IT Trends :: Thursday, November 9, 2006
New Technology
Building the Government's Translation Machine, One Year at a Time
Real time language translation “on the fly” – in other words a translating device that can fill you in as others speak in a language completely foreign to you. No longer a pipe dream, it is now a goal of DARPA, which is throwing a lot of money at it – and at universities. It hired three teams of researchers to chase the problem for up to five years. Each year, their progress would be evaluated, and the worst-performing team could be eliminated…
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Extreme 'Green' Cars of the Future
Try manufacturing these cars with information technology: How about a Hummer with transparent plastic panels filled with algae, which photosynthesize in sunlight, thus turning CO2 into oxygen. The panels flip open when parked and “follow the sun.” At the Los Angeles Auto Show, taking place at the end of November, a team of judges will present an award to the automotive design team that presents the best idea for the ultimate eco-friendly vehicle…
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Creating a Science of the Web
MIT and the University of Southampton are joining – also with Tim Berners-Lee – to create a new science to study the currently 14 billion pages (and growing) of the World Wide Web. By modeling its structure, articulating the architectural principles that have fueled its growth, and discovering how social conventions drive online human interactions, Web science hopes to find mechanisms that will ensure the network continues to grow productively. Just the immediate challenges of defining the field and setting the research agenda are inherently exciting…
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Gadget of the Year: YouTube
“In the past 12 months, thousands of ordinary people have become famous. Famous people have been embarrassed. Huge sums of money have changed hands. Lots and lots of Mentos have been dropped into Diet Coke. The rules are different now, and one Web site changed them: YouTube.”…
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