Thursday, September 26, 2013

Effects of Ancient Meteor Impacts Still Visible on Earth Today

More than 35 million years ago, a 15-story wall of water triggered by an asteroid strike washed over Virginia from its coast, then located at Richmond, to the foot of the inland Blue Ridge Mountains — an impact that would affect millions of people should it occur today. Yet despite its age, the effects of this ancient asteroid strike, as well as other epic space rock impact scars, can still be felt today, scientists say.

The Virginia impact site, called the Chesapeake Bay Crater, is the largest known impact site in the United States and the sixth largest in the world, said Gerald Johnson, professor emeritus of geology at the College of William and Mary in Virginia. Despite its size, clues about the crater weren't found until 1983, when a layer of fused glass beads indicating an impact were recovered as part of a core sample. The site itself wasn't found until nearly a decade later. [When Space Attacks: The 6 Craziest Impacts]

The comet or asteroid that caused the impact, and likely measured 5 to 8 miles (8 to 13 kilometers) in diameter, hurtled through the air toward the area that is now Washington, D.C., when it fell. The impact crated a massive wave 1,500 feet (457 meters) high, researchers said.

Tanay Tapas
PGDM 1st

On 15th birthday, Google introduces new search algorithm ‘Hummingbird’

The Google Doodle page celebrating Google’s 15th birthday.

Google unveils major upgrade to search algorithm

By Richard Taylor North America Technology Correspondent

Google search expert Amit Singhal outlines his vision

Google has unveiled an upgrade to the way it interprets users' search requests.

The new algorithm, codenamed Hummingbird, is the first major upgrade for three years.
It has already been in use for about a month, and affects about 90% of Google searches.
At a presentation on Thursday, the search giant was short on specifics but said Hummingbird is especially useful for longer and more complex queries.
Google stressed that a new algorithm is important as users expect more natural and conversational interactions with a search engine - for example, using their voice to speak requests into mobile phones, smart watches and other wearable technology.
Hummingbird is focused more on ranking information based on a more intelligent understanding of search requests, unlike its predecessor, Caffeine, which was targeted at better indexing of websites.

“Start Quote

We just changed Google's engines mid-flight - again”

Amit Singhal Senior VP, Google Search

It is more capable of understanding concepts and the relationships between them rather than simply words, which leads to more fluid interactions. In that sense, it is an extension of Google's "Knowledge Graph" concept introduced last year aimed at making interactions more human.

In one example, shown at the presentation, a Google executive showed off a voice search through her mobile phone, asking for pictures of the Eiffel Tower. After the pictures appeared, she then asked how tall it was. After Google correctly spoke back the correct answer, she then asked "show me pictures of the construction" - at which point a list of images appeared.
Big payoffs? However, one search expert cautioned that it was too early to determine Hummingbird's impact. "For me this is more of a coming out party, rather than making me think 'wow', said Danny Sullivan, founder of Search Engine Land.
"If you've been watching this space, you'd have already seen how they've integrated it into the [predictive search app] Google Now and conversational search.
"To know that they've put this technology further into their index may have some big payoffs but we'll just have to see how it plays out," Mr Sullivan said.
The news was announced at an intimate press event at the Silicon Valley garage where founders Sergei Brin and Larry Page worked on the launch of the search engine, which is fifteen years old on Friday.
At the event, the search behemoth also announced an updated search app on Apple's iOS, as well as a more visible presence for voice search on its home page

Ajeet Kumar

PGDM

1st Y

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Google launches Calico, an anti-aging company led by an Apple executive

The "California Life Company" will apply Google's 10x thinking to healthcare.

Google is taking another moonshot and getting into healthcare research, and they're doing it with the help of an extremely high-ranking Apple employee.
Today Google announced it's launching "Calico," a company focused on "health and well-being, in particular the challenge of aging and associated diseases." The initiative will be a long term "moonshot" project involving healthcare and biotechnology (Google basically wants to stop you from dying).
Since the company just launched, there aren't many details yet. The most interesting news is that the man running it is Art Levinson, the current chairman of both Genentech, another biotech company, and Apple. Yes, that Apple. Tim Cook even has a quote in the press release:

For too many of our friends and family, life has been cut short or the quality of their life is too often lacking. Art is one of the crazy ones who thinks it doesn’t have to be this way. There is no one better suited to lead this mission and I am excited to see the results.

