~e; Electromagnetic News & Views #9

[bc <human@electronetwork.org>]

===================================================
Electromagnetic News & Views -- #9
===================================================

00) Electronetwork.org Commentary (1/05/2003)

01) Links to Top Stories of Electromagnetism
02) Electromagnetic health & medicine
03) Electromagnetic trash & treasure
04) Electromagnetic security & surveillance
05) Electromagnetic power & energy
06) Electromagnetic current & human affairs
07) Electromagnetic transportation & communication
08) Electromagnetic matter & information
09) Electromagnetic trends & inventions
10) Electromagnetic weaponry & warfare
11) Electromagnetic business & economics
12) Electromagnetic art & artifacts

===================================================
00) --commentary--
---------------------------------------------------

As everyone else seems to be making predictions for
the year(s) ahead, I thought instead I would try to
make some wishful-guesses for some basic advances,
not predictions, in relation to EM research, design,
& development which might be of some general use...

1- PDA with secure wireless card for remote, on-the-go
communications and downloaded of very large files (VLF)
that utilizes wi-fi broadband networks, during the same
period that these infrastructures stay under-developed.

2- e-commerce companies standardize shipping boxes,
and a common format and design is used, 'containers'
that can be made into furniture such as bookshelves,
and thus packaging becomes a reusable delivery system.
(and, a lock-box on a house to get deliveries when gone).

3- PDA computing for citizens and students with
extendable keyboards and compact flash storage.

4- somehow, at some point in time, it becomes evident
that modular home servers are the best investment for
medium-term home computing, networking dumb terminals
via fiberoptics and wireless.

5- secure (ssh) communications, both for wireless
and wired communications, with ISPs offering these
services for free to avoid liabilities for stolen
information and vandalized websites.

6- a pc-card or PCMCIA card with HDTV capabilities
for laptop and desktop computers, to become HDTV
receivers, to help in the transition to the new
format, while leveraging these dual-use devices.

7- long-term strategic design thinking about the
development of online communities and public space,
content, knowledge, and discussion areas.

8- greater focus by computer media companies on
'light edition' soft/hardwares so more have access
to various tools to experiment with, such as with
drawing, painting, music, video, animation, etc.

9- refocus on the educational aspects of computing,
and its place and role in developing human knowledge.
that is, the computer as a learning/research tool,
creative and imaginative productions. not just as
a productivity tool for consuming one-way media.

10- a focus on highly functional databases to network
information and store it in multiple formats/places,
and relate it in many diverse ways. this may be one
way to deal with centralized & decentralized devices.
and it would be basically easy and transparent to use.

bc

===================================================
01) --top stories--
---------------------------------------------------

// this is somewhat of a local story as it has to
// do with Wi-Fi in the Twin Cities. and I've used
// it a few times, specifically when an OS upgrade
// is launched that is a very large file (30 Mb) &
// it is easier to schlep my laptop to a cafe and
// download it in 5 minutes, than 3 hours via 56k.
// ideally, it would be great to have a PDA which
// has secure wi-fi wireless (802.11g) with storage
// so that such files could be downloaded this way,
// as an errand, transferred via compact flash card
// to a computer which mounts as a drive on a home
// computer, and can act as an ultra portable system.
// the part in the article of note is that an upgrade
// to current wireless systems will include ads on
// consumers laptops, which i'm not sure how it will
// work unless software is needed, so already a good
// thing is turning into a potentially different thing.

Advocates Giving Away Free Wireless Net Service
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20366.html>

"Ads are automatically shown on the computer screens
of kiosk Wi-Fi users, and laptop users soon will get
the same treatment once network software is upgraded."

// recession in unsustainable online developments...

Official websites are 'online Domes'
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/2609073.stm>

"Hedra warned that government websites could turn out
to be a series of "online Millennium Domes with just
as few visitors" unless they were better designed and
financial incentives introduced immediately to
increase traffic substantially."

// what is the (global and) U.S. strategy to deal
// with the millions of TV sets that will rapidly
// become obsolete in the near-term HDTV model???
// how/where will the lead and toxins be recycled?

Digital TV Deal: Winners and Losers
<http://www.internetnews.com/ent-news/article.php/10794_1560251>

"With roughly 300 million TV sets in use in the U.S.,
consumers replace sets at an approximate rate of 27
million per year. Of that total, only 2.5 sets will
be digital this year and that figure is estimated to
grow to 4 million next year, CEA projected.

