Bharti Airtel has awarded a multi-million-dollar contract to IBM to deploy a blockchain -based pan India network which will allow the telco to protect its 284 million subscribers from pesky calls and messages

The Akshaya Patra Foundation reduced the process time taken from planning the menu to delivery to schools by using mobility solution and automation.

Several of Federal Bank’s digital initiatives are finally seeing massive adoption as the Kochi-based bank works on automation and self service tools to boost profits.

Industry executives say most plants will work at low capacity at least until the festive season

In an interview with ETCIO, Miao Song, Global CIO & Global VP of MARS, talks about the IT & Digital odyssey of the company in tackling the Covid-19 crisis.

As offices start to reopen, Biometric systems could pose a big threat to safety from coronavirus.

Curefit, which has come under fire from several of its staff that were laid off, is one of the many startups whose business has been directly impacted due to the virus outbreak

Work from home is a cultural change that requires focus on technology, security, human resources and facilities.

The rental car service has tweaked its model to support emergency services during the lockdown and is gearing up its IT infrastructure for the post-Covid surge in demand.

The future of cybersecurity will revolve around Business Continuity (Backup), Remote Collaboration, Internet, Security & Cloud.

The makers of Fevicol are leveraging this time to retrain staff and gear up technology infrastructure for the post-Covid world.

At BT Global Services connections are our business. We are trusted by thousands of enterprises around the world, combining our global strength in networks, IT and innovation with local presence, expertise and delivery. Watch this video to find out how we can help you connect for a better future.

Working together to create stronger results, that’s collaboration. It’s at the heart of every modern organisation, and one of the main ingredients for success. But how can you make the most of it in your business setting? Are your people equipped with the tools they need to truly thrive when they work together?

97 per cent of Fortune 500 companies have been hacked. A quarter of companies have had a serious breach in the last year.

BT decided to showcase its technology by hosting a virtual media summit for AMEA and we knew that we could save money and invite more people if we made it virtual.

Through five short use cases this powerful four-minute video shows BT innovating to use interactive video conferencing in managing operations and communicating externally and internally across Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Ruth Rowan and Kevin Taylor of BT Global Services describe how high definition video and Dolby quality sound is enabling enhanced and effective collaboration for BT teams serving customers across this geographically diverse 99-country region.

Auto Contact, our range of self-service solutions, can help free up agents to handle more complex and revenue-generating calls –and at the same time improve the overall customer experience whilst reducing costs.

Researchers have identified policies in Denmark, Germany and The Netherlands that have made cycling safe, convenient and mainstream in these countries. Coordinated transport, educational and land use measures have increased the popularity of this sustainable mode of transport over recent decades.

Many workplaces have developed mobility policies to reduce the number of staff commuting to work using single occupant vehicles (SOVs). A new study from Belgium reveals how companies can influence their employees' choice of transport to work and looks at the best ways to promote alternative means of commuting.

Speed constraints for aircraft are put in place, at some airports, to minimise noise pollution in local areas, however, such practices can be very fuel-inefficient. New research has now shown that relaxing departure speed limits could substantially reduce CO2 emissions, while maintaining acceptable noise levels.

Researchers have found that ocean acidification leads to changes in the ways that clownfish normally respond to sound. As many species rely on hearing for orientation, habitat selection, avoiding predators and communication, ocean acidification could compromise auditory behaviour crucial for survival.

Levels of air pollution significantly increase on the island of Svalbard in the Norwegian Arctic when tourist cruise ships are present, according to a recent study. With shipping levels rising in the region, the researchers recommend that stricter emissions regulations are introduced in order to limit the impact of pollution on the Arctic environment.

Residents living near a busy railway line in Strasbourg were found by researchers to have reduced cognitive function compared to residents in quieter areas, which may be the result of long-term exposure to night-time noise. Psychological tests suggested that they had not adapted to the noise over the years, and they did not become less affected with time.

A new method of assessing the sustainability of noise reduction devices (NRDs) used in transport infrastructure, such as noise barriers or absorptive claddings, is presented in a recent study. The new set of specially designed sustainability criteria allows NRDs to be easily and accurately evaluated, its developers suggest.

A ‘feebate’ can be an effective policy option to aid the transition to a more environmentally-friendly transport system, a UK study suggests. This combination of fees and rebates can increase the take-up of low-carbon cars, the researchers argue, which leads to reduced life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

A recent study has considered 21st century changes in shipping access through the Arctic Ocean along three potential new routes linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. As the sea ice melts, it is possible that high-strength vessels will be able to sail directly through the North Pole by the end of the century, its results indicate.

Travelling by coach or train has a lower impact on the climate than travelling by air or car, but using a small diesel car to carry several passengers can have similarly low impacts per person, new research suggests. Air travel is the worst form of transport, in terms of global warming impact, the researchers found, but the average percentage occupancy of a mode of transport significantly affects the impact per passenger.

What drives people to behave in more environmentally friendly ways? A new study explores factors that affect Dutch motorists’ intentions to switch to electric vehicles. The authors found that they could reliably predict the intention to switch by applying a theoretical framework—Protection Motivation Theory—based on perceptions of the threat of environmental damage.

