E-waste piles high in the Third World

The head of a UN environmental programme has condemned the 'growing mountains of E-waste' that the West is inflicting on developing countries. Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) was speaking in Nairobi (pictured, right) at the opening of the 8th Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention, which deals with the trans-national movement of hazardous waste. 'Consumerism is driving economies but also drives a growing mountain of E-waste not only from North to the South but South South - waste with a wide range of pollutants from heavy metals to chlorine compounds,' said Steiner. ...more

Government to allow homes to add more aerials and dishes

The UK Government is preparing to change planning regulations to allow householders to attach more than one aerial or satellite dish to their properties. The change is designed to increase access to digital television and satellite broadband services. 'The planning system needs to adapt to take account of changing technology,' Housing and Planning minister Yvette Cooper explained. ...more

21st century pogo stick

When you talk about research at the Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute, you expect to hear about advancements in cybernetic technology or the development of a new voice recognition system. You certainly wouldn't expect to hear that the department has developed a souped-up pogo stick! The BOWGO is a product of the Toy Robots Initiative and has been designed around the same technology that produces mechanical legs for running robots. The idea came when the team tried to develop a viable spring-loaded leg for a hopping robot that weighed up to 200lbs. ...more

Radeon 9500 PRO in short supply due to strong OEM orders

Due to strong demand from major PC vendors like Dell Computer and Hewlett-Packard (HP), ATI Technologies recently reported a serious shortage of its Radeon 9500 PRO graphics chips. Given the massive orders from the brand-name companies, ATI's own-brand card-manufacturing clients are experiencing difficulty acquiring the chips. The Radeon 9500 PRO has been well-accepted by the high-end market due to its appealing price/performance ratio. ...more

UPDATE: Warranties being honoured at struggling Elonex

Deloitte and Touche, the appointed administrator, has told us that existing warranties are being honoured during the period of the administration and businesses is continuing as usual at troubled Elonex. Neville Kahn of Deloitte and Touche said: 'We are hopeful that we will be able to conclude a sale of the business as a going concern.' Some 28 of the 76 staff employed by UK systems vendor Elonex are to be made redundant after the company went into administration on Monday. ...more