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June 22, 2005
Reaching out to digital refuseniks
"Net access has become so talked about and embedded in society that it is easy to forget that half of the UK population remain digital refuseniks.
...
"John Fisher heads up Citizens Online, a charity which exists solely to address the issue of digital inclusion. For him, it is all about making sure people are aware of the options.
"'I don't see it as a matter of choice, of people opting out. Yes, there will always be a rump of Luddites but for the vast majority they just haven't been given the choice,' he said.
"That choice comes down to barriers such as an innate fear of technology, horror stories in the media about viruses and online fraud, lack of confidence and skill and perhaps, most importantly, not seeing the relevance of the internet to everyday life, said Mr Fisher.
Source: Jane Wakefield (BBC News technology reporter), Reaching out to digital refuseniks, BBC News, Sunday, 19 June, 2005, 07:26 GMT 08:26 UK. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4092750.stm
Links: Citizens Online, http://www.citizensonline.org.uk/
Posted by sjc at 8:03 AM | Comments (0)
June 21, 2005
Copyright, Copyleft, and the Creative Commons
As part of UVM"s Compliance, Regulatory & Legal Issues Training program (June 21, 2005), I've organized a presentation on the development of alternative models to "copyright." The overall flow is
(1) the classical view of copyright as a license for monopolistic publication and the economic impact on artists, writers, etc.,
(2) The development of copyleft, spearheaded by Richard Stallman, as a reaction to the locking down of "common knowledge" computer code by publishers, the open software and open text movement,
(3) the articulation of alternative copyright models by Lawrence Lessig under the umbrella of the creative commons,
Examples cited include:
- Creative Commons at http://creativecommons.org/
- arXive pre-print server at http://arxiv.org/
- Public Library of Science at http://plos.org/
- Internet Archive Site at http://archive.org
- MIT's Open Courseware Site at http://ocw.mit.edu/
- Cory Doctorow's at http://craphound.com/
The powerpoint slides are located in http://www.uvm.edu/
Posted by sjc at 9:00 AM | Comments (0)
June 19, 2005
Dalek recovered on Glastonbury Tor
A Dalek that had been kidnapped and held for ransom has been recovered at Tor. The Dalek, except for being disarmed, seems to be otherwise unharmed. It is being interviewed in hopes that more can bed determined about the identies of the group claiming responsibility for this act - the so-called Guardians of the Earth.
The Dalek had been on display at the Bath and West Show and was in temporary storage at the Wookey Hole site when it was taken. On Thursday, June 16, staff found a Dalek plunger arm and a ransom note on a doorstep.
Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/england/somerset/4090676.stm, published: 2005/06/14 07:18:49 GMT
Posted by sjc at 11:24 AM | Comments (0)
June 13, 2005
Mobile TV, WiBro leads future Korean information society
In a technology-mad country where people use their mobile phones to purchase products, check stock information and watch television, delivering voice communications is no longer the focal point of telecommunications.
Telephone operators, electronics makers and equipment vendors are looking beyond current wireless communications and broadband Internet services in search for the next mega-trend in telecommunications. Delivering technologies that offer better integrations between voice, video and data are becoming a priority, as companies rush to roll out their latest advancements to Korean consumers who become somewhat of a public beta test group for the rest of the world.
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The government is planning to deploy a next-generation portable Internet technology, dubbed WiBro for wireless broadband, designed to provide wider coverage than wireless LAN services and faster connections than third-generation mobile telephony. WiBro would offer a peak rate of 1 mbps on devices moving at speeds of about 70 kilometers per hour. The government aims for commercial services in 2006 and expects 10 million customers by 2008.
In January, the Ministry of Information and Communication allocated three licenses for portable Internet services to fixed-line operators KT Corp., Hanarotelecom Inc. and SK Telecom. The ministry had earlier allocated the 2.3Ghz band for portable Internet operations and approved the IEEE 802.16 standard as WiBro's base technology last year.
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HSDPA, a new third-generation mobile telephony specification, is designed to deliver data at a peak rate of 14.4 mbps (megabytes per second), better than current third-generation W-CDMA networks that are designed to offer data rates of 2 mbps.
