Technology Pioneers

Fans of "The Sound of Music" will remember the scene in which Liesl, the eldest Von Trapp daughter, radiantly sings "I am 16, going on 17." But in real life, actress Charmian Carr, who played the teenager in the 1965 movie, hasn't felt radiant for the past two decades. Now a grandmother, Carr has long suffered from severe clinical depression. Medications not only failed to help but also produced debilitating side effects.Read more

By Jennifer L. Schenker

Today's smartphones are actually tiny computers, complete with operating systems, storage, and--in many cases--direct access to internal company networks. That makes them an increasingly attractive target for hackers and scam artists.
Read more

In 1824, English stone mason Joseph Aspdin invented Portland Cement in his kitchen and patented what has remained the primary material used in concrete ever since. Trouble is, global demand for cement;a $130 billion annual business;is skyrocketing but the process used to make it already produces an estimated 5 percent of the world's man-made carbon dioxide emissions. It took 184 years, but now another English company, Novacem, has come up with a different formula;one that actually absorbs more carbon than it releases.
Read more

Curious to know what the Roman Colosseum looked like when it was first built? Soon you'll be able to stand in front of today's remnants, point your mobile phone camera at the building, and see an interactive 3D reconstruction on your phone's screen. Same for the demolished Berlin Wall: Take a shot of the Brandenburg Gate and presto, you're whisked back to 1989 with an ugly concrete fence blocking your view.
Read more

Water scarcity is one of the biggest problems on the planet. There isn't enough clean drinking water to go around, yet an estimated 25% to 30% of treated water is lost through leaks in aging distribution networks. Such losses cost water utilities an estimated $14 billion annually, according to the World Bank. Enter TaKaDu, an Israeli start-up.Read more

Ushahidi crowdsources information and then uses technology tools to draw attention to problems such as election fraud or to help in disaster recovery. The group's technology engine, which was developed in Africa by Africans, allows for any person or group to create a way to gather distributed information, aggregate it, and then visualize it on a map, timeline, or chart. It is one of 26 companies chosen to be a 2010 Technology Pioneer by the World Economic Forum.
Read more

From 2000 to 2009, some 446 companies in all have been named tech pioneers by the World Economic Forum. Some, such as Google and PayPal, have gone on to become household names. This year's 26 honorees hail from all corners of the globe and include the largest group ever of so-called cleantech companies—a testament to growing environmental concerns. The pioneers also include young companies aiming to improve health and the way we communicate and do business. Click on to look at a slide show of all 26 of this year's nominees.Read more