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Issue no. 28, 2005 Published: Sep 30, 2005
EU and US clash over control of internet
Microsoft loses in Eolas patent ruling
Antiterror plan on data rejected by EU assembly
'Netherlands to be digital gateway to Europe'
Microsoft pushes Kid's Programming Language
Tech giants move on next-gen DVDs
MIT to develop $100 Linux laptop for schoolkids
Google and Nasa in space venture
New biological robots build themselves
Can proteins perform logic?
AI systems may blow weathermen away
Computer users move themselves with the mind
Robot claims 'treasure island' booty

EU and US clash over control of internet
The United States and Europe clashed on Thursday in one of their sharpest public disagreements in months, after EU negotiators proposed stripping the Americans of their effective control of the internet. The EU decision to back the rest of the world in demanding the creation of a new international body to govern the internet clearly caught the US off balance and left them largely isolated at talks designed to come up with a new way of regulating the digital traffic of the 21st century. Delegates meeting in Geneva for the past two weeks had been hoping to reach consensus for a draft document by Friday after two years of debate. The 'World Summit on the Information Society', organised by the UN, was scheduled to conclude in November. Instead, the talks have deadlocked, with the US fighting a solitary battle against countries that want to see a global body take over supervision of the internet from the current overseeing body, the US-based ICANN. Although ICANN is a private organisation with international board members, the US Department of Commerce ultimately retains veto power. Under the terms of a 1998 memorandum of understanding, ICANN was to gain its independence from the Commerce Department by September 2006. But in July the Bush administration said it would retain control over the web.
International Herald Tribune / ABC News Sep 30, 2005	back to top

Microsoft loses in Eolas patent ruling
Striking a blow to Microsoft, the US Patent Office this week reaffirmed a key web-browsing patent that the software maker is accused of infringing. In a decision made public Wednesday, the patent office upheld the validity of a patent held by the University of California and its Eolas Technology spinoff. In 2003, a jury awarded more than $500m in damages to the university and Eolas, but an appeals court this year partially upheld Microsoft's appeal, saying the company should be able to present evidence that similar inventions predated Eolas' patent application. Eolas and the university filed suit against Microsoft in 1999, alleging that the way Microsoft's Internet Explorer uses plug-ins and applets infringes on an early-1990s patent.
CNET News Sep 29, 2005	back to top

Antiterror plan on data rejected by EU assembly
The European Parliament on Tuesday rejected a proposal by EU governments to retain telephone and e-mail data for up to three years for use in antiterrorism investigations, raising concerns about civil liberties. Instead, the EU lawmakers will focus on a counterproposal by the European Commission, the EU's executive body, that would keep data for a shorter time. The EU lawmakers argued that the plan, put forward last year by Britain, France, Sweden and Ireland, did not prove the need for such strict EU-wide data retention rules, and also expressed concerns about violating civil liberties. The plan is now delayed. The four governments will wait to see if a less-stringent proposal proposed last week by the European Commission will get enough support among member states. The Parliament is likely to have fewer objections to the commission proposal.
International Herald Tribune Sep 28, 2005	back to top

'Netherlands to be digital gateway to Europe'
Long the physical gateway to continental Europe by sea or by air, the Netherlands is now positioning itself as the digital portal to the region. That is the pitch of the country's Minister for Foreign Trade Karien van Gennip, who was speaking Monday at the High Tech Connections (HTC) event in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The minister cited her country's attractive tax climate and its work on eliminating bureaucracy as some of the reasons why US technology companies might want to set up partnerships with Dutch firms and/or establish offices in the Netherlands. Also key is the nation's broadband penetration. In 2004, the Netherlands had over 20 broadband access lines per 100 inhabitants, in second position to South Korea as the most wired country in the world. The Netherlands will surpass South Korea by year end, Van Gennip believes. The Dutch government also has an aggressive multi-million-euro investment plan in place to try to boost the country's technological standing in grids, embedded systems and nanotechnology.
Infoworld / IDG Sep 28, 2005	back to top

