Sexual reproduction

Sexual reproduction is a process where organisms form offspring that combine genetic traits from both parents.[1] Genetic traits are contained within the dioxyribonucleic acid (DNA) of chromosomes — by combining one of each type of chromosomes from each parent, an organism is formed containing a doubled set of chromosomes. This double-chromosome stage is called "diploid", while the single chromosome stage is "haploid". Diploid organisms can, in turn, form haploid cells (gametes) that randomly contain one of each of the chromosome pairs, via a process called meiosis.[2] Meiosis also involves a stage of chromosomal crossover, in which regions of DNA are exchanged between matched types of chromosomes to form a new pair of mixed chromosomes. Crossing over and fertilization (the recombining of single sets of chromosomes to make a new diploid) result in the new organism containing a different set of genetic traits from either parent.
In many organisms the haploid stage has been reduced to just gametes specialized to recombine and form a new diploid organism; in others, the gametes are capable of undergoing cell division to produce multicellular haploid organisms. In either case, gametes may be externally similar, particularly in size (isogamy), or may have evolved an asymmetry such that the gametes are different in size and other aspects (anisogamy).[3] By convention, the larger gamete (called an ovum, or egg cell) is considered female, while the smaller gamete (called a spermatozoon, or sperm cell) is considered male. An individual that produces exclusively large gametes is female, and one that produces exclusively small gametes is male. An individual that produces both types of gametes is a hermaphrodite; in some cases hermaphrodites are able to self-fertilize and produce offspring on their own, without a second organism.[4]

Hoverflies engaging in sexual intercourse
Animals
Most sexually reproducing animals spend their lives as diploid organisms, with the haploid stage reduced to single cell gametes.[5] The gametes of animals have male and female forms—spermatozoa and egg cells. These gametes combine to form embryos which develop into a new organism.
The male gamete, a spermatozoan (produced within a testicle), is a small cell containing a single long flagellum which propels it.[6] Spermatozoa are extremely reduced cells, lacking many cellular components that would be necessary for embryonic development. They are specialized for motility, seeking out an egg cell and fusing with it in a process called fertilization.
Female gametes are egg cells (produced within ovaries), large immobile cells that contain the nutrients and cellular components necessary for a developing embryo.[7] Egg cells are often associated with other cells which support the development of the embryo, forming an egg. In mammals, the fertilized embryo instead develops within the female, receiving nutrition directly from its mother.
Animals are usually mobile and seek out a partner of the opposite sex for mating. Animals which live in the water can mate using external fertilization, where the eggs and sperm are released into and combine within the surrounding water.[8] Most animals that live outside of water, however, must use transfer sperm from male to female to achieve internal fertilization.
In most birds, both excretion and reproduction is done through a single posterior opening, called the cloaca—male and female birds touch cloaca to transfer sperm, a process called "cloacal kissing".[9] In many other terrestrial animals, males use specialized sex organs to assist the transport of sperm—these male sex organs are called intromittent organs. In humans and other mammals this male organ is the penis, which enters the female reproductive tract (called the vagina) to achieve insemination—a process called sexual intercourse. The penis contains a tube through which semen (a fluid containing sperm) travels. In female mammals the vagina connects with the uterus, an organ which directly supports the development of a fertilized embryo within (a process called gestation).

Flowers are the sexual organs of flowering plants, containing both male and female parts.
Plants
Main article: Plant sexuality
Like animals, plants have developed specialized male and female gametes.[10] Within most familiar plants, male gametes are contained within hard coats, forming pollen. The female gametes of plants are contained within ovules; once fertilized by pollen these form seeds which, like eggs, contain the nutrients necessary for the development of the embryonic plant.

Many plants have flowers and these are the sexual organs of those plants. Flowers are usually hermaphroditic, producing both male and female gametes. The female parts, in the center of a flower, are the carpels—one or more of these may be merged to form a single pistil. Within carpels are ovules which develop into seeds after fertilization. The male parts of the flower are the stamens: these long filamentous organs are arranged between the pistil and the petals and produce pollen at their tips. When a pollen grain lands upon the top of a carpel, the tissues of the plant react to transport the grain down into the carpel to merge with an ovule, eventually forming seeds.
In pines and other conifers the sex organs are cones and have male and female forms. The more familiar female cones are typically more durable, containing ovules within them. Male cones are smaller and produce pollen which is transported by wind to land in female cones. As with flowers, seeds form within the female cone after pollination.
Because plants are immobile, they depend upon passive methods for transporting pollen grains to other plants. Many plants, including conifers and grasses, produce lightweight pollen which is carried by wind to neighboring plants. Other plants have heavier, sticky pollen that is specialized for transportation by insects. The plants attract these insects with nectar-containing flowers. Insects transport the pollen as they move to other flowers, which also contain female reproductive organs, resulting in pollination.