But what yesterday's landmark agreement does is shift
those remaining 25 million or so TV sets away from
analog to digital compatibility without the use of
a set-top box. How? The FCC has mandated that
equipment makers adopt Point-of-Deployment (POD)
technology that calls for a POD cards (or so-called
"Smart" cards) to take on the functionality of the
set-top box. Cable MSOs, too, had to prove that POD
cards worked on their systems. Then, on any compatible
TV, for example, a customer can simply provide their
credit card information to the cable MSO and the POD
card would descramble the cable signal."


---------------------------------------------------
02-- electromagnetic health & medicine
---------------------------------------------------

Implantable Devices May Monitor Organs
<http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=528&ncid=528&e=1&u=/ap/ 
20021223/ap_on_he_me/implantable_monitors>

"medical devices are emerging to act like
a black box in the human body, except they're
being used to prevent disaster."


SICK IN SPACE
"the latest advance in tele-diagnosis"
<http://www.beyond2000.com/news/Dec_02/story_1410.html>

Steel shell to encase Chernobyl
Guy Gugliotta/WP The Washington Post
200 tons of uranium remains in ruins of nuclear reactor
<http://www.iht.com/articles/81706.html>

Sea birds drop radioactivity on land
<http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993220>
 
"Droppings from seabirds could be introducing radioactive
isotopes into the food chain. That is the conclusion of
researchers who found high levels of radioactivity in
droppings and plants on an island close to the Arctic.
... And radioactive material from nuclear accidents such
as the 1986 Chernobyl disaster has reached the seas, along
with particles from atmospheric tests of nuclear weapons."

Brain Can Generate Unexplained Noise In Ears
<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/12/021226072126.htm>

"Unexplained and severe tinnitus--a ringing or buzzing
in the ears--can be temporarily reduced in some patients
by "jamming" the brain's electrical activity with focused
magnetic stimulation, according to a preliminary study
in the Annals of Neurology. The results confirm that
some phantom sounds are generated by abnormal activity
in the brain itself."

A New Window To View How Experiences Rewire The Brain
<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/12/021223084110.htm>

"[The] studies show that rewiring of the brain
involves the formation and elimination of synapses,
the connections between neurons. The technique offers
a new way to examine how learning can spur changes
in the organization of neuronal connections in the brain."

// first Banks & ATMs, now Drugstores & Drugs...

Robots Replacing Human Pharmacists	    
Human pharmacist shortage helps increase number
of robotic druggists that can fill prescriptions
with speed and accuracy.
<http://www.techtv.com/news/scitech/story/0,24195,3408633,00.html>


---------------------------------------------------
03-- electromagnetic trash & treasure
---------------------------------------------------

A distant Pioneer whispers to Earth
By Richard Stenger
NASA engineers picked up a radio signal this month
from the first spacecraft to fly beyond Pluto.
<http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/space/12/18/pioneer.contact/>

Donating Technology's Castaways
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/22/business/yourmoney/22CHAR.html>

"One way to help the environment, and to possibly save
a little on your tax bill this year, is to donate these
old machines to charity. Many organizations are clamoring
for used PC's and PC parts, cellphones and other
electronic products."

// there is quite a story to be told about these
// payphone devices, their evolution, how they relate
// to areas of poverty, and became tools for deterring
// drug-dealing through credit cards and their absence...
// also, they could be a great infrastructure, a unique
// portal system for information, data-centers, as is
// being experimented with in the UK and elsewhere...

Requiem for the Pay Phone
As Cell Phone Use Increases, an Icon Gradually Dies
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A49017-2002Dec28.html>

Put Your Monitor to Sleep
<http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=1093&ncid=738&e=7&u=/ 
pcworld/20021226/tc_pcworld/108072>

"Users can save $10 to $50 off the cost of running
a PC each year by simply activating built-in sleep modes on their  
monitors..."

