A bra with built-in ice packs, a wind chime and a sprig of mint that was unveiled in Japan on Wednesday is promising to keep women cool this summer.

In a nearly-naked publicity stunt, underwear firm Triumph Japan had models parading around showing off its "Super Cool Bra", featuring what appears to be a pair of small fish tanks encompassing the breasts.

Two 1960s British petrol stations were on Tuesday awarded Grade II protected status, fuelling interest in an establishment whose architecture is usually associated with drab uniformity.

English Heritage awarded the accolades to a UFO-style winged station on the A1 at Markham Moor in Nottinghamshire and a second station with six 'parasols' over the pumps in Birstall, Leicestershire -- both in central England.

The vast swirl of plastic waste floating in the North Pacific has grown 100-fold over the last 40 years, according to a research paper published Wednesday.

And scientists warned the killer soup of microplastic -- particles smaller than five millimeters (0.2 of an inch) -- threatened to alter the open ocean's natural environment.

New York's iconic Empire State building is not only going to go greener but also more colorful as it gets a new energy-efficient lighting system that offers a palette of 16 million shades.

The computerized system using LEDs lights would allow the building to cut energy consumption by 73 percent, said Dutch electronics giant Philips, which has been contracted to provide the lighting.

Japanese electronics giant Sharp said Tuesday it had created a robot vacuum cleaner capable of recognizing and responding to simple voice commands in several languages.

The Cocorobo understands dozens of phrases such as "good morning", "clean the room" and responds differently "depending on the cleaning situation", Sharp said in a statement.

South Korea has seized thousands of smuggled drug capsules filled with powdered flesh from dead babies, which some people believe can cure disease, officials said Monday.

The capsules were made in northeastern China from babies whose bodies were chopped into small pieces and dried on stoves before being turned into powder, the Korea Customs Service said.

A mugger who attacked a woman in Japan fled empty-handed -- and with one finger missing -- after the intended victim chomped off his pinkie.

The 59-year-old woman fought back after a man snatched her bag as she arrived at her apartment in the northern city of Sapporo, police said Tuesday.

Yellow taxis, orange ferries and now blue bikes. New York's latest transportation initiative got an official color Monday -- plus $41 million sponsorship from Citi.

The program, which envisions 10,000 bicycles and 600 docking stations, will start in July, Mayor Michael Bloomberg confirmed as he announced the sponsorship deal alongside Citi CEO Vikram Pandit and other officials.

Russians prefer their Lay's potato chips dusted in caviar and crab flavors. The Chinese like their Oreos stuffed with mango and orange cream. And in Spain, Kellogg's All-Bran cereal is served floating in hot coffee instead of cold milk.

Americans might get squeamish at the thought of their favorite snacks being tweaked. But what works in the U.S. doesn't always work everywhere.

South Korean police said Monday they would propose a new law to punish drivers watching television, following a public outcry over the death of three cyclists last week.

The current law bans drivers from watching dashboard-mounted televisions while driving, but there is no specific penalty.