[This is a sample-issue of the Electronetwork newsletter, which
explores electromagnetism through art, science, and technology.
Currently an online exhibit is being developed for EM art & artifacts
is being developed, so if anyone is interested in helping co-curate
the remaining sections please contact me off-list. Thanks. Brian]
===================================================
Electromagnetic News & Views -- #16
===================================================
00) Electronetwork.org Commentary (3/02/2003)
01) Top Stories of Electromagnetism
02) Electromagnetic health & medicine
03) Electromagnetic trash & treasure
04) Electromagnetic security & surveillance
05) Electromagnetic power & energy
06) Electromagnetic current & human affairs
07) Electromagnetic transportation & communication
08) Electromagnetic matter & information
09) Electromagnetic trends & inventions
10) Electromagnetic weaponry & warfare
11) Electromagnetic business & economics
12) Electromagnetic art & artifacts
===================================================
00) --commentary--
---------------------------------------------------
This 'comments section' has been problematic in that there
is little to comment on, regarding electromagnetism, that
differs from week to week that takes predominance, unless
it is popular topics or war-themed. Which, it is assumed
everyone gets their required daily doses already anyway.
Then it resurfaced. Yes, this space was supposed to be a
place to mention where the electronetwork.org website is
at in its development. So, that is what this installation
will describe, the status of an ongoing project. It is the
Electromagnetic Assemblage gallery of EM art & artifacts.
Things were going splendid enough, slogging through the
inititial beginning of the galleries which are /assemblage/
off of the main electronetwork.org domain. Then, bureaucracy
of various sorts hit, after wonderful encounters with people,
whether artists, or representatives, or interested parties.
And, basically, the project was nearing about 2/3rds and it
got the wind knocked out of its sails from sheer friction
of trying to get anything done. Some copyright issues arose,
a few issues have been extremely time consuming, and human-
relations issues has taken time up unnecessary amounts of time,
for differing reasons, and it begins to be very burdensome.
That is, until enough time has elapsed from all the toil-
and-trouble and a spark hits and the end can be seen. As
of now there are roughly two sections that are left to be
developed, one is with audio-visual/composition and another
is with artifacts and instruments, in the largest EM sense.
Problem is, the time and energy is limited to one person's
skills, and so it is a long process, and much of it is un-
known, what these resources are. So, it is more minimal than
it would be if others were more engaged in the project, yet
hopefully enough will be shown to communicate a general idea-
which is a question which runs through each of the sections.
Just to give a sense of the trivialities involved, using a
non-broadband connection and a very slow 56k modem, after
upgrading my Mac OS X to its latest version, my modem now
only works at 28.8 and FTPing files has been impossible. It
is a story probably familiar enough, only that it actually
_does seem to be getting worse- that is, harder and harder
to work online, and so the project's end-date hangs in the
balance, when will all of these forces allow it to finish?
Well, now with a bit of a break from the drudgery, it is
now important to get back to work on the EM galleries and
then write an illustrated essay about these, asking basic
questions about EM in our shared culture, and what art,
science, and technological artifacts may help decipher
about this common ever-present phenomena. When the galleries
are finished, or that is- ready to go-, then some exciting
work can be done on visualizing how such works relate to the
present (outmoded) integration of EM works in traditional
museum settings, and their modern architectural aesthetics.
At that time, drawings will be made and presented, both for
interior and hopefully also exterior presentations of what
is currently titled: Excavating the Electromagnetic Assemblage.
Have a look at the galleries, if you can think of anything
appropriate or fitting for any of the sections, please let
me know via e-mail. In any case, there are no expectations
about this experiment. Although odd that an open-call would
yield almost no internet-artists, it is at the same time OK
as it also indicates where things are at within networking.
The story of this project will also be included, which will
be informative to how institutions, and some artists, deal
with copyright issues, for better and worse, in terms of EM:
i.e., the advancement of human knowledge of electromagnetism.
The EM Assemblage project is still months from complete, and
will progress over ultra-slow 28.8 modem connections on a
shared telephone line. But eventually this will get finished
and formally presented on the website and e-mailed essays.
Thank you for reading this, as it is the state of where the
electronetwork.org website is in its educational mission and
the struggles encountered and eventually worked through, so
that this entire process does not seem only an isolated event.
bc http://www.electronetwork.org/assemblage/
===================================================
01) --top stories--
---------------------------------------------------
Muslim nations gather to consider oil as weapon
Although Arab states embargoed the West in the 1970's, critics anti-war
tactic may exacerbate world recession
<http://www.etaiwannews.com/Asia/2003/02/27/1046310103.htm>
"Islamic states will consider using oil as a way of exerting pressure
on the West to prevent war on Iraq, but have reached no decision on the
tactic, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said yesterday."
