The Independent has an article titled 'Forget the map and just pass me that flat-screen' that declares
'The days when tourists and walkers had to be experts in origami to find out where they were are fast disappearing. These days, an aptitude for new technology is far more useful than a talent for folding and unfolding maps. And developments in electronics mean that "getting lost" could be a thing of the past.
The Royal Geographical Society's annual conference in London heard yesterday how electronic devices combining mobile phones, satellite navigation and digital cameras allow travellers to identify their exact location - and even whether there might be a pub around the corner and what beer is on tap...Electronic devices are providing a traditional two-dimensional map together with "temporal" and "dynamic" information...
...It is "quite possible" even road signs could become superfluous, with motorists relying solely on in-car satellite navigation systems to find their way, Dr Parker added. Clearly, such a move would require more accuracy in the data used to avoid drivers being directed across rivers or over cliff edges by an errant dashboard device.'
Well... paper goes digital it seems...
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Mapping Globalization Project
Worldchanging has a post on the Mapping Globalization Project :
'One great paradox of globalization is that although geographical locations (and the connections between them) are at its very core, the phenomenon nevertheless makes it easier than ever for us to forget the identity and meaning of a particular place. In other words, globalization is simultaneously everywhere and nowhere. This is the crux of the Mapping Globalization Project (MG). A joint undertaking of Princeton University and the University of Washington, MG combines maps, narratives, and data and analysis, in order to examine trade networks, mass migration, and other patterns and impacts of globalization.'
By following the link you will be taken to the MG navigation menu page, where there are some flash animation links.
'One great paradox of globalization is that although geographical locations (and the connections between them) are at its very core, the phenomenon nevertheless makes it easier than ever for us to forget the identity and meaning of a particular place. In other words, globalization is simultaneously everywhere and nowhere. This is the crux of the Mapping Globalization Project (MG). A joint undertaking of Princeton University and the University of Washington, MG combines maps, narratives, and data and analysis, in order to examine trade networks, mass migration, and other patterns and impacts of globalization.'
By following the link you will be taken to the MG navigation menu page, where there are some flash animation links.
To Blog or not to Blog - now thats the Question!
This is a predicament I know only too well - when going on holiday does one leave the blog alone and not updated, you do get someone to blog-sit for you, or do you take your blogging with you on holiday? It can be a tough choice for many people who feel their blog needs their sole voice (or soul voice?)
The Wall Street Journal has this post:
'Unlike other jobs, where co-workers can fill in for an absent employee, blogs are usually a one-person show. A blogger's personality carries the site. When the host isn't there, readers tend to stray.
In the height of summer-holiday season, bloggers face the inevitable question: to blog on break or put the blog on a break? Fearing a decline in readership, some writers opt not to take vacations. Others keep posting while on location, to the chagrin of their families. Those brave enough to detach themselves from their keyboards for a few days must choose between leaving the site dormant or having someone blog-sit.'
Via Smartmobs
The Wall Street Journal has this post:
'Unlike other jobs, where co-workers can fill in for an absent employee, blogs are usually a one-person show. A blogger's personality carries the site. When the host isn't there, readers tend to stray.
In the height of summer-holiday season, bloggers face the inevitable question: to blog on break or put the blog on a break? Fearing a decline in readership, some writers opt not to take vacations. Others keep posting while on location, to the chagrin of their families. Those brave enough to detach themselves from their keyboards for a few days must choose between leaving the site dormant or having someone blog-sit.'
Via Smartmobs
Norwich pioneers free city wi-fi
BBC News reports today on 'Norwich pioneers free city wi-fi':
'Norwich is pioneering a free wi-fi project which covers three sectors of the UK city and its centre.
The £1.1m, 18-month pilot has been live for three weeks and is backed by the East of England Development Agency.
Paul Adams, from Norfolk county council said: "It allows people to see the benefit of wireless technology."
The city centre, county hall and educational establishments such as the university all have wi-fi access.'
Hopefully this will become a trend that will see, eventually, most UK cities with FREE wi-fi access - well, why shouldn't I be hopeful?!
