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The News - November 9, 2008
I was asked how I select the articles for the newsletter the other day. The answer is actually quite simple – I read a ton of material every week and when I find a story that I feel is interesting, I include it. Sometimes the concept is novel. Sometimes it confirms themes I am already tracking. In other cases, a story highlights a different perspective. In a sense, you can tell what I am studying based on the articles that appear. For about nine months now the intersection of climatic change, energy costs, data centers, the economy and national security have weighed heavily on my mind. Thus, you see it in the articles that are listed in the newsletter.
At any rate, enough of the boring “stuff”. Have a great week! --George
"People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and, if they can't find them, make them.” – GB Shaw
Top Picks
Chinese hack into White House network
“Chinese hackers have penetrated the White House computer network on multiple occasions, and obtained e-mails between government officials, a senior US official told the Financial Times. On each occasion, the cyber attackers accessed the White House computer system for brief periods, allowing them enough time to steal information before US computer experts patched the system.”
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2931c542-ac35-11dd-bf71-000077b07658.html?nclick_check=1
Obama Is Seen Inheriting Worst U.S. Recession Since Reagan Era
“The economy will shrink at a 3.5 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter and at a 2 percent pace in the first quarter of 2009, nearly twice prior estimates, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. economists led by Jan Hatzius wrote yesterday in a note. That would be the biggest back-to-back contraction since 1982.”
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aTP1DuSuMY38&refer=home
Team Obama
“While we wait to find out who becomes Treasury Secretary, here's what Obama's economic advisory board might say about some more specific corporate finance issues.”
http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/12583555?f=alerts
Automakers' $25 Billion Fast-Track Bailout
“Obama's remarks came a day after a highly publicized meeting between executives including GM CEO G. Richard Wagoner Jr., Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli, and Mulally, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). There, the Detroit execs specifically requested a bridge loan of $25 billion to help get their companies, as well as some of their suppliers, through the recession. The requested loans would have few strings attached, unlike $25 billion in loans coming from the Energy Dept., which are targeted specifically toward retooling plants and offsetting companies' investments in more fuel-efficient vehicles.”
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/nov2008/db2008117_496551.htm?campaign_id=rss_daily
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/6102838.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/08/AR2008110802000.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/09/washington/09auto.html?_r=1&ref=us&oref=slogin
IT Process Improvement / Quality Management
The Green Grid: Establishing greater energy efficiency in data centers and business computing ecosystems
“Today, as the amount of data circulating within the Internet and across computing devices continues to increase exponentially, businesses, government organizations and other institutions around the world are aggressively filling data center racks with powerful servers to keep pace. At the same time, energy shortages and energy costs are now quickly rising to the top of the list of economic and environmental concerns for organizations worldwide. Accordingly, a movement to increase data center and IT energy efficiency is gaining momentum.”
http://www.emqus.com/index.php?/emq/article/the_green_grid_establishing_greater_energy_efficiency_in_data_centers_and_business_computing_ecosystems_774
Six Steps to a Green Data Center
The author gives six steps he feels will enable data centers to lower their power demands.
http://www.arnnet.com.au/index.php/id;786288979
Green IT Beyond Virtualization: Storage Matters
“In our experience, storage consumes as much as 40% of power and cooling capacity in the typical data center. And unchecked storage growth is a universal problem--whether you're an academic institution, a governmental agency, a large enterprise, or a small business, your IT organization is being challenged by never-ending demands for more storage capacity.”
http://www.informationweek.com/news/storage/disaster_recovery/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212001022
Security and Risk Management
Investing in Your IT Security Career in Tough Times
“Given what I do, communicating with and connecting people, I've offered both a shoulder to cry on and kick in the pants to those that need it -- especially in uncertain times like the ones we're facing. I don't enjoy either situation. For the purpose of this column I wanted to offer some sound advice to those Information Security professionals who are concerned about the future of their jobs. Think of it as a general checklist of things that you probably should be doing all the time but need to devote some time and consideration to right now, especially if your future is uncertain.”
