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New fabric will block radiation rays - claim November 13 2002 at 03:12PM London - Scientists have created what is claimed to be the world's first radiation-proof fabric which provides as much protection as a lead vest but at a fraction of the weight. Instead of heavy metals to block radiation and X-rays, the new fabric called Demron is non-toxic, lead-free and fused between two layers of woven fabric. "Demron's potential applications range from lightweight full-body suits, that would allow the wearer to move unencumbered in high-radiation areas, to protective tents and radiation-proof linings for aircraft and spacecraft," New Scientist...

Say hello to the nine hour battery By Nick Farrell [12-11-2002] Companies collaborate on boosting battery life National Semiconductor and ARM are working together to develop power-efficient systems to extend the life of batteries by five times. The technology uses chips that can automatically adjust the performance of the processor and power consumption. It could mean six to nine hours of battery life on a single charge. "Consumers are demanding better performance and longer battery life from handheld devices," said Peter Henry, vice president for portable power products at National Semiconductor, in a statement. "Every time you add a new...

INTEL HAS CUT the prices of its Pentium 4 in advance of the expected launch of a new 3.06GHz Pentium 4 processor Thursday, according to a research note distributed by Merrill Lynch & Co. Tuesday. Advanced Micro Devices is expected to follow suit, the note said. The approximate price of the new processor, Intel's first on the desktop to feature its hyperthreading technology, will be in about the mid-$500 range, according to Merrill. To bring slower processors in line with the new chip, the 2.8GHz Pentium 4 will fall in price from $508 to $401, and the 2.67GHz and...

<p>A Saratoga High School senior, frustrated with the sluggishness of the Internet, has invented his own algorithm to compress data, an accomplishment that won him top honors this weekend in the Western region of the Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science and Technology.</p>

<p>NEW YORK -- Getting lost may be impossible when the next generation of semiconductors finds its way into cell phones.</p> <p>Called Assisted GPS, these chips will allow cell phone users to accurately locate other wireless yappers, whether they're on a street corner or in an office building. The technology will also let retailers send targeted sales coupons to cell phone users as they pass specific stores.</p>

<p>Computer company says new electronic switch can run three times as fast as current technology.</p> <p>EAST FISHKILL, N.Y. (Reuters) - International Business Machines Corp. said Monday that it had built a transistor, or an electronic switch, that can run at speeds of 350 billion cycles per second -- three times as fast as current technology.</p>

Itanium and Opteron contrasted Letter What are the options for Intel? By The Letternan: Saturday 09 November 2002, 10:04 THE COMPARISON SPECS on Itanium 3 and Opteron here look pretty good. This appears to show both processors passing the current fastest server chip by a significant lead. However, for x86 code, Opteron looks like it will hit the market as fast as the fastest x86 processor while Itanium 3 is a joke on x86 code. It is too bad that there are not specs available on Yamhill because I have a very strong suspicion that it was killed, not because...

Apple, IBM, and Sun have opened up their software code to the public in their battle against Redmond. It just might work. While the appeals court ruling last week upholding Microsoft's (MSFT) settlement with the Justice Department was a molar or two away from being toothless, Microsoft faces a bigger potential check to its dominance today than it did at the height of the browser wars five years ago. This comes not from an ever-vigilant judiciary but (more fittingly) from an ever-adapting market. And it is taking the form of Linux and other types of open-source software being developed by...

AMD's new CEO, Hector Ruiz, has one hope to save his company, a new microprocessor technology called Hammer. But first he has to shake AMD's spotted history -- and a ferocious competitor named Intel. Hector de Jesus Ruiz, the new chief executive of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), is a short, balding fellow who is so quiet and soft-spoken that his sentences often disappear into an inaudible mumble. In fact, sitting at a conference table in his office in Sunnyvale, Calif., hands folded in his lap, describing his company's "long history of being resourceful and sticking with it," the 56-year-old Ruiz...

ANN ARBOR - Researchers from the University of Michigan and RIKEN, a research institute in Japan, say the biological motors that nature uses for intracellular transport and other biological functions inspired them to create a whole new class of micro-devices for controlling magnetic flux quanta in superconductors that could lead to the development of a new generation of medical diagnostic tools. As integrated circuits become smaller and smaller, it becomes increasingly difficult to create the many "guiding channels" that act like wires to move electrons around the circuit components. This difficulty in wiring nano-circuits must be overcome if researchers are...

