Can GPS make the Census better?

The Census Bureau is breathing a sigh of relief after a problem-plagued project to go high-tech recently cleared a big hurdle. Census workers are finishing up the agency's first use of GPS-equipped handheld computers to prepare for the 2010 population count. Instead of fanning the country with maps, employees used the devices to update the bureau's master address list of 145 million residences. Though some experts feared technological breakdowns in the field, early reports say the handhelds worked well with just a few glitches. Some 140,000 workers were able to finish checking addresses in early July, a few weeks ahead of schedule.