Wednesday 4 November 2009, 5:23 PM
X-ray named top scientific invention
The X-ray machine has been voted the most important scientific invention in a poll by the Science Museum.
Out of nearly 50,000 votes cast, more than 9,500 chose the X-ray, one of 10 iconic inventions or discoveries in the poll, as having the biggest impact on the past, present and future.
Medical discoveries filled the top three spots, with the X-ray beating the discoveries of Penicillin and the DNA double helix structure into second and third place.
Prof. Andy Adam, professor of interventional radiology at King's College London said in a statement on Wednesday that the X-ray was a deserving winner. "I am delighted to hear that the X-ray machine has topped the poll of scientific discoveries," he said. "It has certainly revolutionised the practice of medicine. The diagnosis of many conditions and the planning of surgical or medical treatment is strongly dependent on input from radiology."
The X-ray was discovered in November 1895 by German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen when he was studying cathode rays emerging from a William Crookes cathode ray tube. Röntgen was awarded the first Nobel Prize for physics in 1901.
Katie Maggs, associate curator of medicine at the Science Museum said in a statement on Wednesday that the X-ray machine displayed in the Science Museum's Making the Modern World gallery, the Reynolds machine, was a DIY experiment by a father and his 15 year-old son. They were so inspired by news of the discovery of the x-ray that they built the equipment in their own home.
"It's very inspirational to budding scientists to learn that an invention now declared the most important in world history could be pioneered by enthusiastic amateur inventors," she said. "Many of the fundamental scientific discoveries of the twentieth century owe their origins to X-ray technology."
The poll, which began in June, was conducted as part of the Science Museum's events to mark its Centenary. The ten iconic objects form a special Centenary Journey trail through the museum galleries.
The Results:
1 - X-ray machines
2 - Penicillin
3 - DNA double helix
4 - Apollo 10 Capsule
5 - V2 Rocket Engine
6 - Stephenson's Rocket
7 - Pilot ACE Computer
8 - Steam Engine
9 - Model T Ford
10 - Electric Telegraph
Out of nearly 50,000 votes cast, more than 9,500 chose the X-ray, one of 10 iconic inventions or discoveries in the poll, as having the biggest impact on the past, present and future.
Medical discoveries filled the top three spots, with the X-ray beating the discoveries of Penicillin and the DNA double helix structure into second and third place.
Prof. Andy Adam, professor of interventional radiology at King's College London said in a statement on Wednesday that the X-ray was a deserving winner. "I am delighted to hear that the X-ray machine has topped the poll of scientific discoveries," he said. "It has certainly revolutionised the practice of medicine. The diagnosis of many conditions and the planning of surgical or medical treatment is strongly dependent on input from radiology."
The X-ray was discovered in November 1895 by German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen when he was studying cathode rays emerging from a William Crookes cathode ray tube. Röntgen was awarded the first Nobel Prize for physics in 1901.
Katie Maggs, associate curator of medicine at the Science Museum said in a statement on Wednesday that the X-ray machine displayed in the Science Museum's Making the Modern World gallery, the Reynolds machine, was a DIY experiment by a father and his 15 year-old son. They were so inspired by news of the discovery of the x-ray that they built the equipment in their own home.
"It's very inspirational to budding scientists to learn that an invention now declared the most important in world history could be pioneered by enthusiastic amateur inventors," she said. "Many of the fundamental scientific discoveries of the twentieth century owe their origins to X-ray technology."
The poll, which began in June, was conducted as part of the Science Museum's events to mark its Centenary. The ten iconic objects form a special Centenary Journey trail through the museum galleries.
The Results:
1 - X-ray machines
2 - Penicillin
3 - DNA double helix
4 - Apollo 10 Capsule
5 - V2 Rocket Engine
6 - Stephenson's Rocket
7 - Pilot ACE Computer
8 - Steam Engine
9 - Model T Ford
10 - Electric Telegraph
Wednesday 4 November 2009, 1:57 PM
US jury finds SMIC stole trade secrets
A California jury ruled on Wednesday that Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) stole and used trade secrets from rival company Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), according to Reuters.
