[APPLe list] general internet news - 27 October

[David Goldstein <goldstein_david@yahoo.com.au>]

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Sponsored by the Singapore Internet Research Centre
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
http://www.ntu.edu.sg/sci/sirc/

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Don't forget to check out www.auda.org.au/domain-news/ for today's edition of the complete domain news, already online!


And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for daily updates in between postings.


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The domain name news is supported by auDA

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Internet 'speeds up decision making and brain function'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/3262597/Internet-speeds-up-decision-making-and-brain-function.html

Older adults 'no old fools' on cybersex
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/10/24/2400122.htm

OECD updates broadband portal with June 2008 data
http://www.oecd.org/document/10/0,3343,en_2649_37441_40652298_1_1_1_37441,00.html
http://www.oecd.org/document/10/0,3343,en_2649_34225_40652298_1_1_1_1,00.html

Japan and Korea said leading in fibre-optic broadband
http://in.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE49M4RD20081023

Sydney sickie faker busted by Facebook
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4737394a28.html

Suicide of South Korean actress fuels Internet debate
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-net26-2008oct26,0,1094736.story

uk: Man sued for libel over comments on eBay
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/3247683/Man-sued-for-libel-over-comments-on-eBay.html

jp: Woman arrested for killing virtual husband in Maple Story
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article5002721.ece

uk: Surveillance - Data with destiny
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/oct/23/privacy-labour

us: Does Child Porn Fight Thraten Privacy?
http://www.pcworld.com/article/152767/does_child_porn_fight_thraten_privacy.html

ca: International Data Protection Authorities Call for Action to Protect Children’s Online Privacy [news release]
http://privcom.gc.ca/media/nr-c/2008/nr-c_081020_e.asp

uk: Fighting Child Pornography Online
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Technology/Internet-Child-Abuse-Online-Users-Not-Aware-Of-How-To-Report-Pornographic-Images/Article/200810415127465

Net filters may block porn and fetish sites
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/10/27/1224955916155.html

Filtering out the fury: how the Australian government tried to gag web censor critics
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4738363a28.html

New laws on porn 'will criminalise thousands' of Britons
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2008/oct/26/photography-pornography-law

North Korea clamps down on mobile phones to stop news of food crisis
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5005161.ece


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INTERNET USE
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Internet 'speeds up decision making and brain function'
Internet use could improve brain function and speed up decision-making, but it comes at the expense of empathy and the ability to think in abstract terms, scientists have found.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/3262597/Internet-speeds-up-decision-making-and-brain-function.html

Older adults 'no old fools' on cybersex
Cybersex is not just for the young with older adults using internet technology to liberate their libidos, according to an Australian researcher. Sociologist Sue Malta at Swinburne University's Faculty of Life and Social Sciences says her study shows older adults have a voracious appetite for the internet and sex.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/10/24/2400122.htm

OECD updates broadband portal with June 2008 data
Broadband subscriptions reached 251 million by June 2008, an increase of 14% from June 2007.  This growth increased broadband penetration rates to 21.3 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, up from 20% in December 2007.
http://www.oecd.org/document/10/0,3343,en_2649_37441_40652298_1_1_1_37441,00.html
http://www.oecd.org/document/10/0,3343,en_2649_34225_40652298_1_1_1_1,00.html

Japan and Korea said leading in fibre-optic broadband
Fibre-optic cable has become the biggest single broadband technology in Korea and Japan, which lead the world in the proportion of households connected to the Internet with super-fast links, OECD data showed on Thursday.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE49M4RD20081023
http://in.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE49M4RD20081023

OECD report shows Kiwi broadband improving
The latest OECD report on broadband services shows broadband penetration is growing, but New Zealand's ranking remains unchanged.
http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/netw/3CC35EFE80CD3F3DCC2574EB007E047C

Rapid growth in NZ broadband use
New Zealand was switching to broadband faster than most other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries in the first half of the year, with the sixth highest growth rate in connections.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4738833a28.html
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/dominionpost/4738833a27483.html