Fungi
Main article: Mating in fungi
Most fungi reproduce sexually, having both a haploid and diploid stage in their life cycles. These fungi are typically isogamous, lacking male and female specialization: haploid fungi grow into contact with each other and then fuse their cells. In some of these cases the fusion is asymmetric, and the cell which donates only a nucleus (and not accompanying cellular material) could arguably be considered "male".[11]
Some fungi, including baker's yeast, have mating types that create a duality similar to male and female roles. Yeast with the same mating type will not fuse with each other to form diploid cells, only with yeast carrying the other mating type.[12]
Fungi produce mushrooms as part of their sexual reproduction. Within the mushroom diploid cells are formed, later dividing into haploid spores—the height of the mushroom aids the dispersal of these sexually produced offspring.



Sex helps the spread of advantageous traits through recombination. The diagrams compare evolution of allele frequency in a sexual population (a) and an asexual population (b). The verticle axis shows frequency and the horizontal axis shows time. The alleles a/A and b/B occur at random. The advantageous combination AB arises rapidly with recombination (a), but must arise independently in (b).
Evolution
Sexual reproduction first appeared about a billion years ago, evolved within ancestral single-celled eukaryotes.[13] The reason for the initial evolution of sex, and the reason it has survived to the present, are still matters of debate. Some of the many plausible theories include: that sex creates variation among offspring, sex helps in the spread of advantageous traits, and that sex helps in the removal of disadvantageous traits.
Sexual reproduction is a process specific to eukaryotes, organisms whose cells contain a nucleus and mitochondria. In addition to animals, plants, and fungi, other eukaryotes (eg. the malaria parasite) also engage in sexual reproduction. Some bacteria use conjugation to transfer genetic material between bacteria; while not the same as sexual reproduction, this also results in the mixture of genetic traits.
What is considered defining of sexual reproduction is the difference between the gametes and the binary nature of fertilization. Multiplicity of gamete types within a species would still be considered a form of sexual reproduction. However, as far as we know no third gamete has appeared in multicellular animals.[14][15][16]
Sex determination
The most basic sexual system is one in which all organisms are hermaphrodites, producing both male and female gametes—this is true of some animals (eg. snails) and the majority of flowering plants.[17] In many cases, however, specialization of sex has evolved such that some organisms produce only male or only female gametes. The biological cause for an organism developing into one sex or the other is called sex determination.
In the majority of species with sex specialization organisms are either male (producing only male gametes) or female (producing only female gametes). A few exceptions exist—for example, in the roundworm C. elegans the two sexes are hermaphrodite and male (a system called androdioecy).
Sometimes an organism's development is intermediate between male and female, a condition called intersex. Sometimes intersex individuals are called "hermaphrodite" but, unlike biological hermaphrodites, intersex individuals are unusual cases and are not typically fertile in both male and female aspects.

Genetic
Like humans and other mammals, the common fruit fly has an XY sex determination system.
In genetic sex determination systems, an organism's sex is determined by the genome it inherits. Genetic sex determines usually depends on asymmetrically inherited sex chromosomes which carry genetic features that influence development; sex may be determined either by the presence of a sex chromosome or by how many the organism has. Genetic sex determination, because it is determined by chromosome assortment, usually results in a 1:1 ratio of male and female offspring.
Humans and other mammals have an XY sex determination system: the Y chromosome carries factors responsible for triggering male development. The default sex, in the absence of a Y chromosome, is female. Thus, XX mammals are female and XY are male. XY sex determination is found in other organisms, including the common fruit fly and some plants.[17] In some cases, including in the fruit fly, it is the number of X chromosomes that determines sex rather than the presence of a Y chromosome.
In birds, which have a ZW sex-determination system, the opposite is true: the W chromosome carries factors responsible for female development, and default development is male.[18] In this case ZZ individuals are male and ZW are female. The majority of butterflies and moths also have a ZW sex-determination system. In both XY and ZW sex determination systems the sex chromosome carrying the critical factors is often significantly smaller, carrying little more than the genes necessary for triggering the development of a given sex.[19]
Many insects use a sex determination system based on the number of sex chromosomes. This is called XX/XO sex determination—the O indicates the absence of the sex chromosome. All other chromosomes in these organisms are diploid, but organisms may inherit one or two X chromosomes. In field crickets, for example, insects with a single X chromosome develop as male, while those with two develop as female.[20] In the nematode C. elegans most worms are self-fertilizing XX hermaphrodites, but occasionally abnormalities in chromosome inheritance regularly give rise to individuals with only one X chromosome—these XO individuals are fertile males (and half their offspring are male).[21]
Other insects, including honey bees and ants, use a haplodiploid sex-determination system.[22] In this case diploid individuals are generally female, and haploid individuals (which develop from unfertilized eggs) are male. This sex-determination system results in highly biased sex ratios, as the sex of offspring is determined by fertilization rather than the assortment of chromosomes during meiosis.

