V4 N42 -  27 March 2005

iTHINK ZONE
 

ARE THE BELLS TOLLING FOR VoIP?

The past few weeks have seen serious attacks on VoIP instigated by governments and the telecos and cablecos. Two excellent analysis pieces have appeared and are worthy of reading if you're interested in the future viability of VoIP.

READ ON
http://cyberzone.pacific-tier.com/iThink.htm
[Posted March 24 ]

OTHERS' THINK ZONE

VoIP ZONE

TEXAS SUES VONAGE ON 911 CALL DEFAULT
The largest Internet based telephone service in the US, Vonage Holdings Corp has been taken to the court by the Attorney General of Texas, Greg Abbott on account of failing to inform the subscribers that they need to apply separately for the 911 services. Vonage provides voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) telephone services.

According to the lawsuit, the company faulted by misrepresenting the type of emergency service offered by it and that the company should inform the customers about the emergency services that are being offered by it. According to the spokesperson of Vonage, Brooke Schulz, the customers are notified through e-mail if they fail to activate the 911 service and that they are willing to co-operate with the authorities on the same.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58598-2005Mar22.html?referrer=email
NOTE: EVEN IF YOU DON'T READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE, BE AWARE THAT VONAGE OFFERS SUBSCRIBERS MULTIPLE CHANCES TO SIGN UP FOR 911 SERVICE.

CYBERZONE

FCC TO ADDRESS NAKED DSL
The FCC is expected to suspend state public utility rules that force BellSouth to let customers buy its high-speed Internet service without having to also sign up for its local phone offering. A source familiar with the situation said, the Federal Communications Commission could suspend public utility commission regulations in Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, California and Louisiana that forced Bellsouth to sell DSL, or digital subscriber line, service separate from its local phone service. In the past, the two services had been inextricably linked.
http://news.com.com/Source+FCC+to+dress+naked+DSL/2100-1037_3-5627726.html

FIRST RESPNDER INFORMATION SYSTEM
The National Library of Medicine (NLM), a component of the National Institutes of Health, has released a PDA software tool designed to help first responders when they arrive at a hazardous material (Hazmat) incident, such as a chemical spill. WISER (Wireless Information System for Emergency Responders) provides the emergency responder with critical information on hazardous substances, including physical characteristics, human health data, and containment and suppression information. Employing the unique characteristics of a PDA, WISER is customized for easy navigation and quick access to key information required by first responders. The operational versions of WISER for Palm OS and for Pocket PC are available for downloading at: http://link.abpi.net/l.php?20050317A2.
ull Article at: http://link.abpi.net/l.php?20050317A3

USERS GROW VIRTUAL CALL CENTERS
Office Depot is in the process of shutting down nearly all its internal call centers and shifting the load to outsourcers -- in particular, outsourcers who use home-based agents.
http://www.contactcentertoday.com/story.xhtml?story_id=30529

PAYING STUDENTS TO LEARN IN MISSISSIPPI
Former Netscape CEO Jim Barksdale has offered millions of dollars to students in Mississippi if the state legislature agrees to do three
things: fully fund education, improve teachers' pay, and perform an annual audit of how federal funds are spent. If legislators agree to the terms, Barksdale will give $5,000 each to any student who graduates from a Mississippi high school, and those who go on to graduate from any of the state's eight public universities would receive another $5,000. Mississippi routinely ranks at or near the bottom of achievement among its students. Barksdale said his offer was prompted by reading about the state's low academic achievement, which many blame on inadequate funding. In 2000, Barksdale donated $100 million to fund the Barksdale Reading Institute, an organization that provides literacy training for underachieving students in Mississippi. Legislators are considering the offer, but differences between the state House and Senate may prevent the state from approving the proposal.
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/11209527.htm

BIO/NANO/MEMS ZONE

NUMENTA WORKS TO DEVELOP BRAIN-LIKE COMPUTING Big ideas can take a long time to gestate. And this one has been cooking in Jeff Hawkins' brain for more than 25 years: Wouldn't it be great to build a computer that works the way the human brain does?
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/11217606.htm

BIOLOGICAL COMPUTER CAN RUN ONE BILLION PROGRAMS Technion Israel Institute of Technology scientists have developed a biological computer, composed entirely of DNA molecules and enzymes constructed on a gold-coated chip, that can run 1 billion programs.
This increase represents a dramatic advance in terms of the potential mathematical operations and complexity of problems that may be solved.
http://www.kurzweilai.net/email/newsRedirect.html?newsID=4348&m=9698

CONTACT LENSES REACT TO BLOOD-SUGAR LEVELS
Contact lenses that change their appearance according to the wearer's blood-sugar level could one day help people with diabetes keep track of their levels non-invasively, new research suggests.
http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7182

THE TANGLED WEBS THEY WEAVE
Molecular biologists believe they have unlocked the genetic sequencing in spider silk, an uncommonly strong material that can used for everything from bulletproof vests to airbags. If only the spiders would quit eating each other.
http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/05/02/wo/wo_hoffman022105.asp?trk=nl

BIO-BRIEFS ZONE

Boston----Cancer pioneers push ahead: For two local biotechs, Phase III FDA approval will make or break new treatments
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324127

East Bay--Cal tries for first dibs on Prop 71 cash
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324128

San Francisco--Xoma gets biodefense contract from federal disease institute
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324129

Seattle--Technology transfer rules strain relationships: Modified ethics guidelines strengthen ties between research institutions and businesses http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324130

Seattle--Top research needs top investigators
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324131

Seattle--Scientific law: Biotech industry can improve quality of life in region
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324132

Seattle--State shifts into proactive mode to cultivate industry
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324133

Seattle--California packs punch as heavyweight in biotech fight
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324134

Seattle--Eastern Washington incubates own bioscience culture
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324135

