Bill Gates Surprises Reddit User With Secret Santa Gifts

A Reddit user likely didn’t expect much when she joined the site’s Secret Santa program. But a seven- pound package from “Bill” turned into a Christmas miracle.

Nigeria: Airtel, Google Give Customers Free Internet Service

Leading telecommunications service provider, Airtel Nigeria and Google launched a unique Internet service tagged Free Zone powered by Google. The service allows customers to access mobile web search and other feature-phone-friendly versions of Gmail and Google+ without getting billed.

Micropayments, Mega Angst, and the Future of Console Games

Sony and Microsoft have delivered their next-gen visions, but with this caveat: more microtransactions. Cash grab or survival strategy, it will surely generate controversy as 2014 rolls along.

Reinventing the Wheel: Startup Turns Bicycles into Smart Electric-Hybrids

A startup is launching a new device that transforms almost any bicycle into an electric-hybrid vehicle using an app on a smartphone.The device, called the Copenhagen Wheel, is installed as part of a rear hub of a bike wheel and is packed with a proprietary computer, batteries and sensors that monitor how hard a rider is pedaling and activate an onboard motor whenever support is needed.

Supercomputers Find Bacterial ‘Off’ Switch

The comparatively recent addition of supercomputing to the toolbox of biomedical research may already have paid off in a big way: Researchers have used a bio-specialized supercomputer to identify a molecular “switch” that might be used to turn off bad behavior by pathogens. They’re now trying to figure out what to do with that discovery by running even bigger tests on the world’s second-most-powerful supercomputer.