Technology - how far can it go ?

From a country that excels in semiconductor manufacturing and LED implementation, here you have such old ways of garbage disposal..or should I say, funny ?? A way of community building or the state of a poor third world country?



At the sound of music, residents will get "prepared" and run out to the disposal truck to throw bags of garbage.

Here you go. This is Taichung (central Taiwan) city, Taiwan.

Cost Leadership vs Value Differentiation

As Gartner recently forecast, when 32-nm designs start in 2009 and move into production in 2010, the semiconductor situation will worsen. The costs of developing a 32-nm device from scratch could hit $75 million, pushing the drive to consolidation and collaboration.

Semiconductor companies need to be clear in their strategies - to have scale (cost leadership) or to add value (value differentiation), in order to stay afloat. Like what PM (Project Management) preaches, it's hard to have both. Simple Maths apply: IF Profit = Revenue - Expenses THEN Cost Leadership will cut down your expenses and bring you profits ELSE alternatively, a value-added product will bring in more revenue and increase your profits.

And similarly to what PM "teaches", there needs to be action. Aiming is not enough. You have to shoot. Currently, a lot of strategies are sitting there, simply inert. Whether they are good or bad is impossible to determine, because they do not drive action.

I would really like to follow through the strategies that companies would adopt in these few years and observe their path to success. I wish I will have the discipline and time to do that.

Hotel Reservations around the world

As Taiwan(as compared to US) is nearer to Hong Kong and Japan, maybe we could take this opportunity to visit some parts of Asia. Been ages since I visited Hong Kong and I have never been to japan. With Hotel Reservations, it helps us locate hotels at competitive rates not just in United States and Canada but also in other destinations including Hong Kong and Japan. I will definitely use Hotel Reservations in my travel planning soon.

Find directions without GPS

You lost your way in the middle of New York city. You do not have a handy mobile GPS to help you. Bad luck! No internet connection in the proximity. More bad luck!!! Your cellphone to the rescue! Google's My Location collects information from the nearest cell-phone tower to estimate a person's location within a distance of about 1,000 meters. This resolution is just fine when you lose your directions while searching a restaurant or a store.

Well, if you do have an internet connection, Plazes (a Swiss location-tracking service) may also be able to help. This service is established based on a relatively small database of Wi-Fi hot spots around the world, manually geotagged by Plazes users. Using a Wi-Fi connection, you are able to establish your location based on a "history" of addresses or a business names, tagged and "stored" by previous users who have logged the Wi-Fi hot spots' location.

Which do you prefer? I like the former which uses just the cell phone since I'm a person who is not that mobile it seems. I do not carry a laptop for internet connection most of the times. Even my cellphone does not have internet connectivity.

Lapband promotion in California

Just when we moved out of California, LAPBAND reaches California with a special promotion. As a cash-paying patient of lap-band los angeles, all lap-band fills are free for life. Ok. Weight-loss is not just about offers and promotions. However, if this is an effective weight loss procedure, why not? An offer that includes pre-operative consultation with the surgeon, a lap-band procedure performed at the state-of-the-art outpatient facility, and free lap-band fills for life. Check out the details in the lap-band los angeles page.

When nature and science meets the environment

Kangaroo flatulence contains no methane ? Thanks to special bacteria in their stomachs.

And now the Australian scientists want to transfer that bacteria to cattle and sheep who emit large quantities of the harmful gas, in an effort to cut the emission of greenhouse gases blamed for global warming. But is the emission of greenhouse gases by cattle and sheep substantial to cause something as alarming as the emissions from motor vehicles, and smokestack pushing out CO2 ?

Oh, maybe in Australia, it's substantial where livestock flatulence contribute a surprisingly high percentage of total emissions. 14% of emissions from all sources in Australia is from enteric methane from cattle and sheep, claims a senior research scientist with the Queensland state government. And New Zealand, almost around 50% since it has got a much higher agricultural base.

Now, should we eat more roo meat, or beef? ;P

Funky technology in home design

I actually thought this was an interesting concept.


















Does the picture tell you anything?

This new and improved faucet light turns an ordinary faucet into a Blue or Red light source depending on water temperature. It incorporates two LEDs - a red, and a blue. When the water runs cool, the aerated stream glows blue and when the temperature rises above 32 °C, it switches to a red stream.

The internal pressure switch activates the light source when you turn on the tap. It adds color, fun, class, and added dimension to any bathroom.

Hmmm...do you think it makes a creative holiday gift ?

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