BERLIN.Internet sex auction sparks paternity row

A woman in Germany who became pregnant after an online sex auction has won a court battle to force the Web site that hosted the sale to reveal the names of the winners, so she can find out who?s the father. Six different men won Internet auctions to have sex with the woman in April and May last year. They were only known to her by their online names, a spokesman for a court in the southwestern city of Stuttgart said yesterday. ?The woman wanted to discover which one of the men had made her pregnant,? the spokesman said. ?So she needed their contact details. Of course, if they?re not willing to go along with the gene test, she?ll have to take them to court.?

The woman asked the site?s operator to reveal the true identity of the men, but it refused, citing a confidentiality clause in its terms and conditions. The court ruled in her favor, saying the child?s right to know who its father was took precedence.

CHICAGO. Microfiber fabric makes its own electricity?

US scientists have developed a microfiber fabric that generates its own electricity, making enough current to recharge a cell phone or ensure that a small MP3 music player never runs out of power. If made into a shirt, the fabric could harness power from its wearer simply walking around or even from a slight breeze, they reported on the day before in the journal Nature. ?The fiber-based nanogenerator would be a simple and economical way to harvest energy from the physical movement,? Zhong Lin Wang of the Georgia Institute of Technology, who led the study, said in a statement.

The nanogenerator takes advantage of the semiconductive properties of zinc oxide nanowires ? tiny wires 1,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair ? embedded into the fabric. The wires are formed into pairs of microscopic brush-like structures, shaped like a baby-bottle brush.

NEW YORK. Lack of sleep unlikely to impact weight over time

Regularly getting 5 hours or less of shut eye a night does not appear to have a considerable influence body weight or waist size over time, according to findings from a long-term study of British workers. While some past research has identified a relationship between obesity and a lack of sleep, this research could not affirm which came first ? the lack of sleep or the weight problem.

WASHINGTON. Scientists see promise in new way to fight viruses

Scientists have discovered a promising new method to fight a range of diseases by boosting the body?s natural defenses against viruses. Mauro Costa-Mattioli of McGill University in Montreal, who helped lead the research published on Wednesday in the journal Nature, expressed hope that the results achieved in mice might lead to new antiviral drugs for people.

KOREA. How deep is your love? Passion phones know?

Valentines Day in South Korea means chocolates, romantic dinners and a high-tech mobile phone device that can secretly check the passion in the voice of a lover. The ?Love Detector? service from mobile operator KTF uses technology that is supposed to analyse voice patterns to see if a lover is speaking honestly and with affection. ?We created this service because we thought people would want to know what others were feeling about them,? said Ahn Hee-jung, a KTF official. Users who speak by pointing their mobile phones at themselves for video conferences can see a ?love meter? bar on the screen of their handset during a conversation.

They later receive an analysis of the conversation delivered through text message that breaks down the amount of affection, surprise, concentration and honesty of the other speaker. The service costs subscribers a flat fee of 1,500 won ($1.59) a month for unlimited use or can be accessed at 300 won for each call, KTF said. ?The caller is paying the money, so the information is provided only to him or her,? said Ahn.