Levinson will keep his Chairman roles at Genetech and Apple while running Calico. That latter position he took after the death of Steve Jobs. According the Levinson, who just started up a Google+ page, "Calico" is an abbreviation for the "California Life Company."
As healthcare and technology become more and more intertwined, expect more crossover projects like this. Larry Ellison, the CEO of Oracle, recently started his own anti-aging company called "The Ellison Medical Foundation." There are a lot of very rich people out there that are getting older, and while it may seem like science fiction, "stopping death" is getting more and more money thrown at it. Google's Larry Page also invests in a research program through the Voice Health Institute, which is trying to solve his unknown vocal cord condition.
Some people will be alarmed by anything involving "Google" and "medicine" after Larry Page's flippant comments around HIPAA, but for now Calico seems to just be a research company. Plus, it's hard to decry anyone trying to cure diseases and help us all live longer.

Ajeet Kumar
PGDM
1st Year

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

The curious consolidation in technology sector:

The economics of the operating system business is so profitable that it has been likened to printing money. The operating profit margin for Microsoft’s Windows division hovers around 65% and its marketshare in the personal computer business is more than 90%. No hardware business, including that of Apple Inc., can match this in terms of economic attractiveness.

Then why are Google and Microsoft buying hardware companies such as Motorola and Nokia? The reason could be the the rapidly shifting trends in the sales of the operating systems. PC sales this year are expected to be over 300 million worldwide, whereas computer tablet sales alone could exceed 200 million and smartphone sales, a staggering 1 billion. Tomorrow’s market leadership in the operating system business will depend on their strength in the tablet and smartphone segments. While Microsoft has won the game in the PC world, it has again become wide open now with Google’s Android emerging as a dominant player along with Windows and Apple’s iOS. The value of the software depends on the number of devices using it. While there could be other reasons for the recent acquisitions, I primarily see these as a way of insuring their market share in the operating systems business.

On the surface, it may seem Microsoft’s acquisition of Nokia’s mobile phone unit is a way to prevent it from switching to the Android platform but there is more to the deal than meets the eye. In today’s economic scenario when margins of hardware manufacturers are shrinking by the day and there is no advantage one hardware manufacturer has over the other, there is little room left for innovation in hardware on its own.

Traditionally, software companies had an upper hand on the hardware companies. For instance, Microsoft always dominated the personal computer market even though a majority of the PC market used to run on Intel hardware. This makes hardware companies increasingly irrelevant for consumer-oriented devices on its own.

On the other hand, there is severe competition that software companies face even from smaller and newer companies in niche areas, which makes the software market even more volatile. For example, use of Skype as a messenger and for voice over Internet protocol call dominates all other messengers combined. None of the technology giants could beat Skype for such communication. This makes software companies quite vulnerable to innovations by smaller companies.

Apple has been successful in the last decade not just because it made great consumer-oriented devices but because of a unifying platform for both users and developers. Software development is inherently a costly and time-consuming task, which is why developers want a stable and mature platform to develop on. In contrast, Facebook as an app platform could never take off because of its volatile and unstable nature and, even with all its might, Facebook has failed to lure developers to its platform. Another glaring example is Google’s acquisition of Motorola.

Google has openly stated, “Google is great at software; Motorola Mobility is great at devices. The combination of the two makes sense and will enable faster innovation.”

In tried, tested and well-proven markets, separation of concerns for hardware and software makers might be more efficient but in the emerging and yet to be proven markets, where greater innovation is required, companies need closer interaction between hardware and software divisions to innovate.

Thus, consolidation of hardware manufacturers and software companies is not just a trend, it is inevitable to remain relevant in the volatile consumer oriented markets. There will be multiple hardware and software platforms where there will be greater opportunity for developers to create apps on these new platforms.

