VideoRoadblocks to widespread adoption of MFCs include cell size, the lack of a universal connection standard, and customer education. Micro fuel cells will also raise safety and security concerns when users bring devices that contain volatile fluids into buildings and onto public transportation. Potential savings are another wildcard. Even rechargeable batteries will eventually wear out, while micro fuel cells can be infinitely replenished — but chances are that MFC fuel will cost more than the equivalent jolt of electricity used to recharge a battery. Despite these concerns, several Japanese firms plan to begin marketing micro fuel cells — and MFC-compatible devices — as early as next year.
Autonomic Computing: Better Care, Less Repair
Imagine a computer that could monitor itself, upgrade itself, even repair itself. Welcome to the world of autonomic computing, named for the function of the human central nervous system that controls your heartbeat, temperature, respiration, and other vital processes without conscious thought. Its goal is to make computer operation simpler and more reliable "as we move toward global, 7x24, highly-distributed, multivendor environments," says David Bartlett, IBM's director of autonomic computing.
Although fully autonomic systems are still many years away, autonomic-type functions are already being built into some computers. IBM's ThinkPad X40 notebook computer, for example, includes accelerometer circuitry that can sense a potentially damaging fall while the system is plummeting toward the ground. During the fall, the computer automatically raises the hard drive's read/write heads and parks them in a safe position, reducing the possibility of a data-destroying crash.
Since autonomic computing promises better reliability, it should lengthen the time between hardware upgrades, so fewer computers will find their way to the junkyard. The technology should also reduce the need for an expensive backup infrastructure, which means less hardware, fewer people to maintain it, less electricity to run it, and often fewer facilities to hold it all. That sits well with Bartlett, who holds a bachelor's degree in botany and is a self-confessed tree lover. "It kind of hurts," he says, "when I see warehouses replacing forests."
Grid Computing: Putting Idle Resources to Work
Getting onto the grid is another way that businesses can access more processing horsepower with less hardware. The technology uses the Internet to locate computers running at less than full capacity and creates a powerful "virtual computer" from these underutilized systems — wherever they may be.
IBM and Oracle are among the companies maintaining that the technology can help reduce computing "waste" and lower costs, too. "Grid computing allows you to provision resources when you need them," says Benny Souder, Oracle's vice president of distributed database development. "For example, the general ledger is idle most of the time until you get to the period close," notes Souder. "Then you need to do a whole lot of processing. That's where grid computing really shows its value." And the rest of the time? "You would have fewer total components in your data center," says Souder, which means less hardware, lower energy and other support costs, and all the consequent benefits for the environment.
Research firm International Data Corp. forecasts that the grid-computing market is on the verge of major expansion that will drive sales north of $12 billion by 2007. Souder finds that number conservative, but like many of the people interviewed for this article, he also believes that the growth of green technologies will be driven by the need to maximize profits. "I don't think businesses are fundamentally out to spoil the environment, but I don't think most of them fundamentally exist to save the environment, either," says Souder. "If they can find a way to be more efficient, if they can operate their business at a higher ecological level, they will do so because it's in their best financial interest."
John Edwards is a freelance writer based in Gilbert, Arizona.
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