Kurt Vonnegut explains drama2009-09-01
“I was at a Kurt Vonnegut talk in New York a few years ago. Talking about writing, life, and everything. He explained why people have such a need for drama in their life.”
Posts Tagged ‘Reality’
“A judge on Tuesday ordered Microsoft to stop selling Word, one of its premier products, in its current form due to patent infringement.Judge Leonard Davis of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued a permanent injunction that “prohibits Microsoft from selling or importing to the United States any Microsoft Word products that have the capability of opening .XML, .DOCX or DOCM files XML files containing custom XML,” according to a statement released by attorneys for the plantiff, i4i.”
via Judge orders Microsoft to stop selling Word | Microsoft – CNET News.
Cory Doctorow on life in the information economy
via Cory Doctorow on life in the information economy – Business of Software.
Elaine Morgan is a tenacious proponent of the aquatic ape hypothesis: the idea that humans evolved from primate ancestors who dwelt in watery habitats. Hear her spirited defense of the idea — and her theory on why mainstream science doesn’t take it seriously.
via Elaine Morgan says we evolved from aquatic apes | Video on TED.com.
Jul
15
Dr. Jim Taylor’s blog
Psychology of Technology
Psychology of Technology: Disconnectivity Anxiety
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Do you freak out when you lose your mobile phone signal? Do you get stressed when your Internet goes down? Are you mortified if you have to use dial-up to access your email? If so, you may be suffering from “Disconnectivity Anxiety.” Though not an official psychiatric disorder, I see it as a growing problem in our “gotta be connected 24/7″ culture. I define Disconnectivity Anxiety DA as: “a persistent and unpleasant condition characterized by worry and unease caused by periods of technological disconnection from others.”
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“Does the Transcendent Man just want to be a robot? That’s part of the story coming out of Daniel Lyons’ recent article in Newsweek about Singularity front man, Ray Kurzweil. The other part is that Kurzweil is much too optimistic in his predictions and his beliefs. It’s not a flattering article, for either Kurzweil or Singularity enthusiasts in general. For his part, Kurzweil defended his positions in a responding letter to the editor. It’s the media equivalent of a boxing match and I’m not sure who landed the more devastating blows.”"
via Kurzweil in the Lyons’ Den | Singularity Hub.
Jun
16
<snip>
“Dear Editor:
I appreciate your bringing my ideas to your readership. However, there are numerous inaccuracies and misrepresentations in Daniel Lyons’ story. For example, of the many accurate predictions for the year 2009 that I wrote in my book The Age of Spiritual Machines, written in the late 1990s, only three are listed in the sidebar “Kurzweil’s Crystal Ball” while a larger number are listed as “false.” Of these “false” predictions, a number are in fact true, and others are only a few years away. For example, “Computers will be commonly embedded in clothing and jewelry” is listed as false. When I wrote this prediction, portable computers were large heavy devices carried under your arm. Today they are indeed embedded in shirt pockets, jacket pockets, and hung from belt loops. Colorful iPod nano models are worn on blouses as jewelry pins, health monitors are woven into undergarments, there are now computers in hearing aids, and there are many other examples.” …
Ray Kurzweil
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