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CHRIS KATTERJOHN Commentary: China Syndrome hits 21st century

The Chinese have taken a keen interest in U.S. corporations of late. Just this year, a Chinese firm acquired the personal computer business of IBM Corp., and a consortium led by a large Chinese conglomerate investigated-but dropped-the idea of buying appliance maker Maytag. Though they involved long-standing and cherished American brands, neither deal raised too much reaction from American business executives or politicians in Washington. By contrast, when China’s CNOOC Ltd. offered in June to acquire California-based Unocal, all hell…

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RETURN ON TECHNOLOGY: Setting up home wireless not for faint of heart Books, articles, Web pages and instruction manuals may help you through it, but then again …

There are some big steps in life that merit serious thought. One is marriage. Another is buying a house. Yet a third is whether to set up a wireless network at home or in a small office. Of the three, the first two may be the less stressful. A friend of mine recently tried to set up a small WiFi (wireless) network at home, and gave it up in frustration after days of technologically induced anguish. He’s been married for…

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New director brings experience to center: Woodall to mentor entrepreneurs at Purdue facility

Jerry M. Woodall, the new director of Purdue University’s ambitious entrepreneurship center, enjoyed an illustrious career spanning three decades at International Business Machines Corp. But for the 66-year-old New Englander, a job at New York-based IBM emerged only after another public corporation, The Gillette Co. in Boston, rescinded its offer. It did so, oddly enough, after learning he had only one eye. A cataract led doctors to remove his left eye after birth. “I distinctly remember them telling me I’d…

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INVESTING: Rising rates could create opportunities for profit

Interest rates are interesting, right? Well, to a market geek like me, maybe. I know the rest of you take a glancing look at borrowing costs maybe once a month, and you might have even stopped doing that, given that rates have been pretty much unchanged over the past year and a half. A quick bond primer: When you watch CNBC and someone says bonds are falling, that means interest rates are rising, which causes bond prices to fall. When…

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Often thought of as new technology, fuel cells have long history: Here’s how they work:

Scientists are working to make fuel cells a viable energy source for the 21st century. But, in fact, the technology dates back more than 150 years. Research began in the mid-1800s, but with the onset of the Industrial Revolution, fuel cells were abandoned in favor of more powerful alternatives, said Jack Brouwer, associate director of the National Fuel Cell Research Center in Irvine, Calif. “They didn’t think fuel cells could contribute,” he said. The technology sat dormant until the beginning…

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Incentives take aim at rising fuel costs: State pumps out grants for company vehicles using alternative fuels

A combination of soaring gasoline prices, state grants and environmental idealism have whet appetites among businesses for “alternative fuel vehicles” such as this batterypowered Global Electric Motorcars model. A $3,996 grant from the Lieutenant Governor’s Office paid for about one-third the cost of the Pizza Express vehicle, manufactured by a DaimlerChrysler subsidiary. “Industries such as ours should be pioneers in the electric vehicle frontier,” said Gabe Connell, franchisee of the Pizza Express restaurants near IUPUI and in Broad Ripple. As…

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Firm plans to get personal with clients’ home pages: Former gubernatorial candidate runs Web business

Developing an Internet home page that gives users more options for content than what behemoths such as America Online and Yahoo! offer through their syndicated selections has become the ambition of George Witwer. The 46-year-old Bluffton native, who once aspired to be Indiana governor, launched the northwest-side Humanizing Technologies in January 2000. With much of the product’s research and development in the can, the venture is close to weaning itself from investors and, for the first time, could turn a…

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Scammer targets local trust: E-mail scheme seeks data from Pulliam grant recipients

An Internet scammer borrowed the identity of a high-profile local foundation this month, blasting out an error-riddled e-mail message that solicited personal information from former grant recipients. Leaders of the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust responded by sending its own e-mail to all 2,400 individuals on its electronic contact list, instructing them to disregard the fake missive that promised a $2.5 million grant. Fallout from the so-called phishing attack appears to be minimal so far, trust CEO Harriet M. Ivey…

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VIEWPOINT: Hoosiers gave tech transfer a big boost

Today, we take for granted that our state universities play a role far beyond their traditional educational mission-especially in the economic arena. University-sponsored research is being licensed to the private sector, or used to form new companies. Universities are managing business incubators. Consulting partnerships between academia and industry are commonplace. It wasn’t always this way. Not long ago, university officials were skeptical of becoming too involved with the private sector. Business leaders and investors didn’t recognize the value of innovation…

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Court files grow thick against Guidant: Shareholders, patients, employees air their grievances

“Attention, patients with Guidant heart defibrillators,” the announcer’s voice booms as the television commercial begins. Nearly 50,000 of the devices were recalled June 17, and people using one may be at risk, according to the ad, which has run in Tennessee, Kentucky and central Indiana so far. It ends by urging viewers to call the Becker Law Office in Louisville for a free consultation. That ad could spawn at least 10 wrongful-death lawsuits, according to Gregory Bubalo, a Louisville-based lawyer…

