Gartner Identifies the Top 10 Strategic Technologies for 2009

Gartner Identifies the Top 10 Strategic Technologies for 2009 

Analysts Examine Latest Industry Trends During Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, October 12-16, in Orlando 

STAMFORD, Conn., October 14, 2008 — Gartner, Inc. analysts today highlighted the top 10 technologies and trends that will be strategic for most organizations. The analysts presented their findings during Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, being held here through October 16.

Gartner defines a strategic technology as one with the potential for significant impact on the enterprise in the next three years. Factors that denote significant impact include a high potential for disruption to IT or the business, the need for a major dollar investment, or the risk of being late to adopt.

These technologies impact the organization's long-term plans, programs and initiatives. They may be strategic because they have matured to broad market use or because they enable strategic advantage from early adoption.

“Strategic technologies affect, run, grow and transform the business initiatives of an organization,” said David Cearley, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. “Companies should look at these 10 opportunities and evaluate where these technologies can add value to their business services and solutions, as well as develop a process for detecting and evaluating the business value of new technologies as they enter the market.”

The top 10 strategic technologies for 2009 include:

Virtualization.  Much of the current buzz is focused on server virtualization, but virtualization in storage and client devices is also moving rapidly. Virtualization to eliminate duplicate copies of data on the real storage devices while maintaining the illusion to the accessing systems that the files are as originally stored (data deduplication) can significantly decrease the cost of storage devices and media to hold information. Hosted virtual images deliver a near-identical result to blade-based PCs. But, instead of the motherboard function being located in the data center as hardware, it is located there as a virtual machine bubble. However, despite ambitious deployment plans from many organizations, deployments of hosted virtual desktop capabilities will be adopted by fewer than 40 percent of target users by 2010.

Cloud Computing. Cloud computing is a style of computing that characterizes a model in which providers deliver a variety of IT-enabled capabilities to consumers. They key characteristics of cloud computing are 1) delivery of capabilities “as a service,” 2) delivery of services in a highly scalable and elastic fashion, 3) using Internet technologies and techniques to develop and deliver the services, and 4) designing for delivery to external customers. Although cost is a potential benefit for small companies, the biggest benefits are the built-in elasticity and scalability, which not only reduce barriers to entry, but also enable these companies to grow quickly. As certain IT functions are industrializing and becoming less customized, there are more possibilities for larger organizations to benefit from cloud computing.

Servers — Beyond Blades.  Servers are evolving beyond the blade server stage that exists today. This evolution will simplify the provisioning of capacity to meet growing needs. The organization tracks the various resource types, for example, memory, separately and replenishes only the type that is in short supply. This eliminates the need to pay for all three resource types to upgrade capacity. It also simplifies the inventory of systems, eliminating the need to track and purchase various sizes and configurations. The result will be higher utilization because of lessened “waste” of resources that are in the wrong configuration or that come along with the needed processors and memory in a fixed bundle.

Web-Oriented Architectures. The Internet is arguably the best example of an agile, interoperable and scalable service-oriented environment in existence. This level of flexibility is achieved because of key design principles inherent in the Internet/Web approach, as well as the emergence of Web-centric technologies and standards that promote these principles. The use of Web-centric models to build global-class solutions cannot address the full breadth of enterprise computing needs. However, Gartner expects that continued evolution of the Web-centric approach will enable its use in an ever-broadening set of enterprise solutions during the next five years.

EnterpriseMashups. Enterprises are now investigating taking mashups from cool Web hobby to enterprise-class systems to augment their models for delivering and managing applications. Through 2010, the enterprise mashup product environment will experience significant flux and consolidation, and application architects and IT leaders should investigate this growing space for the significant and transformational potential it may offer their enterprises.

Specialized Systems. Appliances have been used to accomplish IT purposes, but only with a few classes of function have appliances prevailed. Heterogeneous systems are an emerging trend in high-performance computing to address the requirements of the most demanding workloads, and this approach will eventually reach the general-purpose computing market. Heterogeneous systems are also specialized systems with the same single-purpose imitations of appliances, but the heterogeneous system is a server system into which the owner installs software to accomplish its function.

Social Software and Social Networking. Social software includes a broad range of technologies, such as social networking, social collaboration, social media and social validation. Organizations should consider adding a social dimension to a conventional Web site or application and should adopt a social platform sooner, rather than later, because the greatest risk lies in failure to engage and thereby, being left mute in a dialogue where your voice must be heard.

Unified Communications. During the next five years, the number of different communications vendors with which a typical organization works with will be reduced by at least 50 percent. This change is driven by increases in the capability of application servers and the general shift of communications applications to common off-the-shelf server and operating systems. As this occurs, formerly distinct markets, each with distinct vendors, converge, resulting in massive consolidation in the communications industry. Organizations must build careful, detailed plans for when each category of communications function is replaced or converged, coupling this step with the prior completion of appropriate administrative team convergence.

Business Intelligence. Business Intelligence (BI), the top technology priority in Gartner’s 2008 CIO survey, can have a direct positive impact on a company’s business performance, dramatically improving its ability to accomplish its mission by making smarter decisions at every level of the business from corporate strategy to operational processes. BI is particularly strategic because it is directed toward business managers and knowledge workers who make up the pool of thinkers and decision makers that are tasked with running, growing and transforming the business. Tools that let these users make faster, better and more-informed decisions are particularly valuable in a difficult business environment.

Green IT. Shifting to more efficient products and approaches can allow for more equipment to fit within an energy footprint, or to fit into a previously filled center. Regulations are multiplying and have the potential to seriously constrain companies in building data centers, as the effect of power grids, carbon emissions from increased use and other environmental impacts are under scrutiny. Organizations should consider regulations and have alternative plans for data center and capacity growth.

