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In this issue:

   * Machine Creativity
   * The Financial Needs of America's Affluent
   * Requirements for Nanomaterials Commercialization
   * Security Issues in Pervasive Computing
   * Rapid Evolution of CRM
   * RFID in Manufacturing and Supply-Chain Applications
   * The Look-Up Business
   * Growth Prospects for Location Technology in 2004
   * Signals of Change
   * Mentoring for eLearners


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---------------------
 Recent Publications
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Machine Creativity

For several years, neural networks and other software 
techniques have been capable of performing low-level 
creative tasks. However, although researchers have made 
advances, machine creativity remains far inferior to human 
creativity. Recent developments in machine creativity point 
to emerging commercial opportunities in this high-impact, 
high-uncertainty area of neural-network technology. 
(February 2004 Neural Networks Viewpoints)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/NN.shtml


The Financial Needs of America's Affluent 

The financial-services industry has much to learn from 
affluent U.S. households' ways of coping with the turbulent 
financial landscape of the past two years. A new 
MacroMonitor report reveals the complexity of the affluent 
market, defining the financial behaviors and needs of six 
segments and pointing to the challenges of marketing 
effectively to these groups. In addition, special 
presentations for MacroMonitor subscribers zero in on two 
key markets: the Mass Affluent and the Millionaires. 
(America's Affluent: Satisfying Their Needs in an Era of 
Uncertainty)
http://www.sric-bi.com/CFD/TOCs/2002AffRptToC.shtml


Requirements for Nanomaterials Commercialization

The U.S. Chemical Industry Vision2020 Technology Partnership 
says that mass commercialization of nanomaterials will 
require an improved understanding of the materials' 
environmental, health, and safety (EH&S) impacts. Without 
this understanding, the EH&S standards community is not able 
to regulate the commercialization and use of nanomaterials 
or to develop exposure and handling guidelines for their 
production, transport, use, storage, and disposal. Companies 
should monitor EH&S issues because of their impact on market 
performance. (February 2004 Nanotechnology Viewpoints)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/NT.shtml


Security Issues in Pervasive Computing

The spread of pervasive computing opens the door to a host 
of security threats. The ability to improve security in 
pervasive-computing and sensor networks will help the 
technologies gain a foothold in environments in which 
security compromises are unacceptable, such as military 
operations and corporate R&D facilities. The more that 
corporations and government agencies trust pervasive-computing 
environments, the more they will be willing to invest in such 
solutions. (February 2004 Pervasive Computing Viewpoints)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/PVC.shtml


Rapid Evolution of CRM

Though customer-relationship management (CRM) is only a 
decade or so old, it has already progressed through three 
generations of development, moving from simple management 
of customer-contact information to direct interactions with 
customers via corporate Web sites, call centers, and 
in-person transactions. Currently on the agenda are the 
development of partner-relationship-management systems, the 
introduction of customer-retention products, add-on analytic 
capabilities for traditional CRM products, and outsourcing 
of customer-contact centers. (Evolving CRM)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Scan/ScanMonthly/SM012.shtml#D04-2461


RFID in Manufacturing and Supply-Chain Applications

Recent high-profile supply-chain implementations of 
radio-frequency identification (RFID) by Wal-Mart, the U.S. 
Department of Defense, and others have called attention to 
the technology's potential in supplier-relationship 
management, vendor-managed inventory, virtual warehouses, 
adaptive logistics management, and other applications. 
However, RFID's course will not be smooth in such 
applications because of concerns about return on investment, 
standards, and the scalability of data-handling capabilities. 
(RFID Comes of Age in Manufacturing and Supply-Chain 
Applications)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Scan/ScanMonthly/SM012.shtml#D04-2460


The Look-Up Business

A winning business model has emerged that enables 
search-engine companies like Google and Yahoo to make 
money, permits advertisers to pay for performance only, 
and compensates Web publishers for hosting advertisements 
that are both relevant and minimally intrusive. Possibilities 
abound for the future of the "look-up" business, including 
the ability to search for multimedia, the Semantic Web 
concept, graphical interfaces for navigating search results, 
personalization of search results, and searches for 
information specific to a geographic location. 
(New Directions for the Look-Up Business)
http://www.sric-bi.com/DF/summaries/NewDirLookup2004-02.shtml


Growth Prospects for Location Technology in 2004

Navigation technology must become more robust and chip sets 
must become smaller and cheaper if portable-intelligence 
(PI) devices are to adopt location technology. A number of 
new products have recently emerged with navigation and 
location-based features and services. Though sales have 
not increased with the increase in available products, 
demand for location features appears to be growing, so 2004 
may be the year that location technology takes off in PI 
devices. (February 2004 Portable Intelligence Viewpoints)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/PI.shtml


Signals of Change

Will new ways of automating research processes reduce 
opportunities for scientists to make serendipitous 
discoveries? The February issue of Scan Monthly explores 
this question along with topics such as the potential for 
cell-phone/camera combinations to change the way that people 
communicate, companies' efforts to capitalize on unused 
intellectual property, and public perceptions of 
nanotechnology. (Scan Monthly, February 2004)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Scan/ScanMonthly/SM012.shtml#SoCs


Mentoring for eLearners

Specialist instructors and subject-matter experts have 
guided learners through the online learning experience 
since the early days of eLearning, but mentors' prominence 
is growing as companies learn to make better use of 
communication and collaboration aspects of eLearning. In 
addition, mentoring is using other collaboration technologies 
and becoming a more integral part of the overall eLearning 
process--opening the door for start-ups like Ensemble 
Collaboration and Global Mentoring to usher in 
next-generation mentoring services. (Next-Generation 
Mentoring for eLearning)
http://www.sric-bi.com/LoD/summaries/NextGenMentor2004-02.shtml


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Copyright 2004 by SRI Consulting Business Intelligence.

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