Solar power a bright idea for upcoming iPhone

There is impressive evidence that Apple is moving into solar power in a big way, not just in the projected 4.4 million square feet of office and manufacturing space slated for solar, but in the next generation iPhones and iPod Touch. In an impressive, well-researched post on the Seeking Alpha investor blog, Matt Margolis puts together the diverse pieces of the puzzle and comes to the convincing conclusion that more than just growing sapphire will be going on at Apple’s new 1.3 million square foot plant in Mesa, Arizona. Specifically, he argues that the combination of patents, job postings, and equipment orders all point to Apple developing the ability within the coming year to etch very precise channels in the underside of the protective sapphire veneers it will be adhering to the new iPhone and iPod Touch screens into which it will deposit compounds to create highly efficient solar cells to help charge the devices. So no more having to use the cords - just leave it in the sun for a while and you're good to go. Speaking of going, the going is about to get tough for Justin Bieber, because while the Canadian teenager decompresses on a Panama beach after a wild week in Miami, a prosecutor will decide if he will face a felony charge in Los Angeles. Detectives who went frame by frame over security video seized from Bieber's California mansion are close to carrying their egg attack evidence to the Los Angeles district attorney for a decision. While Bieber's drunken driving arrest in Miami Beach on Thursday earned him his first mug shot, a felony vandalism case could be the biggest threat to Bieber's freedom and ability to tour the world. Although a felony could carry jail time, probation appears much more likely if Bieber is ultimately convicted. Chris Brown, who pleaded guilty to assaulting Rihanna on the eve of the Grammys five years ago, avoided time in a California jail despite the violence involved in the beating of his girlfriend. But probation has proven to be a major hindrance to his music career, for he is now in court-ordered rehab for three months and will have to spend several days each week until August working on a community labour crew to complete his probation requirements. Probation could also have Bieber walking on eggshells for several years if he is convicted of launching eggs over a fence onto his neighbour's mansion. His probation officer would possibly have to approve any travel outside of California, which could hamper the world touring that contributes to his income and fame. But if that douche does go to prison, there is also the possibility that he won't be able to see what all the fuss is about with Bill Cosby's return to TV. That's right, Bill Cosby is returning to NBC with a new sitcom, which will bring the 76-year-old comedian back to the same network where his groundbreaking 1980s sitcom "The Cosby Show" had an eight-year run. The Cosby Show portrayed an upper-middle-class African-American family, and it's credited with helping revive NBC's fortunes and blazing a path for other shows featuring African-Americans (including but not limited to spin-off A Different World). Cosby played Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable, the patriarch of that TV family. Phylicia Rashad played his wife Clair, and would play his wife a second time on another sitcom simply called "Cosby," which aired on CBS in the 1990s.