Looking to make a cut of the billions of dollars in annual revenue Internet companies make by selling personal data, Hewlett-Packard wants to patent its idea for an open data market.
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Alison Klayman signed up for the job and that chance meeting flourished into a friendship with Ai Weiwei, China’s most famous avant garde artist turned political activist, during some of the most tumultuous years of his career.
Will the natural gas boom revitalize the U.S. economy and provide us energy for 100 years?
There are few in this world who can say they’ve never sat, solemnly, in some sort of traffic. This New York Times article reported that the average American commuter spends a […]
Most of our early advances in communication technology focused on sharing news over a distance – a good place to start, as it was helpful in avoiding death. We’ve come a long way since then . . .
What’s the Big Idea? In a blog post from December 2010, Dr. Michio Kaku discussed the perils of our public school system and called into question the schools’ curiosity-crippling methods, which he […]
What’s the Big Idea? What does it mean to be connected in the 21st century? Hope, interdependence, and possibly the creation of a new consciousness, says Tiffany Shlain. Shlain is the […]
We may have heard about one notable religious conversion this week, but in the more than ten years I’ve been writing about atheism (yes, it’s been that long!), I’ve found […]
A huge research project about DNA (ENCODE) has provoked more scientific controversy over just what proportion of that huge molecule plays an active role in making us us. When […]
If you’re not already, you should be reading Surly Amy‘s ongoing post series asking men who are leaders in the atheist movement to speak out against the sexist hate and […]
One of the hallmarks of a good story is the element of surprise. A good story leads us down a path of expectations, slowly building tension until an unexpected plot […]
Are the financial markets rational? It’s a tough claim to make as share prices and bond yields zoom up and down during a single day, hour, or even second, sometimes […]
There is so much going on in the economy, and much of what economists put out there about it is pretty depressing news. Three of the phrases that economists will continue to throw around—although scary—are ones everyone should be familiar with and know what they mean.
On Tuesday, Monsignor William Lynn, former secretary of clergy for the Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia, was sentenced to three to six years in prison for his role in shielding pedophile […]
By measuring the planet’s atmosphere as light from the sun refracted against it, scientists will be better equipped to find and analyze the composition of planets outside our solar system.
In Part I, I introduced the idea that we should employ the principle of charity when engaging with ideas (particularly online) – especially from new and unknown interlocutors. Many problems […]
As Facebook considers extending its membership circle to include pre-teens, one parent is resolved to keep her kids off the social network so they can establish friendships in the real world.
What’s the Big Idea? The goal of technology is to make itself disappear bit by bit. Most major innovations in consumer technology are measured by their ability to make existing […]
Who knew that Jorge Luis Borges, the great Argentine fiction writer and maestro of high literary culture, was a Martian Chronicles fan? Now that you know, doesn’t it seem fitting? […]
Scientists have made a breakthrough in building quantum communication networks. The research could eventually be used to build a quantum Internet, says the study’s director.
By controlling the delivery of the signaling substance acetylcholine to individual cells, a new chemical chip can regulate muscle function which may have stopped working for some reason.
Improved voice recognition software promises to revolutionize the way we interact with our mobile devices. Expect the technology to spread to your television, your car, your…
On Saturday, the Obama 2012 campaign officially launched with rallies held at Ohio State and Virginia Commonwealth University. Amy Gardner and Felicia Sonmez of the Washington Post offered details on […]
As I’m writing this post, NASA’s latest Mars mission – the Mars Science Laboratory, also known as Curiosity – is just hours away from its destination. By the time you […]
Researchers at a British university have turned to Mother Nature to maintain the current rate of progress in the computer industry, specifically a bacterium which contains iron oxide.
By embracing new Web and mobile technologies, green energy companies are creating a new Cleanweb movement in which formerly expensive alternative energy sources – such as solar power – are […]
Do you know what is in your digital dossier? Since you began to have a life on the Web, data has been accruing about the habits and interests of your […]
What’s the Big Idea? Before neuroscience and quantum physics, there was Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. The 19th century German idealist revolutionized Western thought, and every great thinker since has been working […]
By turning super computers loose on massive amounts of data, companies are able to make more informed decisions, but making decisions based on computer output can be humbling.
Comedian, director of digital for The Onion, and social media wunderkind Baratunde Thurston says we’re living in an age of information overabundance, but that this needn’t be a problem. Just as […]