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Report: Global smart card shipments will overtake mag-stripe by 2015
Smart card shipments, which include contactless payment cards, EMV and non-EMV payment cards, will reach one billion during 2011, according to a recently released report from ABI Research, a market intelligence company specializing in global connectivity and emerging technology.SBI Cards, a joint venture between State Bank of India and GE Capital, has announced that is has migrated to the EMV platform for the majority of its new customers and cards. It is the first credit card company in India to do so.
“The launch of the EMV chip-based cards for over 85 percent of our new cards will help our customers with greater security features and also help us launch more relevant offers for our customers. We will move to EMV for 100 percent of all new customers and cards within a few weeks,” said Kadambi Narahari, CEO, SBI Cards.
ABI Research forecasts that smart card shipments will overtake mag-stripe card shipments by 2015. Smart cards are being endorsed over mag-stripe cards, especially in developing countries, because of the enhanced security and widespread adoption.
“The entire banking population worldwide is Read more…
NASA warns of global catastrophe post upcoming ‘huge space storm’
NASA has warned of a once-in-a-lifetime ‘space storm’ after the sun wakes ‘from a deep slumber’ sometime around 2013, causing ‘20 times more economic damage than Hurricane Katrina’.
Senior space agency scientists believe that the super storm would hit like ‘a bolt of lightning’ and damage everything from emergency services’ systems, hospital equipment, banking systems and air traffic control devices, through to “everyday” items such as home computers, iPods and Sat Navs.
And unless precautions are taken, it could cause catastrophic consequences for the world’s health, emergency services and national security.
“We know it is coming but we don’t know how bad it is going to be,” Dr Richard Fisher, the director of NASA’s Heliophysics division, said in an interview with The Daily Telegraph.
He, however, said that preparations were similar to those in a hurricane season, where authorities knew a problem was imminent but did not know how serious it would be.
“I think the issue is now that modern society is so dependant on Read more…
Defence cuts will leave China as the world’s policeman, warns Nato chief
DEFENCE cuts across Europe will diminish Nato’s global role and leave China as the world’s policemen, the alliance chief warned yesterday.
Anders Fogh Rasmussen praised Britain and France for taking the lead on the Libya conflict but said they could not have done it without US help.
And he claimed the slashing of troops by European leaders will hit military transport and intelligence.
Mr Fogh Rasmussen spoke out just days after Defence Secretary Liam Fox unveiled plans to cut the Army by 17,000.
The director general said: “For the first time in the history of Nato we have seen an operation not led by the Americans.
“The Europeans couldn’t do this on their own and in that respect it is of course a matter of concern that we have seen substantial defence cuts in nearly all Nato allied nations. If the current development continues, the influence of Europe on the international scene will decline because of lack of critical transport capabilities, critical intelligence gathering capabilities and Read more…
Never Mind Bret, Season is Just Getting Started
The circle gets the square, or in this case, the big red circle near Africa has room to become the strongest feature yet for the 2011 season.“A stronger tropical wave now over the eastern North Atlantic might be a feature to watch during the next week or so.”While Bret is now pushing out to sea and remains no threat to the mainland U.S., indications continue to point toward a busy August and September as far as hurricanes are concerned.
A sizable tropical wave has rolled westward, off the coast of Africa, and bears watching as it cruises along through Antilles waters this weekend.
It is still a little early to expect much from the Cape Verde area, but one of the tropical waves could help to breed a tropical cyclone in the southwestern part of the Atlantic Basin by next week.
According to Tropical Weather and Hurricane Expert Meteorologist Dan Kottlowski, “A stronger tropical wave now over the Read more…
NSA Is Building An Artificial Intelligence System That Can Read Minds
The NSA is working on a computer system that can predict what people are thinking.
“Think of 2001: A Space Odyssey and the most memorable character, HAL 9000, having a conversation with David. We are essentially building this system. We are building HAL. The system can answer the question, ‘What does X think about Y?'”