Kiwis go online as economic conditions contract
As the economy continues to contract New Zealanders are turning to internet sales for additional cash, according to the latest sales figures from online auction site Trade Me.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4739515a28.html

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SOCIAL NETWORKING
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Sydney sickie faker busted by Facebook
A Sydney telco employee has learned the hard way the perils of sharing too much information on Facebook after he was caught by his boss faking a sickie after a big night out.
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/10/23/1224351397415.html
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/10/23/1224351397415.html
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4737394a28.html

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ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL
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Suicide of South Korean actress fuels Internet debate
The government wants to toughen the punishment for cyber-insulters, who are cited as a factor in the death of Choi Jin-sil. But some say free speech is at stake.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-net26-2008oct26,0,1094736.story

uk: Man sued for libel over comments on eBay
A man is being threatened with a libel action after posting critical comments on the internet about an eBay user who sold him a mobile phone.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/3247683/Man-sued-for-libel-over-comments-on-eBay.html

eBay buyer faces libel action after leaving negative feedback
A man is facing legal action for libel after leaving negative feedback for an item he bought on auction website eBay. When Chris Read received the £155 mobile phone he had purchased from Joel Jones on eBay, he found it was the wrong model and was not in good condition, as advertised.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article5009293.ece

How to avoid on-line manipulation: ‘Nigeria-letters’. EU Agency ENISA launches ‘Social Engineering’ -report with 5 defence advice to counter fraud threat [news release]
The EU Agency ENISA (The European Network and Information Security Agency) launches a white paper on ‘Social Engineering’, (i.e. on-line manipulation, through social networks, email, also known as ‘Nigeria-letters’ or ‘advance-fee frauds’, instant messaging, or Voice Over Internet Protocols (VoIP). The Agency provides 3 case studies portraying how easy users are manipulated, identifies 5 defence measures and issues a check list, ‘LIST’, for users to counter social engineering. Finally, the Whitepaper includes an exclusive interview with the world famous security author, speaker, and consultant Kevin Mitnick.
http://enisa.europa.eu/pages/02_01_press_2008_10_03_social_engineering.html

jp: Woman arrested for killing virtual husband in Maple Story
A Japanese piano teacher has been arrested for the murder of her virtual husband after an abrupt but messy online divorce.
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article5002721.ece

Courts put real value on virtual crimes
Courts in Japan and Europe have decided that damage to property in online worlds warrants real-world legal punishments.
http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2229075/courts-put-real-value-virtual

Microsoft Combats Cybercrime in Nigeria [IDG]
Paradigm Initiative Nigeria (PIN) and Microsoft have partnered to educate the country's youth on cybercrime and to provide opportunities for them to use their computer skills positively.
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/152784/microsoft_combats_cybercrime_in_nigeria.html

us: JOINING FORCES To Protect Cyberspace [news release]
Last week, our new top cyber exec Shawn Henry shared his analysis of the cyber threat with reporters—how it’s growing in sophistication, from two dozen nations taking an “aggressive interest” in stealing our secrets to new virtual gangs pooling their talents to launch coordinated attacks and crimes.
http://www.fbi.gov/page2/oct08/cyberprotections_102408.html

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PRIVACY
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uk: Surveillance - Data with destiny
"Which side is he on?" Gordon Brown taunted David Cameron in another effective performance on the financial crisis at prime minister's questions yesterday. The same question, though, must now be asked directly of Mr Brown as the battle between liberty and the power of the state prepares to take another major turning. This new battle is summed up in two recent speeches. The first was delivered last week by the home secretary Jacqui Smith, who outlined plans for a potentially vast new state database that will contain details of every phone call, text message and internet visit made by every person in this country for all time. The new database, said Ms Smith, would be an essential part of the government's revised anti-terrorist strategy. Communications data of this kind is the lifeblood of 95% of serious crime prosecutions and of almost all security service operations in recent years, she said, but it must now be carried further to allow government to
 store the details of internet communications, including social networking sites.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/oct/23/privacy-labour

us: Does Child Porn Fight Thraten Privacy?
... Now his successor, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, has found a new evil to fight in order to make a name for himself: child pornography. If we are to believe the headlines, child pornography is the most prevalent crime committed online, and it seems Cuomo believes selling, trading, or downloading child pornography online is one of the biggest problems online. He has focused his attention on curtailing Internet users' access to newsgroups and pushing ISPs to take more responsibility for users' illegal activities.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/152767/does_child_porn_fight_thraten_privacy.html