by Wikipedia

Technology

Technology is a broad concept that deals with a species' usage and knowledge of tools and crafts, and how it affects a species' ability to control and adapt to its environment. In human society, it is a consequence of science and engineering, although several technological advances predate the two concepts. Technology is a term with origins in the Greek "technologia", "τεχνολογία" — "techne", "τέχνη" ("craft") and "logia", "λογία" ("saying").[1] However, a strict definition is elusive; "technology" can refer to material objects of use to humanity, such as machines, hardware or utensils, but can also encompass broader themes, including systems, methods of organization, and techniques. The term can either be applied generally or to specific areas: examples include "construction technology", "medical technology", or "state-of-the-art technology".
The human race's use of technology began with the conversion of natural resources into simple tools. The prehistorical discovery of the ability to control fire increased the available sources of food and the invention of the wheel helped humans in travelling in and controlling their environment. Recent technological developments, including the printing press, the telephone, and the Internet, have lessened physical barriers to communication and allowed humans to interact on a global scale. However, not all technology has been used for peaceful purposes; the development of weapons of ever-increasing destructive power has progressed throughout history, from clubs to nuclear weapons.
Technology has affected society and its surroundings in a number of ways. In many societies, technology has helped develop more advanced economies (including today's global economy) and has allowed the rise of a leisure class. Many technological processes produce unwanted by-products, known as pollution, and deplete natural resources, to the detriment of the Earth and its environment. Various implementations of technology influence the values of a society and new technology often raises new ethical questions. Examples include the rise of the notion of efficiency in terms of human productivity, a term originally applied only to machines, and the challenge of traditional norms.
Philosophical debates have arisen over the present and future use of technology in society, with disagreements over whether technology improves the human condition or worsens it. Neo-Luddism, anarcho-primitivism, and similar movements criticise the pervasiveness of technology in the modern world, claiming that it harms the environment and alienates people; proponents of ideologies such as transhumanism and techno-progressivism view continued technological progress as beneficial to society and the human condition. Indeed, until recently, it was believed that the development of technology was restricted only to human beings, but recent scientific studies indicate that other primates and certain dolphin communities have developed simple tools and learned to pass their knowledge to other generations.

by Wikipedia

Bali Island

Bali, a tropical island in the Indonesian archipelago, is so picturesque and immaculate it could almost be a painted backdrop. It has rice paddies tripping down hillsides like giant steps, volcanoes soaring up through the clouds, dense tropical jungle, long sandy beaches, warm blue water, crashing surf and friendly people who don't just have a culture but actually live it. In Bali spirits come out to play in the moonlight, every night is a festival and even a funeral is an opportunity to have a good time.
Bali Island, the perfect holiday destination for all ages offers something for everyone. This tropical paradise has a unique blend of modern tourist facilities combined with wonderful shopping and a rich past and heritage. The Balinese people are proud of having preserved their unique Hindu culture against the advance of Islam, the dominant religion throughout Indonesia. This is still reflected in day to day life and can be seen in the numerous ceremonies, Balinese festivals and magnificent temples and palaces. Some of the best surfing beaches in the world can be found on the western side of the island whilst conversely the eastern side is a wonderful haven for families, with beautiful white sand beaches and gentle seas.
Bali Island is a shopper's paradise particularly for casual and tailored clothing, locally made jewellery, handicrafts, antiques and artifacts. Leather ware is one of the unexpected local bargains with everything from handbags through to tailor made leather jackets and coats, all at unbelievable prices. In fact, prices are so inexpensive, you're sure to need more room in your suitcase! Try bargaining at the street markets of Kuta, Sanur of Nusa Dua or fixed price shopping at a Denpasar department store. Bali has it all.
For those that want to stay wet, Bali Island has world class scuba diving, snorkelling and wonderful day trips out to Nusa Penida for beach sports and coral viewing.
When the sun sets, the choices are still hard to make - a quiet romantic moon lit dinner or watch the spectacular Balinese Fire Dance or Kecak Dance. For those that want to party, Bali Island has it all with bars, discos and nightclubs.
As a truly international destination attracting visitors from all over the world, restaurants in Bali are extremely cosmopolitan yet inexpensive. Experience not only local delicacies like Nasi Goreng and Sate Campur but also Chinese, Malaysian, Japanese, Italian/European Greek, Moroccan and even Mexican cuisine. We must not forget Bali's wonderful seafood - local lobster at such prices that you will want to keep coming back for more.
For those more culturally inclined, Bali can offer the peace and tranquility of Ubud high in the hills; the spectacular Mother Temple at Besakih; the ancient capital of Bali, Singaraja and the floating palace at Ujung near the pretty beach area of Candi Dasa. The Scenery is nothing less than spectacular. Jungle, picturesque hillside rice terraces and the awesome magnificence of Kintamani Volcano.
The more active, wanting a break from the idyllic beaches, can experience wonderful golf courses in the mountains at Bedugul and beachside at Nusa Dua, the thrill of white water rafting or kayaking down the beautiful Ayung River; mountain cycling amid scenery you will never forget and organized rice paddy and jungle treks to see the side of Bali most tourists never encounter.
Bali Island, a truly international destination, offers every standard of accommodation ranging from charming yet modest bungalow style hotels in lush tropical gardens for the budget minded through to arguably amongst the most exclusive and sophisticated hotels in the world!

