Technology

Who are you?  Who are you online?  Are you the same to everyone?  Should you be? There's been a lot of talk about Google Wave as a new communications paradigm.  I like Wave.  I also think it's retro, harkening back to Nelson and Engelbart's work in the 60s.  Evolutionary rather than revolutionary, as the quote goes.  But even Wave assumes you are a single 'you'.  They need to look at handling multiple personas. Now, by example.  On Monday, I'm launching a new project, in collaboration with ScientificBlogging.  And I'll be continuing this twice…

For the drive to Montréal, I borrowed a Tom-Tom GPS device — for fun, really; the way is straightforward. It’s the first time I’ve used one in my car, and I have to say that despite the advantage of portability, the built-in ones that I’ve seen in friends’ cars are far better, what with their larger screens and consequent improvement in user interface. One thing the Tom-Tom does is show your driving speed. Because it’s measured from the GPS signals, I presume it’s accurate. And I found something interesting: my car’s speedometer reads about 5% high, at least at highway speeds. I had to go 68…

Steaming To SuccessA hundred year old steam car speed record has just been broken by a British team.  Edward’s Air Force Base, California: Tuesday August 25th: Today at 8.19am (California time) Charles Burnett III successfully broke the land speed record for a steam powered car - which has stood for more than 100 years - achieving an average speed of 139.843mph on two runs over a measured mile.  Driver Charles Burnett III piloted the car for both runs reaching a peak speed of 136.103mph on the first run and 151.085mph on the second. The new international record, which is subject…

Worried that your cold revenge plans won't come to fruition before you shake off that mortal coil?  A new Web site, www.DeathRiskRankings.com, developed by researchers and students at Carnegie Mellon University, says they can help you plan your schedule accordingly. The tool allows users to query publicly available data from the United States and Europe, and compare mortality risks by gender, age, cause of death and geographic region. The Web site not only gives the risk of dying within the next year, but it also ranks the probable causes and allows for quick side-by-side comparison…

Members of the Research Group Baubotanik at the Institute of Theory of Modern Architecture and Design (University of Stuttgart) have been focusing on the idea of living plant constructions - that's right, towers made from trees. Recently their first “baubotanical” tower made of living trees was completed - though it isn't quite mature yet. Their prototype 'building' is located in the south of Germany and is nearly 9 meters high with a base area of approximately 8 square meters. It's basically the Keep On The Borderlands, except green.   Living plant constructions may be just a boutique…

Given that this is a social media site, it might be good to know what social media is, and what it can do. Here is an interesting, humorous, but intelligent slide show with a few answers. What the F**K is Social Media: One Year Later Thanks to Marta Kagan's slide show for my blog title. P.S. To be able to read all the fine print, click on the "full" option to go full screen.

Behold, I bring thee tidings of the secret to weight loss: it's all in the mind. Simple, eh? And you spent all that money on gym memberships, diet supplements, and Jenny Craig dinners. But before you chuck it all and send me your life savings in thanks for divulging my knowledge (which you are still welcome to do), note that the mind-body connection as promoted on Australian television was in breach of commercial television code, and you still have to buy the CDs. The Australian Communications and Media Authority found that Channel Nine was guilty of breaching two television codes of…

While we’re on driving-related comments, there are (at least) two interesting things that differ between Montréal and New York: The signal for a protected left turn in New York is a green arrow pointing left. In Montréal, the regular green light blinks. If you don’t know what the blinking green means, you’ll find out when the people behind you blow their horns because you’re not turning. In New York, they tell you what you mayn’t do (no left turn, for instance), and anything not forbidden is permitted. In Montréal, they tell you what you may do, and anything not permitted is forbidden.…

Think you can design a better iPhone?  We think we can, mostly by eliminating whatever attracts the more smug Apple users.   And we're not alone.   From running shoes to ceiling fans (no, Apple will not let you design your own phone - they won't even let you decide what you can install), consumers are becoming the designers of their own products, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research which looks at the ways consumers compare their creations to those designed by professionals. The authors conducted three studies to examine the ways consumers compare…

I just spent an extended weekend in Montréal (Picasa album with some highlight photos), and one thing I noted is the parking payment system — New York is adopting a similar system. In some places, they still have the old parking meters (well, for some value of “old”; they’re digital), and I used one of those — you put coins in, and the time on the display increases up to the maximum. When the time runs out, you stand to get a parking ticket. But in much of the city, at least in the areas where I was, the parking places are marked with numbered poles instead,[1] and there’s a payment kiosk[2]…