2008 August: Technology

2008 August: Technology

Anchor:   Base Index
Other months: July September
Other areas: Business climate computing education health international Internet science social   Others
Topics:   Agriculture airlines architecture barcodes cars communication disabilities freight general history horticulture identification innovation manufacturing martial medical mobile phones music nanotechnology patents planes power roads shipping social space television transport video

Agriculture

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Darren Gray, Wheel turns for old and inaccurate irrigation meters, The Age, 2008 Aug. 22 (Australian irrigation farmers may have been receiving millions of litres of extra water free of charge because of inaccurate irrigation meters that understate usage, a new study suggests)
Philip Hopkins, Methane cuts up down on the farm, The Age, 2008 Aug. 18 (Dr Eckard said his team was concentrating on short-term research rather than long-term projects such as eugenics, which aims to breed cattle that emit fewer emissions, and methane vaccines)
Peter Martin, Family farms at risk, The Age, 2008 Aug. 13 (the latest farm census from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows only 102,616 families made their living from farming in 2006. More than 10,000 had given up farming in the previous five years)
Darren Gray, Farmers alert for spring plague of devastation, The Age, 2008 Aug. 13 (Victorian, NSW and federal authorities have put farmers on alert because of an elevated threat of a locust plague)

Architecture

(see also in Social)

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Stephen Bayley, From land to water—how modern architects learnt to love the bridge, Observer, 2008 Aug. 24 (once the preserve of geeky civil engineers, bridge design has recently become one of the coolest games in town)
Finlo Rohrer, What are bridges for these days?, BBC, 2008 Aug. 21 (no longer solely in the business of getting people from A to B across a waterway, bridges are now also about putting a place on the map and kick-starting wider investment)
Jonathan Glancey, A view with a room, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 18 (Northumberland's glorious new timber observatory fits beautifully into its forest surroundings)
Peter Ker, Visual design key for desalination plant, The Age, 2008 Aug. 16 (bidders in the race to build Victoria's desalination plant scramble for expensive and distinguished architects)
Graham Keeley, Master's vision blurred as trustees put stamp on emblem of Barcelona, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 14 (Architecture Sagrada Familia will bear little resemblance to Gaudí's original plan, say critics)
Kate Lahey, From derelict to happening, but transformation has its downside, The Age, 2008 Aug. 8 (they were derelict, drug-riddled, rat-infested sections of Melbourne's CBD that became two of the city's coolest watering holes)

Communication

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Bill Thompson, Addressing the growth of the net, BBC, 2008 Aug. 20 (Thompson is not alarmed by net meltdown fears)
Xan Rice, Last piece of fibre-optic jigsaw falls into place as cable links east Africa to grid, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 18 (leap in capacity will allow cheap internet access and knowledge at the speed of light)
Nicholas Beaumont, 'Fibre to the home' a must-have only government can provide, The Age, 2008 Aug. 15 (a public FTTH superhighway will solve a lot of competition issues)
Jason Palmer, BT injects life into its network, BBC, 2008 Aug. 7 (ideas from researchers creating artificial life are helping to keep BT's network running)
The accelerator of the modern age, BBC, 2008 Aug. 5 (technology that keeps the net running turns 40)
Dan Simmons, Web speeds to increase 'ten-fold', BBC, 2008 Aug. 1 (the ways researchers hope to stop the internet grinding to a halt as the demands placed on it continue to grow)

Disabilities

(see also in Health)

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Lee Bruno, An interface for your eyes only, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 28 (researchers have created software interfaces that are custom-generated for the individual and so could help disabled computer users)
Robo-skeleton lets paralysed walk, BBC, 2008 Aug. 26 (a human exoskeleton robotic suit is helping people paralysed from the waist down to stand, walk and climb stairs)
AP, Tongue control gives hope to disabled, The Age, 2008 Aug. 25 (the tireless tongue already controls taste and speech, helps kiss and swallow and fights germs. Now scientists hope to add one more ability to the mouthy muscle, and turn it into a computer control pad)

Freight and Shipping

(see also Planes and Transport)

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Business in South Korea: Steely logic, Economist, 2008 Aug. 30 (a steelmaking giant is one of several bidders for a shipbuilder)
Philip Hopkins, Councils plead for railways upgrade, The Age, 2008 Aug. 17 (coalition of 24 regional councils strongly urges State Government to bring Victoria's rail freight network up to top standard within three years)

General

(see also in Science)

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Graeme Philipson, Predictions? No future in 'em, The Age, 2008 Aug. 19 (why do we overestimate technology's benefits for the short term—yet underestimate it in the long run?)
Ben Goldacre, Silly season, silly machine, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 9 (what is the mysterious QXCI machine?)

