Many people in the Western world believe Internet freedom equals freedom of social and political life. The more access we get, the more freedom and democracy we will have. But, there is little to support this Western meme. Internet access during the Arab Spring may have fanned the flames of rebellion, but it did not lead to democracy. In fact, it may be the opposite—the Internet may have the potential to destroy democracy. Continue reading Will the Internet Crash Democracy?
Are We Wrong About Innovation?
We are gripped by madness about innovation. The popular press has latched on to the notion that creating ideas and imagining new worlds fashioned around these ideas are the keys to innovation. This notion is all wrong. Continue reading Are We Wrong About Innovation?
The Self-Similarity of Tech
Silicon Valley, and the high‐tech industry in general, promotes itself as the inventor of the future, pushing aside old businesses and disrupting lifestyles in the name of progress. But I don’t think so. Actually, high‐tech is caught in a repeating self-similar fractal, where the gadgets may be new, but the business methods and processes are as old as the Industrial Revolution itself. Continue reading The Self-Similarity of Tech
Superscalar Smart Cities
According to Randall Munroe, if you and one other human located on the opposite side of the globe were the last remaining humans on earth, it would take 3,000 years to find one another [1]. But if you copied the actions of an ant or termite, you would find each other in a few short years. Ants leave a pheromone trail everywhere they go, which organizes the anthill around optimal paths leading to food. Humans can use the same tactic. Continue reading Superscalar Smart Cities