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U.S. Plans to Develop Missile Shield; Aviators Begin Celebrating Anniversary of Wright Brothers' Flight; High Tech Meets Fashion

Aired December 21, 2002 - 13:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

ANNOUNCER: Today on NEXT@CNN, hit to kill technology for missile defense. U.S. plans to give it a go in the next couple of years.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: It will take some time to evolve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: We'll look at plans for an anti-missile shield, and why some critics insist it won't work.

From John Travolta to John Glenn. To a rare appearance by a first man on the moon. Aviators everywhere begin a centennial celebration of the first Wright brothers flight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The legends of the Wrights have been in my memory for as long as I can remember.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Looking back and wondering what's next.

And high tech meets high fashion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Check out some technology that you can wear. All that and more on NEXT.

ANN KELLAN, GUEST HOST: Hi. Welcome to NEXT@CNN. I am Ann Kellan in for James Hattori, who's on vacation.

A little deja vu this week. President Bush ordered the Pentagon to develop a missile defense system within two years, to provide a limited shield against missiles aimed at the United States. The announcement evoked memories of President Reagan's plan back in the 1980s, which critics called "Star Wars." Mr. Bush's plan is a lot less complicated than the Reagan proposal, but as senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre reports, some say it still won't work.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even though the latest U.S. missile defense test last week failed when a booster didn't separate, the Pentagon insists its hit to kill technology has worked four of five times this year.

LT. GEN. RONALD KADISH, MISSILE DEFENSE AGENCY: Our fundamental technology of hit to kill, collision of the interceptor with the warheads that completely destroys the warheads, works.

MCINTYRE: The goal -- to produce a system of interceptors and radars that, by 2004, could, for example, detect, track, and knock down a missile launched by North Korea before it could hit any of the 50 United States. Price tag -- an additional billion and a half, added to the $8 billion a year the U.S. is already spending on the program.

LISBETH GRONLUND, UNION OF CONCERNED SCIENTISTS: I think it is a waste of money to deploy. I mean, it's really still in the very early stages of research and development. If this were any other military system, there would be no talk of deploying it.

MCINTYRE: Still, better than nothing, argues the Pentagon.

RUMSFELD: I wouldn't want to overplay it, I wouldn't want to oversell it. I wouldn't want to suggest that it has a depth or breadth or capability that will take some time to evolve.

MCINTYRE: By 2005, the plan calls for 16 land-based interceptor missiles at Fort Greely, Alaska. Four interceptors at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the use of radars in Greenland and Great Britain. Modifying three Aegis ships to carry 20 interceptors, and 346 new Patriot missiles.

(on camera): The Pentagon admits initially the system will provide only limited protection, but as it improves, the U.S. will make no secret of its capabilities, in order to increase its deterrence value.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Airplanes, space shuttles, everything that flies under power is part of the legacy of two bicycle makers from Dayton, Ohio. This week marks the start of the centennial celebration of the Wright brothers' first flight. Miles O'Brien has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was a blustery morning that day on the outer banks of North Carolina, a perfect day for flying, as it turns out. Orville and Wilbur, the original right stuff slipped the surely bonds under power in a quartet the brief flights. The dream was suddenly a reality.

It was December 17, 1903, 99 years ago. To mark the moment and to begin a year long centennial celebration, the aviation and space cognoscente (ph) gathered at the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum -- yes, that's actor and aviator, John Travolta -- to remember the Wrights and all those who stood upon their shoulders.

NEIL ARMSTRONG, ASTRONAUT: That's the boy because I was born and raised in Ohio in a barn about 60 miles north of Dayton, and the legends of the Wrights have been in my memory for as long as I can remember.

O'BRIEN: Fellow Ohioan and fellow aerospace pioneer, Neil Armstrong, was here, a rare appearance in the media limelight. The spacecraft that took him to the moon sits in the shadow of the Wright Flyer; impressive book ends for the museum's milestones of flight gallery.

ARMSTRONG: I guess that's the story of flight in the 20th century, from the beginning -- from the very first flights at Kitty hawk to the various -- very furthest and fastest flights that man has ever made.

O'BRIEN: And there was another Ohioan here who made his own indelible mark on the sky.

JOHN GLENN, ASTRONAUT: What impresses me is every time I come here and see this thing, is how fast aviation advanced beyond the Wright brothers if you think it was only 15 years until they were dog fighting over France in World War I.

O'BRIEN: Lost amid the high praise is a stubborn embarrassment of history. Ninety-nine years ago, the Smithsonian refused to give proper credit to the Wrights and was not even interested in displaying the Flyer. Peaked with anger, Orville shipped the historic craft to a museum in Great Britain. The Smithsonian did not see the error of its ways and bring the flyer home until 1948.

AMANDA WRIGHT-LANE, WRIGHT RELATIVE: And I think Uncle -- overall, just wanted to be recognized for what was due to them, no more, no less. And he was a very honorable man and a patriot and he just wanted to be recognized as the first folks who had flown. So -- and they did.

O'BRIEN: Now, millions see the Flyer for what it was. It makes one wonder what might be.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Not everyone thinks Orville and Wilbur were first in flight. Later in NEXT, we will show you a craft that was said to have flown an entire year before the Wrights. But first, a videogame retailer in a fight over so-called mod chips, and some inexpensive holiday gifts for you procrastinators out there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KELLAN: A Russian software company called Alconsoft (ph) was acquitted this week on charges that one of its programs violates U.S. copyright law. The software in question lets users pick the electronic locks that protect Adobe's E-Book reader. The case sparked protests when a Russian programmer was arrested last year at a hacker convention in Las Vegas. Prosecutors said the software was like a burglar tool that lets users make illegal copies of E-books. The defense said it merely let owners of the Adobe Reader make copies for their own use. A federal jury in Silicon Valley apparently agreed, and found Alconsoft (ph) not guilty.

Another lawsuit on digital copyright issues has forced some changes in an upstart Hong Kong company. The case centers on mod chips, which let users play copied games, and as Kristie Lu Stout reports, the controversy is not going away.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These boxes hold everything a hard-core gamer would want -- videogame software, controllers, cables, all ready to ship from the warehouse of Licksang.com.

PASCAL CLARYSSE, MARKETING MANAGER, LICKSANG.COM: So this morning, actually, the orders are getting back to us, and the payments also, so things are improving.

STOUT: Improving since the online retailer was shut down. On September 16, Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony filed a lawsuit against Licksang in the High Court of Hong Kong. The offense -- selling mod chips, a device used to play copied games. Licksang is now back in business, under new management and no longer selling the controversial product. Founder Alex Kampl is on the sidelines, prepping his legal defense.

ALEX KAMPL, LICKSANG INTERNATIONAL: This is absolutely a crackdown on technology, and it doesn't only happen to Licksang International Limited in Hong Kong now, or to our company; it happens everywhere, all around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's when you realize your last best hope is you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT (on camera): The use of mod chips has bothered the videogame industry for years. Some believe it encourages game play; others view it as a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, or DMCA.

(voice-over): Under the DMCA, if a game maker uses a technological measure to protect the copyrighted work, it is illegal to try to break it. Sony and Nintendo declined to comment on the issue, but Microsoft told CNN: "Entertainment software piracy and the modification chips that enable it pose a serious problem for the videogame industry."

A problem that can translate into millions of dollars of lost software sales.

DAN GILLMOR, TECH COLUMNIST: They set a business model that relies on making money in the game sales rather than the box sales. That's part of their problem. It's as if the TV you bought was sold to you at a loss and they were going to somehow make up the money on the programming. Well, they would be very anxious that you watch only the certain kind of programming.

STOUT: For Licksang, there is cause for hope. Earlier this year, Sony sued a mod chip retailer in Australia, under the country's version of the DMCA. The court ruled in favor of the retailer. Kampl is confident he can fight the videogame Goliath, while Clarysse sends the shipments out.

