Technology | CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon

20/10/2012

* Indian Govt wants to use technology to curb dishonesty

If only corruption can be solved so easily with technology.

Times of India: “With United Progressive Alliance(UPA) facing allegations of corruption, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday said his government wants to use new technology to curb dishonesty and bring transparency in governance.

Aadhaar to help millions get benefits of government schemes

Speaking at the launch of Aadhar-enabled Service Delivery system, he said the unique identity numbers will help 1.5 crore students get scholarships, two crore elderly get old age pensions, three crore to avail health insurance and five crore people get the benefits of MNREGA.

The scheme is aimed at directly transferring cash to beneficiaries under social schemes such as MNREGA and pension.

“By giving benefits directly to the needy, complaints of dishonesty and delay will reduce,” Singh said at a function where he handed over Aadhar number ’21 crore’ to a villager here.

“Our government wants to use new technology in a big way to curb dishonesty and bring transparency in governance. Aadhar is an important step in this direction,” he said.

In the past two years, he said, the government has enrolled 24 crore people for Aadhar and “we expect to give Aadhar cards to around 60 crore by 2014”.

Addressing the function, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi said the Aadhar scheme gives identity to the common man and is a tool to claim benefits.

Using the Aadhar card, she said, the common man can claim his rights anywhere in the country.

“The Aadhar card will help the government in ensuring that subsidy reaches its intended beneficiaries directly and the poor will not have to run from pillar to post to claim their rights,” she said.”

via Govt wants to use technology to curb dishonesty: PM – The Times of India.

Posted in corruption, Good news, India alert, Technology | Leave a Comment »

Tags: Business, politics, technology

09/10/2012

* Ice train begins trial operations

China’s investment in infrastructure continues relentlessly.

China Daily: “Railway built to withstand extreme cold prepares to welcome travelers

A high-speed railway linking major cities in Northeast China began trial operations on Monday, ahead of its launch at the end of the year.

Ice train begins trial operations

The new line, which links Dalian, a port city in Liaoning province and Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang province, is the world’s first high-speed railway built to withstand extreme cold weather conditions, according to a statement by Harbin railway authorities.

A test train departs from the Dalian North Railway Station, a terminus of the new Harbin-Dalian High-Speed Railway, in Dalian, Nnortheast China’s Liaoning province, Oct 8, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]

A test train departed Harbin on Monday morning, arriving in Dalian three-and-a-half hours later. The journey takes nine hours on an ordinary train.

The new line will make 24 stops and connect 10 cities, including the capitals of Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces.

Construction of the 921-kilometer line began in 2008. It is designed to reach a top speed of 350 kilometers per hour, but will travel initially at a maximum of 300 km/h, railway authorities said.

The line has to withstand extreme temperatures as low as -39.9 C in winter and as high as 40 C in summer, which poses major challenges to the trains and railway construction.

Zhang Xize, chief engineer of the Harbin-Dalian high-speed railway program, said the low temperatures in Northeast China could threaten the roadbed and rail track and ice could also disrupt the power supply and signal system.

“We researched the experiences of high-speed railway line construction in relatively cold areas of Germany and Japan and took reference from road, water conservancy and electric supply projects in frigid areas,” Zhang said.

The railway is fitted with special facilities to remove snow and ice from the line and to protect its power supply systems from the elements.

“We have used all the measures that we can come up with to ensure the safety of this project,” said Zhang.

The line could provide a boost to the tourism industry in Harbin and Dalian, both major vacation destinations.

Harbin is notable for its beautiful ice sculptures in winter and its Russian legacy, and Dalian is well known for its mild climate and multiple beaches.

“The railway comes at the right time as I was planning to take my daughter to see the ice lanterns in Harbin this winter,” said Liu Yan, a 38-year-old resident of Dalian.

The new railway is also expected to ease pressure on the current rail system during peak holiday times.”

via Ice train begins trial operations[1]|chinadaily.com.cn.

https://chindia-alert.org/economic-factors/chinas-infrastructure/
* China to build more high-speed railways (chindia-alert.org)

Posted in China alert, Construction, Economics, Infrastructure, Technology, Tourism | Leave a Comment »

Tags: China, Dalian, extreme cold weather, Harbin, Heilongjiang, High-speed rail, Jilin, Liaoning, Northeast China, railway authorities, railway construction

07/10/2012

* India poised for giant leap in space science, 56% jump in collaboration with US, France, Russia

India is in an undeclared space race with China. The difference is that China is doing it alone whereas India is doing it collaboratively with several other countries. Both are making substantial progress.