Choosing a Web-Hosting Service

A guide for small-business owners to selecting the right Web-hosting service, including a list of questions to ask.
A few years ago, entrepreneur Blake Snow found a cheap Web-hosting platform for his new consulting business, based in Orem, Utah. The real cost didn’t come until later. “I [prepaid] 12 months service for a cheap host that I could only use for two months before having to make the switch to a better provider,” says Snow, who runs Web consultant Griffio Consulting. “I had to eat the cost.”
There are more Internet service providers (ISPs) than ever, and while not all are out to fleece their customers, finding the right provider for to host your business website and provide Internet access for your staff requires asking the right questions. Finding the right provider can help make or break your business if e-commerce is part of your sales channel or e-mail is a means of communicating with customers.
Here are some questions to ask when searching:
What do I need in the package?
Small business packages vary, but many ISPs usually offer the following:
• Disk space for your webpages and relevant multimedia content
• Multiple e-mail addresses
• Domain/Web address registration, such as www.[yourbusiness].com
• Basic “shopping cart” software for online purchases
Continuing to use a previously established e-mail address is fine, since ISPs can forward mail from your new ISP e-mail to your old one. That said, experts say that if you do get a Web address through the ISP, make sure you are listed as the owner/registrant of the domain, not the ISP company. Whoever owns the domain can do whatever they want with the website.
What's my budget?
“Fifty to 100 dollars per month should get the job done for almost any small business looking for reliable service,” Snow says. However, if highly sensitive information is being passed, you may want to get a server: a computer dedicated only to your website. As a small business, you mayl want to rent a server -- not buy one -- and this can bump costs up to at least $400 a month. You’ll likely need someone to handle upgrades and maintenance on the server, so be prepared to spend extra for that..

How fancy is my website going to be?
A handful of pages with text and a picture or two are like peanut butter and jelly: not too complex. However, integrated movies, animation, and picture-based websites may need additional consideration. “If you’re creating a ‘dynamic’ site, one that involves a database or a coding language like PHP, ASP or ColdFusion, you’ll need to make sure the host has the proper software installed,” says Web developer Andrew Kamm, who works for the Demi & Cooper advertising agency in Elgin, Illinois. “In any event, check with the developer you’re working with and they should be able to provide you with a list of what they need or refer you to a host that can accommodate.”
Will they be there when I have a problem?
Unfortunately, the size of an ISP company isn’t necessarily reflective of its response time. In fact, larger service companies may be just unavailable. Professionals recommend calling the potential ISP provider, talking about your business needs and feeling them out. ISPs that serve your area can be located at C/Net or by typing “[your city] hosting” into your favorite search engine.
If you do decide to go forward, make sure any promises are spelled out in writing. “If there were verbal negotiations between you and the Web-hosting company, be sure they are included in the contract,” advises the Better Business Bureau. “For instance, if the Web hosting company says it will respond to complaints or glitches with your account within 12 hours, rather than their usual 24 hours, be sure that promise is included in your contract.”
And unless some extraordinary need occurs, you shouldn’t be charged for customer service on top of your business' monthly service fee.

By Damon Brown

Outlook Vs. the Others: Business Email Clients

Microsoft's email application is widely used, but how does it stack up for business use when compared to other products?
With presence on about 450 million desktops, Microsoft Outlook is by far the most widely used email application in the world, but it's not popular with everyone.
Some small business owners feel they don't have the skills to administer support for Outlook. IT managers at mid-size businesses may fear it will be more susceptible to viruses and worms than other programs. Still others "just don't like Microsoft," says Erica Driver, principal analyst with Forrester Research, of Cambridge, Mass.
Price comparison
Price may also be an issue for some, though Microsoft's email offering appears to be competitive with most of its competitors.
An average cost for Outlook is hard to pin down. The Standard Edition of Exchange Server 2007 (Outlook is Microsoft's desktop application; Exchange runs on servers) retails for $699. Customers also have to buy client access licenses, which are $67 per user. Customers can also pay $25 per user to get additional features and software assurance. But those who buy five or more licenses at a time get a 25 percent discount and there are more bulk discounts beyond that. To confuse things further, most of the time Outlook is bundled in Office, Microsoft's desktop product suite, as well. Office Basic starts at $129 per user.
Driver says she's done the math and that running Microsoft's email programs using Microsoft back-end software amounts to $100 per user, while Novell GroupWise is $130 per user and Sun Java Enterprise System costs $140 per employee per year. IBM's Lotus Domino Messaging Express is $99, she says.
Email penetration and security
While no one tracks email penetration among small businesses, the picture on the consumer side is one of complete domination by Microsoft. At retail, Microsoft has 99.98 percent of the email software market, according to the NPD Group, a Port Washington, N.Y. market research firm.
For businesses, Microsoft's lead isn't quite as commanding. Driver says no one has a majority of the market, which is split on the server side between Microsoft IBM, Sun and Novell.
Leilani Quiles, IT director for Tew Cardenas, a 130-person law firm in Miami, is a fan of GroupWise. When Quiles started at her job seven years ago, the firm was already using the program. "Every so often the subject comes up to explore Exchange or Outlook," Quiles says. But the consensus is that employees like the calendaring function too much. Quiles also thinks GroupWise is more secure.
That contention comes from a similar argument to Apple's when its operating system is compared to Microsoft's: Because GroupWise and other email programs command a smaller share of the market, they represent a less juicy target for makers of viruses.
He says, she says
Not surprisingly, Microsoft considers such claims bunk. Jessica Arnold, product manager for Outlook, points out that the latest version of Outlook, Outlook 2007, has stepped up calendar functions (users can even publish their calendars on Office Online to let others collaborate on scheduling) and anti-phishing features. She adds that Microsoft is well aware of virus threats and makes use of beta testing to make Outlook more bulletproof.
"Obviously, there will always be people who want to create viruses targeted at different programs," Arnold says. "I wouldn¹t say Microsoft is alone in that."
So why go with one of the competitors? Phil Karren, product manager for GroupWise, says Novell's system is easier to use, cheaper and more secure than Exchange. "What we see is I have some customers with 700 users and there's one IT guy managing it all," he says. Karren says another benefit is that GroupWise "tends to be a lot more frugal with the hardware." That means that it works better with older systems than Exchange.