CLARYSSE: At the rulings, we are more regarded as a pirate company or something, which we are absolutely not and defenders (ph) we had was already there before the mod chips, before the court case, before all the press interviews and all that stuff.

STOUT: It has a reputation to maintain. Licksang has serviced 200,000 customers, die-hard gamers who want their consoles in time for Christmas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Well, if you still haven't bought all of your holiday presents, neither have I. We're cutting it a little too close, but we have some suggestions. Did you know Santa is a bit of a geek? Well, he and our Daniel Sieberg have been out in the workshop coming out with a few hi-tech presents that won't bust your budget.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Nearly everyone has a gadget junkie on their holiday gift list, but how do you get the best digital dodad for your dollar? Well, we've got a few relatively inexpensive items here, all for under $200. First is the Amerivoice (ph) connector box, which costs about $22. Now, it's not flashy, but it offers local and long distance calling for a flat fee. The box reroutes your phone line and for $20 a month, you can make unlimited long distance calls, with an asterisk, though -- no more than 15 calls per day are allowed, and no one particular call can last longer than 90 minutes.

Next, we have the Air Bud from Radioshack, which sells for $99. It is a hands-free device for your cell phone that uses similar technology to a cordless phone. The earpiece fits in your ear like this.

Now, your cell phone plugs into this base unit, which clips on to your belt or purse. It works for about three hours, and then needs to be charged with a cigarette lighter adapter, which also comes with it. And it's designed to work with most cell phones. You know, an inexpensive digital camera often means sacrificing picture quality. But the FujiFilm FinePicks (ph) A200 tries to combine a low price with better images. This digital camera offers two mega pixels, which means that a standard 4x6 or 5x7 print will have decent resolution. Don't buy this one if you're looking to print out 8x10 or larger photos, but for $200, it offers better resolution than the basic models on the market. Though still not perfect, it also comes with a zoom, a flash and a preview window on the back.

Portable DVD players can cost hundreds of dollars, but Initial (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Electronic are making theirs available for under $200. But a small price also means a small screen size, and the battery generally lasts for about the length of one movie or so. It does have several outputs, like Dolby Surround Sound, and it can act as your main DVD player.

Finally, if typing on a PDA or using a stylus is just too tedious, you might want to invest in a portable keyboard. This one from PocketTop unfolds to reveal a full-size keyboard, complete with short cut keys. It sells for under $100, and uses an infrared connection to communicate with other devices. You have to download software for the unit to work, and it also needs a AA battery.

So those are just a handful of the inexpensive gadgets available this holiday season. For more, you can always log onto CNN.com's gift guide, at CNN.com/holidayshopping.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: For links to the online gift guide and the products you just saw as well as other stories in our program, head to our Web site, cnn.com/next.

ANNOUNCER: Just ahead, why using a fireplace could be illegal in parts of California this winter.

Also coming up, programs to save wildlife, including one effort that has our Sharon Collins howling.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: Remember the Ernest Hemingway story "The Snows of Kilimanjaro?" Well, that title may soon be an oxymoron. Researchers say the snow cap on Africa's highest mountain may melt away within two decades. NASA has released animation showing a dramatic decline in the ice field. According to NASA, the ice formed 11,000 years ago, but has shrunk by 80 percent in the last century. More research must be done to determine whether global warming is to blame.

California might not be the coldest place in the world, but in the chill of winter, a lot of folks there do like to fire up the fireplace. Well, this winter, that could get them in trouble with the law, as Casey Wian reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CASEY WIAN, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jeffrey Tcak is lighting a fire in his Bakersfield, California home. Soon that could be against the law. Central California's giant San Joaquin Valley facing an air pollution crisis plans to ban firewood burning during the smoggiest days of the year. Many residents, already facing higher heating bills, are angry.

JEFFREY TCAK: I'll be darned if they are going to tell me I can't burn a fire when they are going to raise my utility bill so significantly. It's my right.

WIAN: Jim and Maureen Say have a metal fireplace insert to help heat their rural home near Fresno.

JIM SAY: Every bill goes up. And you have to do whatever you can to compensate for it.

MAUREEN SAY: One by one, they're taking rights away from people.

WIAN: The valley's top air quality regulators says the fireplace crackdown is needed to help avoid up to $2 billion in penalties for violating federal clean air laws and to save lives.

DAVID CROW, SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY AIR POLLUTION DIRECTOR: The 3.5 million people in this valley, a quarter of a million suffer from chronic respiratory problems, and there is increasing medical evidence to suggest that wood smoke can exacerbate or trigger an asthmatic event.

WIAN: Pollution here is a year-round problem. Rapid population growth, giant farms and industrial plants and two major highways generate thousands of tons of smog daily. More is blown in from the San Francisco Bay, and surrounding mountains prevent pollution from escaping.

(on camera): During the winter, dense fog often covers much of the San Joaquin Valley trapping air pollution close to the ground. On a day like today, you can't see the dirty air, but you can smell it.

(voice-over): The Air Pollution Control District says residential fireplace smoke is responsible for about a third of the valley's air pollution during some winter nights, so it plans to outlaw fireplace burning about 25 nights each year. Opponents doubt fireplace restrictions will improve their air quality significantly, but regulators say there are already severe restrictions on other pollution sources, and they're running out of clean air options.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: In Colorado, wildlife officials are working to restore the lynx to its native habitat. Nearly 100 of the threatened cats have been released into the wild since 1999, but a great many of them died, and it appears none of the survivors are reproducing. Now, as Kimberly Osias tells us, officials are going to try again, in a controversial new program.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KIMBERLY OSIAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It is estimated to cost over $1 million, with funds coming entirely from private donations and the Colorado lottery. The state is trying to reverse the fortune of this animal.

TODD MALMSBURY, COLORADO DEPT. OF WILDLIFE: On the federal level, lynx are a threatened species. What we do in Colorado is going to serve as a template for what other states do.

OSIAS (on camera): Up to 180 lynx re-released in the state over the next three years, in habitats much like this one, where the cats can thrive, and you can provide the right type of food and the right environment, but you still have to have old fashioned chemistry to make a population.

MALMSBURY: We need to have them, put some babies on the ground.

OSIAS (voice-over): From Quebec and British Columbia, both boy and girl cats will be trapped and transported to the Rocky Mountains. Surprisingly ranchers and farmers don't oppose reintroduction, but they do worry that the current plan is nebulous and that their very livelihood could be threatened.

BONNIE KLINE, COLORADO GROWERS ASSOCIATION: We're really frustrated when our industry gives an inch, we lose a mile.

MALSMBURY: The division of wildlife has worked out an agreement where if a land owner accidentally kills a lynx, and it really is an accident, that they will likely not be prosecuted. We don't think there is any reason for those folks to be concerned.

OSIAS: As with any new program, there are glitches to work through and trust to be built. But come spring, most hope these little guys will be here to stay.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Another wildlife restoration program is already working. Hunting and suburban sprawl almost wiped out the red wolf in the United States. But now, as CNN's Sharon Collins shows us, the wolves are bouncing back.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHARON COLLINS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In 1980, the red wolf was declared extinct in the wild. These wolves once roamed across much of the Southeast, and for decades they were feared and hunted down. Then urban sprawl took over much of their habitat, so by the mid-'70s there were only 14 red wolves left. To save the species, those survivors were captured and made part of a breeding program.

(on camera): Are these all captive animals out there in the wild now, the ones that you've raised here?

BUD FAZIO: All the animals that are here in the wild were actually born in the wild now. The red wolves have been out there for 15 years. Initially in 1987, we did introduce animals from our captive program, but now all the animals out here were born in the wild and are doing quite well.

COLLINS (voice-over): This video was shot the first time we came here. Back in 1997, the wolves were being prepared for release. This year, we went back to the Alligator River Refuge to gauge the progress. There are now 260 wolves living in the wild.

