Jason Lomberg
CES 2013 a meager showcase for consumer electronics
January 17, 2013 2:20 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Microsoft Corp. | Articles | CommentsCES has never been more irrelevant. I wrote those words last year when Microsoft pulled out of CES and the industry was in the thralls of its 3D hysteria, pushing a technological gimmick that no one wanted. Since then, the industry has found a new rallying cry – 4K (or Ultra-HD) – and largely abandoned hopes of shoving stereoscopy down our throats, but the pizzazz is still missing.
Top 10 must-see posts of 2012
December 19, 2012 3:00 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsHere’s a rundown of the most read, most popular, most awesome articles on the web from 2012. Take a look at what you missed the first time around or check up on an old favorite to see the conversation in the comments. Keep checking out the Lead at www.ecnmag.com and follow us on Twitter @ecnonline for our most up-to-date articles.
Top 10 must-see posts for November
December 6, 2012 3:38 pm | by The ECN Editors | Articles | CommentsHere’s a rundown of the most read, most popular, most awesome articles on the web. Take a look at what you missed the first time around or check up on an old favorite to see the conversation in the comments. Keep checking out the Lead at www.ecnmag.com and follow us on Twitter @ecnonline for our most up-to-date articles.
Retailers employ crony capitalism in push for online sales tax
December 5, 2012 5:11 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsThe Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) has written a letter to Congress urging them to pass the Marketplace Fairness Act by the end of the year. This "e-fairness legislation" would allegedly "close the decades-old loophole enjoyed by online-only retailers" and "restore free market principles."
What I’m thankful for this Thanksgiving
November 20, 2012 11:46 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsIt's that special time of year when we all get bloated from eating too much turkey, get into fist fights at Best Buy over that last doorbuster sale, and enjoy Christmas music that started in June. But there is much to be thankful for, and it goes far beyond my propensity for Holiday-induced mayhem.
ECN’s Veteran’s Day tribute: Remembering those who’ve served
November 9, 2012 2:50 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsOn the cusp of Veteran’s Day, I’m reminded that a disproportionate number of our friends and colleagues served in the military. And that makes me proud to work in this industry. ECN — and her parent company, Advantage Business Media — is no exception. You can’t swing a dead cat (or give a resounding Hoooah!) without hitting a veteran.
Declassified documents describe real-life flying saucer
October 23, 2012 11:32 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsX-Files fans, conspiracy theorists, and the tinfoil hat crowd were right all along! Sorta… In the 1950s, the US government really was building a flying saucer. But it didn’t involve little green men, human-alien hybrids, or David Duchovny; this isn’t what you’d call a "smoking gun."
F-35 to make Hollywood debut in Superman flick
October 16, 2012 5:32 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsAccording to Wired, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter — the oft-delayed, oft-maligned, “backbone of America’s tactical aviation fleet” — is set to make its big-screen debut in the Superman reboot, Man of Steel. To be sure, this won’t be the first time the JSF has appeared onscreen. A computer-generated F-35 battled The Hulk in this summer’s blockbuster hit, The Avengers.
10 must-see posts from September
October 1, 2012 12:28 pm | by The ECN Editors | Articles | CommentsHere’s a rundown of the most read, most popular, most awesome articles for September. They all come with a witty, engaging summary just in case you missed them the first time or want to check up on an old favorite. Keep checking out the Lead and follow us on twitter @ecnmagazine for our most up-to-date articles.
Incandescent ban evokes nanny state
September 18, 2012 8:50 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsI've never thought of incandescents as dangerous contraband, but beginning September 30th, the Edison light bulb will be analogous with moonshine liquor and mind-altering drugs. Absent legislative action (which caused this mess in first place), this quintessential lighting technology faces mandatory retirement.
Twitter politics: How social media impacts presidential elections
September 10, 2012 5:28 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsThe news that President Barack Obama's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention was the "biggest political moment ever" on Twitter isn’t exactly surprising, but it’s worth taking a look at how social media influences political contests.
Tech uses thermal imaging to scan for drunks
September 5, 2012 1:27 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsOne of an editor's favorite pastimes — apart from regaling our readers with the latest products and technology — is imbibing a good adult beverage. But that could become more difficult: A new technology from the University of Patras in Greece uses thermal imaging to detect drunkenness and could prevent inebriated individuals from causing a public disturbance...
Iran bars women from engineering courses
August 27, 2012 10:32 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsIran hasn’t exactly acquitted itself as a champion of human rights, but this news is almost too hard to believe: 77 BA and BS courses across 36 different universities will be “single gender” in the upcoming school year. ECN doesn’t normally cover news like this, but the "single gender" disciplines include computer science, nuclear physics, and a number of engineering fields...