Where to Recycle Digital Gear // U.S.
<http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=1093&ncid=1093&e=3&u=/ 
pcworld/20021226/tc_pcworld/108265>


---------------------------------------------------
04-- electromagnetic security & surveillance
---------------------------------------------------

Man Allegedly Uses GPS To Stalk Ex-Girlfriend
Tracking System Found In Her Car
<http://www.themilwaukeechannel.com/news/1860135/detail.html>
&
Spying on Snookums With GPS 
<http://wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,56537,00.html>

SCADA vs. the hackers
Can freebie software and a can of Pringles bring
down the U.S. power grid? by Alan S. Brown
<http://www.memagazine.org/contents/current/features/scadavs/ 
scadavs.html>

Patching Wireless Links: "The problem is that programmable
logic controllers, digital control systems, and supervisory
control and data acquisition, or SCADA, systems were never
designed with security in mind. ... The same SCADA systems
that are used to manage the U.S. power grid also control
the grids in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, and Iran. So
it should come as no surprise that SCADA documents turned
up in al Qaeda safe houses in Afghanistan."

Yes, You Are Being Watched
<http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=1093&ncid=1093&e=2&u=/ 
pcworld/20021227/tc_pcworld/108121>

Will Your TV Become a Spy?
Hollywood wants every new digital set to include
technology that would stop people from putting
its shows on the Net. Bad idea
<http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jan2003/ 
tc2003013_2538.htm>

Electronic Eyes In School
<http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/12/27/earlyshow/contributors/ 
tracysmith/main534575.shtml>

Going Electronic, Denver Reveals Long-Term Surveillance
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/21/technology/21PRIV.html>

'"There is a role for intelligence gathering," said Mayor Wellington E.  
Webb, who has said he did not know that the police were spying on  
peaceful citizens in his 11 years in office. "There isn't a role for  
intelligence gathering on Catholic nuns."'

Unmanned drones will guard U.S. coastlines
<http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/4822973.htm>

'"[Drones] be used for maritime homeland defense, fisheries
enforcement, counter-narcotics patrols and possibly for search
and rescue," said Coast Guard Cmdr. John Fitzgerald. "Right
now, out at sea, you're limited to the range of a helicopter."'

// imagine if your car antenna can 'be read' by
// outside observers to what you're listening to
// inside your car (what frequencies you're tuning
// into)-- it seems that an antenna could also be
// used as a covert transmitter, in the same way.

High-tech billboards tune in to drivers' tastes
Roadside signs coming to Bay Area listen to car
radios, then adjust pitch
<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2002/12/22/ 
MN242772.DTL>
&
ADVERTISING // and, its relation to propaganda
New Billboards Sample Radios as Cars Go By, Then Adjust
By MATT RICHTEL
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/27/business/media/27ADCO.html>
&
good infographic by Chronicle Graphic
<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object.cgi?object=/chronicle/pictures/ 
2002/12/22/ 
mn_billboardgraph.jpg&paper=chronicle&file=MN242772.DTL&directory=/c/a/ 
2002/12/22&type=news>

Hubs increase Net risk
By Kimberly Patch, Technology Research News
<http://www.trnmag.com/Stories/2003/010103/ 
Hubs_increase_Net_risk_122502.html>

"The commercial Internet has shifted from its original
distributed structure toward a hub-and-spoke topology
similar to those the airlines use to plot routes, and
that shift has made the network more vulnerable, said
Tony Grubesic, an Ohio State researcher..."

Many Tools of Big Brother Are Up and Running
By JOHN MARKOFF and JOHN SCHWARTZ
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/23/technology/23PEEK.html>

Toward a More Secure 2003 // list of predictions
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20356.html>

The Cybersecurity Industrial Complex
The Feds have a massive, multiagency plan to protect
the national information infrastructure. Get ready
for IT police and network smart bombs.
<http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.01/view.html?pg=4>

// wicked. i knew of undercover officers as construction
// workers using radars and cameras, and rigged parked
// cars with radar and other gear- yet, this is similar
// to a remote-controlled trap used by the fur traders...

A Nasty Surprise for Car Thieves 
<http://wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,56536,00.html>

"Depending on the system used, police can control as
many as eight in-car systems, such as the headlights,
horn and radio. Some officers like to lock thieves in
the cars, while others think it's safer to let them
loose where weapons can be seen.

Police can also activate special beacons or infrared
lights, and many bait cars are equipped with video
cameras and audio recorders..."



---------------------------------------------------
05-- electromagnetic power & energy
---------------------------------------------------

// please take note of conspiracies #1 and #2:
// respectively, the Great Game in the Caspian
// Sea, and The Afghanistan/Enron Connection...