MICHAEL MORSE, U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE: When you stop to think how close the species was to extinction, it's really a miracle, you know, I mean, it's the first time an animal that was declared extinct in the wild was put back in the wild where it used to live.

COLLINS: The refuge has also done a great PR job for the wolves. They bring visitors to the refuge to communicate with the animals. We wanted the experience, too, so as darkness fell, these guardians of the wolves invited us to join in a moonlight howl.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So what I'll do -- it is dark enough now -- is I drop three howls and see if I can get them going. If not, I will maybe get you to try it.

COLLINS: And around 8:00, we began howling at the moon in hopes the wolves would honor us with a reply.

As we waited in the darkness, it began, a haunting sound of all that is wild.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can just imagine them standing there in the dark, ears laid back, (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

COLLINS: It's a sound that almost disappeared.

But now, with this success, there are plans to introduce the wolf in other parts of the country.

(on camera): There is no guarantee for the red wolf. The population still isn't quite up to speed, but what we have now that we didn't have 10 years ago is hope that at least one animal facing extinction has at least a fighting chance.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: We have got to take a break now to make some money and check out the latest headlines from the CNN newsroom. Don't go away. We'll be right back.

ANNOUNCER: Still to come, technology that tells troops where to attack.

Tips on how to get what you want on Ebay.

And did this contraption beat the Wright brothers flier? All that and more when NEXT@CNN continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: Welcome back to NEXT@CNN. When a country takes military action, some of the technology is obvious -- guns, aircraft, ships, bombs, but there is a lot of tech behind the scenes too. As David Ensor reports, the secretive National Imagery & Mapping Agency, or NIMA, plays a crucial role in wartime.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When the orders came to go into Afghanistan, few in the military knew much about the place. The first thing Air Force and Navy pilots needed were maps, coordinates, targets. So did special operations troops on the ground.

BRIG. GEN. MICHAEL LEE, NIMA MILITARY EXECUTIVE: Whether you're riding horseback as a special ops person or whether you're flying a Stealth bomber, you use many of our same products. So everybody wants to know where they are, where their families are, where the enemy is, where the non-combatants might be.

ENSOR: Maps are basic to warfare. NIMA quickly printed thousands more on special durable material.

JOANNE ISHAM, NIMA DEPUTY DIRECTOR: Not only does it tell you where you are, but it also provides some helpful hints in terms of the environment for what you might be able to eat. It can be used to carry water. It's that strong. It can also be used as a blanket.

ENSOR: Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina is one of the nation's main bases for F-16s. As pilots prepared for Afghan duty, NIMA scrambled together computer software for them to practice, software that allows them to punch in coordinates on a map of Afghanistan then convert that to a picture of the terrain.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You could actually do a, basically a practice run, you know, with the joy stick, and, you know, just try to find...

ENSOR (on camera): Where you'd best be.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Well, and then what your target and stuff would look like.

ENSOR (voice-over): Getting out the maps and software for Afghanistan took a lot of all nighters at NIMA.

LT. GEN. JAMES CLAPPER (RET.), NIMA DIRECTOR: It was not exactly on the, our top 10 hit parade of places that we had placed a lot of emphasis or focus.

ENSOR: To make things happen fast, the normally secretive spy agency did something surprising -- it hired private companies to take up the slack. Surrounded by prairie dog holes in the foothills outside Denver is the headquarters of Space Imaging, a private satellite photo company. Space Imaging went into overdrive after 9/11, shooting thousands of satellite pictures of Afghanistan for the exclusive use of the U.S. government. The deal had the effect of stopping the media and others from obtaining pictures of U.S. troop movements. It also saved the U.S. time and money.

JOHN COPPLE, CEO, SPACE IMAGING: NIMA buys commercial imagery not only from a cost perspective in that they don't have to go build their own satellite, they can leverage our satellite, but also it's unclassified data. It can be shared with our allies.

ENSOR: Now, NIMA is turning its sights to another target, the territory of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. NIMA's satellite photo analysts know Iraq well, its weapons of mass destruction sites and the key military installations. But the Iraqis are masters are hiding what they have.

CLAPPER: Denial and deception and concealment is a challenge for us.

ENSOR: As U.S. intelligence expands its use of unmanned surveillance drones and as smarter computers and analysts increase the speed at which target data can be generated, warfare is changing, even as another potential conflict looms.

JOHN PIKE, GLOBALSECURITY.ORG: Today, the imagery can get in digital form to military planners fast enough that they can actually shoot at targets before they move.

ENSOR: In time of war, the existence of the new private satellite firms like Space Imaging is the mixed blessing for the U.S. For Iraq, the government may exercise its legal right, predicts Pike, to shutter control on American owned firms.

PIKE: There's no way the military is going to let these satellites monitor American troop movements on their way to Baghdad.

ENSOR (on camera): If U.S. forces do go to war with Iraq, NIMA teams will go in there with them, working to tailor the maps, software and target data to the war fighter.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: Coming up, how to shop the auctions at Ebay and increase your chances of nabbing that special item.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: A few weeks ago, we told you about the consumer reports Web site that rates online shopping sites. One viewer e-mailed with a complaint about the story. Habeeb Rasheed wrote: "I was pretty disappointed that the representative from Consumer Reports just focused on larger retailers. What about the little guys? If people are always told to stick to what they know, how can anything new get off the ground?"

Well, that's a good question. Consumer Reports told us they focus on the larger, better-known sites because they just don't have the time or resources to evaluate every site on the Internet.

One site that just about everyone has heard about is Ebay, the cyber auction house. You can buy, sell practically anything there. But it can be intimidating if you don't know the ropes. Renay San Miguel got some tips from consumer tech guru Marc Saltzman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There is a very good reason why Ebay is known as the world's biggest garage sale, world's biggest flea market, you can get pretty much anything on there. But we want to make it clear, Marc, that Ebay itself is not doing the buying and the selling.

MARC SALTZMAN, PERSONAL TECH GURU: That's right. It's really up to buyers and sellers. They provide the online marketplace that connects buyers and sellers around the world. In fact, 12 million items are sold through Ebay in 18,000 categories. It is overwhelming, but you know, as they say, one man's junk is another man's treasure, and certainly on Ebay, you can find millions of new and used items.

SAN MIGUEL: The thing that I find fascinating about Ebay, not just an online auction site, but it's also a community you can get feedback from those who have been doing the buying and the selling.

SALTZMAN: I think that's what really separates Ebay from some of the other online options in cyber space, and we know that there are dozens of them, is that you can check, and we really encourage you to check, the user ratings and the feedback from people that have already had an experience with that particular seller.

Let's give an example here. Here is a digital camera that before the cameras were rolling I was considering bidding for, buying. Now, as you can see, this person here, beside his name, which is actually called Dutypaid, there is over 7,600 people that have commented on this person and their selling and buying experience. So obviously they're a seasoned Ebay seller.

SAN MIGUEL: One thing I noticed here with this particular seller, Dutypaid, was that he was something called a power seller. What is that?

SALTZMAN: Yeah, that means that they have a user feedback that is positive 98 percent or higher, so that means that obviously the overwhelming majority of people that have bought items from this particular seller were pleased with the process.

SAN MIGUEL: You can feel good buying something from the person.

SALTZMAN: Yeah. You can actually tweak your search parameters to only look at power sellers as well.

And speaking of advance search options, you can now have the option to gift wrap items and sell it -- sorry, send it directly to the recipient. So if you are buying a gift for me, which I expect you to do...

SAN MIGUEL: Oh, no problem. SALTZMAN: You can actually buy it online and have it sent to me gift wrapped with a card. It's an option that they provide. Now, it could cost a couple of dollars; it's up to the seller. But the important thing here is that Ebay themselves has now -- they have built that now into the search window so you can only look for the gift items.

SAN MIGUEL: There is also -- I have heard that not everything is spelled correctly, but that can be -- the items themselves may be misspelled, but you can use that to your advantage, can you?

