links for 2009-04-23

"We intend to build a conditions-aware planning and advising, web-based software system which we will deploy to our study participants. Using the system, which will use their location in conjunction with weather data to estimate soil composition, temperature, and rainfall, users will be able to plan a garden from the ground up. Alongside user preferences and the time span that the user intends to maintain the garden, the system will provide recommendations on types and number of plants as well as varieties. It will also provide them the necessary information about the amount of light the plant requires, the depth and time of year at which it should be planted, pruning instructions, watering alerts, and other useful advice.... Additionally, the software will assist the users in tracking their environmental impact, and their money saved versus the grocery store, as well as provide them with alerts when their intervention is required."

"Pacific Controls is in the forefront of U-City initiatives in the UAE helping to foster the interplay of people, technology and e- Governance, while the concept of U-City is still in its conceptualization stage.

Pacific Controls is taking leadership and mobilizing its resources and competency in developing Ubiquitous City technologies and is undertaking the implementation of U-City projects. The Dubai (U-City) initiative is currently taking center stage and enjoying strong support from the government and private sector.

UAE has the potential in leading the way to building U-Cities, which will take on leadership around the world. UAE has been first in many things. It was one of the early adaptors of e-governance, it's the first to use digital multimedia communication technology, it's one of the pioneers of a cashless society, and now it's again leading the pack in U-City. "

"Imagine public recycling bins that use radio-frequency identification technology to credit recyclers every time they toss in a bottle; pressure-sensitive floors in the homes of older people that can detect the impact of a fall and immediately contact help; cellphones that store health records and can be used to pay for prescriptions.

These are among the services dreamed up by industrial-design students at California State University, Long Beach, for possible use in New Songdo City, a large "ubiquitous city" being built in South Korea."

"As maps have become more complex, they have become our native medium for analyzing environments and societies, essential parts of the decision-making process in policy making. Climatologists, biologists, epidemiologists, transportation engineers, urban planners, community groups, and many others rely on geographic information systems (GIS) software (such as ESRI'sArcGIS) to understand data and to make arguments. To take a vivid example from this election year, the red-and-blue map that depicted a divided country in 2004 has given way to the "magic map"—based on Jefferson Y. Han's Perceptive Pixel multi-touch screen technology—on which CNN's Jeff King illustrates the complex interrelationships in American voting patterns, breaking down the political landscape county-by-county and precinct-by-precinct. "