Google vs. Apple, Round 2 or: Can I Get That on a Netbook?

The rise of the netbook has made its way into traditional print media - a strong indicator that the trend toward low cost, cloud-reliant computing has firmly taken root in American consumer behavior.

Some Thoughts, and a Question, on the Declaration of Health Data Rights

I'm a bit late to this, but a bunch of bloggers, self-trackers and companies have endorsed something called A Delcaration of Health Data Rights. The declaration includes four key points, that, "We the people&quot

Data.gov and the Digital Open

While working on the Digital Open: the Innovation Expo for Global Youth that IFTF is running in partnership with Sun Microsystems and Boing Boing, I have tried to keep an eye out for potential areas that would benefit from the types of projects the Open is seeking. It was great to see this interview with the U.S. Government's first C.I.O. in the July edition of Wired.

Neo-neo Colonialism?

Some of my colleagues and I have been doing some research on the growing, or perhaps dying trend, of land grabbing to secure future food sources. I recently found a great resource for anyone interested in following this disturbing trend.

Space gaming takes a step closer to reality

In the recent Signtific games on the future of cubesats (described here), a number of people suggested using them for games. At the 2009 cubesat conference

As Space.com reports,

[Space entrepreneur Jeffrey] Manber announced plans for Nanoracks, a company developing games incorporating CubeSats. The idea is to take advantage of recent advances in nanotechnology and hand-held communication devices like the Apple iPhone to allow people on Earth to participate in games of skill or chance that, in one way or another, involve an on-orbit CubeSat. "The CubeSat is a standardized platform that has an emerging base of developers," Manber said. "We think it's analogous to 20-25 years ago in the personal computer industry. If we can get people interested in games in zero gravity, there is a proven business model for using entertainment as a way to develop a market."

The Kentucky Space Blog adds,

There is, as he points out, a proven business model for using entertainment to pioneer new markets. His presentation is short and to the point.

In response to a question about why not simulate gaming in a weightless environment, a young member of the audience blurts out "because space is fun!" and talks about how zero-gravity games could be held using real time space to ground communications.

The argument that cubesats are like the personal computer is one that's circulating in the cubesat community now. It highlights the long connections, both technical and imginative, between computers and space: recall that one of the first personal computers was the Altair.

Confrontational Computing

It's pretty well accepted that the Internet has become home to an astounding amount of useful information--as well as a ton of misleading and inaccurate gibberish, making it a challenge to figure out what to trust. A new tool from Intel's research labs aims to solve that problem through something they've called the Dispute Finder or confrontational computing.

I hope that chip in your brain won't cause problems at airport security

I love it when BoingBoing ("a directory of wonderful things") ends up being the source for one of my posts. This tweet headline defintely caught my eye: "Researchers expand clinical study of brain implant."  Sure enough, BoingBoing guest blogger Joshua Foer writes that he is "excited to see that the BrainGate Neural Interface System is moving to phase-II clinical testing." So am I!

Our Health and Health Care 2020 research has led us to forecast that neurointerventions will have an important impact on health and health care over the next decade. Brain Gate is an excellent signal of that future.  The company's tagline, Turning Thoughts into Action, sums it up.  In simple terms, its technology will allow "patients with brain stem stroke, ALS, and spinal cord injuries to eventually be able to control prosthetic limbs directly from their brains."

In fancier marketing language,

What does state-of-the-art critical care vs. chronic care look like?

Tomorrow (June 25, 2009), the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (more commonly known as HIMSS) is hosting a webinar entitled, "Ubiquitous Wireless Enables All-Private Room Critical Care Hospital."  This struck my interest from a technology standpoint, by it also made me pause to consider the question of how and when the hospital infrastructure in this country will start adapting to meet our growing need for chronic care?

The Future of Infrastructure

A couple weeks ago I mentioned my long standing fascination with the history of architecture, and in particular my interest in how spatial design affects behavior. Last Sunday's New York Times Magazine on 'Infrastructure' was therefore an unexpected delight.