Internet

Facebook, Yahoo, and Google come under fire for allowing advertisers to follow online consumer behavior to create targeted messages

Microsoft views Yahoo! as its best shot to catch Google in the race for online ads

Start-up earthmine inc challenges Google and Microsoft with new maps that provide 360-degree panoramic views of city streets

Skype plans to grow its mobile voice over Internet protocol phone offerings

A new method for comparing files promises speedier downloads of music and movies

Powered by the same chip that drives cell phones and the Nintendo DS, a little blue box is poised to do for robotics what the Altair did for home computers

Vaccines, air bags, contact lenses and the technology that made the personal computer revolution possible are just a few of the items whose inventors are being honored by the National Inventors Hall of Fame [click here to view the slideshow]

British Telecom bets all on internet protocols

In this episode, MIT Communications Forum Director David Thorburn discusses the future of newspapers and news in light of new technology. Scientific American editor Steve Ashley talks about the magazine's "SA 50" picks in the areas of automobile and fuel technology advances. And we'll test your knowledge of some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sciam.com/podcast; web.mit.edu/comm-forum; web.mit.edu/comm-forum/forums.html

In this episode, Jeff Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, talks about legislation that will decide the future of "network neutrality." Net neutrality means that transmission rates to and from all websites are the same, rather than some websites being able to steer traffic their way through faster rates. Also, Tim Berners-Lee spoke at the 15th International World Wide Web Conference, which took place last week in Scotland. The inventor of the web talked about net neutrality and the semantic web, whereby computers will sync their info about us seamlessly, saving us the work. Plus, New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg made a strong, pro-science speech last week, and we'll hear a highlight. Finally, we'll test your knowledge about some other recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this podcast include Center for Digital Democracy www.democraticmedia.org, Pro-net neutrality www.savetheinternet.com, Anti-net neutrality www.handsoff.org, World Wide Web conference www.www2006.org, Berners-Lee Scientific American article on the Semantic Web http://tinyurl.com/9w34, Mayor Bloomberg's pro-science speech http://tinyurl.com/lrvof, Scientific American http://blog.sciam.com, Scientific American website www.sciam.com.