German researchers have found that just five cars in a thousand communicating with one another is all it takes to reduce congestion.

That may not sound like a whole lot of automobiles, but it is sufficiently representative of traffic flow to allow traffic engineers to determine how best to manage traffic and alleviate rush-hour jams and construction delays. The finding comes as German officials prepare to roll out a vehicle-to-vehicle communication to alleviate traffic congestion and a growing number of automakers explore the technology.

“Location-specific traffic information and warnings in r...

A screenshot from Star Wars Arcade: Falcon Gunner. Too much for 8-year-olds?

I was visiting my nephews, again. Within seconds of seeing me fiddle with my iPhone, my older nephew, Jack, who is 8, asked me, again, if my iPhone had any videogames on it.

“Uh, no, sorry Jack,” was my reply, letting a white lie skip through my teeth. I knew his mother and father might be none too pleased to see the two of us hunched over the tiny screen playing Star Wars Arcade: Falcon Gunner or Lego Indiana Jones 2.

What his parents are doing is difficult. They’ve chosen to keep Jack videogame-free for as long as p...