“A strategic technology may be an existing technology that has matured and/or become suitable for a wider range of uses,” said Carl Claunch, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. “It may also be an emerging technology that offers an opportunity for strategic business advantage for early adopters or with potential for significant market disruption in the next five years. Companies should evaluate these technologies and adjust based on their industry need, unique business needs, technology adoption model and other factors.”

Additional comments from Mr. Cearley are available on the Gartner YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yglJUxqSCM. Additional videos are available athttp://www.youtube.com/gartnervideo.

Follow news, photos and video coming from Symposium/ITxpo on FriendFeed at http://friendfeed.com/rooms/gartner and on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/Gartner_inc.

About Gartner Symposium/ITxpo
Gartner Symposium/ITxpo is the IT industry's largest and most-strategic conference, providing business leaders with a look at the future of IT. Nearly 6,000 senior business and IT strategists will gather for the insights, tools and solutions they need to ensure their IT initiatives are key contributors to and drivers of their enterprise's success. Gartner's annual Symposium/ITxpo events are key components of attendees' annual planning efforts. They rely on Gartner Symposium/ITxpo to gain insight into how their organizations can use IT to address business challenges and improve operational efficiency. Additional information is available atwww.gartner.com/symposium/us.

The top 5 strategic technologies for 2009

The top 5 strategic technologies for 2009

Industry analyst Gartner recently released its annual report on the top ten strategic technologies for the upcoming year. The 2009 list included a variety of existing and emerging technologies that offer a business advantage for early adopters, or that have the potential for significant market disruption in the next five years.

The top five strategic technologies that are most relevant for small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) in 2009 include:

Cloud computing. This has been the industry buzzword of 2008, and the term is loosely derived from the use of a cloud image to represent the Internet or other large networked environments. Cloud computing is about accessing resources and services on an on-demand, as-needed basis; in essence, it involves outsourcing certain IT operations and functions.

Analysts are predicting that small companies may begin to rely on cloud computing for more of their technology needs, preferring to outsource rather than deal with the costs and complexity of in-house IT infrastructure. 

In November, HP and NetSuite announced they are partnering to offersoftware as a service (SaaS) business applications to the SMB market. “SMB customers are looking for new ways to avoid up-front technology costs, and on-demand services are the ideal solution,” said Enrique Lores, senior vice president, Solution Partners Organisation and Commercial Sales, HP.

Virtualisation. In the absolute simplest definition, virtualisation enables one device to function as many. Much of the industry buzz has focused on server virtualisation, but virtualisation offerings stretch across nearly every aspect of IT, from the desktop to the data centre – storage,software, services, printing and imaging, desktop environments,communications and much more. 

While once seen as a tool only for enterprise-class environments, virtualisation can bring benefits to businesses of all sizes in the form of lowered costs and maximised space due to physical device consolidation. Plus, managing the infrastructure can be simplified thanks to the enhanced manageability that virtualisation and automation can deliver. 

Social software and social networking. Social software includes a broad range of technologies, including social networking, social collaboration, social media and social validation. Social networking through these various platforms allows smaller businesses to reach potential customers, partners and employees in new ways that are often less expensive and more effective than traditional methods. SMBs can use social networking to establish themselves on the Internet and build a customer base without ever having to implement offline tactics. 

Unified communications. Unified communication (UC) is an innovation that combines telephony and computing for real-time messaging, including e-mail, voice or SMS (text messaging), among others. UC is a concept that isn’t well understood in the SMB market, although many small and mid-sized businesses have already begun to embrace the cost saving and mobility advantages of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), which is just one element of a unified communications strategy. HP offers a portfolio of solutions to meet the communications needs of enterprises and smaller businesses alike.

Green IT. As organisations face stricter environmental regulations and rising energy prices coupled with limited physical space, green IT solutions have moved from being a trendy idea to an absolute necessity. SMBs that invest in more efficient products and solutions can fit more equipment into their data centres, and enjoy reduced power bills and increased performance. 

Hardware vendors like HP are making it easier than ever to invest in green IT, with a range of products and solutions to fit every environment and budget.

For more on the top ten strategic technologies for 2009, read the full Gartner report or listen to additional comments by David Cearley from Gartner on YouTube. 

Peanut Recall Expands To Additional Products

Peanut Recall Expands To Additional Products.

USA Today (1/19, Weise) reported, "FDA staff are working to track what products contain salmonella-tainted peanut butter and paste made in a Georgia manufacturing plant. So far, 474 people have been sickened in a 43-state salmonella outbreak that may have contributed to six deaths." PCA's plant in Blakely, Ga., "believed to be the source of the contamination, distributed a relatively small amount of the peanut butter and paste used to produce snacks and treats. ... But PCA sold to at least 85 companies, some of which distributed to other food manufacturers."

        The Washington Post (1/20, Reinberg) reports the latest round of recalls followed an FDA "warning Saturday that consumers should avoid peanut butter products containing peanut butter or peanut butter paste while the salmonella outbreak probe continued. The U.S. health warning is focused on products made with peanut butter, like crackers, not jars of peanut butter on store shelves."

        The AP (1/18) reported, "Officials said new illnesses are still being reported in the outbreak investigation. Kellogg Co., which listed Peanut Corp. as one of its suppliers, has recalled 16 products. They include Austin and Keebler branded Peanut Butter Sandwich Crackers, and some snack-size packs of Famous Amos Peanut Butter Cookies and Keebler Soft Batch Homestyle Peanut Butter Cookies." In addition, "Perry's Ice Cream Co., based in Akron, N.Y., said it was recalling select ice cream products containing peanut butter because of the PCA investigation" and "the Midwest supermarket chain Hy-Vee Inc. of West Des Moines, Iowa, said yesterday that it was voluntarily recalling products made in its bakery departments with peanut butter because they had the potential to be contaminated with salmonella."

