TELECOM
Telecom Issues, Regulation Await Action
DIGITAL DIVIDE
Net Booms in Kabul
TECHNOLOGY
New Typeface to Help Dyslexics
Digging for Nuggets of Wisdom
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TELECOM
TELECOM ISSUES, REGULATION AWAIT ACTION
Pennsylvania's Chapter 30, a decade-old package of telecom deregulation
laws, is set to expire at the end of this year, and a number of bills have
been proposed to take its place. One bill would force telecom firms to offer
high-speed Internet service to all of Pennsylvania by 2010 at the latest,
five years earlier than required under existing law. Another would create a
broadband infrastructure development fund, to be financed through a levy on
the operating revenues of the state's largest phone companies. A bill
proposed by state Senator Jake Corman (R-Centre) would create a salaried,
five-member Pennsylvania Telecommunications Commission to supervise the
state's Internet and residential telephone industries. Supporters say the
bill would create an agency that's nimbler than the Pennsylvania Utility
Commission and better able to deal with the Internet's rapid technology
changes, while opponents say it creates an unnecessary and costly layer of
regulatory burden. Corman's bill contains a provision requiring automatic
enrollment for anyone who qualifies for the federal "lifeline" program,
which provides discounted basic phone service to low-income residents. About
1 million Pennsylvania customers who qualify for the program aren't
enrolled, often because they don't know about the discount.
SOURCE: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; AUTHOR: Bill Toland, Post-Gazette
Harrisburg Bureau
http://www.post-gazette.com/localnews/20031021techhearing1021p5.asp
DIGITAL DIVIDE
NET BOOMS IN KABUL
Despite the lack of proper infrastructure, wireless technology is fostering
an Internet boom in Kabul and facilitating the development of Afghanistan's
economy. The Afghans have been installing wireless connections across the
city; Internet cafes are popping up everywhere; e-commerce is booming, and
mobile phones have become a must-have item. The country has developed
e-government initiatives, which are transforming the way the government is
run. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) is training more than
1,800 civil servants and government staff in basic computer skills. The next
step would be to conduct training for academia and the public. The training
stresses that once an individual learns the technology, they must train
someone else. With this training, civil servants and government staff can
begin to connect provincial capitals to Kabul via the Internet. Previously,
it could take weeks for provinces to receive news of regulations or laws by
postal mail. Now, with the birth of Afghan e-government, a single email can
initiate nationwide policy. Connecting Afghanistan to the world network will
not be easy, but satellite connections will lessen the headaches caused by
landline or cable connections.
SOURCE: The Guardian; AUTHOR: Ben Hammersley
http://www.guardian.co.uk/online/story/0,3605,1063619,00.html
ACCESSIBILITY
NEW TYPEFACE TO HELP DYSLEXICS
The Read Regular project, supported by the Audi Design Foundation and the
Helen Hamlyn Research Center at the Royal College of Art, has developed a
possible solution for better typography for dyslexics, who have trouble
reading words online and in print. According to UK-based Dsyslexia Trust, as
many as 10 percent of English readers have some form of dyslexia. The Read
Regular typeface makes each letter significantly unique unlike those
typefaces that use the same forms for multiple letters, such as b and d, or
p and q. Additionally the Read Regular simplifies features and extends
openings in letters such as c and e. These enhancements will decrease
letter-reversal errors and other problems associated with visual dyslexia.
"Developing a solution for some symptoms and creating awareness regarding
dyslexia and typography are two important things for me," said Read
Regular's Dutch designer Natascha Frensch, who is also dyslexic. Currently,
many dsylexia-friendly websites use the sans-serif Arial typeface, but like
other problematic typefaces, Arial uses similar forms of letters like p and
q. The Comic Sans typeface has also been used, but often this typeface is
considered too whimsical for professional use. Frensch hopes Read Regular
typeface will be a suitable alternative.
SOURCE: Wired; AUTHOR: Amit Asaravala
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,60834,00.html
DIGGING FOR NUGGETS OF WISDOM
Dr. Micheal N. Liebman, director of biomedical informatics at the University
of Pennsylvania's Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, says
text-mining software can change research by improving the speed at which
researchers draw valuable connections from relevant information. The product
he uses, from the Chicago-based SPSS software company, can zip through
250,000 pages an hour, which far surpasses the human rate of 60 pages an
hour. Text-mining software goes beyond search engines such as Google,
because it not only scans documents for key words, but also categorizes
information, making links between otherwise unconnected documents and
providing visual maps to lead users down new pathways. Critics say text
mining, at best, needs guidance by intelligent people with expertise in
certain areas. Marti Hearst, an associate professor of information systems
at the University of California at Berkeley, says that text-mining analysts
suffer from overload. Visual maps presenting unexpected data links "can turn
into spaghetti," she says. Despite the amount of data available, the right
question must be identified, says Dr. Liebman. Currently, academic
researchers and companies employ these programs, but scientists expect
text-mining software to open up to the public in the near future.
SOURCE: New York Times; AUTHOR: Lisa Guernsey
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/16/technology/circuits/16mine.html?pagewa...
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