MESSAGE
| DATE | 2008-03-15 |
| FROM | Ruben Safir
|
| SUBJECT | Subject: [NYLXS - HANGOUT] Tech Development in the US
|
I'm posting this because frankly, I'm so sick of the lack of investment
in higher education within the US....
Editor's note: This story was updated at 3:40 p.m. PDT to add more on
Gates' and Mundies' policy talk.
WASHINGTON--It's not always easy persuading politicians on Capitol Hill
to take up items on Silicon Valley's wish list, even if you're Bill
Gates and his posse.
That was one message that the Microsoft chairman and Chief Research and
Strategy Officer Craig Mundie had on Thursday for the some 1,100 local
business and government representatives gathered at a breakfast here
sponsored by the Northern Virginia Technology Council. (NVTC's board
includes companies like IBM, Micron, Unisys, AOL, Sprint Nextel, and,
of course, Microsoft.)
Gates spent most of his hourlong appearance at the event behind a podium
in a cavernous hotel ballroom, waxing optimistic about the future
of software and hardware. He gave what has become a familiar set of
predictions about the increasing digitization of analog things ("smart"
white boards in offices, physical desktops that are touch-sensitive
computers in themselves, a la Microsoft's Surface tabletop PC) and
the rising importance of software in everything from health care to
three-dimensional simulations to education.
It was during a question-and-answer session with the audience (in which,
for the record, no members of the media were allowed to participate)
that Gates and Mundie, seated side by side on the stage, opened up a
bit about the dynamics of trying to get their wide-ranging priorities
noticed by policy setters.
"Historically, the United States has done a great job of doing the right
investments," Gates said. The concern going forward, he said, is whether
politicians will be willing to make the "trade-offs" necessary to keep
the nation ahead of other countries in the high-tech realm.
For example, it may be more attractive in the short term for politicians
to hand out income tax rebates, but they mustn't neglect choices that
could support long-term economic growth, such as upping federal grants
for research and development and increasing the number of visas for
skilled foreign workers, Gates said.
But Mundie, for one, said he sometimes finds that action on Silicon Valley
priorities can be a tough sell, as politicians have a tendency to respond,
"The polls won't let us do that."
Congress: 'Skewed to the short term' Members of representative democracy
are supposed to know how to balance those competing goals, but Congress's
decisions are "too skewed to the short term right now," Mundie said.
Both executives were responding to a question from Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.),
who was present in the event's audience, about the "political context"
the Microsoft co-founder and his cohorts have been finding during their
in-person meetings with congressional leaders this week.
Gates was on Capitol Hill Wednesday morning speaking to a House of
Representatives committee about the need for three major areas of action:
increasing the number of H-1B temporary visas and green-card permanent
visas that are allotted to high-tech workers; increasing investments in
federal research programs; and focusing on ways to improve the educational
system, particularly in the math and science fields.
Afterward, he spoke to the Democratic caucus. He also dined with
congressional leaders on Tuesday night. All in all, the experience has
been what Moran called a "barnstorming tour" of both chambers of Congress.
Gates, echoing his public remarks in Congress Wednesday, said that raising
visa caps is the "hot issue of the moment" for his company. Microsoft and
others argue that there aren't enough qualified workers to fill highly
technical engineering roles at their companies and that a shortage of work
visas could stymie their ability to compete with foreign companies. The
request, however, is controversial--groups representing American computer
programmers argue that a larger number of visas will depress wages and
displace American workers.
"I'm still optimistic about the U.S. doing the right thing," Gates said.
White spaces for wireless broadband In response to an audience member's
question, Gates and Mundie also touched briefly on another policy issue
that's dear to Microsoft's business: freeing up vacant TV channels--known
as "white spaces" in FCC speak--for use as a wireless broadband
pipe. Companies like his hope that delivery method could eventually
compete with cable and DSL offerings and lead to lower prices and more
choices for consumers.
The white spaces are considered ideal for deploying wireless broadband
services because its signals can travel long distances and through
obstacles--or, as Mundie put it, "the last hope to get some good
spectrum." (Microsoft isn't the only company with that view--Google,
Dell, Intel, and HP are also interested.)
The plan, however, faces serious resistance from TV broadcasters, who
argue that allowing unlicensed devices to roam on that spectrum will
cause serious interference to their signals. So far, the FCC hasn't made a
decision on what to do about the small swath of unused channels, although
it is currently testing prototype devices for interference concerns.
Gates, for his part, said he's "hopeful" that regulators will decide in
the tech industry's favor.
--
http://www.mrbrklyn.com - Interesting Stuff
http://www.nylxs.com - Leadership Development in Free Software
So many immigrant groups have swept through our town that Brooklyn, like Atlantis, reaches mythological proportions in the mind of the world - RI Safir 1998
http://fairuse.nylxs.com DRM is THEFT - We are the STAKEHOLDERS - RI Safir 2002
"Yeah - I write Free Software...so SUE ME"
"The tremendous problem we face is that we are becoming sharecroppers to our own cultural heritage -- we need the ability to participate in our own society."
"> I'm an engineer. I choose the best tool for the job, politics be damned.<
You must be a stupid engineer then, because politcs and technology have been attached at the hip since the 1st dynasty in Ancient Egypt. I guess you missed that one."
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