Microsoft pushes Kid's Programming Language
Microsoft has signed on to promote a new programming language intended to replace BASIC as the first step students take towards learning how to code. The Kid's Programming Language, or KPL, was developed under the direction of Jonah Stagner, and his colleagues, ex-Microsoft program manager Jon Schwartz and former NCR engineer Walt Morrison. The three run the software consultancy Morrison-Schwartz Inc. While KPL can be downloaded for free, it is poised to get wider exposure thanks to a recent descriptive article posted on the Coding4Fun website, which is part of Microsoft's MSDN developer network. Indeed, KPL's affinity for .NET, and the fact that it runs only on Windows, may be the big reason Microsoft is supporting the new language. The original catalyst for the development of language was Stagner's desire to give his 10-year-old son and children like him a worthwhile language with which to get started. Versions of KPL are available in English, German, Swedish, Polish, and Romanian. Additional versions, as well as new features, will be forthcoming.
TechWeb Sep 28, 2005	back to top

Tech giants move on next-gen DVDs
Intel and Microsoft have said they will support Toshiba-led next generation DVD technology, HD DVD, over a rival Sony-led Blu-ray DVD technology. Toshiba, with NEC, Sanyo and others, is pushing HD DVD, while backers of Sony's Blu-ray discs include Dell and Apple. The next generation of DVDs will be able to store much more high-quality data, including high-definition video. For months, the two groups have been battling to win support for their competing disc formats from technology companies and Hollywood studios. Backers of Blu-ray technology argue it is a more sophisticated technology with a greater storage capacity. HD DVD supporters say their preferred technology will be available sooner and will be cheaper. Toshiba said it had developed the first laptop with a next-generation HD DVD drive in it. It said they would be available by the start of next year in Japan.
BBC News Sep 27, 2005	back to top

MIT to develop $100 Linux laptop for schoolkids
Nicholas Negroponte, founder and chairman of MIT's Media Lab, has announced a project to develop $100 laptops for schoolchildren. The non-profit One Laptop Per Child group has ambitious plans to distribute 150 million laptops in three years. The idea is based on applying the concept of open source to education, according to Negroponte. The group will demonstrate a prototype of the laptop in November at the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunisia. The first countries to distribute the laptops are expected to be Brazil, China, Egypt, South Africa and Thailand. The cost of the 500MHz 1Gb laptop can be reduced to $100 because the group will cut out the cost of sales, marketing, distribution and profit. The group plans to deliver laptops directly to national ministries of education, which can distribute them like textbooks. The prototype will be Linux-based, full-colour and full-screen, and will use alternative sources of power, including clockwork. The laptops will be enabled with Wi-Fi, and have at least four USB ports.
VNUnet UK Sep 29, 2005	back to top

Google and Nasa in space venture
Google has formed a partnership with US space agency Nasa in an effort to harness new technology which could boost the space programme. Google is to build a new office complex on the site of Nasa's research facility in California, close to its own headquarters in Silicon Valley. The two companies will co-operate in a range of areas including IT solutions, data management and nanotechnology. The two companies have signed a memorandum of understanding, although the financial terms of the joint venture were not disclosed. As part of the venture, Google will develop one million square feet of real estate at the Nasa Ames research centre. Examples of areas of potential collaboration include the development of new types of remote sensors and improving analysis of engineering problems.
BBC News Sep 29, 2005	back to top

New biological robots build themselves
Inspired by biological systems, scientists have developed miniature robots that can self-assemble using parts that float randomly in their environments. The robots also know when something is amiss and can correct their own mistakes. Scientists have long been fascinated by how living cells are able to replicate DNA using building blocks floating randomly inside the cell's nucleus. To artificially recreate this process, a research team from MIT created robots capable of latching onto one another in specific sequences. The robots come in two colours, yellow (Y) and green (G), and float around on a cushion of air like pucks on an air hockey table. Each robot is programmed to latch onto a green robot on one side and a yellow robot on the other to form 5-robot strings such as YGGYY or GYYGG. The robots also have a built-in mechanism to correct any errors they might make. Each robot is able to check the colour of its neighbouring block and will unlatch itself if the sequence is not correct.
MSNBC / LiveScience.com / Nature Sep 28, 2005	back to top