By Todd Wasserman

Borobudur Sunrise, the Scenery of the Sunrise in Nirvana

Admiring the grandeur of Borobudur at day and seeing details of each statue and stones with relief of the constructors is something that people from around the world are longing to do. However, not many people realize that Borobudur also has other unique view, namely the scenery of the beautiful rising sun that blows the statue of Buddha sitting cross-legged at the peak of the temple that was constructed in the ninth century.

If you never experience it before, trying to color the coming of the new life in the beginning of the year will become an unforgettable experience. The rising sun with its bright light will at least encourage you to live the life one year ahead, and for sure it becomes a remembrance that wisdom or nirvana symbolized by the peak of this temple is the main destination of your life.

In order to enjoy the scenery of the sunrise, you can stay at Manohara hotel in the complex of Borobudur temple since evening. Alternatively, you may join Borobudur Sunrise package offered by some tour agencies. Otherwise, you will not be able to enter the temple complex and you will miss the sunrise, since the entrance gate of this tourism object is only open at around 07:30a.m.

If you stay at Maonhara, you can start climbing Borobodur temple at any time to enjoy the sunrise. However, hotel management and some tour agencies usually lead you to go to the peak of Borobodur at 03:00 a.m. in order for you to have enough time to reach the peak on foot and you do not have to wait too long for the sunrise. The rise of the sun can usually be enjoyed at around 05:00a.m. It suggested that you wear your coat to expel the cold weather and to bring flashlight for lighting.

Once the sky in the east begins to shine, you are ready to see the movement of the sunrise. Once the reddish yellow light emerges, it means dawn has come in the peak of Borobudur symbolizing nirvana. Uniqueness of watching sunrise in Borobodur is that the sun seems to emerge in between two mountains, namely Merapi as one of the most active mountains in the world and Merbabu that is often said to be its twin.

When Merapi is active and the fog does not cover it, you will be able to see glowing magma pouring out of the mountain directing to the upper reaches of Krasak River. The bright red color of magma will look so bright in contrast with the dark sky. Last January 2006, tens of tourists enjoyed this view and during the increased activity of Merapi lately, you have the opportunity to enjoy it.

Another scenery that is not less interesting is the villages around Borobudur that you will see when looking down. Agriculture and culture that currently are living in those villages will help you imagine the condition of the villages around the temple during the construction of this temple. If thick fog covers your view, you can still see tall, green trees emerge from the surface of the fog. The movement of the rising sun can also be observed from the light intense blowing the Buddha statue. The higher the sun, the brighter the Buddha statue will look, changing its black color to bright gray. If you take quite good camera to take pictures, you can record the moment when the light of the sun begins to blow Buddha statue and make part of the statue brighter compared to other part.

When the sun begins to burn your skin, it signals that you should descend the temple. However, you need not worry, you can still walk around the villages around Borobudur temple that previously was only seen from the top. Some villages are determined to become tourism village. You can see the activities of people such as farming, producing potteries, sculpturing statues and others. Your presence in the villages at least brings hopes for local people currently that live more difficult life.

