The large recent drop in oil prices worldwide has had one very immediate impact for consumers in the United States. Gasoline prices are sinking to levels that haven’t been seen since 2010: As of December 2, gasoline prices averaged about $2.75 per gallon nationwide. And AAA projects that gasoline prices could fall an additional 10 or 20 cents in the …

Does anyone remember Thorazine? It was an antipsychotic given to mentally ill people, often in institutions, that was so sedating, it gave rise to the term “Thorazine shuffle.” Ads for Thorazine in medical journals, before drugs were advertised directly to patients, showed Aunt Hattie in a hospital gown, zoned out but causing no trouble to herself or anyone else. No …

he male co-host of an Australian TV program is finally getting some attention for his fashion sense. And that’s his point. Karl Stefanovic wore the same blue suit every day for a year on Channel Nine’s “Today” program. And no one noticed until he went public with his hidden-in-plain-sight experiment. He told Australia’s Fairfax Media that while no one asked …

An ever-increasing number of our consumer electronics are Internet-connected. We’re living at the dawn of the age of the Internet of Things. Appliances ranging from light switches and door locks to cars and medical devices boast connectivity in addition to basic functionality. The convenience can’t be beat. But what are the security and privacy implications? Is a patient implanted with …

Earlier this month, New York City lowered its citywide speed limit from 30 miles per hour to 25. This means that anywhere that a specific speed limit isn’t posted, the default is 25 (but if a slower or higher one is posted, drivers must follow that instead). The move is part of Vision Zero, the city’s initiative to reduce pedestrian …

The fastest train the United States is the Acela Express, which travels between Washington DC and Boston at speeds as high as 150 miles per hour (though the average speed is lower than that). Trains are a lot faster elsewhere in the world, especially in Europe and Asia. One of the fastest commercial trains in the world is the Shanghai …

The parent company and owner of a now-closed Southern California restaurant have pleaded guilty to serving meat from an endangered whale. The Los Angeles Times reports (http://lat.ms/1xLJjIJ ) that Typhoon Restaurant Inc. and owner Brian Vidor each entered guilty pleas Monday to one count of unlawful sale of a marine mammal. They were charged with serving meat from the endangered …