Olympic Games coverage: HD and 3D

IP is over the quota
IP is over the quota
17 July 2012 Last updated at 01:58 By Paul Rubens Technology reporter The BBC is the official broadcaster of the London 2012 Olympic Games in the UK Somewhere beneath the streets of London, four miles of fibre optic cables linking the Olympic Park to the BBC's Television Centre lie in darkness.

But when the Olympic opening ceremony starts on 27 July, data will flash through them as they transmit the highest definition pictures Olympic coverage has ever seen.

Technology has come a long way since the last Olympics in London in 1948, broadcast in black and white.

The cables will carry ultra-high definition video, which at a resolution of 7680x4320 is an astonishing 16 times the quality of HD television.

The video technology was developed and supplied by Japanese broadcaster NHK, and is known as Super Hi-Vision.

It will be sent to the world's first ultra-high definition production centre at the BBC, and then over high-speed data networks to four giant screens around Britain, two in Japan and one in the United States.

"When you see this type of ultra-high definition television, it's just like looking though a glass window," said Tim Plyming, the BBC's Super Hi-Vision project leader.

"This is the highest definition that the human eye can understand - it's the end of the story in terms of resolution."

Going 3D

But with only a handful of screens around the world capable of displaying ultra-high definition pictures, an estimated 4.8 billion sports fans will be turning to their televisions, computers, or mobile devices to catch the Olympic action.

London 2012 will be the first Olympics to feature live 3D television broadcasts, and 33 "true 3D" cameras will be used to capture more than 230 hours of 3D coverage.

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For moments involving British athletes, or major games moments, we have planned for a doubling of streaming capacity over the highest we have ever needed before”

End Quote Phil Fearnley BBC Future Media The BBC will broadcast the opening and closing ceremonies and the men's 100m final in 3D, and pan-European broadcaster Eurosport will also be providing 3D coverage.

The BBC will broadcast more than 2,500 hours (equivalent to almost four months) of high definition television over the 17-day period, covering every sport, from every venue, on every day.

To squeeze it all in, the corporation will use 24 Olympic channels, which will be available via the BBC Red Button or channel numbers in the electronic programme guides on cable and satellite services.

The same 24 television channels will also be available as 24 high definition online streams, tailored for viewing on connected TVs, PCs, tablets and mobile phones, and the BBC expects online viewing figures will be the highest ever.

Super Hi-Vision video equipment was developed and supplied by Japanese broadcaster NHK

"For moments involving British athletes, or major games moments, we have planned for a doubling of streaming capacity over the highest we have ever needed before," says Phil Fearnley, BBC Future Media's general manager.

The BBC has recently introduced a new video delivery technology called "chunked streaming " which makes it possible for a viewer joining halfway through an event to "rewind" the stream back to the start.

This technology will feature in the BBC's new Live Interactive Video Player, which is being introduced specially for the Olympics on its website.

It allows visitors to switch between the 24 live streams instantly, rewind to earlier parts of the action, receive alerts about big moments on other channels ("Tom Daley is diving now!"), and access real-time statistics and information about individual athletes or events.

"This is a knockout piece of technology," says Mr Fearnley.

Continue reading the main story Brings live HD video coverage to the desktopEnables audiences to switch between 24 simultaneous live streams effortlesslyGives the option to rewind live coverage, for audiences who missed the start of the actionProvides chapter markers, enabling simple navigation to those key moments within a session (e.g. the gold medal winning dive)Offers relevant live data, statistics and information, while viewers are watching, in a seamless and unobtrusive wayMobile experience For mobile users, a mobile site will mirror much of the desktop experience, adapted to the size of their device's screen.

Apple and Android users will also be able to access the 24 live video streams and highlights.

BBC Olympics apps for Apple and Android smartphones will include all the features available on the mobile browser site, plus the ability to read content even when disconnected from the internet.

There is also a BBC Sport app for Virgin Media's TiVo service, Sony, Panasonic and Samsung internet-connected televisions and Sony's PlayStation games console, which allows viewers to watch online streams, on demand highlights and news headlines on their TVs.

Around the globe

The BBC's streams are only available in the United Kingdom, but viewers elsewhere in the world will be turning to other sources of online coverage.

Getty Images, the official photo agency of London 2012, expects to shoot more than one million pictures during the Games

In the US, NBC will be adding to its broadcast and cable television coverage with streamed content delivered using technology provided by YouTube, and the International Olympic Committee plans to provide a live stream to sports fans in 64 countries across Africa and Asia using its own dedicated YouTube channel.

