technews kdtkaufhhqacmorg read technews online httptechnewsacmorg c 2008 information inc service may reproduced internal distribution acm technews monday february 11 2008 headlines auditors report inconclusive florida undervote mishap computing women meet network learn computer interaction gets humanity optical scientists add new practical dimension holography israeli universities part rodent whiskers robotic project honda demos robot run 4 mph may one day take care researchers nvidia collaborate gpu petascale computing wireless whiz weighs pervasive computing muni wifi rfid 80211n coleman cyber arms race begun love tech goes long distance digital photos linked mementoes example making computers easier use tags lead way blind eufunded pilot ut arlington project aims make american sign language learning easier mit researchers fight gridlock linux creating preservationready web resources semantic web technology taking wrong turn news stories auditors report inconclusive florida undervote mishap network world 020808 gross grant us government accountability office still know caused contributed 18000 unmarked ballots florida congressional race 2006 gao said report released friday however report says gaos tests along others done state florida significantly reduced possibility ivotronic machines cause undervote gao says factors including intentional undervotes ballot interaction problems may caused undervote verified voting foundation says gao report leaves major questions unanswered address potential problems touchscreen sensitivity low batteries address reports undervotes races nature complex voting system question difficulty auditing system may mean questions remain indefinitely clear done resolve outstanding issues verified voting foundation report says foundation suggests auditors conduct tests including testing touchscreen sensitivity checking software bugs beyond gaos confirmation software matched florida certification standards someone whos interested happened election questions arent answered says foundation founder david dill dont think going get idea happened election without lot investigation httpwwwnetworkworldcomnews2008020808auditorsreportinconclusiveonfloridahtml computing women meet network learn computerworld new zealand 021108 hedquist ulrika computing women congress cwc summer university women computer science held university waikato hamilton new zealand week february 11 cwc meeting place female students academics professionals says annika hinze organizer event university waikato computing science lecturer threeday event includes daily keynote speeches social events two threehour blocks courses include web technologies software development research skills career skills gender hinze new zealand ambassador acms womens chapter says congress opportunity learn new concepts skills chance network form bonds women industry goal congress encourage women start career retain women already invested careers hinze says decided start congress attended similar one europe women computer science know met hinze says httpcomputerworldconznewsnsfdevt9df24f3548a73c7fcc2573e80076f3fb computer interaction gets humanity ict results 020708 similar european taskforce focused humancomputer interaction hci hopes drastically advance humans interact computers creating new interfaces utilize speech gestures vision haptics even direct brain connections taskforce wants make using computer less like humantocomputer interaction like humantohuman experience similar project manager benoit michel says main goal create viable sustainable community hci research covers broad range areas michel says including research areas interface theory signal processing interface prototyping michel says similar bring research domains together one paneuropean network 32 direct partners eight associated partners involved similar project responsible almost 1000 article publications fouryear lifespan network network also developed openinterface opensource rapidprototyping software interface design regroups core program plugin technology openinterface provides researchers standard opensource programming tool various interface functions speech recognition haptics video others httpistresultscordiseuropaeuindexcfmsectionhometplhome optical scientists add new practical dimension holography university arizona 020608 stiles lori university arizona optical researchers developed threedimensional holographic display erased rewritten minutes researchers say displays first updatable 3d displays memory making ideal medical industrial military applications require situational awareness dynamic holographic displays could used help surgeons track progress long complex surgeries show airline fighter pilots nearby hazards give emergency response teams nearly realtime views fastchanging situations technology could also advertising entertainment applications displays consist special plastic film called phtorefractive polymer sits two pieces glass piece coated transparent electrode images written lightsensitive plastic using lasers externally applied electric field researchers say materials highly efficient inexpensive used make large displays complete scenes objects created within three minutes stored three hours researchers also working write images even faster using pulsed lasers httpuanewsorgnode18022 israeli universities part rodent whiskers robotic project jerusalem post 021008 siegelitzkovich judy multinational team developing touch technologies based mice rats use whiskers find way dark one technologies robot able quickly locate identify capture moving objects space biotact natureimitation project includes participation universities research institutes hightech companies israel britain switzerland italy france germany united states using principles active sensing used whiskered animals researchers plan develop whiskered robotic rat use touch design artificial intelligence systems largely overlooked says rehovots weizmann institute science neurobiology professor ehud ahissar succeed understanding makes animals sense touch efficient able develop robots imitating feature put effective use researchers found animals closedfeedback loops constantly monitor signals receive whiskers suggest multiple closedfeedback loops key features giving biological systems advantage robotic systems ahissar says therefore implementing biological knowledge hope allow robotics researchers build machines efficient httpwwwjpostcomservletsatellitecid1202657414905pagenamejpost2fjparticle2fshowfull honda demos robot run 4 mph may one day take care computerworld 020708 gaudin sharon honda demonstrating humanoid asimo robot japan culture hyperculture festival washington dc idea behind asimo would someday helper people inside homes maybe disabled elderly says hondas alicia jones asimo development since 1986 made public debut rang opening bell new york stock exchange feb 14 2002 robot