Bits n Bytes : Windows Academic Search

I came across this site of Microsoft, which makes search in Academic Journals and publications. The concept is very similar to Google Scholar, CiteSeer or DBLP. The interesting thing is the side frame which gives you some information of the link/paper like abstract, keywords etc. for more information about its working and trying it out. go to http://academic.live.com/

Bits n Bytes - Real-Time Mapping of the World

SenseWeb, a project being done at Microsoft, attempts to enable Windows Live Local to have real-time mapping and localized data. The real-time data which would be refreshed on a per minute basis could provide information on local gas prices, traffic flows, parking information etc. According to the research team, people could make informed decisions based on real-life conditions which will be fed directly by people or automated sensor equipments.

For further reading, check out this article -
http://www.techreview.com/read_article.aspx?ch=infotech&sc=&id=16781&pg=1