Roy Mark

A significant gender gap still exists among college-bound students in their opinions of computing as a possible college major or career, according to new research from the Association for Computing Machinery and the WGBH Educational Foundation. The research, funded by the National Science Foundation, found that 74 percent of boys-regardless of race or ethnicity-reported that […]

IBM said June 2 it has won a Computerworld Honors Program Laureate for its contributions to the EuResist Network GEIE research project for AIDS treatment. Developed by IBM researchers in Haifa, Israel, the project’s new technologies and mathematical models help choose the best drug combinations for any given HIV genetic variant. EuResist is the only […]

With the space shuttle fleet scheduled for mothballing in 2010, NASA has extended its deal with the Russian Federal Space Agency to ferry American astronauts and cargo to the International Space Station through 2013.The $306 million contract extension covers comprehensive Soyuz spacecraft support, including all necessary training and preparation for launch, crew rescue and landing […]

Microsoft signed an agreement June 1 with Merck & Co. to acquire certain assets of Rosetta Biosoftware, enabling Microsoft to incorporate genetic, genomic, metabolomic and proteomics data management software into the Microsoft Amalga Life Sciences platform for enhanced translational research capabilities.In turn, Merck will become a customer of the Microsoft Amalga Life Sciences and also […]

WASHINGTON-In 2003, then President Bush, with input from government agencies, the private sector, academia and the military, issued the National Strategy to Secure Cyberspace to rave reviews and gushing praise from the IT industry. The plan set guidelines, avoided mandates and promised a vaguely defined cyber czar. If anything, cyber-security declined.On May 29, President Obama […]

President Obama May 27 ordered a 90-day review of the government’s classified documents program, urging a review team to assume a presumption of openness. The review team will he headed by Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano. “While the government must be able to prevent the public disclosure of […]

The Center for Democracy and Technology proposed May 28 a “sweeping new federal privacy framework designed to respond to the realities of the digital age,” according to its news release. The changes closely follow the recommendations of the federally appointed Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board calling for an update to federal privacy standards in […]

Postcards from Atlantis’ Historic Hubble Mission May 11, 2009 The launch of Atlantis from Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida is viewed from behind Launch Pad 39B, where the space shuttle Endeavour stands ready for rescue duty. May 12, 2009 Among the first group of still images downlinked from Atlantis was […]

Telecom giant AT&T said May 27 it plans to upgrade its 3G network to reach theoretical peak speeds of 7.2 Mbps. The network upgrades are set to begin later this year, with completion expected in 2011.The AT&T road map calls for boosting the speed of its mobile broadband network and offering a wide variety of […]

More than 10 years after construction of the International Space Station began, the five partner agencies involved will mark May 29 as the first time the orbiting scientific platform will host a full complement of six full-time crew members.Departing May 27 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, a Russian Soyuz 19 spacecraft will carry Cosmonaut […]

Converged networks developer Emulex sent a letter May 26 to stockholders urging them to reject the unsolicited, nonbinding $9.25-per-share offer from Broadcom, which initiated a $764 million takeover offer in May. Emulex has characterized the offer as a lowball attempt in a down market.Broadcom’s $9.25 per share represents a 40 percent premium over Emulex’s April […]

Legislation designed to curb the United States’ exporting of electronic waste is drawing fire from environmentalists who claim the bill has a giant loophole that will allow exports of toxic waste to continue. The bill, H.R. 2595, was introduced by Rep. Gene Green (D-Texas), one of Congress’ leading supporters of an e-waste export ban.The legislation […]