New app detects malarkey in political ads
August 23, 2012 11:23 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsDo politicians lie? Let me rephrase that. Would you like a reliable way to detect the bovine-related animal droppings wafting from political ads? The Super PAC App, from former students at MIT's Media Lab, purports to do just that. You may have noticed a glut of negative political attacks ads this election cycle — well, more so than usual.
Internet sales tax could foster anti-business climate
August 14, 2012 10:44 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsThe prospect of an Internet sales tax has hung over the head of e-commerce like the Sword of Damocles. It’s the boogeyman that threatens to pull the World Wide Web into the stone age of brick-and-mortar. But the ugly rumors may finally be true. A bill under consideration in the Senate would impose an Internet sales tax and amend any “competitive” disparity. Prepare to spend a lot more for your online purchases.
NI deploys LabVIEW and CompactRIO in wake of Fukushima nuclear disaster
August 8, 2012 10:19 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsOne of the more unique applications of National Instruments’ LabVIEW design platform was its recent deployment during the Fukushima nuclear disaster. In conjunction with Kyoto University, NI created the Kyoto University RAdiation MApping (KURAMA) system, which measured gamma rays in the Fukushima Prefecture. At NI Week 2012, I learned more about this intriguing development.
Full steam ahead for the Navy’s controversial “Great Green Fleet”
July 30, 2012 4:43 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsThe Navy has embarked on an ambitious green energy program, which could cost upwards of $2 billion per year. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus must convince a skeptical Congress, Senate, and public that investing in pricey alternative fuels — in the midst of the worst recession in decades — will reap dividends.
The first “Code of Conduct” for UAVs
July 3, 2012 11:50 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsA trade group has written the first "Code of Conduct" related to unmanned aerial vehicles. The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), which boasts more than 7,000 members across 60 countries, released its treatise in response to growing privacy concerns toward domestic UAV usage.
What happened to transflective displays?
June 29, 2012 9:40 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsThe most notable feature of this year’s SID Display Week was what wasn’t there: transflective displays. Sure, they were somewhere, tucked away in a corner or hidden in plain sight. But no one was talking about them anymore. Their conspicuous absence was underscored by their ubiquitous presence at the last two Display Weeks. So why did transflective displays abruptly disappear?
Elimination of handset subsidies would represent tectonic shift
June 1, 2012 4:36 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsMobile-phone subsidies may go the way of the rotary dial if an audacious plan by Telefonica and Vodafone bears fruit. The telecom giants are using Spain as the testing grounds for an experiment that could irrevocably change the relationship between consumers and mobile-service providers.
Losing the space race ex post facto
April 26, 2012 11:27 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsThe United States is conceding the space race...43 years after winning it. The Space Shuttle's ignominious retirement closes the door on an engineering marvel and an American institution. And the public didn’t bat an eyelash. How did we get to this point? How did space travel become blasé? When Neil Armstrong took one small step for (a) man, half a billion people tuned in around the world.
CES 2012: Microsoft goes out with a whimper
January 16, 2012 8:29 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor, Special thanks to ECN's photographer, Andrew Maiman | Articles | CommentsFor a company that changed the world with its PC operating systems and dominated CES for over a decade, Microsoft left a mute impression in its swan song at the world’s largest consumer electronics show. Even the star power of American Idol’s Ryan Seacrest
Gifts for Geeks
December 14, 2011 5:08 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Articles | CommentsSo you waited until the last minute to complete your shopping list...luckily, your trusty friends at ECN are here to help. And praise the lord for that, because geeks are a tough crowd: They don’t bow to the fashion gods, patronize expensive beauty salons, or play anything that involves cardiovascular activity.
Army developing self-aware, decision-making network
November 18, 2011 8:39 am | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsThe U.S. Army is developing a “self-aware, decision-making network” that will ultimately reduce human decision-making requirements and increase network performance. The Cognitive Algorithm & Network Design Experiment (CANDE) was designed to enable easier network maintenance, reduce human decision-making requirements, increase network lifetime, transfer data with less delay, and reduce energy consumption.
ECN’s Tale of Two Veterans
November 10, 2011 12:27 pm | by Jason Lomberg, Technical Editor | Blogs | CommentsThe military deserves our eternal gratitude, and this Veterans Day, we extend our heartfelt appreciation for their immeasurable sacrifices...for their blood, sweat, and tears shed in defense of this great nation of ours. You may not know this, but Electronic Component News has two veterans in its midst. Your humble author, formerly 2nd Lieutenant Lomberg, served three years in the Army Reserve.