Times of India: “India may have taken a giant leap into the hallowed club of space research, with leaders like the United States and Russia, increasingly joining hands with Indian space scientists in quest for the unknown. Latest data on India’s international collaboration in space sciences has shown an almost 56% increase between 2001-05 and 2006-10.

Between 2001 and 2005, 629 publications were internationally co-authored between Indian and international space scientists. The output increased to almost 980 publications by 2006-10 — a growth of 55.8% in raw volume.

These internationally co-authored publications, which contributed to 45.2% of India’s total research output in 2001-05 increased to 47.1% by 2006-10.

The analysis, done by Thomson Reuters and submitted to the ministry of science and technology, says these levels of international cooperation are the highest among all the fields under analysis. The US was India’s most frequent collaborating partner in this field with American researchers co-authoring 465 publications with their Indian counterparts — 22.3% of India’s total research output in space science.

France was the second most important collaborating partner with India, co-authoring 206 publications with Indian researchers in 2006-10. France accounted for 9.9% of India’s total research output in this field, an increase of 1.7% since 2001-05.

Collaborating in space science as percentage of India’s total research output in this field also increased with the UK (+0.8%) and Germany (+1.4%), Russia (+1.9%), Spain (+1.4%), Australia (+0.7%) and the Netherlands (+0.7%). Collaboration has increased substantially across the board with all major countries.

Consider the case of Russia. Indian and Russian space scientists co-authored 29 papers between 2001 and 2005, and the output increased to 82 papers between 2005 and 2010. Ditto for Germany. As against 98 papers co-authored in 2001-05, the output rose to 175 in 2006-10.

via India poised for giant leap in space science, 56% jump in collaboration with US, France, Russia – The Times of India.

Posted in Aerospace, Economics, India alert, Space flight, Technology | Leave a Comment »

Tags: France, Germany, India, research, Russia, science, Space, Space science, space scientists, United States

05/10/2012

* India successfully test-fires nuclear-capable Dhanush missile

India is continuing to increase its missile capabilities. It is not clear whether these are being developed for defensive or offensive purposes.

Times of India: “India successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable ballistic missile Dhanush on Friday from a naval ship in the Bay of Bengal off the Odisha coast, an official said.

in this file photo, Dhanush, the naval version of the Prithvi missile, is launched from a ship. Photo courtesy: DRDO

The missile was fired somewhere between Puri and Visakhapatnam as part of training exercise of the Indian Navy.

“The test was successful,” Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) spokesperson Ravi Kumar Gupta told IANS.

With a pay-load capacity of 500 kg, Dhanush is a naval version of the nuclear-capable ballistic missile Prithvi. It is capable of carrying both conventional as well as nuclear warheads and can strike targets in the range of 350 km.

With its ability to hit targets on the sea as well as on shore, the missile gives the Indian Navy the capability to strike enemy targets with great precision.

The test of Dhanush comes a day after the Indian armed forces successfully test-fired nuclear-capable ballistic missile Prithvi-II from Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur-on-sea in Balasore district, about 230 km from here.

Prithvi is India’s first indigenously built ballistic missile. It is one of the five missiles being developed under the country’s Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme.”

via India successfully test-fires nuclear-capable Dhanush missile – The Times of India.

Ballistic missile Prithvi II test fired successfully (firangionindia.com)
https://chindia-alert.org/prognosis/how-well-will-china-and-india-innovate/

Posted in Aerospace, Defence, GeoPolitics, India alert, Military, Politics, Technology | 1 Comment »

Tags: Ballistic missile, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Dhanush, India, indian navy, Integrated Guided Missile Development Program, politics, Prithvi

04/10/2012

* IPR awareness rises in China: experts

As China increases its own Intellectual Property and the number of registered and granted patents, it is in its own self-interest to take IPR and copyright more seriously than it has hither to. This is good news for all innovators whether Western or Eastern.

Xinhua: “An increasing number of patents and trademark registrations is boosting social awareness of intellectual property rights (IPR) in China, which will change the way that the world’s second-largest economy grows, experts said.

The number of trademark registration applications reached 1.42 million in 2011, a sharp rise from the 19,000 applications submitted in 1983, when the country’s trademark law took effect, a national news magazine Outlook Weekly reported.

“The increasing number of patents will be conducive to IPR awareness in China,” said Prof. Liu Chuntian at Renmin University.

