It seems that as we travel down the high-tech highway, we accumulate more and more devices to carry around. First there were laptop computers, cell phones, and PDAs, then came digital cameras, GPS (Global Positioning System) devices, and MP3 music players. Maybe someday we will be able to combine the functionality of these devices into one or two pieces of equipment.
In the mean time,
Airports across the United States may soon
have one more tool to fight terrorism. This past June the
Transportation Security Administration launched the first-ever
walk-through explosives detector in an airport environment.
Most of you probably remember the Betamax/VHS dilemma. When video taping of television programs went main stream, these two competing standards were both released into the marketplace. They were incompatible with each other and the consumer was left to determine which standard would ultimately win. Even though Betamax was far superior to VHS, those who guessed Betamax were severely punished when the cheaper VHS standard won the majority of buyers. Betamax purchasers were forced to relegate their machines to the junk pile and buy into the VHS standard.
