Information Technology

Linz may have been turned into a big playground for Ars Electronica, but it's not all fun and games at this year's festival. The exhibitors have ambled into existential territory, and their works raise some of life's biggest questions - what does it mean to be human? What is truth?

Quantum computer users may soon have to wrestle with their own version of the "PC or Mac?" question. A design based on superconducting electrical circuits has now performed two benchmark feats, suggesting it will be a serious competitor to rival setups using photons or ions.

Rockwell Collins is to lead the development, production and distribution of user terminals for Inmarsat's future Ka-band satellite-supported Global Xpress aeronautical services for the aviation industry, an arrangement that is expected to facilitate game-changing technology in the in-flight connectivity sector.

The Aerospace and Defence (A&D) industry has been the source of some of the most influential technological advances in modern history - computers and computer networking, satellites and satellite navigation, and important advances in physics - all have their roots in the sector's research. That is why there is a strong innovation imperative for the industry.

Brazilian carrier Gol will roll out a new in-flight entertainment platform on board its fleet of Boeing 737 aircraft from September, to be available to passengers with WiFi-enabled devices.

Steve Jobs has officially resigned as Chief Executive Officer of Apple and its board has named Tim Cook, previously Apple's COO, as his replacement.

Following the retirement of the space shuttle on 21 July, Americans couldn't have relished the thought of being dependent on Russian Soyuz rockets to get into space. So when Russia's space agency Roskosmos said a week later that the 370-tonne International Space Station would be ditched in the Pacific Ocean in 2020, it must have seemed a hit below the belt.

United-Continental intends to convert to paperless flight decks and deploy 11,000 Apple iPad tablet computers to all United and Continental pilots.

Using personal electronic devices during all phases of flight will be technically feasible in the future as modern aircraft are being designed to be tolerant to such devices, including transmitting PEDs.

Lt. Gen. Rick Lynch said he has seen progress in the development of military robotics and unmanned systems, but he'd like to see more, including a renewed push for more autonomous systems.