The news agency reported that SMIC's actions could cost the company $1bn (£608.9m) in damages.
The jury also found SMIC guilty of breaching the terms of a 2005 settlement which was drawn up after TSMC sued its rival for theft of trade secrets and patent infringement over chip sales in California in 2003. SMIC had agreed to pay $175m, surrender all TSMC documents, stop using TSMC technology and processes to make its chips and not disclose trade secrets, Reuters said.
TSMC also granted SMIC a six year patent licence on the condition that no breach of the settlement occurred. According to Reuters, SMIC did not return the documents in question and disclosed some of TSMC's trade secrets in a patent application, prompting the filing of the current lawsuit in 2006.
TSMC's lawyer, Jeffrey Chanin, told Reuters that TSMC is also asking the judge at Alameda County Superior Court to permanently bar SMIC from selling the contested products in the United States.
The jury is expected to consider damages next week, and Superior Court Judge Steven Brick will rule on the request for a permanent injunction after the jury makes a decision.
SMIC has pending claims against TSMC for misappropriation of trade secrets that will be tried in a separate case.
The news agency reported that SMIC's actions could cost the company $1bn (£608.9m) in damages.
The jury also found SMIC guilty of breaching the terms of a 2005 settlement which was drawn up after TSMC sued its rival for theft of trade secrets and patent infringement over chip sales in California in 2003. SMIC had agreed to pay $175m, surrender all TSMC documents, stop using TSMC technology and processes to make its chips and not disclose trade secrets, Reuters said.
TSMC also granted SMIC a six year patent licence on the condition that no breach of the settlement occurred. According to Reuters, SMIC did not return the documents in question and disclosed some of TSMC's trade secrets in a patent application, prompting the filing of the current lawsuit in 2006.
TSMC's lawyer, Jeffrey Chanin, told Reuters that TSMC is also asking the judge at Alameda County Superior Court to permanently bar SMIC from selling the contested products in the United States.
The jury is expected to consider damages next week, and Superior Court Judge Steven Brick will rule on the request for a permanent injunction after the jury makes a decision.
SMIC has pending claims against TSMC for misappropriation of trade secrets that will be tried in a separate case.
Wednesday 4 November 2009, 11:56 AM
Dell finalises offer for takeover of Perot Systems
Dell announced on Tuesday that it has completed its $3.9bn (£2.3bn) offer to buy technology and business solutions provider Perot Systems. Dell has accepted Perot's stock at $30 a share, and will own 90 percent of the company.The takeover of Perot has created a new business arm called Dell Services, which will provide IT services to customers, and extend Dell's reach into technology hosting, consulting and application outsourcing, among other segments.
Former Perot chief executive Peter Altabef will become president of Dell Services, reporting directly to Dell chairman and chief executive Michael Dell.
CNET News has the full story on Dell's takeover of Perot Systems.
Wednesday 4 November 2009, 11:16 AM
Novell makes cuts to workforce
US based software provider Novell laid off three percent of its workforce last week, according to CNET News. Ian Bruce, Novell's public relations director, confirmed that 100 to 130 jobs were cut by the Linux company, despite Linux jobs in the US being up by six percent since January.Novell, which employs roughly 3,900 people across the globe, has offered those affected by the job cuts several months of severance pay, apparently based on the number of year's they've worked for the company.
Read the full story on Novell's job cuts at CNET News.
Tuesday 3 November 2009, 5:35 PM
South Korea plans to fingerprint visitors
The South Korean authorities could fingerprint and photograph foreign visitors from 2012, the Korea Times reported on Tuesday.
Barring diplomats and government operatives, all visitors over the age of 17 could have their fingerprints scanned and photo taken, said the article.
The Korean Cabinet has approved the Bill, which will be voted on by the National Assembly this month.
Should the plans go ahead, Korea will discuss sharing the data with the US, which operates a similar system. Japan also collects visitors' biometrics.
Barring diplomats and government operatives, all visitors over the age of 17 could have their fingerprints scanned and photo taken, said the article.
