Technology has immortality, cures for the worlds devastating diseases, quantum computing and a host of other science fiction notions in its grasp. Current trends in a number of areas indicate that over the next 10 years many of these technologies will come to fruition. "The Next 10 Years" tracks the trends that will transform our everyday lives in almost unimaginable ways.

Friday, January 11, 2008

Study Finds Possible Targets for H.I.V. Drugs - New York Times: "Using a new type of genetic screen, researchers at Harvard Medical School have identified 273 proteins that the AIDS virus needs to survive in human cells, opening up new potential targets for drugs."

Their work, published online on Thursday by Science magazine, used RNA interference to screen thousands of protein-making genes; previously, scientists had identified only 36 human proteins that the virus uses to break into cells, hijack their machinery and start reproducing.

“This is just terrific work,” said Dr. Robert C. Gallo, director of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland and a co-discoverer of the virus. “I think it’s destined to be one of the top papers in this field for the decade.”

Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the government’s top AIDS expert, called the Harvard team’s work “elegant science,” but added a caution.

Wednesday, January 09, 2008

Carbon nanosheets promise super-fast chips - tech - 08 January 2008 - New Scientist Tech

Carbon nanosheets promise super-fast chips - tech - 08 January 2008 - New Scientist Tech

Atom-thick sheets of a carbon compound called graphene should smash the record for room-temperature conductivity, say UK researchers.

The fact that the near-2D layers lets electrons travel so freely means the sheets could allow a new generation of super-fast microelectronics, they say.

Prototype devices like transistors have already been made from graphene, but its basic properties are still being explored.

Graphene is the name given to a sheet of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagon pattern. Stacks of such sheets make the pencil-core ingredient graphite, but until recently it had been extremely difficult to isolate single layers.

The new research was carried out by scientists at the University of Manchester – where graphene was first isolated in 2004 – and colleagues from Russia, the Netherlands, and the US.

The team calculated that pure graphene should allow electrons to travel more easily than in any other material, including gold, silicon, gallium arsenide, and carbon nanotubes.



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Sunday, January 06, 2008

Researchers uncover key trigger for potent cancer-fighting marine product

Researchers uncover key trigger for potent cancer-fighting marine product

An unexpected discovery in marine biomedical laboratories at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego has led to new, key information about the fundamental biological processes inside a marine organism that creates a natural product currently being tested to treat cancer in humans. The finding could lead to new applications of the natural product in treating human diseases.

A research team led by Bradley Moore, a professor with UCSD’s Scripps Oceanography Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine and Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, and postdoctoral researcher Alessandra Eustáquio, along with their colleagues at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, discovered an enzyme called SalL inside Salinispora tropica, a promising marine bacterium identified in 1991 by Scripps researchers.

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Friday, January 04, 2008

HydroPak Fuel Cell Could Replace Generators, Batteries

HydroPak Fuel Cell Could Replace Generators, Batteries

The HydroPak stems from a collaboration between Horizon's fuel cells and Millennium Cell's "Hydrogen-on-Demand" storage technology. The companies hope to attract consumers and professionals who currently use generators and batteries for their remote power supply needs. The HydroPak could have applications for camping, construction, emergency, and other uses.


The device, which is still in beta, is relatively inexpensive for a fuel cell product, costing around $400 in addition to the disposable cartridges. The HydroPak also has zero emissions, is lightweight, and operates with minimal noise. A water-activated cartridge can crank out 400 Watts through an AC outlet and two USB ports, so it can be used to power everything from portable lights, notebook computers, portable televisions and ad hoc communications networks, for a total of 14 continuous hours.

Horizon and Millenium Cell plan to publicly debut the HydroPak at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) at the Las Vegas Convention Center from January 7-10. On January 29-30, the companies will also demonstrate the product for the U.S. military at the Tactical Power Sources Summit 2008 at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. In addition to the HydroPak, a HydroPak Mini will also be unveiled, which can be used in consumer devices such as cell phones, PDAs, and portable media players.


