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IBM LogoThe month of November was a busy month, as usual for IBM, filled with a slew of announcements in hardware, software, services, acquisitions, and strategic alliances. The list of announcements made during the month is below and the complete index of IBM Happenings (by year and month) is here. Included was the third annual “IBM Next Five in Five” — a list of innovations that have the potential to change the way people work, live and play over the next five years. The Next Five in Five is based on market and societal trends expected to transform our lives, as well as innovations IBM is projecting will come from it’s research laboratories around the world.
These are some highlights of the five areas in which IBM sees our lives being impacted by technology innovations. For more, visit ibm.com.
Check mark Energy saving solar technology will be built into asphalt, paint and windows. There could be huge savings by having solar heat embedded in our sidewalks, driveways, siding, paint, rooftops, and windows. The cost of solar is going to drop with the creation of “thin-film” solar cells that can be 100 times thinner than today’s materials. The new material can be “printed” and arranged on a flexible backing, suitable for not only the tops but also the sides of buildings.
Check markWhat if you could foresee your health destiny and use that knowledge to modify your lifestyle? Our doctors will be able to provide a genetic map that tells you what health risks you are likely to face in your lifetime and the specific things you can do to prevent them, based on your specific DNA. Pharmaceutical companies will also be able to engineer new, more effective medications that are targeted for each of us as individual patients.
Check markYou will talk to the Web — and the Web will talk back. You will be able to surf the web hands-free. Already, in parts of the world where the spoken word is more prominent than the written word in education, government and culture, “talking” to the Web is leapfrogging the PC because of the ubiquity of the mobile phone. We take voice for granted but soon we will just as easily use our voice to post to our blogs, scan and respond to e-mails and instant messages, and sort through the Web verbally to find what we are looking for and have the information read – as if you are having a conversation with the Web.
Check markIn the next five years, shoppers will increasingly rely on themselves – and the opinions of each other – in combination with technology “assistants” to make purchasing decisions rather than wait for help from in-store sales associates. Fitting rooms will be outfitted with digital shopping assistants – touch screen and voice activated kiosks that will allow you to choose clothing items and accessories to complement what you already selected. Once you make your selections, a sales associate is notified and will gather the items and bring them directly to you. You will also be able to snap photos of yourself and email or SMS them to your friends and family for the thumbs up — or thumbs down. Shoppers can access product ratings and reviews from fellow consumers and will even be able to download money-saving coupons and instantly apply them to their purchases.
Check markForgetting will become a distant memory even as Information overload keeps you up at night. In the next five years, it will become much easier to remember what to buy at the grocery store, which errands need to be run, who you spoke with at a conference, where and when you agreed to meet a friend, or what product you saw advertised at the airport. Such details of everyday life will be recorded, stored, analyzed, and provided at the appropriate time and place by microphones and video cameras. Our mobile phones with GPS will remind us to pick up groceries or prescriptions if we are in the vicinity of the appropriate store. Strong privacy protection will have to be a key feature of these new technologies.

List of Announcements for November 2008

A smarter planet: the next leadership agenda

IBM is working with thousands of forward-thinking companies, governments, universities and institutions to make our smarter world a better place to live.
http://www.ibm.com/smarterplanet/us/en/

Smarter Planet

IBM Chairman Sam Palmisano outlined the possibilities of a smarter planet to the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City on Nov. 6, 2008.
http://www.ibm.com/smarterplanet/us/en/overview/ideas/

IBM commits to future of ODF with Symphony roadmap

IBM unveiled a roadmap for the expansion of the free Lotus Symphony office application suite to MacIntosh, Ubuntu Linux, OpenOffice 3.0 and Microsoft Office customers.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/25912.wss

IBM helps 4Food integrate corporate social responsibility

IBM is providing consulting services to help Bronx-based restaurant company 4Food integrate corporate social responsibility values and practices into its business strategy.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/25914.wss

IBM awarded U.S. immigration services contract

IBM has been awarded a technology and services contract by the Department of Homeland Security for the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services agency.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/25922.wss

Punahou School uses IBM to cut energy use

Punahou School in Honolulu, in an aggressive energy reduction effort, has replaced its legacy servers with high-performance, low-power System x servers.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/25891.wss

PHASE 2 selects IBM technology to grow its business

PHASE 2 International, a leading Software as a Service provider, selected IBM technology to enable the company to support more clients while lowering energy use by over 65 percent.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/25894.wss

IBM forms software speeds past paper delays

The new version of IBM Lotus Forms, 3.5 allows employees to quickly create, store and route e-forms inside and outside of an organization via e-mail and the Web.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26103.wss

IBM announces plans to acquire Transitive

Transitive is a leader in cross-platform virtualization and a pioneer in developing technologies that allow applications written for one type of microprocessor and operating system to run on multiple platforms — with little or no modification.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26106.wss

IBM unveils findings of Security & Society GIO

IBM’s Security and Society Global Innovation Outlook (GIO) included brainstorming sessions around the world, between technology leaders, government officials and security industry luminaries.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26105.wss

IBM, National Grid and LIPA announce energy-efficiency program

National Grid, the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) and IBM are working together on an energy-efficiency program to increase the use of energy-saving options in their customers’ IT operations.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26124.wss

IBM awarded funding for cognitive computing collaboration

IBM Research and five leading universities are partnering to create computing systems that are expected to simulate and emulate the brain’s abilities for sensation, perception, action, interaction and cognition.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26123.wss

Nokia extends IBM Lotus email access to mobile phones

Nokia and IBM announced IBM Lotus Notes support for a number of Nokia’s S60-based mobile phones, allowing millions of Notes users to access email with their Nokia devices.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26130.wss

IBM reveals third annual “Next Five in Five” list

The “IBM Next Five in Five” is a list of innovations that have the potential to change the way people work, live and play over the next five years.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/presskit/26121.wss

IBM launches new cloud computing services

IBM is applying its consulting expertise and established technology record to offer secure, practical services to companies in public, private and hybrid cloud models.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26168.wss

IBM, Manitoba build digital passport system for food

IBM and the Province of Manitoba have tested a new system which makes it possible to digitally trace the journey food takes before it ends up in consumers’ shopping carts.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26177.wss

IBM to validate resiliency of cloud infrastructures

IBM is introducing a program to validate the resiliency of any company delivering applications or services to clients in the cloud environment.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26167.wss

Report finds IBM Supercomputers most energy efficient

According to the findings of the latest Supercomputing ‘Green 500 List’ announced by The Green500.org, IBM supercomputers are the most energy efficient in the world.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26148.wss

LendingTree Loans selects IBM for loan services

IBM announced a multi-year, exclusive contract with LendingTree Loans to provide comprehensive, private label mortgage loan fulfillment services.
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/26147.wss