Identification and Barcodes

(see also in Computing and Social)

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Forensic technology: Sticky fingers, Economist, 2008 Aug. 9 (a new and more powerful fingerprinting technology is at hand)

Martial

(see also in Social)

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Brendan Nicholson, New army chief flags shake-up to fight modern war, The Age, 2008 Aug. 28 (the Australian Army has too many headquarters and a command structure that has not evolved to keep up with modern warfare in the "email and Blackberry age", the army's new chief said last night)
Mark Townsend, BAE drops plans to make 'green bullets', Observer, 2008 Aug. 24 (Britain's biggest arms manufacturer abandons plans to produce ecologically sound bullets)
Bobbie Johnson, Cyberwar isn't a grand struggle—it's a scary prospect of pure chaos, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 21 (when Russian tanks rolled into Georgia, it brought back memories of Soviet-era military conquest—a reminder of the cold war)
David Hambling, Swarms of robots join the army, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 21 (intelligent swarms of autonomous robots that look like insects could soon be deployed for military information-gathering and reconnaissance)
Stellar result in MoD challenge, BBC, 2008 Aug. 19 (the Ministry of Defence has concluded a contest to identify robots best suited to battlefield conditions)
George Monbiot, The US missile defence system is the magic pudding that will never run out, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 19 (Poland is just the latest fall guy for an American foreign policy dictated by military industrial lobbyists in Washington)
Ian Sample, Understanding of the brain could transform battlefield of the future, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 14 (bullets could be replaced with 'pharmacological land mines' that release drugs to incapacitate soldiers on contact)

Medical

(see also in Health)

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Treatment 'tricks' stroke victims, BBC, 2008 Aug. 26 (stroke victims could be "tricked" into getting better with a new virtual reality physiotherapy treatment)
Dave Turner, One month of . . . interactive indoor cycling, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 26 (the Trickster Xdream combines innovations in fitness and gaming technology to create an interactive exercise bike that simulates outdoor cycling)
Michael Pollitt, New heights for proton therapy cancer treatment, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 21 (Professor Karen Kirkby has been involved with the assembly of the world's first vertical scanning nanobeam in a new building)
Ben Goldacre, Silly season, silly machine, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 9 (what is the mysterious QXCI machine?)

Mobile Phones

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Jemima Kiss, The next big thing? Google phones, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 25 (what exactly is Google Android?)
Jill Stark, High-tech link to teen sleep, health, The Age, 2008 Aug. 19 (sleep-deprived teenagers are at greater risk of high blood pressure and future heart attacks—and their mobile phones, computer games and iPods could be to blame)

Music

(see also in Business and Internet)

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AFP, Virtual living rooms rock concert scene, The Age, 2008 Aug. 28 (Microsoft and Federated Media teamed with concert organiser SuperFly Productions to debut a "CrowdFire" experience at the three-day Outside Lands music festival that ended on Sunday in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park)
Alice Wignall, Keeping body and soul in tune, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 26 (from church choirs to karaoke bars, singing has always lifted people's spirits; but could it be good for their physical health too?)

Nanotechnology

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Solar energy: Feeling the heat, Economist, 2008 Aug. 23 (a new sort of solar cell is in the making)

Patents and Innovation

(see also in Business and Computing)

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Julia Kollewe, Drug companies: Big Pharma besieged from all sides, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 30 (blockbusters are expiring, pipelines are emptying and watchdogs are growling)
Charles Arthur, Big boys take all the fun out of playing around online, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 28 (Hasbro/Mattel have come up with an 'official' version of Scrabulous that everyone really, really hates)
Maggie Shiels, An end to spaghetti power cables, BBC, 2008 Aug. 22 (Intel reveals a way to power gadgets without wires)
AP, Nintendo sued over Wiimote, The Age, 2008 Aug. 22 (Hillcrest Laboratories has filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission in Washington D.C., and a patent infringement lawsuit in the US District Court in Maryland against Nintendo)
John Naughton, You wait for a packet of ideas, then two arrive at once, Observer, 2008 Aug. 10 (at any given time, various powerful ideas are 'in the air')

