Archive for the ‘biggest’ Category
Gary McKinnon, a British computer expert, claims he’s just fascinated with UFOs. Using his home computer and a modem — how WarGames! — he infiltrated military networks and accessed thousands of computers trying to find evidence of alien contact. Now caught and having lost an appeal with the British courts, he’s awaiting extradition to the United States to stand trial, accused of the “biggest military hack of all time.” The full list of his computer-exploiting prowess:
Using his own computer at home in London, McKinnon hacked into 97 computers belonging to and used by the U.S. government between February 2001 and March 2002.
McKinnon is accused of causing the entire U.S. Army’s Military District of Washington network of more than 2,000 computers to be shut down for 24 hours.
Using a limited 56-kbps dialup modem and the hacking name “Solo” he found many U.S. security systems used an insecure Microsoft Windows program with no password protection.
He then bought off-the-shelf software and scanned military networks, saying he found expert testimonies from senior figures reporting that technology obtained from extra-terrestrials did exist.
At the time of his indictment, Paul McNulty, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, said: “Mr. McKinnon is charged with the biggest military computer hack of all time.”
If found guilty, McKinnon could be jailed for 70 years and fined as much as $1.75 million.
BEIJING (Reuters) – Olympic sponsors are launching possibly the largest advertising and marketing campaign ever, aiming to etch their brands in the minds of a new generation of Chinese consumers for far beyond the upcoming Games.
The ads range from traditional print and TV to glitzy new on-line media, blanketing a vast country whose citizens place an extraordinarily high value on the Olympic ideal and presumably the companies that support it.
While the risk of a public relations backlash still looms as China finds itself at odds with much of the world on hot-button issues such as Tibet and Sudan, the hoped-for gains far outweigh any possible downside.
“On a global scale, I don’t think you are going to get this kind of investment again,” said Greg Paull, the head of R3, a Beijing-based media consultancy.
R3 — which counts sponsors Coca-Cola Co, Adidas, Yili and Lenovo Group as clients — says the benefits for companies will be enjoyed for years after the last athlete crosses the final finish line next month.
R3 reckons all advertisers in China will spend 19 percent more in 2008 than a year earlier to about $54.3 billion, for an “Olympic effect” of about $8.6 billion in additional spending.
In addition, Olympic sponsors alone will spend 21.8 billion yuan ($3.2 billion) this year, rising 52 percent from 2007, said Paull.
German sportswear maker Adidas, one of 11 national partners of the Beijing Games, is expecting its Olympic tieup to vault it past arch rival Nike Inc in the China market this year.
“Our marketing campaign for China is the largest we have ever done in a single country,” Erica Kerner, director of the Beijing Olympic program for Adidas, told Reuters.
“We see this as a marketing platform that will help us to achieve market leadership in China this year,” she said.
Adidas will use a 360-degree projection theatre to spread its “Together in 2008, Impossible is Nothing” slogan.
ECONOMICS TRUMPS POLITICS
Nike — which sponsors individual athletes and sports groups, but not the Olympics itself — is perhaps underestimating the fact that over 90 percent of Chinese view the Olympics, and companies associated with it, in a positive light.
China is the world’s fastest growing major economy and is seen by multinationals as a crucial market, success in which would give the winners a step up in the global battle for precious market share.
Adidas estimates China will become its second largest market after the United States by 2010, when its stores will grow to 6,300 from over 4,000 now, riding a sports and leisure boom.
But nothing in China comes easy, as Olympic backers found out earlier this year and again last month.
Organizers and sponsors of the Games were rattled when China’s harsh crackdown in Tibet touched off global anti-Chinese protests leading to talk of an Olympic boycott.
“That is a big challenge for all sponsors,” said Paull, the media consultant, referring to the political risks surrounding the Olympics.
“But it is also par for the course, part of doing business in this market,” said Paull.
Tibet is far from the only issue that could tarnish the Games for sponsors and China.
Beijing criticized the International Criminal Court last month after the court charged the president of key ally Sudan with genocide, adding to claims Beijing was only interested in protecting its oil investments in the poor African country.
Some Olympic athletes who have joined Team Darfur, an informal, 300-strong group created by former U.S. speed skater Joey Cheek to draw attention to Sudan, have said they may stage some form of protest while in Beijing.
The possibility foreign-based protestors or home-grown terrorists from Tibet or the restive region of Xinjiang could mar the Games, has prompted extraordinary security measures including emptying Beijing of migrant workers and tighter visa rules.
BIG BUSINESS
But the political backdrop is having little impact on advertisers who are taking advantage of the positive vibes to the pre-Olympic buildup in the capital. And cost is no object.
Coca-Cola is inviting 10,000 people to Beijing for the Games and will dazzle them with what is touted as the world’s largest overhead LCD screen, covering an entire outdoor plaza.
Half of Coke’s guest list are clients and employees from overseas, and another large contingent will be staff volunteers from China to help with its many hospitality events spread throughout Beijing.
