On January 31, 2008, a video depicting hundreds of people standing perfectly still in New York's Grand Central Station was posted on YouTube. The video quickly became a phenomenon, and to date, nearly 9.5 million people have watched it.

Why, you ask? The standing still was actually part of an elaborate prank, pulled off by "agents" of a group called Improv Everywhere. The idea was that the hundreds of people would simultaneously "freeze" in the middle of Grand Central, with no warning nor explanation to those nearby, and stay that way, no matter what, for five minutes.

In the video, you can see dozens of perplexed onlookers, confused as to what's going on. In their midst, the participants look like statues, comic in their stationary poses. When, after five minutes, they

Ordinary Cubans will soon have the luxury of owning a cell phone, according to a story by the Associated Press.

President Raul Castro's government said Friday that it will allow anyone in the country to get cell phone service, a right previously limited to executives working for foreign companies or high communist party officials.

This is the first announcement that a major government policy or restriction has been changed since the 76-year-old Castro took over as leader of the island nation from his older brother Fidel Castro.

The AP said there has been a kind of black market for cell phones in Cuba where people who were ineligible were able to get phones and service by having foreigners sign contracts in their names. But for the most part, mobile phones are no

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office head Jon Dudas believes there's a place for software and business method patents, but he's as concerned as the next guy about keeping questionable patents out of the system.

HOLLYWOOD, Calif.--Open-source and free software fans who despise software patents shouldn't look for an ally in the head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Patent Commissioner Jon Dudas says his office is all about staying "technology neutral," so long as the invention meets certain standards.

"The system we've had has worked to promote technology for 200 years, and it can do that in the software industry, so long as you follow the principles that (a technology) is useful, new,

Video ads for select keywords are now showing up on Google and Yahoo search sites. I took a look and I have to say I prefer the Google ads because they seem less intrusive and obnoxious.

I typed in "smartphone" on Google's search site and saw a hot link that said "watch commercial" under the second sponsored listing on the right side. Clicking on that link opened a small 2-inch-by-2-inch window below the listing that automatically played the 34-second ad. I could pause the video or hide it.

I got a similar experience when I typed in "Curve," except the window was slightly larger and the ad was available underneath one of the sponsored results near the top of the page. But this did not appear every time I tried. Fortunately, I was able to grab a screenshot the one time

If you think city DSL is slow, then rural America's dial-up connection might make your head split in two. For country dwellers, that situation may change soon, thanks to a new $267 million government grant given to Open Range Communications.

This week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's rural-development broadband group said it will loan millions to Denver-based Open Range to build out broadband service for 518 rural communities in 17 states, including Alabama, Arkansas, South Carolina, and Wisconsin. It expects that Open Range will serve nearly half a million households, or more than 6 million people, within five years.

The deal is a first for the government when it comes to funding a Wi-Max technology to transmit wireless data in areas not served by cable or DSL. Ope