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Is English or Mandarin the language of the future? By Jennifer Pak BBC World Service English has been the dominant global language for a century, but is it the language of the future? If Mandarin Chinese is to challenge English globally, then it first has to conquer its own backyard, South East Asia. In Malaysia's southernmost city of Johor Bahru, the desire to speak good English has driven some children to make a remarkable two-hour journey to school every day. Nine-year-old Aw Yee Han hops on a yellow mini van at 04:30. His passport is tucked inside a small pouch hung around his neck. This makes it easier for him to show it to immigration officials when he reaches the Malaysian border. His school is located on the other side, in Singapore, where unlike in Malaysia, English is the main language. It's not your typical school run, but his mother, Shirley Chua thinks it's worth it. "Science and maths are all...

More mobiles than humans in 2012, says Cisco

- February 15, 2012

More mobiles than humans in 2012, says Cisco Mobile data has come a long way since the start of the millennium Mobile devices will outnumber humans this year, according to network firm Cisco's latest analysis of global mobile data traffic. By 2016 it predicts that there will be 10 billion mobile connected devices around the world. By the same date networks will be carrying 130 exabytes of data each year, equivalent to 33 billion DVDs. Mobile data traffic in 2011 was eight times the size of the global internet in 2000, according to the report. Gigabyte club The rise in data consumption is likely to cause more problems for mobile operators already struggling to cope with demand. Currently the average smartphone uses 150 megabytes of data per month but this is expected to rise to 2.6 gigabytes by 2016, the report found. "By 2016, 60% of mobile users - three billion people worldwide - will belong to the Gigabyte Club, each generating more than on...