Oracle's Shanghai school of learning Oracle has laid a new milestone on the mainland by wiring up Shanghai's primary and secondary schools as part of an interactive online learning community. The Oracle Education Foundation and the Shanghai Centre for Education Technology last week launched Think.com, a free internet platform providing interactive learning programmes to more than 660,000 students and teachers from 7,500 schools in 26 countries. Designed by education experts and senior researchers at Oracle, Think.com is available in eight languages including Chinese, English, Spanish and Thai. Wang Min, director of the Shanghai Centre for Education Technology, said: 'We hope that by incorporating Oracle's technology in our pursuit of innovative learning applicable to China we will be able to enhance the students' capabilities in collaborative learning and hands-on practice.' To date, Oracle has contributed more than US$200 million worth of software and services to support basic education, vocational education and higher education in China through its Oracle Education Initiatives.
Beijing Metro gets Nice Israeli security Israeli firm Nice Systems, a Nasdaq-listed provider of advanced analytics for unstructured multimedia content, said it was selected by Beijing Metro to supply next-generation technology to enhance safety and security at more than 20 stations of the city's subway system. The move was based on mounting security concerns worldwide and as part of preparations for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. All stations will be monitored from the rail operator's central command and control centre, giving security personnel the power to identify risk, make optimal decisions and take action that improves security. Nice Systems' advanced, real-time distributed digital video system will spot suspicious packages left behind on crowded subway platforms and automatically alert security personnel. The system will also be used to automatically detect unauthorised entry. The result is expected to be a better control of potential threats and enhanced commuter safety. Doron Ben Sira, president of Nice Systems Asia-Pacific, said the Beijing project was the latest in the company's 'strong track record for supporting large city centres and their transit systems all over the world'.
Nokia has R&D makeover in Chengdu Nokia is bolstering strategic operations in China with the expansion of its research and development centre in Chengdu. The facility is slated to carry part of Nokia's mobile network infrastructure products development for global and local markets. That would include carrier-grade platform middleware, wireless application protocol gateways for mobile browsing and intelligent packet core subsystems. Established last August, the Chengdu centre was initially focused on research and development for internet protocol multimedia subsystem-based communications applications. Jouni Pirhonen, head of the Nokia Chengdu R&D Centre, said: 'The expansion will significantly strengthen our product creation responsiveness to evolving customer requirements in China.
Disney spreads message through RedX 'It is a small world after all, so Mickey Mouse and friends have sought help to promote Hong Kong Disneyland to travel agents across Asia. The theme park operator, which runs the Victorian-style Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel and tinseltown-inspired Hollywood Hotel, has selected the RedX Distribution Management System to process its electronic reservations and help sell its products through the travel agent community. The system comes from SynXis, a unit of travel specialist Sabre Holdings, which provides reservation management, distribution and technology services to more than 7,000 hotels, resorts and destinations worldwide. RedX enables hotel operators to consolidate and manage hotel inventory from all sources - seamless global distribution system connectivity, popular internet travel sites, private-label central reservations systems and full-service hotel websites. 'We would like to focus on educating travel agents throughout Asia on our properties and make sure that rooms are available through electronic reservations,' said Josh D'Amaro, vice-president of sales and travel trade marketing at Hong Kong Disneyland. RedX distribution controls allow users to react quickly to changes in market demand based on sales made through multiple channels.
Yoohoo any time, anywhere CSL is hoping instant messaging will prove as popular on the road as it is in the living room. Last week, Hong Kong's largest mobile operator launched Yahoo! Messenger on BlackBerry, letting fans of the iconic Research In Motion devices send emoticons with their thumbs anywhere, any time. The new service allows users to access their existing Yahoo contact lists and see whether friends or colleagues are online and available to while away the hours. They can also set up personalised ring-tone or vibration indicators and home-screen notifications of new messages and switch easily between tasks.
Cerebral vibes Strapping moist sponges wrapped around electrodes to a person's head may conjure up scenes from The Green Mile, but scientists have found that passing electric currents through the brain can have a positive effect on cognitive function. According to a report in the New Scientist, so-called 'transcranial direct current stimulation' (tDCS) has been shown to boost verbal and motor skills and improve learning and memory in healthy people. The technique may also be used to cure migraines and speed recovery after a stroke, the report said. The current is weak at between 1 and 2 milliamps, and most people feel nothing except a 'slight tingle or itch'.
