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21st century ... 2000-2009 contents 2000 - The world celebrates the turn of the millenium | The dot-com bubble bursts | Concorde crashes in France, killing 113 | Personal home computers break the 1Ghz barrier | Sydney hosts the Olympic Games 2001 - George Bush is sworn in as the 43rd President of the United States | A devastating terrorist attack leaves nearly 3,000 dead in America | The world's first space tourist | Wikipedia is launched 2002 - Apple introduces the iMac G4 | Quaoar is discovered | The deadliest act of terrorism in the history of Indonesia 2003 - Space Shuttle Columbia disaster | The invasion of Iraq | The Human Genome Project is completed | Record heatwaves kill tens of thousands in Europe | MySpace is launched 2004 - George Bush is re-elected | Athens hosts the Olympic Games | Train bombings in Madrid kill nearly 200 people | Hubble Ultra Deep Field | Mars Exploration Rovers | The first privately funded human spaceflight | Facebook is launched | World's first 1Gb SD card | London's skyline gets a new landmark | Asia gets a new tallest building | Indian Ocean earthquake leaves a quarter of a million dead 2005 - Suicide bombers in London kill 56 people, injure 700 others | Hurricane Katrina floods New Orleans | Huygens probe reveals images of Titan's surface | YouTube is launched | Angela Merkel becomes the first female Chancellor of Germany 2006 - North Korea conducts its first nuclear test | West African black rhinos are declared extinct | Pluto is demoted to "dwarf planet" status | Saddam Hussein is executed 2007 - Global economic downturn | Gordon Brown succeeds Tony Blair as Prime Minister of Great Britain | Nicolas Sarkozy is elected President of the French Republic | Arctic sea ice hits a record low | Apple debuts the iPhone | Amazon releases the Kindle | Google Street View is launched | Benazir Bhutto is assassinated in Pakistan 2008 - Oil prices hit a record high of $147/barrel | Internet continues to boom | Scientists extract images directly from the brain | Artificial DNA | Breakthrough in wireless energy transfer | Major advances in CGI | Video adverts on London's tube | Beijing hosts the Olympic games 2009 - Major breakthrough in cancer research | Scientists engineer new plastics without use of fossil fuels | Mouse genome is fully sequenced | Water is discovered on the Moon | Mercury is 98% mapped | A shift towards portable (and ultra-portable) PCs | Mind control headsets available for gamers | The tallest man-made structure in history is completed | Kepler searches for Earth-like planets | 3D scanning enters the consumer market | Africa's population tops one billion
2000-2009 | 2010-2019 | 2020-2029 | 2030-2039 | 2040-2049 | 2050-2059 | 2060-2069 | 2070-2079 | 2080-2089 | 2090-2099 >
The world celebrates the turn of the millenium Between 1000 AD and 2000 AD, the world changed beyond recognition. The 2nd millennium encompassed the High Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Early Modern Age, the age of Colonialism, industrialisation and the rise of nation states - culminating in the 20th century with the impact of science, widespread education and universal health care in many nations. The centuries of expanding large-scale warfare with high-tech weaponry (of the World Wars and nuclear bombs) were offset by growing peace movements from the United Nations, the Peace Corps, religious campaigns warning against violence, plus doctors and health workers crossing borders to treat injuries and disease, along with the return of the Olympics as a form of contest without combat. Scientists prevailed in explaining intellectual freedom - while huge advances in technology were developed by governments, industry and academia across the world, with education shared by countless international conferences and journals. The development of movable type, radio, television and the Internet spread information globally, within minutes - in audio, video, and print-image format - to educate, entertain, and alert billions of people by the end of the 20th century. From the 16th century, humans migrated from Europe, Africa and Asia to the New World, beginning the ever-accelerating process of globalisation. The interwoven international trade led to the formation of multi-national corporations, with offices in multiple countries. International business ventures reduced the impact of nationalism in popular thought. The world's population doubled over the first seven centuries of the millennium (from 310m in 1000 AD, to 600m in 1700 AD), and later increased tenfold over its last three centuries, exceeding 6 billion in 2000 AD. Due to radical advances in genetics, some of the people alive today will live to experience the next millenium, too.