Top Ten Conspiracy Theories of 2002
By Mike Ward, PopMatters
<http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=14873>

Canadian parliament backs Kyoto ratification plan
<http://enn.com/news/wire-stories/2002/12/12112002/reu_49153.asp>

// i forget if .fr changed its power strategy, but
// once i thought it was the 'most nuclear' powered
// of all nation-states- just to give some perspective...

Chirac Rages as Oil Threatens Atlantic Coast
French President Denounces 'Gangsters of the Sea'
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A5470-2003Jan3.html>

// apparently there are big wind-fields that have been
// developed in Minnesota, and they are getting a lot
// of positive press in print and tv, including interviews
// with the new 'wind' farmers, who also farm foodstuffs...

Going with the wind
For decades, wind power has been an underrated, and
underperforming, energy source. Improved technology
may change all that. By Amanda Paulson
<http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/1219/p11s03-stct.html>

Legacy of Power Cost Manipulation
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/22/business/22POWE.html>

"Here in Snohomish County, which has the highest energy
rates in the state, more than 14,000 customers have had
their electricity shut off for lack of payment this year—
a 44 percent increase over 2001. They have seen electric
rate increases of 50 percent, as the Snohomish County
Public Utility District struggles to pay for long-term
power contracts it signed with companies like Enron at
the height of the price run-up."

// related to issues G.E.'s reviving basic R&D work...

U.S. Should Rejoin Revised Fusion Energy Project, Experts Say
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/22/national/22FUSI.html>

"Fusion, which produces energy by fusing hydrogen atoms
into helium, has been looked on for decades as a potentially
attractive energy source. Hydrogen is readily available,
and fusion reactors would not produce long-lived highly
radioactive waste as do current nuclear fission reactors,
which split uranium atoms to produce energy."

Turkey and the Iraqi oil
<http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/021228/2002122810.html>


---------------------------------------------------
06-- electromagnetic current & human affairs
---------------------------------------------------

Wildlife seeks cooler climes
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2617139.stm>

"The balance of evidence from these studies
strongly suggests that a significant impact
of global warming is already discernible in
animal and plant populations"

China closes 3,300 Internet cafes
<http://news.com.com/2100-1023-978825.html>

"China has shut more than 3,300 Internet cafes for safety
reasons after a fire tore through an underground Beijing
cafe in June killing 25 people and injuring 12 others,
the official Xinhua news agency reported Friday."

// refreshing news, basic Research & Development is
// becoming a strategic investment in the future...

G.E. Research Returns to Roots
By CLAUDIA H. DEUTSCH
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/26/business/26LAB.html>

'For G.E., that change is nearly as radical as the
science being pursued. John F. Welch Jr., Mr. Immelt's
predecessor, spent two decades pushing the Niskayuna
lab to churn out profitable products. Now Mr. Immelt
is letting it return to the mission that Charles P.
Steinmetz, a G.E. engineer who set up the lab, laid
forth more than 100 years ago.

"Steinmetz did not want this lab to worry about next
quarter's product," said Scott C. Donnelly, senior
vice president for research. "He wanted it to work
on the next big idea, even as G.E.'s businesses
were refining the last one."'

Pew Internet & American Life project: Latest reports
<http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/ 
reports.asp?Report=80&Section=ReportLevel1&Field=Level1ID&ID=350>

Counting on the Internet: Introduction
Part 1: Expectations about Finding Information Online
Part 2: The Internet as the first option for important information
Part 3: High expectations about E-government
Part 4: The Internet is the first choice for many health information  
seekers
Part 5: Online commerce swims against the tide of falling consumer  
confidence
Part 6: Easy-to-find, reliable news drives active news surfers
Part 7: Finding People

Web Opens World to Digital Volunteers
Online charity work fits your schedule and extends
your reach, say wired nonprofits.
<http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,108190,00.asp>

// take with a bottle of good sea salt...

Tech centers' political swing reflects growing split in U.S.
<http://www.austin360.com/aas/specialreports/citiesofideas/ 
1222cities.html>

"Cities with the most technology and innovation,
the nation's Cities of Ideas, increased their
support of Democratic presidential candidates
in the elections since 1980, according to a study
of presidential election results by American-
Statesman statistical consultant Robert Cushing.

Cities with economies that are less dependent
on technology and show less innovation through
the production of patented ideas increasingly
preferred the Republican candidate."

