A teenager from Saratoga, California took home one of the top prizes at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair late last week after showing off her invention, which can fully charge a cell phone in 30 seconds or less. Eesha Khare was given the Intel Foundation Young Scientist Award and a $50,000 prize for being runner-up in the competition, which was won by a 19-year-old who unveiled a new spin on self-driving car technology. Khare’s battery technology requires a new component to be installed inside the phone battery itself, and Intel notes that it also has potential applications for car batteries.

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18-year-old’s invention can recharge a cell phone in 30 seconds

By Sinead Carew and Nicola Leske NEW YORK (Reuters) – Network equipment maker Cisco Systems Inc posted a higher than expected quarterly profit and said current-quarter revenue could increase, giving some relief to investors who had worried it was being hurt by weak technology spending. Cisco shares rose about 8 percent after Chief Executive John Chambers said the company was seeing some good signs in the United States and that other parts of the world are “encouraging.” “We are managing the business to account for a continued slow steady recovery on a global basis,” Chambers said. …

Cisco profit beats Street, shares rise on outlook

By Rachelle Younglai and Caren Bohan WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Senate supporters of a broad U.S. immigration bill struggled on Wednesday to satisfy technology companies that want greater leeway to hire high-skilled foreign workers. Democratic Senator Charles Schumer of New York took the lead in trying to broker a compromise on a visa program for skilled workers known as H-1B that has divided business groups and organized labor. The two sides are at odds over requirements that companies first seek Americans for any job openings and a prohibition on displacing U.S. workers. …

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Senators struggle with tech industry concerns on U.S. immigration bill

(Reuters) – AT&T Inc expects much better results in its wireless business in the second quarter after a weak start to the year, Chief Executive Randall Stephenson said on Wednesday. Last month, the No. 2 U.S. mobile provider reported a net loss of 69,000 cellphone subscribers in the first quarter, sparking fears of a slowdown in the market. But Stephenson said the poor start to the year was something AT&T could improve on. “I don't think we executed very well in the first quarter. It was a bit disappointing to me,” he said at an investor conference that was webcast. …

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AT&T expects better results in mobile business in second quarter

NEW YORK (Reuters) – AT&T Inc has cut the price of the HTC First phone, which is preloaded with Facebook Inc applications, to 99 cents from $99.99 less than a month after the phone's launch. AT&T, the No. 2 U.S. mobile service provider, said the price cut took effect on Wednesday. The company is the exclusive U.S. wireless carrier for the phone, made by Taiwan's HTC Corp and launched on April 12. An AT&T spokeswoman said price-cutting promotions are not unusual. But operators typically wait longer than a few weeks after a launch before discounting phones. …

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AT&T cuts “Facebook phone” price to 99 cents, weeks after launch