Mobile internet use nearing 50%

31 August 2011 Last updated at 11:56 ET

Almost half of UK internet users are going online via mobile phone data connections, according to the Office for National Statistics.

45% of people surveyed said they made use of the net while out and about, compared with 31% in 2010.

The most rapid growth was among younger people, where 71% of internet-connected 16 to 24-year-olds used mobiles.

Domestic internet use also rose. According to the ONS, 77% of households now have access to a net connection.

That figure was up 4% from the previous year, representing the slowest rate of growth since the ONS survey began in 2006.

Among the 23% of the population who remain offline, half said they "didn't need the internet."

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Household internet access

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Northern Ireland excluded from 2011 survey.

Source: Office for National Statistics

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The ONS report is the first since dot-com entrepreneur Martha Lane-Fox was appointed as the government's UK Digital Champion, with a brief to increase internet uptake.

In a statement, Ms Lane-Fox said: "That so many offline households don't see any reason to get online reinforces the importance of the digital champions network that the Raceonline2012 partners are creating."

Mobile revolution

The figure for domestic connections contrasted sharply with the rapid growth in uptake of mobile services.

However, the popularity of 3G broadband did not necessarily mean that more people were going online overall.

Many of those using mobile phones are likely to already have home broadband connections.

Older users, who the government is particularly keen to get connected, appeared to have been relatively untouched by the phenomenon.

While 71% of 16 to 24-year-old who went online said they used mobile broadband, just 8% of internet users aged over 65 made use of the newer technology.

The ONS survey also found a dramatic rise in the use of wifi hotspots - a seven-fold increase since 2011 - suggesting that the rise of 3G has done little to slow demand for free and paid-for wireless access.

All findings were based on a monthly survey of 1,800 randomly selected adults from across the UK.

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Graphene to boost internet speed

31 August 2011 Last updated at 09:22 ET By Katia Moskvitch Technology reporter, BBC News

Graphene, the strongest material on Earth, could help boost broadband internet speed, say researchers.

A UK team had devised a way to capture and convert more light into power than was previously possible.

Scientists from the Universities of Manchester and Cambridge upped the sensitivity by combining graphene with tiny metallic structures.

Their discovery paves the way for more efficient optical components and connections.

The researchers describe their findings in the journal Nature Communications.

Optical communications

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"Start Quote

Many leading electronics companies consider graphene for the next generation of devices"

End Quote Prof Kostya Novoselov University of Manchester

Graphene's ability to convert and conduct electricity is not new.

In the past, scientists managed to produce a simple solar cell out of the material by placing microscopic metallic wires on top of graphene sheets and shining light onto them.

Its superconductive properties meant that electrons could flow at high speed with extreme mobility - opening-up the possibility of reduced lag time in electronic components, including photo receptors used in optical fibre systems.

However, early graphene solar cells were not very efficient, as the material was only capable of absorbing about three percent of visible light, with the rest shining through it without being converted into power.

The latest research overcomes that problem by using a method, known as plasmonic enhancement to combine graphene with tiny metallic structures called plasmonic nanostructures.

As a result, its light-harvesting performance was increased by 20 times.

"The technology of graphene production matures day-by-day, which has an immediate impact both on the type of exciting physics which we find in this material, and on the feasibility and the range of possible applications," said Prof Kostya Novoselov, one of the lead researchers.

"Many leading electronics companies consider graphene for the next generation of devices. This work certainly boosts graphene's chances even further."

His colleague Professor Andrea Ferrari from the University of Cambridge added that the results show the material's "great potential in the fields of photonics and optoelectronics".

Wonder material

Many believe that the amazing properties of graphene - the thinnest, strongest and most conductive material in the world - could revolutionise electronics.

Essentially a super-conductive form of carbon made from single-atom-thick sheets, it was first discovered with help of a simple sticky tape in 2004.

Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov, both originally from Russia, managed to extract the new material from graphite, commonly used as lead in pencils.

In 2010 they were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for their work.

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Microchip monitors tumour growth

31 August 2011 Last updated at 05:36 ET

Researchers in Germany have developed a microchip sensor that can be implanted close to a tumour to monitor its growth.

The device tracks oxygen levels in nearby tissue to detect if a tumour is expanding.

Results are then transmitted wirelessly to a patient's doctor - reducing the need for frequent hospital scans.

Future designs will include a medication pump that can deliver drugs directly to the affected area.

Researchers hope this will lead to less aggressive and more targeted cancer treatments.

Medical engineers at the Technical University in Munich developed the device as a way to track and treat tumours that are difficult to reach, or better left alone.

"There are some tumours which are hard to remove - for example, close to the spine. You run the risk of cutting the nerve if you remove them surgically. Or the problem may be that the tumour is growing slowly, but the patient is elderly," said project manager Sven Becker.

