european union

The Future of Public Transportation Will Involve Personal Helicopters, Mag-Lev Cars and Zeppelins


Ranging from the simple, like publicly available electric bikes and moving sidewalks, to the more futuristic, like a personal helicopter backpack and personal maglev car/pods, a new vision breaks down the future of public transportation.

In the latest issue of European Union Infrastructure Magazine, it features the pros, cons and feasibility of implementing the world's most advanced public transportation system.

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Europe Adopts Universal micro-USB Cellphone Charger Standard

One cell phone charger to juice them all

Ever lose your cellphone charger? When your doomed search for friends or family with a phone of similar brand/vintage eventually fails, it's off to the third-party charger vendor where confusion and high prices await.

We can all agree, then, that proprietary charger plugs are among the larger pains in the respective behinds of cellphone users everywhere. But not so anymore in Europe: the EU is leading the way to create a standard micro-USB charger for all cellphones sold.

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Pentium Prosecution

The E.U. fines Intel $1.45 billion for anti-trust violations, and for doing 3.2GHz in a 1.8GHz zone

Since 2001, the European Union's (EU) anti-trust regulators have investigated complaints that chip maker Intel engaged in anti-competitive practices. They accused Intel of of paying retailers not to sell computers with AMD chips, and for using its position as the number-one chip manufacturer to muscle around competition. Today, the EU handed down the decision in the form of a $1.4 billion fine, the largest in European history.

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Cloned Meat in the EU

While the government drags its feet on making a decision, public opprobrium of the concept grows

The European Union is proceeding more slowly than the Food and Drug Administration did during its investigation into the efficacy and safety of cloned meat and milk. While the United States has already given industry the go-ahead to begin farming the cloned animals, the EU is taking a more measured approach, even with the European Food Safety Authority’s public statement that there is no expectation of additional environmental risks.

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E.U. Hits Microsoft With Record Punishment

After failing to comply with an anti-trust decision, Microsoft reaps a massive fine

The European Union slapped Microsoft with a $1.3 billion punishment yesterday for what it says amounted to unfair practices. Regulators contended that Microsoft charged developers who were hoping to make Windows-compatible products unreasonable fees for information about its software.

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December 2009: Best of What's New

In our December issue, Popular Science names the 100 best innovations of the year: bombproof wallpaper, self-parking cars, the fastest helicopter, and 97 more. Plus inventor profiles and videos.

Check out the best of what's new here.

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