" Besides, he adds, "wireless technology is cheaper and quicker to install in remote parts of Asia, like China, India and Vietnam than wired.

CNN: Cell-Phones On the Line

At these depths, everything must be done with remote-control robots that install the blowout preventers, submersible pumps and other devices to manage the flow of oil and water on the ocean floor.

FORBES: The delicate art of sucking up

It is quicker and cheaper to sell a poor person a mobile telephone than to install a payphone in a remote village.

ECONOMIST: The digital revolution is helping the poor, too

One improvement, suggests Mr Sokolski, would be to install more real-time remote-monitoring cameras, so inspectors can check more reliably that materials and equipment are not being diverted to covert use.

ECONOMIST: Troubling flaws in the world's nuclear safeguards

It might not make sense to install solar panels on the roofs of suburban tract homes already connected to the power grid, but imagine remote bases in Afghanistan powered by lightweight, flexible solar panels built right into tent fabric, or unfurled as easily as extending an umbrella.

FORBES: Logistics