How the Grinch stole gaming
<http://www.zdnet.com/anchordesk/stories/story/0,10738,2902201,00.html>


---------------------------------------------------
07-- electromagnetic transportation & communication
---------------------------------------------------

Lobsters find their way with magnets
<http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20021231-015756-1814r>

"Lobsters can find their way home in the ocean over long
distances using Earth's magnetic field as a detailed map
to navigate by, research released Wednesday reveals."

Browsers go back to the future
Programmers redesign button that accounts
for 40% of all Internet clicks. // the 'back' button
<http://www.nature.com/nsu/021230/021230-3.html>

China Tests German-Made Fast Train
By JOSEPH KAHN // magnetic levitation @ 266 mph
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/01/business/worldbusiness/01RAIL.html>

G.M. to Offer Hybrid Power in 5 Models by 2007
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/24/business/24AUTO.html>

"G.M.'s plan, which will be announced next month at
the North American International Auto Show here, is
a surprising endorsement of the fledgling hybrid
technology, which improves gasoline mileage by
supplementing the internal combustion engine with
electric power. G.M., the largest automaker, will
offer several versions of the hybrid technology."

Kodak Ready to Bridge Film and Digital?
<http://www.internetnews.com/ent-news/article.php/10794_1563911>

Making Robots, With Dreams of Henry Ford
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/26/technology/circuits/26newlabb.html>

SkyCorp Signs Agreement With NASA to Fly the First Webserver
in Space - and it will be a Mac G4 // not sure about this...
<http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewnews.html?id=233>

Secrets of the SAN (storage area network)
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20320.html>

"Here is why you should care about the mysterious
SAN and the secrets it silently holds: With networked
storage, a user anywhere in an enterprise -- armed
with the proper level of access, of course -- can
search for any piece of data stored within the enterprise."

// i first thought of such concepts as outlandish, in
// that 'drones' have been proposed as floating platforms
// for broadband and cellphone services in the past. yet
// after reading this it makes me wonder about issues
// related to large geographical and rural areas, and
// if this may become mainstream someday. curious, it.

Bird? Plane? UFO? No, Stratellite 
<http://www.wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,56961,00.html>

// i once heard of communal use of technologies that
// are 'individualized' in the US and elsewhere, such
// as with TV sets. and it is fascinating to consider
// how the technology can change, as it is adapted and
// assimilated by different cultures and patterns...

Wireless in Kenya Takes a Village 
<http://wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,57010,00.html>

"While most people here cannot afford a cell phone,
this has not prevented thousands of poor villagers
from transforming their friends and families into
walking communications nodes. This setup is deeply
rooted in the traditional African communal mode of
living, which many urban dwellers haven't abandoned.

"He says in many situations it takes a single
individual to own a cell phone or computer for
whole groups of communities to benefit."


---------------------------------------------------
08-- electromagnetic matter & information
---------------------------------------------------

Shedding light on dark matter
By Philip Plait, Globe Correspondent
<http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/365/science/ 
Shedding_light_on_dark_matter+.shtml>
&
"Dark Energy" Dominates The Universe
<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/01/030102224136.htm>

Do-It-Yourself Cloud chamber / cosmic ray detector
<http://www.geocities.com/molerat1964/cloud.htm>
&
The idiot's guide to how to view cosmic ray tracks
from the comfort of your own home (Science)
<http://www.kuro5hin.org/?op=displaystory;sid=2002/12/27/15929/126>

Aligned fields could speed storage
By Kimberly Patch, Technology Research News
<http://www.trnmag.com/Stories/2003/010103/ 
Aligned_fields_could_speed_storage_122502.html>

"This could change. Researchers from three institutes in
Germany and Russia have found a material whose electric
and magnetic domains line up together. The work could
bring together the currently separate fields of magnetic
and electronic data storage, which would give both
methods more flexibility."

Quantum computing: Heads and tails
<http://www.economist.com/science/displayStory.cfm?story_id=1511921>

Listen Closely: From Tiny Hum Came Big Bang
<http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/30/science/30COSM.html>

"Two detectors in Antarctica have discovered minute
patterns in a glow from primordial gases, possible
traces of the cosmic match that ignited the Big Bang
and led to the creation of the universe 14 billion
years ago, astronomers announced here today.

"The leading theory of how the universe could have
exploded out of the primordial nothingness, known
as the theory of inflation, predicts that the quantum
fluctuations should have rattled the universe in such
a way that it resonated like a vast organ pipe, with
one main tone, or wavelength, and a series of
overtones or harmonics."

