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Sensors warn world's citizenry of metal in water, air.
http://www.physorg.com/news107506995.html
The Cooperative Research Center for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment (CRC Care) is working on technology to warn the world's populace of significant metals contamination to their water and air.
By researching the affect of contaminants on water, CRC Care scientists hope to create field-testing equipment that can provide a basis on which to alert local authorities anywhere in the world of threatening contamination levels.
The impetus is globally located contamination that has lead to mass deaths in some cases. Contamination comes from sources other than tainted water such as tainted soil. So, the researchers are using water microbes, testing them for reactions that must be due to metals contaminations. In this way, the microbes serve as biosensors.
Some say new Microsoft open document format is the company's way to corner the market and customer data.
A decision is in sight from the ISO standards body with respect to adoption of Microsoft's Open XML (open document) format. It looks like the standard will pass.
Open XML is the native file save format in Office 2007. Naysayers reject Open XML claiming there is no need for a new standard when the Open Document Format (ODF) is already available and standardized.
Objections to Open XML include its lengthy source code, which turn what could be a useful, open standards software package into bloat ware that can't be translated from one format to another without Microsoft.
Objectors argue that Microsoft is using its format as a tool to make users more dependent on the company. By keeping the program from being truly open, Microsoft can control the data held in the format's documents, holding it for ransom against potentially climbing license fees. Microsoft could deny program access and with that access to documents to those who refuse to pay mounting license fees.
Microsoft's stance is that it has made such eventualities impossible by giving ultimate control over Open XML to Ecma, an independent standards body. Ecma could ensure the document format's availability apart from Microsoft.
But those against the format say Microsoft is attempting to lock customers in to their technology.
New Intel chips add security features
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,136430-c,cpus/article.html
Intel's new vPro chips apparently pack more then power and speed. The chips offer increased cooperation with third party vendor security tools.
The chip adds malware detection to the chip and blocks off virtualized software, protecting it from security threats. The chips can collaborate with NAC security measures directly to help protect the host computer. By speeding security response times, the chips and attendant security software and network access controls can foil the growing base of attacks before they can do harm.
The leading chipmaker claims that the vPros can scan all out-going packets for suspected attacks.
The chips also add two features to protect against malware and data theft.
One feature, Trusted Execution Technology, removes data left behind when virtual systems close improperly. The feature finds and defeats attacks that would come between hardware and software.
The other feature, the Embedded Trust Agent, facilitates device authentication information sharing between the computer and network security systems.