In the world of technology, a good company always starts with an innovative and brilliant idea. Over the course of its journey, it is either acquired by another large company or has to become very strong in a short period of time to survive.

Companies, which can do something outstanding for themselves, tend to convert this into a business opportunity and sell those services. For this reason, it is not surprising that someday, we may see Google managing energy for other companies (Google applied and was granted a permit for energy trading). There are four good reasons why this phenomenon is prevalent and is going to become even more prevalent in the future.

Size does matter

When it comes to technology, size is often synonymous to strength. We are very familiar with the phrase “No one ever got fired for buying XYZ (XYZ in this case being a large company with strong brand).” People make buying choices not just based on the features and quality but also on how big and strong the company is. You can’t blame them for making such a choice, because it is important to choose a good product but it is more important to choose a company, which will be able to support and further enhance the product.

Customers buy solutions and not components

There are enough horror stories of customers buying products from different companies and then spending millions of dollars to integrate those products. Therefore, it is a compelling proposition for a technology company to offer an end-to-end solutions and as a result reducing the overall cost of ownership.

Keeping pace with change

Jack Welch said, “If the rate of change on the outside exceeds the rate of change on the inside, the end is near.” The biggest victims of change are technology companies. To fight this reality, we have seen technology companies either expand into new areas or acquire other companies to remain relevant to changing market needs.

Metcalfe’s Law

Metcalfe’s law states that the value of a network is proportional to the square of the number of connected users of the system. This is another reason technology companies tend to enhance their solution footprint so that their network of connected user base increases, thereby multiplying their value.

Integration isn’t a silver bullet though

While there are good reasons to expand beyond the core to stay competitive and relevant, the strategy doesn’t work all the time.

There are a number of cases where technology companies have entered new areas and as a result, have lost focus on their core proposition. Many times, a company is able to deliver outstanding outcomes as long as it remained focused in one particular area.

When such niche companies go beyond their core, they may not be able to deliver similar results.

The key to success simply lies in making sure that the integrated offering is more relevant than the current position and the combined offering delivers multiplier factor without compromising value to customer. As told to Sunil B.S.

Gauri Kesarwani.

pgdm, 1st-sem

19th-sep.-2013

Review: does it make sense to upgrade to ISO 7 on Your Apple iPhone or iPod?

Many of the changes in Apple's operating system for mobile devices are cosmetic. Gone are three-dimensional icons that mimic real-world counterparts, such as a magazine rack for the Newsstand app.
They are replaced by larger, two-dimensional icons sporting abstract designs and pastel colors. Apple also extended that new look to many of its apps. In Maps, the green boxes are replaced with solid white across the top.
It didn't take long to realise that deeper down, the new iOS 7 software is the same as the one I've come to know.
The new software does have several functional improvements, but those take time to stumble upon. The good news is that even if you never discover them, you can still use your device the way you did before. The free update is available starting Wednesday.

An iPhone with iOS 7 software displays the new look of the Control Center in New York. Much of the new iOS 7 software is about cosmetic changes. (AP Photo)