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ONLINE TV & MUSIC
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Courts put real value on virtual crimes
A pair of recent criminal cases are placing new value on virtual world actions. Courts in Japan and Europe have decided that damage to property in online worlds warrants real-world legal punishments.
http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2229075/courts-put-real-value-virtual

UK music trade unites to fight against piracy
A new umbrella organisation formed to represent Britain's entire music industry will today promise to deliver a five-year plan to plot a safer course for a sector that has been battered in the past decade.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/oct/27/feargal-sharkey-music-piracy

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CENSORSHIP
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au: NSW to censor student laptops
The NSW Department of Education and Training (DET) this week revealed plans to limit internet access on the laptops given to the state's senior students under the "digital education revolution" to a pre-approved list of websites.
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/NSW-to-censor-student-laptops/0,130061733,339292846,00.htm

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CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION
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ca: International Data Protection Authorities Call for Action to Protect Children’s Online Privacy [news release]
International data protection authorities (DPAs) concluded their annual meeting in Strasbourg, France by endorsing a resolution brought forward by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada that called for an international effort to protect the privacy of children online.
http://privcom.gc.ca/media/nr-c/2008/nr-c_081020_e.asp

uk: Fighting Child Pornography Online
Research by the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) showed 77% of adults who had seen pictures of child abuse on the web did not know what to do about it.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Technology/Internet-Child-Abuse-Online-Users-Not-Aware-Of-How-To-Report-Pornographic-Images/Article/200810415127465
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/5/20081023/tuk-fighting-child-pornography-online-45dbed5.html

Internet Industry, Charities and Government Back IWF Awareness Day [news release]
The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) underlined the importance of its Awareness Day today with the release of new research* which indicates that over three quarters (77%) of UK adult internet users who have stumbled across images of children being sexually abused are unsure how to report them. In addition, 71% of those surveyed ranked the availability of online child sexual abuse images as their top concern about the internet.
http://iwf.org.uk/media/news.248.htm

Are you aware of the Internet child abuse hotline?
More than three-quarters of Internet users who have stumbled across pictures of online child sex abuse did not know who to report it to, a survey said on Friday.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE49N2WF20081024
http://in.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE49N2WF20081024

Net filters may block porn and fetish sites
Family First Senator Steve Fielding wants hardcore pornography and fetish material blocked under the Government's plans to filter the internet, sparking renewed fears the censorship could be expanded well beyond "illegal material".
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/10/27/1224955916155.html
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/10/27/1224955916155.html

Australia trials national net filters
Is the Rudd government about to erect a Great Firewall of Australia - introducing a form of internet censorship that will infringe upon the freedom of computer users to browse the worldwide web?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7689964.stm

Filtering out the fury: how the Australian government tried to gag web censor critics
The Federal Government is attempting to silence critics of its controversial plan to censor the internet, which experts say will break the internet while doing little to stop people from accessing illegal material such as child pornography.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/10/23/1224351430987.html
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/10/23/1224351430987.html
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4738363a28.html
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/articles/2008/10/23/1224351491889.html

'Appalled' opposition hits back at Conroy’s Internet censorship
The newly appointed shadow broadband minister, Senator Nick Minchin, has voiced his appall that a member of Senator Conroy’s office had tried to curb severely critical comments made by Internode network engineer Mark Newton regarding the government’s Internet content filtering scheme.
http://computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;879301684
http://pcworld.idg.com.au/index.php/id;879301684

The high price of internet filtering by Michael Meloni
Labor's high-speed National Broadband Network is a step in the right direction, but their plan to block inappropriate websites by forcing ISPs to install content filtering systems will slow down internet access and raise the cost of service.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/10/24/2399876.htm

