Media
Contact:
John
Blair, (301) 975-4261
Identification
Upcoming Conference
to Explore Biometric Technology
Systems
using biometricsautomated methods of recognizing a person based
on physiological (such as hand or finger images, facial traits and
iris patterns) or behavioral characteristics (such as dynamic signature
verification and keystroke dynamics)are in use or being tested
in many places where personal authentication and restricted access
to a computer, network or physical facilities are important. They
also are expected to play an increasing role in electronic commerce
by adding security measures beyond encryption and digital signatures.
NIST is holding
the Biometric Consortiums annual fall conference, BC2001, to
showcase recent advances in the field and examine technological, business
and security issues facing the biometrics industry, personal authentication
system developers and end-users. The conference will take place Sept.
12-14, 2001, at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, Fla. Co-sponsors
include the National Security Agency, the Department of Defenses
Biometric Management Office, and the General Services Administrations
Federal Technology Service Office of Smart Card Initiatives.
For more information,
including a conference program and online registration form, go to
www.nist.gov/bc2001.
Media
Contact:
Philip
Bulman, (301) 975-5661
Medicine
Proceedings from
In Vitro Diagnostics Workshop Now Available
A potential
non-tariff trade barrier for U.S. medical diagnostic devices in the
European Union looms ahead in 2003. Thats when the EUs
directive on in vitro diagnostics will require that the calibration
of all new medical devices be traceable to standards of a higher
order. Because the United States does not have a formalized
system for tracing the accuracy of all tests performed with in
vitro diagnostic devices, U.S. manufacturerswho produce
more than 60 percent of the devices sold in Europecould have
their products challenged under the new directive.
To address this
issue, NIST and five partner organizations convened the Workshop on
Measurement Traceability for Clinical Laboratory Testing and In
Vitro Diagnostic Test Systems last November. The proceedings of
that workshop are now available online or on CD.
The document covers
10 talks given by national and international experts who provided
the background and current status of the traceability structure for
clinical laboratory measurements worldwide. It also records the candid
discussion of issues and concerns expressed by stakeholders from around
the world. There was general consensus among the 135 participants
that healthcare is now more than ever a global issue and commodity,
demanding global solutions. The sense of urgency, commitment and dedication
of these stakeholders is uniquely captured in this publication.
An Adobe Acrobat
file of the proceedings may be downloaded at www.cstl.nist.gov/nist839/ivd.html
or obtained on a free CD from Ellyn Beary, NIST, 100 Bureau Dr., Stop
8300, Gaithersburg, Md. 20899-8300; (301) 975-8307; IVD@nist.gov.
Media
Contact:
Michael
E. Newman, (301)
975-3025
Internet
Commerce
MEP Plans to
Develop e-Business Testbed for Small Manufacturers
While
the Internet offers tremendous opportunities for businesses, both
large and small, many smaller firms have been slow to hop on the electronic
business bandwagon for a myriad of reasons. Among them is confusion
about technology as well as a lack of understanding about the benefits,
opportunities and limitations of e-business.
To help small
manufacturers better understand whether e-business should be a strategic
part of the way they do business, NISTs Manufacturing Extension
Partnership is planning an e-Business Demonstration Testbed. The testbed
will be used by MEP centers nationwide to simulate a wide variety
of e-business applications to show their small manufacturing clients.
MEP is inviting
companies to participate by providing commercial, off-the-shelf e-business
applications that can be used by smaller manufacturers. Applications
being considered include using Internet-based technologies to improve
inter- and intra-enterprise communications, integrating the ordering
process with enterprise resource planning and accounting functions,
and transferring data within a supply chain. These applications should
be able to be simulated either through the Internet or by CD-ROM.
For further information
on the new testbed, go to www.mep.nist.gov/testbed-announcement
or contact David Cranmer or Rick Korchak, (301) 975-5020, TestbedManager@mep.nist.gov.
MEP is a nationwide
network of 400 manufacturing extension centers and field offices providing
a wide variety of expertise and services to small manufacturers (under
500 employees) in all 50 states and Puerto Rico. For more information
on MEP, go to www.mep.nist.gov.
Media
Contact:
Jan
Kosko, (301) 975-2767
Electronic
Books
Fourth Annual
E-Book Conference Planned for November
Many
writers and publishers now regard electronic books as a significant
part of the publishing industrys future, including formats such
as newspapers, textbooks, manuals and novels.
The industry has
matured since NIST sponsored the worlds first e-book conference
in 1998. NIST is now preparing for the fourth annual e-book conference,
which will focus on authors, digital rights management and how electronic
books enable broader applications such as e-learning.
This years
conference also will include special sessions on new e-book applications
for libraries as well as industry standards, such as the NIST-facilitated
Open eBook Publication Structure Standard 1.0.
The conference
will feature exhibits by a range of publishers, e-book manufacturers
and others. Industry-oriented sessions will focus on topics such as
global markets and successful business models.
Tentative speakers
will include journalist and author M.J. Rose; literary agent Richard
Curtis; Librarian of Congress James Billington; Kevin Nathanson, group
project manager for e-books, Adobe Systems Inc.; Albert Vitale, chairman
emeritus of Random House; and Doug Bennett of print-on-demand publisher
iUniverse.
E-Book 2001 will
be held Nov. 5-7, 2001, at the Ronald Reagan Building and International
Trade Center in Washington, D.C. The conference will be co-sponsored
by NIST and the National Information Standards Organization.
For more information
on E-Book 2001, go to www.nist.gov/ebook2001.
The web site provides an electronic registration form. You also may
register by contacting Kim Snouffer, NIST, 100 Bureau Dr., Stop 3461,
Gaithersburg, Md. 20899-3461, (301) 975-2776, kimberly.snouffer@nist.gov
Media
Contact:
Philip
Bulman, (301) 975-5661