Alphabet recently became the largest company based on its market capitalization, squeezing out Apple for the number one spot of all-time successful companies. Perhaps the reason is that sales of the Apple iPhone disappointed analysts and stock pickers alike. Apple shipped only 74 million iPhones in the last quarter of 2015, causing the stock price of AAPL to reach a new low of $94 on February 4, 2016. This slide of nearly 28% from its peak suggests the roller coaster is running all the way down hill for Apple. Is the iPhone’s decade-long run coming to the end of its marathon? Is the end near for Apple Inc., itself? Continue reading Is the End Near for the Apple iPhone?
The Backdoor is a Victory for Terrorists
When authorities realized the Paris terrorists used strong encryption to send messages to one another they went off the encryption deep end. Now, many nations are considering legislation to ban strong encryption. If strong encryption is banned, only terrorists will have it. Moreover, restricting strongly encrypted speech over the Internet would be a victory for the terrorists. After all, one aim of terrorism is to scare us into giving up our freedoms. Once we give up our freedom to communicate privately we are sliding down the slippery slope of despotism—and the terrorists win. Continue reading The Backdoor is a Victory for Terrorists
How Much Higher Can ICT Rise? On the Final Limits of ICT
Information and communication technology (ICT) is the most distinctive cultural accomplishment of the last half century. It is unprecedented in sophistication and transformative power. Presumably there’s no limit to sophistication. Moore’s law will reach a silicon limit, but it is likely other physical substrates and structures will take over and extend computational limits. But what about the cultural transformations? Is there an end in sight? Continue reading How Much Higher Can ICT Rise? On the Final Limits of ICT
Language Lessons from a Steam-powered Light Bulb
People who make a career in science, computers or otherwise, generally do so because they are naturally drawn to it. They find science fascinating and entertaining, and thus are usually very good at it.
This is both a blessing and a curse. It is a blessing because it means they will spend most of their life doing essentially what they want to do; not everyone is so lucky. It is a curse because their instinctive understanding of science may cover up unsuspected misunderstandings, making it difficult to explain to others what they are doing and why it is important. Worse, these unsuspected misunderstandings may make certain aspects of the science to which they are naturally drawn less than pleasant, rendering them more of a burden than a pleasure. Continue reading Language Lessons from a Steam-powered Light Bulb