Volumes & issues:
Volume 4, Issue 19
7 November 2009
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- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 2 –2
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1921
- Type: Article
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- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 3 –11
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1922
- Type: Article
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- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 12 –13
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1923
- Type: Article
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- Author(s): J. Norton and J. Hayes
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 14 –14
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1924
- Type: Article
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- Author(s): V. Vitaliev and A. Novikov
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 16 –16
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1900
- Type: Article
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E&T visits Estonia, a former province of the Soviet Empire, to find one of the most technologically advanced and IT-savviest nations in the world. (4 pages) - Author(s): A. Novikov
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 22 –24
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1901
- Type: Article
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This journal discussed about different technologies used by the prisoners to escape the Berlin wall. Some of the topics discussed are: force and counterforce; deadly experiments; dangerous flights; and what lies beneath. - Author(s): P. Neroth
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 25 –27
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1902
- Type: Article
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In an ultra-competitive industry suffering from chronic overcapacity, the article discusses how Skoda managed to become UK's best-loved cars. It presents the rise and fall of Skoda during the economic downturn. - Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 28 –28
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1925
- Type: Article
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The fall of the Berlin Wall marked the end of the Cold War, and signalled a seismic shift in the economic and social history of Europe - the full implications of which are still in their emergent stages. However, the Berlin Wall is not alone, and not the latest division to be built between global powers. - Author(s): K. Sangani
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 30 –31
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1903
- Type: Article
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In this paper, the author presents the opinion of some technology experts regarding the health effects of viewing 3D motion pictures for lengthy periods of time specially the eye strain it caused the young children. The experts claims that there should be more research on this health issues and cited the research efforts done in the military and industrial applications of stereoscopic display evaluating this 3D fatigue. - Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 32 –33
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1904
- Type: Article
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Canon kicked-off the consumer digital SLR market, but now it is more crowded. Here we look at two rival options both priced under £500. - Author(s): C. Edwards
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 34 –37
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1905
- Type: Article
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Just four years after its invention by scientists at Bell Labs and two years after the country came into being, the ironically named German Democratic Republic (GDR) decided it would invest in R&D for semiconductors. East Germany was by no means slow to adopt the transistor. Sony, by comparison, would not start making transistors until three years later. Despite this head start, the GDR-based technology lagged behind the West by five to ten years by the time the Berlin Wall fell. In reality, it fell far behind long before the 1980s. The ruling party made a poster for its final Party Day, held in 1986, that showed a female engineer working on a massive computer. The slogan was "Wir haben die Chance genutzt" or "we have taken the opportunity". In some respects the poster was spot on: in a time when the personal computer was the future, the GDR ruling party's rhetoric was wedded to an image of technology that was resolutely stuck in the past. With flagship products such as DRAM, Dresden-based ZMD pulled out all the stops to keep up with the West. It reported its first 1Mb DRAM in 1987, as the first devices moved into production in US and Japanese fabs. To make sure ZMD could do it, the ruling party allocated 40 per cent of the entire R&D budget for three years to the 1Mb DRAM project as ZMD was unable to buy in a lot of the parts needed to make the devices from the West. - Author(s): P. Dempsey
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 38 –40
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1906
- Type: Article
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It's been a few years since anyone heard a vendor talk about it. But, if the recovery continues as projected, a lot more customers will be told how they're on allocation. Amid a punishing recession, it seems bizarre that anyone should be talking about putting their chip-buying customers on allocation. But several companies have acknowledged that some, if not all, of their product lines are already being affected. The canary in the coal mine is the historically volatile market for memories, particularly DRAMs and flash. Micron Technology supplies both technologies. Steve Appleton, its chairman and CEO, said this while announcing the company's Q4 financials late last month: "It appears that industry supply growth and capital spending are at extremely low levels, leaving many products on allocation. We remain optimistic that these trends will continue."That the supply situation will get worse is not a given. According to the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) latest World Economic Outlook, the possibility of a 'double-dip' recession cannot yet be discounted even if current data show the world economy beginning to recover. The IMF's main concern is that private demand, including consumer spending, is not showing enough strength to restore consistent global GDP growth by replacing public sector stimulus spending. In this context, it seems almost perverse to raise the prospect of severe product shortages in key technology sectors nevertheless, they now look certain for semiconductors. Generally, it is a looming problem. 'Allocation', for those unfamiliar with the term, is chip-speak for'rationing'. Appleton added that the $750m-$850m that Micron has set aside for capex in the current financial year will be "focused around getting more out of existing facilities". No new lines and certainly no new fabs will be added as the supply crunch intensifies. - Author(s): M. Langdon