'Norwich is pioneering a free wi-fi project which covers three sectors of the UK city and its centre.
The £1.1m, 18-month pilot has been live for three weeks and is backed by the East of England Development Agency.
Paul Adams, from Norfolk county council said: "It allows people to see the benefit of wireless technology."
The city centre, county hall and educational establishments such as the university all have wi-fi access.'
Hopefully this will become a trend that will see, eventually, most UK cities with FREE wi-fi access - well, why shouldn't I be hopeful?!
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Chronicling Conversations
In 'Web site chronicles New York's conversations' there is a discussion on a site called Overheard which posts conversations that passerbys have heard from other people on the street:
'In a city of 8 million people, someone is always saying something strange. And, odds are, someone is around to hear it.
Like the guy on the subway who said: ''Yeah, it ain't safe for kids to go missing these days.'' Or the woman on her cell phone who noted: ''Quite frankly, I'd rather be pole dancing.'' And that's the clean stuff.
Chronicling such utterances is the mission of Overheard in New York, a Web site that has become an Internet sensation, spawned a book and inspired countless imitators throughout the world. Nairobi, Dublin, Bucharest and Philadelphia are among other cities now boasting Overheard sites, although many are just individuals' blogs.'
An example - A few, however, plumb more unusual depths, such as:
Girl 1: Anarchists are so dumb.
Girl 2: Yeah, totally.
Girl 3: I mean, just 'cause you hate the government doesn't mean you have to dress badly.
Great! But are we no longer free to say really dumb things?
'In a city of 8 million people, someone is always saying something strange. And, odds are, someone is around to hear it.
Like the guy on the subway who said: ''Yeah, it ain't safe for kids to go missing these days.'' Or the woman on her cell phone who noted: ''Quite frankly, I'd rather be pole dancing.'' And that's the clean stuff.
Chronicling such utterances is the mission of Overheard in New York, a Web site that has become an Internet sensation, spawned a book and inspired countless imitators throughout the world. Nairobi, Dublin, Bucharest and Philadelphia are among other cities now boasting Overheard sites, although many are just individuals' blogs.'
An example - A few, however, plumb more unusual depths, such as:
Girl 1: Anarchists are so dumb.
Girl 2: Yeah, totally.
Girl 3: I mean, just 'cause you hate the government doesn't mean you have to dress badly.
Great! But are we no longer free to say really dumb things?
Market Forces vs. Traffic Jams
MITReview posts on 'Market Forces vs. Traffic Jams' in which 'New research shows that making drivers pay higher tolls at peak times and tracking their location with RFID or GPS technology can eliminate traffic jams.'
The research continues by stating that 'In a few places around the world--such as downtown London--drivers pay higher tolls for entering city centers at peak rush hour. The idea of "congestion pricing" is to reduce traffic and pollution by giving drivers an incentive to travel at off-peak times.
Now a professor at the University of Texas at Austin has shown how a complex extension of this idea could greatly speed up rush-hour traffic flow throughout an entire network of highways and secondary roads in a U.S. metropolitan region. Using a computer model of driver behavior on the freeway system around the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth in Texas, University of Texas civil engineer Kara Kockelman showed that imposing highway tolls wirelessly--and increasing those tolls sharply on heavily traveled roads during peak times--would induce enough people to change their plans to increase average travel speeds by 25 miles per hour during rush hours on many key stretches of highway. The computer model takes into account everything from the frequency of trips to the value that drivers place on saving time.'
New driving habits via computers...its coming
The research continues by stating that 'In a few places around the world--such as downtown London--drivers pay higher tolls for entering city centers at peak rush hour. The idea of "congestion pricing" is to reduce traffic and pollution by giving drivers an incentive to travel at off-peak times.
