Battery recharges in seconds

MIT engineers have created a kind of beltway that allows for the rapid transit of electrical energy through a well-known battery material, an advance that could usher in smaller, lighter batteries — for cell phones and other devices — that could recharge in seconds rather than hours.

The work could also allow for the quick recharging of batteries in electric cars, although that particular application would be limited by the amount of power available to a homeowner through the electric grid.

Cuba: Time fo a change.

Secretary of State Clinton responded to Senator Lugar’s questions
for the record with this pledge to conduct a review of U.S. policy
towards Cuba. Echoing President Obama’s campaign position,
she also wrote that the Administration intends to lift restrictions
on Cuban-American travel and remittances to Cuba while maintaining
the U.S. trade and investment embargo. She left the door
open for bolder policy changes, however, by expressing support for
U.S.-Cuban cooperation in drug interdiction and suggesting a willingness
to engage with Cuba on issues of mutual concern.