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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 16, 2003)
Sell Tech The Battalion Page 6A • Thursday, January 16, HDTV complications prevent widespread use High definition programming lacking standards, set to be universal by 2001 By B THE ASS About 30 By Jonathan Daugbjerg THE BATTALION The State Of Digital Television Warren Sapp is a force to contend with on the football field, but for those watching the NFL playoffs this weekend on high definition televi sion (HDTV), Sapp may become a force to con tend with right in their living rooms. Those who actually get to experience this phe nomenon, however, are few and far between. As HDTV becomes more widespread, net works are broadcasting programs — including the NFL Playoffs — in the crystal clarity of high definition television. Yet, after 15 years of planning and develop ment, the Federal ___________________ Communications Commission (FCC) and the television industry are still struggling to deliver widespread digital televi sion to the American pub lic. HDTV’s vivid color and lifelike images are have a television superior to the analog- based televisions viewed 4.8 Million households today, but HDTV costs, have digital televisions formats, and availabililty are barriers among televi sion broadcasters, the FCC, and television man ufacturing firms. 105 Million HOUSEHOLDS in the United States Half of the 1,300 stations use some type of HDTV Source: USA Today The FCC issued a mandate on Aug. 8, 2002, requiring that the vast majority of television sets sold in the United States be equipped with digi tal tuners by 2007. The requirements are set to take effect in stages, affecting larger model tele visions first. The FCC estimates an increased cost of $250 per television set to add the tuners, and claims that the impact to consumers would be minimal due to the continually decreasing price of elec tronic equipment. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), which represents television manufactur ers, says the $250 tuner price lays a multi-billion dollar “tax” on consumers and will either ask the FCC to reconsider its position, or will fight the ruling in court. The CEA claims that the largest obstacle facing HDTV is the lack of a broadcast standard for cable and satellite providers, and believes digital tuners should be optional because a large number of people subscribe to those services. The FCC has criticized networks for not rolling out a larger number of pro grams in HDTV format. Major television and cable networks such as ABC, NBC, CBS and Discovery have responded by increasing their digital offerings, but the formats in which digital programs are broadcast are often erratic and unreliable. Some networks choose to broadcast their digi tal programming in a standard 4:3 aspect ratio, which conflicts with the 16:9 widescreen format of a large number of new digital television sets. A standard-aspect ratio program will not fill up a widescreen television, and could cause perma nent damage after extended usage. These new sets will be difficult to use if there is no standard format for broadcasting high definition televi sion programming. Transitioning to digital broadcasting has been a major challenge for individual television sta tions as well. With conversion costs that can approach $3 million, many stations — especially those in middle and smaller markets — can't afford to purchase the equipment needed for dig ital television broadcasting. Even major network affiliates in smaller mar kets are feeling the pinch, as some stations make no more than a few hundred thousand dollars per year in profits. As a stopgap measure, the FCC gave small market stations some relief last November by allowing the installation of low- power digital transmitters. This temporary solu tion, however, still leaves many viewers with no HDTV service in the near future. With so many conflicts surrounding HDTV, questions are raised as to whether the United Mandate Issued August 200/1 requires television sets sold in the United Statesf to be equipped with a digital tuner by the following dates: Large Screen ( 36 inch or larger ) were reporte |Tech Unive Wednesday Medium Screen (25 inch - 35 inch) July 2O0i Small Screen (13 inch - 24 inch) VCR S AND DVD PLAYERS July 200] episode that ism-alert pla jittery Amer threat of a bi The FBI r had accouni However, ai Washington, tion of anon; ties believe lethal bacte destroyed £ accounted fo or misplaced In Lubbo< Gonzalez sar gation was c< The Wash the invest!gal incident is g ruling out tl Low I hu is S\\i nsos \m> R( hi s Oi Luna • THE BATTAUC'. States w ill miss the July 2003 date for complete of the analog to digital transition set by the FCC mandate. A March 10, 2003 Consumr Electronics Association summit will contin; talks between the FCC and industry leaders c«- cerning plans for HDTV standards. Misplaced surgical clamps, sponges show up inside patients By Jeff Donn THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Surgical teams accidentally leave clamps, sponges and other tools inside about 1,500 patients nationwide each year, according to the biggest study of the problem yet. The mistakes largely result not from surgeon fatigue, but i'rom , the nu tl hress arising from emergencies or complications discovered on the oper ating table, the researchers reported. It also happens more often to fat patients, simply because there is more room inside them to lose equipment, according to the study. Both the researchers and several other experts agreed that the number of such mistakes is small compared with the roughly 28 million operations a year in the United States^ “JBut no one would sav it’s acceptable,” said Dr. Donald Berwick, president of the Boston-based nonprofit Institute for Healthcare Improvement. The study, done by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard School of Public Health, both in Boston, was published in Thursday’s New England Journal of Medicine. The researchers checked insurance records from about 800,000 operations in Massachusetts for 16 yea^s ending in 2001. They counted 61 forgotten pieces of surgical equipment in 54 patients. From that, they calculated a national estimate of 1.500 cases year ly. A total of $3 million was paid out in the Massachusetts surgical cases, mostly in settlements. Two-thirds of the mistakes hap pened even though the equipment was counted before and after the proce dure, in keeping with the standard medical practice. Most lost dbjects were sponges, but also included were metal clamps and electrodes. In two cases. 11-inch retractors were forgotten inside patients. In another operation, four sponges were left inside someone. Most patients needed additional surgery to remove the object, but sometimes it came out by itself or in a doctor’s office. For other cases, patients were not even aware of the object, which turned up in later sur gery for other problems. twen of th By Mi THE ASS Record-h are promptii early 20s to hadn’t thoug age: buy a h Erin Eng faced collej she and he bought their house in They’ve sin three-bedroc the town ho dents. She’s Cristi Cc into a little 1 n Safety H< More than just another pretty face. We've changed our name. But we're not stopping there We're moving in a whole new DIRECTION as well. That movement is forward. Forward, into the future. Forward, with a new way of doing business. Forward, with innovative products and services to meet your needs. Keep watching ... And we'll keep listening. Pm il. 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