// the electrical power system and the last mile...
Who Is the Unlikely Winner of the Wi-Fi Revolution?
<http://www.fastcompany.com/online/68/jellis.html>
Pentagon spy database funding revealed // TIA...
<http://news.com.com/2100-1028-990497.html>
"The U.S. Defense Department has awarded millions of dollars to more
than two-dozen research projects that involve a controversial
data-mining project aimed at compiling electronic dossiers on
Americans."
A Radio Chip in Every Consumer Product // more on RFIDs...
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/25/technology/25THEF.html?th>
"The companies are tagging clothes, drugs, auto parts, copy
machines and even mail with chips laden with information about
content, origin and destination. They are also equipping shelves,
doors and walls with sensors that can record that data when the
products are near."
...
"And costs are still prohibitive. The electronic tags cost at
least 30 cents apiece; most experts think anything above 5 cents
is too expensive to be widely used for individual packaged goods.
Prices would have to fall to less than a penny for virtually everything
in stores to be tagged. Sensors, which can be either hand-held or built
into walls, can cost $1,000 each."
---------------------------------------------------
02-- electromagnetic health & medicine
---------------------------------------------------
Blair Urges 60 Percent Global Greenhouse Gas Cuts
<http://ens-news.com/ens/feb2003/2003-02-24-01.asp>
"Climate change is a crucial long term global security issue comparable
to the immediate security threat posed by weapons of mass destruction,
Blair said."
Headset aids Parkinson's patients // a wonderful VR surprise...
<http://news.com.com/2100-1041-990607.html?part=dtx&tag=ntop>
"The headset superimposes computer-generated geometric shapes over what
patients see, giving them visual cues that help navigation, according
to Xybernaut, a Fairfax, Va.-based maker of wearable computers."
// mind and body? not separable with electromagnetism...
The Neurologist and the Philosopher
A prominent neurologist traces much of what modern neuroscience is
learning back to a 17th-century philosopher
<http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=0005C5ED-40F8-1E40-
89E0809EC588EEDF&catID=2>
---------------------------------------------------
03-- electromagnetic trash & treasure
---------------------------------------------------
As Floppies Fade Out, USB Drives Slide In // flash-drives...
<http://www.newsday.com/business/columnists/ny-
pigear3146039feb25,0,2637691.column?coll=ny%2Dbusiness%2Dcolumnists>
Recyclers Pledge to Cut E-Waste
<http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,57802,00.html>
Pioneer 10 Signs Off -- This Time It's for Real
<http://planetary.org/html/news/articlearchive/headlines/2003/
pioneer10_last-signal.html>
Apple Equipment Recycling for the US
<http://www.apple.com/about/environment/equipmentrecycling.html>
---------------------------------------------------
04-- electromagnetic security & surveillance
---------------------------------------------------
The Big Snoop // from the TSCM-List...
Electronic Snooping - Insidious Invasions of Privacy
Life Magazine - May 20, 1966 - John Neary
<http://www.bugsweeps.com/info/life_article.html>
THE RUMBLE OF DESTRUCTION // infrasound
Infrasonic sound, too low to be heard by the human ear, may provide
clues for predicting volcanoes, tornadoes and earthquakes
<http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/02/24/MN32772.DTL>
"In rumbling tones far lower than the sounds that human ears can hear,
a symphony of mysterious noises constantly assails the entire globe,
and scientists are learning to translate and even to exploit the
inaudible signals."
...
"The most sensitive infrasound detection network is used to listen for
nuclear weapon tests around the world. As the threat of such testing
grows, more stations are being built, said Douglas Christie of the
United Nation's Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization,
known as the CTBTO."
Planning for disaster // nuclear bunker business...
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/2773249.stm>
LAZARUS AT LARGE
Psychologist helps victims of data loss
Some soothing words after the data wreck
<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/02/23/
BU244981.DTL&type=tech>
Why Wi-Fi?
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20847.html>
"Trading national security against the security of Wi-Fi users' systems
might mean no security at all for either. Only after technologies such
as Wi-Fi are ubiquitously deployed do we know for sure what the
implications are."
These Are Not Your Father's Wiretaps
Privacy advocates fear that the FBI's need to monitor Internet Age
technologies, such as voice over IP, will give it far too sweeping
powers
<http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/feb2003/
tc20030227_1190_tc073.htm>
// "Ah ha! So this explains the hovering helicopters after midnight!"
