Likebetter
If you need a break in the middle of your day, try this site: likebetter.com. It told me that if I had to choose between being a pirate and a ninja that I’d choose to be a ninja. It’s right.
Americans Without Internet Access Don’t Want it
What is it about the sentence “I don’t care about the Internet,” that some people just don’t get? Today TechNewsWorld published an article about a new study showing that: “Almost half of households without Web access don’t care that they
80 is the new 65
The LA Times published my column today explaining how our expectations around aging must change to cope with longer life spans.
Surprises and Enlightenment at Tech Summit
Here’s my column about the recent tech policy summit. There were many interesting things that came up, especially about China: An interesting speech by Sybase CEO and President John Chen stimulated some ideas on how to advance a positive tech
Proof that Municipal Telecom Networks Are Financial Disasters
The Pacific Research Institute just published a paper I coauthored on Municipal networks. The study, titled “Wi-Fi Waste: The Disaster of Municipal Communications Networks” reviewed 52 city-run telecom networks that compete in the cable, broadband, and telephone markets. The amount
U.S. group says Canada should be blacklisted over piracy
The International Intellectual Property Alliance told US government officials that 14 countries, including Canada, should be placed on a watch-list with other countries like China and Russia that don’t respect intellectual property. Canadians are probably gushing over this news as
The Quest to Neuter the Net
What do liberal House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Christian Coalition have in common? No, it’s not a penchant for government-funded jet rides — it’s a misguided belief about net neutrality, proposed rules that could affect the future of Internet
New Yorkers can’t walk and listen at the same time?
That’s what a state senator from Brooklyn seems to think. Sen. Carl Kruger is proposing to ban people from using an MP3 player, cell phone, Blackberry or any other electronic device while crossing the street in New York City and
Nanoliquids — the Band-Aids of the future
There’s a cool article in this month’s Discover Magazine on nanoliquid developed at MIT. According to the article, “The liquid is a solution of small protein pieces that assemble into nanoscale fibers on contact, creating a gel that stops the
Uncle Sam steals space trip
Brian Emmett, a self-described space buff (who has even attended space camp) won a trip to space in an Oracle competition, but he won’t be able to take the ride. That’s because the government counts contest winnings as income, and
China wants to “purify” Internet
Every once in a while a newspaper headline wakes me up before my morning coffee. This was one of them. According to the Reuter’s report, Chinese president Hu Jintao recently said “We must promote civilized running and use of the
We’re blowing it on technology
That’s the word from Dr. John Rutledge, one of the nation’s most accomplished economists who has advised several presidents (including the current administration). He’s been spending a lot of time in China recently and has first hand knowledge of how
Second Life Tax Man?
Late last year, a congressional committee began examining the idea of taxing property inside digital worlds such as Second Life. If that happens, a digital Boston Tea Party should break out, perhaps making it the only place in America where
There’s now a mathematical formula for procrastination
Utility = E x V / (Gamma) x D. E is a person’s expectancy for succeeding at a given task; V is the value of completing the task; Gamma is its immediacy or availability; and D is the person’s sensitivity
Back from Oxnard
Ok, so I had planned to let the Command College students write a post here explaining what Command College is, but we never got around to it. Instead, we spent our time talking about Net neutrality, Muni Wifi, digital economies
Hello Command College!
I’m leading a session at the Command College today in Oxnard, CA. If you don’t know what Command College is, visit back in a few hours for your answer.
Stumble upon — you’re gonna love it!
I have no idea how long this site has been around, but it is *awesome*. I was at a Renissance weekend over New Years and a bunch of folks were talking about it. It is the coolest tool I have
Golden Gaffes 2006
There were at least five tech policy blunders that should not have happened in California in 2006. Here’s my column discussing them.
Technology and the Politics of War
Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., caused a political firestorm recently when he said he wanted to reinstate a military draft. His radical proposal brings to light a growing theme that both political parties should consider very closely. In a world where
Le Web 3.0
Remember web 2.0? Well, Europe has now moved on to web 3.0. My husband went to a conference in Paris oraganized around that idea and here is his post. Apparently the conference was good, but the few politicos that showed