        The Wall Street Journal (1/20) reports, "Ralcorp Frozen Bakery Products Inc. on Sunday announced that it's recalling all Wal-Mart 'Bakery' brands of peanut-butter cookies, peanut-butter no-bake cookies and peanut-butter-fudge no-bake cookies." The FDA said "consumers should avoid eating food containing peanut butter unless they know it isn't linked to Peanut Corp., Lynchburg, Va." The FDA is "inspecting some of the direct distributors, including King Nut Co. in Solon, Ohio, and is following the distribution chain to figure out which companies used Peanut Corp. products. The FDA is also asking companies to check their supply chain and tell consumers if their ingredients came from Peanut Corp."

Deutschland steht vor schwerer Rezession

WIRTSCHAFT | 19.01.2009

Deutschland steht vor schwerer Rezession

 Laut Prognosen steht eine steile Talfahrt der Wirtschaftsleistungen bevor

 

Laut Prognose der EU-Kommission steht Deutschland vor dem stärksten Einbruch der Wirtschaftsleistung seit dem Zweiten Weltkrieg. Bundesfinanzminister Steinbrück bestätigte die Zahlen aus Brüssel.

Trotz der milliardenschweren Konjunkturpakete der Bundesregierung steht Deutschland ein massiver Einbruch der Wirtschaftsleistungen bevor. Die EU-Kommission teilte am Montag (19.01.2009) in Brüssel mit, sie erwartet, dass das deutsche Bruttoinlandsprodukt 2009 um 2,3 Prozent zurückgeht. Das wäre der größte Einbruch seit dem Zweiten Weltkrieg. Erst für 2010 rechnet die Behörde wieder mit einem Wachstum von 0,7 Prozent.

Die Bundesregierung legt ihre Wachstumsprognose am Mittwoch vor. Finanzminister Peer Steinbrück (SPD) teilte bereits mit, die in Brüssel vorgelegten Zahlen stimmten mit denen überein, die die Regierung im Jahreswirtschaftsbericht präsentieren wolle. 

Die Wirtschafts- und Finanzkrise beschert ganz Europa eine Rezession. Die Kommission erwartet für die Euro-Zone ein Minus von 1,9 Prozent in 2009 und eine Erholung mit 0,4 Prozent Wachstum für 2010. Für die 27 EU-Länder insgesamt wird in 2009 ein Minus von 1,8 Prozent und im folgenden Jahr ein Plus von 0,5 Prozent prognostiziert.

Deutschland verstößt 2010 gegen Defizitregeln

 Düstere Aussichten für die deutsche Wirtschaft

Als Exportnation leidet Deutschland besonders unter dem Rückgang im Welthandel, wie es in dem Bericht hieß. Die beiden Konjunkturprogramme der Bundesregierung verhinderten ein noch massiveres Minus. Das deutsche Haushaltsdefizit wird allerdings durch diese Maßnahmen und durch den Rückgang der Steuereinnahmen in diesem Jahr voraussichtlich auf 2,9 Prozent steigen. Damit wird die Defizitgrenze des europäischen Stabilitäts- und Wachstumspakts von drei Prozent gerade noch eingehalten. 

Im kommenden Jahr dürfte Deutschland dagegen erstmals innerhalb von fünf Jahren wieder deutlich gegen die Vorgaben des Stabilitätspakts verstoßen. Die EU-Kommission schätzt das Defizit für 2010 auf 4,2 Prozent des Bruttoinlandsprodukts. Nach dem 2005 reformierten Stabilitätspakt ist ein vorübergehendes Überschreiten der Drei-Prozent-Schwelle im Fall einer schweren Wirtschaftskrise möglich, ohne dass Strafzahlungen drohen. Allerdings müssen die EU-Länder die nächste Konjunkturerholung zum Abbau der Verschuldung nutzen. 

Schrittweise Erholung ab Jahresmitte

 Joaquin Almunia erwartet eine tiefe Rezession

Ähnlich wie Deutschland stemmen sich viele EU-Länder mit Konjunkturprogrammen gegen die Krise. Gemeinsam wollen sie die Wirtschaft mit insgesamt 200 Milliarden Euro stützen. Deutschland mobilisiert allein rund 80 Milliarden Euro für Steuererleichterungen und öffentliche Investitionen. Wie EU-Wirtschafts- und Finanzkommissar Joaquin Almunia erklärte, ermöglichen die Konjunkturprogramme und die Zinssenkungen der Europäischen Zentralbank eine schrittweise Erholung der Wirtschaft von der zweiten Hälfte des Jahres an.

Trotz steigender Zinsen für Anleihen einiger Euro-Länder drohen Almunia zufolge keine Staatspleiten. Es sei zwar eine Realität, dass die Risikoaufschläge für Staatsanleihen gegenüber deutschen Anleihen stark gestiegen seien. Die Euro-Länder müssten etwas dagegen unternehmen, um steigende Kosten der Staatsverschuldung zu verhindern. Es sei aber nicht zu erwarten, dass ein Euro-Land deshalb zahlungsunfähig werde. (kis)

Car sales are falling across the world

In reverse

Jan 16th 2009
From Economist.com

Car sales are falling across the world

NO COUNTRY or company has been immune from the collapse in car sales. Figures released last week confirmed that the last half of 2008 saw the most savage contraction in demand for motor vehicles since the second world war. In America sales of cars and light trucks in December fell by 33.5% compared with a year ago, and in Spain they crashed by nearly half. Even in Brazil and China, where sales increased on an annual basis compared with 2007, saw sharp declines in the last quarter of 2008. Of the world's big carmakers, Chrysler is in the most trouble, thanks to poor products and a reliance on the American market, where its sales dropped by more than any other carmaker.