No Olympics would be complete without photographic imagery - and Getty Images, the official photographic agency, expects to shoot more than one million pictures during the games.

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From the moment an athlete crosses a finishing line, a photograph will arrive at a newspaper as far away as Australia in about 180 seconds”

End Quote Ken Mainardis Getty Images These will include 3D images - an Olympic first - and high resolution 360 degree panoramic photographs.

Some of London's Olympic venues, including Wembley and Excel, do not provide photographers with ideal vantage points, according to Getty Images' Ken Mainardis.

To get around this problem, Getty is pioneering the use of robotic cameras installed in the roofs of these buildings.

Photographers up to 200m away can see each camera's view on a laptop screen, adjust the camera settings using software running on a laptop, and move the camera and take photographs using a joystick.

Back in 1948, it took hours just to get photographs developed, but Mr Mainardis says fibre optic networks allow the best Olympic pictures to be made available across the globe in minutes.

"From the moment an athlete crosses a finishing line, a photograph will arrive at a newspaper as far away as Australia in about 180 seconds," he says.

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BMJ press release on alcohol & arthritis may have contributed to misleading coverage

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New Year''s a chance to check insurance coverage

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

As January 1 rolls around, many may be thinking of how to stick to their New Year's resolutions.

However, turning the calendar to a new year may also provide the opportunity for some financial management regarding insurance coverage. Many experts note policies should be reviewed at least once a year to ensure owners have the proper amount of protection.

A number of factors could play into a need for new life, home or auto insurance coverage. Getting a better-paying job, for example, may lead to another car, additional possessions or a higher standard of living, all of which will require a look at policies.

Experts note getting married, having children or buying a home are all instances when people should review their insurance coverage. Even a divorce could lead to necessary policy changes.

When considering additional insurance, there are ways for consumers to save money. Getting multiple policies from one provider may lead to savings. Comparison shopping is also a tool policy owners can use.

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Obtaining Travel Medical Insurance - 5 Types Of Coverage You Need

In days of old, when Polynesian, European, and other ancient seafaring peoples set out to sea for a journey in their hand-crafted boats and ships, they had no guarantees that they would be coming home again. These brave peoples only knew that they were searching for riches or new places to live someplace far away, but they did not have compasses, maps, or a GPS system to guide them. And often, they did not return home.
Today, when we take a trip by sea, air, or land, we have a much, much better chance of returning safely than did those ancient seafaring peoples. Travel has become an extremely safe affair, especially when it comes to the major modes of transport to and from our destinations. Airplanes, ships and trains have become extremely safe modes of transportation - much safer than the automobiles we use every day while at home, in fact.
And yet, even these days when you travel you face certain risks. There is always the possibility of getting into a fender bender, getting injured while hiking, having a boating accident, falling ill with a rare disease, getting food poisoning, etc. Fortunately, we have something these days that our ancestors did not: access to travel medical insurance.
If you are planning on obtaining travel medical insurance for an upcoming journey abroad, here are 5 types of coverage you need:
1. Make sure it covers your care from time of accident or illness until you return to your home country:
Some illnesses and accidents that you encounter while on the road can be treated successfully while you are still in-country. However, getting into a very serious accident or succumbing to an exotic disease for which you forgot to get vaccinated is not outside of the realm of possibility. To handle this type of situation, you will want to make sure that the travel medical insurance policy that you purchase includes coverage for your continued care once you return home.
2. Check out any destination or activity restrictions:
Read the policy you buy carefully and look for any restrictions related to either your planned destination country (or region) or any types of risky activities. It would be a shame to buy a policy that you cannot cash in on because you unknowingly violated a hidden policy restriction during your trip.
3. Verify that the policy will cover your hospital needs while you are still in-country:
Of course, as a basic requirement, you will need your policy to cover your in-country hospital bills for a reasonable duration that covers your treatment.
4. Make sure that the policy will cover your transportation needs to and from the hospital:
If you get into an accident or get sick at your hotel while traveling, you will need access to transportation staffed with medically-trained staff (i.e., an ambulance) to transport you to and from the hospital. Be sure that coverage for such transportation is included in your policy.
5. Read the fine print concerning specialty treatments:
Finally, read the fine print about getting access to specialty treatments. For example, if the hospital to which you are first transported does not have the proper facilities to handle your required treatment, you need your coverage to take that possibility into account; you need coverage for expenses related to secondary transportation to another facility.
As you look into obtaining travel medical insurance, consider these 5 types of coverage that you will need in order to get the peace of mind you deserve for your upcoming trip.