SALTZMAN: Absolutely. That is my favorite Ebay tip, if you want to know the truth. When you do have a search window, type in "Sonyy" with two Y's, or "Gatway" instead of "Gateway." Let's try that, actually. Because you're taking advantage of -- well, see, if you type in "Gateway" legitimately, you're going to have 20 million products here. Take out the E there and we'll see how many we get. We actually have seven where a seller has misspelled Gateway. So in theory, there are going to be less bids, so you should have a better chance of walking away with this product at a much cheaper price.

SAN MIGUEL: If you don't have the time to go into the bidding process, bidding against thousands of other people for the same computer or whatever, are there any ways to get around that?

SALTZMAN: Absolutely. This is an online auction site, Ebay, but now you can purchase the item outright without having to bid on it. You know, which can take some time. Somebody may up your bid by $10 or $5. That can be annoying if you're tight on time.

So if you look for a product that has a "buy it now" symbol, and again, the seller has to have that on there, that means that you can buy the product outright, no bidding is necessary, and it should still be competitively priced.

Also, look for fast shipping, look for insurance. Sometimes a couple of dollars will save you the headache if, God forbid, the product was lost, and also check the refund policy, just to make sure if there is something wrong with the product, check their history and check what their refund policy is.

SAN MIGUEL: Yeah, whether in the real world or in the virtual world, caveat emptor.

SALTZMAN: Absolutely, caveat emptor.

SAN MIGUEL: Buyer beware. Very good advice, thanks a lot.

SALTZMAN: Thanks.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Most of the world can't visit Ebay or any Web site, simply because they don't have access to computer technology. The digital divide is the topic of this week's "Fast Forward" commentary from David Kirkpatrick, senior editor of "Fortune" magazine. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID KIRKPATRICK, SENIOR EDITOR, FORTUNE: The digital divide refers to the problem that a huge portion of the world is not really using technology. And yet, we realize that information technology and communications technology is what makes not only efficient economy for our country, but what makes individuals productive and efficient.

There is a strong belief that if could get technology into the hands of the poor, particularly the poorest of the poor, that that really could be a huge improvement in their quality of life. It is counterintuitive in a way, because you kind of assume, well, how can the poor afford technology? But the idea is, especially when it comes to farmers and very small-business people like in villages, if you can provide them with the right kind of technology at a low enough price, they can end up being able to pay for the technology with the money they make as a result of their own increased productivity.

In a way, you can say that both in the U.S. and outside the U.S., there is a problem of ignorance about what's possible with technology that continues to really inhibit our ability to really empower people with technology. That's just something that will take time to remedy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: Next up, wearing your chip on your sleeve. Fashions close to the heart of the gadget minded.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: Some people are so much into computers they and their laptops seem joined at the hip. Well, that's getting closer to the truth, with a new line of clothing featuring the latest in wearable computers. Lilian Kim reports from Seattle.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LILIAN KIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They may look like ordinary clothes, but these models are wearing what may be the fashion of the future. This jacket is an MP3 player. Draw strings serve as earphones, while the hip pocket contains a multimedia card. And that's not all.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

KIM: This is just one of dozens of wearable computers showcased recently by inventors from around the world. Many are already on the market, including this system that costs about $5,000, equipped with a computer pack and pistol-grip keyboard, a user can view information from a tiny monitor attached to a pair of eyeglasses.

THAD STARNER, COMPUTING PROFESSOR: With a wearable computer, you can look people in the eye and have your keyboard underneath the desk on and just take a quick look at comments to remember what you're talking about. KIM: For $12,000, you can have a top-of-the-line version. Designed for commercial use, this personal display system is equipped with a see-through monitor that superimposes information on reality.

MATT NICHOLS: Automotive mechanics are now repairing the vehicles with this display, so they can see the engine, and all the repair information comes directly into their point of view.

KIM: Wearable technology applies to military apparel as well.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As you see, this is embedded inside.

KIM: This uniform has an antenna inside the lining.

DOUGLAS THOMSON: It's more comfortable. It's easier to get caught on things.

KIM: And for scientists, that's the idea, designing technology that's functional yet wearable in this digital world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: Did this flying machine get airborne before the Wright brothers? Find out why some people think so when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: Who built the first powered flying machine that actually got off the ground? If you said Orville and Wilbur Wright, you may be right, but you'll get an argument from some people in a small town in Texas. Bruce Burkhardt dug into the history of a little known aviation pioneer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRUCE BURKHARDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): No sand dunes, no beach. It doesn't much look like Kitty Hawk. That's because it's Pittsburg. Pittsburg, Texas.

(on camera): I thought the Wright brothers were the first ones to to fly?

MAYOR D.H. ABERNATHY, PITTSBURG, TEXAS: Well, that's been a controversial issue.

BURKHARDT: At 90 years old, D.H. Abernathy has been mayor of Pittsburg for more than half his life, almost 50 years.

ABERNATHY: We have people that have testified that they saw this Ezekiel ship fly.

BURKHARDT: Saw it fly in 1902, a year before the Wright brothers. Technically, it wasn't an air ship, but a heavier-than-air manned craft, an airplane -- sort of. The Ezekiel airship was the brain child of one Reverend Verl (ph) Cannon, a devout Baptist and saw mill operator who, at the turn of the century, when Pittsburg was a booming cotton town, set to work trying to make a machine that would fly. It was a mission from God, the way Reverend Cannon saw it. Not only did his inspiration come from the Biblical book of Ezekiel, so did the design.

GLENN GORDON, REV. CANNON'S GRANDSON: Their appearance and their work was as if it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel.

BURKHARDT: Glenn Gordon reads from the Bible that belonged to his grandfather, Reverend Cannon. A Bible that the reverend/inventor poured over, believing that the secret to a flying machine was right there in Ezekiel Chapter 1. The prophet describes a vision from the sky, and in its appearance, a wheel within a wheel.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's supposed to create its own lift by throwing air into the canvas. It's more or less like.

BURKHARDT (on camera): And those paddles throw the air into the canvas?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is built more or less like a kite.

BURKHARDT (voice-over): Bob Lowery (ph) built a replica of the airship. It sits here in the Northeast Texas Rural Heritage Museum, suspended probably as high as the ship actually flew.

CLEO GORDON HUFFMAN, REV. CANNON'S GRANDDAUGHTER: I remember her (ph) saying, it flew over a fence and hit the ground, that was it. I don't think he ever tried it anymore.

BURKHARDT: Miss Cleo is Reverend Cannon's granddaughter. Like everyone else, she's had to rely on the few eyewitness accounts handed down about that 1902 flight.

JOHN HOLMAN, HISTORIAN: Now, you can argue about it being a controlled flight and repeatable flight, and documented flight, and that gives credit to the Wright brothers and they deserve that credit.

BURKHARDT: John Holman and Lacy Davis, both Pittsburg natives, teamed up on a book about the whole episode, "On the Wings of Ezekiel."

HOLMAN: There was plenty of room for that thing to do its flying in that area right here, and that's why the historical marker has been placed here.

BURKHARDT: As the story goes, the airship was destroyed shortly afterwards when it was en route to St. Louis to be displayed at the world's fair.

(on camera): So in the coming year, leading up to the centennial of the Wright brothers flight, we're going to hear a lot about Wilbur and Orville and their world-changing accomplishment. But this December, 2002, maybe it's appropriate and fair to tip the hat elsewhere. Happy anniversary, Reverend Cannon.

(END VIDEOTAPE) KELLAN: Well, this show is history, too. Time for us to fly. Here is what's coming up next week.

We will revisit some favorite stories from 2002 and update others on a special year-end edition of NEXT. Everything from a high-speed camera to battling birds. That's coming up on NEXT.

