Sharks in Australia begin using Twitter to warn surfers and swimmers of their presence

More than 300 tagged sharks automatically send tweets when they swim within a kilometer of beaches on country's the dangerous west coast

Large sharks off Western Australia are now doing their part to keep surfers and swimmers safe–by sending tweets warning of their presence.

Scientists have fitted 320 sharks, many of them great whites, with transmitters that automatically issue warnings to the Surf Life Saving Western Australia’s Twitter feed when the tagged sharks approach within a kilometer of the coast’s popular beaches.

For example, a tweet sent early Saturday in Australia reads: “Fisheries advise: tagged Bronze whaler shark detected at Garden Island (north end) receiver at 06:0700 AM on 27-Dec-2013.”

The twitter feed has more than 14,000 followers and the real-time warnings, it’s hoped, will help people make more informed decisions when choosing to venture into the ocean.Large sharks off Western Australia are now doing their part to keep surfers and swimmers safe–by sending tweets warning of their presence.Scientists have fitted 320 sharks, many of them great whites, with transmitters that automatically issue warnings to the Surf Life Saving Western Australia’s Twitter feed when the tagged sharks approach within a kilometer of the coast’s popular beaches.For example, a tweet sent early Saturday in Australia reads: “Fisheries advise: tagged Bronze whaler shark detected at Garden Island (north end) receiver at 06:0700 AM on 27-Dec-2013.”

Chris Peck, from SLSWA, told Sky News that this system will reach beachgoers before alerts issued via traditional media, such as radio and newspapers.

“You might not have got some information until the following day, in which case the hazard has long gone and the information might not be relevant,” Peck said. “Now it’s instant information and really people don’t have an excuse to say we’re not getting the information, it’s about whether you are searching for it and finding it.”

Six people have been killed by sharks off Western Australia in the past two years. The latest victim, Chris Boyd, 35, was fatally bitten while surfing in November.

The government has been under tremendous pressure to make the waters safer and the Tweeting program comes after a decision to allow professional hunters to kill large sharks sighted in certain areas.

Premier Colin Barnett recently told reporters: “The safety of human life, the safety of beach goers using our marine environment must come first.”

The shark-culling effort, however, has been highly criticized as a program that will only lend a perception that the waters are safer after a shark or several sharks are removed.

So far, nobody has tweeted in opposition to shark’s using Twitter to announce their arrival. To be sure, it seems like the more rational of the two plans.

By Pete Thomas

iPhone 6 and Galaxy S5 will both lack the latest trendy smartphone feature

The iPhone 6 and Galaxy S5 will reportedly not have flexible displays, as some people may have expected, unnamed “industry sources” told The Korea Herald. Apparently Samsung is unable to mass-produce curved displays in sufficient numbers for its upcoming flagship device. “The current capacity for flexible panels is not high enough for the Galaxy S5, which will be rolled out early next year.” Eugene Investment & Securities analyst Kim Jong-hyun said. “Curved ones will be unveiled late next year as a Galaxy variant rather than as a flagship model.”

Because Samsung and LG are the only two companies producing curved displays, and because they can’t yet meet Apple’s volume requirements, it’s believed that the iPhone 6 that will launch next year will also lack a curved display. Other Chinese handset makers are not expected to make use of the technology either. “Apple is a very difficult client. Suppliers must disclose every cost and detail and reap little profit,” an unnamed source said. “Chinese companies may not stand it at least for now.”

Samsung is currently producing up to 500,000 flexible displays for Smartphones, with a 30 percent yield, and production could go up to 1 million units in late 2014. However, Samsung’s first flexible display Smartphone will reportedly only sell 50,000 units in South Korea – the Galaxy Round is not available in other markets. LG also makes curved displays for the LG G Flex handset, which is available in South Korea and other markets. LG is reportedly producing fewer curved screens than Samsung each month, while Japan Display “is even further behind.”

Qualcomm Picks Insider as New Chief Executive

SAN FRANCISCO — Qualcomm, the wireless technology company that is one of the largest chip makers in the world, said on Friday that its chief operating officer, Steven M. Mollenkopf, would become its new chief executive.

The company said its board chose Mr. Mollenkopf, 44, as chief executive in a unanimous vote. In March, he will succeed Paul E. Jacobs, who will become executive chairman.

Mr. Mollenkopf, an electrical engineer with deep experience in semiconductors, has worked his way up the ranks at the company for the last 20 years. In recent years, he oversaw the $3.1 billion purchase of the chip maker Atheros Communications, the company’s largest acquisition ever, before becoming chief operating officer in 2011.

As a member of Qualcomm’s executive committee, Mr. Mollenkopf helped to guide Qualcomm’s global strategy. The company says his technical and business leadershiphave been critical to its success.

“With today’s announcement, we enable a smooth transition to a proven executive in Steve Mollenkopf,” Sherry Lansing, presiding director of Qualcomm’s board, said in a statement.

Qualcomm, a company based in San Diego with a market capitalization of about $123 billion, receives most of its revenue and profit from technology for cellphones to communicate with wireless networks. The cellphone and network technology, including CDMA chips and cellular networks, are used by Sprint andVerizon Wireless. Qualcomm also makes mobile processors that run the software of many smartphones, including those made by Samsung Electronics, Sony, Nokia and BlackBerry.

“I look forward to working with our executive team and our employees in driving growth for our company and the entire mobile ecosystem as it transitions to 4G and beyond,” Mr. Mollenkopf said in a statement.

Qualcomm is trying to expand more aggressively in the lucrative mobile industry. Last month, the chip maker joined the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, along with BlackBerry’s co-founders, Mike Lazaridis and Doug Fregin, to prepare a bid for BlackBerry, the struggling smartphone maker, according to people briefed on the process.

While Qualcomm is enormously successful, it has run into some problems in China, its biggest market. The company said in November that it faced an antitrust investigation by the Chinese government for reasons that have been kept confidential. In the financial year that ended in September, Qualcomm earned $12.3 billion in revenue from China, or 49 percent of the company’s total revenue; a portion of the revenue attributed to China came from phones assembled in the country and sold in foreign markets.

Many analysts speculate that the antitrust investigation could be related to China Mobile, the largest wireless network in China with more than 750 million subscribers, which is preparing to introduce its faster fourth-generation network later this month. China Mobile’s new 4G network will most likely rely on technology used by Qualcomm. Analysts say they believe that is why the Chinese government started the antitrust inquiry, as a way to gain leverage ahead of royalty negotiations with Qualcomm.

China Mobile is also widely expected to reach a deal with Apple to carry its iPhone. While Apple designs its own processors, the iPhones rely on Qualcomm’s networking chips to connect to newer 4G networks.