Douglas Ernst

Sandcastle contest washed away by shutdown

An annual San Francisco sandcastle contest for elementary school children has been indefinitely scrapped this year because of the government shutdown.

October 9, 2013

Big glitch: Obamacare site must reset passwords on registrants

Americans who took time to register for Obamacare at Healthcare.gov have been given a tough pill to swallow: Phone support has told individuals that passwords are being reset to fix many of the login problems and "glitches" that President Obama has acknowledged.

October 9, 2013

Parking space too tight? Ford technology parks cars with driver outside vehicle

Have you ever had to pass up a parking space because the fit was so tight it would trap you inside the vehicle? New technology by Ford Motor Company that was recently unveiled in Belgium makes that problem a thing of the past.

October 9, 2013

Boy has ‘SEALs vs. ninjas’ question answered by head of Special Forces

A young boy told to be quiet "like a SEAL" by his mother was inspired to write to the head of U.S. Special Operations command and ask if the elite warriors are more silent than ninjas.

October 8, 2013

NSA spy data center hit with multiple meltdowns; electrical explosions delay opening

The National Security Agency planned to open the first of four new facilities in Utah this year, but a series of mysterious meltdowns has pushed back the opening for a year.

October 8, 2013

Dr. Ben Carson: ‘I had my first encounter with the IRS’ after prayer breakfast with Obama

Dr. Ben S. Carson went years without ever having a run-in with the Internal Revenue Service. But his good fortune changed after his speech at the National Prayer Breakfast in February, the former Johns Hopkins neurosurgeon said Monday night at an event with business leaders and elected officials in Alabama.

October 1, 2013

Iran hacks Navy site as Obama negotiates with Tehran

Iran has reportedly stepped up cyberattacks on the U.S. military. The news comes at a time when President Obama and Iranian President Hasan Rouhani communicated by phone call Friday for the first time since the Carter administration.

September 28, 2013

NBC News to ‘help Americans get the most out of the Affordable Care Act’

NBC News announced Friday that it will "help Americans get the most out of the Affordable Care Act" with a special series of programs and reports.

September 27, 2013

‘Star Wars’ no longer science fiction: Harvard, MIT scientists create lightsaber

"Star Wars, Episode VII" isn't scheduled to come out until 2015, but researchers have made real lightsaber technology available — today.

September 26, 2013

Barilla, world’s biggest pasta company, will ‘never’ include gay families in ads

Barilla may be one of the most famous brands of pasta, but its fan base may be about to get smaller.

September 26, 2013

B-52 crash with a nuclear payload almost vaporized North Carolina in 1961: report

What would happen to the U.S. economy if two nuclear bombs were detonated on American soil? The world almost found out in 1961, according to recently declassified government document.

September 24, 2013

Ex-Royal Marine saved 100 during al Qaeda attack at Kenya mall: report

An armed ex-Royal Marine is being credited with saving at least 100 lives during the attack by an al Qaeda offshoot on a shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya, that began Saturday.

September 24, 2013

Atheists launch PAC backing nonreligious candidates

A political action committee specifically geared towards filling the halls of Congress with atheists and agnostics and those friendly to their cause was launched Wednesday in Washington.

September 19, 2013

Scientists create ‘Terminator’ polymer that can spontaneously self-heal

Scientists have created a polymer that can self-heal almost any break.

September 19, 2013

Court rules Facebook ‘like’ button just as protected as written speech

If you click "like" on a Facebook post, does your click constitute "speech" that is just as protected as written speech? The answer is yes, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals said in overturning the lower court's ruling.

September 19, 2013

U.S. pilot scares off Iranians with ‘Top Gun’-worthy stunt: ‘You really ought to go home’

The U.S. Air Force has a message for Iran: Don't mess with our drones.

September 19, 2013

McCain: ‘Not true’ that Syrian rebels are mostly Islamic extremists

Sen. John McCain angrily disputed claims that at least half of Syria's rebels are Islamic extremists on Tuesday night.

September 18, 2013

Eli Manning gets political: Giants QB will headline $1,000 per head fundraiser for Hoboken mayor

NFL quarterback Eli Manning is known for huddling up with his teammates, but on Sept. 30 he'll be hobnobbing with politicos at a fundraiser for Hoboken, N.J., Mayor Dawn Zimmer.

September 17, 2013

Los Angeles school district hires company to monitor social media of 13,000 students

Whose job is it to monitor a child's online behavior when they aren't in school? According to the Glendale Unified School District in Los Angeles, the answer is elementary: the school district.

September 17, 2013

AMAZING VIDEO: Kevin Ware back dunking after gruesome broken leg

Last March, the University of Louisville's Kevin Ware suffered a gruesome broken leg during live coverage of the NCAA tournament. Now, only months later, he's back — and dunking to prove it.

September 17, 2013