walk forward backward climb stairs run nearly 4 mph jones says making robot able run important react move quickly like family dog runs robots path robot needs run help someone distress jones expects asimo initially cost luxury automobile people personalize asimo think part family eventually people able hold conversations robot though time artificial intelligence part going challenge jones says facial recognition voice recognition program set voice commands would respond httpwwwcomputerworldcomactionarticledocommandviewarticlebasictaxonomynamedevelopmentarticleid9061519taxonomyid11intsrckc_top researchers nvidia collaborate gpu petascale computing louisiana state university 020108 institute advanced computing applications technologies iacat university illinois urbanachampaign launched project designed empower science engineering researchers allowing applications run 100 times faster significantly lower cost using traditional parallel processing techniques joining effort researchers louisiana state universitys center computation technology cct nvidia corp develop models tools applications communities leverage use gpus petascale computing partnership allows us develop tools technologies researchers need access future systems give us opportunity make breakthroughs benefit global scientific computing community says cct director ed seidel research project led wenmei hwu research professor illinois coordinated science laboratory member partnership brings unique critical ingredients table hwu says collaboration able attack problem way benefit entire science engineering community project focus four key areas developing parallel programming models frameworks creating new performancetuning tools automating gpu applications implementing laboratory testbeds iacat cct evaluating petascale computer tools deployment creating application communities key areas computational biophysics astrophysics computational fluid dynamics httpwwwcctlsuedusitephppageid63newsid756 wireless whiz weighs pervasive computing muni wifi rfid 80211n network world 020408 brown bob dipankar raychaudhuri heads rutgers universitys wireless information network laboratory stresses growing heterogeneity wireless technology evidenced coexistence numerous standards predicts multiradios soon benchmark broadly thinking need deal much complex wireless world different physicallayer wirelessradio standards variety networking modes including multihop ad hoc types intelligence arent used much today says raychaudhuri observes rapid maturation pervasive computing supply chain management rfid latter technology making significant progress areas automobile safety cartocar convenience says municipal wifi still lacks business case united states speed issues one principal impediments raychaudhuri says wireless security issues remain unresolved winlab concentrating problems intrusions blocked attackers spotted applying knowledge radiolevel properties admits funding apportioned basic wireless research united states large comparison europe adds well terms growth areas initiatives called geni global environment network innovations find future internet design nsf right future internet theres money put area wireless big part future internet raychaudhuri points describes work done cognitive radios exciting cites hyping specific wireless standards confusing httpwwwnetworkworldcomnews2008020408rutgersraychaudhuriqnahtml coleman cyber arms race begun cso online 020508 coleman kevin wave international online attacks took place estonia russia april may 2007 easily seen first cyber war writes kevin coleman technolytics institute peak attacks 4 million malicious attacks launched found targets race able protect nations infrastructure cyberattack ongoing technology experts military strategists city urban planners collaborating cyberwarfare strategies designed disrupt defend critical offensive defensive operations naval postgraduate school defined three levels offensive cyber capabilities first simpleunstructured includes capability conduct basic hacks individual systems using tools created another party second advancedstructured involves basic hacks multiple systems possibly ability modify create basic tools final level complexcoordinated includes ability launch coordinated attacks capable causing massdisruption multiple defense systems cyberattacks occur far frequently public aware coleman says average 6500 serious computer attacks reported per minute july 2007 nearly three times number cyber breaches month june 2007 report us congress warned china developing cyber network attacks could cause disruption chaos magnitude weapon mass destruction nations reliance networks technology computers makes country vulnerable cyberattacks coleman says 13 agencies offices us intelligence community reached consensus severe cyberattack could httpwww2csoonlinecomexclusivescolumnhtmlcid33496 love tech goes long distance forbes 020608 robert metcalfe says internet perfect example networking effect numerous devices added network making one useful would separately cornell university computer science graduate student joseph kaye took simpler approach stopped two endpoints 2004 experiment kaye developed software called virtual intimate object vio distributed 10 couples involved longdistance relationships vio displayed single red dot gradually faded time would strengthen one person couple clicked dot couples reported clicking dot filled emotional need made feel closer clicked dot 800 times day something intimate fact connected partner kaye says still used email cell phones seemed provide whole different channel communication experts say kayes experiment highlights juxtaposition digital world world gets smaller tightly connected couples seem apart frequently center study long distance relationships director gregory guldner says one reason long distance relationships people feel technology reduces emotional separation distance information technology definitely led people believe longdistance relationships work past guldner says whether thats true big question dealing right httpwwwforbescomtechnology20080206lovegadgetsvalentinetechlovebiz08cx_ag_0206distancehtml digital photos linked mementoes example making computers easier use canadian press 020608 university calgary researchers developed system calling digital photographs computer based relationship objects associated electronic tag university calgary graduate student michael nunes says people take lots pictures store difficult share people face face study small rfid tags attached mementos corresponded different sets photographs computer nunes says advantage system works setting someone would want show photos guest naturally study part trend computer science make technology computers easier use long keep thinking computers screens mice keyboards thats going happenbecause kind technology essentially says digital world totally separate daytoday