Now a professor at the University of Texas at Austin has shown how a complex extension of this idea could greatly speed up rush-hour traffic flow throughout an entire network of highways and secondary roads in a U.S. metropolitan region. Using a computer model of driver behavior on the freeway system around the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth in Texas, University of Texas civil engineer Kara Kockelman showed that imposing highway tolls wirelessly--and increasing those tolls sharply on heavily traveled roads during peak times--would induce enough people to change their plans to increase average travel speeds by 25 miles per hour during rush hours on many key stretches of highway. The computer model takes into account everything from the frequency of trips to the value that drivers place on saving time.'
New driving habits via computers...its coming
Man Throws Mobile Phone 292 Feet to Win Contest
Now here's an interesting story, which goes to show just how light mobile phones are becoming...
Man Throws Mobile Phone 292 Feet to Win Contest
By Anna Ringstrom
Reuters
SAVONLINNA, Finland (Aug. 28) - Anyone wanting to throw away their mobile phone can do it in style and may even win a medal -- at the Mobile Phone Throwing World Championship, Finland's latest contribution to offbeat athleticism.
Originally a local event in this small town close to the Russian border, the seventh annual contest Saturday drew some 100 throwers from as far afield as Canada, Russia and Belgium.
Founder Christine Lund describes the event as a good source of light exercise with an environmentally friendly twist. "There are a lot of mobile phones on the second-hand market, and we are recycling them (before they become toxic waste)," she said.
The inventive Finns had already given the world the Sauna World Championships and the Wife Carrying Competition before coming up with a new way to make mobile phones even more mobile.
This year's gold medal went to Finland's Lassi Etelatalo, who flung a scrapped Nokia unit a forceful 292 feet. "I prepared by javelin throwing, I haven't really practiced throwing mobile phones," Etelatalo told Reuters.
In the freestyle event, Dutchman Elie Rugthoven's phone landed outside the designated area, but he still won silver thanks to a phone juggling performance that impressed the judges.
Lund says competitors all have their favorite throwing brand. "People choose by size, by color or by how it fits in the hand ... Some believe a heavy model will ensure a long throw, some want a light one."
Thanks to mobile-society.
Will this become a new sport, just like dwarf-tossing?
Man Throws Mobile Phone 292 Feet to Win Contest
By Anna Ringstrom
Reuters
SAVONLINNA, Finland (Aug. 28) - Anyone wanting to throw away their mobile phone can do it in style and may even win a medal -- at the Mobile Phone Throwing World Championship, Finland's latest contribution to offbeat athleticism.
Originally a local event in this small town close to the Russian border, the seventh annual contest Saturday drew some 100 throwers from as far afield as Canada, Russia and Belgium.
Founder Christine Lund describes the event as a good source of light exercise with an environmentally friendly twist. "There are a lot of mobile phones on the second-hand market, and we are recycling them (before they become toxic waste)," she said.
The inventive Finns had already given the world the Sauna World Championships and the Wife Carrying Competition before coming up with a new way to make mobile phones even more mobile.
This year's gold medal went to Finland's Lassi Etelatalo, who flung a scrapped Nokia unit a forceful 292 feet. "I prepared by javelin throwing, I haven't really practiced throwing mobile phones," Etelatalo told Reuters.
In the freestyle event, Dutchman Elie Rugthoven's phone landed outside the designated area, but he still won silver thanks to a phone juggling performance that impressed the judges.
Lund says competitors all have their favorite throwing brand. "People choose by size, by color or by how it fits in the hand ... Some believe a heavy model will ensure a long throw, some want a light one."
Thanks to mobile-society.
Will this become a new sport, just like dwarf-tossing?
Digital Planet 28 August 2006
Digital Planet is now 5 years old, or young, this week! Congratulations...
On this week's programme:
'Second Life, the 3D virtual environment, now has 500,000 residents around the world. Our reporter was in San Francisco for its Annual Community Convention last week. Is "Wait and Pay" a fair description of WAP technology? We look at emerging mobile markets. And Gareth talks to a member of the BBC News Interactive team. They're conducting an experiment to see if it really is possible to temporarily relocate an entire office through wireless and mobile computing.' (bold not in original...)
