Creative, convergent, and social:
prospects for mobile computing

The mobile computing industry, more than most, suffers a constant obsession with the future. Commoditization, market saturation, and technology and service convergence render the mobile communications business one of the most volatile and precarious in terms of cycle time, customer churn, and obsolete investments. At the core of the industry’s preoccupation with prospective market trends is the question of what technologies and services users will demand in the future — a question that has proven to be notoriously difficult to answer.

The first thing to notice about the current state of the mobile industry is that it is becoming increasingly commoditized. It is growing difficult to sustain competitive edge on handset differentiation alone. Mobile phones, like toasters and microwave ovens, are all now stylishly designed and contain similar chipsets and functionality. Although it would be wrong to suggest that consumers see all handsets as equally attractive — aesthetic qualities will surely continue to matter for such personal and visible devices, just as they do for, say, wrist watches — the large handset manufactures anticipate difficulty relying on high-margin luxury production models. As an alternative, they turn toward the idea that services can help differentiate their offerings. Recent movements in related industries to define a revitalized science of services (IBM, 25 2008) have emphasized that interaction with the physical device is to a large extent governed or defined by the service or application layer that resides on top of the physical artifact (Spohrer et al., 2007). The appeal of a device depends, therefore, on the way in which it integrates into a larger system of services (Austin and Beyersdorfer, 2007); the locus of competition, whether through functionality or aesthetics, thus moves to a more diffuse realm where appeal depends on nuances of interaction between service components. The industry’s perceptive but imperfect comprehension of this shift has led to a sometimes comic frenzy, a quest for the next perfect service or killer application that can be successfully monetized — a service or application users will actually pay for.

Internet: <www.palgrave-journals.com> (adapted).

Judge the following item according to the text above.

Mobile vendors seeking to foster the consumption of mobile devices are increasingly viewing the challenge as a well-defined technology problem.

Creative, convergent, and social:
prospects for mobile computing

The mobile computing industry, more than most, suffers a constant obsession with the future. Commoditization, market saturation, and technology and service convergence render the mobile communications business one of the most volatile and precarious in terms of cycle time, customer churn, and obsolete investments. At the core of the industry’s preoccupation with prospective market trends is the question of what technologies and services users will demand in the future — a question that has proven to be notoriously difficult to answer.

The first thing to notice about the current state of the mobile industry is that it is becoming increasingly commoditized. It is growing difficult to sustain competitive edge on handset differentiation alone. Mobile phones, like toasters and microwave ovens, are all now stylishly designed and contain similar chipsets and functionality. Although it would be wrong to suggest that consumers see all handsets as equally attractive — aesthetic qualities will surely continue to matter for such personal and visible devices, just as they do for, say, wrist watches — the large handset manufactures anticipate difficulty relying on high-margin luxury production models. As an alternative, they turn toward the idea that services can help differentiate their offerings. Recent movements in related industries to define a revitalized science of services (IBM, 25 2008) have emphasized that interaction with the physical device is to a large extent governed or defined by the service or application layer that resides on top of the physical artifact (Spohrer et al., 2007). The appeal of a device depends, therefore, on the way in which it integrates into a larger system of services (Austin and Beyersdorfer, 2007); the locus of competition, whether through functionality or aesthetics, thus moves to a more diffuse realm where appeal depends on nuances of interaction between service components. The industry’s perceptive but imperfect comprehension of this shift has led to a sometimes comic frenzy, a quest for the next perfect service or killer application that can be successfully monetized — a service or application users will actually pay for.

Internet: <www.palgrave-journals.com> (adapted).

Judge the following item according to the text above.

The word “current” can be correctly substituted by obsolete.

Creative, convergent, and social:
prospects for mobile computing

The mobile computing industry, more than most, suffers a constant obsession with the future. Commoditization, market saturation, and technology and service convergence render the mobile communications business one of the most volatile and precarious in terms of cycle time, customer churn, and obsolete investments. At the core of the industry’s preoccupation with prospective market trends is the question of what technologies and services users will demand in the future — a question that has proven to be notoriously difficult to answer.

The first thing to notice about the current state of the mobile industry is that it is becoming increasingly commoditized. It is growing difficult to sustain competitive edge on handset differentiation alone. Mobile phones, like toasters and microwave ovens, are all now stylishly designed and contain similar chipsets and functionality. Although it would be wrong to suggest that consumers see all handsets as equally attractive — aesthetic qualities will surely continue to matter for such personal and visible devices, just as they do for, say, wrist watches — the large handset manufactures anticipate difficulty relying on high-margin luxury production models. As an alternative, they turn toward the idea that services can help differentiate their offerings. Recent movements in related industries to define a revitalized science of services (IBM, 25 2008) have emphasized that interaction with the physical device is to a large extent governed or defined by the service or application layer that resides on top of the physical artifact (Spohrer et al., 2007). The appeal of a device depends, therefore, on the way in which it integrates into a larger system of services (Austin and Beyersdorfer, 2007); the locus of competition, whether through functionality or aesthetics, thus moves to a more diffuse realm where appeal depends on nuances of interaction between service components. The industry’s perceptive but imperfect comprehension of this shift has led to a sometimes comic frenzy, a quest for the next perfect service or killer application that can be successfully monetized — a service or application users will actually pay for.