// sounds very similar to AWACs modified into an e-surveillance Cessna.
// maybe someday 'drones' (UAVs) will be deployed as AWACs
surveillors...
FBI acknowledges mystery flights
<http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/Midwest/02/28/mystery.flights.ap/>
"Besides individuals, Fuentes and Davis said, the aircraft is
monitoring vehicles and businesses -- particularly those open late at
night from which faxes or e-mails can be sent."
Wiretap expert tells the dirt on buggers // from TSCM-List...
<http://www.savannahnow.com/stories/030103/LOCbugexpert.shtml>
"Technology has made it easier for people to bug your house and tap
your phone. But it also has made it easier to catch them."
---------------------------------------------------
05-- electromagnetic power & energy
---------------------------------------------------
Oil Soars as US Prepares Iraq Resolution
<http://reuters.com/
financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=businessNews&storyID=2278984>
How Fuel Cells Work
<http://auto.howstuffworks.com/fuel-cell.htm>
Washington ready to tap into oil stockpile
<http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/money/story/0,4386,174089,00.html>
Oil could reach 80 US dollars barrel in extended war: Forecast
02/26/2003 21:37:35, Wellington .NZ (dpa)
<http://drudgereport.com/flash1.htm> temporary, archived
Pace-Setting Nanotubes May Power Micro-Devices
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20867.html>
"New measurements by an Indian physicist and his team support the idea
that nanotubes -- cylindrical carbon rolls no thicker than an atom --
may make good batteries for tiny devices or even power pacemakers,
dispensing with cumbersome power packs."
---------------------------------------------------
06-- electromagnetic current & human affairs
---------------------------------------------------
Unmanned Aerial President Crashes on Korean Peninsula
<http://futurefeedforward.com/front.php?fid=98>
Much Ado About Kevin Mitnick
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20846.html>
"Until Mitnick does something noteworthy with his non-criminal career,
let the guy be. He's served his time and has earned the right to be
known as something other than a former computer criminal."
Family of electrocuted thief gets $75,000
<http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-booby25.html>
"Frustrated after three burglaries at his tavern in a month, Jessie
Ingram installed the homemade security system in late July 1997. He
jury-rigged the inside of the bar's windows so anyone breaking in would
get a strong shock, then posted several warning signs outside,
including one outside the window Harris broke in through."
---------------------------------------------------
07-- electromagnetic transportation & communication
---------------------------------------------------
How Electric Cars Work
<http://auto.howstuffworks.com/electric-car.htm>
Not-so-clean cars
President Bush says hydrogen fuel-cell cars guarantee a pollution-free
future. But there's a catch: Where's all the hydrogen going to come
from?
<http://salon.com/tech/feature/2003/02/25/hydrogen_source/>
"Translation: Driving a hydrogen-powered car juiced with fuel generated
by electrolysis could actually be worse for global warming than
sticking with gasoline."
Keeping an Eye on Things, by Cellphone // webphoning webcams...
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/27/technology/circuits/27stat.html>
"IT IS a fundamental law of electronics: the audio breakthrough always
precedes the video."
...
"...a consortium composed of Logitech, Verizon Wireless, Qualcomm and
gPix has just stumbled onto a novel idea. Maybe the "killer app" for
video on phones isn't seeing the person you're calling. Instead, the
exciting development may be the ability to use your cellphone's color
screen to view remote scenes, both of public places and of your own
private ones. What was once a piece of communications gear thus becomes
a tool for security, safety and even spying.
...
Now your private cellular televison network is limited only by the
number of Webcams you care to set up (and, of course, the number of
PC's to which you can hook them up) "
---------------------------------------------------
08-- electromagnetic matter & information
---------------------------------------------------
PCMCIA announces NEWCARD format // uncertain what this means...
<http://www.dpreview.com/news/0302/03022103pcmcianewcard.asp>
An Inventor of the Transistor Has His Moment
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/24/technology/24TRAN.html?th>
"Back in 1948, while the Bell Labs inventors were attracting
publicity in the United States, it was the Paris work of Dr.
Matare and his colleague that was celebrated in the French press.
"The breakthrough was hailed by the French government as the
`brillante realisation de la recherche française,' "according
to a draft of Mr. Van Dormael's book manuscript."