AP

China Overtakes Germany As Third-Largest Economy.

China Overtakes Germany As Third-Largest Economy.

The Washington Post (1/15, A16, Cha) reports, "China leapfrogged over Germany to become the world's third-largest economy in 2007, sooner than predicted, underscoring how quickly the concentration of global economic power has shifted." The Post continues, "While earlier estimates had put growth of China's gross domestic product that year at 11.9 percent, revised figures released by the government statistics bureau Wednesday show that its economy actually expanded by 13 percent to $3.38 trillion. That compares with Germany's 2007 GDP of $3.32 trillion."

CNN (1/15) notes in its website, "Although the world's top economies, the United States and Japan, are in recession, the most pessimistic estimates for China's growth in upcoming years runs about 5 percent. That could allow China's GDP to overtake Japan's, currently $4.3 trillion, within a few years." According to World Bank estimates, "China's economic growth is about 7.5 percent. But China has seen a sharp decline in exports in November and December as other major economies struggle, and the bank's analysts say rates below 6 percent could worsen the rest of the world's slump."

According to Chinese news agency Xinhua (1/15), "The pace was the fastest since 1994 when the GDP expanded by 13.1 percent." Yet in spite of this growth, Germany is "still ahead in per capita income," Germany's Deutsche Welle (1/14) noted.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Weakened Algorithm Threatens Online Identity

How an outdated algorithm put secure Internet transactions at risk.

By Erica Naone   --- technologyreview.com

Most people know to look for a padlock icon in the corner of their browsers when banking or conducting other sensitive transactions online. In part, this means that the site has a certificate that has been verified by a higher authority to confirm its identity. Recently, however, a team of security researchers found that a critical security system can be undermined by taking advantage of the outdated algorithms that some companies used to create these certificates. A loose-knit group of security researchers from the United States and Europe presented details of the attack at the 25th Annual Chaos Communication Congress in Berlin at the end of December.

The padlock is part of the key online security protocol called SSL (Secure Socket Layer), and it appears as an assurance that a transaction is safe from eavesdropping, tampering, or forgery. A hacker can easily create a banking website that looks like the real thing, but it's much harder to forge the digital certificate that accompanies the site. This is because SSL uses a clever trick to create each certificate: two mathematically linked keys, one of which is kept secret while the other is published openly on the Internet.

Necessary firepower: Security researchers undermined the certificate system that secures sensitive online transactions. To perform the necessary calculations, the researchers used a cheap cluster of 200 PlayStation 3 machines. The multiple cores of the PlayStation 3 are particularly suited to performing the kinds of calculations needed for the attack, the researchers say.  Credit: Alexander Sotirov, Marc Stevens, Jacob Appelbaum, Arjen Lenstra, David Molnar, Dag Arne Osvik, Benne de Weger. The cluster was sponsored by EPFL DIT and by a matching equipment grant from the Swiss National Science Foundation.

A select group of trusted higher powers--known as certificate authorities--can verify the identity of a website. An authority does this by checking that the site is genuine before combining its private key with the website's public key to create the certificate. A main part of the procedure also involves applying what's known as a hash function to generate a unique signature for the certificate. Anyone who visits that site can verify that this certificate is genuine by checking the signature and referring back to the certificate authority's public key.

All this happens behind the scenes, and popular browsers such as Internet Explorer and Firefox have built-in trust for certain certificate authorities, explains Paul Kocher, president and chief scientist of the security company Cryptography Research, who was involved in creating the latest version of SSL. Any certificate that can be traced back to one of those authorities is automatically trusted by the browser. "The entire browser trust model relies on all of the certificate authorities acting well," Kocher notes.

However, some certificate authorities still use a hash function called MD5 to produce certificate signatures. Most authorities have abandoned MD5 because researchers have shown it to be vulnerable to what is called a collision: under certain circumstances, it's possible to produce two certificates that will generate exactly the same digital signature.

A hash function's value disappears if it's easy to produce two certificates with exactly the same fingerprint, explains Marc Stevens, a PhD student in the cryptology and information security group at the Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica, in the Netherlands, whose work on MD5 was crucial to the research. Stevens has been producing collisions using MD5 for several years, enlisting the computing power of 200 PlayStation 3 consoles. The architecture of these machines' microprocessors is well-suited to the kinds of calculations needed for his work. Stevens says that it would take about 8,000 PCs to equal the power that the PlayStations provide. Using the hardware, the team was able to perform the calculations needed for the attack in the space of a weekend.

To pull off the attack, the team created a normal certificate and had it signed by a certificate authority that still uses MD5. However, the team engineered a collision to create a second certificate--an "evil twin"--that matched the signature of the first and also seemed to say that the original certificate authority had delegated its certificate-signing powers to the owner of the evil twin.

The evil-twin certificate could then be used to create certificates for any website on the Internet, allowing a malicious individual to impersonate trusted banking websites, padlock icon and all, without raising any of the alarms meant to protect users.

RapidSSL, a certificate authority owned by Verisign, issued the MD5 certificates that the team exploited. Independent security researcher Alexander Sotirov, who helped turn the theoretical work on MD5 into the real attack, says that the attack was possible not only because of MD5, but because of lax security in the way that RapidSSL issues certificates, which made it easy to produce a collision.

Just six hours after the researchers gave their presentation, Verisign announced that RapidSSL had moved to a more secure hash function. Tim Callan, vice president of product marketing for Verisign, explains that the company had been working on the move since it bought RapidSSL in 2006. However, he says, the company was proceeding cautiously because it didn't want to disrupt the SSL services already offered to its partners. "If you are arbitrary or capricious with that, then what happens is that people will respond by using lower-security alternatives," Callan says.

