Over 1, 000 government programs, including the defense budget and Medicare, are in line for deep, automatic cuts that begin to bite in January.

FORBES: How Will the Fiscal Cliff Impact Our Innovation Economy?

Electrical frequencies and voltages drop as power line currents increase, necessitating automatic or manual interruption of loads (blackouts) to protect grids.

FORBES: Wind Energy's Overblown Prospects

The 1966 line specializes in manufactured movements with automatic winding in ultra-thin cases produced entirely in Girard-Perregaux workshops.

FORBES: Girard-Perregaux Unveils Watch With Over 800 Diamonds

An automatic hamburger flipper currently in development could replace low-wage line cooks at a beachside burger joint, for example.

WSJ: As Wages Rise, Firms Consider Replacing Workers With Devices

The report by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) found engineering work on the line between Southcote Junction in Reading and Westbury meant the automatic half barrier level crossing was being controlled locally.

BBC: Ufton Nervet level crossing

Boehner noted that while plenty of GOP defense hawks are anxious about the automatic cuts, Democrats concerned with cuts to domestic programs have a lot on the line, too.

NPR: Boehner: Up To Democrats To Prevent Budget Cuts