| Bose-Einstein; Quantum Computing
A world in which:
- atoms and particles can be in two states and multiple places at once;
- an action on one particle can influence another, astronomically distant; and
- you do not see for certain what is, but only what probably is,
is the foundation for amazing modern technologies such as MRI, John Carey
reminds us in Business Week. Given that they were developed from a barest
understanding of the bizarre properties of this quantum world, our technologies
are likely to become much, much, much more amazing as our understanding of
quantum mechanics advances.
And advancing it is, thanks in part to a man-made state of matter called the
Bose-Einstein condensate. The science of the condensate, explained in lay
language by Carey, is not our primary focus. The key points of interest are:
- First, that dozens of research groups around the world are experimenting
with this and similar man-made condensates. The sheer number of researchers, and
the broadband Internet-enabled speed at which they can collaborate with (or spy
on) one another, spells accelerating understanding and application of them.
- Second, their potential application in superconductivity, secure
communications, molecular imaging, quantum computing, and other paradigm-busting
applications is so great that the greatest risk may lie in underestimating their
impact.
Reference: Carey, John (2004). “Physics:
‘Putting The Weirdness To Work‘.” BusinessWeek Online, March 15.
4GB Drive in a Wristwatch
Toshiba’s 0.85-inch four gigabyte hard disks, which we reported on in the January 2004
issue, have earned a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. They
are intended for cell phones, digital camcorders, and other small devices. They
might even find their way into watches. The company’s 1.8-inch drives are used
in the iPod digital music player.
Reference: Unknown (2004). “Guinness
Record for Toshiba’s Tiny Hard Disk Drive.” Reuters, March 16.
AI and Speech Recognition for 40 Bucks
Automatic speech recognition (ASR) has arrived in video games, in the form of
Sony’s PlayStation 2 action-adventure game, Lifeline. In
heightening the sense of reality it may represent the start of a paradigm shift
not only in games but in many other computer uses.
The game’s main character, an artificial intelligence (AI) avatar called Rio,
can recognize over 5,000 words and 100,000 phrases the player speaks to her via
a microphone connected to the computer. “In practice,” writes Wired
reviewer Chris Kohler, “that means that [Rio] will understand anything that’s
relevant to her predicament, as well as many things that aren’t.”
Here’s how he describes the experience: “The designers have made a conscious
effort, in the various game sequences they’ve devised, to raise the level of
your communications with Rio beyond ‘go here, do this.’ Sometimes you’ll need to
brainstorm ideas with her to ‘jog her memory’ — in the infirmary, she’ll ask
you to start naming things that are in a hospital (and she’ll recognize
everything you can think of). In another memorable scene she will become
frightened and refuse to enter a room. Simply repeating ‘enter the room’ won’t
work — you have to tell her to ‘calm down.'”
The ASR is not perfect and misunderstandings abound. Interestingly, however,
“the player’s anger is typically not directed toward the program’s failure to
function but toward the character’s ‘stupidity,'” writes Kohler, adding: “Even
with its flaws, Lifeline is compelling.”
The game software costs US$40. So much computing power for so little money! A
reverse application of this technology could have a Rio watching an elderly
person through a videocam and helping him find his pills, or teaching a student,
or guiding a surgeon through a procedure.
Reference: Kohler, Chris (2004). “Talk Your Way Out of
Trouble.” Wired News, March 16.
Chip Revolution
IBM is encouraging companies and developers to alter the design of its
Power microchips for use in computers, game consoles, PDAs, cell phones,
and other devices, in the same way that developers may freely alter “open
source” software such as the Linux operating system. The next generation of
Power chips will be able to dynamically reconfigure themselves to perform
a particular task. Instead of accepting the standard “You can have any color you
want provided it’s black” approach by chip makers, device designers will be able
to build the exact chip they need. That will lead, as it has in open source
software, to much more rapid innovation.
Sony intends to use the chips in consumer devices, L-3 Communications will
adopt them for homeland security, aerospace and defense systems, and CultureCom
Holdings is working to get them to recognize Chinese characters.
Other manufacturers will be allowed to design, fabricate, and offer
customized IBM Power chips. IBM will not only provide a portal for
Power chip developers offering free development tools and technical
support, but also will establish Power chip development centers around
the world, where developers can work with the chips, and receive assistance from
IBM and other technicians.
