that is happening every day. A se- nior IT executive of a state police department has informed us that the use of cellular telephones has radically changed the job of the state police. Prior to the cellular tele- phone being in widespread use, the most frequent job of state police officers was to ren- der assistance to stranded motorists. Officers were instructed to remain with stranded motorists to ensure their safety until a tow truck arrived. Not only were these jobs more frequent than any other, they also took longer than many. Now that stranded mo- torists have cellular telephones, the tow truck often arrives before the police cruise by. Even more significantly, the stranded passengers are safer when they are alone be- cause they have cellular telephones. Criminals, knowing that stranded motorists can call for help, may well be more reluctant to attack. With cellular telephones, we are less isolated, and criminal activity is more difficult. Of course, criminals and terrorists can and do use wireless technology for their own purposes as well. In the long run, how- ever, there is good reason to believe that the balance will run in favor of safety and peace. We are changing our lives with wireless technology. The final outcome is uncertain. However, there is a core principle of general systems theory that says that living sys- tems have a property of being self-healing. This means that if we can improve commu- nication among all the parts of the system, then the parts and the system will be re- stored to balance, become more robust, and be able to grow. CDMA engineers play a part in that evolution by doing a good job ensuring ever-growing quality of service in support of the true quality of life. Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.digitalengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright © 2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website. CDMA Now and in the Future Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.digital