People who live in the most ‘activity-friendly’ neighbourhoods do up to 1.5 hours more physical activity a week than those in the least supportive neighbourhoods. This is according to a new international study which measured levels of exercise — mainly walking for recreation or transport — in relation to the urban environment across 14 diverse cities. The results show how urban design — such as parks and local amenities — can promote healthy lifestyles which also bring environmental benefits, such as better air quality, through reduced car use.

The move towards smart mobility systems in cities across Italy, specifically in relation to public transport systems (including cycle infrastructure, and cycle and car-sharing schemes) has been assessed in a new study. The researchers say significant progress has been made in light of new guidelines imposed by the European Union, which is often linked to financial investment, as well as the capacity of city planners to implement changes.

Hybrid and electric vehicles emit lower levels of carbon dioxide and air pollutants than conventional petrol and diesel vehicles, yet their market uptake in the EU remains limited. New research provides an assessment of the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) — which combines purchase and operating expenses — of different vehicle types. By comparing historical data on hybrid, petrol and diesel vehicles in three countries (Japan, the UK and the USA), researchers found a strong link between TCO and market share of those vehicles. They also identified a number of ways in which policymakers may promote the adoption of cleaner vehicles through the provision of financial incentives.

Electric vehicles (EVs) could play a role in future power supply, but face issues surrounding the longevity of their batteries. This study reconciles two recent contradictory results on the effects of vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology on battery life-time, and shows that V2G — a process via which EVs would exchange energy with the power grid to provide ancillary services, such as supplying power during peak periods, and helping to regulate grid frequency — could actually extend the lifespan of commercial lithium-ion batteries.

In the automobile industry, the development and manufacture of increasingly complex technological components — catalytic converters, LEDs, electric motors, batteries — requires increasingly complex and diverse raw materials with specific qualities. The technological and economic importance of these materials, combined with their vulnerability to supply shortages and likelihood of supply interruptions, indicates their ‘criticality’. This study uses a new methodology to explore the criticality of 27 key metals used in the automotive industry and other sectors, and highlights six that are especially vulnerable: rhodium, dysprosium, neodymium, terbium, europium and praseodymium. The researchers found there was limited recycling and substitution of these metals and a high possibility of restrictions to their supply.

Around 40% of the platinum used in EU catalytic converters is not recovered for recycling and is therefore ‘lost’ forever, indicates a new study. A more circular economy for platinum is essential to reduce imports of this critical raw material to the EU and minimise its damaging effects on the environment, the researchers argue. Better collection systems for end-of-life catalytic converters and tighter regulation of waste exports could help close the loop on platinum.

In a previous blog post, Notifications from MATLAB, I showed how Amazon's Notification system (AWS SNS) can be used from MATLAB service can be used to easily send information between endpoints in a distributed system, be they applications or people.... read more >>

Khudoleĭ, K. M

Putting a price on carbon emissions from deforestation is unlikely to prevent tropical forests being cleared for palm oil production, according to a recent study. Additional measures should be included in climate policies to protect forests from increasing global demands, such as biofuels.

Bats can adapt to certain changes in habitat that threaten their preferred roosting sites. A new study from Poland shows that bats will widen their criteria for selecting roosting sites if forest management practices limit their preferred sites. However, experts recommend that small patches of old growth forest suitable for bat roosting are maintained as the bats in this study did not adapt to young woodland.

Although national and European policy supports the importance of outdoor recreation, there are few binding commitments for action, according to new research. In particular, monitoring of recreation in forests is rarely mentioned in national policy and the study suggests comparable European data could inform firmer decision-making.

An innovative reforestation technique has been used successfully to restore patches of forest in an area of Sardinia where traditional reforestation methods have previously failed. It was the first time the technique, known as the Miyawaki method, has been used to restore forests in a Mediterranean region.

The only way to establish a long-lasting and effective strategy for forest management is through collaboration between ‘conventional’ scientists and local experts, according to new research.

A recent study has assessed how the choice and cultivation of native and introduced pine tree species affects the impact of insect pests and fungal diseases in Spanish plantations. Native maritime pine trees appeared to be more susceptible to insect attack, whilst non-native Monterey pines were more likely to suffer from fungal attacks. Thinning trees also had differing effects on reducing the effects of pests, depending on the tree species.

A recent study confirms that some European ash trees are more genetically-resistant to the devastating ash dieback disease. These individuals could therefore be selected for gene conservation and/or start a breeding programme to save the European ash.

Forests may need to be converted to more drought-tolerant mixtures of tree species to prevent significant die-off under climate change, predicts a new study which modelled German forests. The researchers indicate that climate change is likely to lead to significant forest damage, which could be reduced through adaptive management.

The impacts of drought on European trees are of high concern, especially under a changing climate. New research has indicated that, if summers become continually drier, sensitive species, such as larch and spruce, will suffer reduced growth in some Alpine areas. This could potentially compromise ecosystem services provided by forests in these areas.