A pessimistic view, but with opportunities.
Category Archives: Technology and Society
The Man Who Saved Millions
Norman Borlaug has died. Ron Bailey has some thoughts.
X-Prize History
Memories from Peter Diamandis.
For the record, I have a vivid memory of sitting in a meeting with Peter in LA at a meeting on the subject in conjunction with a Space Frontier Foundation meeting around 1994-1995, and when he said that he had been talking to businessmen in St. Louis, I suggested that he suggest to them that the theme should be the “New Spirit Of St. Louis,” in memoriam to Lindbergh.
I’m not claiming that I came up with it first, or that someone else didn’t suggest it to him or them earlier, or that he didn’t come up with it prior — there’s no way to know that, unless Peter has something to say. But I recall it vividly.
Pain-Free Cattle
…is it ethical? I like the idea of meat from a vat, myself, but it’s a lot farther off.
Here’s A Solution
The growth in production of hybrid cars is resulting in shortages of rare earths. Well, I know where we can find some, but it’s not on earth.
John Scalzi
…the interview by Glenn Reynolds. It’s worth watching.
What A Bargain
Japan is going to build a solar power satellite, and it will only cost twenty-one billion dollars.
The Sharpest Needle Yet
This looks like a pretty big advance in atomic-force microscopy.
[Late-morning update]
More at the BBC.
A New S3xual Aid Breakthrough?
A robot with “bones” that moves like a human. I can imagine that it might have superhuman strength, too. The future continues to rush upon us.
The Romance
I don’t find them romantic. I wouldn’t be able to write anywhere near as much (or as well) as I do without a computer. When I hear about Dick Cheney writing his memoirs in long hand, I cringe. I could never do it — I find the act of dragging a writing implement across paper (and not writing, but actually, printing — I gave up on cursive about the eighth grade) sheer physical drudgery. It’s kind of amazing that I managed to get through college in the pre-word-processing days. I was so desperate for a keyboard with an editor that I actually used a DECWriter and text processor as one. I learned to type on my step-mother’s Selectric, but when I went to college all I could afford was a cheap Remington (manual) portable. I banged out some papers on it, some all nighters, but they would all have been better if I could have edited them. Give me the computer age.