Just so you guys know, Shacknews is a hybrid too. We run on both standard oil generated electricity as well as the tears of gamers who view our shame train delay tag. Some random reading for you gu

A judge dismissed charges against Steve Kurtz, professor and member of the Critical Art Ensemble, who has been in a four year legal battle after police discovered biological lab equipment and harmless bacteria in his home. The cops were at his house because he called 911 to report that his wife had died of heart failure. He had the biological gear and specimens for an art project. Kurtz was initially investigated for bioterrorism but later indicted for mail and wire fraud. From the New York Times: U.S. District Judge Richard Arcara ruled that the 2004 mail and wire fraud indictment against Steven Kurtz, a University at Buffalo professor, was ''insufficient on its face..." ''Obviously this is a weight off his back, but he still had to suffer through this for four years,'' said Kurtz's attorney, Paul Cambria. ''The last thing this guy is is a bioterrorist.'' The U.S. Attorney's Office in Buffalo said it was considering an appeal but otherwise declined to discuss the ruling. Link (Thanks, Jody Radzik!) Previously on BB: • Art attack update Link • Art of bioterrorism? RU Sirius interviews Steve Kurtz Link • Case against Steve Kurtz continues Link • Battling for bio art Link • Art attack Link...

Sonific, an online music playing servuce similar to Pandora and Seeqpod, is to close May 1 as the company was unable to obtain licensed music rights in a way that made the service viable. Gerd Leonhard, Co-Founder & CEO writes: 1) There are countless startups providing access to any and all music streams without any license whatsoever. [...]

Keeping track of what people are reading about a company’s products on blogs is an inexact science. BuzzLogic will try to make it a little more exact with the acquisition of Activeweave, creator of a popular FireFox browser add-on called BlogRovR that recommends contextual posts from your favorite blogs as you surf the Web. [...]

The monarchy of the United Kingdom is a system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign of the United Kingdom and its overseas territories. The terms British monarch and British monarchy may mean different things in different contexts beyond the United Kingdom. The present monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since February 6, 1952. The heir apparent is her eldest son, Charles, Prince of Wales and Duke of Rothesay. They and the Queen's husband and consort, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, undertake various public duties in accordance with their positions. Elizabeth II is Head of the Commonwealth and also reigns as head of state of 15 other Commonwealth countries. This developed from the former colonial relationship of these countries to Britain, but they are now independent and the monarchy of each is legally distinct. (more...)

Pearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has consisted of Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, guitar), Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), and Mike McCready (lead guitar). The band's current drummer is Matt Cameron, formerly of Soundgarden, who has been with the band since 1998. Formed after the demise of Ament and Gossard's previous band Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jam broke into the mainstream with its debut album Ten. One of the key bands of the grunge movement in the early 1990s, Pearl Jam was nevertheless criticized early on as being a corporate cash-in on the alternative rock explosion. However, its members became noted for their refusal to adhere to traditional music industry practices as their career progressed, including refusing to make music videos and engaging in a much-publicized boycott of Ticketmaster. Rolling Stone described the band as having "spent much of the past decade deliberately tearing apart their own fame." Since its inception, the band has sold 30 million records in the U.S., and an estimated 60 million albums worldwide. Pearl Jam has outlasted many of its contemporaries from the alternative rock breakthrough of the early 1990s, and is considered one of the most influential bands of the decade, and "the most popular American rock band of the 1990s". (more...)

The president of Japanese developer Feelplus has suggested that the migration of PC developers to consoles might be the reason behind Western dominance of next-gen consoles. Feelplus president Ray

10 Ways to Save the Planet

We're coming to the end of ski season and the Canadian Rockies look to be the best bet for those who want to hit the slopes one more time -- and pretty soon, as many of the promotions vanish within th

Bob Ledford is promised a room with a two-sided ocean view when he books through Expedia. But when he arrives, the view isn't what he expected, the hotel doesn't seem to care, and Expedia won't post the negative review of the resort.

We've dug in and discovered the best deals at the lowest prices for a cruise through the Aegean, a tour through the Holy Land, city stays in Glasgow, Edinburgh or Manchester and more.

The PlayStation 3's online social interaction software Home will not enter the open beta stage until this fall, Sony Computer Entertainment has announced. The free service had previously been delayed until this spring from its expected launch last fall.

Boing Boing tv presents a new installment of "Spam Theater," in which we bring to dramatic life actual, unadulterated spam emails we've received -- word for word, exactly what plopped in our in-box. Today, a classic Romance Scam enticement from the fictional spamtress "Kseniya," written in mad heroine prose worthy of a Tennessee Williams play. Voiced by Xeni Jardin, who received the message. In part two of today's episode, '80s electrobeats and word salad merge as one. Link to Boing Boing tv post, with discussion, downloadable video, full text of the actual spam email from "Kseniya," and photo and video credits....

1964 - Artist: Kinematic Album: The 38th Parallel , From: Melbourne, Please Support Kinematic and purchase '1964' from ProjectOpus.com (http://www.pr