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Microsoft

Ballmer Calls Android a "Press Release" 270

Bergkamp10 writes "Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer tried to shoot down Google's new mobile platform at a press conference in Tokyo. Ballmer called Android a mere 'press release' at present, and said the mobile platform market is 'Microsoft's world.' Ballmer dodged requests to comment on specifics of the Android software platform, preferring instead to highlight the successes of the Windows Mobile platform which he said is on 150 different handsets and is available from over 100 different mobile operators. 'Well of course their efforts are just some words on paper right now, it's hard to do a very clear comparison [with Windows Mobile],' Ballmer said. 'Right now they have a press release, we have many, many millions of customers, great software, many hardware devices and they're welcome in our world,' he added."
Communications

The World's Languages Are Fast Becoming Extinct 939

Ant sends news of a report, released a couple of weeks back by the Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages in Oregon, on the alarming rate of extinction of the world's languages. While half of all languages have gone extinct in the last 500 years, the half-life is dropping: half of the 7,000 languages spoken today won't exist by the year 2100. The NY Times adds this perspective: "83 languages with 'global' influence are spoken and written by 80 percent of the world population. Most of the others face extinction at a rate, the researchers said, that exceeds that of birds, mammals, fish and plants."
Sci-Fi

Submission + - Scientists:Artificial life likely in 3 to 10 years (cnn.com)

CapedOpossum writes: Let the voices chanting apocalyptic visions once again be heard! Playing God? Hell, we're re-inventing the concept! From the article: "Around the world, a handful of scientists are trying to create life from scratch and they're getting closer. Experts expect an announcement within three to 10 years from someone in the now little-known field of 'wet artificial life.' ... 'It's going to be a big deal and everybody's going to know about it,' said Mark Bedau, chief operating officer of ProtoLife of Venice, Italy, one of those in the race. ... Bedau said there are legitimate worries about creating life that could 'run amok,' but there are ways of addressing it, and it will be a very long time before that is a problem."

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