H(APP)Y Nurses

Mobile applications move to the hands of healthcare professionals

Communication network developer, Avaya has recently unveiled a iOS tool designed for health care professionals. Mobile Activity Assistant (MAA) provides a system of secure communication throughout the hospital using a text message format effectively allowing nurses to send and receive call alerts on patient conditions. The application eliminated the liability of nurses having to leave a patient and run back and forth to the nursing station, responding to alerts.

"Nurses did not have enough time to spend on direct patient care because they [were] spending a lot of time on other things like documentation and walking around," said Sanjeev Gupta, general manager of Avaya Healthcare Solutions. "They want to be able to get all communications while they're on the move, so they can spend more time with the patients rather than rushing back to the nursing station."

The APP can be downloaded and used on a personal device as long as its running on the hospitals secured Wi-Fi network. Many hospital professionals including doctors, nurses and therapisits can now all be networked on a shared patient’s status.

The application, initially designed for use on Apple products like the iPad, will eventually be compatible on other devices, like Android.

The Internet just got faster.

Mark this day, folks, because the brainiacs have finally made a breakthrough in quantum teleportation: a team of scientists from Australia and Japan have successfully transferred a complex set of quantum data in light form. You see, previously researchers had struggled with slow performance or loss of information, but with full transmission integrity achieved -- as in blocks of qubits being destroyed in one place but instantaneously resurrected in another, without affecting their superpositions -- we're now one huge step closer to secure, high-speed quantum communication. Needless to say, this will also be a big boost for the development of powerful quantum computing, and combine that with a more bedroom friendly version of the above teleporter, we'll eventually have ourselves the best LAN party ever.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/18/first-light-wave-quantum-teleportation-achieved-opens-door-to-u/

Quantum teleportation, or entanglement-assisted teleportation, is a process by which a qubit (the basic unit of quantum information) can be transmitted exactly (in principle) from one location to another, without the qubit being transmitted through the intervening space. It is useful for quantum information processing, however it does not immediately transmit classical information, and therefore cannot be used for communication at superluminal (faster than light) speed. It also does not transport the system itself, and does not concern rearranging particles to copy the form of an object.

The seminal paper first expounding the idea was published by Charles Bennett and coauthors in 1993.^[1] It was first confirmed experimentally in 1997 by a group in Innsbruck ^[2] and has subsequently been shown to work over distances of up to 16 kilometers.^[3]

Wiki

iPad 2 Could be a PR Dream Come True

1. The price -The cheapest wi-fi only 16GB version costs $499. The most expensive version featuring wi-fi and 3G and 64GB costs $829. The prices are the same as before which is good for the budget–albeit, it is still a pricey item.

2. The aesthetics – Thinner (33 percent thinner than the iPad) and it comes in two colors white and black. Thinner and in two different colors–decisions, decisions…

3. The case – Magnetic flap bendable case with auto-align in various color that can serve as a stand for the iPad. The case wakes the iPad when opening…sweet.

4. The size – The new tablet is 33% thinner at 8.8 mm, and is slightly lighter at 1.3 pounds (versus 1.5 pounds for the original iPad.). Is size a determinant in your decision?

5. The CAMERA – The new iPad 2 will sport new front and back cameras. This might be a selling point to me as I *wished* my iPad had a camera.

6. The operating system – The iPads 2′s new dual-core A5 processor is a big boost from the iPad’s A4. and operating system in iOS 4.3.

7. The battery – Promises 10 hours of battery life like the original iPad. However I have NEVER gotten more than 4 hours of battery life from my iPad. Might be my bad though.

8. FACETIME – The iPad 2 offers Facetime which allows you to video talk with others with an iPad2, iPhone 4, iPod Touch, and Mac.

Originally posted on http://pr-diva.com/2011/03/the-ipad-2-a-communications-pros-dream/

Your cellphone could kill you... or make your smarter.

by Chris Taylor

A study published in tomorrow’s issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association confirms what researchers have long suspected: that long conversations on cellphones affect parts of your brain. Trouble is, not even the study’s authors, the National Institute of Health, know how the calls affect you — just that they light up a significant chunk of your gray matter near the phone.

“We don’t know whether this is detrimental or whether it could have some potential beneficial effects. We don’t know one way or the other,” lead author Dr. Nora Volkow toldHealthDay.

Potential beneficial effects? Well, yes. The study tracked 47 mobile-toting participants for a year and discovered that brain metabolism in a small area nearest the antenna was 7% higher when they were on a 50-minute call, meaning cellphones boost brain activity (they raise glucose levels). Doesn’t sound so bad when put like that, does it? For all we know, blasting your brain with focused radio waves could be the mental equivalent of going to the gym. Glucose levels rise with just about any complex brain activity. For example, that 7% metabolism boost is less than the amount of energy it takes to process images via your eyes.

