Microsoft invests $240 million in Facebook

I read an article titled "Microsoft invests $240 million in Facebook" the url link is: http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/10/26/facebook.microsoft.ap/index.html

The article was about how Microsoft decided to invest $240 million in Facebook. The article states that Microsoft’s investment was more than Facebook revenues in a year. However, Facebook is the second largest social network and is only growing faster. Facebook is increasing its number of employee’s to support this growth. Sites like Facebook and Myspace attract advertising and that generates large revenue. Microsoft predicts that Facebook could attract as many as 300 million users worldwide within a few years and Microsoft will then be able to get back its investment. Also, the article insights that Microsoft could tune into people’s interests listed on their profiles to gear ads towards them. Microsoft also plans to work with Facebook in other areas that are disclosed at this time.

This article interested me because I have a Facebook profile. It's a little scary that people from Microsoft could look at my profile in order to finds ads that would interest me. The thought of having strangers access my profile is a little creepy and seems kind of Big Brother-ish.

Technology helps firefighters on land, in air

I read an article from CNN.com titled “Technology helps firefighters on land, in air.” The url is: http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/10/23/wildfire.tech/index.html

The article focused on the recent wildfires in California and how technology is playing a role in the containment and tracking of the fires. Technology’s role in this is the fact that NASA satellites are used to track the wildfires almost as they are spreading. The California Department of Forestry and Fire uses laptops and GPS in conjunction to locate fires.

I think that this new breakthrough and ideology is necessary to fight these fires quickly. Wildfires not only destroy the forests and environment they also can take peoples homes or lives. This new method of detection can help minimize the destruction of forests and peoples homes.