Until then, let's hear from you. You can e-mail us at next@cnn.com. Thanks for joining us this week. For James Hattori and everyone on the sci-tech beat, I'm Ann Kellan. See you next time.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com

Celebrating Anniversary of Wright Brothers' Flight; High Tech Meets Fashion>

Aired December 21, 2002 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: Today on NEXT@CNN, hit to kill technology for missile defense. U.S. plans to give it a go in the next couple of years.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: It will take some time to evolve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: We'll look at plans for an anti-missile shield, and why some critics insist it won't work.

From John Travolta to John Glenn. To a rare appearance by a first man on the moon. Aviators everywhere begin a centennial celebration of the first Wright brothers flight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The legends of the Wrights have been in my memory for as long as I can remember.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Looking back and wondering what's next.

And high tech meets high fashion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Check out some technology that you can wear. All that and more on NEXT.

ANN KELLAN, GUEST HOST: Hi. Welcome to NEXT@CNN. I am Ann Kellan in for James Hattori, who's on vacation.

A little deja vu this week. President Bush ordered the Pentagon to develop a missile defense system within two years, to provide a limited shield against missiles aimed at the United States. The announcement evoked memories of President Reagan's plan back in the 1980s, which critics called "Star Wars." Mr. Bush's plan is a lot less complicated than the Reagan proposal, but as senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre reports, some say it still won't work.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even though the latest U.S. missile defense test last week failed when a booster didn't separate, the Pentagon insists its hit to kill technology has worked four of five times this year.

LT. GEN. RONALD KADISH, MISSILE DEFENSE AGENCY: Our fundamental technology of hit to kill, collision of the interceptor with the warheads that completely destroys the warheads, works.

MCINTYRE: The goal -- to produce a system of interceptors and radars that, by 2004, could, for example, detect, track, and knock down a missile launched by North Korea before it could hit any of the 50 United States. Price tag -- an additional billion and a half, added to the $8 billion a year the U.S. is already spending on the program.

LISBETH GRONLUND, UNION OF CONCERNED SCIENTISTS: I think it is a waste of money to deploy. I mean, it's really still in the very early stages of research and development. If this were any other military system, there would be no talk of deploying it.

MCINTYRE: Still, better than nothing, argues the Pentagon.

RUMSFELD: I wouldn't want to overplay it, I wouldn't want to oversell it. I wouldn't want to suggest that it has a depth or breadth or capability that will take some time to evolve.

MCINTYRE: By 2005, the plan calls for 16 land-based interceptor missiles at Fort Greely, Alaska. Four interceptors at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the use of radars in Greenland and Great Britain. Modifying three Aegis ships to carry 20 interceptors, and 346 new Patriot missiles.

(on camera): The Pentagon admits initially the system will provide only limited protection, but as it improves, the U.S. will make no secret of its capabilities, in order to increase its deterrence value.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Airplanes, space shuttles, everything that flies under power is part of the legacy of two bicycle makers from Dayton, Ohio. This week marks the start of the centennial celebration of the Wright brothers' first flight. Miles O'Brien has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was a blustery morning that day on the outer banks of North Carolina, a perfect day for flying, as it turns out. Orville and Wilbur, the original right stuff slipped the surely bonds under power in a quartet the brief flights. The dream was suddenly a reality.

It was December 17, 1903, 99 years ago. To mark the moment and to begin a year long centennial celebration, the aviation and space cognoscente (ph) gathered at the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum -- yes, that's actor and aviator, John Travolta -- to remember the Wrights and all those who stood upon their shoulders.

NEIL ARMSTRONG, ASTRONAUT: That's the boy because I was born and raised in Ohio in a barn about 60 miles north of Dayton, and the legends of the Wrights have been in my memory for as long as I can remember.

O'BRIEN: Fellow Ohioan and fellow aerospace pioneer, Neil Armstrong, was here, a rare appearance in the media limelight. The spacecraft that took him to the moon sits in the shadow of the Wright Flyer; impressive book ends for the museum's milestones of flight gallery.

ARMSTRONG: I guess that's the story of flight in the 20th century, from the beginning -- from the very first flights at Kitty hawk to the various -- very furthest and fastest flights that man has ever made.

O'BRIEN: And there was another Ohioan here who made his own indelible mark on the sky.

JOHN GLENN, ASTRONAUT: What impresses me is every time I come here and see this thing, is how fast aviation advanced beyond the Wright brothers if you think it was only 15 years until they were dog fighting over France in World War I.

O'BRIEN: Lost amid the high praise is a stubborn embarrassment of history. Ninety-nine years ago, the Smithsonian refused to give proper credit to the Wrights and was not even interested in displaying the Flyer. Peaked with anger, Orville shipped the historic craft to a museum in Great Britain. The Smithsonian did not see the error of its ways and bring the flyer home until 1948.

AMANDA WRIGHT-LANE, WRIGHT RELATIVE: And I think Uncle -- overall, just wanted to be recognized for what was due to them, no more, no less. And he was a very honorable man and a patriot and he just wanted to be recognized as the first folks who had flown. So -- and they did.

O'BRIEN: Now, millions see the Flyer for what it was. It makes one wonder what might be.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Not everyone thinks Orville and Wilbur were first in flight. Later in NEXT, we will show you a craft that was said to have flown an entire year before the Wrights. But first, a videogame retailer in a fight over so-called mod chips, and some inexpensive holiday gifts for you procrastinators out there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KELLAN: A Russian software company called Alconsoft (ph) was acquitted this week on charges that one of its programs violates U.S. copyright law. The software in question lets users pick the electronic locks that protect Adobe's E-Book reader. The case sparked protests when a Russian programmer was arrested last year at a hacker convention in Las Vegas. Prosecutors said the software was like a burglar tool that lets users make illegal copies of E-books. The defense said it merely let owners of the Adobe Reader make copies for their own use. A federal jury in Silicon Valley apparently agreed, and found Alconsoft (ph) not guilty.

Another lawsuit on digital copyright issues has forced some changes in an upstart Hong Kong company. The case centers on mod chips, which let users play copied games, and as Kristie Lu Stout reports, the controversy is not going away.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These boxes hold everything a hard-core gamer would want -- videogame software, controllers, cables, all ready to ship from the warehouse of Licksang.com.

PASCAL CLARYSSE, MARKETING MANAGER, LICKSANG.COM: So this morning, actually, the orders are getting back to us, and the payments also, so things are improving.

STOUT: Improving since the online retailer was shut down. On September 16, Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony filed a lawsuit against Licksang in the High Court of Hong Kong. The offense -- selling mod chips, a device used to play copied games. Licksang is now back in business, under new management and no longer selling the controversial product. Founder Alex Kampl is on the sidelines, prepping his legal defense.

ALEX KAMPL, LICKSANG INTERNATIONAL: This is absolutely a crackdown on technology, and it doesn't only happen to Licksang International Limited in Hong Kong now, or to our company; it happens everywhere, all around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's when you realize your last best hope is you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT (on camera): The use of mod chips has bothered the videogame industry for years. Some believe it encourages game play; others view it as a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, or DMCA.

(voice-over): Under the DMCA, if a game maker uses a technological measure to protect the copyrighted work, it is illegal to try to break it. Sony and Nintendo declined to comment on the issue, but Microsoft told CNN: "Entertainment software piracy and the modification chips that enable it pose a serious problem for the videogame industry."

A problem that can translate into millions of dollars of lost software sales.

DAN GILLMOR, TECH COLUMNIST: They set a business model that relies on making money in the game sales rather than the box sales. That's part of their problem. It's as if the TV you bought was sold to you at a loss and they were going to somehow make up the money on the programming. Well, they would be very anxious that you watch only the certain kind of programming.

STOUT: For Licksang, there is cause for hope. Earlier this year, Sony sued a mod chip retailer in Australia, under the country's version of the DMCA. The court ruled in favor of the retailer. Kampl is confident he can fight the videogame Goliath, while Clarysse sends the shipments out.

CLARYSSE: At the rulings, we are more regarded as a pirate company or something, which we are absolutely not and defenders (ph) we had was already there before the mod chips, before the court case, before all the press interviews and all that stuff.