everyday world people says calgary computer science professor paul greenberg worked research nunes currently im quite concerned people either stuff digital world physical world theres little crossover httpwwwcanadaeastcomprogressarticle204842 tags lead way blind eufunded pilot rfid journal 020408 wessel rhea secure safe mobility network eufunded research project make visuallyimpaired citizens independent efforts deployment rfid tags along three walkways italy blind people navigate unfamiliar surroundings system tested blind sighted participants pdas customdesigned canes link tags buried paths texttospeech program produces directions audio signals user hears earpiece three paths equipped total 2500 tags system constructed less 148280 according head european commissions joint research center marco sironi adjust antenna way could read transponder ignore whatever else ground steel cables says first 10 cane readers developed cost 37060 project partners collaboration french company second set 10 cost roughly 890 eventually sironi expects cost cane plummet hundred euros pdas earpieces cost 297 593 finally development database maps path stores locationbased information cost 29650 first kilometer around 2965 additional kilometer httpwwwrfidjournalcomarticlearticleview388811 ut arlington project aims make american sign language learning easier pegasus news wire 020408 computer science researchers university texas arlington boston university working make easier people learn american sign language asl users asl complete sentences quickly language require literal representation word also makes picking rapidly changing hand positions gestures difficult ut arlingtons vassilis athitsos bus drs stan sclaroff carol neidle developing new technology bring signbased searching signmeaning dictionaries current dictionaries list signs alphabetical order researchers use computervision datamining machinelearning applications enable nonala users look 4000 commonlyused signs tool make easier match gestures meanings study visual patterns researchers hope deploy dictionary within three years also plan create visual equivalent google would allow users search databases occurrences thousands signs research funded threeyear 900000 grant national science foundation httpwwwpegasusnewscomnews2008feb04utarlingtonprojectaimsmakeamericansignlangu mit researchers fight gridlock linux linuxdevicescom 020208 brown eric mits cartel project linuxbased automotive telematics system designed lower traffic congestion development routeselection algorithms cartel consists distributed gpsenabled mobile sensor network employs wifi opportunistically leverage intermittent coverage update central traffic analysis program creating flexible affordable platform various automotiverelated research initiatives objective cartel according mit professor sam madden overseeing project professor hari balakrishnan exploit intermittent encounters wifi access points mit team devised easywifi communications protocol establishes mobile wireless links fast variable sporadic connectivity addressed protocols portal application constructed around icedb streamprocessing query application handles processing distributed sensor data icedb database modification tinydb database madden created tinyos operating system made conscious decision move linux tinyos easy work madden says linux also huge number people developing device drivers graduate students already know develop cartel portal offers google mapsbased geospatial data visualization system capable storing tagging sensor data using gps coordinates project currently focused development algorithms run atop portal application help motorists work optimal route given time httpwwwlinuxdevicescomnewsns8559536444html creating preservationready web resources dlib magazine 0208 vol 14 2 smith joan nelson michael l many web sitespersonal community departmentalare worth preserving enough digital archivists prepare process sites write joan smith michael l nelson old dominion university suggest simple model preparing resources everyday sites preservation exploiting web server analysis time dissemination metadata utilities response archiving repository crawler web server relays resource well justintime produced metadata straightforward response formatted xml strategy supported mod_oai apache web server module smith nelson developed information generated via approach unverified undifferentiated extemporaneous archiving crawlers perspective clearly efficient servers 100 sites preanalyze resources archiving server analyze resources 100 sites smith nelson write add collating metrics approachs effects server specifically impact metadata utility performance server responsiveness regular clients however sites make agreement archiving site arrange specific crawling timeframe andor b allow selected crawlers perform kind enhanced crawl either userpassword agreement parties common access restrictions crawlers host ip example authors note httpwwwdliborgdlibjanuary08smith01smithhtml semantic web technology taking wrong turn internet computing 0208 vol 12 1 p 75 bussler christoph author christoph bussler sees disaster making semantic web technology swt unless change course implemented swt doesnt propose different application architecture writes instead proposes languages technologies intended make application development process integration efforts lot simpler faster reliable especially areas data process mediation achieve uniform semantic interpretation bussler notes impact swt requires certain degree integration current core computing technologies points deployment swt wrapping technology facilitate semantic interfaces layers causes number data models requiring additional mediation sharply increase due problems heterogeneity swt would like tackle heterogeneity challenge researchers generally attempt bypass making assumptions establishing restrictions produce homogeneous environments bussler says considers research community industrys decision split swt space along classical lines distinction layers components software architectures along classical academic research fields one possible reason derailment original swt vision one possible turn would start addressing problem data process heterogeneity among systems also along layers within reduce eliminate number mediations necessary bussler writes httpwwwcomputerorg web link publication homepage submit feedback acm technews contact kdtkaufhhqacmorg removed future issues technews please submit email address receiving technews alerts httpoptoutacmorglistserv_indexcfmlntechnews resubscribe future enter email address httpsignupacmorglistserv_indexcfmlntechnews alternative log wwwmyacmorg acm web account username password follow listservs link unsubscribe change email send future issues subscribed technews email address user6gvcceaschallengecc mon 04 aug 2008 225820 0500 acm technews monday february 11 2008