FUTURE ZONE

GREATEST TECH RESEARCH CHALLENGES OF 21st CENTURY

A panel of maverick thinkers, convened by the National Academy of Engineering, has identified what they consider to be the greatest technological research challenges facing society in the coming century. Panel member Rob Socolow of Princeton University expands upon the NAE Grand Challenges project and the role that technological innovation plays in a vibrant society. ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080215151157.htm

SNIFFING OUR INSIDER THREATS TO SECURITY

A rapid way to spot insider threats from individuals within an organization such as a multinational company or military installation is reported in the International Journal of Security and Networks. The technology uses data mining techniques to scour email and build up a picture of social network interactions. The technology could prevent serious security breaches, sabotage, and even terrorist activity. ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080219124512.htm

NATURAL DISASTER ZONE

SPREAD OF 1918 FLU PANDEMIC EXPLAINED

Researchers have explained why two mutations in the H1N1 avian flu virus were critical for viral transmission in humans during the 1918 pandemic outbreak that killed at least 50 million people. The team showed that the 1918 influenza strain developed two mutations in a surface molecule called hemagglutinin, which allowed it to bind tightly to receptors in the human upper respiratory tract. ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080218172441.htm

COMPUTER ANALYSIS OF 911 CALLS FROM CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES OFFERS POTENTIAL EARLY WARNING SYSTEM

When confronted with emergencies or natural disasters, such as the wildfires that raged through San Diego and Los Angeles counties last October or the tornadoes that recently hit the southern US, residents often dial 9-1-1 as their first course of action. ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080213133301.htm

CYBERZONE

PENTAGON REPORT: IT STUDIED LASERS THAT PUT VOICES IN YOUR HEAD

A recently unclassified report from the Pentagon from 1998 has revealed an investigation into using laser beams for potential methods of non-lethal torture.They include putting voices in people's heads, using lasers to trigger uncontrolled neuron firing, and slowly heating the human body to a point of feverish confusion, all from hundreds of meters away.

http://physorg.com/news122567894.html

HOW GAMING CHOPS TRANSLATE INTO REAL-WORLD BUSINESS SKILLS

This holiday season, parents who bought Sony's PlayStation 3, Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, or the latest online game need not feel guilty. It turns out young people -- and adults -- aren't always just wasting time when they're playing video games. Today's game players are acquiring skills that companies increasingly value as the gaming generation enters the workforce.

http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/61747.html

HANGING UP ON FRAUD COSTS HUNDREDS OF JOBS

Scammers from countries such as Nigeria and the United Kingdom have been using a taxpayer-funded telephone relay service for the deaf to target victims in the United States, current and former employees said. About 700 people are employed at a call center in Riverbank, Calif., that provides phone translations, called "relay services," for the deaf, hard of hearing and speech-impaired.

http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/61713.html

SCIENCE ZONE

SCIENTISTS PONDER THE SUCCESSOR TO MOORE'S LAW

The National Science Foundation has requested $20 million from the U.S. government for fiscal 2009 to start the "Science and Engineering Beyond Moore's Law" effort, which would fund academic research on technologies including carbon nanotubes, quantum computing and massively multicore computers.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,142561-c,futuretechnology/article.html

LASER BEAM SETS RECORD FOR INTENSITY

The world's most intense laser beam uses 300 terawatts of power concentrated in a 30 femtosecond pulse to a 1.3-micron area, or 20 billion trillion watts per square centimeter.

http://www.ns.umich.edu/htdocs/releases/story.php?id=6346

ENERGY ZONE

SCIENTISTS WOULD TURN GREENHOUSE GAS INTO GASOLINE

Los Alamos National Laboratory scientists are proposing a concept, named Green Freedom, for removing carbon dioxide from the air and turning it back into gasoline. Air would be blown over a liquid solution of potassium carbonate, which would absorb the carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide would then be extracted and subjected to chemical reactions that would turn it into fuel: methanol, gasoline or jet fuel.

However, economically providing the energy to produce gasoline on a commercial scale -- say, 750,000 gallons a day - would require a dedicated power plant, preferably a nuclear one, the scientists say.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/science/19carb.html

NEW WORLD RECORD FOR SOLAR-TO--GRID CONVERSION EFFICIENCY

Scientists have set a new solar-to-grid system conversion efficiency record by achieving a 31.25 percent net efficiency rate. The old 1984 record of 29.4 percent was toppled Jan. 31 on SES's "Serial #3" solar dish Stirling system at Sandia's National Solar Thermal Test Facility. The solar dish generates electricity by focusing the sun's rays onto a receiver, which transmits the heat energy to a Stirling engine. The engine is a sealed system filled with hydrogen. As the gas heats and cools, its pressure rises and falls. The change in pressure drives the pistons inside the engine, producing mechanical power, which in turn drives a generator and makes electricity. ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080213172955.htm

ENVIRONMENT ZONE

FUNDS PLEDGED FOR CLIMATE CHANGE TECHNOLOGY

U.S. institutional investors pledged at a U.N. summit on Thursday to invest $10 billion over two years in technologies that aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to pressure companies to disclose their risks associated with climate change.

http://www.enn.com/pollution/article/31225

ASIA PACIFIC ZONE

CHINESE GOVERNMENT'S PLANS FOR NANOTECHNOLOGY

University of California at Santa Barbara researchers say China aims to leapfrog the United States in technological development with substantial investment in nanotechnology.  Nanotechnology research is one of four Chinese "science Megaprojects"

that have the central purpose of catching the country up to US research by 2020.

http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/02/the-chinese-gov.html

CHINA TO CLOSE 144 GAS STATIONS IN BEIJING AREA

Beijing plans to shut down 144 petrol stations by the end of May, about 10 percent of the city's total, to help clean up its air before the August Olympic games, state media reported.  These gas stations, and nine oil depots, are mostly owned by China's state oil major Sinopec and by CNPC, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, citing the city's environmental authority.  The oil facilities, mostly in outlying areas, are either too costly to run or fail to meet air quality regulations, the report said.  All the oil storage tanks and petrol stations in the capital city will have until the end of May to install equipment, costing about 600,000 yuan ($83,680) apiece, to capture emissions from vehicles, the report said without giving details.  The city has 1,442 petrol stations.

http://www.enn.com/pollution/article/31247

WIRELESS ZONE

GOOGLE LOOKING AT BALLOONS FOR WIRELESS COVERAGE

Google, a company with sky-high valuation and aspirations to match, is seriously thinking about wireless transmission using balloons that Space Data Corp. loads with electronics for a 24-hour journey.

http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=11100AWYDRQ0&

RUMBLES OF WIRELESS PRICE WAR GETTING LOUDER

Three of the four largest wireless carriers rolled out new flat-fee monthly subscription options that let users talk as much as they want, sparking concerns among investors about a profit-sapping price war in the mobile space. Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile all announced all-you-can- consume plans within hours of each other on Tuesday.

http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/61750.html

SITE CITES

VIDEO: THE TEN FUNNIEST MAC vs PC YouTube VIDEOS

http://cwflyris.computerworld.com/t/2792511/255221/99550/2/

WHY DON'T THE FRENCH GET AS FAT AS AMERICANS?

THE AMERICANS EAT UNTIL THE SHOW IS OVER

  It's the French paradox redux: Why don't the French get as fat as Americans, considering all the baguettes, wine, cheese, pate and pastries they eat? Because they use internal cues -- such as no longer feeling hungry -- to stop eating, reports a new Cornell study. Americans, on the other hand, tend to use external cues -- such as whether their plate is clean, they have run out of their beverage or the TV show they're watching is over. ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080215103153.htm