The "dot-com bubble" was a speculative bubble covering roughly 1998–2000, during which stock markets in industrialized nations saw their equity value rise sharply from growth in the more recent Internet sector and related technology fields. A combination of rapidly increasing stock prices, market confidence that the companies would turn future profits, individual speculation in stocks, and widely available venture capital created an environment in which many investors were willing to overlook traditional metrics in favor of confidence in technological advancements. It climaxed on 10th March 2000, with the NASDAQ peaking at 5132. This was followed by a spectacular crash, with huge numbers of startups going bust. Between 2000 and 2002, more than $5 trillion was wiped off the market value of technology companies.
Air France Flight 4590 was a Concorde flight from Charles de Gaulle International Airport near Paris, France, travelling to JFK International Airport in New York City. On 25 July 2000 it crashed in Gonesse, France, killing all one hundred passengers and nine crew on board the flight, as well as four people on the ground. As a result of this crash - together with the economic effects of 9/11 and other factors - the iconic aircraft was retired in 2003.
During 2000, clock speeds were going through their biggest ever rate of increase.
This was the second time the Olympics were held in the Southern Hemisphere, the first being in Melbourne in 1956.
George Bush is sworn in as the 43rd President of the United States Following a controversial election result, Bush was sworn in as president on 20th January 2001. Though he originally outlined an ambitious domestic agenda, his priorities were significantly altered following the terrorist attacks of the same year. Wars were waged in Afghanistan and later Iraq while significant debates regarding immigration, healthcare, Social Security, economic policy, and treatment of terrorist detainees took place within the US. Over an eight year period, Bush's once-high approval ratings steadily declined throughout his Presidency, while his disapproval numbers increased significantly over the same time frame. During 2007, the United States entered into its longest post-World War II recession and the administration responded by enacting multiple stimulus packages.
On September 11th, 2001, a series of coordinated suicide attacks took place in the United States. On that morning, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners. The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York, killing everyone on board, along with many others working in the buildings.
Both towers - two of the tallest in the world at the time - collapsed within two hours, destroying nearby buildings and heavily damaging others. The hijackers crashed a third airliner into the Pentagon, just outside Washington, D.C. The fourth plane crashed into a field near Shanksville in rural Pennsylvania, after some of its passengers and crew attempted to retake control of the plane, which the hijackers had redirected toward Washington, D.C. There were no survivors from any of the flights.
2,973 victims and the 19 hijackers died as a result of the attacks. The overwhelming majority of casualties were civilians, including nationals of over 90 countries. In addition, the death of at least one person from lung disease was ruled by a medical examiner to be a result of exposure to dust from the World Trade Center's collapse. Some American stock exchanges stayed closed for the rest of the week following the attack, and posted enormous losses upon reopening, especially in the airline and insurance industries. The destruction of billions of dollars' worth of office space caused serious damage to the economy of Lower Manhattan. The United States responded to the attacks by launching a "War on Terrorism" - invading Afghanistan to depose the Taliban, who had harbored al-Qaeda terrorists, and enacting the USA PATRIOT Act. Many other countries also strengthened their anti-terrorism legislation and greatly expanded law enforcement powers.
American engineer and multimillionaire Dennis Tito became the world's first space tourist in 2001. He spent nearly eight days on the International Space Station, Soyuz TM-32 and Soyuz TM-31, orbiting Earth a total of 128 times. Tito performed several scientific experiments that he said would be useful for his company and business. Tito paid a reported $20 million for his trip, through an arrangement with space tourism company Space Adventures Ltd.
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project. Launched in this year, it went on to become the largest and most popular general reference work on the Internet. By 2010, more than 14 million articles (3.1 million in English) had been written by volunteers around the world.