Of course, for all we know, the long-term effects could be pretty scary. Tumor cells need a lot of glucose, too. But that may be no more than coincidence. Researchers were careful to tiptoe around the C-word and with good reason: As Ars Technica points out, in biology there is no known mechanism that could lead from low-energy, long-wavelength radiation to cancer. A giant, 13-nation study launched in 2000 still hasn’t found any proof linking the two. Cellphone users, science is on your side — for now.

Bottom line: We know relatively little about brain science and even less about cellphone use. More research is needed for a definitive answer. We’ve all heard anecdotes from friends about how calls give them headaches or a buzzing sensation. Our friends could be right, or they could be hypochondriacs. Maybe cellphones affect each brain differently. At the moment, there’s just no way of telling.

If you’re concerned, be like Volkow — who told TIME she uses a $5 headset so she doesn’t have to hold her phone to her ear. “Maybe at the end of the day cellphones aren’t damaging,” she said. “But it’s only $5.”

Social Media Subpoenas

Posted on Mashable.com

The Department of Justice issued Twitter a subpoena for access to the accounts of Julian Assange and several others in relation to its investigation of the whistle-blower organization, which released roughly2,000 classified cables.

As a result of its current law enforcement guidelines, Twitter is going to divulge the information. The provision is fairly typical for technology startups to include in their policies as a way to protect themselves from getting involved in legal issues pertaining to the platform’s users. With such a policy, Twitter is not held responsible, and in many ways it should not be. According to the media lawyers we interviewed, this kind of government request is not unique.

Jodi Olson, a spokeswoman at Twitter, would not comment on details about the subpoena, but she said that “to help users protect their rights, it’s our policy to notify users about law enforcement and governmental requests for their information, unless we are prevented by law from doing so.”

That’s because most of such requests come with a gag order, and so companies like Twitter and Googlecannot notify the user that his or her information is being requested. What’s unique about the recent Twitter subpoena is that it became public. In this case, Twitter challenged the gag order and won. It then notified the parties whose information was being requested, including Birgitta Jonsdottir, a member of parliament in Iceland and former volunteer who is now challenging the order.

For a social service that has been regarded as a news source by many of its users, which include high-profile politicians, journalists and company CEOs, Twitter’s challenge to notify users when their information is being sought by a government entity is a step in the right direction in protecting users who may be exchanging sensitive information in the name of journalism.

---

A Broken System

---

Though it is not clear what sort of information the DOJ will find in the WikiLeaks Twitter accounts, it does have a possibility to yield correspondence with whistle-blowers. With such information being divulged, journalists should tread carefully when dealing with sources and sensitive information on the platform and not expect to provide any anonymity to sources reaching out to them via Twitter.

Prosecutors could simply seek a subpoena to obtain the information, regardless of the protection the news organization has promised. Although news organizations have often fought subpoenas, Twitter is a platform and simply provides a place for interaction between whistle-blowers and journalists to take place.

Many journalists, of course, are already cautious in any correspondence with whistle-blowers and dealing with sources who wish to remain to be anonymous.

Paul Lewis, an investigative journalist from the Guardian who uses Twitter regularly in his reporting, realizes Twitter is mostly a public forum where messages are sent in the open.

Lewis said for investigative journalists using social media, this requires a certain trade-off — often you have to let the online world, which includes competitors, know where you’re digging. But private direct messages are another matter, he said. When used by reporters, private messages on Twitter should be afforded the same journalistic privilege given to other private communication, such as e-mail or letters.

“But sometimes you have to presume someone will be watching or listening,” Lewis said. “If conducting a really sensitive online discussion with a source, I would never use Twitter, e-mail or even Skype. Private encrypted chat is the safest bet.”

But that cautious approach relies on the journalist reaching out, not a source who has contacted a journalist through a social site or e-mail using his or her real identity. The little anonymity and identity protection on the web highlights a challenge investigative journalists are facing in corresponding with sources in the digital age.

---

Social Media’s Shield Law Loophole

---

The journalist cannot adequately promise anonymity on social sites like Twitter or others, but that won’t stop whistle-blowers from contacting journalists on those sites. Whistle-blowers will still reach out to journalists on those platforms because that’s where they are often most accessible. Therefore, it ultimately starts with protection from the platform.

Journalists may be able to offer some protection in knowing that the platform will not disclose source information. But this would take a serious restructuring of the current culture of companies that do not stand up for their users. Twitter’s move to notify its users is a step in the right direction.

