What's New @ IEEE April 2006

1. HYBRIDS AMONG TOP 10 TECH CARS: "IEEE SPECTRUM" REPORTS
"IEEE Spectrum" has issued its fourth annual list of the top 10 tech cars. The article focuses on production cars now in showrooms or soon to be available, but this year also singles out three concept cars for special mention. Cars on this year's list include the 2006 Chrysler Heritage Edition, whose headlights automatically switch to low beams when the car detects approaching vehicles and the 2007 Mercedes-Benz E 320 Bluetec, which will have the cleanest diesel engine on the planet. Read more: http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/apr06/3173

3. PROJECT SEEKS SOLUTIONS FOR FUTURE OF WIRELESS NETWORKS
With an increasing amount of embedded wireless sensor technology being developed, system designers are now faced with the challenge of deciding the best direction to take for future research so that the full capabilities of the networks can be realized. As a result, the European Commission's Information Society Technologies project Embedded WiseNts is focusing on finding solutions to the problems associated with the production of Wireless Sensor Networks and their applications, particularly in the form of Cooperative Objects. The team's goal is to acquire a general vision of these networks and predict technical progress over the next 10 years. The project will conclude in December 2006 and team members have already identified several key areas of weaknesses, including the lack of a middleware layer for the adaptation of diverse application software and the need for better energy efficiency in both hardware and software. Read more: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-03/ir-ptr032706.php

4. SMARTPHONES NOW AND IN THE FUTURE
A new report appearing in "IEEE Distributed Systems Online" (v. 7, no. 3) discusses what makes a cellphone a smartphone and looks at the future of the market. According to the article, smartphones are broken into three categories -- high-end phones, PDAs, and enhanced wireless email devices such as Blackberrys. The components that comprise them, such as internal memory, location-based services, and screen display, are common on all, but differ slightly depending on model. For instance, some use SVGA screens while others still use VGAs. Their operating systems consist mostly of Windows-based and Linux-based systems, with Symbian OS considered the leader. As these technologies improve, and WiFi hot spots increase worldwide, users can expect to find more location-specific services, especially in the realm of commerce programs that will cater to shopping centers. Additionally, M-commerce, the ability to use a phone to pay for items, is also something software developers are trying streamline. Read more: the link

6. TELEPHONY'S NEXT ACT: "IEEE SPECTRUM" REPORTS
Will Voice Over Internet Protocol wreak havoc with the systems of the Internet, or will it make our lives easier and better? Folding traditional telephony into the Internet is tricky, according to an article in this month's issue of "IEEE Spectrum" magazine. Their hardware and software are different and, perhaps hardest of all, today they involve totally different databases. The thing they do most differently is called signaling -- keeping track of all of the potential communicating parties, their equipment, and their services, and selecting the right combination for each contact. The next seven years will be key. Read more:
http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/apr06/3204