Does it make sense to upgrade to iOS 7 on your existing iPhone or iPad?
The biggest functional change is the use of swipes instead of taps to access key functions. You can already swipe up from the bottom right side of the screen to quickly access the camera when your phone is locked.
With iOS 7, you can also swipe up for the Control Center, which contains frequently used settings and apps. That's available whether or not the phone is locked.
Swipe down from the top of the screen to get recent notifications and the day's highlights, including the weather, appointments, reminders and stock quotes.
Swipe down from the center of any home screen for a search box. From many apps, you can swipe from the left or the right instead of tapping the left and right buttons.
The Control Center is the most useful of the functional improvements.
From there, you can turn Airplane Mode, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on and off. Before, you had to find those switches in the settings. That would have come in handy for my flight to Silicon Valley last week for Apple's event introducing the new phones and software.
Likewise, a Do Not Disturb feature is easier to access. It lets you silence incoming calls and messages, though you can make exceptions for certain numbers or for those calling repeatedly, in case there is a true emergency.
The Control Center also lets you easily control music playback and adjust the screen's brightness. It gives you quick access to a flashlight feature, the clock, a calculator and camera.
My only complaint: You can't pick the apps featured and replace the calculator, for instance, with Facebook or Gmail.
I found the left and right swipes useful primarily within certain apps. In the Safari browser, I use it to return to the previous page.
In Mail, I return to the list of messages after reading one. Again, these are all things I could do before with taps rather than swipes, but sometimes the swipe feels more natural.
The new software also makes it easier to manage multiple apps at once. Double click on the home button to see all open apps, each represented by a large image showing the app's content rather than just an icon, as was the case before.
Close an app by swiping the image up. In the past, you had to hold down an icon and hit the minus button.
The Siri voice assistant is better, too. She sounds less robotic than she once did and can adopt a male voice. Siri is able to handle a greater range of commands, including adjusting settings and returning recent calls.
The most useful change is the ability to edit voice commands. I asked Siri how the Nets did, but she heard me as Mets. Instead of having to repeat the phrase over and over until Siri got it right, I simply hit "tap to edit."
Then again, maybe she's smarter than me: The Mets are in season, while the Nets don't start the regular season until October 30.

Craig Federighi, senior vice president of software engineering at Apple, speaks about the new iOS 7 release in Cupertino, California. (AP Photo)

Specific apps that come with iOS are also improved, including these:
- The Maps app offers voice navigation for walking directions, though it still lacks biking and transit directions, as Google offers. The background of maps now dims at night so the screen light doesn't distract drivers.
- Safari makes it easier to switch between open Web pages. Before, you got one page at a time and had to scroll through all to get to the last one. Now, all the open pages are presented like upright dominos, so that you can jump right away to one in the back.
- The Camera offers eight filters to tweak photos the way you would on Instagram. But with Camera, you see what your filtered photo would look like before snapping. You can now take square photos, perfect for Instagram. In addition, photos you take are automatically grouped by trip and other attributes, so they'll be easier to find and share later.
- The App Store offers suggestions based on your current location. I get an app for the American Museum of Natural History in New York when I'm a few blocks away, and apps for food delivery near my apartment in another neighbourhood, where people with small kitchens don't cook.
A new iTunes Radio service offers free internet radio stations, with buttons to easily buy songs you like on iTunes. I got my fill of 80s music with a Hits of the '80s station.
I can create new stations based on songs or artists I hear, and I can move a slider between hits and discovery, the latter for more obscure tunes. Sad to say, few of the 80s songs were obscure, but that's a reflection of my listening habits and not the software.
Unless you pay for the $25-a-year iTunes Match service, you'll get about four ads an hour.
Although I dismissed many of the changes as cosmetic, a few of them improve functionality.
Gone are those familiar bars showing cellular signal strength. You see five dots instead. The idea is to create more space for actual content. In many apps, including Maps and Safari, menus automatically disappear until you need them again, again to leave more space for content.
These are all nice touches that make upgrading well worth it, especially for something free. You don't necessarily need a new phone

Ajeet Kumar
PGDM
1st Year

Monday, September 16, 2013

IT stocks find no takers in rallying markets: TCS, HCL Tech down over 1%

The fall was led by selling in frontline IT stock such as Tech Mahindra, Wipro, Infosys, TCS and HCL Tech which were down over 1 per cent

Wipro Ltd.

BSE

466.30

15.35(3.40%)

Vol: 85973 shares traded

NSE

466.60

14.90(3.30%)

Vol: 969350 shares traded

Prices | Financials | Company Info | Reports

ET SPECIAL:

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NEW DELHI: The BSE IT Index plunged over 1 per cent on Monday as investors preferred to book profits. The fall was led by selling in frontline IT stock such as Tech Mahindra BSE 2.95 %, Wipro, Infosys, TCS BSE 1.34 % and HCL Technologies BSE 3.23 % which were down over 1 per cent.

At 11:00 a.m.; the BSE IT index was trading 1.3 per cent lower at 7701.83 as compared to over 200 points rally in the S&P BSE Sensex. The benchmark index was up 1.07 per cent to 19943.46.

