Solar Plane Takes off for 24-Hour Test Flight

An experimental solar-powered plane whose makers hope to one day circle the globe using only energy collected from the sun took off for its first 24-hour test flight Wednesday.

The plane with its 262.5-foot (80-meter) wingspan left Payerne airfield in Switzerland shortly before 7 a.m. (0500 GMT; 1 a.m. EDT) after overcoming an equipment problem that delayed a previous attempt, the Solar Impulse team said.

Clear blue skies mean the prototype aircraft will be able to soak up plenty of solar energy as it flies over the Jura mountains to the west of the Swiss Alps.

By midmorning pilot Andre Borschberg was cruising at 9,850 feet (3,000 meters), trying to avoid low-level turbulence and thermal winds that are frequent in the mountains.

He will take the plane to an altitude of 27,900 feet (8,500 meters) by Wednesday evening, when a decision will be made whether to continue through the night using solar power stored in its batteries.

"The goal of the project is to have a solar-powered plane flying day and night without fuel," said team co-founder Bertrand Piccard, adding that this test flight — the third major step after its first 'flea hop' and an extended flight earlier this year — will demonstrate whether the ultimate plan is feasible: to fly the plane around the world.

"This flight is crucial for the credibility of the project," said Piccard, a record-breaking balloonist whose father and grandfather also accomplished pioneering airborne and submarine feats.

The team had hoped to make their 24-hour test flight last week when days in the northern hemisphere were even longer, allowing the plane's 12,000 solar cells to collect even more energy before attempting to coast through the night.

But there was a problem with a key piece of communications equipment, forcing the team to keep the plane on the ground while modifications were made. Every aspect of the aircraft is monitored by engineers on the ground, with much of it fed onto the team's website and Twitter page.

Borscherg, the plane's sole pilot, will decide by 8 p.m. (1800 GMT; 2 p.m. EDT) whether to continue through the night. If he goes ahead, the plane will slowly descend to 4,920 feet (1,500 meters) before midnight, where Borschberg will stay until attempting a dawn landing. 

Piccard, who achieved the first nonstop circumnavigation of the globe in a balloon, the BreitlingOrbiter III, in 1999, said that, if successful, the next step will be an Atlantic crossing. That will be done in a second, lighter prototype, involving new challenges and dangers, he said. Although the goal is to show that emissions-free air travel is possible, the team has said it doesn't see solar technology replacing conventional jet propulsion any time soon. Instead, the project is designed to test and promote new energy-efficient technologies.

Reliance ADA Group welcomes RIL's broadband entry

NEW DELHI, INDIA: India's Reliance ADA Group, controlled by billionaire Anil Ambani, hailed Reliance Industries' (RIL) entry into the broadband market and said it was looking forward to providing services to RIL and other broadband services providers, a company representative said in a statement.

Reliance Industries, controlled by Anil's long-estranged brother Mukesh Ambani, on Friday said it would buy Infotel Broadband Services for $1 billion.

Infotel is the only firm to win broadband spectrum in all 22 zones in India in an auction that ended on Friday.

12 Ways to Fix Social Security

The Social Security program faces a long term financing shortfall. The trust fund's reserves are currently projected to cover payments until the end of 2037. Then there will only be sufficient resources to pay about three quarters of scheduled benefits. For full checks to be issued after that date the program's financing or benefit structure must be modified.

A U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging report released today outlines the policies Congress could institute to eliminate Social Security's projected deficit. Options include tax increases, benefit cuts, and program tweaks that could be implemented separately or in combination. "Many members of the Committee, including myself, do not support and actively oppose many of the options," writes committee chairman Herb Kohl in the report. Here's a look at the potential Social Security fixes.

Reduce benefits. If Social Security payouts were reduced by 3 percent for new beneficiaries beginning in 2010, about 18 percent of the funding shortfall would be eliminated. A 5 percent benefit cut would reduce the deficit by 30 percent. Alternatively, reductions could be more gradually phased in and exempt those with low lifetime earnings.


