Programming Language Evolution: Pushing The Limits Of Technology
Carol Thompson Eidt, Microsoft Research, Redmond, Washington
03/02/2006
Programming models, and their syntactical representation, have been forced over the years to compromise based on limits in supporting technologies. These technologies include the speed and capacity of the underlying processors, compiler techniques, software engineering methodologies and user interface design. Programming languages have continually evolved to maintain a balance between programmer productivity, compiler complexity, and runtime efficiency. This talk will trace the evolution of programming languages, along with the technologies that both constrained and enabled that evolution, with an emphasis on the interplay between processor architecture and compiler design.
The Nitty-Gritty On The Future Of Sensor Technologies
George Hsu, Sensor Platforms, Santa Rosa, California
03/09/2006
An overview will be presented on sensor fundamentals--how they work, how they’re made, what sorts of applications will use them, how the paradigms are shifting and Sensor Platforms’ role in helping enable the next revolution in bringing them to a broader market. Electronic sensors have been around for decades, but with the convergence and proliferation of low cost and pervasive computing, networking, RF and Internet technologies in conjunction with the staggering growth of enormous numbers of mobile communication and information platforms (i.e., think cell phones and MP3 Players) incredible opportunities abound for the right approach. Come see how one company views the future.
What Disaster Recovery Plan?
Tina Amper, Blue Sky Solutions / ADIC, San Francisco, California
03/16/2006
What if power went down or your facilities were flooded? How well can your organization handle and survive a disaster or business interruption? Best practices for business continuity and disaster recovery management are discussed in this talk.
Lotteries As A Mechanism For Contracting Via The Internet
John Mamer, UCLA Anderson School of Management
03/23/2006
The Internet holds the promise of bringing vast computing power, currently locked up in idle computers, to bear on problems of commercial interest. Key to unleashing this computing power is the ability to contract for computing resources via the Internet. The anonymous and transient environment of the Internet poses a challenge to the design of an efficient payments system. The use of lotteries offers, instead of a small payment for each unit of computation, a small chance at a larger prize. What can be surmised about the economic efficiency of such a system as the number of participants increases without limit (and hence each individual’s contribution becomes small)?
Bioinformatics Support Of Pathogen Diagnostics And Forensics
Tom Slezak, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
03/30/2006
A bioinformatics team at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has been computationally designing pathogen DNA signatures since the summer of 2000. These signatures were used for biosecurity at the 2002 Winter Olympics, as well as for national security purposes since October 2001. This talk will discuss the LLNL team’s involvement with these efforts and various outbreaks (SARS, monkeypox, Avian Influenza, Exotic Newcastle Disease, etc.)