Communication Revolutions

The grid

More on the evolution of "The Grid" from Times Online:

• The Grid is the latest evolution of the internet and the world wide web and computer scientists will announce on Friday that it is ready to be connected to the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).

• The Grid has the kind of power required to download movies in seconds, and the ability to make high-definition video phone calls for the same price as a local call.

• Scientists at CERN, where the world wide web was invented, created the €500 million Grid because they realised that a single computer would not be able to cope with the amount of data the LHC is expected to produce each year – 15 petabytes, or 15 million gigabytes, which would fill 20 million CDs.

• Processing tasks will be distributed between 11 gateway computer centres in ten countries, including Britain, which will share them out between more than 140 sites.

Travel Trends - August 2008

INTL. VISITS UP 11% IN FIRST 6 MONTHS OF 2008. The Department of Commerce said that 23.9 million international visitors traveled to the U.S. during the first six months of 2008, an increase of 11% over the same period in 2007. In June, total visitation was 4.0 million, an increase of 8% over June 2007. International visitors spent $69.9 billion from January through June, an increase over the first half of 2007. Overseas arrivals increased 10% year-to-date. Visitation from overseas markets has grown for 14 consecutive months. Canadian visitation grew 17% year-to-date, while arrivals from Mexico, traveling to interior U.S. points, increased 1% during the first six months of 2008. Details at 202-482-0150. (Special to TA)

--Reflecting the deepening downturn in tourism, the occupancy rate at Hawaii's hotels tumbled to a 10-year low in July, with the high-end market taking the biggest hit. Average hotel occupancy fell to 74.2% in July, down 6.5 percentage points from the same month a year ago, It was the fifth consecutive monthly decline and marked the lowest occupancy rate for any July since 1998 when it was 73,6%, according to a report released this week by Hospitality Advisors LLC, an industry consulting firm. The report showed average daily room rates declined by 0.8% to $211.53. The figures reflect a 14.1% drop in July visitor arrivals reported earlier by the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism. (www.HonoluluAdvertiser.com/Business, 9/10)

--For the seventh straight month, Nevada's casinos amassed less revenue than they did a year earlier. The Nevada Gaming Control Board reported that gaming revenue fell 13% in July, as casinos collected $997.3 million, compared with $1.15 billion in July 2007. On the Las Vegas Strip, July gaming revenue fell 14.7%, from $608.4 million to $519.2 million. (www.TravelWeekly.com, 9/10)

--A new study paid for by Central Florida's biggest tourism bureau says that visitors to Orlando spent a combined $31.1 billion in 2007. That was up 4.7% from 2006. Domestic travelers made up 94% of the total number of visitors to the region but accounted for 82% of visitor spending of $25.6 billion. International travelers made up just 6% of the visitors but 18% of visitor spending, or $5.5 billion. The study was conducted by Global Insight Inc. for the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau. (www.Orlando Sentinel.com/Business, 9/10)

Travel and Hospitality Trends

From HSMAI -

55 trends affecting Society, Travel and Hospitality.