Handhelds gain space
<http://www.trnmag.com/Stories/2003/022603/
Handhelds_gain_space_022603.html>
"A researcher at the University of California at Berkeley has rigged up
a device that turns the small screen of a handheld computer into a
movable keyhole. Rather than pressing scroll buttons to get to a
position in a document, a user simply moves the handheld computer."
Stamp bangs out plastic circuits // the future printing industry..?
<http://www.trnmag.com/Stories/2003/022603/
Stamp_bangs_out_plastic_circuits_Brief_022603.html>
---------------------------------------------------
09-- electromagnetic trends & inventions
---------------------------------------------------
Student Designs Ionic Knife To Etch Transistors
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20853.html>
Communicating clothes // computer-on-a-shirt...
<http://www.infosync.no/show.php?id=1843>
"France Telecom has invented a flexible fiber optic screen that can be
embedded in clothes, allowing static or animated graphics to be
displayed. See the exclusive pictures!"
Bright idea lights way for LEDs
<http://news.com.com/2100-1041-986325.html?part=dtx&tag=ntop>
"Light-emitting diodes are rapidly replacing conventional incandescent
and fluorescent bulbs in everything from traffic lights to flashlights,
but there's one thing they haven't been able to do: Produce an even
spread of illumination."
---------------------------------------------------
10-- electromagnetic weaponry & warfare
---------------------------------------------------
Iraqi Drones May Target U.S. Cities // this is predictable, given
// that model airplanes & helicopters can be dual-use weaponry...
<http://foxnews.com/story/0,2933,79450,00.html>
"Iraq could be planning a chemical or biological attack on American
cities through the use of remote-controlled "drone" planes equipped
with GPS tracking maps, according to U.S. intelligence."
// fascinating article, especially descriptions of the planes used
// on pages 2-3, the various people's functions on the planes, etc...
Firing Leaflets and Electrons, U.S. Wages Information War
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/24/international/middleeast/
24MILI.html?th>
"Military planners at the United States Central Command expect to
rely on many kinds of information warfare — including electronic
attacks on power grids, communications systems and computer networks,
as well as deception and psychological operations — to break the
Iraqi military's will to fight and sway Iraqi public opinion.
...
"What we're seeing now is the weaving of electronic warfare, psyops
and other information warfare through every facet of the plan from
our peacetime preparations through execution," said Maj. Gen. Paul
J. Lebras, chief of the Joint Information Operations Center..."
The Hunt for Hot Stuff // .pdf about dirty-bomb components...
<http://www.smithsonianmag.si.edu/smithsonian/issues03/mar03/
radiation.html>
'In the former Soviet Union, "rad rangers" are racing to find lost
radiation devices before terrorists can turn them into "dirty bombs"'
---------------------------------------------------
11-- electromagnetic business & economics
---------------------------------------------------
Shoppers Have Low Tolerance for Poor Online Experience
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20844.html>
The 7 Deadly Sins of Online Selling
<http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20837.html>
Feds seize web site selling mod chips
<http://salon.com/tech/wire/2003/02/27/feds/>
"The government has seized a Web site that helped people bypass
anti-piracy technology to play illegal copies of popular video games.
...
"The chips are designed to get around copyright protections built into
game consoles such as the Microsoft Xbox and Sony PlayStation 2. Once
installed, the chips allow the user to play pirated games on the
consoles."
Looking Inside the Brains of the Stingy // neuroeconomics...
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/27/business/27SCEN.html>
Microsoft Gets a Clue From Its Kiddie Corps
Forget productivity. The new Softie project is an irreverent time
waster called threedegrees
<http://www.msnbc.com/news/873455.asp?0nl=T11>
Oil Price Jump Adds to Jitters Over Economy
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/02/business/02ECON.html?th>
"...With more money being spent on gasoline and heating fuel, economic
growth has slowed in both the United States and Europe, and the uneven
recovery that began in late 2001 is facing perhaps its biggest threat
yet."
...
'"The single best cyclical indicator for the world economy is the price
of oil," said Andrew J. Oswald, an economist at the University of
Warwick outside Coventry, England. "Nothing moves in the world economy
without oil in there somewhere."'
---------------------------------------------------
12-- electromagnetic art & artifacts
---------------------------------------------------
Akihabara Field Report 2 // from Gizmodo.net
<http://gizmodo.net/archives/001336.php>
"Gizmodo pal Gabe Meister went to Japan recently, and we prevailed upon
him to return to Akihabara to give us another report on what he saw
there at Tokyo's famed electronics district. Just like last time , he's
come back with a whole slew of photos of dream gadgets."
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