Planes and Airlines

(see also Freight and Transport)

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Breaking up BAA: A new departure for London's airports, Economist, 2008 Aug. 23 (dismembering BAA should make it possible to develop a second hub airport for the capital and its region)
Mathew Murphy and Dewi Cooke, Another mishap as Qantas accused of safety negligence, The Age, 2008 Aug. 14 (Qantas has been accused of compromising the safety of its passengers over the past five years by failing to adequately act on a directive by the air safety watchdog on its now grounded 737 fleet)
Dan Milmo, Drop in flights through British airspace, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 13 (first slowdown since post-September 11, as high fuel costs force cutback)

Power

(see also in Climate)

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Solar power: Silicon rally, Economist, 2008 Aug. 30 (one shortage in the solar-panel business gives way to another)
Malcolm Maiden, Rio's solidified electricity division is the conduit that may give BHP hope, The Age, 2008 Aug. 27 (the big returns from Alcan's low-cost hydro power base are still just a promise, not a fact)
Richard Black, Wind farms put pressure on bats, BBC, 2008 Aug. 26 (wind turbines are a hazard to bats because changes in air pressure can cause fatal internal injuries, a study reveals)
Wind turbine-maker powers ahead, BBC, 2008 Aug. 15 (a surge in demand for renewable energy leads to a large order backlog for the world's biggest wind turbine-maker, Vestas)
Mathew Murphy, WorleyParsons warms to sun power, The Age, 2008 Aug. 13 (Australia could house 34 solar thermal power stations by 2020, according to the country's largest engineering company, WorleyParsons, which plans to build the world's largest solar thermal power plant by 2011)
Solar power: Glowing after dark, Economist, 2008 Aug. 9 (looking to leaves for a way to store solar power after sunset)
Michael Pollitt, New wave power generation, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 7 (an experiment to harness the sea's energy could be helping to produce power within five years, according to its supporters)
Mathew Murphy, Geothermal deal steams ahead, The Age, 2008 Aug. 5 (TRUenergy has joined local rivals by entering the burgeoning geothermal energy market, announcing a $57 million joint venture with Petratherm)
Alok Jha, Giant kites to tap power of the high wind, Observer, 2008 Aug. 3 (experiments show that the power generated could provide electricity for 100,000 homes)

Roads and Cars

(see also Transport and its links)

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Business in India: Nano wars, Economist, 2008 Aug. 30 (Tata threatens to make the world's cheapest car somewhere else)
Ian Porter, Real key to viable hybrid is in its battery, The Age, 2008 Aug. 28 (Ford Motor Company is staying resolutely sceptical about hybrid vehicles despite having two in the US market and being about to launch another pair next year)
Andrew Clark, Fuel price rises 'saving lives', Guardian, 2008 Aug. 27 (US road deaths at lowest since 1960s as high petrol prices cause motorists to cut mileage)
David Rood, Tolls and taxes on roads agenda, The Age, 2008 Aug. 25 (congestion tax and tolls on public roads part of official transport review handed to State Government)
Michael Fitzpatrick, Cars with a green conscience, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 21 (technology that uses hydrogen to reduce emissions from petrol-burning cars could be on the market in three years)
Electric cars: Plugging in, Economist, 2008 Aug. 16 (for all the political hype, London is still ambivalent about them)
Reid Sexton, iPod to join mobile as crash villain?, The Age, 2008 Aug. 10 (Victoria's leading road safety research centre has called for an urgent investigation into the dangers of driving while listening to iPods)
The American car market: Detroit's race against time, Economist, 2008 Aug. 9 (will the Big Three's cash last long enough for them to fix themselves?)
Mathew Murphy and Jason Dowling, Drivers desert EastLink as rail network overflows, The Age, 2008 Aug. 8 (the future of private toll roads in Australia has been called into question after traffic on EastLink slumped dramatically in the first week of tolling)
Shaun Carney, It's too late to put car genie back in bottle, The Age, 2008 Aug. 6 (Australians are in love with cars and the freedom they bring)
Bicycles: It's not all free wheeling, Economist, 2008 Aug. 2 (after years of federal and local spending on bike routes and other amenities, most cities are ready to handle more cyclists; but many motorists simply don't see their two-wheeled brethren or, when they do, find them aggravating)
Mathew Murphy, 'Carbon-neutral' road motors towards award, The Age, 2008 Aug. 2 (BMD Constructions was the contractor for the $13.3 million Mickleham Road duplication at Greenvale, in Melbourne's north-west; VicRoads has used the project as a pilot to measure the carbon impact of road building and find ways to reduce and offset carbon emissions from roadworks)
Geoff Strong, So near and yet so far, with distance measured in litres, The Age, 2008 Aug. 2 (Australia's favourite "big-six" cars have become a millstone for many)

