CHEMISTRY

The CSIRO ICT Centre has been selected as a finalist in two categories of the Australian Information Industry Association's iAwards. CSIRO's enterprise search and information retrieval solution, Panoptic, was selected in the iNNOVATION category and its Virtual Critical Care Unit (ViCCU) in the iMPLEMENTATION category. Panoptic is a new generation search engine which utilises a unique combination of metadata and full-text indexing from a variety of sources to quickly and accurately find and rank information. It is ideal for web site, portal, e-commerce, customer service and specialised media applications. One recent Panoptic development - currently in prototype form - is the ability to search videos and audio files within CSIRO's Continuous Media Web:http://ict.csiro.au/cmweb). ViCCU was developed by CSIRO in close collaboration with Wentworth Area Health Service, NSW, to demonstrate how an 'always-on' ultra-broadband link between hospitals can give patients the benefit of around-the-clock access to emergency and obstetric care specialists regardless of distance. New coding and human computer interface technologies enable the transmission of multiple channels of high quality audio, video and vital signs data. A specialist is able to mentor a remote team through complex life-saving procedures. The iAwards are the Australian ICT industry's national program honouring the year's "best of the best" ICT business strategies in categories such as Innovation, Inspiration, Involvement, and International business. The iAwards are supported by media, government and the industry and are presented in conjunction with The Australian Financial Review, with The Honourable Darryl Williams, Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts as its patron. The winners of the iAwards will be announced on Wednesday 5th May 2004 at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre. With more than 4,000 members drawn from some of Australia's leading ICT industry companies, AIIA is the industry's peak representative organisation to government, media and the greater business community. More information: Visit,www.aiia.com.au,www.panopticsearch.com,www.ict.csiro.au/viccu