it a form of Satan worship, as critics allege? Or can witches be good? Can they really cast spells that somehow call forth the spirits beyond the world of nature to help them accomplish their will – whether good or evil? Is magic real? Why do witches often perform their ceremonies naked? And most of all, why do so many ...   more »

US special forces snatch squads are on standby to seize or disable Pakistan's nuclear arsenal in the event of a collapse of government authority or the outbreak of civil war following the assassination of Benazir Bhutto.
The troops, augmented by volunteer scientists from America's Nuclear Emergency Search Team organisation, are under orders to take control of an estimated 60 warheads dispersed around six to 10 high-security Pakistani military bases.
Military sources say contingency plans have been reviewed over the past three days to prevent any of Pakistan's atomic weapons falling into the hands of Islamic extremists if the administration of President Pervez Musharraf appears threatened by civil unrest.
Some of the special forces are already believed to be in neighbouring Afghanistan and on alert for the mission. It is also understood that satellite surveillance of Pakistan has been stepped up to keep track of the possible movement of nuclear weapons and missile delivery systems.
According to a US Congressional report published in November, Pakistan's nuclear deterrent consists of warheads for missiles and bombs dropped from aircraft.
To maintain security, the weapons are not stored fully-assembled. Warheads, detonators and missiles are kept separately, but able to be married up "fairly quickly" ...   more »