Download here
On this week's programme:
'Second Life, the 3D virtual environment, now has 500,000 residents around the world. Our reporter was in San Francisco for its Annual Community Convention last week. Is "Wait and Pay" a fair description of WAP technology? We look at emerging mobile markets. And Gareth talks to a member of the BBC News Interactive team. They're conducting an experiment to see if it really is possible to temporarily relocate an entire office through wireless and mobile computing.' (bold not in original...)
Download here
Mixing Storytelling and SMS
MobileActive is a global network of activists and campaigners using mobile phones for civic action and engagement. In their recent post they discuss a new project:
'Recently YouthNoise and Virgin Mobile launched a mobile campaign designed to raise awareness of teen homelessness in other teens in the United States. The campaign – called Ghost Town – takes a unique twist on more typical SMS campaigns. It gets its message out through an SMS story sent in regular installments over a month.
Teens can subscribe to the story by texting GHOST to the short code 1234. After that they’ll receive a chapter of the story in a 160 character text message twice a day for a month...I think this is a great idea and really applaud the campaign for bringing so many mobile components into it. I do think a major challenge will be keeping teens reading the messages.'
Read in full here
'Recently YouthNoise and Virgin Mobile launched a mobile campaign designed to raise awareness of teen homelessness in other teens in the United States. The campaign – called Ghost Town – takes a unique twist on more typical SMS campaigns. It gets its message out through an SMS story sent in regular installments over a month.
Teens can subscribe to the story by texting GHOST to the short code 1234. After that they’ll receive a chapter of the story in a 160 character text message twice a day for a month...I think this is a great idea and really applaud the campaign for bringing so many mobile components into it. I do think a major challenge will be keeping teens reading the messages.'
Read in full here
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
How location-based information could save your life
Security strategist W. David Stephenson often blogs about how mobile location-based technologies can assist in disaster response. In his latest post he writes on Ten 21st Century Disaster Preparation Tips the Officials Won't Tell You:
'The advent of 21st century personal communications devices and services, particularly camera phones with GPS capability, GPS devices in your car, P2P software such as mesh networking, or social networking services, mean that it's now feasible to have two-way sharing of real-time, location-based information that could save your life in a crisis.
You won't find these tips about how to capitalize on those devices and applications on Ready.gov, or other federal, state, and/or local preparedness sites. In some cases it's because the services described below are private sector ones that government agencies can't endorse. More likely, most government agencies are clueless that these services exist.
So here are ten 21st century disaster and preparedness tips from Stephenson Strategies that you won't see on the official lists of things to do to prepare for a disaster or terrorist attack, but that you and your neighbors should implement NOW, so that you'll be prepared to act intelligently and calmly if you find yourselves on your own.'
Read list here - informative - yet these strategies often include registering with services that require you giving away your information - another issue of concern.
Via Smartmobs
'The advent of 21st century personal communications devices and services, particularly camera phones with GPS capability, GPS devices in your car, P2P software such as mesh networking, or social networking services, mean that it's now feasible to have two-way sharing of real-time, location-based information that could save your life in a crisis.
You won't find these tips about how to capitalize on those devices and applications on Ready.gov, or other federal, state, and/or local preparedness sites. In some cases it's because the services described below are private sector ones that government agencies can't endorse. More likely, most government agencies are clueless that these services exist.
So here are ten 21st century disaster and preparedness tips from Stephenson Strategies that you won't see on the official lists of things to do to prepare for a disaster or terrorist attack, but that you and your neighbors should implement NOW, so that you'll be prepared to act intelligently and calmly if you find yourselves on your own.'
Read list here - informative - yet these strategies often include registering with services that require you giving away your information - another issue of concern.
Via Smartmobs
Sustainable mobility
From Worldchanging comes another report on Sustainable mobility with such highlights as:
- The London (UK) Metropolitan Police have ordered 117 Honda Civic Hybrids—the largest yet fleet deal for hybrid cars in the UK.
- BP has launched a UK program to offset the CO2 emissions caused by driving. Called targetneutral, the non-profit initiative allows drivers to calculate the cost of the annual CO2 reduction required to make their vehicle CO2 neutral.