But notification is not enough to provide protection to journalists whose information is being subpoenaed by a federal court. In the U.S., 36 states and Washington, D.C. have journalist shield laws — legislation that provides reporters a privilege to refuse to disclose any information or sources obtained during their reporting. The rest of the states either provide some protection or none at all. But because there is no federal statutory reporter’s shield law, Jane Kirtley, who teaches media ethics and law at the University of Minnesota, says that in all likelihood, there would be no protection for a journalist being subpoenaed on a federal level.

Kirtley notes there are federal attorney general guidelines, which discourage the use of subpoenas against the press, but nothing to outright prohibit them as long as the attorney general approves it.

The case with Twitter and other tech companies is that these are not considered to be subpoenas for journalists’ records, so even if there is a privilege, it is unlikely to apply to these records, Kirtley said. This is a loophole that gives journalists little protection or right to protect themselves in their reporting while using such sites.

If a journalist refuses to disclose information to a government entity requesting it in an investigation, the court can simply go to the platform of communication to get the records. With many social media sites playing a vital role in news distribution and watchdog journalism, this requires a stand from those sites against disclosing such information in a broken system that once recognized the value of protecting journalistic integrity.

But ultimately, the privilege of shield laws should also extend to the social platforms hosting the information that is shared between whistle-blowers and journalists. And until there is a federal shield law for reporters, protection for such newsgathering will be nonexistent. This is the only way to fix the broken system. Platforms can only protect their users to a certain extent. It then becomes a legislative issue around the protection of journalists and the Fourth Estate.

Images courtesy of iStockphoto, JordiDelgado and zimmytws

CES 2011 Gadget Preview

By Hayley Tsukayama

Tablets will be a main focus of the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show, or CES, with several companies showing off their answer to the iPad.

According to TechRadar, the Korea Times has heard from industry sources in Korea that LG will launch a new Android tablet at CES 2011 and it will be running Honeycomb/Android 3.0 at CES 2011. It will have an 8.9-inch screen.

According to the sources, LG is attempting to keep up with neighbors at Samsung, who are also rumored to be releasing a second version of their Galaxy Tab 2.

Asus made some waves this week with its pre-CES teases of its Eee Pads, a hinged tablet, with a QWERTY keyboard and a traditional one. The company recently leaked shots of the tablets to Gizmodo andSlashgear. PCMag suspects that two of the rumored Eee Pad tablets will be Android-based, though not running Honeycomb.

MSI also gave a sneak peek at its tablet, the WindPad 100W, in Taipei.NetbookNews.com wrote it was a little disappointed in the latest look at the tablet, saying not much had changed since the last glimpse they had of the tablet in June. The Web site says the 10-inch tablet will have an angled camera as well as a front-facing camera, HDMI, 4 in 1 card reader, SIM card slot, 2 x USB 2.0 and 32GB SSD.

For a very complete rundown of tablet expectations for CES 2011 from last Friday, check out ZDNet.

By Hayley Tsukayama | December 29, 2010; 3:30 PM ET
Categories: CES 2011, Gadgets

The Google Blacklist - words blocked by Google

(Mashable Samuel Axon) -

Some folks at the Hacker publication 2600 decided to compile a list of words that are restricted by Google Instant.

Except in extreme and special cases, Google () is known for anything but censorship, but as we’ve said before, there are some terms the web giant’s new instant search feature won’t work with.

We understand Google’s intentions; the team over there is trying to make sure that no one sees pornographic or violent results they might find disturbing unless they really mean to search for them. When asked about this feature a few weeks ago, Google’s Johanna Wright said the restrictions are in place to protect children.

But Google has opened itself up to a potential PR problem, because some of these omissions will be at best bewildering and at worst offensive to particularly sensitive (or progressive) users who don’t understand how Google Instant actually works.

For example, “bisexual” and “lesbian” are among the restricted words. Type them in to Google and the instant search will immediately stop delivering new results. You have to hit enter to confirm, yes, you really do want to know about something in some way related to bisexuals or lesbians.

---

Why Did Google Block These Words?

---

You can still search for these terms. The issue is that when you type them, Google Instant stops reporting results on the fly, and you must hit “enter” to see results.

That happens because Google Instant doesn’t just use what you’ve typed to display results. It reads data collected over the years about previous users’ searches to predict what you’re going to type. It’s the same algorithm that handles auto-complete, or the Google Suggest pop-ups in the old, not-so-instant Google search. Google searches only display for the exact text that you’ve typed after you’ve hit enter.

