News Item Dated: 18 September 2002
From: Newsweek (09/16/02) Vol. 140, No. 12, P. 34J ; Foroohar, Rana

The evolution of the Internet into the grid -- an architecture in which computer tasks are distributed over a network of servers, enabling computing power to be tapped like electricity -- will mark the beginning of "the post-technology era," according to Tom Hawk of IBM. Grid technology promises many benefits, including faster, cheaper processing; multitasking electronic devices; complex simulation of many systems and phenomena, such as earthquakes, viral infections, etc.; and self-coordinating apparel. Other applications facilitated by the connection of companies, governments, consumers, and other agencies via the grid include sophisticated teleconferencing and ubiquitous wireless.

But privacy advocates fear that such advancements could usher in a new era of surveillance and an erosion of civil liberties, despite promises from experts such as Accenture's Stan Taylor that the United States will probably adopt a European privacy model and allow individuals to control the dispensation of their personal data. One of the problems of the grid is that firewalls alone will be useless in such a highly networked environment, while legal, billing, and business issues are also complicating matters. The launch of the global grid could also be postponed by telecoms fighting over the proliferation of broadband. Furthermore, a unified, industry-wide grid language specification needs to be adopted, and companies such as Microsoft and IBM acknowledge the importance of open standards. The grid's success will depend on the incorporation of applications capable of self-diagnosis, self-management, and self-repair.

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