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Flip-flops are named for the sound they make when you walk — flip, flop, flip, flop — but they could have been called ouch-umphs, the sound you'll make after wearing them all the time.

Researchers at Auburn University have found that wearing flip-flops alters the way one walks, changing the gait in subtle ways that can lead to serious sole, heel and ankle problems. They presented these findings earlier this month at the annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine in Indianapolis.

The number of personal computers in use around the world has surpassed 1 billion, with strong growth in emerging markets set to double the number of PCs by early 2014, research firm Gartner said on Monday.

Mature markets accounted for 58 percent of the first billion installed PCs, but would only account for about 30 percent of the next billion, Gartner said.

There's innovation in the Alps.

According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Switzerland is the European country that has filed the most patents in the three leading patent offices around the globe--the U.S., the European Union and Japan. Even better: Seven of the top 10 countries on the OECD's list are in Europe. Japan grabbed the No. 1 spot overall.