These are the words of an unnamed researcher who discussed an amazing artificial intelligence system she was building at the NSA.
It sounds like something right out of science fiction — a system that can literally read thoughts like a magician.
It’s called “Aquaint” (Advanced QUestion Answering for INTelligence), and PBS’s James Bamford takes a stab at explaining how it works:
“As more and more data is collected — through phone calls, credit card receipts, Read more…
$5,000 Gold Later This Decade?
Gold bullion may reach $5,000 per ounce later this decade, bolstered by rising demand from India and China and slowing production growth, according to Standard Chartered Plc.
Yan Chen, head of metals and mining for the firm, stated that “We are looking for the gold price to reach about $2,000 by 2014,” in a Bloomberg television interview. ”There’s a chance that the gold price can be as high as $5,000 by 2020,” as income growth in China and India fuel demand for the yellow metal.
Chen’s comments came in the wake of yet another new all-time record high for gold prices, which this morning reached $1,603.80 per ounce. Gold has been supported of late by the ongoing sovereign debt crisis in Europe, the uncertainty over the debt ceiling in the United States, and the prospects of a third round of quantitative easing (QE3) by the Federal Reserve.
The Standard Chartered strategist went on to say that “The gold market will be in deficit in the next couple of years. The central banks are now back buying gold massively, turning from net seller of gold into net buyer.”
Poor Man’s Gold is Breaking Out — Sell Your House and Buy Silver?
Investors have pushed silver above the recent channel high at around $39 or so per ounce and I fully expect a retest of $50 if any more talk is given about QE3 — Silver rises because of the rising digital money supply, not from speculation. Owning cash is speculative whereas owning metals is conservative or a safe haven at current prices.
Many people will tell you that silver and gold are in a bubble but the fact is that commodities in general are one of the only asset classes that work here because the consolidated banking system is holding our economy hostage and Bernanke is solely focused on saving the banks. Right now, shorting European banks and going long silver and gold looks to be about as good of a “trade” as possible — investors are essentially betting that Europe will face massive credit problems because of the obvious insolvency of Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and Ireland.
The next shoe to drop is the US… We are facing the exact same issues as Read more…
The World Says China Will Overtake America
In the past decade, anti-Americanism grew around the world. This was in response to concerns about the unchecked global power of the U.S., when it invaded Iraq in the face of very wide international opposition. In sharp contrast, today America is seen as on its way to losing its status as the dominant global superpower.Rising Oceans – Too Late to Turn the Tide?
(Click to enlarge)
If sea levels rose to where they were during the Last Interglacial Period, large parts of the Gulf of Mexico would be under water (red areas), including half of Florida and several Caribbean islands. (Photo illustration by Jeremy Weiss)
Melting ice sheets contributed much more to rising sea levels than thermal expansion of warming ocean waters during the Last Interglacial Period, a UA-led team of researchers has found. The results further suggest that ocean levels continue to rise long after warming of the atmosphere has leveled off.
Thermal expansion of seawater contributed only slightly to rising sea levels compared to melting ice sheets during the Last Interglacial Period, a University of Arizona-led team of researchers has found.
The study combined paleoclimate records with computer simulations of Read more…
Supersize Dust Storms Could Become Southwest Norm
The massive dust storm that engulfed Phoenix last week was unusual for the 20th century, but could become more common in the 21st.
The storm resulted from thunderstorm-cooled air plummeting into the ground like mist pouring from an open freezer, only exponentially more powerful. Combine those winds with extremely dry conditions, and the result was a wall of dust 100 miles wide and 5,000 feet high.
Dust storms are common in the U.S. southwest, but not storms this big. No formal records are kept, but meteorologists said it was the largest such storm in at least 30 years. It was on par with storms seen in China’s Gobi desert and Australia. Some commentators invoked the apocalyptic storms of the 1930’s Dust Bowl.
As dry as it’s been in the southwest this year, with precipitation 50 percent below mid-20th century levels, there’s reason to think that extra-dry conditions will Read more…
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