http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/10/technology/circuits/10usbb.html
Hmmmm....I guess that explains this. Maybe.Its initials have also become increasingly familiar in the digital lexicon: U.S.B., for universal serial bus.
U.S.B. ports, and the plugs that fit them, make it easier to connect devices to a computer, eliminating screwdriver-heavy tasks and the need to reboot the computer every time a new piece of equipment is plugged in.
But perhaps most important, two of a U.S.B. cable's four wires carry not data but juice: enough current to run small to midsize gadgets with no need for batteries or AC adapters.
Eight years ago, when the technology first appeared, U.S.B. meant keyboards, joysticks and the like. But manufacturers began cottoning to U.S.B.'s ability to provide a power source, leading to a host of gizmos that have nothing to do with computers: radios, reading lights, even massage balls and air purifiers.