Scientists have reason to believe that solar flares may be somehow linked with the "starquake" solar phenomena occasionally experienced by our solar system's sun. Images taken from the ESA-NASA SOHO spacecraft may give some clue to the long-standing mystery behind the sun's interior make-up. You can read more about the details of this study in our full article.

The average person will probably have nothing in mind about his own solid waste except to get rid of it by flushing it. Thank goodness they didn't have johns 14,000 years ago or we might have less clues about our ancestors. Recently discovered in Oregon is the oldest native American DNA, and it's all because someone's feces lasted so long. Full story after the jump.

On the last Lego Universe update, we've mentioned that Lego is planning to offer a service that will let gamers order a real-life version of their virtual Lego creations, to be delivered straight to their doorstep. Now we learn that it isn't such a new thing and that Lego already had that concept in mind long ago. Read more about it in the full article!

Virtual item stealing isn't limited to only uber-powered weapons and equipment in MMORPGs. A group of teenagers were charged for stealing virtual furniture in Habbo Hotel, which amounts to 4,000 Euros or about US$ 5,800. Yes, forget about the fancy-shmancy blades and armor, because stealing furniture is in. Read on to find out more.

Getting to pre-order your copy of Hellgate: London might be trickier for some of you. Not all regions will be having the same kind of bonuses as others would. For one, the Collector's Edition for the game will not be available for the whole of Europe. Those who want to score the bag of goodies included in the Collector's Edition (e.g. the soundtrack, extra artwork, a graphic novel, etc.) are advised to import their copy of the game from the US.

Meanwhile, pre-orders for the regular edition are well underway. Pre-ordering your copy gives you access to some in-game goodies: Dye Kits, Founders Offer, etc. Different countries will have different video game retailers participating in the pre-order campaign. Here's a full list of regions and their participating retailer(s):

• Germany - Gamestop
• Switzerland - World of Games
• Poland - Gram.pl and Ultima
• Finland - Tilt
• Sweden - GAME, EB Games/Gamestop
• Norway - GAME, EB Games/Gamestop
• Denmark - GAME, EB Games/Gamestop

Unfortunately for the UK, no retailers will be participating in the promotion. Yes, you can still pre-order the game (via HMV, Play, Amazon, or Game) but you won't be able to get the Dye Kit offer.

 

PS3 owners in the European side of the world rejoice - Sony has recently unleashed a bounty of goodies onto the PlayStation Network Store for you to purchase and download for some next-gen (and last-gen) gaming goodness. Without further ado, let's get to the list, which also includes which territory gets what for your convenience:

Games:

MediEvil (PlayStation One title): All territories
Oideyo LocoRoco! Boo Boo Cocoreccho (PlayStation 3 title): All territories
Syphon Filter (PlayStation One title): All territories except Germany

Videos:

Heavenly Sword TV ad: Australia, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Sweden and UAE
Clive Barker's Jericho trailer: All territories except Germany, Portugal and Russia

Banners:

LocoRoco Game

See anything you like? Then head on over to the PlayStation Network store and start with the downloading and purchasing! Two legendary PlayStation One titles, and the follow-up to the popular game that's all about them singing mojas - it's definitely a great update for PSN Europe store shoppers indeed.

 

After the downfall of the print in the North American side, Europe is beginning to feel the detrimental effects of the web-based zine and more frequent media coverage. According to a panel discussion by the region's leading game journalists, the print option just isn't viable anymore.

In Norway, Denmark and the UK, it's all the same. Prints are often outdated by the competition on the Web, and those magazines that still do exist rely heavily on advertising from sponsors such as games studios to keep afloat. Thomas Vigild, the panel moderator, explained:

They're really driven by advertisements, so it seems to me there's a really unhealthy relationship between the PRs and the people who write the magazines... We don't have magazines like in the UK where you can say, 'No way, I won't print your PR [nonsense].' That's much harder to do in Denmark because they still need the income from the advertisers.

Similar to how William "Bing" Gordon of Electronic Arts believes games will eventually be 100% Internet-based, the panel believes that even the media coverage will soon be online only. In fact, most of the panel members agreed that the magazines that do survive will be those that actually adapt.

However, certain magazines will continue to sell, because their previous reputation continues to stand and they continue to do very well in what they do. People still feel compelled to buy and own copies of those magazines, either because the layout or design is great or the content that's offered comes in a more mature and acceptable manner.

Finnish journalist Thomas Puha was one to disagree with the panel's sentiments, saying, "I do agree that print magazines are going down, but I look at it as a challenge." He believes that people will continue to read printed games coverage because of better content. "It's not that difficult to provide great content," he said.

But in order for magazines to survive, some believe that they should be willing to evolve. Susanne Moller, a contributor to one of Sweden's national newspapers, believes that if a magazine has both an online news portal to encourage game discussion and a good magazine print each month, a magazine will have adapted well to the changing times.

The Danish government through the Consumer Complaint Board is applying pressure to Apple to have the California-based company cough up some compensation for owners of the iBook G4 who experienced trouble because of design flaws in the laptop.

Frederik Navne, lawyer for the CCB, describes the model's flaw as "it is a bit like a person dying a little bit every time he breathes because the cells break down." Thousands of customer testimonies claim that their iBook abruptly powered down after an average of a year's use, then never booted back up.

The CCB points to the problem as that of a defective logic chip's breakdown. According to independent electronics examiner Delta, the chip has flawed solders that deteriorate with activity. Once the solders wear out, power is unable to pass and what's left of the computer is a blank screen of death with a noisy fan.

Denmark now demands that the company admit that the product is defective in and out of the country and apply measures to correct it in the soonest possible time.

We all know that there are several blood types that humans carry. Among these, the most prized is that of type O negative because it's considered universal and can be transferred to anyone.

If a person in need of a blood transfusion receives blood incompatible with his own, his immune system will be triggered and his own antibodies will treat the new blood as foreign particles. What follows is often a patient in shock and another dead body in the morgue.

Shortages in blood supply has plagued the medical industry and humanitarian endeavors alike. Scientists in Denmark, however, think that they may be closing in on an answer to that problem.

Blood gets classified according to the distinct sugar molecules that each type carries. Type A and B have different sugars, while type AB has both. The sugar molecules known as "antigens" are absent in type O negative.

According to Dr. Henrik Claussen of the University of Copenhagen, bacteria Elizabethkingia meningosepticum, and Bacteroides fragilis yield special enzymes that can strip the antigens off the red blood cells and neutralize them so that any type can become neutral.

The blood conversion technique has been tested in labs and has proven that in an hour, 200 ml of blood can be neutralized. The product will soon be tested and if all goes well, will be applied to medical facilities worldwide.

The U.S. just dropped down to the seventh position in the Networked Readiness Index Rankings for 2006. The Rankings were included in a report submitted by the World Economic Forum, which attributed the sinking to the "deterioration of political and regulatory environment" - whatever that means.

The report took into consideration the technological advancements in general business, the infrastructure available for production or use, and the initiative and gravity of the national government's policies on economic development and improving local and global competitiveness. With that said, the top 10 countries in the Index Rankings of 2006 are:

1. Denmark (3)
2. Sweden (8)
3. Singapore (2)
4. Finland (5)
5. Switzerland (9)
6. Netherlands (12)
7. US (1)
8. Iceland (4)
9. UK (10)
10. Norway (13)

With strong emphasis with cooperative development and college education, the U.S. is the leader in innovation. But also noticeable is Singapore's strongest points of innovation and network readiness.

Denmark now leads the world in technological innovation and application, because of constant support given from the government for the thriving e-businesses, strict regulatory policies and a quick and early liberalization of the telecommunication sector.