Sotirov credits Verisign for acting quickly in response to the attack, but says that the current infrastructure for certificates "is not working very well at all." He adds, "It's worrisome that so many certificate authorities are equally trusted," particularly when different authorities use different standards to verify the identity of potential clients and to secure the certificates that they issue. He says that market forces, which reward certificate authorities for fast response times and low prices rather than for good security, are creating a "race to the bottom" that increases the chance of security issues in the future.

Sam Curry, vice president of product management for security company RSA, which abandoned MD5 in its certificate authorities about a decade ago, says that he thinks it's important for companies to stay on top of theoretical attacks before they become real ones. "I'm thrilled, in a way, when people find these theoretical weaknesses because it means that we're actually doing real testing and real, deep thinking about it," Curry says. "I'm not thrilled when the practical ones roll out, because that's when people get hurt."

But Kocher says that it's unlikely that average users will be affected. While certificate authorities should pay serious attention to the researchers' attack, he says that, unfortunately, there are much easier ways to scam users online.

Güterverkehr im Jahr 2008 auf Rekordniveau – Bahn wächst

Güterverkehr im Jahr 2008 auf Rekordniveau – Bahn wächst

Wiesbaden. Trotz der einsetzenden Wirtschaftskrise sind 2008 in Deutschland so viele Güter transportiert worden wie noch nie seit der Wiedervereinigung. Die höchsten Wachstumsraten erzielte die Eisenbahn vor allem mit dem Containerverkehr, während die Binnenschifffahrt leicht schrumpfte. Mit einem Anteil von 77 Prozent an der gesamten Beförderungsmenge blieb allerdings der Transport über die Straße dominant.

Das Transportaufkommen aller Verkehrsträger stieg laut einer Mitteilung des Statistischen Bundesamtes in Wiesbaden vom Dienstag binnen Jahresfrist um 2,3 Prozent auf 4511 Millionen Tonnen. Die Güter wurden allerdings über etwas kürzere Strecken transportiert, was sich in der nur um 1,3 Prozent gestiegenen Transportleistung von 670,2 Milliarden Tonnenkilometern niederschlägt. Zum Jahresende hat sich die Entwicklung den Statistikern zufolge abgeschwächt.

Auf der Schiene wurden nach den Erhebungen 379 Millionen Tonnen transportiert, das waren rund 4,9 Prozent mehr als 2007. Das Wachstum wurde im Wesentlichen vom Containerverkehr getragen. Auch auf der Straße nahm der Güterverkehr weiter zu: Die Lastwagen fuhren 3473 Millionen Tonnen Güter, ein Plus von 2,3 Prozent. Zuwächse verzeichneten auch Seeschiffe, Flugzeuge und der Transport durch Rohrleitungen.

Mit Rückgängen hatten die Binnenschiffer zu kämpfen: Ihre Transportmenge sank um 1,4 Prozent auf 245,6 Millionen Tonnen und ihre Transportleistung ging um 1,1 Prozent zurück.(sv)

Neuer Quergurtsorter: Flexibel sortieren mit Siemens

Neuer Quergurtsorter: Flexibel sortieren mit Siemens

Siemens hat mit dem „Variosort EXB120“ einen neuen Quergurtsorter mit elektrischem Antrieb für die Gurtbewegung entwickelt, durch den jeder Gurtförderer auf einem Fahrwagen individuell gesteuert werden kann. Durch das Siemens-Produkt „Industrial Wireless LAN (I-WLAN)“ wird die kontaktlose Echtzeitkommunikation zwischen dem stationären Steuerungssystem und dem Fahrwagen realisiert. Hierüber werden alle aktiven Signale zur Steuerung des Quergurtförderers auf dem Fahrwagen und die relevanten Daten für das Diagnosesystem gesendet.

Neuer Quergurtsorter: Variosort EXB120 von Siemens Mobility (Foto: Siemens)Der Sorter ist für Geschwindigkeiten von bis zu 2,5 Meter pro Sekunde ausgelegt. Es können laut Siemens beliebig entsprechend notwendige Steigungen, Gefälle und Kurven ab einem Durchmesser von 3,5 Metern konfiguriert werden. Die Fahrwagen sind mit Quergurten von 0,6 mal 1,2 Meter (Länge, Breite) ausgestattet, man kann sie aber auch nach Bedarf an benutzerspezifische Produktabmessungen anpassen. 

Mit dem Electrical Cross Belt Sorter Variosort EXB120 können Güter mit einer Abmessung von 0,1 mal 0,1 mal 0,1 Meter bis hin zu 1 mal 0,6 mal 0,6 Meter (Länge, Breite, Höhe) sortiert werden. Dabei kann das Gewicht des Sortiergutes je Fahrwagen bis zu 35 Kilogramm betragen. Siemens Mobility, Erlangen, präsentierte das neue Produkt erstmals auf der Messe Promat in Chicago. (pi)

What is carbon capture and storage?

The McKinsey Quarterly

What is carbon capture and storage?

Executives and public policy makers should familiarize themselves with the technologies involved in carbon capture and storage (CCS) as they work toward reducing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere.

January 2009

Climate change has businesses, governments, and nonprofits examining how to stabilize atmospheric greenhouse gases while still maintaining economic growth. In plotting the course to a low-carbon economy, they will weigh a number of methods for addressing the various risks and opportunities. Carbon capture and storage (CCS)—or more accurately, the sequestration of carbon dioxide—is an important topic in the emerging field of climate change. It represents one possible approach for stabilizing atmospheric greenhouse gases—although there are many economic, technical, and legal barriers to its implementation. As background for informed discussion, we offer this interactive depiction of the technologies involved in CCS.

Launch Interactive

Alternative-Energy Firms Expanding Despite Economic Crisis.

Alternative-Energy Firms Expanding Despite Economic Crisis.