Seattle--Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles pushes pro-research agenda, sponsors key legislation to advance biotech
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324136

Seattle--Life-sciences fund could boost state's global pull
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324137

Seattle-- Biotech industry has come long way in six years
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324138

Seattle--Slow growth continues in nascent industry
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324139

Seattle--Objects of desire: Washington biotech companies are being wooed by other states http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324140

Seattle--Industry watch: Imagine state as leader for bioscience innovation
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324141

Seattle--Building a strong foundation: Business booms on back of biotech
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324142

Seattle--Early-stage biotech investing lags behind nation
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324143

Seattle--IP lawyers find Seattle suits them, offers room to grow
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324144

Washington--Tax-credit talk heats up in Md.; biotech fuels debate
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324145

Washington--Pharma Sequoia secures $22M from N.J. investor
http://www.bizjournals.com/ct/c/1324146

ASIA ZONE

TELECOM NUMBERS IN CHINA REGISTER INCREASE The Chinese telecommunications industry is reported to have earned revenues worth $6 billion in the month of January 2005. The figures indicate an increase of about 8% over the revenues in the same period last year. The number of fixed line subscribers was pegged at 315.6 million including the 67 million fixed wireless subscribers in January 2005. The number of mobile phone users was stated to be 339.7 million, about 4 million more than the number in December 2004. The wireless data growth also overtook the growth in voice services by about 3%. This has been attributed to the GPRS and CDMA 1X network.

SPECIAL REPORT: POLLUTION IN CHINA
Some of the world's most polluted cities are in China, so it's no surprise that clean energy sources are one of the country's research-and-development priorities.
http://www2.technologyreview.com/articles/05/04/issue/feature_gp_china.asp?trk=nl

CHINA's HIGH-TECH PRODUCT EXPORTS
Export of high-tech products records $12.93 billion fAccording to the latest statistics released by Ministry of Commerce (MOC), by the end of February this year, China's high-tech products have maintained trade surplus for five consecutive months, the exports reaching 12.93 billion US dollars and imports 11.77 billion US dollars, up 21.3 percent and 5.6 percent respectively, realizing a trade surplus of
1.16 billion US dollars.

The statistics shows that the total volume of import and export of China's high-tech products hit 50.77 billion US dollars in the first two months this year, up 23.5 percent. Among the total volume, the accumulative export volume yielded 26.19 billion US dollars, up 29.6 percent, accounting for 27.5 percent of the national foreign trade volume.
[People's Daily Online]

SHANGHAI IN NEED OF A CURB ON CELLULAR RADIO TOWERS The unrestrained expansion of cellphone towers in Shanghai is worrying the officials as they are cluttering the skyline. Three major mobile players namely Shanghai Mobile, Shanghai Telecom and Shanghai Unicom plan to increase the number of towers by 3000 annually. These towers will help the companies to provide 3G services. These constructions at such a large scale will disrupt the radio signals in the city and also destroy the environment.

WIRELESS ZONE

FIRST Wi-Fi SERVICE ON MUNICIPAL BUS SERVICE For the first time a wireless broadband will be deployed on a municipal bus system in Cerritos, California. The pilot for the same will be launched on March 31, 2005 on the bus service called Cerritos on Wheels (COW). Aiirmesh Communications, the company that has also provided the reportedly largest municipal Wi-Fi network in the US, will provide the Wi-Fi deployment on the bus service. The municipal coverage is extended over 8.6 square miles covering the entire city and was deployed in 2004. The company later extended the same to the neighboring cities of Artesia, La Palma, La Mirada, Bellflower, Lakewood, Buena Park and Norwalk thus taking the total area to over 40 square miles.

TOKYO GETTING CITYWIDE WiMAX NETWORK THIS YEAR Two vendors, one American and the other Japanese, said they have plays to deploy a citywide WiMAX wireless broadband network in Tokyo. U.S. vendor Airspan and Japanese communications operator Yozan said they will start trials for the network in the second quarter of this year. They said that commercial rollout will begin in the fourth quarter, with a fuller-scale launch in December.
http://www.mobilepipeline.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=159401309

MCI TO UNDERTAKE EXPANSION OF WiFi SERVICE The number of hot spots where MCI Inc provides Wi-Fi Internet coverage is currently pegged at about 6,200. The hot spots allow the customers to access Internet on their laptops without using a cord, all across the world. The company plans to increase the number of hot spots by about 3,400 in the US by May 2005 and also add 1,300 hotspots in Europe and Asia. The substantial increase in the number of hot spots has been attributed to the alliance with Boingo Wireless Inc, which has enabled MCI to expand its network. The Wi-Fi network will now also be available in coffee shops, bookstores and retail centers in addition to hotels, airports, restaurants and convention centers.

NEW HOMES COME STANDARD WITH WiFi
Wish you had a digital home of the future, complete with wireless networking and home controls? Playa Vista, Calif., may be the place to be.
http://nl.internet.com/ct.html?rtr=on&s=1,1hek,1,k5x,241j,jcj3,9ffi

SITE CITES

WHY DOES INHALING HELIUM MAKE YOUR VOICE SOUND STRANGE?
Craig Montgomery, chair of the chemistry department at Trinity Western University, explains.
http://cl.extm.us/?fe9d13757567047f74-fe20167073670d7c7c1c79
 

Marty Plotnick's CyberZone is a weekly review of Hawaii technology and international technology news.  The Hawaii Technology Calendar is available on the front page of this site, with links and descriptions of events relevant to the Hawaii technology and telecommunications community.  CyberZone takes special interest in researching and collecting links to stories from international technology news sources of interest to CyberZone's readers.  If you have any comments or suggestions for improvements to his site and information resource please contact Marty Plotnick at martycri@lava.net