Raise the retirement age. The Social Security eligibility age for unreduced retirement benefits currently ranges from 65 to 67 depending on the worker's year of birth. If benefits are claimed between age 62 and the full retirement age, payouts are reduced. Proposals to push back the retirement age include accelerating the increase currently underway to age 67, further increasing the full retirement age to 68 or even 70, and indexing the full retirement age to keep up with longevity. Each of these switches, however, eliminates less than a third of the deficit.

Increase worker and employer contributions. Workers and their employers currently pay 6.2 percent of earnings up to $106,800 into the Social Security system, or a maximum of $6,622 each per year. Self-employed workers are required to pay 12.4 percent of pay up to the same cap. If the contribution rate were increased by 1.1 percent to 7.3 percent of earnings, Social Security's projected deficit would be eliminated. Using this fix, a worker making $43,451 in 2010 would face a tax increase of $478 a year, or $9.19 a week, and the employer would face an identical increase.

Boost future contributions. Taxes don't need to be increased immediately because there is currently enough money in the Social Security trust fund to pay out scheduled benefits. For example, the Social Security tax bite could be increased from 6.2 percent to 7.2 percent for workers and employers in 2022, and to 8.2 percent in 2052, which would also completely eliminate the shortfall. Alternatively, taxes could be gradually ramped up by 1/20 percent annually for 20 years, which would decrease the Social Security deficit by about 69 percent.

Tax as needed. Social Security contribution rates could be designed to increase as funds are needed and reduced when there is a surplus. Additionally, efforts to collect unpaid Social Security payroll taxes could be enhanced.


Modify the Social Security tax cap. Workers pay into the Social Security system on earnings up to $106,800 in 2010. About 83 percent of worker earnings were subject to Social Security payroll taxes in 2008. If all earned income above $106,800 annually were subject to Social Security contributions but did not count toward benefits, Social Security's projected deficit would be completely eliminated. If the higher income counted toward Social Security benefits, about 95 percent of the shortfall would be absolved. Other ideas: apply a new Social Security formula to earnings above the current cap or raise the amount of the income cap to apply to 90 percent of all worker earnings.

Average in more working years. Social Security checks are currently based on an average of a worker's 35 highest paid years in the workforce. Those who haven't worked 35 years have zeros averaged in. The averaging period could be increased to 38 or 40 years, which would reduce the deficit by 14 and 23 percent respectively.

Decrease the cost-of-living adjustment. Social Security benefits are currently automatically adjusted each year to keep up with inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. Reducing the cost-of-living adjustment by 1 percent each year would eliminate 78 percent of the deficit. Even knocking half a percent off the annual adjustment would reduce the deficit by 40 percent. An alternative way of measuring the cost-of-living could also be used.

Lower spousal benefits. Social Security pays a benefit to nonworking and low earning spouses equal to up to 50 percent of the higher earning spouse's check. One proposal would gradually lower the maximum spousal benefit to 33 percent by 2026. This change would reduce about 6 percent of the long term deficit. However, this provision may have less of an impact over time as more women become entitled to Social Security benefits based on their own work records.

Include more workers. Most Americans are already covered by the Social Security system. About 94 percent of workers pay employment or self-employment Social Security taxes. But some Americans are currently exempt from Social Security taxes including state and local government workers participating in alternative retirement systems, federal workers hired before 1984, college students working at academic institutions, and ministers who choose not to be covered. However, this fix would need to be applied in conjunction with others. Extending coverage to workers who previously didn't participate would only reduce the Social Security shortfall by about 9 percent.