Tata Consultancy Services BSE 1.34 % was trading 1.4 per cent lower at Rs 1923, while Infosys was down 1.2 per cent to Rs 2989.00.

Wipro BSE 3.40 % recouped some of the losses and was trading 0.9 per cent lower at Rs 451.05, while HCL Technologies was trading 3.8 per cent lower at Rs 1005.

IT stocks have been in some sort of an uptrend so far in the year 2013 supported by sharp depreciation in the domestic currency and signs of revival in global economies such as US and Europe.

If we look at data since January, the BSE IT Index has rallied nearly 37 per cent as compared to 1.5 per cent rise in the S&P BSE Sensex, as of data collected on September 13.

The Indian IT sector earns over 80 per cent of its revenues from the overseas markets. Hence, the heightened prospects of a recovery in the US economy augur well for Indian IT exporters.

IT stocks have been on a winning streak for about a month, largely due to a lack of investment avenues as the sector provides natural hedge against the slowdown in the domestic economy. With global economy showing signs of picking up, investors have found safe-haven in IT stocks.

Most analysts are of the view that at a time when currency is weakening, technology and pharmaceuticals stocks become the obvious choice, one should look beyond these sectors as there are many mid-cap companies with higher share of export earnings, and where the stock valuations are available cheap.

"We are fairly bullish on the business prospects of IT and its long term prospects. We have seen with depreciation in rupee, there is a significant comparative advantage that has been built in," said Amit Rathi, MD, Anand Rathi Financial Services Ltd in an interview with ET Now.

"Over the last three or four years, there was a move back towards onshoring within the US as differential between the US rates and Indian rates had compressed significantly. We are back to 2000-2001 levels in from a comparative positioning perspective," he added.

Rathi is of the view that over the next two or three years, we would see significant volume growth for IT companies.

Ajeet Kumar
PGDM
1st year

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Mobile & Tabs
Kapil Sibal launches the Nokia 114 with Urdu language support
TT Correspondent \| \| 13 Sep 2013

Call it political expediency or love for technology, telecom minister Kapil Sibal who is rarely seen on phone launch events on Thursday launched dual-SIM budget phone Nokia 114 with Urdu language capability. The Nokia 114 is priced at Rs. 2,579. Nokia device business was acquired by Microsoft early this month and is struggling to regain its market in India. While Nokia with this launch is targeting 15 crore Urdu speaking people in India, it may also fetch some political benefits to the government. The company claimed that this is the first ever phone with Urdu language option in the country. The company claimed that the initiative is aimed at democratizing the reach and benefits of mobile telephony for consumers. The company said that the device offers the innovative cloud-accelerated Nokia Xpress browser experience allowing users to consume less data by up to 90%, by compressing websites in the cloud. The phone has been optimized to provide a long-lasting battery life, with over 10 hours of talk time and nearly a month's standby, meaning that consumers can stay in-touch and entertained all day long. Nokia 114 is a Dual SIM phone, featuring the benefits of Nokia's unique, industry leading Easy Swap technology. This enables users to switch between SIMs quickly without having to remove their battery or turn off their phone. The Easy Swap technology can personalize and remember up to five different SIM cards, giving consumers full control over their mobile bills. Nokia is the first company to introduce regional language content in 11 Indian languages since 2008- Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Gujarati, Bengali, Oriya, Assamese, Punjabi, and Marathi. Nokia said it is the first company to introduce an in house app called Akshar for the Asha Touch range of affordable smartphones. Akshar supports 11 Indian languages and allows consumers to interact in their local language. Telecom Minister who inaugurated the device said that India today has one of the largest Urdu speaking populations in the world and this will benefit the over 15 crore Urdu speaking people in India.” P.Balaji, Managing Director, Nokia India, said, “We were the first mobile company to support content and user interface in 11 Indian languages in India. Introducing Urdu keymat in Nokia 114 is another such initiative to reach out to our consumer across the country.”

Ajeet Kumar
PGDM
1st year