Apple's iDebacle

So much for the theory of Apple infallibility. Cupertino on Thursday released its new mapping app, which was greeted by howls of derision for its tendency to make bridges and buildings a href="http://theamazingios6maps.tumblr.com/">look like melted plastic lawn furniture when viewed in 3-D mode

Rest assured that Apple will soon correct the problem -- just as soon as the animatronic Steve Jobs they keep in the boardroom finishes screaming humiliating invective at the people responsible.

Gruff but loveable: After working behind the camera as director in recent years, Clint Eastwood returns to acting in the role of -- what else? -- a curmudgeon in the new baseball picture "Trouble With the Curve"

Special acting honors go to Clint's co-star, Justin Timberlake, who successfully avoids being upstaged by an empty chair.

Jaw-jaw: A gadget designed to alert long-winded speakers that their speeches are running long was awarded the 2012 Ig Nobel prize for weird and humorous scientific discoveries.

The prize may be premature, however, because the SpeechJammer has not yet been subjected to the ultimate challenge: a Bill Clinton speech.

-- Mark Carlson, Herald staff