Weekend Edition: Smartphone Weather Warnings, Google's Project Glass, Bird Flu, SEC Charges LightSquared Backer Falcone With Fraud

Hot off the press, here are updates on some stories we've been following:

Smartphone Weather Warnings: Yesterday, the Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) system was activated that will allow the National Weather Service to issue geographically targeted weather warnings directly to service subscriber smartphones. To learn more, click the desired link below:

• Weather Alerts Coming Soon to Smartphone Near You (Associated Press, June 28, 2012)
• IPAWS (EPC Updates, June 1, 2012)

Google's Project Glass: This week at Google's I/O Conference in San Francisco, Google's head mounted augmented reality display called "Project Glass" was publicly offered for purchase for the first time. Attendees could buy a prototype version of the head worn computer, camera, GPS, and kitchen sink for $1500. To learn more, click the desired link below:

• Google's Project Glass Made Available to Developers (The Guardian, June 28, 2012)
• Google's Project Glass (EPC Updates, April 5, 2012)
• Google's HUD Glasses (EPC Updates, February 24, 2012)

Bird Flu: Late last week, the Dutch version of research on how to make Bird Flu into an airborne transmittable virus was published in Science. Turns out, release of the information was not the security threat most had feared. Developments leading up to the event did, however, go a long way toward establishing protocols for release of scientific research that could be used for terrorist purposes. To learn more, click the desired link below:  

• Bird Flu Paper Is Published After Debate (New York Times, June 21, 2012)
• Fast and Furious Friday: Bird Flu, StreetView Hotwater, Female Spy, Play Cube (EPC Updates, May 4, 2012)
• Update: Bird Flu Research/HealthMap (EPC Updates, March 31, 2012)
• Bird Flu Research is Too Dangerous to Publish - For Now (EPC Updates, February 23, 2012) 
• Bird Flu - It's Time to Think Geospatially! EPC Updates, January 5, 2012)
• Terrorism Concern: Scientists Asked to Withhold “Bird Flu” Data (EPC Updates, December 21, 2012)

SEC Charges LightSquared Backer Falcone With Fraud: On Wednesday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) formerly charged Minnesota hockey phenom turned hedge fund manager, Phillip Falcone, with fraud. It's a sad fall from grace for the "man behind the curtain" of the LightSquared effort that would have disconnected functionality of GPS nationwide. Don't worry though, the Chisholm native has more than a few billion in his pocket to fight the charges. To learn more, click the desired link below: 

• Harbinger Capital's Falcone Charged With Fraud (CNN Money, June 27, 2012)
• LightSquared Fight Postmortem (Maybe) (EPC Updates, March 19, 2012)
• ...Down goes LightSquared, down goes LightSquared, down goes LightSquared... (EPC Updates, February 16, 2012)
• Much more from EPC Updates under "GPS"

   
Comment: Things are moving fast in a big way.  You'll need to stay tuned in if you don't want to get left behind by the revolution in geospatial and related technologies! Hope you have a great weekend!