Mandatory Content Filtering in Australia
Like it or not, Australia’s Nanny-government is about to filter your Internet connection.  I suggest you get angry, in fact I suggest you get VERY ANGRY.
http://www.itwire.com/content/view/21331/53/

Cheap tricks not the right response on internet filtering
Senator Stephen Conroy, the Minister for Child P-rnography is looking increasingly desper… What? Sorry? Conroy is not responsible for child p-rnography? No? “Cheap rhetorical trick,” you say?
http://www.crikey.com.au/Media-Arts-and-Sports/20081024-Cheap-tricks-not-the-right-response-on-internet-filtering.html

Aussie govt: Don't criticize our (terrible) 'Net filters
Stephen Conroy, Australia's Minister For Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, gets called to task by an Australian newspaper for ignoring bad results from Internet filtering field tests and for attempting to stifle his critics.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081024-aussie-govt-dont-criticize-our-terrible-net-filters.html

Junk food advertising banned from children's television
JUNK food advertising will be banned on children's TV under an agreement by some of the country's biggest food and drink manufacturers. The Australian Food and Grocery Council will today announce a code to ensure that its members advertise only healthy food when the target audience is mainly children aged under 12. The code will also apply to advertising during movies and radio programs, in publications, and on websites and computer games.
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24543619-662,00.html
http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21498,24544951-948,00.html
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,24544442-5007133,00.html

Code sets new limits on ads for junk food
JUNK food will no longer be advertised to children under 12, under a new industry code of conduct to be adopted by major food producers from next year.
http://www.theage.com.au/national/code-sets-new-limits-on-ads-for-junk-food-20081023-57im.html

Food industry to self censor on junk food [AAP]
Food and beverage manufacturers will today voluntarily introduce a code of conduct, vowing not to advertise products to children unless they promote a healthy diet and lifestyle.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/10/24/2399834.htm
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24544661-5005962,00.html
http://livenews.com.au/Articles/2008/10/24/Junk_food_advertising_banned_by_food_industry

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GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY
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New laws on porn 'will criminalise thousands' of Britons
Perhaps it was the bondage trousers his mother was so famous for creating in the 1970s but photographer Ben Westwood has made a career of depicting what some might see as the more explicit end of soft pornography.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2008/oct/26/photography-pornography-law

us: Presidential candidates vow more attention to tech issues
No matter who wins the White House, Silicon Valley is looking forward to a president who understands the value of technology and innovation — far better, some would say, than at any time in recent years.
http://www.siliconvalley.com/news/ci_10797730

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TELECOMMUNICATIONS
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Brussels cracks down on fixed phone call prices
After capping prices of mobile telecom services at EU level, the European Commission is now looking into tariffs of fixed telephone calls. In a letter sent to Belgian authorities, the EU executive requests price cuts at Belgacom, the country's dominant operator.
http://euractiv.com/en/infosociety/brussels-cracks-fixed-phone-call-prices/article-176663

au: Another telco quits Terria while iiNet looks to the past
TPG-Soul has dealt another blow to Terria, the competitor to Telstra, withdrawing its support, while iiNet says ADSL2+ is more than capable of meeting the needs of internet users, apparently ignoring the OECD and what is happening in Korea and Japan, among others.
http://technewsreview.com.au/article.php?article=6321
http://infranews.com.au/article_infranews.asp?a=AV&ai=8110
http://www.telconews.com/2008/10/24/another-telco-quits-terria-while-iinet-looks-to-the-past/

TransACT withdraws from Terria
TERRIA has lost a third consortium member in its bid to win the national broadband network tender worth up to $4.7 billion.
http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,24557341-15306,00.html

TransACT quits Terria too
TransACT has decided to pull out of Terria, the consortium bidding against Telstra for the government's $4.7 billion national broadband network, shortly after the departure of two other members AAPT and Soul.
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/TransACT-quits-Terria-too/0,130061791,339292858,00.htm

Has Terria lost it's Soul?
Soul has today become the third member to withdraw from the Terria consortium of telcos in as many months. 
http://computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;1212339356
http://pcworld.idg.com.au/index.php/id;1212339356

