---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Florida SunFlash SEVEN SUN USERS NAMED AS FINALISTS IN COMPUTERWORLD SMITHSONIAN AWARDS SunFLASH Vol 42 #10 June 1992 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. --June 2, 1992-- A computer that teaches history. A workstation that scans 11,000 parking tickets daily. A six-legged robot, two stories tall, that can act as an astronaut on Mars and the moon. A computer that locates the ancient forests in North America. These are just a few of the projects being carried out by users of Sun systems who have been selected as finalists in the fourth annual Computerworld Smithsonian Awards. This international program honors innovative uses of information technology and the people who use them to achieve outstanding progress for society. Seven Sun Microsystems Computer Corporation (SMCC) users are among the 51 finalists from 10 categories nominated by leaders in information technology. The categories span from science and education to the environment and agriculture. One winner will be chosen at the awards ceremony, being held on June 8, at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. The winning applications will be showcased in "The Information Age: People, Information, Technology," a permanent exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution that has already been seen by more than three million people. The work of SMCC finalists is a testament to the social progress being made with computers. As true visionaries in their fields, SMCC's finalists exemplify the powerful benefits gained when mass amounts of critical information can be stored, retrieved and accessed using applications running on Sun workstations. With the ability to run multiple complex applications on workstations, users are addressing some of society's toughest questions about the environment, the economy, health and the steps corporations can take to remain competitive. Among the finalists are: * Carnegie-Mellon University, Department of Design, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania -- in collaboration with the Department of History helps students to understand American history by studying the effects of economics, industry, education and other social forces on society using pictures, essays and interactive maps accessed through the Great American History Machine, educational software built around American census and election data. * Carnegie-Mellon University, Robotics Institute, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania -- has constructed a robot named Ambler that can see, using laser scanners as eyes, and think using a "brain" based on a SPARC(R) RISC chip. Its mission is to walk the surface of the moon and Mars collecting samples and performing experiments where it is too dangerous to send a human counterpart. * City of Chicago's Bureau of Parking, Chicago, Illinois -- by scanning 11,000 tickets and storing them as images in Sun systems, the bureau has created a paperless decentralized system, making it easier for citizens to pay or protest tickets at centers in their neighborhoods. Indirectly, the system is doing its part to combat air pollution by discouraging people from violating parking ordinances and double parking, an activity that became so common that the EPA cited it as slowing daily traffic and worsening air pollution. * Federal Express Corporation, Memphis, Tennessee -- has eased the work pressure of its flight controllers, streamlined the scheduling system and drastically reduced chances for error by developing an expert system for ramp and gate management running on a network of Sun systems. It logs critical information on both inbound and outbound flights at the Memphis, Tennessee, location. * Pacific Meridian Resources (PMR), Emeryville, California -- maps and surveys over 12 million acres of forest using Sun workstations running a geographical information system. PMR has laid the groundwork for establishing public policy concerning old-growth forests and the allocation of this natural resource. By providing the U.S. Forest Service with sophisticated maps, PMR has aided policy makers in understanding the impact of logging and development on the environment and on species threatened by extinction, such as the spotted owl. * Intelligenetics Inc., GenBank Computer Resource, Stanford, California -- speeds medical research and provides fundamental insight into understanding the causes of such diseases as AIDS and cancer by allowing scientists worldwide to electronically exchange and compare newly determined DNA sequences to others in the database. * The Wilderness Society's Endangered Species and Ecosystems Mapping Project, Seattle, Washington -- addresses some of the complex issues surrounding the health of fragile ecosystems and threats to endangered species by using remote sensing, ecological modeling and advanced computer mapping techniques to study plant and animal populations on more than 25 million acres in the United States and British Columbia. Other SMCC users nominated include, Sierran Biodiversity Institute; Conservation International; University of Maine, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy; Georgetown University Hospital, Systems Division; Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Wilmer Eye Institute; University of South Florida, Center for Engineering and Medical Image Analysis; NYNEX, Science & Technology Department. The Computerworld Smithsonian Awards Program was established in 1989 to recognize the positive impact that information technology has had not only on business, but also in all aspects of human endeavor. The awards honor outstanding applications of information technology, while clearly identifying to the general public the benefits that information technology brings to all of our lives. PR contact: Sun Microsystems Computer Corporation, Gayle Jennings (415) 336-0787 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ For information send mail to info-sunflash@sunvice.East.Sun.COM. Subscription requests should be sent to sunflash-request@sunvice.East.Sun.COM. Archives are on solar.nova.edu, paris.cs.miami.edu, uunet.uu.net, src.doc.ic.ac.uk and ftp.adelaide.edu.au All prices, availability, and other statements relating to Sun or third party products are valid in the U.S. only. Please contact your local Sales Representative for details of pricing and product availability in your region. Descriptions of, or references to products or publications within SunFlash does not imply an endorsement of that product or publication by Sun Microsystems. John McLaughlin, SunFlash editor, flash@sunvice.East.Sun.COM. (305) 776-7770.