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 42 –44
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1907
- Type: Article
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This paper discussed the use of laptop computers for the control of fireworks displays during firework competitions. - Author(s): S. Hurlbut ; B. Snow ; C. Gibson ; C. Alzmann
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 45 –47
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1908
- Type: Article
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Terminator Salvation behind the scenes takes a look at how the movie was made at George Lucas' Light and Magic studio, including interviews with McG, Shane Hurlbut, Ben Snow, Charlie Gibson and Christian Alzmann. They talked about how they tried to shoot as much live action and relied less on computer graphics to give the film a realistic feel. They also used real robots as props, and the ABB IRB 6620 as a manufacturing line for robots in the film. - Author(s): S. Davies
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 48 –51
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1909
- Type: Article
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In their continued search for new oil fields, developers are looking to deeper and deeper waters. As this paper discovers, Shell's new Perdido platform is pushing the engineering boundaries further than ever before. - Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 52 –52
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1910
- Type: Article
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When world leaders meet in Copenhagen in December to thrash out the replacement for the Kyoto Protocol, a small nations will play a pivotal role. Having looked at Brazil last issue, we now shift the focus to China. number of The stated objectives of China's National Climate Change Program are: to make significant achievements in controlling GHG emissions; to enhance the capability of continuous adaptation to climate change; to promote climate-change-related science, technology and R&D to a new level; to raise public awareness of climate change; and to further strengthen institutions and mechanisms on climate change. The plan stresses the need for adaptation of human and natural systems without hindering economic development. There is also a great focus on national level policy/legislative approaches to enhance China's overall adaptive capacity. The adaptation strategies proposed tend to be large in scope and scale the vision of the plan is impressive, but the document lacks specific targets and action-steps for realising these goals. - Author(s): A. Harris
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 53 –53
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1911
- Type: Article
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Second-generation biofuels that don't compete with foodstock were supposed to be the future, a new report has thrown a huge doubt over the viability of that technology to deliver. In spite of the savaging that biofuels have received in the mainstream media, it is forging on and looks set to make an even greater contribution as an energy source. Despite a number of key issues, such as land use and competition for feedstocks supplies for traditional food and feed uses, global use of biofuels is expected to more than double from 2009 to 2015 according to a new global analysis released by Hart's Global Biofuels Centre. - Author(s): J. Hayes
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 54 –54
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1912
- Type: Article
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Data centres: what are the trends and market forces that will shape their development over the coming five-to-ten years? Anyone appraising the data centre business during the recession at the beginning of this decade would have been far from assured about its long-term prospects. Dot-com boom and bust had resulted in industry-wide disaffection toward data centres, and many ClOs were left convinced that the best place for enterprise applications and data was on enterprise's own servers and storage devices.Data centre operators, and the vendors who supply the racks, cabling, servers, air conditioning and ventilation units, are doing nicely, and the market make-up is such that there is still room for product differentiation, with (to date) minimal consolidation. Ironically, the most recent economic straitening has been beneficial for the data centre market, as other business sectors find ways to trade more cost-efficiently online, and IT departments migrate toward 'Cloud'-based models that are hosted largely on third-party servers. (4 pages) - Author(s): K. Allan
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 59 –61
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1913
- Type: Article
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ROI return on investment is an acronym that looms large in the IT lexicon, but try to pin down a standard definition for it, and you'll soon be foxed. The principle reason why it is so hard to define is because the term's meaning changes broadly, depending on the project and the clients' needs. Its multiple definitions do not stop the term from being bandied around, however, and in erratic economic conditions it is important that IT professiona" who may be engaged in negotiation with vendors or integrators. ROI is often measured using a mixture of tangible and intangible factors. Larger organisations are able to see financial returns much more clearly, and can devise an ROI focused on cost savings, etc; but for smaller IT departments, such as Malcolm Burrows' team at petfood brand Butchers Pet Care, the focus is on building relationships. - Author(s): M. Wheatley
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 62 –64
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1914
- Type: Article