“Our people are really excited to be here. It is a win-win,” said Christina Lau, Coke’s director of external affairs based in Beijing.
“We have selected employees who have demonstrated their passion and commitment to Coke and the Olympics,” she said.
BEIJING (Reuters) – Olympic sponsors are launching possibly the largest advertising and marketing campaign ever, aiming to etch their brands in the minds of a new generation of Chinese consumers for far beyond the upcoming Games.
The ads range from traditional print and TV to glitzy new on-line media, blanketing a vast country whose citizens place an extraordinarily high value on the Olympic ideal and presumably the companies that support it.
While the risk of a public relations backlash still looms as China finds itself at odds with much of the world on hot-button issues such as Tibet and Sudan, the hoped-for gains far outweigh any possible downside.
“On a global scale, I don’t think you are going to get this kind of investment again,” said Greg Paull, the head of R3, a Beijing-based media consultancy.
R3 — which counts sponsors Coca-Cola Co, Adidas, Yili and Lenovo Group as clients — says the benefits for companies will be enjoyed for years after the last athlete crosses the final finish line next month.
R3 reckons all advertisers in China will spend 19 percent more in 2008 than a year earlier to about $54.3 billion, for an “Olympic effect” of about $8.6 billion in additional spending.
In addition, Olympic sponsors alone will spend 21.8 billion yuan ($3.2 billion) this year, rising 52 percent from 2007, said Paull.
German sportswear maker Adidas, one of 11 national partners of the Beijing Games, is expecting its Olympic tieup to vault it past arch rival Nike Inc in the China market this year.
“Our marketing campaign for China is the largest we have ever done in a single country,” Erica Kerner, director of the Beijing Olympic program for Adidas, told Reuters.
“We see this as a marketing platform that will help us to achieve market leadership in China this year,” she said.
Adidas will use a 360-degree projection theatre to spread its “Together in 2008, Impossible is Nothing” slogan.
ECONOMICS TRUMPS POLITICS
Nike — which sponsors individual athletes and sports groups, but not the Olympics itself — is perhaps underestimating the fact that over 90 percent of Chinese view the Olympics, and companies associated with it, in a positive light.
China is the world’s fastest growing major economy and is seen by multinationals as a crucial market, success in which would give the winners a step up in the global battle for precious market share.
Adidas estimates China will become its second largest market after the United States by 2010, when its stores will grow to 6,300 from over 4,000 now, riding a sports and leisure boom.
But nothing in China comes easy, as Olympic backers found out earlier this year and again last month.
Organizers and sponsors of the Games were rattled when China’s harsh crackdown in Tibet touched off global anti-Chinese protests leading to talk of an Olympic boycott.
“That is a big challenge for all sponsors,” said Paull, the media consultant, referring to the political risks surrounding the Olympics.
“But it is also par for the course, part of doing business in this market,” said Paull.
Tibet is far from the only issue that could tarnish the Games for sponsors and China.
Beijing criticized the International Criminal Court last month after the court charged the president of key ally Sudan with genocide, adding to claims Beijing was only interested in protecting its oil investments in the poor African country.
Some Olympic athletes who have joined Team Darfur, an informal, 300-strong group created by former U.S. speed skater Joey Cheek to draw attention to Sudan, have said they may stage some form of protest while in Beijing.
The possibility foreign-based protestors or home-grown terrorists from Tibet or the restive region of Xinjiang could mar the Games, has prompted extraordinary security measures including emptying Beijing of migrant workers and tighter visa rules.
BIG BUSINESS
But the political backdrop is having little impact on advertisers who are taking advantage of the positive vibes to the pre-Olympic buildup in the capital. And cost is no object.
Coca-Cola is inviting 10,000 people to Beijing for the Games and will dazzle them with what is touted as the world’s largest overhead LCD screen, covering an entire outdoor plaza.
Half of Coke’s guest list are clients and employees from overseas, and another large contingent will be staff volunteers from China to help with its many hospitality events spread throughout Beijing.
“Our people are really excited to be here. It is a win-win,” said Christina Lau, Coke’s director of external affairs based in Beijing.
“We have selected employees who have demonstrated their passion and commitment to Coke and the Olympics,” she said.
The truth may be out there somewhere, but for Gary McKinnon, it will be in the US. As the British hacker who infiltrated multiple US government computers searching for proof that aliens exist, McKinnon has lost his appeal of extradition and will face trial in US courts.
Between 2001 and 2002, McKinnon used a simple brute-force Perl script over a 56Kbps modem that tested default passwords against various systems in the US Army, Navy, Air Force, NASA, the Pentagon, and even the Department of Defense. He was also charged with shutting down the entire US Army’s Military District of Washington network—more than 2,000 computers in all—for 24 hours.
The UK’s National Hi-Tech Crime Unit ultimately caught and arrested McKinnon under the Computer Misuse Act. The US asked for extradition, which, according to critics, would allow McKinnon to be used as an example and a deterrent to future hackers.