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Researchers seek fuel-cell answers: Universities, companies see long-term potential in alternative power device

The figure-eight slot-car track in the basement laboratory at IUPUI looks out of place amid the expensive computer equipment surrounding it. But when research assistant Alan Benedict fumbles with a few wires and the cars come to life, it becomes clear the racetrack is more than just a toy. The miniature cars operate on fuel cells and are part of Purdue University’s exploration into the alternative power source. Scientists across the country are studying the clean power alternative, stoked by…

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RETURN ON TECHNOLOGY: Here’s the secret to painless wireless hookups

Last time, in the June 27 issue, we explored the basics of data WiFi, which is often just called “wireless.” This time, we’ll look at how you hook up your laptop or notebook to a wireless provider. Wireless works pretty much like a cell phone does, except that you’re exchanging data packets, not voice. Therefore, you need the computer equivalent of a cell phone. Most new notebook computers come with built-in wireless hardware that you’ll never physically see, because it’s…

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Purdue, Regenstrief look for ways to trim health costs: Health & Hospital Association a ‘real-world’ partner

“Ultimately, we think the benefits of the partnership will be more efficient, costeffective care to the citizens of Indiana,” Morr said. “The bottom line is, how can we do what we do better?” Small and medium-size hospitals, which typically do not have people on staff dedicated to study the types of issues the Regenstrief center will tackle, could benefit most from the affiliation, Morr said. Ed Abel, director in charge of health care services for the locally based Blue &…

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Ball State fosters alliance with film production pros: Center aims to help students and industry

It’s a film school without the film school. Buoyed by a $20 million grant from Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment Inc., Ball State University’s digital learning efforts are making way for a wave of projects worthy of attention on and off campus. Recent graduate Jaron Henrie-McCrea rode the swell all the way to the Student Academy Awards last month, winning an Oscar for his short film, “Knock Knock.” Less than a week later, global industry group Media Communications Association-International honored three other…

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Marian College launches motorsports curriculum: Classes to focus on business side of racing

This fall, Marian College will begin offering a unique curriculum focused on the business of motorsports. Initially, motorsports-related classes will be offered within Marian’s sports management program, but school officials said they’d like to expand the program to offer a minor and major in motorsports management. Unlike programs at Purdue University, IUPUI and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Marian’s courses will not focus on computers and engineering. Instead, the program will instruct students in marketing, communications, sales and business management in…

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SPORTS: Keep F1 and its cash coming back to Speedway

I enjoy auto racing but must admit Formula One is not my cup of motor oil. On assignment for the local daily, I was at the initial U.S. Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, wrote a less-than-positive column about it, and haven’t been back since. I liked the technology and the spectacle of the passionate, flag-waving fans, but everything else I viewed with disdain. Particularly distasteful was/is the smugness that permeates the F1 atmosphere. It emanates from the series’…

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‘Clean’ manufacturing center seeking cash to survive: General Assembly kills funding for Purdue program

The center created by the Legislature to help manufacturers use environmentally friendly materials and production methods is scrambling for cash to keep stamping out solutions. The Indiana Clean Manufacturing Technology & Safe Materials Institute lost its $475,000 annual state subsidy-a little over half its income-amid budget cutting in the last session of the General Assembly. Industry and environmental groups are lamenting the potential scale-back or even closure of the institute if new funding isn’t found by August. “We certainly feel…

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RETURN ON TECHNOLOGY: Wireless: What exactly is it and why is it unreliable?

I’ve been getting a lot of questions about wireless lately. You know, WiFi, the magical connection between laptop and Internet, the key to actually working at Starbucks? The questions vary from, “Why does my laptop just disconnect sometimes?” to, “How can I get wireless out by the pool?” I tried to scrunch the answers down into a single column, but they kept bulging out of the seams. So I decided to split them into three consecutive columns. I wouldn’t ordinarily…

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Taking the pulse of life sciences: Experts weigh in on whether Indiana is keeping up in the economic development race

IBJ: Is Indiana gaining ground against other states in the race to grow as a life sciences hub? What are some specific benchmarks that underscore your opinion? JOHNSON: Indiana is gaining ground, but Indiana already starts on really very substantial ground. There are a lot of outside validations of that and I think it’s important for this audience to hear a couple of them because there is nothing like having people on the outside pay attention to what we’re doing…

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Clinic predicts Hamilton County will be fertile ground: Doctors relocate reproductive practice to growing area

Surgery centers and a heart hospital are among a host of health care facilities that have risen in burgeoning north-suburban Hamilton County in recent years. Now, a new fertility clinic could contribute to the population surge by helping couples conceive children. The 6,400-square-foot Follas Center for Reproductive Medicine opened late last month on East 146th Street in Noblesville in a collaboration between several Indianapolis reproductive medicine innovators. The center is a partnership between Dr. David McLaughlin, a local pioneer of…

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