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In an enormous number of manufacturing companies, project management practice holds the key to unlocking significant gains on the bottom line either directly or indirectly, where a manufacturing improvement project sought to boost on-time delivery performance. The practice of project management turns out to be a skill that appears lacking in many manufacturing business. This article discusses the importance of project management skills and training for manufacturing companies to have a smooth product development process. - Author(s): C. Edwards
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 65 –67
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1915
- Type: Article
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This paper presents how electronics manufacturer TDK-Lambda has made IT a core part of its production system. - Author(s): C. Evans-Pughe
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 68 –71
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1916
- Type: Article
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Phone-tapping used to mean a quick click of mouse to extract the right conversations from computerised exchanges. VOIP services are based on the session initiation protocol (SIP), a TCP/IP-based application layer signaling protocol that lets computers find each other on the Internet. Tapping only becomes easy if the SIP VoIP call is made from a fixed location with a fixed Internet address connecting directly to a big Internet provider's access router. Interception and extraction would then require hardware in the ISP's network capable of identifying the media packets and converting them back to audio if the hardware can reverse any encryption used on the media. - Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 72 –73
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1917
- Type: Article
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Mobile phone security gets a boost from a formally proven hypervisor program. We all know about the security challenges of personal computers: they get hacked, viruses hijack machines, and keystroke loggers steal passwords that then end up on public Web sites. Yet the amount of security-critical transactions conducted on such systems is steadily increasing. Now think about smart phones and so-called mobile Internet devices, which are increasingly being used for critical transactions and which may replace PCs as the access device of choice for most Web services. These devices are, in many respects, starting to resemble PCs albeit with a much more convenient form factor. Does this mean that they will be as prone to security exploits, and that we are heading towards full-scale disaster as far as the security of our Web services is concerned? We might be, if we don't do something about it. The good news is that the technology to protect us exists. - Author(s): W. Altman
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 74 –76
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1918
- Type: Article
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With post-communism de-monopolistation and lifting of trade quotas, eastern Europe should be ripe for the picking. But the region is not for the unprepared, and knowledge of former Eastern Bloc markets is essential.The economies of the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland especially have opened up dramatically, and trade with the West has expanded rapidly. All three countries have de-monopolised trade regimes in which licensing and quotas now play very small roles. - Author(s): P. Dempsey
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, p. 78 –79
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1919
- Type: Article
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An influential writer has been employed by leading US science, engineering and technology university to teach creativity. E&T finds out why MIT is teaching engineers to think laterally. It was not so long ago that companies wanted universities to stress the value of teamwork and structure in preparing undergraduates for working life. Creativity and an interest in arts or humanities were seen as mercurial, peripheral, even dangerous. However, the problems facing engineering today have forced a rethink overcoming broad challenges such as global warming and more focused ones such as the physical limits abutting progress in electronics will demand original thinking. How do you provoke that? It's no great surprise to learn that the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is an old hand at this game. The US educational system has always had a certain amount of flexibility in allowing students to mix degree majors in the sciences with minors in the arts, and MIT is one of its leading innovators. So much becomes clearer still when you learn that its current Rudge and Nancy Allen Professor of Creative Writing is also the holder of the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Literature. Junot Diaz is well on the way to becoming a literary superstar. He won the Pulitzer for his novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao', and before he joined MIT produced 'Drown', a powerful collection of short stories. - Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 86 –86
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1926
- Type: Article
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Dates for your diary. - Author(s): D. Birkett
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 87 –87
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1920
- Type: Article
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The author appraises the moving walkway - a technology that seems to be slowing down with time. - Author(s): V. Vitaliev
- Source: Engineering & Technology, Volume 4, Issue 19, page: 88 –88
- DOI: 10.1049/et.2009.1927
- Type: Article
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The loving and thorough restoration of Dresden's famous Frauenkirche was not just a spectacular engineering feat, but also a triumph of democracy and westernisation.
Editorial
News
Letters to the Editor
If you ask me
Snapshots of E-stonia
Technology of escapes
The rise of Skoda [automotive]
Walls of the world
A sight for sore eyes
Gadget speak
Die chance genutzt [The chance taken]
Form an orderly line
Magic and light
Terminator treatment
Subsea: the final frontier
China focus
Food for fuel
Data centres 2020
When push comes to crunch [IT return-on-investment]
Can you manage? [project management]
Perpetual motion
Tapped out [VOIP phone-tapping]
A mere formality
Profits and pitfalls in eastern Europe
The science of creativity
Events
The global engineer
After all: Stone by stone
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