Information Technology

Experts encounter a serious problem when studying the crime scene after an explosion. They can establish to a high degree of probability the type and power of the device used by terrorists and with what explosive substance it was filled with. However, they are usually unable to answer the most important question as to where and when the explosive itself was made: TNT is still TNT, regardless of the where and when it was produced.

Specialists from the Semenov Institute of Chemical Ph

A research group led by Academy Professor Mikko Sams is developing a brain-computer interface, a device that transforms electrical or magnetic brain signals into commands a computer can understand. Equipment of this kind is necessary. For instance, it enables physically disabled persons to use a computer keyboard. The Brain-Computer Interface, or BCI, allows both physically disabled and healthy persons to direct a computer by merely thinking of certain commands. The On-line Adaptive Brain-Computer

GeoConcept SA of France, a leading specialist in decision-mapping technology, has just launched the first software package to calculate the optimal division of sales areas: GeoConcept Territory Manager. Previously, sales managers had to divide up territory manually, but now GeoConcept Territory Manager can automatically calculate the optimal organisation in just 20 seconds.

The GeoConcept Territory Manager system solves the everyday problems faced by sales managers who wish t

The age of the ‘disappearing computer’ is upon us. Slowly but surely, traditional IT systems are moving from visible desktop computers to invisible embedded computers in intelligent devices, thanks in part to cutting-edge Java technology.
This is where the IST project HIDOORS set out to make its mark. HIDOORS blazed a trail in its target market by demonstrating that the programming language Java was sufficiently robust and flexible to deal with the full requirements of embedded, real-

There are some computer problems so hard that computer scientists consider them out of reach. They label them “intractable” and move on.

But researchers at Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., have developed tools to solve such problems, at least in certain practical situations. Mostly their approach is to have the computer do what a human being might do: stop, go back and start over and try something different.

“Even though these problems are intractable in the worst ca

The profusion of wireless communications in homes, in coffee shops and even on battlefields presents us with fantastic new conveniences — but also new security problems. Indiana University computer scientist Markus Jakobsson will discuss “stealth” attacks over wireless networks, which can disrupt communications and endanger personal information. One such attack is “denial of service,” in which devices are overloaded with so much incoming information they cease functioning properly.