Liu said IPR protection is a basic tenet of the modern market economy, adding that China should carry out top-down reforms to further improve IPR regulations and laws.

The government’s previous efforts to protect IPR include a strategic guideline published in 2008 that set a goal of making substantial progress in creation, application, protection and management of IPR by 2020.

China has only 21 of the world’s top 500 brands, despite a large number of patents and trademark applications, the report said, adding that China’s performance in IPR does not match the size of its economy.

However, home-grown technologies, including the TD-SCDMA and TD-LTE telecommunications interfaces, and emerging hi-tech giants, such as Huawei and ZTE, indicate that China is starting to improve its capacity to innovate, the report said.”

via IPR awareness rises in China: experts – Xinhua | English.news.cn.

Posted in China alert, Economics, Good news, Intellectual Property Rights, patents, Technology | 3 Comments »

Tags: Asia, China, creation application, Huawei, Intellectual property, TD-SCDMA, Trademark, trademark registrations, ZTE

04/10/2012

* Chinese gov’t to strengthen int’l cooperation on cyber issues

Xinhua: “The Chinese government will continue to strengthen international cooperation on cyber issues, and work with all countries to build an open and secure cyberspace, said an official here on Thursday at the ongoing Budapest conference on cyberspace.

Given the many challenges presented ahead, Huang Huikang, legal advisor and Director-General of the Department of Treaty and Law to China’s foreign ministry emphasized the importance of cooperation across the entire international community.

Although cyberspace is virtual, it needs rules and norms to follow, Huang said. China holds that the United Nations, as the most universal and representative international organization, is the best forum for elaboration of international norms and rules in cyberspace, he added.

Huang said China proposes that the following principles be observed in strengthening international cooperation on internet related issues.

The first, he said, concerned cyber sovereignty. He said that cyber sovereignty is the natural extension of state sovereignty into cyberspace and should be respected and upheld.

“Every country is entitled to formulate its policies and laws in light of its history, traditions, culture, language and customs, and manage the internet accordingly,” he said.

The second concerned the free flow of information, which he called a “double edged sword,” adding that it was no excuse for the “illegal and irresponsible information rampant on the internet,” which threatened national security, social orders and the lawful rights of people.

Huang also called for peaceful use of cyberspace, equitable development, and international cooperation, noting that all countries were equally entitled to share in the management of critical Internet resources. He proposed that international cooperation could be initiated in areas where there were common needs, such as in combating cybercrime and enhancing cyber security.

There are 540 million internet users in China now, making it the world’s top user quantitatively. But only 40 percent of the Chinese people had access to the internet. In 2011, e-commerce in China amounted to 930 billion U.S. dollars, or 12.5 percent of its annual gross domestic product.”

via Chinese gov’t to strengthen int’l cooperation on cyber issues: official – Xinhua | English.news.cn.

CISPA: Cyber Security or Big Brother? (digitalsurgeons.com)

Posted in China alert, cyberspace, Good news, Politics, Security | Leave a Comment »

Tags: internet, politics, science

01/10/2012

* China has most microbloggers in the world: report

This report confirms what we have been observing for the last several months that Chinese microbloggers are being taken seriously by the Chinese authorities. This is really a continuation of the ancient petition system whereby any citizen can appeal directly to the emperor for redress. Since travelling to Beijing may be costly and time consuming, microblogging may be the 21st century alternative if the authorities are actually going to listen and do something about the grievance. This report indicates that this is happening.

Xinhua: “China has the world’s largest number of microbloggers, said a latest report on the country’s new media development.

The report, published by the Social Sciences Academic Press annually, quoted the China Internet Network Information Center (CINIC), which said that about 274 million Chinese people had microblog accounts as of June this year.

The number of microbloggers increased sharply from about 63 million in 2010, said the report issued by a team of social sciences experts headed by Yin Yungong, director of the Institute of Journalism and Communication of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Microblogging has become an important channel for Chinese people to express themselves, particularly about public issues, it said.

It has also become an easy and low-cost communication channel between the government and citizens, the report said. At Sina Weibo, a leading microblogging service, 18,132 accounts have been registered by the Party and government departments and officials as of last October.

Social networks like microblogging have begun to set the agenda of public opinions and affected public emotions in some incidents, like the high-speed train crash near Wenzhou, in east China’s Zhejiang Province, in July last year, the report said.

Governments have realized the influence of social networks and put more effort in working with them, it said.

