Cellphones at 35,000 Feet?
301473
Federal regulators plan next week to begin considering rules that would end the official ban on cellphone use in commercial flights.
55946
SIM cards in mobile phones can survive heat at up to 450 degrees Celsius (356 degrees Fahrenheit) and possibly beyond, a finding that should help probes into terror attacks and other crimes, scientists said on Wednesday.
546354
BISMARCK, N.D. &#151; Jack Uldrich says his stain-resistant pants are just the beginning for a technology that could someday be used to create cell phones so small they can be sewn into clothes and enhance electrical transmission through power lines.
615869
Welcome to the promise of the Internet at 33,000 feet  -  and the questions of etiquette, openness and free speech that airlines and service providers will have to grapple with as they bring Internet access to the skies in the coming months
244750
There's danger aplenty on Oregon's tallest peak &#151; including avalanches and crevasses. Some say a small electronic device can improve the odds of survival.
567853
The Federal Communications Commission is considering loosening a ban on using cell phones in airplanes.
349557
Nobody laughs at the idea of replacing a land-line phone with a cellphone, so why should the idea of ditching a ground-bound broadband Internet connection in favor of a high-speed data service from your cellphone provider seem ridiculous?
123355
(InfoWorld) - Researchers at Mitsubishi Electric have developed a location finding and ranging system based on an emerging short-range wireless technology. The system is capable of determining the location of an object to an accuracy of 15 centimeters over a distance of up to 30 meters and uses the IEEE802.15.4a ultra wideband (UWB) technology that's approaching in the final stages of standardization. It could be used in a hospital, for example, where sensors continuously monitor patients and alert doctors to any problems. The doctors could be sent directly to wherever the patient is in the hospital. The research was presented on Thursday at Mitsubishi Electric's R&D Center here, but the development work has been going on at Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the U.S. The location of an object is found through triangulation, said Jin Zhang, group manager of the digital communication and networking technology lab, at the U.S. research center. This involves measuring the time it takes a transmitted signal to be picked up by several receivers. By comparing the time difference between at least three radios -- the location of which is fixed -- the location of the transmitter can be determined within a two dimensional space, such as the floor of a building or warehouse. It can also work for a three dimensional space with the addition of a fourth fixed receiver, said Zhang. The IEEE802.15.4a standard on which the system operates is being developed for just such ranging and location services with the added ability to transmit high-speed data at low power. Communication should be possible at speeds of between 100Kbps and 26Mbps using the technology, said Zhang. The company's prototype system is currently working at the lower speed. With the location finding and data aspects combined it makes possible a system whereby sensors can communicate between themselves and also with a base computer. Should the sensors alert to something that needs human intervention their location can quickly be determined even if they are part of a mobile device, she said. "The specification is almost finished and will be published in the summer," said Zhang. "After the specification is complete we'll finalize our design. The next step is chip design and system design. She anticipates the publication of the standard will spur Mitsubishi Electric and a handful of competitors to begin working on semiconductors based on the technology. The first commercial products could follow within a year or two.
246269
Sound advice on choosing the right carrier for your needs. Plus: Why no cell phones on planes? By Robert Strohmeyer and Clive Thompson from Wired Test.
504592
Airline passengers already are beginning to brace for the possible introduction of cellphones on commercial flights. Listen to Richard Archambault, an architect from Schaumburg
631189
SpySky net Russian high-altitude spy planes may be given a new lease of life as platforms for telecoms services, if an audacious (and rather improbable) scheme ever gets off the ground.â¦
748202
Not since the introduction of the cell phone has the plain old home phone been in for such upheaval. The device long used for landline calling, recording voice mails, and storing phone lists may find itself replaced.
352670
Federal regulators have proposed allowing cell phones to be used on airplanes, and took steps toward bringing high-speed wireless Internet connections to passengers&#39; seats.
304872
Hopes -- and worries -- that US regulators will soon end the ban on using wireless phones during US commercial flights are likely at least a year or two early, government officials and analysts say.
433694
Blog: How can you stretch WiFi? Communicate between peaks in the Andes
719880
Agency to auction licenses for communications; consider cell phone use during flights.
738888
Google and Earthlink tried, and failed, disappearing in a sea of bureaucratic red tape. Now a startup hopes to persuade San Franciscans to voluntarily put radio repeaters on their rooftops. Good luck with that.