One of my radio columns this week talked about research by Deloitte that looks at the rapid rise of the use of digital resources and mobile devices while shopping. I mentioned the Amazon effect, where the online retailer’s massive digital presence gives it a place inside of other stores when it comes to consumer options. Imagine if the new Amazon Dash were used in stores by rogue shoppers using the bricks and mortar infrastructure to shop at Amazon.
LibraryBox is an open source, portable digital file distribution tool based on inexpensive hardware that enables delivery of educational, healthcare, and other vital information to individuals off the grid.
Does the News do us any good? That’s what @alaindebotton asks in this great RSA talk.
If you want to keep a population supine, addicted to the status-quo, unable to grasp their sense of what is possible, and what could be changed, you’ve got two options: one, censor the news completely. The other option is the practice we use, flood people with news, give them so much news, they don’t know what’s going on, and then you can tell them they’re free, that information is free… News has in many ways replaced religion, which used to be the place people went to find out what is right and wrong, and contemplate the meaning of life. Now we look to news as a system of authority, and it shapes our understanding of reality…
I was invited to give a TEDx talk at Western University and I decided to present some of the knowledge that has emerged via the Hacking Reality program at the Academy of the Impossible. Explicitly I focused on how the internet impacts our relationship with authority, and as a result our relationship with reality. The opportunity therefore is to hack reality, and demand the impossible.
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Trust is the chicken soup of social life. It brings us all sorts of good things—from a willingness to get involved in our communities to higher rates of economic growth ( …), to making daily life more pleasant. Yet, like chicken soup, it appears to work somewhat mysteriously. (Uslaner)
I asked Sherida Ryan to host a discussion at the Academy of the Impossible about trust in the age of transparency. Here’s the description and video:
Normally, we are unaware of the trust process. We often take trust for granted and treat it like the air we breathe, noticing it “only when it becomes scarce or polluted” (Baier). Trust requires two conditions: risk and dependence. Risk occurs when a person encounters a situation where perfect information is not available, where the future is unpredictable, and where there is a possibility of loss or harm. Risk creates the opportunity for trust development. Dependence is the second feature. Trust grows out of the interdependent nature of tasks, where one party relies on another, or perhaps many others, to achieve some desired result.
Research about trust has increased over the past 20 years, some say because of the advent of computer-mediated environment. The affordances of computer-mediated interaction can pose a challenge for the development of trust. Trust comes into question as situations become complex and uncertain. How can you trust people you have never met, whose identity is difficult to verify, in an environment where there are few mechanisms to control or sanction anti-social behaviour?
Similar to discussions of trust in face-to-face environments, the issue of trust in computer-mediated contexts has been approached from several perspectives. The most popular being what is known as trust through security. According to this perspective, online trust is best established through the development of strong security mechanisms (for example, access control and surveillance). This argument is predicated on the perspective that a perfectly secure system will ensure trustworthy online behavior.
However equating trust with security indicates a fundamental misunderstanding of the concept of trust. Eliminating risk reduces opportunities for trust formation, removing situations where a successful experience in negotiating dependence and vulnerability facilitates the development of trust. Paradoxically, attempts to assure trust through ever-increasing levels of security or surveillance lead to a climate of mistrust. An emphasis on security issues constrain the scope and quality of peoples’ lives, resulting in gated communities, characterized by suspicion and hording of public goods.
So what becomes of trust in an age of transparency.
I returned to The Agenda with Steve Paikin to discuss the pivot that BlackBerry hopes to make with the release of their new BB10 operating system. We touched upon the new operating system, the Z10 device, and the challenges BlackBerry faces moving forward.
I enjoy going on The Agenda and talking with Steve as there are no commercials and the long conversational format allows for a smarter and deeper discussion. For example we were able to get into the mythology that technology companies tend to foster and the impact this has upon their success.
This episode was shot during a massive snow storm in Toronto (and most of the North East of the continent), and the subway shut down three times while I was going to and from the studio. The Agenda has another panel set for the show but had to cancel it because the participants couldn’t make it due to the snow. Goes to show that often just showing up is enough to get in on the action, although it doesn’t help if you say smart stuff too
My presentation to the Government Management Committee at Toronto City Hall on Wednesday June 1st 2011 regarding Open Government and Open Data.
Jesse Hirsh, host of 3D Dialogue, interviews Professor Ursula Franklin regarding her latest book, The Ursula Franklin Reader: Pacifism as a Map. Dr. Franklin is a distinguished author, scientist, feminist, activist, and Quaker, who has written extensively on the role of technology in society.
In this interview, we deal with the rise of techno-fascism and the need for feminism and social justice in drafting a map for us to use in moving towards a society of peace, instead of one based on war.
Dr. Franklin is frail, and her voice soft, yet this interview is worth watching, as her ideas are sharp, her criticism cutting, and listening to her inspires action, so please share this discussion with your friends and colleagues.