Tech Tour Day Nine: technological wonders at Western How about an aviation school that saves lives in operating rooms? Or a first-of-its-kind remote human anatomy course for occupational therapy students? Or novel sensors (pictured at right) that detect minute quantities of prostate cancer antigen with acoustics, not chemistry? Welcome to Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, where you practically trip over cool technology around every corner. It's yet another one of Michigan's so-called second tier of universities that is doing simply amazing things. Wednesday at Western began before dawn, breakfast at the best egg joint in Kalamazoo, Rykse's, with Len Ginsberg, vice president for research. Ginsberg said WMU does about $30 million a year in sponsored research, with increasing emphasis on practical research vs. basic science. More.
21st Century Jobs Fund awards $30 million to 17 high-tech companies Michigan Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm Wednesday announced that 17 companies have been selected by the Strategic Economic Investment and Commercialization board to share nearly $30 million from the 21st Century Jobs Fund to initially create over 1,500 new jobs in emerging high-tech sectors. The fund awards were made to companies in the later stages of development ready to create jobs in the competitive-edge sectors of alternative energy, life sciences, advanced automotive, manufacturing and materials, and homeland security and defense. More.
UM atop U.S. section of world university rankings
Hail to the Victors indeed. The University of Michigan is rated one of the top 18 universities in the world and was the highest ranked United States public university in the new 2008 World University Rankings released Wednesday night. More.
Altair offers online GridWorks store
Troy-based Altair Engineering Inc. Wednesday announced the opening of The GridWorks Store, an automated Web site that enables customers to purchase and download PBS GridWorks software around the clock from any location. Each purchase will include downloadable PBS Professional code, a one-year software license, and PBS GridWorks support. More.
NCMS, DOE seek lightweight vehicle materials vendors
The National Center for Manufacturing Sciences has immediate project opportunities for companies in the automotive sector to improve automotive fuel efficiency through the accelerated use of lightweight materials. NCMS is seeking participants for multiple projects in the following application areas: functionality and safety, manufacturability, cost and sustainability. More.
Ferris State University's College of Technology programs are growing and benefiting Michigan's economy and the state's residents in numerous and increasing ways.
* Ferris State University is one of the founding members of the Green Mechanical Council. The GMC provides educational opportunities for contractors, field technicians and industry leaders on creating and maintaining environmentally sound residential and commercial mechanical systems. More at http://www.greenmech.org/.
* Ferris’ College of Technology awards the most engineering technology degrees in the nation and is second in offering degrees in engineering technology to women. The university’s engineering technology degrees include automotive, electrical-electronics, heavy equipment service, heating/ventilation/air conditioning/refrigeration (HVACR) technology, manufacturing, mechanical, plastics, product design, quality, rubber, surveying and welding.
* Ferris recently hosted the Michigan Energy Conference, which attracted leaders from industry, research, government and education to share information and ideas on energy efficiency, renewable energy and sustainability. From this conference, members of the College of Technology already are beginning to collaborate with various entities such as the United States Department of Energy and city of Big Rapids on effective and efficient use of energy.
* Ferris now offers a degree in Information Security and Intelligence. Launched in fall 2007 at Ferris' downtown Grand Rapids campus, the program expanded to Ferris' Traverse City campus this fall. The program, the first of its kind in the nation, evolved from the research of professor Greg Gogolin. It is a multidisciplinary degree targeting both corporate needs, as well as those of law enforcement, defense and intelligence organizations.
* Only at Ferris can you earn a bachelor's degree in automotive management, heavy equipment management, computer networks and systems, digital animation and game design, heating-ventilation-air-conditioning-and-refrigeration, surveying engineering and welding engineering technology.
Note: Today's Blue Box was sponsored by Ferris State University. For information on how you can sponsor content in the Blue Box, contact Jeff Lasser at (248) 455-7200 or jeff.lasser@cbsradio.com.
Life Sciences Pipeline offers connections to for investors, startups Troy-based CJPS Enterprises LLC, operator of the Michigan Life Sciences Pipeline, Wednesday announced a new service available to Michigan companies looking for funding for their business, or looking to invest in Michigan companies involved in health care. Some of the existing resources available on the Michigan Life Sciences Pipeline's Web site include databases of Michigan-based funding sources, economic development organizations, and SmartZones, which are great sources of assistance for small or growing businesses. More.
New product helps drug inventors get to market
The Ann Arbor-based Michigan Technology and Research Institute Wednesday announced the launch of “D4 Resources,” an expanded and comprehensive drug development due diligence service. D4 Resources will provide expert assessments of drug candidates to venture capital groups, new pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies and inventors. More.
Plexus offers enhancements for medical device makers Auburn Hills-based Plexus Systems Inc. Wednesday announced a set of enhancements to its Plexus Online manufacturing management software for medical device manufacturers. The enhancements include an integrated program that will provide enterprise-wide compliance with Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and Quality System (QS) regulations mandated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. More.