Windows cheaper than Linux, says Microsoft By Rob Jones at the Gartner Symposium, Cannes [05-11-2002] European chief argues that total cost of ownership is lower Microsoft has dismissed claims that Linux is more cost-effective for businesses, arguing that Windows is cheaper over its total lifecycle. When asked by Gartner about Microsoft's intensifying battle against the open source operating system, European president Jean-Phillipe Courtois claimed that Linux is in fact more expensive to run than Windows. Arguments that Linux is free, and therefore a good alternative for governments and organisations on a tight budget, are incorrect, he said. Courtois claimed that...

Gemplus Introduces `ResIDent' - A Secure ID Solution for E-Government Programs Based on Smart Card Technology, ResIDent Enables Governments to Deliver Secure, Versatile and Convenient Identification Services to Their Populations PARIS, Nov. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Cartes 2002 - Gemplus (Nasdaq: GEMP; Paris Euronext: Euroclear 5768), the world's leading provider of smart card-enabled solutions, today launched ResIDent, a smart card-based ID system designed for advanced e-Government programs. ResIDent is based on Gemplus' proven portfolio of smart card technology and expertise, and enables governments to offer more secure, versatile and convenient identification services to their populations, both in physical and digital environments....

NASA Developing Antigravity DeviceMarch 26, 2002 08:20 CSTNASA has revealed plans to test a machine to determine if defying the bonds of gravity is a dream or if it is real science. After an almost two-year wait, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, is poised to take delivery of a machine that its supporters hope will defy the laws of gravity.According to the LA Times, the heart of the device is an effect so radical that it could change the way we interact with one of nature's most fundamental forces. Gravity! This new step is being dubbed...

The cube felt rubbery, although it didn't strictly exist. As I moved the pencil-like mouse in my hand, a cursor moved too in the virtual room where the cube sat. A little manoeuvring and the cursor was beneath the cube. Move the pencil (called a "phantom") upwards, and suddenly there was the sensation of weight, and the cube moved upwards on the screen. With a little practice, I could flip it upwards and catch it. The surface seemed to give, like rubber; the weight felt like a small ball, perhaps a golf ball. A few minutes later another cursor appeared,...

A camera that can see through clothes, skin and even walls without X-rays has been developed in what is being called one of the first great technological breakthroughs of the 21st century. Click to enlarge The "terahertz" camera, still in prototype form, is under rapid development by scientists in Oxfordshire. It is likely to have many applications, ranging from medical scanning to identifying concealed weapons on airline passengers. Unlike X-rays, it does not expose patients to potentially harmful radiation. Instead, it detects a form of ultra-high-frequency, or terahertz, energy waves naturally emitted by all objects. Nor does it require people...

PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. — U.S. Army experts are trying to embed microscopic electromechanical machines in paint that could detect and heal cracks and corrosion in the bodies of combat vehicles, as well as give vehicles the chameleon-like quality of rapidly altering camouflage to blend in with changing operating environments. Officials of the Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command's Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center (TACOM-ARDEC) at Picatinny Arsenal, N.J., are working with scientists at the New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark, N.J., to develop nanotechnology-based "smart" coatings for Army vehicles and other materiel. Unlike today's paint coatings on battlefield vehicles,...

Is AMD now ready to impact the enterprise space? Part three Hammer in the house [Part 1: Serious about servers ] [Part 2: Would you switch to AMD?]By Mario Rodrigues: Friday 25 October 2002, 09:39 IT IS PRETTY clear (see part two) that AMD has fully demonstrated the exacting requirements that the business world demands. Market perception of AMD's supposed inferior platform quality has taken all this time to erode. HP's decision to offer AMD supported (Compaq branded) desktop and notebook business class PCs should be all the assurance that one would need that AMD is now ready to aggressively...

Is AMD now ready to impact the enterprise space? Part two Would you switch to AMD? [To read Part One click here] By Mario Rodrigues: Wednesday 23 October 2002, 17:59 IN MARCH 2001, Web hosting company Rackspace managed over 3,000 servers. Patrick Condon, one of the company's founders, estimated at the time that 80% of their servers used AMD processors. "We use a lot of 1 GHz AMD Athlon processors. We found they are incredibly reliable," he said. "In fact, we have well over 1500 AMD-based servers that have been up and running 24 hours a day for over two...

Of late, FR seems plagued with slowdowns. Is this a temporary problem or is some limit being approached?

SAN JOSE, Calif. — IBM researchers have created a simple computation engine that's more than 250,000 times smaller than the most advanced silicon circuitry. Called the world's smallest computer, the system relies on a "molecular cascade" that pushes a handful of carbon monoxide molecules across a copper surface to perform digital logic functions. "Our molecular cascades are still research, but their small size is literally generations smaller than today's silicon circuitry," said Andreas Heinrich, a physicist at IBM's Almaden Research Center here. "Our 3-input sorter implemented in next-generation CMOS technology requires an area of over 50 square microns, but our...