The Wall Street Journal (1/13, B4, Covel) reports, "While many small businesses continue to struggle with tight credit and declining sales, one fledgling industry is seeing a boom in investment and sales growth: alternative energy." Alternative-energy companies "are reporting an influx of inquiries and business from a wide range of companies looking to increase their energy efficiency, especially from those that believe the Obama administration will impose stricter regulations requiring them to conserve energy." Therefore "start-ups across a variety of areas -- solar power, biofuels and energy conservation among them -- are getting increased financing from venture capitalists and lenders at a time when other small companies are cutting back and being turned away by investors. And many are hiring more staff, boosting marketing efforts and expanding geographically." The Journal notes, "While the overall volume of venture-capital deals sank last year, investments in clean-technology companies totaled $8.4 billion, up nearly 40 percent from 2007, according to Cleantech Group."

Alternative-Energy Firms Expanding Despite Economic Crisis.

Alternative-Energy Firms Expanding Despite Economic Crisis.

The Wall Street Journal (1/13, B4, Covel) reports, "While many small businesses continue to struggle with tight credit and declining sales, one fledgling industry is seeing a boom in investment and sales growth: alternative energy." Alternative-energy companies "are reporting an influx of inquiries and business from a wide range of companies looking to increase their energy efficiency, especially from those that believe the Obama administration will impose stricter regulations requiring them to conserve energy." Therefore "start-ups across a variety of areas -- solar power, biofuels and energy conservation among them -- are getting increased financing from venture capitalists and lenders at a time when other small companies are cutting back and being turned away by investors. And many are hiring more staff, boosting marketing efforts and expanding geographically." The Journal notes, "While the overall volume of venture-capital deals sank last year, investments in clean-technology companies totaled $8.4 billion, up nearly 40 percent from 2007, according to Cleantech Group."

uffett-Backed Chinese Automaker Plans US Plug-In Car Sales In 2011.

uffett-Backed Chinese Automaker Plans US Plug-In Car Sales In 2011.

Bloomberg News (1/13, Ortolani) reports, "BYD Co., the Chinese automaker backed by billionaire investor Warren Buffett, plans to bring plug-in hybrids to the US in 2011 to test demand for electric vehicles." Among the models to come are "the F3DM sedan, which is now sold in China, Shenzhen-based BYD said." The article notes, "BYD's entry expands the competition for buyers of electric autos in the world's largest auto market. General Motors Corp. plans to introduce its Volt in late 2010, while Toyota Motor Corp., the biggest seller of hybrid vehicles, is working on a plug-in version of its Prius."

GM Plans Michigan Factory To Supply Lithium-Ion Batteries.

GM Plans Michigan Factory To Supply Lithium-Ion Batteries.

The Wall Street Journal (1/13, Dorman) reports, "General Motors Corp., looking to supply its Chevrolet Volt plug-in electric car, said it plans to build the first lithium-ion battery-pack factory operated by a major automaker in the US." The Journal notes, "Preparation for the plant, to be located in Michigan, is to begin early this year, with production tooling to be installed midyear. Output is expected to start in 2010." But, "until GM's battery facility is operational, Volt's battery cells will be supplied by LG Chem Ltd.'s Compact Power Inc. unit, based in Troy, Mich. A joint engineering contract with Compact Power and LG Chem is expected to speed up development of the Volt's lithium-ion battery technology."

        The AP (1/13) adds, "LG Chem will make the battery cells in [South] Korea and ship them to the US, where they will be assembled into packs at an unspecified GM factory in Michigan." According to LG Chem CEO Peter Kim, his "company may eventually build cells in Michigan, and it anticipates that its US subsidiary, Compact Power Inc., will add to its 100-person work force in Troy, Mich." Volt vehicle line director Tony Posawatz said that "GM also will open a new battery lab at its Warren technical center. The 31,000-square-foot battery lab will be the largest in the US."

        Bloomberg News (1/13, Green, Ortolani) notes, "Investing in a battery factory increases GM's bet on electric vehicles as the biggest US automaker moves toward starting sales of the Volt in November 2010. Detroit-based GM has committed more than $1 billion to the car, Wagoner said." Wes Brown, an analyst at market-research firm Iceology, thinks that the "announcement says that they're preparing to be able to supply whatever the market demands. ... By doing something like this they have more control over their supply," he said. According to Technology Review (1/12, Bullis), "GM's decision is part of a strategic shift by the company toward the electrification of its automobiles, which will range from cars that rely on electric motors and batteries for brief bursts of power to those that run on electricity alone." Wagoner said, "The design, development and production of advanced batteries must be a core competency for GM, and we've been rapidly building our capability and resources to support this direction."

        Lithium-Ion Batteries "Cost Competitive," Engineer Says. In the New York Times's (1/12) Wheels blog Lawrence Ulrich wrote, "As analysts peg the price of the upcoming battery-powered Chevrolet Volt at roughly $40,000, the high cost of its lithium-ion batteries is widely viewed as a key obstacle to mass adoption by consumers." But at a GM press conference offering details on its battery-powered future, Prabhakar Patil, a leader in electric propulsion, offered this surprising assessment: Lithium-ion batteries have become cost competitive with the more-primitive nickel-metal hydride batteries that power the Toyota Prius and other current hybrids." Patil said that "lithium-ion batteries are far less dependent on nickel, a precious metal, whose market prices are soaring."