Apple
introduces the iMac G4 This computer featured a radical new design, with a 15-inch LCD screen mounted on an adjustable arm above a hemisphere containing a full-size, tray-loading optical drive. CPU speeds ranged from 700 Mhz to 1.25 Ghz.
Quaoar
is discovered
The
deadliest act of terrorism in the history of Indonesia The attack involved the detonation of three bombs: a backpack-mounted device carried by a suicide bomber; a large car bomb, both of which were detonated in or near popular nightclubs in Kuta; and a third much smaller device detonated outside the United States consulate in Denpasar, causing only minor damage. Various members of Jemaah Islamiyah, a violent Islamist group, were convicted in relation to the bombings, including three individuals who were sentenced to death.
Space
Shuttle Columbia disaster The loss of Columbia was a result of damage sustained during launch, when a piece of foam insulation the size of a small briefcase broke off the Space Shuttle external tank (the main propellant tank) under the aerodynamic forces of launch. The debris struck the leading edge of the left wing, damaging the Shuttle's thermal protection system, which was unable to protect it from heat generated by the atmospheric re-entry.
The
invasion of Iraq According to then President of the United States, George W. Bush and then Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Tony Blair, the reasons for the invasion were "to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), to end Saddam Hussein's support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people." According to Blair, the trigger was Iraq's failure to take a "final opportunity" to disarm itself of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons that US and British officials called an immediate and intolerable threat to world peace. Although some remnants of pre-1991 production were found after the end of the war, US government spokespeople confirmed that these were not the weapons for which the US went to war. In 2005, the Central Intelligence Agency released a report saying that no weapons of mass destruction had been found in Iraq. In December 2007, the Iraqi government reported that there were 5 million orphans in Iraq - nearly half of the country's children. According to the UN, Iraq's health had deteriorated to a level not seen since the 1950s. Malnutrition rates had risen from 19% before the US-led invasion to a national average of 28% four years later. Some 60-70% of Iraqi children were suffering from psychological problems. 68% of Iraqis had no access to safe drinking water. A cholera outbreak in northern Iraq was thought to be the result of poor water quality. As many as half of Iraqi doctors left the country between 2003 and 2007. By 2010, the lowest credible estimate of civilian casualties in both Iraq and Afghanistan was around 850,000 - about 283 times as many than were killed in the attacks of 9/11. Put another way: over 121 times as many people had been killed in these wars and occupations than in all terrorist attacks in the world from 1993-2004, according to data compiled by the US State Department. Throughout the entire Iraq War and occupation there were countless human rights abuses. The financial cost of the war had been more than $845 billion to the US, with the total cost to the US economy estimated at $3 trillion.
The
Human Genome Project is completed It began in 1990. Halfway through the project, critics pointed out that given the speed at which the genome could then be scanned, it would take thousands of years to finish. However, a working draft of the genome was released in 2000 and a complete one in 2003. This was made possible thanks to exponential progress - like many areas of science, information on the base pairs was actually doubling every year and required only a few more doublings to reach 100%. The project brings enormous long term benefits to the world of science and medicine. Knowledge of the effects of variation of DNA among individuals can revolutionise the ways to diagnose, treat and prevent a number of diseases that affect human beings, in addition to providing clues to the understanding of biology as a whole.
Record
heatwaves kill tens of thousands in Europe Heatwaves of this kind will become an annual occurence by 2080.
MySpace
is launched
George Bush is re-elected As in the 2000 presidential election, voting controversies and concerns of irregularities emerged during and after the vote. The winner was not determined until the following day, when Kerry decided not to dispute Bush's win in the state of Ohio. The state held enough electoral votes to determine the winner of the presidency. Both Kerry and Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean have stated their opinion that voting in Ohio did not proceed fairly and that, had it done so, the Democratic ticket might have won that state and therefore the election. However, there was far less controversy about this election than in 2000. Only three states changed allegiance. New Mexico and Iowa voted Democratic in 2000, but voted Republican in 2004. New Hampshire voted Republican in 2000 but voted Democratic in 2004. In the Electoral College, Bush received 286 votes, and Kerry 251.
