Trucking Technology Report - Dec. 20
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Both the online report and e-mail are sponsored by @Track Communications, a supplier of wireless communications and dispatch services.
Today's Technology Headlines:
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Cell Phone Studies See No Link to Brain Cancer
A study supported by the National Cancer Institute and a smaller study conducted by the American Health Foundation, a nonprofit research agency, both concluded that cell phone users do not face an increased possibility of developing brain cancer.
The National Cancer Institute's study was headed by Dr. Peter Inskip and Dr. Martha S. Linet, and compared the cell phone habits of 782 participants with brain tumors or with benign tumors of the brain lining or of the acoustic nerve with the cell phone habits of 799 other participants who did not have brain tumors, but matched the first group in gender, age, and race categories. Meanwhile, the smaller study by the American Health foundation performed the same comparison between 469 brain cancer patients and 422 patients who did not have the disease.
Both studies found through a multitude of comparisons that a link between cell phone use and cancer could not be established. In addition, both studies found that the duration of mobile phone use played no part in developing brain cancers. But Dr. Mark G. Malkin, an author of the American Health foundation study and a neurologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, admitted that cancers caused by cell phone radiation could take years to develop. New York Times (12/20/00) P. A1; Kolata, Gina
Global Positioning System Monitors Fleet Health
Any company managing a fleet of cars, trucks, or cruise ships can now equip its vehicles with new GPS technology that wirelessly connects the vehicles to a central management center. The center then alerts the company whenever one of its vehicles breaks down.It also alerts the company's customer-service team so that its clients can receive up-to-the-minute information. The technology should prevent breakdowns from ruining deliveries, especially when the delivery materials are refrigerated or otherwise time-sensitive. The technology can also provide real-time warnings on maintenance problems such as low oil pressure.
Clients of the new technology from Evertrac include Royal Caribbean Cruises, which sees the software as improving the value of its management systems. The software meets widespread demand among fleet-management companies for a product that has multiple uses but it is not difficult to control, the vendor claims. InformationWeek (12/04/00); Wallace, Bob
There's Snow Business Like Plow Tracking
Howard County, Maryland's Bureau of Highways has installed a fleet management system for its snowplows. The system identifies areas of heavy network traffic and determines if the plow trucks are deployed so that they can handle the snow removal.AVL Information Systems' SPRYTE system uses the Global Positioning System and event-based wireless technologies to let county officials monitor the status of the plow blade and the salt spreader on the vehicles. Bureau project manager Howard Shieh says that the county chose the SPRYTE system because it offers real-time, proactive in-vehicle monitoring and reporting, and he adds that the department wants to create a historical database with the data to be used to provide better coverage during storms. Frontline Solutions (12/00) Vol. 1, No. 13, P. 9
Online Ordering Shaves Days off DSL Delivery
Several data CLECs are making it possible for DSL orders to be placed online. A year ago, Covad Communications established itself as the first high-speed Internet access provider to supply an entirely automated DSL loop ordering process. Covad touted the offering as a way to make ordering easier so DSL can be deployed faster. Yet many people still experience delays with DSL provisioning.DSL's potential causes many to endure the wait, according to Jack Tozier, product development director for Simplexity.com, which began offering DSL from its Web site on Sept. 13. But Tozier emphasizes that online ordering does not cut actual provisioning time. Rather, Simplexity selects for its service carriers that have favorable processes, Tozier said.
An online ordering system cuts a small amount of the initial time, according to Todd Doherty, vice president and director of the telecom industry unit at SageMaker, a software firm that introduced the SageWave Telecommunications Portal used by TelekomNet Inc. for its Web-based services. He says users can save time because online ordering allows them to make an educated decision without having to do a great deal of research. Phone+ (12/00) Vol. 14, No. 14, P. 48; Christian, Bruce
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