Social

(see also in Internet)

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Space

(see also in Science)

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First light for space telescope, BBC, 2008 Aug. 27 (a powerful Nasa space telescope launched in June has unveiled its first results—including an image of the sky viewed through "gamma-ray glasses")
Mars rover driving out of crater, BBC, 2008 Aug. 27 (Nasa's robotic rover Opportunity is driving out of a giant crater on Mars nearly a year after its dangerous descent to examine exposed bedrock)
Manned spaceflight: Enter the Dragon, Economist, 2008 Aug. 23 (the war in Georgia is prompting a rethink of America's route into space)
Space technology: Earthbound, Economist, 2008 Aug. 23 (gravity is not the main obstacle for America's space business; government is)
Iran launches satellite carrier, BBC, 2008 Aug. 17 (Iran has launched its first domestically-produced satellite into space, the country's media says)
Pallab Ghosh, Mars robots begin test campaign, BBC, 2008 Aug. 15 (UK engineers put the latest prototypes rovers for the European ExoMars mission through their paces)
Probe gets close up to Enceladus, BBC, 2008 Aug. 13 (Cassini spacecraft returns some remarkable new close-up images of the Saturnian moon Enceladus)
Nasa Moonship flight target slips, BBC, 2008 Aug. 12 (Nasa has pushed back by a year its internal target date for flying the successor to the shuttle)
SpaceX launch fails a third time, BBC, 2008 Aug. 3 (engineers investigate why the Falcon 1 rocket, built by private space firm SpaceX, fails to reach orbit for a third time)
Space flight: Knight in shining armour, Economist, 2008 Aug. 2 (private space tourism is just the beginning)
AFP, Liquid found on Saturn moon, The Age, 2008 Aug. 1 (NASA scientists say they have found liquid on Saturn's moon Titan, only the second body in the solar system after Earth to have fluid on its surface)

Television and Video

(see also in Business)

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Asher Moses, Scorched welds together online and TV, The Age, 2008 Aug. 18 (is this the future of TV?; a new Nine drama set in climate-ravaged Australia straddles the divide between TV and the web)
Graeme Philipson, Broadcast TV on the terminal list, The Age, 2008 Aug. 5 (the battle of internet viewing technologies that will replace television has begun—and all of them spell doom for telecasting as we now know it)

Transport

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Dan Milmo, Romantics love high speed trains but ministers are reluctant to get on board, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 27 (the Park Royal Line could be the first link in a London-to-Birmingham route that will eventually stretch all the way up to Scotland; most of the Birmingham line could be built alongside the M40 and parts of the Chiltern Railways line and could also run along disused track bed on the former Great Central Railway line, which opened in 1899)
Caroline Davies, Cable thieves bring trains to a £10m halt, Observer, 2008 Aug. 24 (rising price of copper set to cost National Rail millions in repairs, train delays and extra security; delays due to stolen wiring have doubled in a year)
Clay Lucas, Train trips exceed 200 million, The Age, 2008 Aug. 21 (Melburnians are piling on to the city's trains in record numbers, but the State Government is not putting on enough extra services to deal with the patronage boom, new figures show)
Clay Lucas, Fire Connex, transport expert says, The Age, 2008 Aug. 20 (rail operator Connex should be sacked and management of Melbourne's suburban trains brought back into public hands, prominent transport academic says)
Melissa Fyfe and Reid Sexton, Trains just as packed despite extra services, The Age, 2008 Aug. 17 (extra services on Melbourne's train system achieving no reduction in overcrowding)
Kenneth Davidson, Trains, trams and automobiles: getting our priorities right, The Age, 2008 Aug. 14 (an independent inquiry is the only way to resolve the public transport woes)
Andrew Martin, The engine that could, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 11 (the return of steam trains, four decades on, might spark the revival of our beleaguered railways)
Jonathan Glancey, New steam locomotive unveiled: £3m Tornado unleashed 40 years after age of steam, Guardian, 2008 Aug. 2 (after 18 years of fundraising, designing and engineering, coal-fired engine makes debut)