What's New @ IEEE in Circuits

January 2007 Volume 8, Number 1

IN THIS ISSUE:
1. 2006 Put All Chip-Making Companies on Equal Footing
2. MyIEEE Adds New Features
3. Scanner-Proof Wallet Touted As Security Essential
4. Targeted Risk Research to Make Nano-Workplaces Safer
5. Symposium on Electronic Design Coming Soon
6. Prozac and Mp3 Players Among Top 50 Inventions Of Last Half-Century
7. IEEE Partners With Knowledge Master, Inc. To Offer Members Courses
8. History Center Adds 75 New Oral Histories to Web Site
9. Symposium on Integrated Circuits Calls for Papers
10. New Issue: "IEEE Circuits and System Magazine"
11. See-Through Displays on the Horizon

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1. 2006 PUT ALL CHIP-MAKING COMPANIES ON EQUAL FOOTING
The year 2006 proved to be a year of pivotal change for the chip-making industry, putting all companies on more equal footing, according to a report from news.com. Intel’s prominence among the processor industry diminished in 2006, though there were still signs for a positive future for the company. It released a new generation of processors with increased performance abilities and several models earned favorable reviews by users and industry experts. An industry trend toward more energy-efficient multi-core processors, thousands of layoffs, and the increase of Advanced Micro Devices’ market share all contributed to the weakening of Intel’s power among the processing industry.

2. MyIEEE Adds New Features
The IEEE’s membership portal, myIEEE, has just updated its career development features. From the Profession Desktop, members can now get listings from the IEEE Job Site, updated daily. New modules link members to IEEE's Mentoring Connection and the advise from IEEE-USA's Career Navigator site. From myIEEE, members can also access their subscriptions, launch IEEE.tv, and manage their membership account. Log in at: www.ieee.org/myieee

3. SCANNER-PROOF WALLET TOUTED AS SECURITY ESSENTIAL
The recent creation of a scanner-proof wallet has some technology experts backing the necessity of the device after discovering how easy it is to extract data from the radio frequency identification chips found on cards. The wallet is protected with nickel-impregnated nylon, a substance that blocks cards from being scanned.

4. TARGETED RISK RESEARCH TO MAKE NANO-WORKPLACES SAFER
A report on nanotechnology and safety calls for harnessing more resources for risk research and building a strategic plan to help maintain safe nano-workplaces both now and in the future. According to the report, which came from the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies, there is limited knowledge of the possible risks found in many parts of nanotechnology. To achieve optimum worker health and ensure the safety of nano-workplaces, Andrew Maynard, chief science advisor of the project, suggests more targeted risk research endeavors to close gaps in occupational safety knowledge.

QUOTE OF THE MONTH:
“Dare to live the life you have dreamed for yourself. Go forward and make your dreams come true.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

5. SYMPOSIUM ON ELECTRONIC DESIGN COMING SOON
The 2007 IEEE InternationalSymposium on Quality ofElectronic Design(ISQED) will be held from 26-28 March 2007 in San Jose, California, USA. ISQED aims to bridge the gap between electronic design tools and processes, integrated circuit technologies, and processes and manufacturing in order to achieve design quality. The conference will provide a forum to present and exchange ideas and to promote the research, development, and application of design techniques & methods, design processes, and EDA design methodologies and tools that address issues which impact the quality of the realization of designs into physical integrated circuits. ISQED emphasizes a holistic approach toward design quality and intends to highlight and accelerate cooperation among the IC Design, EDA, Semiconductor Process Technology and Manufacturing communities. For more information, visit: www.isqed.org/

6. PROZAC AND MP3 PLAYERS AMONG TOP 50 INVENTIONS OF LAST HALF-CENTURY
The cell phone, the anti-depressant Prozac, the television remote control and the IEEE 802.16 wireless metropolitan area network standard are among the top 50 scientific and technological advances that transformed the world in the last half century, according to a panel of experts convened by Popular Mechanics magazine. Other inventions that made the top 50 were DNA sequencing, light emitting diodes, the jet airliner, MP3 players, charge-coupled devices and waffle-soled running shoes. The panel included experts from the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, the Office of National Institutes of Health History, the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, and Stanford University’s Science, Technology and Society Program. Read more: www.popularmechanics.com/technology/upgrade/2078467.html

7. IEEE PARTNERS WITH KNOWLEDGE MASTER, INC. TO OFFER MEMBERS COURSES
IEEE has partnered with Knowledge Master, Inc. to offer IEEE members a selection of 26 courses in microelectronics, semiconductors and integrated circuit design that will be taught in Mandarin Chinese. This partnership will help IEEE serve the community of practitioners in the area of microelectronics, and will serve a segment of its practitioner population that resides in China. The courses are developed by Dr. Wen Ching Chang, an internationally-renowned professor of microelectronics, specializing in RFIC, CMOS, Analog IC, Optoelectronics and Wireless communications. To access courses offered by Knowledge Master, Inc. or to review other partners, visit www.ieee.org/partners

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8. HISTORY CENTER ADDS 75 NEW ORAL HISTORIES TO WEB SITE
The IEEE History Center has added 75 new oral histories to its online archive. The oral histories are organized into nine different collections and include interviews with Gordon Moore, the developer of Moore’s law and co-founder of Intel Corporation, Robert Noyce, one of the inventors of the integrated circuit and Wilson Greatbatch, who helped develop the implanted, cardiac pacemaker. All oral histories are in PDF format and include an abstract and an index. To view the list of collections, visit www.ieee.org/web/aboutus/history_center/oral_history/oral_history.html

9. SYMPOSIUM ON INTEGRATED CIRCUITS CALLS FOR PAPERS
The International Symposium on Integrated Circuits (ISIC 2007) is currently calling for papers. The conference will take place from 26-28 September 2007 in Singapore. Papers should be submitted on topics in the field of integrated circuits, device and IC technology, integrated systems and design automation. Papers accepted for presentation will appear in the Conference Proceedings provided at least one author registers for the conference. Papers should also include a title, aim of study, brief description of methodology, salient results, conclusion and significance of the paper. For more information, visit: www.isic2007.org/callforpapers/

10. NEW ISSUE: "IEEE CIRCUITS AND SYSTEM MAGAZINE"
The latest "IEEE Circuits and System Magazine" (v. 6, no. 4) features articles on automatic character identification, chips to systems via packaging: a comparison of IBM's mainframe servers, and power-aware design techniques for nanometer MOS current-mode logic gates: a design framework. Abstracts for all articles in the issue can be found in the IEEE Xplore digital library, where subscribers will have full-text access to the publication: ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/tocresult.jsp?isnumber=4035770&isYear=2006

11. SEE-THROUGH DISPLAYS ON THE HORIZON
Transparent, high-performance transistors embedded in glass or plastic can power see-through displays, according to a Northwestern University chemist, who says the technology could lead to displays that are indistinguishable from plates of glass when not displaying an image. Applications could include car windshields that display maps, giant billboards and a variety of applications for new electronics, according to the chemist who says he has launched a startup to commercialize the technology and could have products on the market by 2008. Read more: blog.wired.com/gadgets/2006/12/seethrough_disp.html

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WHAT'S NEW @ IEEE IN CIRCUITS
A monthly, opt-in email update designed to provide you with the latest news regarding IEEE activities, industry trends, career development tips, and new IEEE product releases.

Acting Managing Editor: Barbara Soifer, b.soifer@ieee.org

Editors: Diana Fuksin, Cari Wolfert

Contributing Editors: Robert J. Howe, Brian Pedersen, Ryan Thomas

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