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In this issue:

  * The Latest MacroMonitor News
  * Connected Cars: A New Technology Map
  * Developments to Watch For:
     - Nanomaterials
     - Portable Intelligence
     - Renewable Energy Technologies
  * Signals of Change
  * Virtual Worlds for Learning and Training

	
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The Latest MacroMonitor News

SRIC-BI's Consumer Financial Decisions (CFD) group has
announced the launch of its new MacroMonitor Market Trends
newsletter to present highlights of the latest wave of
MacroMonitor data and analysis. The first issue discusses
the increase in the number of households caring for
dependent adults, identifies the consumer groups most
likely to own health savings accounts, and finds evidence
that consumers' use of the Internet for financial services
other than banking has faded.
(MacroMonitor Market Trends, February 2007)
http://www.sric-bi.com/CFD/newsletter/2007-02.shtml

(This publication is part of CFD's MacroMonitor program.
To learn more about CFD and the MacroMonitor, see
http://www.sric-bi.com/CFD .)

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Connected Cars: A New Technology Map

Carmakers, electronics manufacturers, wireless-service
providers, and players in other industries are adapting to
a new competitive landscape in which sensors, onboard
electronics and portable devices, and communication and
network technologies increasingly define the driving
experience. Drivers and passengers will benefit from these
advances through enhanced driving efficiency, security,
entertainment, information, and connection to other
people. To monitor these developments, Explorer has
announced its new Connected Cars Technology Map, which is
now available to subscribers.
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/CC.shtml

(This publication is part of our Explorer service. To
learn more about Explorer, see
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer .)

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Developments to Watch for in 2007

At the beginning of each year, analysts in Explorer's
technology commercial evaluation team look at the year
ahead to alert clients to developments likely to influence
each Explorer technology. Below are their takes on three
technologies.


  Nanomaterials

  * Commercial interest in carbon nanotubes will continue
    to increase, with opportunities ranging from the
    commercialization of basic materials to the creation
    of new types of structures and devices.

  * Asia, in particular, will see continued strong gains
    and greater funding of nanotechnology.

  * Intellectual property will continue to be critical,
    and players' technology portfolios will change to
    reflect new patents and licensing agreements.

  * As a growing number of consumer products incorporate
    nanomaterials, various groups will call for greater
    monitoring of the environmental, health, and safety
    effects of the materials.

  * The first nanomaterials-based energy-conversion and
    energy-storage products are likely to reach the
    marketplace in 2007.

  (December 2006/January 2007 Nanomaterials Viewpoints)
  http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/NM.shtml



  Portable Intelligence

  * Mobile phones will continue to pile on functionality,
    including high-specification cameras, user-friendly
    digital music players, digital television, and early
    forms of portable digital-video-recorder functionality
    in high-end handsets.

  * Apple's iPhone will immediately appeal to Apple
    enthusiasts but will not win wide adoption in 2007
    because of its fairly high price tag.

  * Microsoft and RIM will continue to erode Symbian's
    share of the mobile-operating-systems market.

  * The Access Linux platform will become available during
    the year but will see only limited uptake before 2008.

  * China will be the highest-growth market for handheld
    devices, but manufacturers will still target most of
    their devices to established markets.

  * The rollout of WiMax networks will increase in 2007,
    stimulating further interest in portable devices that
    can use networks other than second- and third-
    generation cellular.

  (December 2006/January 2007 Portable Intelligence
  Viewpoints)
  http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/PI.shtml



  Renewable Energy Technologies

  * Worldwide renewable-energy-technology markets will see
    continuing strong growth and huge investments,
    although a slight drop in fossil-fuel prices and tight
    raw-materials markets could slow growth rates
    somewhat.

  * Europe will continue to lead in the use of renewable
    energy, but new incentives for its use are likely to
    emerge in the United States with Democratic control of
    Congress. China and India will clarify their
    regulations and continue to increase production
    output.

  * Crystalline-silicon photovoltaic (PV) manufacturers
    will continue to expand capacity, thin-film PV
    manufacturers will likely gain market share, and new
    third-generation PV developers will move closer to
    commercialization.

  * As biofuels markets continue to grow, cellulosic-
    ethanol technology will move forward, but market
    growth will also prompt greater public discussion of
    the sustainability and ethics of biofuels production
    from food crops.

  * Among the new technologies attracting attention will
    be ocean-energy technologies and geothermal hot-dry-
    rock technology.

  (December 2006/January 2007 Renewable Energy
  Technologies Viewpoints)
  http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/RET.shtml


(These publications are part of our Explorer service. To
learn more about Explorer, see
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer .)

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Signals of Change

In the realm of scientific research, new funding models,
cost reductions in key technologies, advances in
computational tools, and technologies that enable
collaborative and participative models point to more
democratic organizational forms, business models, and
research ecosystems. The latest issue of Scan[TM] Monthly
explores this and other signals of change, including
changes that give marketers both more and less control
over their efforts, new dimensions of globalization, low-
tech solutions to complex problems, the emergence of
biomedical informatics, and a move to multicore and
parallel processing.
(Scan[TM] Monthly, January 2007)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Scan/ScanMonthly/SM047.shtml#SoCs

(These publications are part of our Scan[TM] program. To
learn more about Scan, see http://www.sric-bi.com/Scan .)

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Virtual Worlds for Learning and Training

The growing popularity of virtual worlds in recent years
is making available new online platforms and technologies
that could take online learning and training to a new
level, allowing new and different forms of socialization,
communication, and collaboration. Although efforts to
incorporate these virtual worlds in areas beyond
entertainment are in their infancy, a growing number of
enterprises are exploring ways to use virtual worlds,
especially Second Life, for a variety of business
applications, including learning and training. A new
Learning-on-Demand Program report explores potential uses
of virtual worlds in learning and training and highlights
the activities of early adopters.
(Virtual Worlds for Learning and Training)
http://www.sric-bi.com/LoD/summaries/2006-12virtualworlds.shtml

(This publication is part of our Learning-on-Demand (LoD)
program. To learn more about LoD, see
http://www.sric-bi.com/LoD/ .)



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