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Media

Expelled girl's 'bomb': Toilet cleaner and foil

People like to claim that education is in crisis.

But it's surely no more in crisis than humanity itself, as it veers toward an unknown future while leering into screens for its solution.

However, Bartow High School in Florida garlanded itself in a particularly educative spirit this week by expelling a 16-year-old girl for putting a couple of chemicals into an 8-ounce water bottle and watching it go bang.

Should this tale not have exploded before your eyes this week, Kiera Wilmot wasn't merely expelled for this misdeed on school premises, she was also charged with felony possession … Read more

Windows 8 Wikipedia page vandalized

Every time I see a squirrel squashed, a house painted yellow, or a discarded condom on a sidewalk, I wonder what sort of human might have perpetrated such a deed.

Was it someone angry, someone merely tasteless, or someone who simply hasn't been educated in even the most basic elements of human decorum?

I found myself with somewhat similar feelings on discovering that a human being, or beings, took to the Wikipedia page for Microsoft's Windows 8 and attempted to pervert the course of truth.

For a random visit to this page revealed this notice from the Wikipedia … Read more

T-Mobile employee: I used vacation time to go to the bathroom

Some stories make you wonder.

Some, however, make your eyeballs cease to move.

This, for example, is the story of a T-Mobile employee who says she was made to clock out to use the bathroom.

Which, to the average objective eye, seems a trifle inhumane.

Kristi Rifkin was employed by T-Mobile in its Nashville, Tenn., call center. It seems that, on the whole, she felt her job was relatively sweet music.

However, things changed when she fell pregnant for the second time.

As ABC News reports, her pregnancy was tough. On the advice of a doctor, she had to drink … Read more

Twitter's new exec brings IPO experience

Twitter said Thursday it has hired a new head of corporate development who happens to have years of experience with, among other things, IPOs.

Last week, Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey said that the company "isn't even thinking about" an IPO, despite months of speculation in the media and elsewhere that the social networking giant is preparing to go public.

And while Cynthia Gaylor, Twitter's new head of corporate development, has plenty of experience with other things, including mergers and acquisitions, it's notable that IPOs were an important part of her portfolio during her time as … Read more

Twitter gives developers new embedded timeline options

Developers got a little more control today over how embedded Twitter timelines appear.

In a blog post Thursday, Twitter said it has made some minor modifications to the way its embedded timeline tool works.

For one, the post said, developers can now choose how many tweets appear, so long as they're happy with a number from one to 20.

Second, Twitter now lets developers decide whether they want a scrollbar to appear on an embedded timeline. Apparently, this is something that people have been asking about. But while Twitter is now enabling those who want to get rid of … Read more

YouTube to advertisers: You need us to attract a younger crowd

NEW YORK--Google on Wednesday made its pitch for advertising on YouTube, telling companies that the site is a vital way to reach the highly desired 18- to 34-year-old demographic and a way to build a base of loyal fans.

However, the company didn't announce any new major projects or partnerships. Instead, executives positioned YouTube as hip and in tune with what younger viewers desire -- something it said its online rivals and traditional cable networks lack. And it noted that the transition to online viewing has already happened.

"The future is already here," Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt … Read more

Keith Richards: Apple's iPod shortchanges customers

Keith Richards wearing white headphones would be like Josh Groban wearing a skirt.

Or Steven Tyler wearing men's clothing.

Somehow, it wouldn't seem right.

Fortunately, it is unlikely to happen, because the Rolling Stone who once fell out of a tree has revealed he doesn't own an iPod. … Read more

Aiming for more retail deals, Square adds partnerships VP

For a mobile payments platform whose future success is tied to its ability to be accepted by as many retailers as possible, a company like Square has to have someone leading the charge toward such deals.

That's why Square -- the San Francisco startup founded by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey -- has just hired its first vice president of partnerships. It said today that it has tapped Alex Petrov, former PayPal vice president of retail marketing, for the job. Petrov also previously held the position of vice president of consumer brands at supermarket giant Safeway.

It will be Petrov'… Read more

Schoolgirl tries science experiment, arrested for felony

Who among us hasn't -- just once in our lives -- put a couple of things in a test tube, a bottle, or our mouths and wondered what might happen?

Occasionally, this might have difficult consequences. But rarely does someone try to arrest us for it.

16-year-old Kiera Wilmot wasn't so lucky.

This student at Bartow High School in Florida allegedly thought she'd put a couple of household chemicals in an 8-ounce water bottle, just to see the reaction.

The reaction was that she was expelled and marched off in handcuffs, accused of felony possession/discharge of a dangerous weapon.… Read more