Beyond the Information Revolution – 99.10 ::: In October, 1999 Peter Drucker wrote an article for The Atlantic that put the “information revolution” into historical context. His last paragraph is a prediction for where he expects the modern corporation to be within 10 years: …[P]robably within ten years or so, running a business with (short-term) […]

Using E-Mail to Count Connections ::: Is “ six degrees of separation” a myth or reality? A group of researchers at Columbia University are trying to establish how connected we really are. They plan on assembling a self-selected group of participants, and will then e-mail targeted individuals with the goal of reaching a group of […]

That Sneaky Exponential ::: What if Metcalfe’s Law is wrong? That is, what if the value of a network isn’t proportional to the number of users, but actually exponential? The idea behind Reed’s Law is that within a network of N users, users will naturally form groups from N-(N-1) to N-1 in size. That’s a […]

The Next Computer Interface ::: An interesting article detailing the possible future of computer interfaces. The major question is: is an interface created 30 years ago still appropriate in today’s multi-gigabyte world? However, the article focuses too much on the individual desktop, and doesn’t really address a larger problem: how do you navigate information beyond […]

(Extra)ordinary September 11, 20017:00amI boarded the plane at O’Hare. The plane was empty – no more than 1/3 full. I was on a flight to Dallas, with a connection to San Francisco. The direct flight to San Francisco was another $2,000, so I had opted for the less convenient (but less expensive) flight with a […]