Multi-CPU Push Is On
<http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,3959,796516,00.asp>

"New multiprocessing servers from IBM, Hewlett-Packard Co.
and Dell Computer Corp. will help enterprises save money,
ease management and increase efficiencies by reducing
the number of servers in their data centers."

Quantum Computers: The world's fastest thinking machine
fits on the head of a pin.
<http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/research/2002/12/ 
quantum_computers/>


---------------------------------------------------
09-- electromagnetic trends & inventions
---------------------------------------------------

// the 2.5" drive is now down to 1.8"...

Removable Hard Drive Shrinks to 1.8 Inches 
Storage vendors team on new specification,
will show prototypes of tiny iVDR at CES.
<http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,108280,tk,dn122602X,00.asp>

PATENTS: A Phone That Answers When Called
By SABRA CHARTRAND
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/30/technology/30PATE.html>

"A user can shout, "Answer phone!" from across the room,
and the phone will open the line and play a message telling
the caller to hold on until the user can pick up the call."

// how to make a pringles can wi-fi anntenna...

Antenna on the Cheap (er, Chip)
by Rob Flickenger
<http://www.oreillynet.com/cs/weblog/view/wlg/448>

For the Gadget Universe, a Common Tongue
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/02/technology/circuits/02bose.html>

"The younger Bose's four-year old company, Vanu Inc.,
is a prominent innovator in the effort to use software
rather than hardware to control how radios, cellphones
and all other wireless communications devices recognize
and manage signals. Early versions of the technology,
known as software-defined radio, are beginning to be
deployed in military communications equipment and
cellular base stations."

// notice LEDs and possibly remote lighting via
// fiberoptics, which would rival many computer
// modifications w/transparent cases & bluelights

'Light-show' patent drives iMac rumours
<http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/main_news.cfm?NewsID=5751>

// customized cars, now customized-gaming-machines...

PC gamers soup up hot-rod rigs
<http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/4774365.htm>

Warming PC sound with vacuum tubes
By John Borland
Putting vacuum tubes in a PC might sound a little like
adding a hand crank to a Porsche, but at least one
company thinks it might be the future of computer audio.
<http://news.com.com/2100-1023-978617.html?part=dtx&tag=ntop>

China Throws Weight Behind Homegrown Computer Chip
<http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=581&ncid=581&e=2&u=/ 
nm/20021223/tc_nm/tech_china_dc>


---[lists of 2003 predictions from various sources]

// #1 on this list is quite interesting..., and #3
// if broadband were actually a reality (in the US)

Time to Peer into the Flat-Screen, Wireless Future
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20357.html>

A Top 10 Tech List for 2003
By Erin Joyce Ryan Naraine
<http://www.atnewyork.com/news/article.php/10856_1563981>

Brighthand's Predictions for 2003 // PDAs
By Steven G. Bush and Ed Hardy
<http://www.brighthand.com/article/Predictions_for_2003>

PC Pro: We predict... // humor...
<http://www.pcpro.co.uk/?http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/ 
news_story.php?id=36886>

Future Gear: They Made It
Many up-and-coming products we previewed in 2002
are now real, and many others are on the way.
<http://www.pcworld.com/features/article/0,aid,108021,00.asp>


---------------------------------------------------
10-- electromagnetic weaponry & warfare
---------------------------------------------------

// of a few off-hand predictions, i made a public
// comment in 2001 i think, asking if anyone
// could imagine a nuclear exchange in 6 months-
// to gauge the reality of nuclear weapons as
// central weapons in today's global warfighting...

N. Korea: U.S. is risking nuclear war
<http://salon.com/news/wire/2002/12/24/nuclear/>

Pakistan weighed using nuclear bomb
<http://salon.com/news/wire/2002/12/30/pakistan_nuke/>

Nixon Ordered Nuke Alert to Signal USSR
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38016-2002Dec25.html>

"President Nixon ordered a worldwide secret
nuclear alert in October 1969, calling his
wartime tactic a "madman strategy" aimed at
scaring the Soviets into forcing concessions
from North Vietnam, declassified documents show."

// military, now civilian countermeasures...

