Of course, we wonder if what the company has come up with really is an effective way to prevent the problem, or just a case of corporate public relations and spin doctoring in an attempt to limit damage to Toyota’s image and reputation?

Toyota says it has worked with CTS Corp., the company that supplies the car maker with accelerator pedals, to fix the problem of sticky gas pedals in more than a dozen Toyota and Lexus models, including the popular Camry and Carolla.

Officials had said it could take more than a year to make enough new replacement pedals to outfit the more than four million vehicles affected worldwide. However, Toyota now says it has come up with a “modified pedal” that will use a “selective spacer” to repair the faulty gas pedals, rather than replacing them all, according to a report on Automobilemag.com.

The car maker said it is “working closely with our pedal supplier CTS on a revised design that effectively remedies the problem. These pedals are now in full production at CTS to support Toyota’s needs. At the same time, we continue to work with CTS to test effective pedal modifications for existing vehicles on the road that will be available to our customers as quickly as possible.”

But Toyota’s approach to this scandal begs the question: Is using a Band-Aid type fix rather than a total replacement of the defective pedals really the way to go, when the risks from out-of-control speed in millions of popular vehicles around the world are so high?

The company has agreed to pay $18 million to wireless customers who say they were unfairly charged high fees when they ended their service contracts with the company. The agreement settles legal claims brought by former and current AT&T users and applies to customers as far back as 1998, according to an Associated Press report.

AT&T customers who were charged an early-termination fee from the company after they cancelled a two-year service contract just before it was to expire stand to get back as much as $140, the AP reports. Customers who terminated their contracts earlier in their contract periods would get less money back.

Even former AT&T customers who were never charged an early termination fee can benefit from the settlement. Those customers can get an AT&T long distance phone card with up to 200 minutes, or if they currently have a service contract with AT&T, they may choose to have the fee amount changed from a $175 flat rate to one that is prorated, according to the AP.

AT&T used to charge a flat-rate early-termination fee of $175, regardless of how long the customer had left on the contract. The company started prorating those fees in 2008, meaning customers who cancelled their service after a year paid less money to get out of the deal.

Other telecommunications companies have agreed to similar legal settlements with customers over early-termination fees. In August 2009, Sprint Nextel Corp. agreed to pay $17.5 million to settle the same kinds of claims from its customers.

This week, the Federal Communications Commission asked AT&T, Sprint, Verizon Communications Inc., T-Mobile USA Inc., and Google Inc. to reconsider whether they are giving customers enough notice about the fees they will be charged.

For its part, AT&T said it denies any wrongdoing in the handling of its early-termination fees, but said it agreed to pay the settlement in order to avoid future litigation, according to the AP.

A new study conducted by the Archives of Internal Medicine followed 1,506 female soccer players aged 16 to 19 for nine months while they participated in a training program or a control group. The training group concentrated on motor skills and body control, as a means to prepare the young women for sports-specific stresses. Sessions consisted of warm-up, balance, muscle activation, strength and core stability. The other group did its training and warm-up routine as usual.

Among the players who took part in the special training program, three sustained injuries. Although the injuries were serious, all three returned to the field within six months of being hurt. Thirteen players in the control group had knee injuries, most of which were severe. Only four returned to full activity within six months.

The researchers concluded that the training program was linked to a 77% lower frequency of any knee injury, and a 90% lower rate of non-contact knee injuries. Study authors emphasized that the program requires no special equipment and is easy to incorporate into regular sports practices.

Researchers tracked 8,800 adults with no history of heart disease for over six years. The study subjects who watched four hours or more hours of TV per day were 80 percent more likely to die from heart disease, as compared to those who watched less than two hours per day. Each additional hour spent in front of the TV raised the risk of dying from heart disease by 18 percent and the overall risk of death by 11 percent.

Lead study author David Dunstan said that the real problem can be attributed to too much sitting. “Prolonged television watching equals a lot of sitting, which invariably means there’s an absence of muscle movement,” he wrote.

If you’re planning to make up for movie marathons with more exercise, think again: Dunstan and his colleagues incorporated into their study how much participants exercised. Adults who exercised but still watched more TV were still at higher risk of dying than those who watched less and exercised the same amount.

Apps typically cost only several dollars to the consumer, and are an affordable way to improve gadgets. Mobile apps typically allow users to make purchases, share tweets or make updates. The first HDTV-based application store is expected to be launched later this year by Samsung. Samsung is hoping that channel-surfers will be able to order a movie from Netflix, surf the web and use their television as a gaming console without ever leaving the couch.

Ford Motor Co. is also getting in on the craze: the company will make several applications available on its vehicles later this year. One will read aloud Twitter tweets as you drive along. Pandora music service and Stitcher Internet Radio have also signed contracts with the company. Ford will not develop products that might distract the driver, such as video games.

All the new launches suggest that 2010 will be the year for apps, and tech companies are eager to embrace the broader range of products. Consumers benefit too, by getting more uses out of a single product.

The X-ray machines, known as “backscatter scanners,” only deliver a dose of ionizing radiation that amounts to 1 percent or less of the radiation in a dental X-ray. But when travelers pass through the every day, the radiation doses could substantially increase the risk of cancers.