In 2006, the UK approved McKinnon’s extradition to the US, after which he announced plans to appeal the decision. According to Reuters, the hacker’s appeal made it to the House of Lords—Britain’s highest court—where it has just been denied.
McKinnon claims that he was only searching for proof that aliens exist, but he faces penalties of up to 70 years in prison and fines that could amount to $1.75 million. Paul McNulty, US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, dubbed McKinnon’s crime “the biggest military computer hack of all time,” which critics of his extradition are citing as a prime reason why he could receive a punishment disproportionate to his deeds.
Further muddying the question of exactly how much damage McKinnon did are his claims of finding evidence from other hackers who accessed the same computer systems he did, but successfully evaded detection. Based on previous sentences for similar crimes, critics say the potential for up to 70 years in prison and $1.75 million in fines are outlandish punishments and a breach of his human rights for the $700,000 in damages McKinnon is accused of causing.
Meet the innovators
Posted on: April 8, 2008
- In: 2008 Millennium Technology Prize. | biggest | innovators | Meet | prize | technology | world's
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Four innovations and their creators have been shortlisted for the world’s biggest technology prize, the 2008 Millennium Technology Prize.
But what are they and what impact have they had on the world?
DNA FINGERPRINTING
The DNA fingerprinting technique developed by British geneticist Sir Alec Jeffreys has revolutionised the field of forensic science, and police detective work.
It has also played an important role in the resolution of paternity and immigration disputes.
DNA fingerprints are examined all around the world, even in portable laboratories, and the equipment for genetic fingerprinting is being made by dozens of companies globally.
Sir Alec discovered the technique for DNA fingerprinting in a “Eureka” moment while examining an X-ray that formed part of a DNA experiment, analysing genetic markers for fundamental human studies.
What the experiment revealed, unexpectedly, were extraordinarily variable DNA patterns showing simple inheritance in his technician’s family’s DNA. Sir Alec realised the importance of this discovery, which was in effect a biological identification method.
“That moment changed my life,” he says. And it led to the development of techniques that would fundamentally change this area of science.
Sir Alec is Professor of Genetics at the University of Leicester and continues to work at the genetics laboratory.
ERBIUM-DOPED FIBRE AMPLIFIER (EDFA)
The innovation of Prof David Payne, Dr Emmanuel Desurvire and Dr Randy Giles, has transformed global telecommunications, particularly the world of high-speed and long-distance communication.
Amplifiers are need to boost degraded light signals as they travel through the fibre.
The EDFA eliminated a key problem of amplification in the 1980s, namely the need to convert the light into an electrical signal and then resend with a new laser.
The work or Desurvire, Giles and Payne reduced the cost of creating long-distance fibre-optic networks and “unleashed” the bandwidth of long-distance fibre-optics networks.
The EDFA has led to the rapid rise of the global net, impacting business, education and leisure for billions of people.
The breakthrough of the three scientists was to use the heavy element erbium, which was perfect for amplifying the signal of light used in fibre optic networks.
The first commercial application of the EDFA was in underwater communication cables. The amplifiers sit inside torpedo-like repeaters that are placed in cable every 500km to 800km.
The introduction of these amplifiers led to the depression of the communication satellite markets.
EFDAs are now found in fibre optic networks around the world and the latest amplifiers are the size of a match box.
THE VITERBI ALGORITHM
Dr Andrew Viterbi’s innovation has touched the lives of potentially billions of people. His algorithm advanced the design and implementation of modern wireless communication systems by simplifying the complex and convoluted world of signal processing.
The algorithm is an error-correction scheme for digital communications and is now used every day in billions of mobile phone calls, satellite communications, wireless networks and even MP3 players.
He published his algorithm in 1967 but it did not find an application until computing power became powerful enough to deal with the massive calculations needed to apply it.
Taking the advice of his lawyer, who felt there was no general application for the algorithm, he did not patent it.
He co-founded Qualcomm, helping develop the popular CDMA standard, which is a rival to GSM, and is in use in 3G networks around the world today.
BIOMATERIALS FOR CONTROLLED DRUG RELEASE
Prof Robert Langer is a pioneer of many new technologies, including transdermal delivery systems, which allow the administration of drugs through the skin without needles or other invasive methods.
His work in drug-releasing polymers eventually led to the creation of a novel way to treat brain cancer.
His research into polymers has allowed for more accurate and controlled release of drugs into the body.
Polymers include plastics, DNA and proteins, and while they are mostly thought of as plastics, polymers comprise a large class of natural and synthetic materials with a variety of properties and purposes.
Prof Langer’s breakthrough was to create a three-dimensional matrix structure for polymers which allowed the drug molecules to pass through and into the patient’s system.
His work has also brought about significant advances in tissue engineering, including synthetic replacement for biological tissues.
He has more than 600 issued and pending patents, has published approximately 1,000 articles and 13 books, and is known as the father of controlled drug delivery and tissue engineering.
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