Don’t talk about it too loud, in case they change their minds and have another huge hissy-fit about it, but astronomers from the International Astronomical Union may finally come up with a standard definition of the word ‘planet’, after it being skewed by the discovery of…well, other non-planet lumps of stuff in the solar system. No doubt there’ll be plenty of disagreement over the new definition, due to be announced September this year.

It’s not just the social software people who are talking about the power of mobs. Worldchanging has an interesting round-up post regarding swarming satellites, and why they would be a sensible move in an industry fraught with risks, both financial and material.

Batteries are expensive, and eventually they lose their rechargability (if that’s actually a word). But our need for portable energy storage is not going away; rather, it is increasing, which has prompted some MIT boffins to reevaluate an old technology to solve the problem. Their answer? Coat capacitor electrodes with nanotubes to give them vastly higher capacities. They charge more quickly than batteries, too.

Tests of a new vaccine on mice have shown success at reversing memory loss with no side effects. Success in animal models is a long way from success in humans, but it’s certainly a promising development.

I try not to be a humbug, but I’m having a hard time closing my eyes to the downside of drivers checking their cell phones for open parking spaces.