Can proteins perform logic?
Theoretical physicists of Cambridge University, UK have shown that it is possible to use proteins to perform complex logic operations. The main role of many proteins is to transmit and process information in living cells. These processes involve other molecules called regulatory ligands that bind to specific sites on the surface of the protein. A typical protein can switch between an inactive and an active state as the concentration of the ligand varies. These states could be used to represent the '0's and '1's of binary logic, but proteins are not true logic gates because a large change in concentration is needed to switch them from one state to another. Now, the researchers have shown how, in theory, certain proteins can bind two different ligands at the same time to perform all the elementary logic functions, including AND, OR, XOR and NOT XOR. These proteins can act as individual logical elements because their output depends on two inputs - the concentrations of the ligands. Moreover, when the proteins cluster together, the response is further enhanced. The clusters can thus act as logic gates whose activity can be abruptly switched from fully active to fully inactive.
PhysicsWeb Sep 23, 2005	back to top

AI systems may blow weathermen away
Weather forecasters could find themselves pushed out of a job by an artificial intelligence system designed to write clearer, less ambiguous reports. Computer scientists at the University of Aberdeen, UK, were asked to generate an 'artificial weatherperson' by operators of offshore oil rigs, who wanted more clarity in their forecasts. When the team compared past weather bulletins with the raw forecast data on which they were based, they found a striking variability in the choice of words used by different forecasters. To remove such uncertainties, the team programmed a natural language generation (NLG) software package to transform data on the forecast weather into an unambiguous written bulletin. Similar systems could be used to clarify the medical notes of hospital critical care beds to prevent the phrases used to describe a patient's condition being misinterpreted.
New Scientist magazine / Artificial Intelligence Sep 28, 2005	back to top

Computer users move themselves with the mind
Computer scientists of Graz University of Technology in Austria, have created a hat that can read your thoughts. It allows you to stroll down a virtual street. All you have to do is think about walking. Called a brain-computer interface, the device detects activity in certain brain areas linked to movement, and uses the signals to mimic that movement in a virtual world. The technology could one day help paralysed patients to move robotic arms, or help sufferers of motor neuron disease to type out words on a virtual keyboard. By picking up on these bursts of nerve activity, the computer can decide whether you are thinking about moving your hands or feet, and react accordingly. The non-invasive technology detects brain waves by using electrodes placed at strategic points on the scalp; they are positioned over brain areas known to be involved in moving specific body parts. The computer can then distinguish between signals corresponding to different types of movement.
Nature Sep 27, 2005	back to top

Robot claims 'treasure island' booty
A robotic treasure hunter is said to have discovered an 18th-century buried treasure on the island of Robinson Crusoe, located 660 kilometres from the coast of Chile in South America. The Scottish sailor Alexander Selkirk was marooned on the same island in 1704. His story inspired Daniel Defoe to write Robinson Crusoe, which was published in 1719. Wagner Technologies announced that its robot 'Arturito' had found the booty by probing 15 metres below ground. The company plans to start excavating in a matter of days, as soon as permits can be obtained. According to legend, a fabulous treasure haul was buried on the island in 1715 by a Spanish sailor. The bounty is said to have been discovered a few years later by British sailor Cornelius Webb, who reburied it. By some estimates the haul would be worth up to $10bn. Arturito has previously helped Chilean police locate buried weapons using ground-penetrating radar. GPR, or georadar, locates subsurface objects or structures by emitting microwave-frequency electromagnetic radiation and measuring the reflected signal, which is then represented as a two or three dimensional image.
New Scientist Sep 26, 2005	back to top