From The Korean Herald, "Mobile TV, WiBro leads future information society," June 13, 2005.
http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/data/html_dir/2005/06/14/200506140020.asp
Posted by sjc at 5:51 PM | Comments (0)
June 9, 2005
Robots Dance, Play at World Robot Expo
Optical-tongue robot checks an apple to measure its sugar content during the Prototype Robot Exhibition at Aichi World Expo in Nagakute, central Japan, Thursday, June 9, 2005. This robot uses infrared ray to analyze the ingredients of foods and drinks before serving to a guest, checks the guest's medical profile and then gives the guest health-related advice. (AP Photo/Katsumi Kasahara)
NAGAKUTE, Japan (AP) - They could hit fastballs, draw portraits and be seen breathing. Not bad for robots. Even so, these droids of all shapes and sizes - more than 60 on display at the World Expo on Thursday - still need some work.
Lined up in a row of booths, the robots were on display in the sprawling expo in central Japan to showcase Japan's leadership in robotics. With the nation's economy still sluggish, corporations, researchers and government officials are hoping the sector can provide new growth opportunities.
Story at : Yuri Kageyama, Robots Dance, Play at World Robot Expo, Jun 9, 2005, 12:53 PM (ET), http://apnews.excite.com/article/20050609/D8AK784O0.html
Robots at : http://www-1.expo2005.or.jp/en/robot/index.html
Posted by sjc at 9:56 PM | Comments (0)
June 3, 2005
opensourceCMS.com
Quoting the site:
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At the upper left hand side of your screen you will see a clock that is counting down. What it shows is how much time is left in this two hour demo window. Once the clock hits 00:00:00, opensourceCMS.com will shut down and the demos will be completely refreshed. This takes about 5 minutes, and afterwards opensourceCMS.com will re-activate and the demo's will appear as fresh installations ready to be demo'ed again..
I hope opensourceCMS.com is useful in your quest to find the right software system for your needs. If you're looking for hosting, OpenSourceHost supports every system here. OpenSourceHost will even install the system of your choice for free when you sign up for an account.
Please keep in mind that opensourceCMS is for you, as well as for people that have yet to discover it. If you know of a system that should be here let us know. If you have something to say then visit the forums and say it. Your input is wanted, needed, and appreciated. Thank you.
Scott Goodwin
Posted by sjc at 12:11 PM | Comments (0)
June 2, 2005
Blog and Tell : Film at 11.
DALLAS - For most of the past two semesters, nobody knew the identity of "The Phantom Professor."
The educator's anonymous Web log, set at an unnamed university "in the South," spun tales of spoiled-rich "Ashleys" with their $500 sandals and $1,500 handbags, eating disorders, plagiarism and drug use, legal and illegal.
"At this school it seems like every kid is on multiple medications," the professor wrote, describing her charges as "barely literate," prone to emotional problems and "terrified of displeasing Mommy and
Daddy."
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Earlier this month, Elaine Liner, an adjunct professor who taught writing and ethics classes in SMU's public relations department since 2001, revealed in an online publication that the blog was hers. Liner, who writes freelance theater reviews for a Dallas weekly, also let it be known that in late March she was told her contract to teach at the school would not be renewed.
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Since her story broke, Liner said several agents have called and she is actively working to sell her story.
"I heard the two words every writer waits a lifetime to hear," she said. "Movie deal."
Source: THomas Korosec, SMU lecturer takes heat for telling blog. The 'Phantom Professor' says it was an outlet and could be a movie, Houston Chronicle, May 28, 2005, 7:44PM http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/tech/news/3201823
Posted by sjc at 10:23 AM | Comments (0)
June 1, 2005
Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine
"Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine" is a cockroach-controlled mobile robot system. The system uses a living Madagascan hissing cockroach atop a modified trackball to control the three-wheeled robot. Infrared sensors also provide navigation feedback to create a semi-intelligent system, with the cockroach as the CPU.
Designer Garnet Hertz - a University of California, Irvine, graduate student enrolled in the school's interdisciplinary arts, computer, and engineering program - explains that as the roach moves on the ball, she controls the movement of the robot. When sensors detect an immobile object ahead, such as a wall, a bright light flashes at the cockroach. As she scuttles away from the light, the robot moves away from the wall.
Source: Garnet Hertz, 02 December 2004, Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine.
http://www.conceptlab.com/control/
Spotted by CJL.
Posted by sjc at 10:37 AM | Comments (0)