Computing and software

Leo Apotheker, SAP’s new boss, is an unusual choice, installed in an unusual wayCHANGES in leadership at big companies can be like those in Washington, DC. They bring in fresh perspectives and new ...

Asia is steadily eroding America’s leadership in research spendingTO SEE the geography of the technology industry, crack open an Apple iPhone. Although the firm that sells it is American, it provid...

America and Japan have the most computers per personGrowth in the sales of personal computers will continue to slow in 2009, especially in more saturated markets such as North America, where there ...

Computers per 100 populationThis ranking is taken from the 2009 edition of The Economist’s “Pocket World in Figures”. This hardback book contains rankings on over 200 topics that take into account ...

A chip that stores light for a microsecond is a step towards optical computingLIGHT is the fastest thing in the universe. That makes it ideal for conveying information over long distances. Indeed, ...

Information technology is turning into a global “cloud” accessible from anywhere, says Ludwig Siegele (interviewed here). What does that mean for the way people conduct business?IN THE beginning co...

But India’s computer-services firms are in good shape to survive the financial crisisINFOSYS, one of India’s biggest and trendiest outsourcing firms, set nerves jangling on November 14th when it sa...

Computing: Netbooks are small computers that are cheaper and lighter than full-scale laptops. They have their merits—but do not ask too much of themSTEVE JOBS says Apple does not know how to make a...

Medicine: A quantum-mechanical effect used in hard disks may hold the key to the development of a hand-held biology laboratoryBIOTECHNOLOGISTS have long dreamed of creating a “lab on a chip” that w...

Security: A variety of schemes to encrypt ballot papers should reassure voters and help to make elections more secureAFTER the hanging-chad fiasco in the American presidential election of 2000, cau...