STOUT: It has a reputation to maintain. Licksang has serviced 200,000 customers, die-hard gamers who want their consoles in time for Christmas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Well, if you still haven't bought all of your holiday presents, neither have I. We're cutting it a little too close, but we have some suggestions. Did you know Santa is a bit of a geek? Well, he and our Daniel Sieberg have been out in the workshop coming out with a few hi-tech presents that won't bust your budget.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Nearly everyone has a gadget junkie on their holiday gift list, but how do you get the best digital dodad for your dollar? Well, we've got a few relatively inexpensive items here, all for under $200. First is the Amerivoice (ph) connector box, which costs about $22. Now, it's not flashy, but it offers local and long distance calling for a flat fee. The box reroutes your phone line and for $20 a month, you can make unlimited long distance calls, with an asterisk, though -- no more than 15 calls per day are allowed, and no one particular call can last longer than 90 minutes.

Next, we have the Air Bud from Radioshack, which sells for $99. It is a hands-free device for your cell phone that uses similar technology to a cordless phone. The earpiece fits in your ear like this.

Now, your cell phone plugs into this base unit, which clips on to your belt or purse. It works for about three hours, and then needs to be charged with a cigarette lighter adapter, which also comes with it. And it's designed to work with most cell phones. You know, an inexpensive digital camera often means sacrificing picture quality. But the FujiFilm FinePicks (ph) A200 tries to combine a low price with better images. This digital camera offers two mega pixels, which means that a standard 4x6 or 5x7 print will have decent resolution. Don't buy this one if you're looking to print out 8x10 or larger photos, but for $200, it offers better resolution than the basic models on the market. Though still not perfect, it also comes with a zoom, a flash and a preview window on the back.

Portable DVD players can cost hundreds of dollars, but Initial (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Electronic are making theirs available for under $200. But a small price also means a small screen size, and the battery generally lasts for about the length of one movie or so. It does have several outputs, like Dolby Surround Sound, and it can act as your main DVD player.

Finally, if typing on a PDA or using a stylus is just too tedious, you might want to invest in a portable keyboard. This one from PocketTop unfolds to reveal a full-size keyboard, complete with short cut keys. It sells for under $100, and uses an infrared connection to communicate with other devices. You have to download software for the unit to work, and it also needs a AA battery.

So those are just a handful of the inexpensive gadgets available this holiday season. For more, you can always log onto CNN.com's gift guide, at CNN.com/holidayshopping.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: For links to the online gift guide and the products you just saw as well as other stories in our program, head to our Web site, cnn.com/next.

ANNOUNCER: Just ahead, why using a fireplace could be illegal in parts of California this winter.

Also coming up, programs to save wildlife, including one effort that has our Sharon Collins howling.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: Remember the Ernest Hemingway story "The Snows of Kilimanjaro?" Well, that title may soon be an oxymoron. Researchers say the snow cap on Africa's highest mountain may melt away within two decades. NASA has released animation showing a dramatic decline in the ice field. According to NASA, the ice formed 11,000 years ago, but has shrunk by 80 percent in the last century. More research must be done to determine whether global warming is to blame.

California might not be the coldest place in the world, but in the chill of winter, a lot of folks there do like to fire up the fireplace. Well, this winter, that could get them in trouble with the law, as Casey Wian reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CASEY WIAN, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jeffrey Tcak is lighting a fire in his Bakersfield, California home. Soon that could be against the law. Central California's giant San Joaquin Valley facing an air pollution crisis plans to ban firewood burning during the smoggiest days of the year. Many residents, already facing higher heating bills, are angry.

JEFFREY TCAK: I'll be darned if they are going to tell me I can't burn a fire when they are going to raise my utility bill so significantly. It's my right.

WIAN: Jim and Maureen Say have a metal fireplace insert to help heat their rural home near Fresno.

JIM SAY: Every bill goes up. And you have to do whatever you can to compensate for it.

MAUREEN SAY: One by one, they're taking rights away from people.

WIAN: The valley's top air quality regulators says the fireplace crackdown is needed to help avoid up to $2 billion in penalties for violating federal clean air laws and to save lives.

DAVID CROW, SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY AIR POLLUTION DIRECTOR: The 3.5 million people in this valley, a quarter of a million suffer from chronic respiratory problems, and there is increasing medical evidence to suggest that wood smoke can exacerbate or trigger an asthmatic event.

WIAN: Pollution here is a year-round problem. Rapid population growth, giant farms and industrial plants and two major highways generate thousands of tons of smog daily. More is blown in from the San Francisco Bay, and surrounding mountains prevent pollution from escaping.

(on camera): During the winter, dense fog often covers much of the San Joaquin Valley trapping air pollution close to the ground. On a day like today, you can't see the dirty air, but you can smell it.

(voice-over): The Air Pollution Control District says residential fireplace smoke is responsible for about a third of the valley's air pollution during some winter nights, so it plans to outlaw fireplace burning about 25 nights each year. Opponents doubt fireplace restrictions will improve their air quality significantly, but regulators say there are already severe restrictions on other pollution sources, and they're running out of clean air options.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: In Colorado, wildlife officials are working to restore the lynx to its native habitat. Nearly 100 of the threatened cats have been released into the wild since 1999, but a great many of them died, and it appears none of the survivors are reproducing. Now, as Kimberly Osias tells us, officials are going to try again, in a controversial new program.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KIMBERLY OSIAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It is estimated to cost over $1 million, with funds coming entirely from private donations and the Colorado lottery. The state is trying to reverse the fortune of this animal.

TODD MALMSBURY, COLORADO DEPT. OF WILDLIFE: On the federal level, lynx are a threatened species. What we do in Colorado is going to serve as a template for what other states do.

OSIAS (on camera): Up to 180 lynx re-released in the state over the next three years, in habitats much like this one, where the cats can thrive, and you can provide the right type of food and the right environment, but you still have to have old fashioned chemistry to make a population.

MALMSBURY: We need to have them, put some babies on the ground.

OSIAS (voice-over): From Quebec and British Columbia, both boy and girl cats will be trapped and transported to the Rocky Mountains. Surprisingly ranchers and farmers don't oppose reintroduction, but they do worry that the current plan is nebulous and that their very livelihood could be threatened.

BONNIE KLINE, COLORADO GROWERS ASSOCIATION: We're really frustrated when our industry gives an inch, we lose a mile.

MALSMBURY: The division of wildlife has worked out an agreement where if a land owner accidentally kills a lynx, and it really is an accident, that they will likely not be prosecuted. We don't think there is any reason for those folks to be concerned.

OSIAS: As with any new program, there are glitches to work through and trust to be built. But come spring, most hope these little guys will be here to stay.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Another wildlife restoration program is already working. Hunting and suburban sprawl almost wiped out the red wolf in the United States. But now, as CNN's Sharon Collins shows us, the wolves are bouncing back.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHARON COLLINS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In 1980, the red wolf was declared extinct in the wild. These wolves once roamed across much of the Southeast, and for decades they were feared and hunted down. Then urban sprawl took over much of their habitat, so by the mid-'70s there were only 14 red wolves left. To save the species, those survivors were captured and made part of a breeding program.

(on camera): Are these all captive animals out there in the wild now, the ones that you've raised here?

BUD FAZIO: All the animals that are here in the wild were actually born in the wild now. The red wolves have been out there for 15 years. Initially in 1987, we did introduce animals from our captive program, but now all the animals out here were born in the wild and are doing quite well.

COLLINS (voice-over): This video was shot the first time we came here. Back in 1997, the wolves were being prepared for release. This year, we went back to the Alligator River Refuge to gauge the progress. There are now 260 wolves living in the wild.

MICHAEL MORSE, U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE: When you stop to think how close the species was to extinction, it's really a miracle, you know, I mean, it's the first time an animal that was declared extinct in the wild was put back in the wild where it used to live.