Study: Aussie broadband 50% better
An Epitiro ISP quality survey released by the Commerce Commission this morning found New Zealand internet service providers are now offering better broadband service than their UK equivalents.
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/study-aussie-broadband-50-better-36737

Commissioner to offer concessions to EU telecommunications regulators
Facing opposition in Brussels, the European Union's telecommunications commissioner, Viviane Reding, is scaling back her proposal to create a new Europewide telecommunications agency with the power to intervene in national markets to mandate consumer-friendly changes in regulation and pricing.
http://iht.com/articles/2008/10/23/technology/reding.php

NZ Telecom's protests bring hint of easier regulation
Communications Minister David Cunliffe has hinted a Labour government would ease regulations, allowing merit reviews of Commerce Commission telecommunications decisions.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10539384

nz: Connecting...to our Digital Future Report: What will it take to lift New Zealand's Information Communications Technology capacity to world class standard? [report]
This report analyses the current state of New Zealand's ICT infrastructure and makes recommendations for both industry and government to ensure New Zealand has the physical infrastructure required to meet of digital future goals of being in the top quartile of the OECD by 2015.
http://www.nzcid.org.nz/downloads/Executive%20Summaries.pdf [Executive Summaries]
http://www.nzcid.org.nz/downloads/Full%20Report.pdf [Full Report]
http://www.nzcid.org.nz/downloads/Appendices.pdf [Appendices]

AT&T's Troubling Trends
The company logged big gains thanks to Apple iPhone sales, but customers are disconnecting local lines quickly and broadband growth slowed
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/oct2008/tc20081022_973373.htm

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MOBILE/WIRELESS
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North Korea clamps down on mobile phones to stop news of food crisis
North Korea is clamping down on mobile phones and long distance telephone calls to prevent the spread of news about a worsening food crisis, according to the United Nations investigator on human rights for the isolated communist country.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5005161.ece

Report: North Korea restricting cell phone use
The government is clamping down on cell phone use to prevent citizens from reporting the current food crisis, according to a news account.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-10075083-94.html
http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/communications/0,39044192,62047635,00.htm

British mobile firms call on Liberty
Mobile phone companies are seeking an endorsement from Liberty, the civil rights group, to assuage consumer concerns over possible misuse of the private data they hold on file.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/oct/26/mobile-privacy-liberty-data-orange

Experts predict botnets will spread to mobile devices in 2009
Security experts from the renowned Georgia Institute of Technology expect to see botnets spread to mobile devices in 2009. The "Emerging Cyber Threats Report for 2009" from the annual summit, attended by various research and business specialists and organised by Georgia Tech Information Security Center (GTISC), concludes that bot-driven DDoS attacks on mobile phone networks are likely to occur from next year.
http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/117780

3G's evolutionary roadmap could sideline WiMAX
If anybody tells you that WiMAX or HSPA is a 4G wireless technology, they're wrong: they are both 3G, but the roadmap from HSPA to 4G is much clearer than that from WiMAX, which could consign WiMAX to being a niche technology, according to IMS Research.
http://www.itwire.com/content/view/21351/1095/

US Lawmaker questions Google-backed spectrum plan
A senior U.S. lawmaker on Friday joined a growing chorus asking the head of the Federal Communications Commission to explain his plan to open unused airwaves for wireless devices, an approach backed by Google Inc.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKTRE49P0S220081026
http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKTRE49P0S220081026
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/26/AR2008102600337.html

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The domain name news is supported by auDA

For information on subscriptions to the domain name and/or general internet news please contact me. For archives of postings to the list, see http://lists.technewsreview.com.au/pipermail/technewsreview/. Also see http://technewsreview.com.au/ for recent updates.

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(c) David Goldstein 2008



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David Goldstein
address: 4/3 Abbott Street
COOGEE NSW 2034
AUSTRALIA
email: Goldstein_David @yahoo.com.au
phone: +61 418 228 605 (mobile); +61 2 9665 5773 (home)


"Every time you use fossil fuels, you're adding to the problem. Every time you forgo fossil fuels, you're being part of the solution" - Dr Tim Flannery



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