Athens hosts the Olympic Games
Train bombings in Madrid kill nearly 200 people The official investigation by the Spanish Judiciary determined that the attacks were directed by a Muslim al-Qaeda-inspired terrorist cell, although no direct al-Qaeda participation (only "inspiration") was established. Nationwide demonstrations and protests followed the attacks. Some analysts claim that the Aznar administration lost the general elections as a result of the handling and representation of the terrorist attacks, rather than the bombings per se.
Hubble
Ultra Deep Field The HUDF image was taken in a section of sky with a low density of bright stars in the near-field, allowing much better viewing of dimmer, more distant objects. It revealed an estimated 10,000 galaxies. Located southwest of Orion in the southern hemisphere constellation Fornax, the image covers 11.0 square arcminutes. This is just one-tenth the diameter of the full moon as viewed from Earth, or smaller than a 1 mm by 1 mm square of paper held 1 meter away, and equal to roughly one thirteen-millionth of the total area of the sky.
Click to enlarge
Mars
Exploration Rovers Their primary scientific objective was to search for and characterise a wide range of rocks and soils holding clues to past water activity on Mars. The mission was part of NASA's Mars Exploration Program which included three previous successful landers: the two Viking landers in 1976 and Mars Pathfinder in 1997. The total cost of building, launching, landing and operating the rovers for the initial 90-Martian-day primary mission was US$820 million. However, the rovers continued to function substantially beyond their intended lifespan and remained operational into the following decade.
Click to enlarge
The first privately-funded human spaceflight Flight 15P of SpaceShipOne became the first privately-funded human spaceflight, taking place in June 2004. It was the fourth powered test flight of the Tier One program, the previous three test flights having reached much lower altitudes. The flight carried only its pilot, Mike Melvill, who thus became the first non-governmental astronaut.
Facebook is launched Launched in 2004, Facebook later became the most popular social networking site on the web – overtaking its main competitor, MySpace, in April 2008. It also became the most popular site for uploading photos, with 14 million uploaded daily. By 2010, it had over 350 million members – or about one-fifth of all users on the Internet. Facebook has met with some controversy. It has been blocked intermittently in several countries including Syria, China, Vietnam and Iran. It has also been banned at many places of work to discourage employees from wasting time using the service. Privacy has also been an issue, and has been compromised on a number of occasions.
World's
first 1gb SD card SD card capacities continued to increase exponentially – doubling each year – whilst declining exponentially in cost. By 2011, they will be available at 128gb in the micro-SD form factor, measuring just 15 mm × 11 mm × 1 mm (about the size of a fingernail), or about one-quarter the size of an SD card.
London's
skyline gets a new landmark Standing 180m (590 ft) tall, it became the 2nd tallest skyscraper in the City of London. Designed by architects Norman Foster and Ken Shuttleworth, it radically altered the skyline of London and symbolised the start of a high-rise construction boom in the city. The tower has strong environmental credentials. Natural light reaches the very core of the building – thanks to cutaway "lightwells" behind the façade, angled progressively on each floor. Occupants have 360º views of the outside world, preventing "sick building syndrome" which can be a major cause of discomfort to office workers. Light and movement sensors control artificial lighting when needed. Meanwhile, the building’s aerodynamic form encourages wind to flow around its face, minimising wind loads on the structure and cladding, enabling the use of a more efficient structure. Wind is not deflected to ground level – as with rectilinear buildings – helping to maintain pedestrian comfort and safety at the base of the building. Natural air movement around the building generates substantial pressure differences across its face, which can be used to facilitate natural ventilation within the building. In other words, the building can actually "breathe" by drawing in fresh air from outside, through the space formed between its double-skin glass cladding and circulating throughout its 40 storeys, once again saving huge amounts of energy consumption. As a final touch, the building lacks parking spaces, except for disabled access. This encourages the use of public transport and bicycles, rather than cars.