COLLINS: The refuge has also done a great PR job for the wolves. They bring visitors to the refuge to communicate with the animals. We wanted the experience, too, so as darkness fell, these guardians of the wolves invited us to join in a moonlight howl.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So what I'll do -- it is dark enough now -- is I drop three howls and see if I can get them going. If not, I will maybe get you to try it.

COLLINS: And around 8:00, we began howling at the moon in hopes the wolves would honor us with a reply.

As we waited in the darkness, it began, a haunting sound of all that is wild.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can just imagine them standing there in the dark, ears laid back, (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

COLLINS: It's a sound that almost disappeared.

But now, with this success, there are plans to introduce the wolf in other parts of the country.

(on camera): There is no guarantee for the red wolf. The population still isn't quite up to speed, but what we have now that we didn't have 10 years ago is hope that at least one animal facing extinction has at least a fighting chance.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: We have got to take a break now to make some money and check out the latest headlines from the CNN newsroom. Don't go away. We'll be right back.

ANNOUNCER: Still to come, technology that tells troops where to attack.

Tips on how to get what you want on Ebay.

And did this contraption beat the Wright brothers flier? All that and more when NEXT@CNN continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: Welcome back to NEXT@CNN. When a country takes military action, some of the technology is obvious -- guns, aircraft, ships, bombs, but there is a lot of tech behind the scenes too. As David Ensor reports, the secretive National Imagery & Mapping Agency, or NIMA, plays a crucial role in wartime.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When the orders came to go into Afghanistan, few in the military knew much about the place. The first thing Air Force and Navy pilots needed were maps, coordinates, targets. So did special operations troops on the ground.

BRIG. GEN. MICHAEL LEE, NIMA MILITARY EXECUTIVE: Whether you're riding horseback as a special ops person or whether you're flying a Stealth bomber, you use many of our same products. So everybody wants to know where they are, where their families are, where the enemy is, where the non-combatants might be.

ENSOR: Maps are basic to warfare. NIMA quickly printed thousands more on special durable material.

JOANNE ISHAM, NIMA DEPUTY DIRECTOR: Not only does it tell you where you are, but it also provides some helpful hints in terms of the environment for what you might be able to eat. It can be used to carry water. It's that strong. It can also be used as a blanket.

ENSOR: Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina is one of the nation's main bases for F-16s. As pilots prepared for Afghan duty, NIMA scrambled together computer software for them to practice, software that allows them to punch in coordinates on a map of Afghanistan then convert that to a picture of the terrain.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You could actually do a, basically a practice run, you know, with the joy stick, and, you know, just try to find...

ENSOR (on camera): Where you'd best be.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Well, and then what your target and stuff would look like.

ENSOR (voice-over): Getting out the maps and software for Afghanistan took a lot of all nighters at NIMA.

LT. GEN. JAMES CLAPPER (RET.), NIMA DIRECTOR: It was not exactly on the, our top 10 hit parade of places that we had placed a lot of emphasis or focus.

ENSOR: To make things happen fast, the normally secretive spy agency did something surprising -- it hired private companies to take up the slack. Surrounded by prairie dog holes in the foothills outside Denver is the headquarters of Space Imaging, a private satellite photo company. Space Imaging went into overdrive after 9/11, shooting thousands of satellite pictures of Afghanistan for the exclusive use of the U.S. government. The deal had the effect of stopping the media and others from obtaining pictures of U.S. troop movements. It also saved the U.S. time and money.

JOHN COPPLE, CEO, SPACE IMAGING: NIMA buys commercial imagery not only from a cost perspective in that they don't have to go build their own satellite, they can leverage our satellite, but also it's unclassified data. It can be shared with our allies.

ENSOR: Now, NIMA is turning its sights to another target, the territory of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. NIMA's satellite photo analysts know Iraq well, its weapons of mass destruction sites and the key military installations. But the Iraqis are masters are hiding what they have.

CLAPPER: Denial and deception and concealment is a challenge for us.

ENSOR: As U.S. intelligence expands its use of unmanned surveillance drones and as smarter computers and analysts increase the speed at which target data can be generated, warfare is changing, even as another potential conflict looms.

JOHN PIKE, GLOBALSECURITY.ORG: Today, the imagery can get in digital form to military planners fast enough that they can actually shoot at targets before they move.

ENSOR: In time of war, the existence of the new private satellite firms like Space Imaging is the mixed blessing for the U.S. For Iraq, the government may exercise its legal right, predicts Pike, to shutter control on American owned firms.

PIKE: There's no way the military is going to let these satellites monitor American troop movements on their way to Baghdad.

ENSOR (on camera): If U.S. forces do go to war with Iraq, NIMA teams will go in there with them, working to tailor the maps, software and target data to the war fighter.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: Coming up, how to shop the auctions at Ebay and increase your chances of nabbing that special item.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: A few weeks ago, we told you about the consumer reports Web site that rates online shopping sites. One viewer e-mailed with a complaint about the story. Habeeb Rasheed wrote: "I was pretty disappointed that the representative from Consumer Reports just focused on larger retailers. What about the little guys? If people are always told to stick to what they know, how can anything new get off the ground?"

Well, that's a good question. Consumer Reports told us they focus on the larger, better-known sites because they just don't have the time or resources to evaluate every site on the Internet.

One site that just about everyone has heard about is Ebay, the cyber auction house. You can buy, sell practically anything there. But it can be intimidating if you don't know the ropes. Renay San Miguel got some tips from consumer tech guru Marc Saltzman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There is a very good reason why Ebay is known as the world's biggest garage sale, world's biggest flea market, you can get pretty much anything on there. But we want to make it clear, Marc, that Ebay itself is not doing the buying and the selling.

MARC SALTZMAN, PERSONAL TECH GURU: That's right. It's really up to buyers and sellers. They provide the online marketplace that connects buyers and sellers around the world. In fact, 12 million items are sold through Ebay in 18,000 categories. It is overwhelming, but you know, as they say, one man's junk is another man's treasure, and certainly on Ebay, you can find millions of new and used items.

SAN MIGUEL: The thing that I find fascinating about Ebay, not just an online auction site, but it's also a community you can get feedback from those who have been doing the buying and the selling.

SALTZMAN: I think that's what really separates Ebay from some of the other online options in cyber space, and we know that there are dozens of them, is that you can check, and we really encourage you to check, the user ratings and the feedback from people that have already had an experience with that particular seller.

Let's give an example here. Here is a digital camera that before the cameras were rolling I was considering bidding for, buying. Now, as you can see, this person here, beside his name, which is actually called Dutypaid, there is over 7,600 people that have commented on this person and their selling and buying experience. So obviously they're a seasoned Ebay seller.

SAN MIGUEL: One thing I noticed here with this particular seller, Dutypaid, was that he was something called a power seller. What is that?

SALTZMAN: Yeah, that means that they have a user feedback that is positive 98 percent or higher, so that means that obviously the overwhelming majority of people that have bought items from this particular seller were pleased with the process.

SAN MIGUEL: You can feel good buying something from the person.

SALTZMAN: Yeah. You can actually tweak your search parameters to only look at power sellers as well.

And speaking of advance search options, you can now have the option to gift wrap items and sell it -- sorry, send it directly to the recipient. So if you are buying a gift for me, which I expect you to do...

SAN MIGUEL: Oh, no problem. SALTZMAN: You can actually buy it online and have it sent to me gift wrapped with a card. It's an option that they provide. Now, it could cost a couple of dollars; it's up to the seller. But the important thing here is that Ebay themselves has now -- they have built that now into the search window so you can only look for the gift items.

SAN MIGUEL: There is also -- I have heard that not everything is spelled correctly, but that can be -- the items themselves may be misspelled, but you can use that to your advantage, can you?