Studie 2008: Greenpeace zeichnet Lenovo-Display aus

Studie 2008: Greenpeace zeichnet Lenovo-Display aus

Von Britta Widmann
ZDNet
12. Januar 2009, 15:02 Uhr

Andere umweltfreundliche Geräte stammen von Nokia, Samsung, Sharp und Toshiba

Greenpeace hat im Rahmen seines Jahresberichts 2008 (PDF) die umweltfreundlichsten Elektronikgeräte ausgezeichnet. Die zweite Ausgabe der Untersuchung "Green Electronics: The Search continues" zeichnet den Computermonitor L2440x von Lenovo als besonders umweltfreundlich aus. Das Produkt ist über alle Sparten hinweg Gesamtsieger. Der Bildschirm sei frei von PVC und Flammschutzmitteln und dem Wettbewerb in dieser Hinsicht überlegen, so Greenpeace. Auch in der Sparte "Desktop-Computer" landete Lenovo mit dem ThinkCentre 58/M58p ganz vorne.

Sieger in der Kategorie "Smartphones/PDA" wurde Nokia mit seinem 6210 Navigator. Auch Samsung konnte in der Kategorie "Handys" mit seinem SGH-F268 aufs oberste Treppchen steigen. Bei den Notebooks war Toshibas Portege 600 Spitzenreiter, bei den Fernsehern Sharps LC-52GX5.

Doch obwohl Elektronikgeräte im Jahresvergleich umweltfreundlicher geworden sind und die Anzahl der verwendeten gesundheitsgefährdenden Chemikalien abgenommen hat, beispielsweise weniger Produkte das krebserzeugende PVC enthalten, sieht die Umweltorganisation nach wie vor Handlungsbedarf, etwa bei der Reduzierung des Energieverbrauchs.

Im Gegensatz zur vierteljährlich erscheinenden Studie konnten sich die Unternehmen beim Jahresbericht einer freiwilligen Überprüfung unterziehen. Getestet wurden die Geräte, die die Unternehmen selbst als ihre "grünsten" erachten. Eine Überprüfung verweigert hatten Apple, Asus, Microsoft, Nintendo, Palm und Philips.

Erst Doktor, dann Vorstand

Erst Doktor, dann Vorstand

Von Jochen Blind

Pro Jahr beenden rund 25.000 Akademiker in Deutschland ihre Doktorarbeit, zwei Drittel der Vorstände von Dax-Unternehmen sind promoviert. Doch der Weg zum Titel ist alles andere als ein Spaziergang. Was für eine erfolgreiche Promotion wichtig ist, wie man sie klug plant, welche Fallstricke und Sackgassen lauern - ein Überblick.

Hamburg - "Und, wie läuft's mit der Diss?" Wer seine Doktorarbeit schreibt, kennt diese Frage. Oft schwingt ein leiser Vorwurf mit: "Bist du immer noch nicht fertig?" Denn ein Klischee hält sich hartnäckig: der Doktorand als ewiger Student, der sich vor dem rauen Arbeitsleben drücken möchte - und darum noch vier, fünf Jahre lang herumpromoviert. Doch mit diesem Klischee ist es nicht weit her.

13 BilderDoktoranden: Warum promovieren? Darum promovieren!

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Es gibt viele Gründe, eine Dissertation zu schreiben. Trennscharfe "Promotionstypen" lassen sich kaum festmachen. Da sind die Idealisten, die für ihr Thema brennen und es umfassend erforschen wollen - zur Not auch als Hobby neben der Arbeit. Da sind die künftigen Wissenschaftler. Sie wissen genau, dass eine Uni-Karriere ohne Promotion schlicht unmöglich ist. Und es gibt Pragmatiker, die mit dem schmucken Titel den Karriereturbo in einem großen Unternehmen zünden möchten.

Bei den meisten Doktoranden kommen wohl mehrere Gründe zusammen. Bundesweit rund 25.000 schließen jedes Jahr ihre Arbeit ab. "Damit liegt Deutschland international weit vorn", weiß Marcus Müller, Vorsitzender des Promovierenden-Netzwerks Thesis. Dieses Niveau sei seit Jahren sehr stabil, allerdings mit Veränderungen in den Disziplinen: "Die Zahl der Promotionen in den Rechts-, Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften ist in den letzten 20 Jahren kontinuierlich gestiegen", etwas weniger stark auch in den Ingenieur- sowie den Sprach- und Kulturwissenschaften. Das gilt jedoch nur für abgelegte Prüfungen, "die abgebrochenen Vorhaben sind schwer zu erheben".

Doktoranden brauchen einen starken Motor

"Vor einigen Jahren gab es einen Drang zur Parkplatzdissertation", sagt Hans Groffebert vom Hochschulteam der Frankfurter Arbeitsagentur. Wegen mieser Berufsperspektiven hätten sich viele Absolventen in eine Promotion gestürzt, momentan sei das wieder anders.

Mehr zum Thema

• Doktoranden: Warum promovieren? Darum promovieren!
• MBA-Schwemme: Sein oder Schein (10.06.2008)
• Bachelor: Schlecht für die Wissenschaft (02.05.2008)
• Lehrstuhl mit 28: Der Turbo-Prof (19.05.2008)
• Aufsteiger-Check: Testen Sie Ihr Potenzial!

Promotion statt Arbeitslosigkeit - für Thomas Meuser kann das nur in Einzelfällen funktionieren. "Die Chance zu einer Promotion wird in der Regel nur den besten Studenten offeriert. Und das sind oft die Absolventen, denen am ehesten auch berufliche Alternativen offenstehen", erklärt der Professor an der privaten Hochschule BiTS in Iserlohn, der in seinem Buch "Promo-Viren" einen augenzwinkernden Blick auf die "chronische Doktoritis" wirft.

Wer mit einer Dissertation anfängt, sollte zuvor genau seine Gründe prüfen. Reine Titelsucht reicht nicht. "Man braucht eine intrinsische Motivation", sagt Groffebert. "Welchen Vorteil bringt der Doktortitel? Gibt es auch andere Möglichkeiten, etwa ein Zweitstudium?" Solche Fragen müsse man "ganz nüchtern" klären.