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Wednesday, January 02, 2008

8 White-Hot Trends Lift Local Search in '08 - Search Engine Watch

8 White-Hot Trends Lift Local Search in '08 - Search Engine Watch

Eight local search trends will rock the search engine world in '08. Here are the ones with the most momentum as we roll into the New Year:

Local Search in Motion
YouTube has popularized watching online video clips -- a trend that has made its way to local search in the form of watching small business video ads. Citysearch pushed this forward in May with the launch of video ads from TurnHere, and a torrent of IYPs followed suit. Many small businesses (SMBs) are eating it up, with a longstanding desire to advertise with video -- traditionally cost prohibitive on cable TV. We've only seen the beginning.

Universal Appeal
Universal, or blended search, is a trend which, like video, started in the general search world and migrated to local. An ideal local SERP (define) for keyword "Toyota Prius" should give you local classifieds listings, local dealer listings, video buying guides for hybrid cars, maps, and video ads for local dealers. Several online pure plays including LiveDeal, Vehix, and Citysearch, are working on different combinations of these blended search models, but we have a long way to go.

Local IP + TV Search = RIP Web 3.0
IPTV is the sleeping giant in local search. Telcos are collectively spending in the 11 digit range to bring us IPTV on the backs of high speed fiber networks. So far AT&T's U-verse package has a yellowpages.com channel that lets users search for a pizza or a plumber using the remote.
But the local opportunity will be much greater, as content capacity (switched video architecture), on demand product models, and IP based targeting will make IPTV a local search medium that will rival the Web. By virtue of the aforementioned online video trend, SMB video ad libraries are being produced as we speak to fill some of this "air time."

Local Search, Moving Target
Mobile local search is a technology with a "tipping point" that is perpetually 18 months away. But now we're closer than ever, given the loosening of carrier control that has traditionally stifled innovation in this sector.

The iPhone open SDK that we'll see in February, combined with Google's Android open source mobile operating system launched in November, will enable a level of distributed innovation that we've seen on the Web. Local search will be one of the top beneficiaries.

The 311 on 411
Related to Mobile (but an important distinction) is free directory assistance (DA). The Kelsey Group forecasts annual ad-sponsored DA calls to exceed 2 billion by 2012 (50 percent CAGR).
Google's (goog411) and Microsoft's (Tellme) entrance to the market will continue to shed mainstream light on it the fact that there is an easy alternative to paying two bucks for a carrier delivered 411 call (the slam dunk selling proposition caused Google to start advertising on billboards this year). Through usage increases, ad inventory will grow and AdSense-like audio ad networks will contextually target local radio spots, DA, and repurposed sound tracks from the growing ranks of video advertising mentioned above.

Searchification of SMBs
It's a little difficult to sell someone AdWords if they don't have a Web site. Bringing more SMBs online represents an opportunity to increase the addressable market of search marketers.
Even better, being the one who provides the training wheels to get Joe SMB up and running, can represent an important foot in the door for future SEM (define) services. We're seeing lots of different flavors of SMB landing page, Web site and SEM bundles from the likes of LocalLaunch, Marchex and WebVisible. Meanwhile, Facebook has launched its own attractive landing page and ad product bundle.
Bottom line: Whoever corrals these elusive SMBs, will do so with easy to understand product bundles and a way into the SMB front door. The latter will continue to happen through sales channel partnerships with yellow pages and newspaper publishers.

Agnostic True Believers
Related to the above point, the yellow pages industry, by virtue of its massive sales force, has a leg up in selling Web sites, SEM, SEO (define) and a variety of sponsored placement packages on their own Internet yellow pages (IYPs). There's still a long way to go, but many yellow pages publishers are starting to act on the fact that the IYP sales channel is the greatest asset they have.
Only after they truly embrace the "platform agnosticism" they've been talking about for years, will they be able to become dominant resellers of search-based marketing; and maintain greater ownership of the $16 billion U.S. print yellow pages ad dollars that are quickly migrating online.

The 3Ds
This year Microsoft and Everyscape introduced many of us to 3D mapping. This has mostly been a novelty but will gain utility in the coming months as we see greater broadband penetration through high speed fiber network deployments (driven by IPTV). As usage grows, 3D maps will develop greater local search functionality.

Transactional revenue streams will develop around local search products when users can check out a restaurant interior in 3D and reserve a table. Inventory data, in store pickup, and other features starting to be seen from the likes of NearbyNow and Krillion, will also grow with more immersive 3D mapping. In the meantime, there are clear opportunities in travel and real estate, but that's just the beginning.