by Yunanto Wiji Utomo

Healthy old Europe

The population of Western Europe is aging, and the region's birthrate, looking ever more anemic, is well below the replacement level. The specter haunting Western Europe today is the prospect of inexorable demographic decline.
But not all is ill with Europe's demographic situation. Its aging population is exceptionally healthy. As a result, its people are more capable of remaining productive into their advanced years now than they used to be, and perhaps even more so than their American counterparts. "Healthy aging" in fact may turn out to be a trump card for enhancing prosperity and international competitiveness - if Europeans are willing to play it as such.
All around the globe today, longevity is an excellent proxy for both general health and economic potential: Indeed, every additional year of life expectancy is associated with roughly a 7 percent increase in gross domestic product per capita. Fortunately for the people of Western Europe, longevity and good health are precisely the areas in which the region enjoys an edge over most of the rest of the world, including the United States.
Overall life expectancy in the United States is a year or so shorter than in Western Europe and three to four years shorter than in Western Europe's healthiest - and wealthiest - countries, such as Norway and Switzerland. The United States also fares less well by the "health-adjusted life expectancy" standard now favored by the World Health Organization, which estimates the number of years one lives free from disability and debilitating illness.
Western Europeans' robust health could translate to competitive advantages. For example, Western Europeans have distinctly better odds of surviving their working years than do Americans. This difference affects economic potential, not least because longevity shifts people's cost-benefit calculus about whether to pursue higher education: The prospect of living longer generally encourages investment in learning and skills and thus facilitates higher productivity.
Western Europe must therefore figure out how to capture more of the economic opportunities allowed by healthy aging. Doing so would raise overall purchasing power and increase the scope for savings and investment, which could accelerate long-term growth.
Over the last generation, Western Europeans have translated their increased life expectancy - and then some - into leisure time. As life expectancy has risen steadily, the average age of retirement has fallen. Never before have older Europeans been so healthy, and yet never before have they worked so little. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, between 1970 and 2004, the expected average length of retirement increased by about nine years in Germany and by about 10 years in Spain. Over that period, the length of pensioned life for men and women in some Western European countries fully doubled.
This trend is particularly ill timed. Projections by the OECD suggest that if other current trends continue, the European Union's labor force will shrink by about 0.2 percent a year between 2000 and 2030, and the 50-year-plus cohort will be the region's only growing pool of potential manpower over the coming generation. If only Western Europe managed to welcome some of its older citizens (especially those 55 to 65 years of age) back into the work force in the future, the decline in its labor supply could be not only fully halted but actually reversed.
Encouraging older people to work is an obvious and necessary step to unlocking the economic potential of good health over the next generation. But it is only one step. Making fuller economic use of this comparative advantage will require nothing less than a fundamental re-examination of many basic policies, especially regarding labor markets, education and health.
If Western Europe hopes to benefit from its growing pool of older workers, its labor markets must become far more flexible, and economically rational, than they are today. Less cumbersome regulations and less costly obligations would make it more attractive and less risky for potential employers to hire all prospective workers, including older ones. Some orderly transition to a pension system with a greater measure of direct personal responsibility in the financing of retirement would also be in order.
In education, Western European societies face a qualitatively new challenge: continuing a steady rise in technical attainment despite the population's aging. At the moment, "lifelong learning" is a slogan, not a practice. To support real continued education, the Continent needs to undergo a systematic shift not just in its policies but also in its underlying culture. Health policies also need a fundamental rethink: If the value of health is to be maximized, the goal should not be the containment of medical expenses, but rather the reduction of the cost of illness and disease.

by By Nicholas Eberstadt and Hans Groth

iPhone 3G: Great for New Buyers, But Upgraders Beware

Subtle improvements
You can now save images from the Web or from e-mail; simply press on the image for a few seconds, and you get a prompt asking if you want to save the image. The image then appears in your camera roll.
I welcomed the refreshed e-mail application, which now allows moving or deleting multiple e-mails at once; this feature made it much easier to perform e-mail management on the device itself.
In addition to being able to open Apple iWork documents and Microsoft Office documents, you can now view still-image PowerPoint presentations -- a huge boon to mobile presenters, particularly with the impending arrival of micro-projectors that aren't much bigger than an iPod Classic.
Business features include support for VPN and WPA wireless security, neither of which I've tested yet. The iPhone 2.0 software also includes support for Microsoft's Exchange and ActiveSync for push e-mail, contacts and calendars; however, the iPhone only allows you to maintain one set of synced contacts, calendar and e-mail on the iPhone at a time.
If you're handing an iPhone to a teenager, you may appreciate that iPhone 3G now has parental controls to limit YouTube and Safari use, for example.
Mixed multimedia
The iPhone remains a highly capable and easy-to-use audio and video player, thanks in part to its Cover Flow navigation (also found in the iPod Touch).
The new 3G network made it easier to access and watch videos using the YouTube application. Streaming video was smooth, with excellent picture quality.
As before, the iPhone 3G features a still camera. Unfortunately, the camera feature is largely unchanged -- it's still sadly limited to just 2.0 megapixels, still lacks zoom and video recording, and still is clumsy for taking a picture (with no dedicated camera shutter button, you have to touch on the phone's screen to take a shot, jostling the phone as you do so).
What's new about the camera application is its integration with the iPhone 3G's GPS system. Now, you can add geotagging to your photos, which may become useful when you use your images in conjunction with geodata-aware applications.
Battery life
Apple claims the iPhone 3G is capable of up to 300 hours of standby time, up to 10 hours of 2G talk time (up from eight hours on the first-gen model), and up to five hours of 3G talk time. Testing is under way at the PC World Test Center; we'll report on the iPhone 3G's talk time when our tests are complete.
Furthermore, Apple also reports the iPhone 3G is capable of surfing the Web for five to six hours using the 3G connection; playing videos for up to seven hours; and playing audio for up to 24 hours (which puts the iPhone 3G on a par with Apple's current iPods).
Price halved; service plan jumps
To get the subsidized $199 (8GB) and $299 (16GB) iPhone pricing, you'll have to sign a two-year contract with AT&T. AT&T plans to sell the phones at an as-yet-to-be-determined date without a contract, but those iPhones will cost $599 and $699, respectively.
The big difference with the pricing is that upfront, you pay less -- but you will pay more over the long haul. AT&T now treats the iPhone 3G like any other smart phone. Now, you choose your voice rate plan, add in $30 for unlimited data use ($10 more than the previous iPhone's data plans; and that jumps to $45 for business users), and factor in $5 more for text messaging, too (previously, 200 text messages were included in the iPhone rate plan).
Assuming you want to send and receive text messages, that means you'll be spending $15 a month more for the iPhone 3G than you did for the original iPhone. That's $180 annually extra on your cell phone bill -- not including taxes.
Bottom Line
A year and an upgrade later, Apple's iPhone 3G stands in a class all its own. While this smart phone is still not perfect, its lower entry price, 3G radio, GPS, and business-friendly security features broaden the iPhone's appeal -- and cement Apple's position as a defining force in the cell phone industry. I fully expect Apple to at least match its sales of the first-gen iPhone; Apple says it sold 6 million of those.
If you already own a first-generation iPhone, though, you should be wary of upgrading. You'll pay more for service and if you don't live in a 3G-friendly area, or can manage well enough using a Wi-Fi network for Web browsing instead of a cellular network, the iPhone 3G doesn't represent a good value.