Und dann gilt es, ein Thema zu finden - eines, das "einen über einen längeren Zeitraum interessiert und außerdem Relevanz hat", so der Experte von der Arbeitsagentur. Dafür sei eine Kenntnis des aktuellen Wissensstands unerlässlich. Zudem sollte das Thema überschaubar sein, "man will ja kein vorweggenommenes Lebenswerk schreiben", so Groffebert - es kann auch das ausgebaute Thema der Examensarbeit sein.

2. Teil: Zu alt für Unternehmen?

Auch die Altersfrage spielt eine Rolle, denn "eine Promotion dauert im Schnitt immerhin vier Jahre. "Da besteht die Gefahr, dass man in eine Konkurrenzsituation mit anderen kommt, die schon viel berufliche Erfahrung haben", warnt Groffebert. Daher sei es wichtig, Studium und Promotion zügig durchzuziehen.

3 BilderKarriere im Galopp: Deutschlands jüngste Professoren

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Den Arbeitsmarkt dürfe niemand aus den Augen verlieren, betont auch Thomas Fritz, Leiter der Recruiting-Abteilung bei der Unternehmensberatung McKinsey: "Doktoranden sollten die Promotionszeit nutzen, um sich über das Fachliche hinaus weiterzuentwickeln, ob als wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter, durch Forschungskooperationen mit Unternehmen, Praktika oder Auslandsaufenthalte." Dann entstehe kein Nachteil gegenüber Jüngeren.

Wichtig ist vor allem ein vertrauensvolles Verhältnis zu Doktorvater oder -mutter. "Etwa zwei Drittel der Doktoranden sind unzufrieden mit ihrer Betreuung", so der Thesis-Vorsitzende Müller. Oft hätten Betreuer wenig Zeit, würden sich auf Besprechungen schlecht vorbereiten oder sich im Promotionsgebiet kaum auskennen. Weil die "Promotion oft ein Ein-Personen-Projekt ist", helfe auch der Austausch mit anderen Doktoranden, die Teilnahme an Tagungen und Kolloquien.

Mit dem Einkommen auskommen

Für die Finanzierung gibt es viele Möglichkeiten. Arbeiten Doktoranden zugleich an der Uni, sind sie mittendrin im akademischen Betrieb und haben eine gewisse finanzielle Sicherheit. Doch wegen vieler Verpflichtungen kann das eigene Projekt zu kurz kommen.

Schlagworte des Artikels

Promotion DoktorandenDissertation Doktorarbeit

Direkt zu SPIEGEL Wissen 

Andere Doktoranden arbeiten berufsbegleitend an der Dissertation. McKinsey etwa bietet ein dreijähriges Fellowship-Programm, in dem Mitarbeiter eine Promotion oder einen MBA machen können - bei voller Bezahlung. "So sprechen wir Absolventen an, die sich nicht zwischen wissenschaftlicher Weiterbildung und Berufseinstieg entscheiden möchten", erklärt Fritz.

Viele Doktoranden bewerben sich für Stipendien, um sich zwei oder drei Jahre voll auf ihr Vorhaben konzentrieren zu können. "Die Chancen sind gestiegen", auch dank der Exzellenzinitiative, so Groffebert. Die elf großen Begabtenförderungswerke vergeben ebenfalls Promotionsstipendien. "Die Bewerberzahlen sind in den letzten Jahren konstant hoch geblieben", wie auch die Qualität, so Katrin Dapp von der Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. Auch Daniela Tandecki, Leiterin der Graduiertenförderung der Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, sagt: "Die Bewerber sehen die Promotion als wichtigen Abschnitt ihrer akademischen und persönlichen Entwicklung und ihres Karriereplans."

3. Teil: Pluspunkte für die Karriere

Ein "Dauerbrenner", so Müller, sei eine gewisse Tarifwillkür der gesetzlichen Krankenversicherungen. "Es gibt starke Unterschiede, welche Bemessungsgrundlage genommen wird und welche Tarifarten angewendet werden", erklärt Maria Elisabeth Rotter von der Promovierenden-Initiative, in der Stipendiaten aller elf Begabtenförderungswerke vereint sind.

Mehr zum Thema

• Doktoranden: Warum promovieren? Darum promovieren!
• MBA-Schwemme: Sein oder Schein (10.06.2008)
• Bachelor: Schlecht für die Wissenschaft (02.05.2008)
• Lehrstuhl mit 28: Der Turbo-Prof (19.05.2008)
• Aufsteiger-Check: Testen Sie Ihr Potenzial!

Auch bei noch so guter Planung kann immer etwas den Zeitplan durcheinanderbringen. Mal sind es rein wissenschaftliche, mal ganz andere Probleme - eine Erkrankung, eine neue familiäre Situation oder der Diebstahl des Laptops. Buchautor Meuser rät zu Pragmatismus: "Eine erfolgreiche Promotion erfordert vor allem Wurschtel-Qualitäten."

Punktet man mit dem Doktortitel für die Karriere? "Etwa zwei Drittel der Vorstände von Dax-Firmen sind promoviert", sagt Meuser. Für den Arbeitsmarktexperten Groffebert zählt der Titel nicht allein: "Vor allem die Soft Skills hinter einer Dissertation sind für Arbeitgeber interessant - Methodenkompetenz, Recherchefähigkeit, sprachlicher Ausdruck, Neugier auf Unbekanntes und ein langer Atem."

Thomas Fritz von McKinsey teilt die Einschätzung: "Eine Promotion ist ein positiver Indikator für die Leistungsbereitschaft, denn sie erfordert viele der Eigenschaften, die auch eine erfolgreiche Karriere ausmachen." Ein Bewerber habe damit die Fähigkeit bewiesen, größere Projekte in eigenständiger Arbeit erfolgreich zum Abschluss zu bringen.