Dear ACM TechNews Subscriber: Welcome to the October 4, 2002 edition of ACM TechNews, providing timely information for IT professionals three times a week. For instructions on how to unsubscribe from this service, please see below. ACM's MemberNet is now online. For the latest on ACM activities, member benefits, and industry issues, visit http://www.acm.org/membernet Remember to check out our hot new online essay and opinion magazine, Ubiquity, at http://www.acm.org/ubiquity ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ACM TechNews Volume 4, Number 407 Date: October 4, 2002 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Site Sponsored by Hewlett Packard Company ( ) HP is the premier source for computing services, products and solutions. Responding to customers' requirements for quality and reliability at aggressive prices, HP offers performance-packed products and comprehensive services. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Top Stories for Friday, October 4, 2002: http://www.acm.org/technews/current/homepage.html "Government Releases Top 20 Vulnerability 'Hit List'" "Congress Asked to Unpick Copy Lock Laws" "More Patents, Please!" "Robotic Vision" "Quantum System Keeps Secrets Safe" "The Mac OS That Can't Be Tweaked" "U.N.: Robots Could Lighten Load of Household Chores" "Invisible Circuits in a Flash" "Upgrades to Boost SETI@home Alien Search" "Super Goop" "Working in IT: Where Has All the Fun Gone?" "A Moment of Clarity" "From Humble Materials, a Burst of Power for Batteries" "Where the Girls Aren't" "Prospects Dim for Future Tech Pros Prepping for Spring Job Scramble" "Sounds Could Make Smart Devices Smarter" "Welcome to Feedback Universe" "Fighting Terrorism With Technology" "Data Extinction" ******************* News Stories *********************** "Government Releases Top 20 Vulnerability 'Hit List'" The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) on Wednesday issued its third annual target list of the top 20 Internet security flaws, which was compiled by the SANS Institute and the FBI's National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC). This ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item1 "Congress Asked to Unpick Copy Lock Laws" Reps. Rick Boucher (D-Va.) and John Doolittle (D-Calif.) introduced legislation on Thursday calling for amendments to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) that would allow consumers to circumvent anti-copying technology measures for ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item2 "More Patents, Please!" Technology companies are pushing their staffs to produce more patents, which can boost the bottom line with licensing fees and strengthen their competitive edge; many firms are trying to encourage patent generation by offering engineers incentives such ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item3 "Robotic Vision" Engineers at Caltech and the University of Southern California (USC) are investigating a form of robotic vision known as selective-attention modeling, which is based on neuroscientific research that suggests the human brain's recognition of salient ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item4 "Quantum System Keeps Secrets Safe" British scientists report in this week's issue of Nature that they successfully transmitted encryption keys on a weak beam of light between two mountaintops in Germany across a distance of 14 miles--the longest distance yet for a transmission of this type, ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item5 "The Mac OS That Can't Be Tweaked" Apple Computer has reversed its tact of letting individual users make changes to the Macintosh operating system with the new OS X. Although the company published the application program interfaces of previous operating systems, CEO Steve Jobs has stopped the ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item6 "U.N.: Robots Could Lighten Load of Household Chores" The U.N. Economic Commission for Europe's World 2002 Robotics Report issued on Thursday suggests that robots could soon ease the burden of housework from homeowners, thanks to falling prices, rising labor costs, and technological advancements. The ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item7 "Invisible Circuits in a Flash" Scientists in Japan have discovered a transparent material that acts as an electric conductor when exposed to ultraviolet light, paving the way for invisible computer chips. Such chips could be unnoticeably integrated into LCDs and other optical devices. ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item8 "Upgrades to Boost SETI@home Alien Search" SETI@home, the grid computing effort that recruits home users to help search for signs of intelligent extraterrestrial life, will be upgraded with new software and switch to a telescope that can scan a greater area of sky. The first software release will be ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item9 "Super Goop" MR fluid is liquid material that stiffens into a more clay-like consistency when it is subjected to a magnetic force, and researchers are studying potential applications in robotics and building stability, among other things. The substance is already ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item10 "Working in IT: Where Has All the Fun Gone?" The image and purpose of IT has changed significantly since the late 1990s, when insatiable demand for high tech and IT professionals made it cool to be a tech enthusiast and for companies to invest heavily in new technology, observes ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item11 "A Moment of Clarity" MIT researchers say a new anti-glare coating could lead to innovation in optic technologies. Although traditional anti-glare coatings allow for the near-complete transmission of light--which is important in solar cell panels and optical ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item12 "From Humble Materials, a Burst of Power for Batteries" The lithium cobalt oxide most rechargeable batteries use is relatively expensive, and this has prompted research into cheaper alternatives. Dr. Yet-Ming Chiang of MIT reports in the October issue of Nature Materials that his team has successfully raised ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item13 "Where the Girls Aren't" For over 10 years, educators have tried to get girls interested in pursuing computers, math, and science as a course of study and a possible career using a broad range of programs, and now researchers at North Carolina State University are studying ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item14 "Prospects Dim for Future Tech Pros Prepping for Spring Job Scramble" People who earn bachelor's degrees in technology fields this year will have an even tougher time finding jobs. The National Association of Colleges and Employers says companies are planning to hire fewer college graduates this year compared to last year. ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item15 "Sounds Could Make Smart Devices Smarter" Parham Aarabi of the University of Toronto says he is incorporating sound navigation into electronic devices, and he predicts that it will be five to 10 years before such communications devices are offered to consumers. Aarabi claims ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item16 "Welcome to Feedback Universe" A feedback loop--a closed system in which the results of an event send back data that helps shape the event in the future--is being applied to practically every aspect of life. Feedback, in its most basic form, is either negative--progressing toward balance ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item17 "Fighting Terrorism With Technology" Harvard University professor Lewis M. Branscomb says that industry and government must work together so that an effective IT counterterrorism strategy can be implemented. He co-chaired the National Academies' Committee on Science and Technology for ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item18 "Data Extinction" The built-in obsolescence of digital technologies threatens the preservation of data--photos, documents, video, etc.--especially since decoding programs are rendered out-of-date by evolving computer languages and operating systems. Migration is one of ... http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1004f.html#item19 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -- To review Wednesday's issue, please visit http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/1002w.html -- To visit the TechNews home page, point your browser to: http://www.acm.org/technews/ -- To unsubscribe from the ACM TechNews Early Alert Service: Please send a separate email to listserv@listserv2.acm.org with the line signoff technews in the body of your message. -- Please note that replying directly to this message does not automatically unsubscribe you from the TechNews list. -- To submit feedback about ACM TechNews, contact: technews@hq.acm.org -- ACM may have a different email address on file for you, so if you're unable to "unsubscribe" yourself, please direct your request to: technews-request@acm.org We will remove your name from the TechNews list on your behalf. -- For help with technical problems, including problems with leaving the list, please write to: technews-request@acm.org ---- ACM TechNews is sponsored by Hewlett Packard Company.