The chips optimize their own performance by adding or removing circuit
elements on the fly. When software controlling the chip decides that part of the
circuitry needs cutting or tuning, it directs electrons to erode the
semiconductor material at appropriate spots, physically changing it. Early
versions of the autonomic chips have been tested, though it may take several
years before they reach the market.
In other news, IBM recently demonstrated a Blue Gene supercomputer
with 64 Power processors intended for personal use.
Reference: Delio, Michelle (2004). “IBM Bets
Chips on Open Source.” Wired News, March 31.
Reference: Bergstein, Brian (2004). “Self-Configuring
Chips Part of IBM Vision.” Associated Press via Yahoo News, March 31.
Cool Chips
Mechanical engineers at Purdue University have designed (but not built) a
device to cool computer chips by generating lightning and wind on a microscopic
level using carbon nanotubes. A negative charge would be applied to an array of
carbon nanotubes placed near a chip, causing electrons to be emitted which then
ionize the surrounding air. This microscopic cloud emits lightning, and
alternating the voltages on the electrodes causes the cloud to move, creating a
cooling breeze.
This is at the concept stage — there are numerous hurdles to a prototype.
But the accelerating problem of heat in ever more powerful chips seems to demand
far-out solutions.
Reference: Kanellos, Michael (2004). “At Purdue, cooling chips with
mini lightning storms.” CNET News, March 25.
Wireless Broadband
MIT director Nicholas Negroponte famously predicted that what was wired would
become wireless (think telephone), and that what was wireless would become wired
(think TV). Recent advances in wireless technology now suggest a trend to an
all-wireless world.
A wireless broadband service called iBurst has a reach of up to nine
miles from a base station — much further than Wi-Fi and much faster than
cellular or GPRS data services. If the maximum connection speed is lowered by
about 30 percent, the range increases to around 55 miles, making it a viable
broadband option for many rural areas. The service is based on “adaptive
antennas” developed by ArrayComm in the United States. iBurst is already
available and used by high-end business users in Australia.
Other wireless technologies that could be out as soon as next year
include:
- WiMax, an extension of Wi-Fi from its present 300 feet to 30 miles.
- 802.16e, an extension to WiMax that will allow connections to be
maintained while traveling in a car or train. Intel has said that it will make
such devices available to the public by 2006.
- 802.11n, another extension to Wi-Fi that would increase the bandwidth
by 10 to 20 times.
- Ultrawideband, a standard for transmitting large amounts of data
short distances (30 feet) and intended primarily for in-home use to connect
computers, stereos, and TVs to one another without wires. It is set for launch
in mid-2005.
It seems the “Negroponte Flip” may be growing outdated as wireless broadband
spreads and all “last mile” communications become wireless. What will keep
wires, and especially fiber, in business (at least for a while longer) will be
the long-distance trunking aggregation function and wire’s ability (so far)
always to stay a step ahead in terms of top speed — speed that will be demanded
by mammoth bandwidth hogs such as haptic video holography of the not-so-distant
future.
Reference: Gray, Patrick (2004). “Aussies Pull
Broadband out of Air.” Wired News, March 18.
Reference: Asaravala, Amit (2004). “Four
wireless technologies move toward starting gate.” USA TODAY, March 28.
Paper Computer
It is only a few months since we wrote about printable
electronic devices. Today, a disposable paperboard computer with 32 Kbytes
of memory, using that technology, is already in use in Sweden. It can collect,
process, and exchange several pages of encrypted data, and is intended initially
as “an enhanced and secure RFID device,” its manufacturer told TechWeb‘s
David Gardner, for use in “pharmaceutical and courier packaging as a
data-collection device; tomorrow maybe for interactive books, lotteries,
passports, and voting cards.” The printed computer circuitry can be integrated
with packaging, plastic cards, adhesive tape, and other products.
It is being tested by a Swedish university for use in compliance monitoring
of pharmaceutical packaging, and could be used by doctors and nurses to
time-stamp the medication of patients.
Reference: Gardner, W. David (2004). “It Had To Happen: The
Disposable Computer.” TechWeb News, March 4. |
