Society and technology
The impact of the Web on how we think and perceive information
In the New York Times, Michiko Kakutani has written a thought-provoking article about the effect of the Internet on the way we think and analyze information. It is worth reading. Here is an excerpt:
WORRYING ABOUT the public’s growing attention deficit disorder and susceptibility to information overload, of course, is hardly new. It’s been 25 years [...]
Science fiction movies
It’s Friday so here’s something a little lighter. A contributor to Gizmo’s Freeware with the nom de plume of Rizar has written an article about science fiction movies. He begins:
This article has a collection of the best science fiction (SF) movies ever. I survey the exciting range of possibilities in imaginative technology, computers, futuristic visions, [...]
The amazing growth of mobile platforms
If you have doubts that mobile platforms will become the consumer’s way to use the Internet in much of the world, consider some predictions from the eMarketer about usage in the so-called BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China). Here are a few statistics:
Over 200 million mobile subscribers in both Brazil and Russia by 2014
853 million [...]
Debating how to draw talent into technical fields
The US is graduating fewer and fewer scientists and engineers, and concern is growing about how to deal with the falloff. TechCrunch has posted a debate between two experts on the best approach to attracting more talent.
While many people agree this is a problem, not everyone agrees on what should be done about it. [...]
More about the loss of privacy
The discussion of how the Internet acts to reduce privacy continues. Steve Lohr at the New York Times has written an article, How Privacy Vanishes Online, a Bit at a Time. Computers can assemble and analyze the various facts that people post about themselves to create a revealing picture. Lohr writes:
Computer scientists and policy experts [...]
Predicting human movement
Although the actions of individual humans are not very predictable, those of large numbers of people often follow discernible patterns. For example, consider a report about human movement in Ars Technica that shows what analysis of cell phone data shows:
We’d like to think of ourselves as dynamic, unpredictable individuals, but according to new research, that’s [...]
Privacy died and no one cared?
It is a commonplace observation that privacy in the modern world is dead. But what is also being said more often is that most people don’t care. Declan McCullagh of CBSNews.com has an article at CNET, Why no one cares about privacy anymore. He writes:
Norms are changing, with confidentiality giving way to openness. Participating in [...]
A view of advertising from the other side
The Internet is not free. All those Web sites that you read have to be paid for by somebody, somehow. But, since nobody wants to pay for viewing Web content, ads provide the funds to finance most Web sites. (Or, as is the case for this blog, it comes out of the site owner’s pocket.) [...]
The state of the Internet
Here’s a video with some interesting facts about the Internet. The statistics are a few months old but it’s a quick and easy way to see where things are going.
JESS3 / The State of The Internet from Jesse Thomas on Vimeo.
The PC is dying-here come the mobile platforms
The mismatch between ponderous Windows systems and consumer needs is finally catching up with the PC. Thanks to the example of the Apple iPhone and to the Asian OEMs who pushed the netbook, the technology industry has awakened to what consumers really want. Predictions are popping up all over that the PC will be replaced [...]
How we get our news
The Pew Internet & American Life Project has published a study, Understanding the Participatory News Consumer, that looks at how we get our news and how Americans’ news consumption habits are changing. The reports says many are seeing news as a social, participatory activity:
To a great extent, people’s experience of news, especially on the internet, [...]
