Roy Mark

Bernie Madoff’s Programmers Arrested

The FBI arrested Nov. 13 two of convicted swindler Bernie Madoff’s programmers. Jerome O’Hara and George Perez were charged with conspiracy, falsifying books and records of a broker-dealer and falsifying books and records of an investment adviser. For decades, Madoff ran an elaborate Ponzi scheme through BLMIS (Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities), purported to be […]

2012 Movie Unleashes Doomsday Theories, Irks NASA

2012 Movie Unleashes Doomsday Theories, Irks NASA by Roy Mark 2012 The Movie According to Sony Pictures, “Never before has a date in history been so significant to so many cultures, so many religions, scientists and governments. 2012 is an epic adventure about a global cataclysm that brings an end to the world.” (Photo courtesy […]

NASA Aims to Get Mars Rover Moving

NASA will begin a long-shot attempt Nov. 16 to free the Mars rover Spirit from the “Martian sand trap” it has been mired in since April 23. “Researchers expect the extraction process to be long and the outcome uncertain,” NASA said in a news release Nov. 12.“This is going to be a lengthy process, and […]

Health Care Companies Not Ready for HITECH Act

More than 90 percent of health care companies are not ready to comply with the privacy and security provision of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, according to a survey conducted by the Ponemon Institute and sponsored by Crowe Horwath.A part of the Recovery Act passed earlier this year by Congress, […]

Lawmaker Targets Smartphone Early Termination Fees

Sen. Amy Klobuchar fired off a letter Nov. 9 to Verizon Wireless President and CEO Lowell C. McAdam, denouncing the nation’s largest cell phone service provider’s recent decision to increase early termination fees for new smartphone customers. Klobuchar also wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski seeking an FCC review of Verizon Wireless’ decision.Verizon […]

Feds Streamline Broadband Funding Process

The two federal agencies charged with distributing the $7.2 billion for broadband rollouts authorized by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are streamlining the process by awarding the remaining funding in just one more round, instead of the original two rounds. The program is intended to expand broadband access and adoption in America, while creating […]

NASA Working to Dispel 2012 Apocalypse Myth

It’s a great story line: Nibiru, a supposed planet discovered by the Sumerians, is streaking toward an apocalyptic collision with Earth, a fiery doomsday linked to the end of one of the cycles in the ancient Mayan calendar at the winter solstice in 2012. Scientists, for their own dark reasons, refuse to confirm the end […]

Clearwire Makes New Funding Official

Clearwire made it official Nov. 10, confirming partner Sprint Nextel has invested another $1 billion in the WiMax provider. In addition, fellow partners Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Intel, Eagle River Holdings and Bright House Networks are making additional investments totaling $500 million. In exchange for newly issued shares priced at $7.33 per share, the new […]

Sprint to Invest Another $1.5B in Clearwire

Sprint Nextel plans to invest another $1 billion into Clearwire’s WiMax 4G technology with Comcast, Intel, Time Warner and Bright House Networks contributing another combined $500 million, according to the Wall Street Journal. Clearwire and Sprint Nextel are the only two U.S. carriers betting on WiMax to deliver 4G wireless broadband. Verizon Wireless and AT&T, […]

Supreme Court Hears Bilski Case

The Supreme Court heard arguments Nov. 9 in a case the technology industry is closely watching to clarify the patentability of business methods. The case-Bilski and Warsaw v. Kappos-specifically involves a method of hedging the risk associated with commodities, but it has implications that reach deep into the software industry.The Patent and Trademark Office refused […]