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content by :By Melissa J. Perenson, PC World

iPhone 3G: Great for New Buyers, But Upgraders Beware

Innovative design and seamless integration between software and device propelled the first-generation iPhone to instant stardom. Its successor, the iPhone 3G, at once expands upon that innovation -- and delivers it at half the entry price of its predecessor. The result is a classy device whose abilities continue to make it a strong choice for smart phone shoppers who value form that supports function--but less of a must-have upgrade than you might think.
Up front, Apple largely delivers on its promises. iPhone 2.0 software supports, among other things, the newly launched and eagerly awaited iPhone App Store. (Owners of first-generation iPhones can download the software for free.) A faster wireless radio loads Web pages up to three times faster. An appealing lower price makes the iPhone more accessible to an audience beyond early adopters and gadget hounds ($299 for the 16GB version in either white or black or $199 for the 8GB version -- that's one-third the price of the original 4GB iPhone that shipped a year ago).
But in some ways, the iPhone 3G feels like an incremental upgrade at best -- one that does little to capitalize on Apple's already sizable jump on its competition. The list of details that remain overlooked or not included is sizable: no removable media, no Java or Flash support in Safari, no cut-and-paste. Most all of these are points that Apple could have easily fixed, which makes their omission all the more frustrating.
IPhone: The big news
The big news with iPhone 3G is given away by its name: If you live within AT&T's 3G Mobile Broadband network (which uses HSDPA technology), the new phone can provide up to three times the throughput of AT&T's EDGE network. The original iPhone's lack of 3G support was widely criticized when that model first launched last summer, with only AT&T's slower EDGE wireless data network.
AT&T says its third-generation mobile network is available in some 280 markets now; that number will grow to 350 by next year, according to the company.
How valuable 3G may be will depend entirely on AT&T's network coverage in your area. I tested the phone in suburban Long Island, N.Y., where AT&T shows 3G network support. At Inetworktest.com, the original iPhone's EDGE bandwidth was 174.8 kbps; the iPhone 3G's performance was just a little better, at 210.1 kbps.
In this corner of New York (at the Roosevelt Field shopping mall), Wi-Fi performance on the 3G iPhone blew all of those numbers out of the water: 1,360.3 kbps.
Another big addition: a GPS receiver. The first-generation iPhone could triangulate your location based on cell-phone towers and Wi-Fi signals. The iPhone 3G's Assisted-GPS receiver should refine those results, both for mapping directions and for location-based applications (such as finding the nearest pizza place or hotel). We'll report back on the GPS's accuracy after we've had a chance to put it through its paces.
One pleasant surprise with this upgrade: Talk quality is vastly improved. The initial calls I made on the 3G network had excellent audio quality and clarity; and, the volume button was very effective in adjusting the audio (I had issues with the first iPhone's loudness last time year).
Similar look, different feel
The new iPhone 3G has the same width and length as its predecessor, but it is 0.2-inch thicker. It has a curvier design on its underside, which makes the phone feel comfortable in your hand. The gorgeous, multitouch 3.5-inch screen is back; pinch, squeeze and glide gestures continue to make the iPhone one of the simplest -- and certainly the most fun -- cell phone to navigate.
Some of the iPhone 3G's design points have been switched up. Whereas before the back was metallic, now it's all molded plastic; and the buttons along the side -- previously made of hard plastic -- are now cast in solid metal (a subtle improvement). The plastic back helps account for the iPhone 3G's minutely lighter weight: 4.7 ounces to 4.8 ounces. But, it's very prone to fingerprints, and both looks and feels a bit chintzy, like stepping down from a Lexus to a Camry.
Thankfully, Apple integrated one very necessary and welcome hardware change: The headphone jack is now flush with the upper edge of the phone, so you can use any headphones with a standard 3.5mm jack you wish. This marks a notable improvement over the previous version, which required a kludgy plug to connect a headphone.
The charger is significantly smaller and less obtrusive. That's important considering you may need to take it with you more often. You can't replace the battery yourself (Apple charges $86 to do it), and if you use the 3G radio, you'll drain the battery up to twice as fast as you would without the 3G radio. The phone no longer comes with a charging dock; Apple now charges an extra $30 for that (the dock is slightly smaller now). Instead, like iPods, the iPhone 3G now comes with just a USB charging cable.

