Oil prices fell on Monday as traders took profits after crude futures settled near an all-time high in the previous session. Light, sweet crude for September delivery lost 46 cents to ,72 a barrel in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, mid-afternoon in Singapore.
A fundamental change in the design of microprocessors is presenting software developers with a challenge — and a huge financial opportunity. Chip makers are no longer racing to have the fastest microprocessor and have shifted their focus away from building chips with a single, super-fast calculating core.
Fears that teenagers using the social networking website MySpace are exposing themselves to sexual predators by disclosing too many personal details are probably overblown, researchers say. The site had come under fire from parents, teachers and law enforcement.
Gift ideas are needed year-round. And gifts for geeks can be particularly tough to find — especially for the giver who might not be up to date on the latest gadgets. Here’s some help. The gift ideas below — some of them wild and wacky — should be sure-fire hits to just about any tech fan for whom you need to find a quick gift.
Former president FW de Klerk is not being investigated for crimes committed during the apartheid era, National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Panyaza Lesufi said. ”There is no formal investigation of Mr De Klerk,” Lesufi said. De Klerk last week denied that he had ever condoned apartheid-era murders or other gross violations of human rights.
Another 33 shop managers were arrested in Zimbabwe over the weekend for overcharging or failing to display prices, Harare’s Herald newspaper reported on Monday. Its website said the managers were expected to appear in court on Monday. A price-monitoring team put the shops under surveillance on Friday.
The 2007 Tour de France ended on Sunday after three weeks of unwelcome controversy and drama that has led to calls for far-reaching reforms ahead of 2008. One of the most tainted editions of the race since the Festina doping scandal in 1998 ended in triumph for Discovery Channel’s yellow jersey winner Alberto Contador on the Champs Elysees.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) on Monday dismissed a special task team’s report on conditions at East London’s Frere Hospital as a ”whitewash”. ”There are several problems with the methodology of the task team that make the conclusions entirely superficial and very difficult to take seriously,” DA spokesperson Mike Waters said in a statement.
Anglo Platinum, the world’s largest platinum producer, has been forced to lower its expected 2007 production figures following the introduction of strict new safety measures being implemented across its mines. The surprise resignation of Anglo Platinum CEO Ralph Havenstein has been directly linked to the new safety strategy.
The Competition Commission said on Monday that it has found that the conduct of MTN of charging Cell C the commercial interconnection rate in the same areas that it charges Vodacom community-service telephone rates amounts to price discrimination. The commission has referred the matter to the Competition Tribunal.