THE COMING OF AGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY.
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A discussion of the distinction between a scientific discipline and a professional activity and of the reasons why "information technology" is a professional and not a scientific activity. The application of computers to the improvement of information handling is discussed as a professional advance similar to advances in medicine made possible by new instruments. A major new instrument, like the computer in information technology or the X-ray machine in medicine, may sometimes drastically change the practice of a profession. Some of the implications of the computer for librarianship are discussed in these terms. (+info)
Comparison between the strain indicator HRV of a head-based virtual retinal display and LC-head mounted displays for augmented reality.
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Augmented Reality uses Head Mounted Displays (HMD) to overlay the real word with additional virtual information. Virtual Retinal Displays (VRD), a new display technology, no longer requires Liquid Crystal Displays (LCD). VRD technology addresses the retina directly with a single laser stream of pixels. There are no studies on the user's informational strain in this new VRD technology. Various papers have shown that Heart Rate Variability (HRV) is a valid indicator for the user's informational strain. An empirical test revealed no difference in the user's HRV between VRD technology and LCD technology. Consequently, there seems to be a comparable user informational strain regarding the display types. (+info)
New technologies for nutrition research.
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The Experimental Biology 2003 symposium entitled "New Technologies for Nutrition Research" was organized to highlight new and emerging technologies, including nanotechnology and proteomics, and to suggest ways for their integration into nutrition research. Speakers focused on topics that included accelerator mass spectrometry for ultra-low level radiolabel tracing, nanodevices for real-time optical intracellular sensing, mass spectrometric techniques for examining protein expression, as well as potential applications for nanotechnology in the food sciences. These technologies may be particularly useful in obtaining accurate spatial information and low-level detection of essential and nonessential bioactive food components (nutrients) and their metabolites, and in enhancing the understanding of the impact of nutrient/metabolite and biomolecular interactions. Highlights from this symposium are presented briefly herein. (+info)
Response of complex networks to stimuli.
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We consider the response of complex systems to stimuli and argue for the importance of both sensitivity, the possibility of large response to small stimuli, and robustness, the possibility of small response to large stimuli. Using a dynamic attractor network model for switching of patterns of behavior, we show that the scale-free topologies often found in nature enable more sensitive response to specific changes than do random networks. This property may be essential in networks where appropriate response to environmental change is critical and may, in such systems, be more important than features, such as connectivity, often used to characterize network topologies. Phenomenologically observed exponents for functional scale-free networks fall in a range corresponding to the onset of particularly high sensitivities, while still retaining robustness. (+info)
Politics, technology, and transformation: a conversation with Newt Gingrich.
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In this interview conducted by Jeff Goldsmith, former congressman and Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich (R-GA) provides an iconoclastic view of the problem of reforming a Medicare system in the absence of a political consensus about what needs reforming. Topics include Medicare prescription drug legislation, the role of technology in transforming the health care system, the need to communicate clearly and honestly with people (especially senior citizens) about proposed changes to their health benefits, the role of the private sector, and incentives for change. (+info)
The relationship between technology availability and health care spending.
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We analyze the relationship between the supply of new technologies and health care utilization and spending, focusing on diagnostic imaging, cardiac, cancer, and newborn care technologies. As anticipated by previous research, increases in the supply of technology tend to be related to higher utilization and spending on the service in question. In some cases, notably diagnostic imaging, increases in availability appear associated with incremental utilization rather than substitution for other services. Policy efforts to assess and manage the availability of new technologies could benefit society where the additional spending produced by new services is not associated with strong quality improvements. (+info)
Clamoring for quiet: new ways to mitigate noise.
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New technologies are providing innovative ways to reduce sound levels in many areas. Aircraft engineers are finding ways to reduce the noise produced by jet engines, while road builders are using rubber-enhanced pavement to quiet highway noise. Indoor acoustics are benefiting from materials that transform sound waves to heat, and so-called active noise control reduces harmful sounds through production of a mirror-image sound field. And new lawn equipment makes weekends at home quieter for yard lovers and their neighbors. (+info)
On the origin and preservation of cumulative record in its struggle for life as a favored term.
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This paper offers a case study of the origins, emergence, and evolution of the term cumulative record as the name for the means by which B. F. Skinner brought his behavior under the control of his subject matter. Our methods included on-line searches, reviews of Skinner's publications, and journal codings and counts. The results reveal that the term is not originally attributable to Skinner, but emerged earlier in ordinary language and in another discipline--education. It was not even original to Skinner in print in his own science. Still, the term was once original to him, which we address with additional analyses of his having originated and advanced it. We conclude with a discussion the constraints of our methods, suggestions for future research, and the variable appreciation of technology and terminology in science studies. (+info)