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TOP STORIES FOR FRIDAY, JUNE 30, 2006 Researchers Develop Cleaner, Cheaper Chips New Law Limits Aid for Foreign Online Programs VA Laptop Recovered *** CORRECTION *** RESEARCHERS DEVELOP CLEANER, CHEAPER CHIPS A team of researchers at University College London have demonstrated a technique that uses ultraviolet (UV) light--rather than intense heat--to create silicon dioxide, one of the components of today's computer chips. Highly pure silicon dioxide is key to the way transistors function. Because the compound forms very slowly at room temperature, chip makers today heat the material to around 1,000 degrees Celsius to speed up the process. Not only does this process use remarkable amounts of energy to create the heat, it also carries the risk of damaging other components that are subjected to the heat. Using UV light, the researchers were able to create silicon dioxide relatively quickly at room temperature, without the possibility of warping other materials. If the process is commercially viable, it could save considerable cost in producing computer chips and be more environmentally friendly. Douglas Paul of the University of Cambridge semiconductor physics group noted, however, that despite the advantages of the UV technique, it also results in a greater number of defects. BBC, 30 June 2006 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5128762.stm NEW LAW LIMITS AID FOR FOREIGN ONLINE PROGRAMS Under a law that goes into effect July 1, U.S. students enrolled in online courses offered by non-U.S. institutions may no longer use federal financial aid to pay for those courses. The Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005 does allow students to use federal financial aid for programs that complement in-person instruction with online tools. A spokesperson for Rep. Howard P. "Buck" McKeon (R-Calif.), chair of the House committee that shepherded the legislation to passage, said the law, which is part of a deficit-reduction package, is intended to guarantee that students use federal aid for legitimate foreign-school experiences rather than simply taking a course from an institution in London, for example, but doing all of the work from the United States. Chronicle of Higher Education, 30 June 2006 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/daily/2006/06/2006063001t.htm VA LAPTOP RECOVERED A stolen laptop containing personal information on 26.5 million people has been recovered, and authorities believe the data on the computer was not accessed. The laptop, which belonged to the Department of Veterans Affairs, was stolen on May 3 from the home of a VA employee. The agency was harshly criticized for waiting until May 22 to disclose the theft, and some veterans sued the government for $1,000 per person affected--a total of $26.5 billion. Following the announcement of a $50,000 reward, an individual contacted law enforcement officials and led them to the laptop. Initial forensic examinations indicated that the sensitive data had not been accessed since the laptop was stolen. Further tests are scheduled to try to confirm that. The VA had said it would pay for credit-monitoring services for one year for those affected. The agency is reevaluating that offer, given the recovery of the laptop. Joe Davis, spokesperson for the Veterans of Foreign Wars, said the VA should honor its pledge to pay for the monitoring services unless it can show that the data were definitely not compromised. New York Times, 30 June 2006 (registration req'd) http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Vets-Data-Theft.html *** CORRECTION *** The June 26 issue of Edupage included a story that improperly associated Cray with Blue Gene, which is an IBM product. The U.S. Department of Energy has ordered a petaflop system from Cray and, separately, an upgrade to its Blue Gene system. We regret the error. Federal Computer Week, 26 June 2006 http://www.fcw.com/article95010-06-26-06-Web ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your settings, or access the Edupage archive, visit http://www.educause.edu/Edupage/639 Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE RESOURCES The EDUCAUSE Resource Center is a repository for information concerning use and management of IT in higher education. 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