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content by :By Melissa J. Perenson, PC World

Computers Everywhere: Embedded Software Made Simpler Yet More Powerful

The current decade will probably be known as the dawn of pervasive computing, when PCs were dethroned by technology to embed computers in almost everything. The hardware already exists to add features such as artificial intelligence and wireless connectivity to clothing or cars. Thanks to researchers, software is catching up fast.
“Hardware development has reached a stage where it is possible to have a fully-fledged computer with processor, memory and operating system on a board the size of a sliver of chewing gum,” explains Germán Puebla, a researcher at Madrid Technical University. “But until now software that can be programmed easily, and uses the limited hardware and power resources of pervasive computing devices as efficiently as possible has been lacking.”
Puebla coordinated the ASAP project, which, with funding from the European Commission’s Future and Emerging Technologies initiative, set out to solve the problem of creating and adapting software to run efficiently on pervasive computing systems, where computers are integrated in everyday objects and environments.
The result is a groundbreaking open source programming, analysis and optimisation toolkit for pervasive computing systems using Constraint Logic Programming (CLP) languages that has been validated in a series of case studies.
The decision to use CLP for pervasive computing not only represents a clean break from the norm, but a major innovation that will smooth the rollout of more complex software for the tiny ubiquitous computers of the future.
Until ASAP, the use of high-level CLP languages, which simplify programming and make software more portable across different platforms, had not been considered a feasible solution for pervasive systems because the convenience they provide to programmers comes at a cost: generally less efficient and more resource-hungry code.
Therefore, researchers have traditionally used low-level languages such as C, which tend to be more efficient but also more complicated to code, limits the versatility and complexity of the software, and generally forces programmers to manually rewrite the program for different platforms.
Because pervasive computing involves multiple different distributed platforms communicating among themselves the software needs to be interoperable, but, because of the limited processing and power resources of pervasive devices, most of which are battery operated, the software must also be as efficient as possible.
ASAP offers a solution
ASAP’s toolkit, developed jointly by the Technical University of Madrid (UPM), Heinrich-Heine University of Düsseldorf, and Roskilde University (RUC), offers a solution by using the high-level declarative language Ciao in a way that is optimised to reduce resource consumption.
“Software created with the toolkit is comparable in terms of resource demands to code written in C if it is designed to do the same thing. But Ciao programs can also do much more complex tasks, and with our toolkit it is feasible for them to run on pervasive systems,” Puebla explains. “Ciao is also much easier to use – programmers don’t have to reinvent the wheel every time they need to create or adapt a program.”
Self-tuning and resource-aware analysis and specialisation algorithms allow the toolkit, dubbed CiaoPP, to produce specialised programs that are automatically optimised to meet particular processing and resource constraints. The CLP analysis and transformation tools can also act as a meta-language between a broad range of high and low-level languages to optimise and verify programs for pervasive computing.
Because of the automatic nature of the tools and the limited need for manual programming, the risk of errors being introduced into the code is also reduced.
As pervasive systems find applications everywhere
“This is particularly important if we are looking at a future in which tiny computers are everywhere,” Puebla notes.
That future will probably come about in five to ten years, the ASAP coordinator estimates, when pervasive devices become cheap and efficient enough to be embedded in everyday objects on a massive scale.
In one of the project’s case studies, pervasive application kernels written in Ciao were run on the gumstix single board computer – a chewing gum slice-sized computer – as part of a wearable computer system being developed by the University of Bristol, an ASAP project partner. The British university has already used the ASAP toolkit to develop software for a hearing device that can emulate the spatial and directional effects of sound, simulating, for virtual reality gaming, for example, the way we experience noises emanating from different sources in real life.
In industry, pervasive systems that monitor hazardous materials or the protective clothing of workers would improve safety and security. In healthcare, ubiquitous devices could keep check on patients’ health remotely. And in the home, tiny computers embedded in everyday appliances could turn on the heating, dim the lights or even let you know when you are running low on milk.
“The uses for pervasive systems are almost infinite, and the market is potentially huge,” Puebla notes.
Most significantly, in the view of the ASAP coordinator it is a field where Europe is rapidly taking the lead. “We undoubtedly have the edge in small embedded systems over Asia and the United States,” he says.
Thanks to the project’s research, which the partners are planning to continue in new initiatives, the technology can only improve.

by ScienceDaily