Cybercorps Scholarships Fund
New Generation of Security Gurus
Companies Seek to Hold
Software Makers Liable for Flaws
Software makers traditionally have no responsibility for
damage or problems their customers suffer as a result of
flawed or vulnerable software, but increasing numbers of
customers are insisting that liability be established. The
hope is that accountability will significantly lower the cost
to customers, ...
[read more]
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EU Patent Crisis: Pressure
Mounting to Scrap IT Changes
A motion for the European Commission to act on the European
Union's proposed software patenting directive was unanimously
passed on Feb. 24 by the European Parliament, which is calling
for the dismissal of the proposal in its current form and
restarting the legislative process. Many EU ...
[read more]
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9-11 Commissioner Calls for
End to ISACs
In a Feb. 17 panel discussion at the RSA Conference, Jamie
Gorelick, a member of the 9-11 Commission, said the federal
government's reliance on information sharing and analysis
centers (ISACs) is a flawed model that should be discarded or
dramatically revised. She said the voluntary, ...
[read more]
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Artificially
Induced
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Artificial Intelligence
and Reasoning Lab is working to create reasoning computers for
the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
Previous inventions at the laboratory include the psychometric
experimental robotic intelligence system that could ...
[read more]
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Taking Java to the Embedded
Market
State-of-the-art Java technology is partly responsible for
traditional IT systems' gradual transformation from visible
desktop computers to concealed embedded systems in smart
devices, and the IST-funded HIDOORS project took an important
step in this direction by demonstrating that the Java platform
...
[read more]
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Go for IT: Conference Tells
Grade-Nine Girls
Lasha Dekker, Microsoft Canada's vice president of
developer and platform evangelism, prepared for her keynote
address at the Explore IT Conference on Feb. 23 by
interviewing grade-nine girls about their perceptions of IT
careers, and composing a presentation that debunked key myths.
She noted ...
[read more]
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Finding a Replacement for
Passwords
The fact that online password protection is a cost-free
security measure is the key to its enduring appeal, and to
users' general refusal to opt for more effective--and
expensive--solutions, say analysts. Companies with a
significant e-business component advise customers to use
easy-to-remember ...
[read more]
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No Encryption for
E-Passports
Security experts are concerned that the suggested upgrading
of Americans' passports with radio frequency identification
(RFID) chips containing data such as the bearer's name, date
of birth, and digital photo could actually compromise
travelers' security, because recently proposed rules forbid
...
[read more]
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The Touchy-Feely Side of
Telecoms
Upcoming mobile phones from Samsung will incorporate haptic
technology that enables users to send text messages with
accompanying texture and other tactile sensations. Key
challenges in haptics development include the complex
interplay of physical variables such as force, vibration,
texture, ...
[read more]
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Digital TV's Hollywood
Showdown
Content owners have been fighting technology companies,
consumer groups, and digital rights advocates over the FCC's
mandate that broadcast flag technology be deployed in all
electronic devices that receive TV signals sold after July 1
of this year. The debate reached a turning point on Feb. ...
[read more]
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For Simpler Robots, a Step
Forward
Future bipedal robot designs may be significantly
influenced by three models unveiled at last week's annual
meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of
Science. The robots--developed by the Delft University of
Technology, MIT, and Cornell University--are capable of ...
[read more]
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Wireless's New
Hookup
The Zigbee wireless standard promises to enable reasonably
cheap home automation since people do not have to install
wires. More than 100 firms announced plans for Zigbee products
late last year, including Honeywell International, Motorola,
Samsung Electronics, and Philips Electronics. ...
[read more]
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Navigating Open-Source
Licenses Can Be Tough Task
Open Source Initiative (OSI) founder Eric Raymond says
company developers should not spend too much effort
researching possible patent infringement when launching new
open source projects: "You don't 'want' to know what patents
you may be infringing in advance--that makes it 'willful' and
...
[read more]
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Xen Lures Big-Name
Endorsements
Open source virtualization software Xen has gained serious
industry backing in the last few months, creating the
possibility that the technology could become a standard
feature for future computers. Xen allows multiple operating
systems to run on the same machine through virtualization of
the ...
[read more]
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Breach Points Up Flaws in
Privacy Laws
The recent disclosure by ChoicePoint that personal data on
nearly 145,000 individuals was accidentally sold to identity
thieves has spurred discussion among lawmakers about how to
shore up privacy and data protection laws. Experts say the
ChoicePoint incident illuminates how ...
[read more]
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Slow Going on the Global
Grid
The Globus grid computing software framework is receiving
renewed support from big technology vendors with the release
of its new Globus Toolkit version 4 (GT4), which makes the
framework more suitable for business applications. Major
business grid users such as Johnson & Johnson and ...
[read more]
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High-Tech
Renaissance
Daniel A. Reed, formerly of the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign, has conceived of a Renaissance Computer
Institute where scholars of all disciplines can learn to tap
high-performance computing and data mining resources to
conduct research that could yield significant long-term ...
[read more]
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The 'Pull' of Niche
Communities
Author and visiting scholar at USC's Annenberg Center John
Seely Brown envisions the knowledge economy transitioning from
the supply-push model of monopolistic corporations to the
demand-pull model of niche communities, and discusses what
parts open source and open content play in this ...
[read more]
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Cybercorps Scholarships
Fund New Generation of Security Gurus
The goal of the National Science Foundation's Cybercorps
scholarship program is twofold: To increase leading computer
science students' knowledge of information assurance and
security, and to encourage them to apply that knowledge to
government work after they graduate. Professors ...
[read more]
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