THE WORLD IN TECH
IBM preannounces 3Q results; beats expectations IBM Corp. released third-quarter results ahead of schedule Wednesday that beat Wall Street's estimates, sending the company's stock, a component of the Dow Jones industrial average, up 6 percent in after-hours trading. The Armonk, N.Y.-based company also reaffirmed its full-year earnings guidance, a strong sign that IBM's core businesses are holding up well despite the deteriorating U.S. economy. IBM's shares have tumbled 31 percent since July on concerns that IBM's exposure to the crippled financial services industry, which accounts for 30 percent of the company's sales, would hurt results. More.
40 laid off as Seattle software company's bosses arrested
Two former software executives grossly overstated their company's revenue to attract more than $50 million in private investment, prosecutors said Wednesday, adding that the fraud was uncovered late last month when a worker found a set of cooked financial books as she was cleaning out a desk. Paul Thomas Johnston, a founder and chief executive of Entellium Corp., and Parrish L. Jones, its chief financial officer, resigned Sept. 30 and were charged Wednesday with one count of wire fraud in U.S. District Court. Johnston wrote in his resignation e-mail that he was "deeply shamed and sorry" about what he had done. More.
Fake YouTube pages used to spread viruses
Savvy Internet users know that downloading unsolicited computer programs is one of the most dangerous things you can do online. It puts you at great risk for a virus or another time bomb from a hacker. But even some sophisticated surfers could get taken in by a sneaky new attack in which criminals create fake YouTube pages -- dead-on replicas of the real site -- to push their malicious software and make it look like it's safe stuff coming from a trusted source. A program circulating online helps hackers build those fake pages. Users who follow an e-mail pointing them to one of the pages would see an error message that claims the video they want won't play without installing new software first. That error message includes a link the hacker has provided to a malicious program, which delivers a virus. More.
EU proposes greater rights for Internet shoppers The European Commission wants to give Internet shoppers more rights and better protection, in an effort to boost Internet shopping across the continent and provide consumers with more competitive prices. EU Consumer Commissioner Meglena Kuneva said she has proposed establishing a blacklist of unfair contract terms. She also suggested cooling-off periods to give consumers time to back out of a sales decision. More.
Stocks: Tech stocks close mixed in erratic session Technology stocks ended mixed Wednesday with the Nasdaq Composite Index closing lower in the wake of interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and other major central banks seeking to stabilize the current economic environment. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (COMP) fell 14.55 points or 0.8 percent to 1,740.33. After rising and falling in a more than 400-point range, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) fell 189.01 points or 2 percent to 9,258.1. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index ($SOX) fell 1.79 points or 0.7 percent to 256.17. The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) fell 0.39 points or 0.1 percent to 383.72. The Amex Pharmaceutical Index ($DRG) fell 5.61 points or 2.1 percent to 264.37, while the Amex Biotech Index (BTK) fell 4.51 points or 0.7 percent to 668.16. The S&P 500 (SPX) fell 11.29 points or 1.1 percent to 984.94. The day was marked by several shifts in direction after the U.S. Federal Reserve cut its key lending rate by half a percentage point, to 1.5 percent, and several other central banks lowered their rates as well. The coordinated efforts marked the latest effort to bring some stability to the international economy roiled by the ongoing credit crisis.
Quite a few local extras: the Dutch firm Mobileye beefs up its Detroit office for auto safety technology; Credit Union One launches a new Web site; InCommon, a university tech access site run by Ann Arbor's Internet2, hits two million users; the University of Michigan develops a 'fingerprinting' method to trace mercury pollution from coal; and Verizon adds a new cell phone tower in Taylor. Elsewhere in Techland: Wario, Kirby and Sonic return in new adventures; Google broadens its e-mail archiving service; MyAnalytics puts Google Analytics in your pocket; the former federal cyberczar goes corporate; attention GoogleMaps fans -- here comes GeoEye photos; Apple is granted a patent on the Mac OS X dock; the CNET Daily Podcast talks up the coming BlackBerry Storm; the 'Napster Judge' thumps RealDVD, but will she ban it?; with 'Ubiquity,' Mozilla picks functionality over security; CNET looks at Sprint's first WiMax network in Baltimore; a new cyberattack technique is called 'clickjacking'; an app called Shoebox now tags scanned receipts for you for tax time and general personal accounting; a new survey finds that younger folk really like Apple; CNET takes note of Mascoma's deal in Michigan; a few corporate tips for surviving the market meltdown; if you still believe in the stock market, check out Inner8; the feds are proposing a consolidation of personal info on databases; but meanwhile, the U.S.' space-based spying system goes live; Broadcom slaps Qualcomm with another patent suit; a new type of planet has scientists confused; and the Sarah Palin e-mail hacker is indicted.
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How about an aviation school that saves lives in operating rooms? Or a first-of-its-kind remote human anatomy course for occupational therapy students? Or novel sensors (pictured at right) that detect minute quantities of prostate cancer antigen with acoustics, not chemistry? Welcome to Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, where you practically trip over cool technology around every corner. It's yet another one of Michigan's so-called second tier of universities that is doing simply amazing things. Wednesday at Western began before dawn, breakfast at the best egg joint in Kalamazoo, Rykse's, with Len Ginsberg, vice president for research. Ginsberg said WMU does about $30 million a year in sponsored research, with increasing emphasis on practical research vs. basic science. 
Ferris State's College of Technology on the grow