When results fail to appear after you’ve typed “lesbian” or “butt,” it’s not because the results are being censored. Google is struggling to prevent the text of offensive searches users have made in the past (there have been other controversies on this subject before) from jumping up in front of you when you’re looking for something innocuous.

Since countless users may have followed the word lesbian with “porn,” generating results inappropriate for children, Google’s algorithm has decided not to immediately throw 20 links to lesbian porn sites in your face when you type “lesbian,” even if that’s the most common search based on the algorithmic data.

When we contacted Google for comment, we received this statement from a spokesperson:

“There are a number of reasons you may not be seeing search queries for a particular topic. Among other things, we apply a narrow set of removal policies for pornography, violence, and hate speech. It’s important to note that removing queries from Autocomplete is a hard problem, and not as simple as blacklisting particular terms and phrases.

In search, we get more than one billion searches each day. Because of this, we take an algorithmic approach to removals, and just like our search algorithms, these are imperfect. We will continue to work to improve our approach to removals in Autocomplete, and are listening carefully to feedback from our users.

Our algorithms look not only at specific words, but compound queries based on those words, and across all languages. So, for example, if there’s a bad word in Russian, we may remove a compound word including the transliteration of the Russian word into English. We also look at the search results themselves for given queries. So, for example, if the results for a particular query seem pornographic, our algorithms may remove that query from Autocomplete, even if the query itself wouldn’t otherwise violate our policies. This system is neither perfect nor instantaneous, and we will continue to work to make it better.”

Google’s highly effective SafeSearch algorithm still applies to instant search results. SafeSearch can filter out potentially offensive search results quite effectively after a user has hit “enter” — the first page of results for “lesbian” with moderate safe search enabled is completely innocuous — and it works for searches in progress too.

Google’s current implementation is far from perfect — the company rep admitted that. If nothing else, we’d like to see Google manually re-enter safe suggestions for some common terms that have been restricted because they’re sometimes connected with sexual, violent or hateful results.

The rep told us that Google is working on improving the system, but wouldn’t give us any specifics about future changes. In the meantime, check out the complete list at 2600 if you’re curious.

Google Instant - search as you go technology

Something new with Google? The search giant announced today at a San Fransisco conference its new searching protocol, "Google Instant," i.e. search as you type.

In essence, this series of random Google logos over the past few days were not so random. They were, in fact, hints towards today's major unavailing of Google next big move. The search as you type function predicts what it is that you are looking for by generating top searched results as you key.

Go to Google and try it out. Think of a word, then begin to type. Like magic, or perhaps serious engineering, your search word will appear in a drop-down menu; depending on your search criteria, as it supposedly will not encourage adult-themed searches. However, anything else goes, and quite faster than most other modern engines. If you type in the name of a band, off to the left it will give you suggestions for similar artists.

All seems well with Google's new toy, but think about what effect this will have on SEO. All those codes for nothing. All those countless hours of making your intern post key messages.

For now, it seems to be a fan favorite.

Worlds First Touchable 3D

Keyboard and Mouse Die by Innovation

With the launch of products like the iPad, HPs Touchsmart, and the everyday touch screen novelty, the keyboard and mouse are moving away from iconic pc parts.

A recent article from the Gartner Newsroom explores the growing trend of touch based hardware. "What we're going to see is the younger generation beginning to use touchscreen computers ahead of enterprises," said Leslie Fiering, research vice president at Gartner. "By 2015, we expect more than 50 percent of PCs purchased for users under the age of 15 will have touchscreens, up from fewer than 2 percent in 2009. On the other hand, we are predicting that fewer than 10 percent of PCs sold to enterprises in 2015 for mainstream knowledge workers will have touchscreens."

Trends and learning patterns start in the classroom. New gadgets and applications go viral with young crowds who always tend to be on the cusp of the next great gismo.

-As prices drop, education will become a major market for touch and pen-enabled devices. Younger children just entering school find direct manipulation on the screen a natural way to interact with their computers. Older students are already using pen input to annotate class material or capture formulae and graphics that can't be recorded with keyboards (for math, chemistry and physics classes, among others). However, most school districts do not want to support two separate devices — one for touch and another for pen. To deal with the differing requirements of the different grades, most districts are looking for dual-input screens that support both touch and pen in a single device.

These predictions don’t necessarily tell us much about the first generation of the iPad (and how well it’ll do on the market), but they do show that Apple’s idea of a keyboardless, simple tablet computer may have indeed created an entirely new category of PC devices, one that might be an important part of the PC market in years to come.

http://mashable.com/2010/04/07/50-percent-pcs-touchscreens/

http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=1336913