SciDev.Net

Fires: Spotted from satellites, warned by phone

Combining satellite data with mobile phones offers cheap and effective tools for managing fires, says South African scientist Philip Frost.

OPINION | 11 November 2009 | EN | ES | FR | 中文

Mobile phones can help manage diseases

Mobile phones can improve health services and provide help for displaced patients during political crises, say Richard Lester and Sarah Karanja.

OPINION | 1 December 2008 | EN

G8 should support high-speed web access in Africa

Calestous Juma argues that G8 countries should support provision of cheap, fast Internet access in Africa — particularly to universities.

OPINION | 3 June 2008 | EN | 中文

Create open-source databases for clinical trials

Greg W. Fegan and Trudie A. Lang urge the use of open-source database systems to increase the scope and variety of clinical trials.

OPINION | 13 March 2008 | EN | ES | 中文

Online library needs to sharpen up

An initiative to bring biomedical research journals free to the developing world is faltering, protest a group of academics in Lima.

OPINION | 2 July 2007 | EN

Web 'wrong for health information in the South'

Health information must be disseminated using appropriate technologies, say Clifford C. Missen and Thomas M. Cook.

OPINION | 17 April 2007 | EN

Web 2.0 can benefit the world's poor

New web applications can benefit the world's poor, argue Waleed al-Shobakky and Jack Imsdahl.

OPINION | 14 February 2007 | EN

Inflated influence of India's IT-factor

India's IT industry is not as successful as it seems and other countries should think carefully before following suit, writes Athar Osama.

OPINION | 20 December 2006 | EN

ICT for development: hope or hype?

Athar Osama argues that despite big new initiatives, ICT's reputation as a major driver of development is so far undeserved.

OPINION | 9 November 2006 | EN

The policy key to Pakistan's software dreams

World-class success still eludes Pakistan’s IT industry but, says Athar Osama, it can be achieved — if policymakers tackle the big issues.

OPINION | 23 March 2006 | EN

How to reshape the information society

Balancing market forces with pro-development goals will pave the way for a socially aware and effective ICT industry, argues Gillian M. Marcelle.

OPINION | 23 February 2006 | EN

Information summit's main success was idea sharing

The World Summit on the Information Society failed to resolve the main issues on its agenda, but provided great opportunities for sharing ideas, says Amit Jain.

OPINION | 22 November 2005 | EN

Communication rights and communication wrongs

It's time to stop using the poor, and build a media that respects their rights and needs, says Nalaka Gunawardene.

OPINION | 15 November 2005 | EN

Making science open access demands a new mindset

Governments need to actively encourage the sharing of scientific knowledge and expertise if the open access movement is to revolutionise the way science works, says Arthur Carty.

OPINION | 11 November 2005 | EN

Scientists must lead efforts to bridge digital divide

Shuichi Iwata and Robert Chen say scientists must take the lead in showing how free and equal access to knowledge can create a more sustainable world.

OPINION | 21 October 2005 | EN

Bandwidth will speed African universities' progress

Increasing bandwidth available to universities in Africa, in part by reducing its cost, is necessary for them to achieve high standards, writes Steve Song.

OPINION | 16 August 2005 | EN

Technological shutdowns as tools of oppression

Gisele Dodji Dovi says Togo's recent presidential election shows how denying access to information and communication technologies can undermine democratic processes.

OPINION | 20 June 2005 | EN

Local relevance is key to ICTs for development

Nalaka Gunawardene says that information and communication technologies (ICTs) have a role to play in poverty reduction but they have to be used strategically, as part of a wider development process.

OPINION | 14 October 2004 | EN

Improving science through online commentary

David Eagleman and Alex Holcombe propose a way of using the Internet to widen, and reduce delays in, scientific debate.

OPINION | 1 May 2003 | EN

Creating equal access to scientific information

Salim S Abdool Karim argues that bridging the information divide between rich and poor nations will require a fundamental rethink of the global knowledge economy.

OPINION | 28 March 2003 | EN