Internet: <www.palgrave-journals.com> (adapted).

Judge the following item according to the text above.

For consumers, mobile phones would be as attractive as all handsets.

Creative, convergent, and social:
prospects for mobile computing

The mobile computing industry, more than most, suffers a constant obsession with the future. Commoditization, market saturation, and technology and service convergence render the mobile communications business one of the most volatile and precarious in terms of cycle time, customer churn, and obsolete investments. At the core of the industry’s preoccupation with prospective market trends is the question of what technologies and services users will demand in the future — a question that has proven to be notoriously difficult to answer.

The first thing to notice about the current state of the mobile industry is that it is becoming increasingly commoditized. It is growing difficult to sustain competitive edge on handset differentiation alone. Mobile phones, like toasters and microwave ovens, are all now stylishly designed and contain similar chipsets and functionality. Although it would be wrong to suggest that consumers see all handsets as equally attractive — aesthetic qualities will surely continue to matter for such personal and visible devices, just as they do for, say, wrist watches — the large handset manufactures anticipate difficulty relying on high-margin luxury production models. As an alternative, they turn toward the idea that services can help differentiate their offerings. Recent movements in related industries to define a revitalized science of services (IBM, 25 2008) have emphasized that interaction with the physical device is to a large extent governed or defined by the service or application layer that resides on top of the physical artifact (Spohrer et al., 2007). The appeal of a device depends, therefore, on the way in which it integrates into a larger system of services (Austin and Beyersdorfer, 2007); the locus of competition, whether through functionality or aesthetics, thus moves to a more diffuse realm where appeal depends on nuances of interaction between service components. The industry’s perceptive but imperfect comprehension of this shift has led to a sometimes comic frenzy, a quest for the next perfect service or killer application that can be successfully monetized — a service or application users will actually pay for.

Internet: <www.palgrave-journals.com> (adapted).

Judge the following item according to the text above.

The text highlights themes salient in the rapidly converging mobile computing industry.

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the largest private funder of Amazon rainforest conservation, is playing an unheralded but integral role in the development of the Earth Engine platform, a system that combines the computing power of Google with advanced monitoring and analysis technologies developed by leading environmental scientists. The platform, which was officially unveiled at climate talks in Copenhagen, promises to enable near real-time monitoring of the world’s forests and carbon at high resolution at selected sites before COP-16 in Mexico.

The Earth Engine builds upon decades of research by scientists at a range of institutions, including NASA, the Woods Hole Research Center, Brazil’s Imazon, and the Carnegie Institute. While it is so far only available for the Amazon and the Andes region in South America, the model is highly scalable and could eventually be applied virtually anywhere on Earth, enabling three-dimensional mapping of ecosystems and rapid reporting of land cover change, including alerting of deforestation and incidence of fire. The tool could play a critical role in helping countries win compensation under REDD, a mechanism that rewards countries for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. REDD is seen by many as perhaps the best way to generate funds for protection and sustainable use of forests.

Internet: <news.mongabay.com> (adapted).

According to the text above, judge the following item.

Concerns remain that REDD could fail to deliver benefits to forest dwellers.

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the largest private funder of Amazon rainforest conservation, is playing an unheralded but integral role in the development of the Earth Engine platform, a system that combines the computing power of Google with advanced monitoring and analysis technologies developed by leading environmental scientists. The platform, which was officially unveiled at climate talks in Copenhagen, promises to enable near real-time monitoring of the world’s forests and carbon at high resolution at selected sites before COP-16 in Mexico.

The Earth Engine builds upon decades of research by scientists at a range of institutions, including NASA, the Woods Hole Research Center, Brazil’s Imazon, and the Carnegie Institute. While it is so far only available for the Amazon and the Andes region in South America, the model is highly scalable and could eventually be applied virtually anywhere on Earth, enabling three-dimensional mapping of ecosystems and rapid reporting of land cover change, including alerting of deforestation and incidence of fire. The tool could play a critical role in helping countries win compensation under REDD, a mechanism that rewards countries for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. REDD is seen by many as perhaps the best way to generate funds for protection and sustainable use of forests.

Internet: <news.mongabay.com> (adapted).

According to the text above, judge the following item.

