Man infects himself with computer virus

University of Reading researcher Mark Gasson has become the first human known to be infected by a computer virus, reports Msnbc.

The virus, infecting a chip implanted in Gasson's hand, passed into a laboratory computer. From there, the infection could have spread into other computer chips found in building access cards.

All this was intentional, in an experiment to see how simple radio-frequency identification chips, like those used for tracking animals, can host and spread technological diseases.

US researchers say silicon chips that are allowed to make mistakes could help ensure computers continue to get more powerful, says the BBC.

As components shrink, chipmakers struggle to get more performance out of them while meeting power needs.

Research suggests relaxing the rules governing how they work and when they work correctly, could mean they use less power, but get a performance boost.

Apple has long been the little guy in the Mac versus PC debate, but that's no longer the case, reveals CNet.

As of trading near the end of the day on Wednesday, Apple had passed Microsoft in terms of market capitalisation, with a value of roughly $222 billion, which is $3 billion ahead of Microsoft.

Apple had been flirting with the milestone for days and had already passed Microsoft by another measure - enterprise value, which adds in debt and other factors.

A Bill scrapping ID cards and "destroying the national identity register" is the first legislation to be submitted to Parliament by the new Lib-Con coalition UK government, writes Computing.co.uk.

The speed with which it has been introduced is indicative of the government's wish to bring the project to a halt as quickly as possible to minimise further taxpayer losses.

It requires ID cards to be scrapped without recompense to existing holders when the Bill takes effect, and the erasure of all information collected for the register within a month of it receiving Royal Assent.