A legacy tax. The first retirees who received Social Security payments from the system didn't pay Social Security taxes throughout their entire working life, which contributes to Social Security's fiscal problems. Several ideas have been raised to counteract this legacy cost including a 3 percent legacy tax on earnings above the current tax cap of $106,800 or on adjusted gross income over $125,000 for individuals and $250,000 for couples. This legacy tax would eliminate close to a third of Social Security's shortfall. Another proposed idea is directing estate tax revenue into the Social Security trust fund, which would eliminate 20 percent of the fund's deficit.

Diversify investments. Part of the Social Security trust fund could be invested in equities to try to earn returns that would help to sustain the Social Security program. Investing 15 percent of trust fund assets in equities would reduce the deficit by 14 percent if a 9.4 percent rate of return was achieved. If 40 percent of the trust fund were shifted into the stock market and earned 9.4 percent annually the deficit could be reduced by a third. Of course, this also exposes the trust fund to increased liabilities in times of economic downturn.

'Let us launch apps' says BBC technology chief

Erik Huggers, the BBC’s technology chief, believes the BBC Trust should allow the corporation to launch its news and sport phone apps – with a decision just ‘weeks’ away. The two free BBC News and BBC Sports apps, would have been available to download by now, as they were due to launch in Apple's App Store in April just ahead of the election. However, at the end of March 2010, the BBC Trust asked the corporation to delay its plans, while it carried out a market assessment, following representations it had received from the media industry, claiming the apps would ‘distort’ the market.

The Trust did not name of any of the organisations it had been approached by, but the Newspaper Publishers Association (NPA) publicly accused the BBC of barging into the app market and trampling over commercial news firms which were exploring this growth area, after the corporation announced it app ambitions at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona during February 2010.

Talking to The Telegraph, Huggers, the director of Future Media and Technology at the BBC, said: “I think, from my point of view, the BBC wouldn’t have been as bullish as it was about the developments of these apps if it didn’t think they were within the remit of the corporation…

“I look at it from the consumer’s point of view – when using a small form factor, like a mobile phone screen, a browser is not the best way to display information – whereas apps work much better and have created a new user paradigm. The BBC has always over the last 10 years repurposed the same content to suit different devices in the best way. This is no different.”

Huggers added that the apps would be ready to launch on the iPhone “almost immediately” should the Trust come back with a positive result.

A BBC Trust spokesman said that the assessment was being pushed through speedily and a result would be delivered within ‘weeks’ rather than months. The Trust has already spoken to the BBC Executive on this matter and is continuing its examination.

The BBC Trust is examining the plans in four areas: “the extent to which the change is likely to affect users and others; the financial implications of the change; the extent to which the change would involve the BBC in a new area of untested activity; and how long the activity will last,” according to its statement released in March.

The BBC has said on occasions prior to this that it was satisfied it was allowed to reuse online content for phones.

A spokeswoman has previously said: ''We believe the BBC Online service licence is quite explicit in allowing the BBC to repurpose its online content for consumption on mobile devices, something the BBC has successfully executed for a decade for the benefit of the licence fee-payer.''

David Newell, director of the NPA, said at the time of the announcement of the Trust’s assessment: "It is vital that these proposals are scrutinised properly to avoid any adverse impact on commercial media organisations.

"We are pleased that the BBC Trust has listened to the industry's concerns and acted to delay the planned April launch.

"We hope this will enable a thorough assessment to be undertaken."

Five robots we wish were real ... and five we're glad aren't

It's National Robotics Week, a time when students, scientists and others in the technology community celebrate the increasingly important role that real-world robots are playing in our lives.

Militaries use robots to attack enemies and destroy land mines. Private companies sell robots that let their users see, hear and talk remotely.

Just this week, NASA and General Motors announced that they'll work together to send a human-like robot to the international space station.

It's advances like those that spark the imagination. That makes us wonder: Could the robots who've entertained us in science fiction one day become a reality?

In most cases, the answer is, "Of course not."

Science likely won't ever give us a booze-swilling, cigar-smoking robot like Bender from "Futurama" or the alternately sexy, cunning and deadly androids of "Blade Runner."