Asia
gets a new tallest building
Indian
Ocean earthquake leaves 230,000 dead Caused by subduction, it triggered a series of devastating tsunamis along coasts bordering the Indian Ocean, inundating towns and cities with waves up to 30 meters (100 feet) high. Nearly 230,000 people in fourteen countries were killed and 1.7 million displaced. It was one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history. Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand were the hardest hit. With a magnitude of 9.3, it was the second largest earthquake ever recorded on a seismograph. This earthquake had the longest duration of faulting ever observed, between 8.3 and 10 minutes. It caused the entire planet to vibrate as much as 1 cm (0.4 inches) and triggered other earthquakes as far away as Alaska. The plight of the many affected people and countries prompted a widespread humanitarian response. In all, the worldwide community donated more than $7 billion (2004 U.S. dollars) in aid.
Suicide
bombers in London kill 56 people, injure 700 others At 08:50, three bombs exploded within fifty seconds of each other on three London Underground trains, a fourth exploding an hour later at 09:47 on a double-decker bus in Tavistock Square. The explosions appear to have been caused by home-made organic peroxide-based devices, packed into rucksacks and detonated by the bombers themselves. Fifty-six people were killed, including the bombers, and around 700 were injured.
Hurricane
Katrina floods New Orleans Hurricane Katrina formed over the Bahamas on August 23, 2005 and crossed southern Florida as a moderate Category 1 hurricane, causing some deaths and flooding there before strengthening rapidly in the Gulf of Mexico. The storm weakened before making its second landfall as a Category 3 storm on the morning of Monday, August 29 in southeast Louisiana. It caused severe destruction along the Gulf coast from central Florida to Texas, much of it due to the storm surge. The most severe loss of life and property damage occurred in New Orleans, Louisiana, which flooded as the levee system catastrophically failed, in many cases hours after the storm had moved inland. Eventually, 80% of the city and large tracts of neighboring parishes became flooded, with the floodwaters lingering for weeks. At least 1,836 people lost their lives in the actual hurricane and in the subsequent floods, while preliminary damage estimates were in excess of $100 billion - eclipsing many times the damage wrought by Hurricane Andrew in 1992. The levee failures prompted investigations into their design and construction. There was also an investigation of the responses from federal, state and local governments. Years later, thousands of displaced residents in Mississippi and Louisiana were still living in trailers.
Huygens
probe reveals images of Titan's surface Huygens separated from the Cassini orbiter on December 25, 2004, and landed on Titan on January 14, 2005 near the Xanadu region. It touched down on land, although the possibility that it would touch down in an ocean was also taken into account during its design. The probe continued to send data for about 90 minutes after reaching the surface.
YouTube
is launched YouTube's social impact was considerable. Before its launch in 2005, there were few easy methods available for computer users wanting to post videos online. With its simple interface, YouTube made it possible for anyone with an Internet connection to post a video that a worldwide audience could watch within minutes. The wide range of topics covered by YouTube turned video sharing into one of the most important parts of Internet culture. YouTube popularised many trends outside the Internet, created a number of Internet celebrities, and promoted democracy and debate around the globe. It even played a role in the 2008 US presidential election. However, the site proved controversial in some nations, with governments blocking access. It also received criticism for failing to ensure copyright protection.
Angela
Merkel becomes the first female Chancellor of Germany She played a central role in the negotiation of the Treaty of Lisbon and the Berlin Declaration. In domestic policy, health care reform and problems concerning future energy development would become major issues of her tenure.
North
Korea conducts its first nuclear test An anonymous official at the North Korean Embassy in Beijing told a South Korean newspaper that the explosive output was smaller than expected. Because of the secretive nature of North Korea and the small yield of the test, there were questions as to whether it was an unusually small successful test, or simply a dud. In any case, international condemnation of the tests was nearly unanimous, including from North Korea's close ally, the People's Republic of China. On 14th October 2006, the UN Security Council unanimously approved military and economic sanctions.
