technorati tags:cinema, movies, internet

EC opens window to free software 

Although urban India has shown a faster growth — from 2.3 per cent to 3.4 per cent, a 1.2 per cent of the country’s population 12 years and above log on to the Net every week. In actual numbers, it now stands at 9.4 million from 7.2 million last year.

According to the NRS:”The number of individuals who accessed the Internet in the last 3 months increased marginally from 10.8 mn to 13.0 mn in 2006.” Of the 13 m, 10.8 m user are in urban India, nearly 1.8 m users are in rural India — a huge potential for cyber cafes in rural India? But the number of users in rural India has stagnated, the NRS has found. But cyber cafes, with 34 per cent of users surfing from them, 30 per cent from home and 20 per cent from office, is the main source of access for people.

The medium to watch though is mobile phone. It reaches 22 m users. Although usage is higher among young urban audiences and 44 per cent of the 22 m reside in 42 metros, with value-added features such as downloads, accessing news and cricket scores and SMS attracting 38 per cent of the users. The availability of local content surely has a role to play here. With 3G the medium can only get hotter.

Treating Human Waste:

A South African company offers a self-contained toilet that treats waste without water or chemicals, protecting precious drinking water from contamination.

Enviro Options (Pty) Ltd., Kya Sands, South Africa.

Cleaning the Air:

A U.S. nonprofit has developed an inexpensive kit that turns smog-belching two-stroke engines – the kind that power mini-vehicles throughout Asia and Africa – into cleaner-burning, fuel-efficient sources of power.
Envirofit International Ltd., Fort Collins, Colo., United States

Harnessing the Sun:

An Indian company is selling small-scale solar
power systems that not only produce electric power,
but also generate cash by enabling people to
set up their own home-based businesses.
SELCO Solar Light Private Ltd., Bangalore, India

Enhancing Nutrition:

A Canadian nonprofit is partnering with African
companies to manufacture and distribute an
electricity-free food preservation system.

Malnutrition Matters, Ottawa, Canada

Educating the World:

A prestigious U.S. university is making many of its
academic courses available on the Internet where
users can learn from them – free.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
Cambridge, Mass., United States

Fighting Illiteracy:
College students and corporate volunteers from across
the United States have developed a solar-powered
microfilm projector that will help tens of thousands
of Africans learn to read this year.

Design That Matters Inc., Cambridge, Mass., United States
Crafting Inexpensive Vaccines:
A team of Cuban and Canadian scientists has
invented an inexpensive vaccine that could save the
lives of half a million infants each year.

Hib Vaccine Team, Havana, Cuba, and Ottawa, Canada

Helping People See:

An Oxford University professor has invented low-cost
eyeglasses that wearers can tune without the aid
of an optometrist.

Adaptive Eyecare Ltd., Oxford, England
Reducing Child Labour:

A Pakistani organization is selling ergonomically correct
weaving looms that let adults create the same
intricate rugs that children now make.

Centre for the Improvement of Working
Conditions & Environment, Lahore, Pakistan

Bridging the Digital Divide:

A Brazilian nonprofit is rolling out telecenters that
provide Internet access, telephone service,
computer training, and other technology-based
services to the poor and working class.

CEMINA, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
www.radiofalamulher.com