"In these cases it's better to monitor the tumour, and only treat it if there's a strong growth phase."

Drug pump

The sensor is implanted next to a tumour, and measures the concentration of dissolved oxygen in nearby tissue fluid. If this drops it can indicate aggressive growth, and doctors can be alerted.

"The microelectronic chip has a set of electrodes that detect oxygen saturation. It transmits this sensor data to an external receiving unit that's like a small box you carry around in your pocket," explained Mr Becker.

"From there it goes into the doctor's PC - and they can look at the data and decide whether the tumour activity is getting worse."

Researchers believe this will reduce the need for frequent hospital check-ups.

"Normally you would have to go to the hospital to be monitored - using machines like MRI to detect the oxygen saturation. With our system you can do it on the go," said Mr Becker.

The team plans to add a medication pump to the chip that can release chemotherapeutic drugs close to a tumour if treatment is needed.

Mr Becker hopes this will prove more effective and less toxic for future cancer patients.

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"Start Quote

Patients can be treated more quickly and with less side effects, because it's local"

End Quote Sven Becker Technical University Munich

"In traditional chemotherapy you put drugs into the whole body - which can have awful side effects. We want to add a pump to our chip, so if the sensor detects growth, you can apply microscopic amounts directly to the tumour," he said.

"Patients can be treated more quickly and with less side effects, because it's local."

Development is still in its early stages, but researchers hope to have a device ready for medical use within ten years.

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Japanese companies in LCD venture

31 August 2011 Last updated at 03:43 ET

Hitachi, Sony and Toshiba are planning a joint venture to make small and medium-sized LCD displays for tablet PCs and smartphones.

The new company will be operated by Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ), a government-backed firm set up to promote innovation in Japan.

The companies hope to have integrated the businesses by early 2012.

INCJ will eventually hold 70% of the shares in the new company, with its three partners holding 10% each.

The companies have signed a memorandum of understanding, which is not currently binding. They hope to sign legally binding agreements later this year.

INCJ, which is 90% government-owned, will eventually invest 200bn yen ($2.6bn; �1.6bn) in the venture, which will overtake Sharp and Samsung to be the world's biggest manufacturer of small and medium LCD displays.

Hitachi, Sony and Toshiba have hesitated to make big investments in the LCD business because of competition for South Korea and Japan and expectations that prices are likely to fall.

"We will probably see oversupply in the near future," said Shigeo Sugawara from Sompo Japan Nippon Koa Asset Management.

"It's not a business that will likely provide stable profits in the mid to long term."

Sharp is about to receive a $1bn investment from Apple.

There are concerns that while Toshiba, Sony and Hitachi have 21.5% of the small and medium LCD display business between them, they use different types of display technology, which will make it difficult to combine the businesses.

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Key computer conservationist dies

30 August 2011 Last updated at 10:37 ET <!-- Embedding the video player --> <!-- This is the embedded player component -->

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Tony Sale built a working robot out of scrap from a crashed bomber

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Tony Sale, the brilliant engineer who led the rebuild of Colossus, the first modern computer, has died aged 80.

The mammoth project to recreate the code-cracking Colossus capped a career built around electronics and computers.

Most recently, Mr Sale drove the campaign to save Bletchley Park, where Colossus aided Allied code-cracking efforts during World War II.

At Bletchley he also founded the National Museum of Computing to help preserve the UK's ageing computers.

Born in 1931, Mr Sale displayed his talent for engineering at an early age by building a robot, called George I, out of Meccano. One of the later versions of George was built from the remains of a Wellington bomber.

Instead of going to university, Mr Sale joined the RAF, which nurtured his engineering talent, and by the age of 20 he was lecturing pilots and aircrew about advances in radar.

His career also included a six-year stint as a scientific officer at MI5. He rose to become principal scientific officer of the intelligence agency and aided the work of spycatcher Peter Wright. On leaving MI5 he established, ran and sold a variety of software and engineering firms.

During the late 1980s Mr Sale's job at the Science Museum nurtured an interest in old computers. This led to the creation of the Computer Conservation Society which leads efforts to restore many key machines.

His interest led to the 14-year project that saw the re-creation of the pioneering Colossus computer. During wartime, Colossus gave the Allies an insight into the communications of the German high command.

The rebuilding work was difficult because the original Colossus machines were broken up at the end of WWII and all plans for it were destroyed.

The rebuilt Colossus became the centrepiece of The National Museum of Computing (TNMOC) that Mr Sale established at Bletchley Park.

"Tony Sale's passing is a tremendous loss to us all on a personal and professional basis," said Andy Clark, chairman of the TNMOC trustees.

"Tony's contributions to The National Museum of Computing have been immense and I am quite sure that without his remarkable talents, enthusiasm, and drive, the museum would not have come into existence," said Mr Clark.

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