We see them everywhere these days, digital signs by the side of the road telling us about road conditions or that we should prepare to stop or that our local bridge might be closed next Tuesday from noon to midnight. And if you're like me, you've always just assumed that the message on the signs is legitimate and properly authorized.

But what if the sign, instead of reading something like "Ice Ahead" was flashing the message, "Zombies Ahead"?

It's true that in San Francisco or a few other cities, such a sign could be put up by local transportation officials to warn people of an impending zombie march, but even in those places, the more likely explanation would be that the sign was hacked.

And if you're in the Boston area and saw signs hacked in this way, there's always a decent chance it was done by students from MIT. 

According to the blog i-hacked.com, some programmable road signs are easily messed with, largely because they often have unlocked instrument panels, a text-entry system that is easily accessed, and are often protected with uncomplicated, or unchanged default passwords.

Programming is as simple as scrolling down the menu selection to 'Instant Text,'" i-hacked reported. "Type whatever you want to display, (and) hit 'enter' to submit. You can now either throw it up on the sign by selecting 'Run w/out save' or you can add more pages to it by selecting 'Add page.'"

Of course, you probably don't want to do this in plain view of any law enforcement officials, and i-hacked led its post with a disclaimer warning against ever performing this hack.

Microsoft Gulf today announced that Bill Gates, Chairman, Microsoft Corp received the ‘Most Innovative People Award for Technology Innovation’ at the Future Capitals World Summit and Awards Ceremony held in Abu Dhabi last night.
The award was given in recognition of Gates' success in revolutionising the way personal computers and Microsoft software now fit in to everyday life. With Microsoft as one of the main sponsors of the event, Future Capitals World Summit and Awards 2009 brought together over 60 renowned business and government leaders to discover and share best practices that are shaping today’s global economy.

Accepting the award on behalf of Bill Gates, Charbel Fakhoury, General Manager, Microsoft Gulf said: “Microsoft’s role in the ICT industry is, of course, as a provider of software innovation. As Bill Gates has often said, 'software is where the magic is', it helps people use technological devices to perform specific tasks and it is being applied in areas such as healthcare, environment and education.
"So Microsoft continues to be an innovation company creating economic opportunities for others. Our success is based on our ability to anticipate technology trends and envision how they can be transformed into products, services, and business models that create new opportunities for Microsoft, our partner ecosystem, customers and local communities.”

Commenting on the significance of the award presented to Bill Gates, Sam Hamdan, Chairman and Chief Strategist of Future Capitals said: “The Summit recognises global icons who are working towards achieving better economies and this award pays tribute to today's most original, creative and effective thinkers. Bill Gates is a most worthy recipient and Future Capitals is truly privileged to be honoring him, for his commitment to technological innovation and the digital transition as well as his revolutionary approach to integrating technology into all aspects of life in pursuit of humanitarian issues. We thank Microsoft for supporting this event and look forward to working with them in the future.”                                                                                                     

http://www.bi-me.com/main.php?id=29802&t=1&c=33&cg=4&mset=

Toyota is developing a solar-powered Prius, the Nikkei newspaper has reported yet again.

It was interesting when we heard about this in July.

But it seems to us that someone over at Toyota has now been fake-leaking/hinting news about a solar-powered Prius in one form or another for at least the last year.

This wonder-car-in-the-making has gone from being a Toyota Prius that uses solar roof panels from Kyocera to power its air conditioning unit, to "a vehicle that will be powered solely by solar energy" to quote one recent Associated Press article.

You may find it interesting that this rumor always comes floating by on the heels of bad news from Toyota.

In July, it accompanied news of a series of Toyota plant closings/reorganizations in the U.S.

This latest rumor seems to be timed to follow Toyota's December news that it, too, has succumbed to the world auto industry slump, reporting its first annual operating loss in 70 years, and a series of consolidations and changes in its organizational structure.

Of course, there is already an available solar option for some Toyota owners in the U.S.

Solar Electrical Vehicles (SEV) has been offering an after-market Prius solar overhaul since June 2007. It includes a customized solar panel for a Prius roof that can improve the car's efficiency by about 29 percent. SEV also offers kits for the Toyota Highlander, Rav4 EV, and Ford Escape Hybrid.

For those who just like reading about the idea of a solar car, Canadian engineer Marcelo da Luz and his team have been blogging about their attempt to set the world long-distance record for a solar-powered car with the Power of One (Xof1) vehicle.http://http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10130380-54.html?tag=rtcol;pop