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December 6, 2012

Policy Watch

House passes immigration bill backed by tech firms
The House has approved legislation supported by the technology industry that would set aside 55,000 green cards each year for foreigners who graduate from U.S. universities with STEM degrees. The bill would eliminate a lottery that awards green cards to people from regions with traditionally lower rates of immigration, such as Africa. The White House released a statement opposing the measure but encouraging Congress to continue with efforts to fix the nation's "broken immigration system." The Senate is unlikely to take up the measure during the current congressional session, this article says. San Jose Mercury News (Calif.) (free registration)/The Associated Press (11/30)

USPTO chief, a key player in patent reform, to step down
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director David Kappos, who is credited by many with helping enhance the transparency of the U.S. patent system while reducing the backlog of patent claims, has announced that he will step down in February. The office is working to implement the America Invents Act, which calls for reforms such as a switch to a first-to-file system. "Over the next five years there's going to be a lot of uncertainty, a lot of rule making that's going to be required to effectively implement the AIA, and David Kappos was such a great leader," said Jack Barufka, a lawyer who specializes in intellectual property. The Washington Post (11/30)

Technology Trends

U.N. countries withhold support for Internet proposal backed by U.S.
The U.S. and Canada have yet to gain much backing from other U.N. countries for a proposal that seeks to exempt Internet-based companies such as Google and Facebook from international regulations being discussed at the World Conference on International Telecommunications. Europe supports the proposal, which would blunt the efforts of Russia, the Middle East and Africa to gain regulatory powers over the Internet through the ITU, an arm of the U.N., this article says. Reuters (12/4) , The Wall Street Journal (12/3)

IEEE taps 5 GHz band for superfast Wi-Fi
The IEEE is in the process of advancing Wi-Fi rates beyond the current speeds supported by the next-generation 802.11n protocol by using frequencies outside the crowded 2.4 GHz band. By migrating to the 5 GHz spectrum, the group says it is on its way to supporting capacities as high as 7 Gbps by 2015, when the final 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard will be operational. InformationWeek (11/28)

Career & Workforce Development

8 steps to adding a skill to your tool box
Learning new skills is important for advancing in the business world, but you should make sure you have chosen an attainable goal and you are willing to put in the work necessary to achieve it, experts say. "Many people implicitly believe that if you have to work hard at something, it means you lack ability. This is rubbish," Joseph Weintraub of Babson College says. You can determine how best to learn an ability by examining the techniques that have worked for you in the past, motivational psychologist Heidi Grant Halvorson says. Harvard Business Review online/HBR Blog Network (11/29)

When IT meets MBA
An MBA can help tech executives, but it may not guarantee a fast track to a promotion or higher salary, experts say. "We're seeing in many cases a lot of less technical but very business savvy CIOs being hired, and the MBA is a very strong lead for companies that are looking for a business-savvy approach to technology," says Jack Cullen of IT staffing specialist Modis. Cullen says tech pros who aren't interested in moving into the business side of the enterprise may not find the advanced degree as useful. Network World (12/3)

IEEE-USA Activities

IEEE-USA report: STEM visas can promote diversity, boost job creation
Replacing the diversity visa lottery with a program requiring higher technical education will continue to promote diverse immigration, while providing our nation with the benefit of U.S.-educated high-skill workers, according to a report by IEEE-USA. "The data indicates that swapping the visa lottery for STEM green cards will not diminish the diversity of America's immigration sources. By prioritizing skills, it will create and keep jobs in the United States," says the report, "Promoting Diversity through the STEM Visa." Read more.

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