http://www.itworld.com/career/57503/investing-your-it-security-career-tough-times
Security Expert Robert Siciliano on Express Scripts Data Breach
“Based on what’s just happened at Express Scripts, consumers should indeed be wary of having their health information online. The company just announced it is being blackmailed with the threat of a massive data exposure. A letter demanding payment included personal data on 75 Express Scripts members.”
http://www.worldhealthcareblog.org/2008/11/07/security-expert-robert-siciliano-on-express-scripts-data-breach/
http://news.cnet.com/8301-10789_3-10084187-57.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/07/AR2008110703434.html
Foreign governments attack White House, Obama, McCain campaign systems
“Hmm, anyone want to place bets on what “foreign entity” has been hacking into Obama and McCain campaign computers, as Newsweek reports? Could it be the same country (China) that penetrated the White House’s email archive system and lifted email conversation between top officials, as the Financial Times reports?”
http://government.zdnet.com/?p=4167&tag=nl.e589
Healthcare / Bio-Informatics / Care Delivery Organizations (CDOs)
Obama healthcare plan boon for hospitals: Moody's
“President-elect Barack Obama's plan to extend health care to uninsured Americans will provide a boon to hospitals, along with medical centers and hospital equipment makers, according to Moody's Investors Service.”
http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSTRE4A65W720081107
AHIMA Addresses Health Record Privacy and Security Breaches
“The alarming news reports concerning high-profile victims of personal medical information security and privacy breaches raises the bar on the necessity to educate and inform healthcare professionals, their employers, the media and healthcare consumers on the importance of privacy protection, confidentiality and security of personal health records.”
http://www.surgicenteronline.com/hotnews/ahima-health-record-privacy-security.html
Human Error / Safety / Environment
Global Warming Predicted To Hasten Carbon Release From Peat Bogs
“Billions of tons of carbon sequestered in the world's peat bogs could be released into the atmosphere in the coming decades as a result of global warming, according to a new analysis of the interplay between peat bogs, water tables, and climate change.”
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081106122249.htm
Environmental leaders offer their elevator pitches for Obama
The UK’s Guardian newspaper asked a number of environmental leaders what they would tell Obama.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/nov/07/network-barackobama
Nuclear-powered Submarine Accident Kills at least 20
“The Russian navy says the nuclear-powered Russian naval submarine, involved in a deadly accident, has pulled into port at Bolshoi Kamen, a military shipyard not far from the eastern city of Vladivostok. Russian Navy officials say at least 20 shipbuilders and servicemen were killed Saturday when the fire-extinguishing system aboard the vessel was activated in error. The officials say the submarine was in the waters of the Sea of Japan conducting sea trials when the accident occurred.”
http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-11-09-voa8.cfm
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/09/AR2008110900566.html
Party tussle ensnares Obama's global warming goals
“Democrats are fighting over control of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the outcome could affect President-elect Obama's efforts to limit the heat-trapping gases blamed for global warming. Obama has said he wants to act quickly on climate change. But bipartisan support could be tested if liberal California Rep. Henry Waxman unseats the chairman, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. The committee's top Democrat for 28 years, Dingell is an ally of important of automakers and electric utilities.”
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i9xAGccax9gEIblO5a1YUtPXXd4gD94ASF381
Countdown to perilous global warming
“Far from going down, the global growth rate of carbon dioxide emissions is spiking upwards. Findings from the Global Carbon Project this month showed that the global average percentage rise since the year 2000 is now over three times higher than the previous decade, rising again significantly in the last year. These growth rates are now worse than the worse case scenario used by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to model potential global warming.”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/nov/09/carbonemissions
Global News / Business / Economics
Tax polluters for global warming funds: U.N. official
“The global financial gloom will make citizens of rich nations reluctant to use their taxes to fight global warming and any plan to help poor nations should make the polluters pay, a top U.N. climate official said. His warning cast doubt on a Chinese proposal to ask the world's rich nations to devote up to 1 percent of their total economic worth to pay for cleaner expansion in the poor world.”
http://www.reuters.com/article/reutersEdge/idUSTRE4A610A20081107
China Announces 4 Trillion Yuan Economic Stimulus
“China announced a 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) stimulus plan to spur expansion in the world's fourth-largest economy, helping sustain global growth as the U.S., Europe and Japan teeter on the brink of recession. The funds, equivalent to almost a fifth of China's $3.3 trillion gross domestic product last year, will be used by the end of 2010, the Beijing-based State Council said today on its Web site.”
