- ASIMO the humanoid robot created by Honda is reprogrammed to be able to run. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4098201.stm)
- Symantec and Veritas Software announce plans for a merger. The $13.5 billion purchase of Veritas will be the largest acquisition in the software industry to date. (Press release) (http://www.symantec.com/press/2004/n041216.html) (NY Times) (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/16/technology/16cnd-compute.html)
- The International Society for Molecular and Cell Biology Protocols and Researches, Inc (ISMCBPR) announces that the Molecule of the Year 2004 is awarded to IAA-RP. The award goes to the researchers of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York with Dr. George Prell being the First Author. The announcement was made by Isidro T. Savillo, President of ISMCBPR. (Press Release) (http://fusion.mssm.edu/media/content.cfm?storynum=243) (HUM- MOLGEN NEWS) (http://hum-molgen.org/NewsGen/12-2004/msg29.html) (CELLBIOL NEWS) (http://www.cellbiol.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=468&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0)
- New York: Sprint Corp. announces a $35 billion deal to acquire Nextel Communications. With about $40 billion in combined yearly revenue the resulting company (called Sprint Nextel) will be the the third largest wireless telephone service provider in the US. (MSNBC) (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6716519/)
- Researchers at the University of New South Wales announce their discovery that compounds known as Furanones can prevent the bacteria that cause cholera from switching on their disease-causing mechanisms. Furanones can be extracted from the seaweed Delisea pulchra. (University press release) (http://www.science.unsw.edu.au/news/2004/deliseapulchra.html)
- IBM sells its PC Hardware division to Lenovo, China's largest computer company. The $1.75bn deal will make Lenovo the world's third-largest PC vendor. "This acquisition will allow Chinese industry to make significant inroads on its path to globalisation," says Liu Chuanzhi, Lenovo's chairman. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4077579.stm) (Xinhua) (http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-12/08/content_2310317.htm) (USA Today) (http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2004-12-07-china-ibm-8pm_x.htm)
- The Astrophysical Journal reports that the Hubble Space Telescope has spotted a galaxy that may be just 500 million years old: the youngest galaxy yet seen in the Universe. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4073791.stm).
- Researchers from the New York State Department of Health and State University of New York in Albany demonstrate a device which allows people to interface with a computer through thought alone. "The results show that people can learn to use scalp-recorded electroencephalogram rhythms to control rapid and accurate movement of a cursor in two directions," say Jonathan Wolpaw and Dennis McFarlane. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4074869.stm) (National Geographic) (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/12/1207_041207_brain_interface.html#main)
- Netcraft states that Lycos Europe's anti-spam screensaver has taken two spammer websites offline. The company's "vigilante" denial-of-service attack is seen as a controversial approach to the spam problem. (BBC) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4061375.stm) (Netcraft) (http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2004/12/01/spam_sites_crippled_by_lycos_screensaver_ddos.html)
News collections and sources
See: Wikipedia:Current science and technology events sources.
See also
nl:In het nieuws - Wetenschap & Technologie