A scheme — known as REDD — provides financial incentives to rainforest nations for reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation.

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the largest private funder of Amazon rainforest conservation, is playing an unheralded but integral role in the development of the Earth Engine platform, a system that combines the computing power of Google with advanced monitoring and analysis technologies developed by leading environmental scientists. The platform, which was officially unveiled at climate talks in Copenhagen, promises to enable near real-time monitoring of the world’s forests and carbon at high resolution at selected sites before COP-16 in Mexico.

The Earth Engine builds upon decades of research by scientists at a range of institutions, including NASA, the Woods Hole Research Center, Brazil’s Imazon, and the Carnegie Institute. While it is so far only available for the Amazon and the Andes region in South America, the model is highly scalable and could eventually be applied virtually anywhere on Earth, enabling three-dimensional mapping of ecosystems and rapid reporting of land cover change, including alerting of deforestation and incidence of fire. The tool could play a critical role in helping countries win compensation under REDD, a mechanism that rewards countries for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. REDD is seen by many as perhaps the best way to generate funds for protection and sustainable use of forests.

Internet: <news.mongabay.com> (adapted).

According to the text above, judge the following item.

New technology can help stop the destruction of the world’s rapidly-disappearing forests.

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the largest private funder of Amazon rainforest conservation, is playing an unheralded but integral role in the development of the Earth Engine platform, a system that combines the computing power of Google with advanced monitoring and analysis technologies developed by leading environmental scientists. The platform, which was officially unveiled at climate talks in Copenhagen, promises to enable near real-time monitoring of the world’s forests and carbon at high resolution at selected sites before COP-16 in Mexico.

The Earth Engine builds upon decades of research by scientists at a range of institutions, including NASA, the Woods Hole Research Center, Brazil’s Imazon, and the Carnegie Institute. While it is so far only available for the Amazon and the Andes region in South America, the model is highly scalable and could eventually be applied virtually anywhere on Earth, enabling three-dimensional mapping of ecosystems and rapid reporting of land cover change, including alerting of deforestation and incidence of fire. The tool could play a critical role in helping countries win compensation under REDD, a mechanism that rewards countries for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. REDD is seen by many as perhaps the best way to generate funds for protection and sustainable use of forests.

Internet: <news.mongabay.com> (adapted).

According to the text above, judge the following item.

A new prototype that enables advanced monitoring and analysis of the world’s forests was presented at the International Climate Change Conference (COP-15) in Copenhagen.

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the largest private funder of Amazon rainforest conservation, is playing an unheralded but integral role in the development of the Earth Engine platform, a system that combines the computing power of Google with advanced monitoring and analysis technologies developed by leading environmental scientists. The platform, which was officially unveiled at climate talks in Copenhagen, promises to enable near real-time monitoring of the world’s forests and carbon at high resolution at selected sites before COP-16 in Mexico.

The Earth Engine builds upon decades of research by scientists at a range of institutions, including NASA, the Woods Hole Research Center, Brazil’s Imazon, and the Carnegie Institute. While it is so far only available for the Amazon and the Andes region in South America, the model is highly scalable and could eventually be applied virtually anywhere on Earth, enabling three-dimensional mapping of ecosystems and rapid reporting of land cover change, including alerting of deforestation and incidence of fire. The tool could play a critical role in helping countries win compensation under REDD, a mechanism that rewards countries for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. REDD is seen by many as perhaps the best way to generate funds for protection and sustainable use of forests.

Internet: <news.mongabay.com> (adapted).

According to the text above, judge the following item.

The word “unheralded” means expected.

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the largest private funder of Amazon rainforest conservation, is playing an unheralded but integral role in the development of the Earth Engine platform, a system that combines the computing power of Google with advanced monitoring and analysis technologies developed by leading environmental scientists. The platform, which was officially unveiled at climate talks in Copenhagen, promises to enable near real-time monitoring of the world’s forests and carbon at high resolution at selected sites before COP-16 in Mexico.

The Earth Engine builds upon decades of research by scientists at a range of institutions, including NASA, the Woods Hole Research Center, Brazil’s Imazon, and the Carnegie Institute. While it is so far only available for the Amazon and the Andes region in South America, the model is highly scalable and could eventually be applied virtually anywhere on Earth, enabling three-dimensional mapping of ecosystems and rapid reporting of land cover change, including alerting of deforestation and incidence of fire. The tool could play a critical role in helping countries win compensation under REDD, a mechanism that rewards countries for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. REDD is seen by many as perhaps the best way to generate funds for protection and sustainable use of forests.

Internet: <news.mongabay.com> (adapted).

According to the text above, judge the following item.

The biggest private funder of Amazon conservation has teamed up with Google and scientists to develop an earth monitoring platform.