Shane's Drivel

Former nuclear safety officer sues to stop black hole generator March 28, 2008

I’ve briefly mentioned before that a giant particle collider is coming online in Europe soon. It is theorized that reactions from the collider’s experiments could generate tiny, short-lived black holes and other atomic reactions that would consume or otherwise destroy the Earth. The science community summarily rules out these scenarios as highly improbable.

Good to know the Earth’s complete destruction has been deemed improbable.

Today’s news is that some former nuclear safety officer is suing the US Dept of Energy, Fermilab,  and the National Science Foundation in an effort to stop or slow down that research. Interesting.

I’m not concerned about any doomsday scenario there. But it is potentially funny that a court is going to offer an opinion on the matter.

AT&T, Verizon, Dish Network coughed up billions this week March 21, 2008

..and few people noticed. This week, the FCC completed a rare aution of public airwaves. Such auctions in the past were catalysts for the cool mobile communication gadget services we all know and love today. About 100 companies won bids for 700MHz spectrum license totaling $19.5 billion.

The FCC hopes the new spectrum will bring new and exciting services to consumers, as well as new competition for the usual suspects in the cellular business. But to the FCC and the general public’s disappointment, AT&T and Verizon were by far the biggest players in the auction. So much for a ground breaking new guy shaking things up as Cingular did before it was bought out by, sigh..AT&T.

There was one curious winner. Dish Network bought up enough licenses to cover nearly the entire nation. Dish is keeping quiet on their plans for the spectrum. But industry buzz is that they may provide some kind of mobile TV service.

Another interesting player in the auction was Google. Again, much to everyone’s disappointment, Google didn’t win any licenses in the auction. But many think this was their gameplan. By making a lot of early bids and stirring up public policy prior to the auction, Google may have gotten exactly what it wanted. It got the FCC to mandate that every company who provides service in the new 700MHz spectrum must allow open access with mobile devices. For Google, this potentially means they could partner with a Samsung or other handset vendor to supply Goggle-fied mobile devices which would be allowed on any provider’s (AT&T, Verizon, etc) network. So Google gets networks to play on without investing billions to buy licenses, towers, and other infrastructure.

Google had this to say on their blog:

This afternoon the Federal Communications Commission announced the results of its 700 MHz spectrum auction. While the Commission’s anti-collusion rules prevent us from saying much at this point, one thing is clear: although Google didn’t pick up any spectrum licenses, the auction produced a major victory for American consumers.

We congratulate the winners and look forward to a more open wireless world. As a result of the auction, consumers whose devices use the C-block of spectrum soon will be able to use any wireless device they wish, and download to their devices any applications and content they wish. Consumers soon should begin enjoying new, Internet-like freedom to get the most out of their mobile phones and other wireless devices.

We’ll have more to say about the auction in the near future. Stay tuned.

I’d like to have seen Sprint be a bigger player in the auction. Sprint is the only big wireless company that is already of like mind with Google. All roadmaps at Sprint point to Xohm, their WiMax-based service which aims to provide an open-access fat pipe to all types of consumers with all types of devices – mobile, desktops, laptops, TV’s – you name it.

The AT&Ts and Verizons of the world would do well to follow Sprint’s lead. Just provide a ubiquitous fat pipe. Leave the applications to the Googles, Yahoos, and a myriad of creative unnamed people and companies worldwide. Enough with closed-system play-on-our-terms-or-don’t-play-at-all networks. And thank’s to Google’s shrewd auction tactics, we may very well get there.

But I can’t help thinking that Wi-Fi may have played a role in the new direction for open-access networks. Why?

Think of what’s happened in digital music. First there were CDs. Then there was the Internet. The music industry wanted to stay away from it, but Napster drug them into it kicking and screaming. Faced with the prospect of consumers distributing music for free, the music industry had no choice but to get involved and offer what consumers wanted – downloadable music. Thanks to Joe Consumer and his threat to meet willfully ignored demand for free, we’ve got legal $1.00 song downloads instead of being stuck with $20 CD’s at brick&mortar stores.

And that’s like the upcoming world of open access wireless because of wi-fi. Joe Consumer, as well as Joe Coffee Shop Owner, can purchase a cheap wi-fi router and offer free wi-fi service to anybody within about a block radius (or farther with a little ingenuity). Faced with the prospect of free access points all over town, the big communication companies have no choice but to provide something better for a reasonable price. Say goodbye to sperate, expensive charges for voice and data usage. Say goodbye to closed networks with devices and content dictated by your wireless provider.

And say hello to no-bullshit wireless Internet. Finally.

High tech solutions for climate change December 19, 2007

A German company has invented a kite which could harness the power of the wind to give ships more fuel-efficient trips across the ocean.

Somewhere, Christopher Columbus is appealing to the patent office.