Research by the report’s authors from July to December last year showed that the authorities responded to about 71.9 percent of issues that were widely discussed by microbloggers and 50.4 percent were within 24 hours.”

via China has most microbloggers in the world: report – Xinhua | English.news.cn.

See also:

* Beleaguered official faces netizens online (chindia-alert.org)
China’s Microbloggers Take On Re-Education Camps – Bloomberg (bloomberg.com)

Posted in China alert, Good news, Petition, Politics, social media, Technology | Leave a Comment »

Tags: China, China Internet Network Information Center, internet, Sina Weibo, Social science, technology

29/09/2012

* India’s heaviest satellite GSAT-10 launched

The Hindu: “GSAT-10, the country’s newest and heaviest satellite, was launched in the wee hours of Saturday from the Kourou launchpad in French Guiana in South America. It will directly boost telecommunications and direct-to-home broadcasting among others.

The satellite, 9th in ISRO’s present fleet, will be operational in November and add 30 transponders to the domestic INSAT system, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said soon after the launch.

The ISRO launched the 3.4-tonne spacecraft on the European Ariane 5 rocket as the agency cannot currently launch satellites of such mass on its own vehicles. The satellite and the launch fee cost the agency Rs. 750 crore.

The ISRO called its 101st mission “a grand success,” adding that the satellite was in good health.

ISRO’s Chairman and Secretary, Department of Space, Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, and senior scientists have been at the Master Control Facility, Hassan (some 80 km from Bangalore) since Friday evening. It is also the first time that the Chairman was not present at the launch site.”

via The Hindu : News / National : India’s heaviest satellite GSAT-10 launched.

Tags: GSAT, indian space research, Indian Space Research Organisation, insat system, ISRO, science

21/09/2012

* Shaanxi bus crash: China sacks ‘smiling official’

BBCNews: “A safety official in China who sparked a public outcry after images showed him grinning at the scene of a fatal bus crash has been sacked, officials say.

Yang Dacai has been stripped of all his official duties for “serious wrongdoing”, Shaanxi province officials said in a statement.

Pictures of Mr Yang smiling while visiting the site where 36 people died on 26 August were posted online.

Outrage grew when netizens found images of him wearing luxury watches.

An investigation into Mr Yang’s “inappropriate behaviour of ‘grinning’ as well as wearing luxurious watches” found him guilty of “serious wrongdoing”, the Communist Party’s discipline commission in Shaanxi said.

Officials are still further investigating “trails of [Mr Yang’s] other wrongdoing”, according to the online statement.

Mr Yang, head of Shaanxi’s Provincial Bureau of Work Safety, fielded questions on his Twitter-like weibo microblog after netizens posted images of him wearing expensive watches on various occasions.

Responding to criticism that he grinned at the scene of the crash he said: “My heart was heavy when I reached the scene… Junior officials appeared nervous when they were updating me on the situation.

“I was trying to get them to relax a little, so maybe, in an unguarded moment, I got a little too relaxed myself.”

He also explained that he “used legal income” to buy a number of watches, saying that the most expensive one he owned was worth 35,000 yuan ($5,550, £3,420).”

via BBC News – Shaanxi bus crash: China sacks ‘smiling official’.

Shaanxi official questioned by internet users after smiling at disastrous traffic accident (fmnnow.com)
Luxury watch cannot stop the ill-timed smile of Shaanxi official (wantchinatimes.com)
Dozens die in China bus crash (radionz.co.nz)
Bus Collides With Tanker in China, Killing 36 (world.time.com)

Posted in China alert, social media | Leave a Comment »

Tags: bus crash, China, Communist Party, public outcry, Shaanxi, Twitter

CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon

Chindia Alert: You’ll be Living in their World Very Soon

Categories

Blogs I Follow

Archive for ‘Technology’

* Indian Govt wants to use technology to curb dishonesty

* Ice train begins trial operations

* India poised for giant leap in space science, 56% jump in collaboration with US, France, Russia

* India successfully test-fires nuclear-capable Dhanush missile

* IPR awareness rises in China: experts

* Chinese gov’t to strengthen int’l cooperation on cyber issues

* India’s heaviest satellite GSAT-10 launched

Tags

Creative Commons

Archives

Meta

Blog Stats

Chindia Alert: You’ll be Living in their World Very Soon

Categories

Blogs I Follow

Archive for ‘Technology’

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Tags

Creative Commons

Archives

Meta

Blog Stats