West
African black rhinos are declared extinct
Pluto
is demoted to "dwarf planet" status On 24th August 2006 the International Astronomical Union defined the term "planet" for the first time. This definition excluded Pluto, instead adding it as a member of a new category - "dwarf planet" - together with Eris and Ceres. After the reclassification, Pluto was added to the list of minor planets and given the number 134340. A number of scientists continued to hold that Pluto should be classified as a planet.
Saddam
Hussein is executed Saddam Hussein was President of Iraq from 1979 until 2003, when he was deposed during the invasion of Iraq by a U.S.-led Allied Coalition. After his capture in ad-Dawr, near his hometown of Tikrit, he was incarcerated at Camp Cropper. On 5th November 2006, he was sentenced to death by hanging. On 30th December, he was taken to the prison to be executed. The Iraqi government released an official videotape of the execution, showing him being led to the gallows, and ending after his head was in the hangman's noose. International public controversy arose when an unauthorized cellphone recording showed him falling through the trapdoor of the gallows. The audio - which was not in the official video - revealed taunts between Saddam and his executioners, many of whom were strong supporters of Muqtada Al-Sadr. The unprofessional and undignified atmosphere of the execution drew criticism from nations around the world. On 31st December 2006, Saddam Hussein's body was returned to his birthplace of Al-Awja, near Tikrit, and was buried near the graves of other family members.
Global
economic downturn This global financial meltdown is caused by a number of factors. Primarily, it is a result of the Wild West casino mentality which has characterised investment banking over the last two decades, combined with a lack of regulation. Merchant bankers - keen to make a fast buck - had realised there were vast numbers of poor Americans who had been refused loans because they wouldn't be able to pay them back. Motivated by short term gains, they employed predatory mortgage lenders to offer these people the chance to own their first home. Inevitably, this led to millions of poor Americans with homes they couldn't afford. Bankers then bundled these mortgages together with other more secure loans, before selling them on to other banks, who sold them onto other financial institutions, and so on. The bankers then received enormous bonuses for the commission and fees they generated. This "sub prime" market was a time bomb waiting to go off. As interest rates rose, millions of Americans began defaulting on repayments. The loans which had originated from them were suddenly shown to be worthless - but it was already too late, as trillions of dollars' worth had spread throughout the system. With banks afraid to lend to each other - and not knowing the extent of each others' exposure - the outcome was collapse on an unprecedented scale, with a liquidity crisis almost unparalleled in history. Some of the largest banks in the world, including Lehman Brothers and Bear Sterns, went into administration. Mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were nationalised. Even the likes of AIG and Citigroup had to be rescued. The other major factor which led to all this, was simply the greed of ordinary consumers and their desire for instant gratification. In addition to buying homes they couldn't afford, credit cards and loans were used to purchase endless luxury items and other products they didn't particularly need. Personal debt levels soared as a result, leading to a massive rise in bankruptcies and foreclosures, triggering a worldwide recession.
Gordon
Brown succeeds Tony Blair as Prime Minister of Great Britain By the end of 2008, his popularity had fallen significantly, with eight Labour MPs calling for a leadership contest. However, this threat receded due to his perceived strong handling of the global financial crisis. His popularity hit an all time low during the expenses scandal of May 2009, which Brown was seen to deal with indecisively. To make matters worse, Brown's cabinet began to rebel, with several key resignations in the run up to local and European elections in June 2009.
Nicolas
Sarkozy is elected President of the French Republic
Arctic
sea ice hits a record low
Apple
debuts the iPhone A more advanced model, the iPhone 3G, was released in 2008. This supported faster 3G data speeds and assisted GPS. Apple released version 3.0 of the iPhone OS for the iPhone (and iPod Touch) in 2009. The iPhone 3GS had improved performance, a camera with higher resolution and video capability, along with voice control. By 2010, over 42 million units had been sold, with tens of thousands of downloadable apps now available.
