The EETimes Group has begun releasing details of its ESC (Embedded Systems Conference) Silicon Valley, scheduled for April. 26-29 in San Jose. The event will feature a variety of new keynote speakers, a “Developing with Open-Source Software ” track, plus an expansion of the popular “Build your Own Embedded System Event,” the organizers say.

According to the EETimes Group, one significant keynote speaker will be Dr. Michio Kaku, best-selling author and science popularizer (pictured below left, with the group's director of content/media Richard Nass at right). Described as the co-founder of string field theory, Kaku holds the Henry Semat Professorship in Theoretical Physics at the City College of New York, has hosted multiple radio and television series and science specials, and has written a number of highly acclaimed science books including the best-seller Hyperspace.

Physicist Michio Kaku (left) and the EE Times Group's Richard Nass (right)

Kaku's keynote will deliver a vision of what the world will be like 10 to 20 years from now, according to a blog entry by Nass. Highlights will include such things as "the successor to silicon" and (gulp) "Silicon Valley becoming part of the rust belt," plus smart bathrooms with built-in MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scanners and breath analyzers that can help determine our health, Nass says.

Another keynote speaker highlighted by the EETimes Group is Richard Templeton (right), chairman, president, and CEO of Texas Instruments. Templeton is described as having "guided TI during the worst downturn in semiconductor history, while maintaining the company's strategic investments in R&D and advanced manufacturing." As a result of his leadership, TI emerged in stronger strategic, technological and product positions, and has gained market share in its core analog and DSP technologies for each of the last six years, the organizers add.

The EETimes Group says ESC Silicon Valley 2010 will add to the show's already extensive bevy of instructional tracks with a new one called "Designing with open source software, including Linux and Android." The track includes separate "Jumpstart" sessions on Linux, Android, and device drivers in general, as well as sessions on debugging Linux device drivers, real-time development with Linux and Android, using Android beyond handsets, and building a connected device with open source software.

Other new tracks include:

• Developing for Windows Embedded
• Microprocessors/microcontrollers/DSPs
• Networking and connectivity
• Operating system selections, tips and tricks

ESC Silicon Valley 2010 also continues the show's popular "Build Your Own Embedded System" track. This year, there are no BeagleBoards or other Linux-based devices, but attendees can choose the Freescale Tower System pictured below, which is said to employ the company's MCF5225X V2 ColdFire microcontroller and run the MQX real-time operating system. The Tower System supports a variety of interchangeable peripheral modules via four card-edge connectors, the EETimes Group adds.

Freescale's Tower System
(Click to enlarge)

No doubt, ESC Silicon Valley 2010 will also continue the show's long-standing tradition of device tear-downs. However, we could not yet locate any description of the hardware that will be disassembled and analyzed by Nass and his colleagues.

Availability

According to the EETimes Group, ESC Silicon Valley 2010 runs from April 26 to April 29, and will be located, as in the past, at the McEnery Convention Center in San Jose. Pricing ranges from free (for an exhibits-only pass) to $2,795 for an "all-access" pass purchased onsite, and "early bird" discounts are currently available. More information may be found on the show website, here.

A list of available educational sessions by track may be found here. Details about keynote times may be found here. An exhibitor list may be found here.

More information about Dr. Michio Kaku may be found on his own website, here, and in Richard Nass' blog entry, here.

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