Missile shield for jetliners
Project takes off after El Al attack
<http://www.nydailynews.com/news/story/46545p-43770c.html>

"The Israeli military research company Rafael has
developed a system to protect airplanes by installing
devices that would emit a hot beam of light to divert
heat-seeking missiles."


---------------------------------------------------
11-- electromagnetic business & economics
---------------------------------------------------

Consolidation: The wireless way
As pressures to merge rise yet again, wireless operators
need innovative approaches to yield economic benefits.
<http://news.com.com/2009-1122-978839.html?part=ctx&tag=chl>

2 Western Cities Join Suit to Fight Global Warming
By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/24/politics/24ENVI.html>

"In a novel legal action, the City Councils of Oakland,
Calif., and Boulder, Colo., have voted to join Friends
of the Earth and Greenpeace in a lawsuit charging two
federal agencies with failing to conduct environmental
reviews before financing projects that the cities say
contribute to global warming."

DRAM Chip Glut Could Lower Prices In 2003
By TechWeb News
<http://www.internetwk.com/breakingNews/INW20021227S0002>

"Lower chip prices could result in lower PC prices
or PCs with more RAM, or both."

// will this ultimately kill e-commerce advantages?

States Consider Internet Sales Tax to Relieve Deficits
<http://www.smartmoney.com/bn/ON/index.cfm?story=ON-20021226-000204- 
1240>

// commentary about this earlier in the crisis said that
// if the strike was not resolved by last week, it would
// be a whole new ballgame. meaning, unexpected problems
// in trying to get things back online and stabilized...
// even with OPEC making changes, there will be problems.

U.S. Economy Feeling Bite of Costlier Oil
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/28/business/28OIL.html>

"For high oil prices to have a great effect on the economy,
they have to be sustained for more than a month at $30 a
barrel or more, said David Costello, an energy analyst at
the Energy Information Administration. That prospect seems
increasingly likely, especially as both sides in the
Venezuelan dispute retrench.

It takes a month or two for higher crude oil prices to
work their way through the refining and retail systems
and to be felt by consumers, Mr. Costello said. That
explains why price increases on the retail level are
only being seen now, he and other analysts said.
Conversely, if the Venezuelan conflict were resolved
now, it would still take several weeks for retail
prices to fall, they noted."


---------------------------------------------------
12-- electromagnetic art & artifacts
---------------------------------------------------

Composer harnesses artificial intelligence to create music
<http://www.eet.com/at/news/OEG20021230S0015>

'"From the viewpoint of a composer, I can hardly say
that our agents are composing music at this stage,"
Miranda acknowledged. Instead, he said, "the break-
through in this work is the action of collective
machine learning for generative music systems."
Rather than modeling specific musical styles or
compositional processes, the new approach is a
first step toward collective music-making with
virtual musicians, each of which learns how
to compose and play individually.'

A completely new kind of electric guitar pickup
<http://www.popsci.com/popsci/bown/article/0,16106,388117,00.html>

"infrared light to cast the string's shadow onto
photodetectors. As the string vibrates, the shadow
does too, producing a signal that's turned into sound."

Actor defends digitally recreated performance
<http://salon.com/ent/wire/2002/12/30/gollum_actor/>

"``It's like applying makeup after the fact, only
the overlay isn't with latex before the performance.
It's after the performance with computers," [Andy]
Serkis [who played Gollum in Lord of the Rings] told
The Associated Press recently."

With a Blink or a Tap, the Disabled Perform in Concert
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/02/technology/circuits/ 
02bang.html?pagewanted=print&position=top>

// if you relate to 3-dimensional EM alphabetting...

Ionic Treatise Gothic Futurism
Assassin Knowledges of
The Remanipulated Square Point
One to 720^degrees, RAMM-3LL-Z33
<http://www.gothicfuturism.com/rammellzee/01.html>

"Electromagnetics' knowledge disperses back into the
course of the Van Allen Belt’s (in purity). [infinity
symbol's] dianetical path, continuing on in evolution's
path. Knowledge is scattered throughout Van Allen Belt
in minute knowledge-particles. Life. Electromagnetics
in a photonic stage to conduct energy’s knowledge light
(pure thought) which is in all atoms inhabits compatible
disease by fusing into diseases DNA nervous-system
structure-codeplan to energize the cerebrum before
its embryotic stage sharing and manipulating and
being manipulated with the composed knowledge of
the atometric D x N = A Molecule and at the end
of cellular."


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