But it's fun to imagine, right?

For centuries -- Leonardo da Vinci's notes show he was working on an automaton in 1495 -- we've had a love/hate relationship with robots.

We're both fascinated with all the good they could do and terrified of what would happen if they got too smart.

So, in the video graphic above, we take a look at five science-fiction robots we wish were real and five we're really glad are just make-believe.

Plenty more robots deserved a spot on this list. Let us know in the comments section which of our robot overlords ... er ... friends you would have included.

Google Announces Q1 Earnings, Beats Analyst Estimates But Shares Drop

This afternoon Google released its earnings for Q1 2010.

The company beat analyst expectations, though the stock has fallen nearly 5% in after-hours trading as some investors were hoping for more. Revenue was up 23% for $6.77 billion, with net revenue at $5.06 billion (estimate was $4.93 billion). Net income rose 37% to $1.96 billion, or $6.06 EPS; non-GAAP EPS was $6.76, beating estimates of $6.60.

66% of total revenue, or $4.44 billion, came from Google-owned properties, with 30% ($2.04 billion) from partner sites through AdSense. Paid clicks were up 15% Y/Y and cost-per-click was up 7% Y/Y.

Google has $26.5 billion in cash, and has grown to 20,621 employees up from 19,835 at the close of 2009 — in other words, they’re hiring.

Below are my notes from Google’s conference call, which included responses from:
CFO Patrick Pichette
SVP, Engineering Jeff Huber
VP of Product Management Susan Wojcicki

Note that CEO Eric Schmidt was not on the call, and likely won’t be in the future (though the company says this was merely a matter of streamlining and that there’s nothing to read into it).

High level thoughts – As we enter 2010, it’s clear that the digital economy is continuing to grow rapidly. We are continuing to invest heavily in people, product, and acquisitions. We’ve already stepped up hiring. We have a strong pipeline of candidate, primarily in Engineer and sales. On Product we continue to push the envelope on two fronts: User experience and Ad Business. Acquisitions: we’ve been very active this year and have a strong M&A pipeline in place.

Wojcicki: Starting about a year about we asked ourselves why search ads had to be text links. In many cases it may be more interesting if we show a video/product in the ad. Search the movie Losers and you may see a video ad. Search Toys R Us and you get promoted site links. CTR on site links up 30-40%. Launched search funnel earlier this year. In display business, on platform side we launched new version of DoubleClick. Our new ad exchange has real-time bidding. As users transition to smartphones with mobile browsers, want to make it easier to extend campaign to those devices.

iPad Mania: Crowds Flock to Apple Stores

It's iPad day!

Apple (AAPL) fanatics lined up outside Apple stores from coast to coast Saturday, hoping to get their hands on its hottest new gadget, the iPad tablet computer. At the store in New York's SoHo neighborhood, eager customers arrived early for the product's release, and by midday, the line still stretched around the block.

Youssouf Diallo (pictured), who emerged from the store grinning and clutching an iPad, says: "I bought it for my son, who goes to John Jay College." Diallo is originally from the Ivory Coast but has lived in New York for over two decades.

"He's going to use it in the library," Diallo says, beaming.

Pre-Orders Sell Out

The first iPads cost $499 to $699, depending on options like hard-drive space. Later models will include 3G mobile broadband at a higher price.

Buying on Faith

Demand was also strong at other New York locations. Needham & Co. analyst Charlie Wolf told The New York Times that during his visit to Apple's Fifth Avenue store, "customers were awed by their first encounter with the product."

"Weekend sales will exceed 300,000 units, and they might approach 500,000, although that's a stretch depending as much on the initial production run as initial demand," Wolf says.

Can Momentum Be Sustained?

Along with those purchasing gifts, like Diallo, the first wave of buyers are clearly Apple fanatics and "early adopters," who represent about 15% of the population, according to analysts. These people tend to be younger, wealthier, and more tech-savvy than other consumers.