Another type of full-body scanner uses a less powerful form of radiation that is safer for travelers. The scanners, which are currently employed by airports across the country, also provide a less clear image. Several health experts and radiation consultants argue that the radiation doses delivered by backscatter scanners are tiny and the better technology far outweighs the risk. Doses divided into portions among millions would not have the effect as those concentrated on a few people, they say.

Officials at the Transportation Security Administration have already tried out several of the machines, and may purchase hundreds more from the manufacturer. The debate will likely continue as American airports search for better imaging technology.

Researchers at Florida Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center arranged about 70 mouse cages in a circle around an antenna that emitted electromagnetic waves similar to those emitted by a cell phone pressed to a human head. The mice were exposed to the radiation for two hours a day for seven to nine months.

Most of the mice had a genetic mutation that caused them to build up the amyloid plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. Researchers discovered that the memory problems of older mice disappeared over the course of the study. Younger Alzheimer’s mice maintained cognitive function, while normal mice improved their memories from the continual radiation.

The electromagnetic waves emitted from cell phones could prove to be a non-invasive treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, the researchers wrote. The treatment could also boost memory in general. More research needs to be conducted, but chalk the study up as further evidence that you can chat without worries.

A study conducted by researchers from the FDA and Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center found that safety targets weren’t always clearly defined. Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco reported that heart devices receive approval based on research done outside the United States on small groups of patients.

FDA officials contended that University of California researchers only looked at summaries of the device approvals, as opposed to the full research. However, the FDA is still reexamining its device program and making changes. In both studies, researchers looked at pre-market approvals from 2000-2007. They did not examine the safety of the approved devices.

The study, published in the journal Neurology, analyzed all data on TENS in studies lasting three months or longer. Little scientific data has been offered to demonstrate exactly how the device works. The paper’s authors said that people who are currently using the therapy should discuss the new guidelines with their doctor.

TENS could still be useful for treating patients with diabetic nerve pain. Study authors wrote that the device might be a “therapeutic alternative” in treating neurological pain disorders.

Before, Facebook users had the option to hide everything but name and networks in the “Basic Info” privacy settings. Now, public information might include gender, profile photo, current city, friends and fan pages. Applications or quizzes can also pull private information from your profile (as part of the terms of use). The information that Facebook terms “Publicly Available Information” is visible via Internet search engines.

In order to make changes, place your cursor over “Settings” and select “Privacy Settings” from the drop-down menu. Uncheck the “Allow Indexing” box to prevent your information turning up on a Google search.

The technique, called massively parallel sequencing, causes millions of sequencing reactions to occur at the same time. Better yet, the process—which normally costs tens of thousands of dollars—can be completed for a fraction of the usual cost. The more breast cancer genomes mapped, the better idea scientists have of what causes the disease.

The genomes of 24 breast cancer tumors were mapped in the journal Nature on Dec. 23. A comparison of the tumors showed several distinct patterns of DNA damage, which indicates different sub-types of cancer. The information could help doctors develop more accurate forms of prognosis and treatment.

In the past, scientists have focused on protecting infants and children in safety seats. But the Virginia-Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences has recently completed a three-year research project about the tissue composition and dimensions of pregnant women and their fetuses. The new data will help researchers develop restraint systems that prevent typical injuries.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safeway Administration, auto accidents are the single largest cause of death for pregnant women. Before changes to vehicles go into effect, automakers plan to highlight safety precautions pregnant women can take. For example, Ford’s 2011 safety manuals will specifically instruct expectant mothers on seat belt safety.

A company-sponsored trial showed that all patients had improved their hearing after implantation with the Esteem hearing system, made by Envoy Medical Corp. of St. Paul, Minnesota. Fifty-four out of 57 patients reported improved scores on a speech reception threshold test. But there could be lingering side effects that include a disturbance in sense of taste. Facial palsy was also a concern.

The device is implanted in the middle of the ear. Doctors would need to separate the three bones that make up the ossicular chain of the middle ear, along with removing a small bone called the incus.

About 5.3%, or three out of 57 patients, required revision surgery after receiving only a “limited benefit” from the device. In these instances, investigators found fibrous adhesions that stopped the hearing aid from working.

The new clinical approach could help patients who might otherwise experience heart failure, according to the article published in Journal of the American College of Cardiology. The stem cells reduce the amount of scar tissue and increase the pumping strength of the heart in heart attack patients. They also grow a limited amount of new heart muscle.

Researchers are also looking into how the therapy could help patients who have experienced heart attacks many months or years in the past. The current study shows the results from patients who just had a six-month follow-up.

From David, the boy who was so jacked up on drugs from the dentist that he asked his dad “Is this real life?” to the wedding processional that turned into a funky dance party down the aisle, the Web was buzzing this past year with tons of funny video clips.

Whether you love piano-playing cats, babies and little kids doing and saying crazy things, or people pulling off insane stunts, there was something for you online in 2009. Here’s hoping 2010 brings another batch of must-see TV online.

Here are some our favorite viral videos from the past year. Enjoy.