The Korean Cabinet has approved the Bill, which will be voted on by the National Assembly this month.
Should the plans go ahead, Korea will discuss sharing the data with the US, which operates a similar system. Japan also collects visitors' biometrics.
Tuesday 3 November 2009, 5:19 PM
Series 60 phones get Google voice search
Google has released a version of its voice search application for users of Symbian Series 60 handsets.
Series 60 is mostly used in Nokia smartphones such as the E71 but also in some handsets from other manufacturers such as Sony Ericsson. Based on Symbian, it is one of the most popular smartphone platforms in the world.
On Monday, Google software engineer Elke Michlmayr wrote that many Series 60 handsets that do not have Qwerty keypads would benefit from having the free location-aware app.
"The new version of Google Mobile App places a shortcut to Google search on your Nokia phone's home screen, allowing you to search using your voice or by typing," Michlmayr wrote. "You can search for anything — from 'movie times', to 'fish 'n chips', to 'masala dosa'. It doesn't matter if you're in London or Bangalore: we'll use your location to give you nearby results."
The new Google Mobile App also recognises Mandarin Chinese for the first time — Series 60 users will be the first to benefit from this addition, although Android and iPhone users may also get this functionality in time.
Michlmayr also noted that the app would only work, for now, on handsets running S60 3rd Edition — so, not for users of the Nokia N97 or Sony Ericsson Satio, both of which use the 5th edition of S60.
Series 60 is mostly used in Nokia smartphones such as the E71 but also in some handsets from other manufacturers such as Sony Ericsson. Based on Symbian, it is one of the most popular smartphone platforms in the world.
On Monday, Google software engineer Elke Michlmayr wrote that many Series 60 handsets that do not have Qwerty keypads would benefit from having the free location-aware app.
"The new version of Google Mobile App places a shortcut to Google search on your Nokia phone's home screen, allowing you to search using your voice or by typing," Michlmayr wrote. "You can search for anything — from 'movie times', to 'fish 'n chips', to 'masala dosa'. It doesn't matter if you're in London or Bangalore: we'll use your location to give you nearby results."
The new Google Mobile App also recognises Mandarin Chinese for the first time — Series 60 users will be the first to benefit from this addition, although Android and iPhone users may also get this functionality in time.
Michlmayr also noted that the app would only work, for now, on handsets running S60 3rd Edition — so, not for users of the Nokia N97 or Sony Ericsson Satio, both of which use the 5th edition of S60.
Tuesday 3 November 2009, 2:57 PM
Launch Windows: Space Station IT secrets
It cost £92bn, it flies at 17,300 miles an hour, and it has 100 laptops in close formation. The International Space Station is one of technology's greatest achievements, but the astronauts still need to phone home when the server crashes. Two of the people behind Houston's problem-cracking IT crew have talked to CNET UK about what it's like to fix computers in deep space. Find out what it takes for a PC to get approved as the Right Stuff, whether astronauts can plug their Xboxes into the network, how they get their email, and whether they ever do get told to turn it off and on again.
Read more at CNET UK's Interview: The Space Station's IT guys.
Tuesday 3 November 2009, 12:01 PM
First Windows 7 service pack 'due early 2010'
A beta version of the first service pack for Windows 7 could appear in the first quarter of 2010, according to Russian website Wzor.net, which leaked information about the operating system's development earlier this year. A final version of the service pack is expected in late summer 2010, reports Wzor.net.
Microsoft completed development of Windows 7 in July and released the operating system to manufacturing. The new version of Windows was officially launched on 22 October. Some patches have already been distributed.
Read the full story about reports of the Windows 7 Service Pack 1 at ZDNet Germany.
Microsoft completed development of Windows 7 in July and released the operating system to manufacturing. The new version of Windows was officially launched on 22 October. Some patches have already been distributed.
Read the full story about reports of the Windows 7 Service Pack 1 at ZDNet Germany.
Thursday 29 October 2009, 5:09 PM
HTC Hero to get Android Eclair, skip Donut
HTC's Hero handset will be upgraded to Android 2.0 at some point, the manufacturer has confirmed.
