Solyndra
Today in Tech: What will Amazon unveil on September 6?
August 24, 2012: 5:30 AM ETMeet Darpa's new boss; Facebook's iOS apps get major updates.
Facebook for iOS goes native, waves goodbye to HTML5 [THE VERGE]
In building a native Facebook app for iOS, the company looked at improving three key places, "the app's largest pain points" all relating to speed: launching the app, scrolling through the News Feed, and tapping photos inside the News Feed. "We're twice as fast in all these areas," Johnson
D arpa gets a new boss, and Solyndra is in her past [WIRED]
Arati Prabhakar, who starts in her new position at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency on July 30, will be Darpa's first Indian-American chief. And she boasts an impressive resume. Prabhakar came to this country at the age of 3, growing up in Lubbock, Texas. She earned a Ph.D. in applied physics from Caltech and founded Darpa's Microelectronics Technology Office. In 1993, at the age of 34, she was appointed as the head of the 3,000-person National Institute of Standards and Technology. From there, she left for Silicon Valley, where she became a top officer at a specialty materials company. She joined the venture capital firm U.S. Venture Partners in 2001, spending a decade investing in green tech and IT start-ups.
Amazon to hold press conference on September 6th in Santa Monica, Kindle Fire 2 or phone are our bets [THE NEXT WEB]
Could it be the new Kindle Fire? Maybe, but stay tuned. Rumors are also swirling thatAmazon is already building a smartphone with Foxconn, so it could be that or both.
How the pogo stick leapt from classic toy to extreme sport [SMITHSONIAN]
That world turned out to be a perilous place. In their quest for Pogo 2.0, the inventors endured bouts of unconsciousness, defective Chinese imports, trips to the bank for second mortgages and an exploding prototype that sent one test pilot to the hospital for reconstructive surgery.
The future of war [VIDEO] [YouTube via ReutersTV]
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Solyndra report: No smoking guns
The most detailed account yet of how the solar panel startup won a $528 million government loan guarantee and then descended into bankruptcy finds no wrongdoing. But it does not address key allegations, including the White House's role.
By Roger Parloff, senior editor
FORTUNE -- Today Solyndra's chief restructuring officer -- an outside forensic accountant and bankruptcy expert hired by its board -- filed a 204-page report with the bankruptcy court in Delaware, MORE
Mar 27, 2012 11:25 AM ETPosted in: Solyndra -
Don't fear free trade in solar
Solyndra fallout and fear-mongering have brought the U.S. to the brink of a trade conflict with China, which could threaten jobs in the fastest-growing industry in the U.S.
By Andrew Beebe, chief commercial officer of Suntech
FORTUNE -- The last six months have been tough for solar panel manufacturers. While Solyndra has received most of the headlines, more than 50 China-based photovoltaic manufacturers have also closed shop. Rapidly declining prices have squeezed MORE
Oct 21, 2011 8:00 AM ET -
What's the fallout of the Solyndra scandal?
In the wake of President Obama's solar debacle, the U.S. government needs to rethink its role in backing green energy.
By Paul Keegan, contributor
FORTUNE -- Republicans are hoping it will become President Obama's "Mission Accomplished" moment: Standing at a podium in a California solar-cell factory in May 2010, surrounded by a cheering crowd and television crews, he declared, "It's here that companies like Solyndra are leading the way toward a brighter MORE
Oct 4, 2011 5:00 AM ET
