I can't prove this, but I have a working hypothesis that fluorescent lights , of the variety typically deployed in offices, are more than simply depressing -- they can actually suck the life-force right out of you. I did some work for Quantico back in the 1970s, and for security reasons was assigned to an office approximately 17 doors away from the closest natural sunlight. The overhead fluorescent lights gave everyone a delightful corpse-like glow, and began my lifelong hatred of argon plasma.

Interesting item today on the solar-powered gadgets beat. Reminds me of my days at NASA, when I headed up a program that put solar arrays in orbit to beam microwave energy back to earth. I'm not kidding . The program was called off when we accidentally broiled several offshore islands in the Caribbean.

Reporting from the 2007 Software Exhibition of Korea today. I've had a frustrating few weeks in the lab -- my attempts to introduce artificial intelligence to the undergarment industry are going nowhere fast. Turns out, people don't really want Smart Underwear . And the AIs aren't crazy about where they're being dispatched, either. So I figured: road trip. South Korea in June is always lovely. Anyway...

An outfit called TaxiTech announced today it has won approval to offer passenger touch-screen computers to New York City's 13,000 or so taxicabs. Clearly, TaxiTech has recognized our current cultural crisis -- a desperate need to increase the time we spend in front of a computer monitor.

All right! More news I can use. The New York Times recently reported on the latest in biometric convenience -- the fingerprint-scanning home door lock . Unlike ultra-high end biometrics used for corporate or military security, the SmartScan lock is simple, relatively cheap ($199), and self-contained. That is to say, the fingerprint recognition system is strictly local and built into the mechanical hardware of the door lock itself. It can't be hacked.

The history of consumer electronics is littered with failed gadgets, crazy inventors, and breathtakingly bad ideas. Then there's the iShave. I'm not saying these two sentences have anything to do with one another; they just happen to be adjacent.

The history of consumer electronics is littered with failed gadgets, crazy inventors, and breathtakingly bad ideas. Then there's the iShave. I'm not saying these two sentences have anything to do with one another; they just happen to be adjacent.

According to some TV ads aired over the weekend, and Apple's website, the much-heralded iPhone will officially hit store shelves June 29. Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone at last January's MacWorld Expo, where it was unveiled with a reverence and awe typically reserved for Biblical artifacts.

According to some TV ads aired over the weekend, and Apple's website, the much-heralded iPhone will officially hit store shelves June 29. Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone at last January's MacWorld Expo, where it was unveiled with a reverence and awe typically reserved for Biblical artifacts.