SALTZMAN: Absolutely. That is my favorite Ebay tip, if you want to know the truth. When you do have a search window, type in "Sonyy" with two Y's, or "Gatway" instead of "Gateway." Let's try that, actually. Because you're taking advantage of -- well, see, if you type in "Gateway" legitimately, you're going to have 20 million products here. Take out the E there and we'll see how many we get. We actually have seven where a seller has misspelled Gateway. So in theory, there are going to be less bids, so you should have a better chance of walking away with this product at a much cheaper price.

SAN MIGUEL: If you don't have the time to go into the bidding process, bidding against thousands of other people for the same computer or whatever, are there any ways to get around that?

SALTZMAN: Absolutely. This is an online auction site, Ebay, but now you can purchase the item outright without having to bid on it. You know, which can take some time. Somebody may up your bid by $10 or $5. That can be annoying if you're tight on time.

So if you look for a product that has a "buy it now" symbol, and again, the seller has to have that on there, that means that you can buy the product outright, no bidding is necessary, and it should still be competitively priced.

Also, look for fast shipping, look for insurance. Sometimes a couple of dollars will save you the headache if, God forbid, the product was lost, and also check the refund policy, just to make sure if there is something wrong with the product, check their history and check what their refund policy is.

SAN MIGUEL: Yeah, whether in the real world or in the virtual world, caveat emptor.

SALTZMAN: Absolutely, caveat emptor.

SAN MIGUEL: Buyer beware. Very good advice, thanks a lot.

SALTZMAN: Thanks.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: Most of the world can't visit Ebay or any Web site, simply because they don't have access to computer technology. The digital divide is the topic of this week's "Fast Forward" commentary from David Kirkpatrick, senior editor of "Fortune" magazine. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID KIRKPATRICK, SENIOR EDITOR, FORTUNE: The digital divide refers to the problem that a huge portion of the world is not really using technology. And yet, we realize that information technology and communications technology is what makes not only efficient economy for our country, but what makes individuals productive and efficient.

There is a strong belief that if could get technology into the hands of the poor, particularly the poorest of the poor, that that really could be a huge improvement in their quality of life. It is counterintuitive in a way, because you kind of assume, well, how can the poor afford technology? But the idea is, especially when it comes to farmers and very small-business people like in villages, if you can provide them with the right kind of technology at a low enough price, they can end up being able to pay for the technology with the money they make as a result of their own increased productivity.

In a way, you can say that both in the U.S. and outside the U.S., there is a problem of ignorance about what's possible with technology that continues to really inhibit our ability to really empower people with technology. That's just something that will take time to remedy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: Next up, wearing your chip on your sleeve. Fashions close to the heart of the gadget minded.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: Some people are so much into computers they and their laptops seem joined at the hip. Well, that's getting closer to the truth, with a new line of clothing featuring the latest in wearable computers. Lilian Kim reports from Seattle.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LILIAN KIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They may look like ordinary clothes, but these models are wearing what may be the fashion of the future. This jacket is an MP3 player. Draw strings serve as earphones, while the hip pocket contains a multimedia card. And that's not all.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

KIM: This is just one of dozens of wearable computers showcased recently by inventors from around the world. Many are already on the market, including this system that costs about $5,000, equipped with a computer pack and pistol-grip keyboard, a user can view information from a tiny monitor attached to a pair of eyeglasses.

THAD STARNER, COMPUTING PROFESSOR: With a wearable computer, you can look people in the eye and have your keyboard underneath the desk on and just take a quick look at comments to remember what you're talking about. KIM: For $12,000, you can have a top-of-the-line version. Designed for commercial use, this personal display system is equipped with a see-through monitor that superimposes information on reality.

MATT NICHOLS: Automotive mechanics are now repairing the vehicles with this display, so they can see the engine, and all the repair information comes directly into their point of view.

KIM: Wearable technology applies to military apparel as well.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As you see, this is embedded inside.

KIM: This uniform has an antenna inside the lining.

DOUGLAS THOMSON: It's more comfortable. It's easier to get caught on things.

KIM: And for scientists, that's the idea, designing technology that's functional yet wearable in this digital world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: Did this flying machine get airborne before the Wright brothers? Find out why some people think so when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KELLAN: Who built the first powered flying machine that actually got off the ground? If you said Orville and Wilbur Wright, you may be right, but you'll get an argument from some people in a small town in Texas. Bruce Burkhardt dug into the history of a little known aviation pioneer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRUCE BURKHARDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): No sand dunes, no beach. It doesn't much look like Kitty Hawk. That's because it's Pittsburg. Pittsburg, Texas.

(on camera): I thought the Wright brothers were the first ones to to fly?

MAYOR D.H. ABERNATHY, PITTSBURG, TEXAS: Well, that's been a controversial issue.

BURKHARDT: At 90 years old, D.H. Abernathy has been mayor of Pittsburg for more than half his life, almost 50 years.

ABERNATHY: We have people that have testified that they saw this Ezekiel ship fly.

BURKHARDT: Saw it fly in 1902, a year before the Wright brothers. Technically, it wasn't an air ship, but a heavier-than-air manned craft, an airplane -- sort of. The Ezekiel airship was the brain child of one Reverend Verl (ph) Cannon, a devout Baptist and saw mill operator who, at the turn of the century, when Pittsburg was a booming cotton town, set to work trying to make a machine that would fly. It was a mission from God, the way Reverend Cannon saw it. Not only did his inspiration come from the Biblical book of Ezekiel, so did the design.

GLENN GORDON, REV. CANNON'S GRANDSON: Their appearance and their work was as if it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel.

BURKHARDT: Glenn Gordon reads from the Bible that belonged to his grandfather, Reverend Cannon. A Bible that the reverend/inventor poured over, believing that the secret to a flying machine was right there in Ezekiel Chapter 1. The prophet describes a vision from the sky, and in its appearance, a wheel within a wheel.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's supposed to create its own lift by throwing air into the canvas. It's more or less like.

BURKHARDT (on camera): And those paddles throw the air into the canvas?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is built more or less like a kite.

BURKHARDT (voice-over): Bob Lowery (ph) built a replica of the airship. It sits here in the Northeast Texas Rural Heritage Museum, suspended probably as high as the ship actually flew.

CLEO GORDON HUFFMAN, REV. CANNON'S GRANDDAUGHTER: I remember her (ph) saying, it flew over a fence and hit the ground, that was it. I don't think he ever tried it anymore.

BURKHARDT: Miss Cleo is Reverend Cannon's granddaughter. Like everyone else, she's had to rely on the few eyewitness accounts handed down about that 1902 flight.

JOHN HOLMAN, HISTORIAN: Now, you can argue about it being a controlled flight and repeatable flight, and documented flight, and that gives credit to the Wright brothers and they deserve that credit.

BURKHARDT: John Holman and Lacy Davis, both Pittsburg natives, teamed up on a book about the whole episode, "On the Wings of Ezekiel."

HOLMAN: There was plenty of room for that thing to do its flying in that area right here, and that's why the historical marker has been placed here.

BURKHARDT: As the story goes, the airship was destroyed shortly afterwards when it was en route to St. Louis to be displayed at the world's fair.

(on camera): So in the coming year, leading up to the centennial of the Wright brothers flight, we're going to hear a lot about Wilbur and Orville and their world-changing accomplishment. But this December, 2002, maybe it's appropriate and fair to tip the hat elsewhere. Happy anniversary, Reverend Cannon.

(END VIDEOTAPE) KELLAN: Well, this show is history, too. Time for us to fly. Here is what's coming up next week.

We will revisit some favorite stories from 2002 and update others on a special year-end edition of NEXT. Everything from a high-speed camera to battling birds. That's coming up on NEXT.

Until then, let's hear from you. You can e-mail us at next@cnn.com. Thanks for joining us this week. For James Hattori and everyone on the sci-tech beat, I'm Ann Kellan. See you next time.

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Celebrating Anniversary of Wright Brothers' Flight; High Tech Meets Fashion>