A tweet from the company's official account late on Wednesday read: "The rumors are true! Hero will be getting an Eclair update. We ask for your patience as we update Sense for the fancy new Android OS."
Android 2.0, the so-called 'Eclair' revision of Google's open source mobile operating system, introduces a refreshed user interface, Bluetooth-based peer-to-peer connectivity and native Exchange support.
European Hero users will not, however, get the 'Donut' revision of Android, also known as version 1.6. In an email sent to a customer by HTC, the company said: "The Hero will not be receiving the Android 1.6 upgrade, it will however get the 2.0 one".
When a new version of Android is released, manufacturers such as HTC then integrate the new version into their own customised implementations of the OS. The result then often goes to the operator so branding and operator-specific functionality can be added.
Donut is currently being rolled out over-the-air to users of 'Google experience' phones such as the T-Mobile G1 and HTC Magic. However, these handsets do not have the HTC Sense user interface skin, so it is likely that HTC has simply decided to skip Donut because Eclair — which has already appeared on Motorola's Droid handset — is itself almost ready for a wide rollout.
The HTC Hero, not being a Google experience handset, has to receive firmware upgrades through being connected to a PC via USB cable. This requires a wipe of the old OS version and reinstallation of all user settings and applications, so skipping Donut might make life easier for Hero users after all.
A tweet from the company's official account late on Wednesday read: "The rumors are true! Hero will be getting an Eclair update. We ask for your patience as we update Sense for the fancy new Android OS."
Android 2.0, the so-called 'Eclair' revision of Google's open source mobile operating system, introduces a refreshed user interface, Bluetooth-based peer-to-peer connectivity and native Exchange support.
European Hero users will not, however, get the 'Donut' revision of Android, also known as version 1.6. In an email sent to a customer by HTC, the company said: "The Hero will not be receiving the Android 1.6 upgrade, it will however get the 2.0 one".
When a new version of Android is released, manufacturers such as HTC then integrate the new version into their own customised implementations of the OS. The result then often goes to the operator so branding and operator-specific functionality can be added.
Donut is currently being rolled out over-the-air to users of 'Google experience' phones such as the T-Mobile G1 and HTC Magic. However, these handsets do not have the HTC Sense user interface skin, so it is likely that HTC has simply decided to skip Donut because Eclair — which has already appeared on Motorola's Droid handset — is itself almost ready for a wide rollout.
The HTC Hero, not being a Google experience handset, has to receive firmware upgrades through being connected to a PC via USB cable. This requires a wipe of the old OS version and reinstallation of all user settings and applications, so skipping Donut might make life easier for Hero users after all.
Wednesday 28 October 2009, 5:30 PM
Free Android sat-nav hits TomTom, Garmin shares
Shares in sat-nav firms TomTom and Garmin plummeted on Wednesday, after Google announced free turn-by-turn navigation software for Android 2.0 handsets.
Google unveiled the beta version of Google Maps Navigation as Verizon and Motorola launched the Droid phone, the first handset to use the 'Eclair' version of the Android mobile operating system, in the United States.
The software — currently only of use to US drivers — provides 3D views, search by voice, turn-by-turn voice guidance and automatic rerouting.
By late afternoon, UK time, TomTom's shares had fallen by 21.9 percent. Garmin's shares were down 17.6 percent.
On Tuesday, Google updated the Android software development kit to take advantage of new features in the Eclair revision. These enhancements include native multitouch, Exchange support and HTML 5 support.
Google unveiled the beta version of Google Maps Navigation as Verizon and Motorola launched the Droid phone, the first handset to use the 'Eclair' version of the Android mobile operating system, in the United States.
The software — currently only of use to US drivers — provides 3D views, search by voice, turn-by-turn voice guidance and automatic rerouting.
By late afternoon, UK time, TomTom's shares had fallen by 21.9 percent. Garmin's shares were down 17.6 percent.
On Tuesday, Google updated the Android software development kit to take advantage of new features in the Eclair revision. These enhancements include native multitouch, Exchange support and HTML 5 support.
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