Time(-killing) machine: For anyone who needed official word, a new study confirms that many of us—and the majority of young adults—go online for no good reason at all. The report from the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project found on any given day, 53% of 18- to 29-year-olds go online just to have fun or pass time. That should explain all those kitten videos. Only 12% of people over 65 say they went online the previous day for no particular reason. Of those aged 50 to 64, the study found 27% answered yes to the same question. In all, 58% of all adults say they use the Internet to pass time or have fun at least occasionally. Of adults who use the Internet, nearly three-quarters surf the Web for no reason. The survey didn’t define “fun,” so people could interpret it broadly. For some people, gossip blogs might be fun; for others, they’re serious research. Pew is releasing the study today. The phone survey was conducted from July 25 to Aug. 26 among 2,260 American adults.
What about Pokey? Harvard scientists have built a new type of flexible robot that is limber enough to wiggle and worm through tight spaces. It’s the latest prototype in the growing field of soft-bodied robots. Researchers are increasingly drawing inspiration from nature to create machines that are more bendable and versatile than those made of metal. The Harvard team, led by chemist George M. Whitesides, drew on the structures of squid, starfish and other animals without hard skeletons to fashion a small, four-legged rubber robot that calls to mind the clay animation character Gumby. The new robot, which took two months to construct, is five inches long. Its four legs can be separately controlled by pumping air into the limbs, either manually or via computer. This gives the robot a range of motion that includes crawling and slithering. Read the full story by The Associated Press and see photos of the robot here.
Harvest moon:The online game company behind “FarmVille” says it plans to raise $1 billion in an initial public offering of up to 100 million shares. Zynga Inc. is the latest in a spate of IPOs by Internet companies this year, ranging from professional networking service LinkedIn Corp. to the online deals site Groupon Inc. They’re all precursors to Facebook’s public debut, expected sometime after April next year and possibly fetching as much as $10 billion for the social networking service. Zynga, whose games are played mainly on Facebook, plans to sell its shares at $8.50 to $10 each. If the shares are priced at $10, Zynga will be valued at $7 billion, based on the number of its total shares. The company expects to sell 14.3% of its available stock, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Read the full story from The Associated Press here.