Amazon
releases the Kindle
Google
Street View is launched
Benazir
Bhutto is assassinated in Pakistan
Oil
prices hit a record high of $147/barrel
The
Internet continues to boom The Internet can now be accessed virtually anywhere, by numerous means. Mobile phones, smartphones, datacards, laptops, handheld games consoles and cellular routers allow users to connect to the Internet from anywhere there is a cellular network supporting that device's technology. Broadband is becoming ubiquitous. Recent trends include the rise of social networking websites (such as Facebook), social bookmarking (such as Digg) and a huge increase in blogging, micro-blogging, wiki sites, music downloads, video sharing and podcasts. Online gaming is becoming immensely popular. It is no longer a niche market for adolescents, but very much part of mainstream entertainment - with some games generating more revenue than blockbuster movies. Users can take part in highly realistic battle simulations (such as Call of Duty), or racing games, or MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games) such as World of Warcraft; or they can explore and interact with entire virtual worlds (such as Second Life) and engage in the trading of virtual goods and services. Many traditional high street retailers - especially those dealing in purely digital products such as games, DVDs or music CDs - are finding themselves increasingly outmoded by online retailers who offer greater speed, convenience and cost savings.
Scientists
extract images directly from the brain In one of the experiments, test subjects were shown the six letters in the word "neuron". The computer successfully reconstructed the word on screen by measuring their brain activity.*
Artificial
DNA
Breakthrough
in wireless energy transfer
Major
advances in CGI
Video adverts on London's tube Video screen adverts - including web content displayed in real time - are appearing on the London Underground.* They are limited to the busiest stations initially, but will soon spread to the entire network. Various other cities are beginning to adopt this technology too.
Beijing hosts the Olympic Games The 2008 Summer Olympics were held in Beijing and featured a spectacular opening ceremony. However, the choice of China as a host country was the subject of criticism by some politicians and non-governmental organizations concerned about China's human rights record. China and others, meanwhile, warned against politicising the Olympics. At the closing ceremony, IOC president Jacques Rogge declared the event a "truly exceptional Games", after earlier asserting that the IOC had "absolutely no regrets" in choosing Beijing to host the 2008 Games.
2009 Major breakthrough in cancer research In a major scientific landmark, the complete genetic codes for both skin and lung cancer have been identified.* Every mutation that turns healthy cells cancerous is now catalogued - paving the way for drug targets that could lead to possible cures in the near future. Blood tests to spot tumours will also be possible at far earlier stages.* The genetic code for other types of cancer will soon be catalogued too: the USA is looking at cancers of the brain, ovary and pancreas; the UK is looking at breast cancer; Japan is studying the liver; China the stomach; and India the mouth.*
Scientists engineer plastics without fossil fuels Scientists in Korea have developed a one-step production process for creating everyday plastics through the use of bioengineering, rather than fossil-fuel based chemicals.* This has enormous implications for the future of manufacturing. Until now, almost all plastics have been heavily reliant on oil, an increasingly limited resource. Furthermore, these new plastics are environmentally friendly, biodegradable and low in toxicity.
Mouse genome is fully sequenced After a 10-year effort, scientists have finished mapping the entire mouse genome.* Given the prevalence of mice in laboratory experiments - and the similarities with our own genetic code - this will greatly aid our understanding and treatment of diseases.