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aFsnGCiEPuEs&refer=home
UN announces Beijing Declaration on climate change
“United Nations released the Beijing Declaration here on Saturday, calling for strengthened international cooperation and improved technology transfers to battle climate change.”
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-11/08/content_10327867.htm
US News / Business / Economics
GM: Almost out of cash
“The nation's largest automaker reported that it lost $4.2 billion, or $7.35 a share, excluding special items. That's up from the loss $1.6 billion or $2.86 a share it reported a year earlier and was far worse than the forecast of analysts surveyed by earnings tracker Thomson Reuters, which had forecast a loss of $3.70 a share.”
http://money.cnn.com/2008/11/07/news/companies/gm/index.htm?postversion=2008110711
Ford: Massive loss, job cuts
“Ford Motor reported a $3 billion quarterly operating loss on Friday and said it would reduce staff and capital spending in order to preserve its dwindling cash. Ford said it would cut salaried employment costs by 10% - reducing compensation of its white collar workers by eliminating merit pay, bonuses and the company's matching contributions to their retirement accounts.”
http://money.cnn.com/2008/11/07/news/companies/automakers_3q_results/index.htm?postversion=2008110710
Obama meets with economic experts for advice
“Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden convened a meeting of the transition economic advisory board, a high-powered collection of business, academic and government leaders. They included Lawrence Summers, who some have mentioned as a candidate for Treasury secretary, a post he held in the Clinton administration; Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, whose state has been hit hard by losses in the auto industry; Google CEO Eric Schmidt; and former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker.”
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5isOFwdbq0tsqatW6vJpkDRTI1gMgD94A98401
Around the Street: Labor Pains Worsen
“Confirming Wall Street's fears, the U.S. employment report for October, released Nov. 7, showed a worse-than-expected pace of job losses for the U.S. economy. Nonfarm payrolls plunged 240,000, vs. market expectations of a 190,000 drop. The unemployment rate jumped to 6.5% in October from 6.1% in September; that's the highest reading since March 1994.”
http://www.businessweek.com/investor/content/nov2008/pi2008117_904260.htm
Technology & Science
Mine is Greener Than Yours
“Supercomputing vendor SiCortex has long trumpeted the power-, cooling-, and space-friendliness of its HPC gear. Over time it's added those advantages together to create a picture of eco-friendly HPC, and it's reinforced the message in special events where it uses pedal power from teams of bicyclists to power its boxes. This week the company is introducing a new metric, the Green Computing Performance Index, that assesses the performance of individual supercomputers based on the ratio of their performance on the HPC Challenge benchmark to power consumption.”
http://www.hpcwire.com/features/Mine_is_Greener_Than_Yours_34038934.html
Honda unveils wearable robotic walker
“The experimental device, unveiled Friday, is designed to support bodyweight, reduce stress on the knees and help people get up steps and stay in crouching positions.”
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/11/07/robotic.walker.ap/index.html
Scientists hope to clone extinct species
Japanese researchers have developed a method to clone animals from frozen tissue – a method hitherto not thought possible due to the tissue damage caused during freezing.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/11/04/japan.mouse.clone/index.html
Profile: Luis von Ahn
“This is a story about man and machine, and about the researcher whose Web-based programs harness uniquely human abilities—such as reading or knowing common-sense facts—and then aggregate that knowledge to solve large-scale, long-standing problems of computer science.”
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/nov2008/id2008113_656340.htm?campaign_id=rss_tech
UPS Takes the Lead on Hydraulic Hybrids
“Scientists say the technology can cut carbon dioxide emissions by 30% and increase fuel efficiency by 50%. If they're deemed a financial success, the hydraulic components and the trucks could go into mass production by their respective manufacturers, Eaton (ETN) and Navistar (NAV), by 2011.”
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/nov2008/db2008116_037066.htm?campaign_id=rss_tech
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