Communications of the ACM
News track
News Track
A survey of technology leaders, builders, and activists finds that most believe the Internet will continue to spread in a "flattening" and improving world. However, many others warn major problems will accompany the technology advances by 2020, according to a report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project. Findings from "The Future of the Internet II" survey indicate the majority of participants believe a global network will be thriving by 2020 and available at a low cost to most people around the world. While most also believe humans will remain in charge of technology between now and then, some fear technological progress will eventually create machines and processes that are beyond human control. Moreover, the respondents were split evenly on whether the world will be a better place in 2020 due to the greater transparency of people and institutions afforded by the Internet. Asked what their priority would be for future networking investments, 78% noted two key goals: network capacity and spreading knowledge about technology for the benefit of all.
Patents Not Pending
IBM, the largest patent holder in the U.S., pledges to publish its patent filings online for public scrutiny. Big Blue's policy, announced in late September, includes standards such as identifying the corporate ownership of patents. The New York Times reports IBM hopes other companies follow its lead, claiming a widely adopted policy could curb the rise of patent disputes and litigation. However, the policy is not without business risks. Indeed, patents take about three to four years after filing to be approved by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, which is a major reason companies often try to keep their patent applications private as long as possible to hide their technical objectives from their competitors. IBM maintains the open approach improves the quality of patents in general because a public forum should help eliminate piggyback claims that are not true innovations.
Fear of enslavement by our creations is an old fear, and a literary tritism. But I fear something worse and much more likelythat sometime after 2020 our machines will become intelligent, evolve rapidly, and end up treating us as pets. We can at least take comfort that there is one worse fatebecoming foodthat mercifully is highly unlikely." Paul Saffo, director of The Institute of the Future, on the evolution of smart machines.
A Matter of Style
Intel is offering $1 million in prizes to designers and manufacturers who craft a more eye-catching alternative to "the box." The Intel Core Processor Challenge is looking for smaller, more striking multimedia PCs. The only condition is that all entries must be powered by Intel Viiv technology using Core 2 Duo processors. The competition is open to PC designers and manufacturers worldwide. Each company may submit up to five different designs. The grand prize winner will receive $300,000 to enable the mass production of the systems and $400,000 to co-market the design with Intel. Judges will convene next month to begin evaluating the entries. For more information on how to apply and submit an entry to the contest, visit www.intel.com/idf/corechallenge.htm.
Nano Products, Giga Concerns
Public health officials are calling for the U.S. government to balance close oversight of the fast-developing field of nanotechnology against the risk of stifling new development. At a recent conference hosted by the Food and Drug Administration, experts from around the world shared their often contrasting views of the risks of nanotechnology and how it should be regulated. The Associated Press reports that roughly 20 cents of every dollar spent each year by U.S. consumers is for products that already incorporate microscopic (nano) particlesmost notably drugs, foods, cosmetics, and medical devicesall falling under the FDA's purview. Many of the experts warned that known properties in metals and materials of a larger size can change fundamentally at the nano size. The FDA acknowledges these uncharted issues but to date has done more fact-finding than policy-making. Moreover, participants noted the technology is emerging at such a pace that hundreds of nano-based products have crept into the market with little or no scrutiny.
The Tiny Engine that Could
One of the hottest areas of research involves ways to provide the most efficient energy source for the mobile devices we carry. BBC News reports MIT researchers suggest a novel approach to the power problembuild an engine on a chip. The idea of a miniscule version of a gas-burning turbine came to MIT professor Alan Epstein a decade ago, and despite some collegial ribbing along the way, he has persevered. The MIT team has created a microengine of six silicon wafers piled on top of each other and bonded together. To bring costs down, up to 100 components were made on one large wafer and cut into individual units. The process begins with a tiny combustion chamber where fuel and air mix and burn at the melting temperature of steel. Turbine blades spin at 20,000 revolutions per second. A mini-generator produces 10 watts of power, and a tiny compressor raises the air pressure in preparation for combustion. Now that the team has proved all the parts work, its next challenge is to test an integrated chip, a step expected to commence soon. Epstein contends a laptop that runs for three hours on a battery charge will run for 15 to 20 years using a microengine and it should end up costing no more than current batteries. He believes a version could be commercially available in three to five years.
"Houston, We Have a Problem"
The corps of engineers that designed, built, and launched NASA's space shuttles is fast approaching retirement age, and administrators in the U.S. space program are calling on industry to attract more engineering studentsquickto technological jobs in the aeronautics arena. They also warn the push for space could fizzle unless younger kids are drawn to the building blocks of technical knowledgemath and science. Wired.com reports that developing the components of the Constellation program to build a new generation of spacecraft require a new generation of engineers. Depending on the NASA research center, from 20% to 40% of the engineers will reach retirement age in the next few years. Robert Dickman, executive director of The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, insists the space industry must do a much better job of selling the excitement of a career in the field and downplay the years of development and red tape required. "The people that came into the field in the Apollo era and the early shuttle era are retiring. The people that are going to make Mars happen, however, are the kids in school today."
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