Water is discovered on the Moon The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) was the first American mission to the Moon in over a decade. It was designed to relay data from the impact and debris plume resulting from the vehicle's upper stage, Centaur, hitting a large crater near the Moon's south pole. The probe impacted successfully, with a velocity of about 10,000 km/h (6,200 mph). The plume of debris thrown up by the craft revealed significant amounts of water ice - perhaps enough to supply drinking water to future colonists as well as hydrogen for rocket fuel.*
Mercury is 98% mapped NASA's MESSENGER probe completed a third and final flyby of the planet in 2009. This helped to map 98% of its surface - including the previously unseen far side. It also revealed higher than expected amounts of heavy metals such as iron and titanium, forcing scientists to rethink how the small planet evolved. Data also revealed changing seasons on the planet, in the form of varying chemical compositions in Mercury's thin atmosphere.*
A shift towards portable (and ultra-portable) PCs The market is moving toward portable PCs even faster than expected. By 2009, the laptop share of PCs bought worldwide has overtaken desktops for the first time.* In addition, a new generation of "ultra portables" is emerging. These are significantly cheaper and more compact than traditional laptops, but offer many of the same features including wireless Internet access. Computers as a whole are seeing phenomenal sales growth, with almost 300 million units shipped this year alone. The emergence of India as a major IT centre is having a big influence here. Memory cards with capacities exceeding 2TB will soon be available for digital devices - enough to store more than 4,000 RAW images, 100 HD movies, or 60 hours of HD recording.
Mind
control headsets for video gaming The implications of this technology are staggering. Future mainstream versions could radically alter how we interact with computers, the Internet, and each other.
The tallest man-made structure in history is completed With 160 floors, rising to a height of 818m (2,684ft), the Burj Dubai is by far the tallest structure ever built by man, shattering all previous records and setting a new benchmark for skyscrapers. The decision to build the tower was based on the UAE government's aim to diversify from a trade-based economy to one that is service- and tourism-orientated. According to officials, it is necessary for projects like this to be built in the city to garner more international recognition, and hence more investment. Construction of the tower and other projects is seen as controversial by some - with most of the site workers being low-paid immigrants, in some cases earning less than US$5 per day. A host of other residential complexes, hotels, office towers and luxury resorts are being built all over Dubai, making it one of the fastest growing cities in the world. In addition to the Burj Dubai, there are various other "mega projects" including the Palm Islands, a series of enormous artificial islands on which major commercial and residential infrastructure is being built.
Kepler
searches for Earth-like planets
3D scanning enters the consumer market This form of technology has been available for a while now - mainly for use in design visualization, CAD/prototyping, architecture, engineering, film production, healthcare, etc. Other applications have included reconstructing fossils in paleontology, replicating ancient and priceless artifacts in archaeology, reconstructing bones and body parts in forensic pathology, and reconstructing heavily damaged evidence acquired from crime scene investigations. Until now though, a significant barrier to 3D scanning has been the expense, bulkiness, and inconvenience of traditional equipment. This has made it difficult - if not impossible - for small businesses and hobbyists to have access to such technology. From 2009 onwards, a number of companies are beginning to produce smaller, cheaper, more portable devices. One such company is David Vision Systems, which has brought out a pocket-sized 3D laser scanner.* This can be used in combination with a simple webcam and background setup, to capture an endless variety of 3D objects (including the user's own face), for use in home videos, animations, computer games and other virtual environments. In the next decade, 3D printing will reach the home market, allowing scanned objects to be physically reproduced.
Africa's population tops one billion The continent’s population has doubled in the last 27 years. It will double again by the 2050s. The main reason for this explosive growth has been the lack of access to contraception and family planning centres.
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References 1
Scientists extract images directly from the brain, Pink Tentacle: 2
Breakthrough:
Artificial DNA Could Power Future Computers, LiveScience.com: 3
Intel Shows Wireless Electricity System at IDF, Tree Hugger: 4
Wireless Electricity, Emerging Technologies: 5
Lifelike
animation heralds new era for computer games, The Times Online: 6
CBS
Outdoor XTP Press Release, Daily DOOH: 7
Scientists
crack 'entire genetic code' of cancer, BBC: 8
Koreans make plastics without fossil fuel chemicals, CNN: 9
Mouse
genome laid bare to science, BBC.co.uk: 10
9
Astronomy Milestones in 2009, Space.com: 11
Age
of desktop computers is over as sales of laptops soar, Mail Online: 12
Emotiv's
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Kepler Mission, Wikipedia: 14
Trends on display at Cebit show, BBC Click: |