- Statoil opened Norway’s first hydrogen filling station for motor vehicles as a step in creating the HyNor hydrogen highway between the capital, Oslo, and western Norway’s port of Stavanger. The station supplies hydrogen, natural gas and NaturalHy—a 8-20% hydrogen, 92-80% compressed natural gas blend.
Read more here
- The London (UK) Metropolitan Police have ordered 117 Honda Civic Hybrids—the largest yet fleet deal for hybrid cars in the UK.
- BP has launched a UK program to offset the CO2 emissions caused by driving. Called targetneutral, the non-profit initiative allows drivers to calculate the cost of the annual CO2 reduction required to make their vehicle CO2 neutral.
- Statoil opened Norway’s first hydrogen filling station for motor vehicles as a step in creating the HyNor hydrogen highway between the capital, Oslo, and western Norway’s port of Stavanger. The station supplies hydrogen, natural gas and NaturalHy—a 8-20% hydrogen, 92-80% compressed natural gas blend.
Read more here
TIME-SPACES: NEW METHODS FOR RESEARCHING MOBILITIES
AIR TIME-SPACES: NEW METHODS FOR RESEARCHING MOBILITIES
Lancaster University UK - 29 & 30 September 2006
Confirmed Speakers:
Gillian Fuller, University of New South Wales
Ross Harley, University of New South Wales
Sven Kesselring, University of Munich
Rob Kitchin, National University of Ireland, Maynooth
Claus Lassen, Aalborg University
David Pascoe, University of Glasgow
Peter Peters, University Maastricht
Frank Witlox, Ghent University,
plus art and film installations
This Air Time-Spaces Workshop is intended to be a substantial contribution to a cosmopolitan perspective within mobility research. Issues of theory and especially methods will be highlighted since research techniques will have to be as 'mobile' as the passengers, the staff, the security instruments, baggage, and the gleaming, cheap airplanes. Workshop topics include: airports and passenger terminals, air travel operations, air-travel and world cities, air travel and cyberspace, helicopter travel, plus debates on theory and methodology of research on air time-spaces.
The Workshop is organised by the Centre for Mobilities Research, Lancaster, and the CosMobilities Network. It will be held in the new state-of-the-art Institute for Advanced Studies, County College South at Lancaster University commencing at 10.30 am on 29 September and ending at 4.30pm on 30 September. Numbers will be restricted to a maximum of 50 so as to facilitate debate.
The cost for the 2 days will be £75 to include all meeting costs, meals (including workshop dinner on the 29th) and tea/coffee. Overnight accommodation is available at cost on campus. Please contact Pennie Drinkall if you would like to attend - p.drinkall@lancaster.ac.uk . Unfortunately, Saturday 30 September is the start of our academic year and there is no accommodation available in university guest rooms. Should you need to stay on Saturday night please book your alternative accommodation very soon (see list attached to the registration form). Pennie can also help you with this.
Registration Form here
Lancaster University UK - 29 & 30 September 2006
Confirmed Speakers:
Gillian Fuller, University of New South Wales
Ross Harley, University of New South Wales
Sven Kesselring, University of Munich
Rob Kitchin, National University of Ireland, Maynooth
Claus Lassen, Aalborg University
David Pascoe, University of Glasgow
Peter Peters, University Maastricht
Frank Witlox, Ghent University,
plus art and film installations
This Air Time-Spaces Workshop is intended to be a substantial contribution to a cosmopolitan perspective within mobility research. Issues of theory and especially methods will be highlighted since research techniques will have to be as 'mobile' as the passengers, the staff, the security instruments, baggage, and the gleaming, cheap airplanes. Workshop topics include: airports and passenger terminals, air travel operations, air-travel and world cities, air travel and cyberspace, helicopter travel, plus debates on theory and methodology of research on air time-spaces.
The Workshop is organised by the Centre for Mobilities Research, Lancaster, and the CosMobilities Network. It will be held in the new state-of-the-art Institute for Advanced Studies, County College South at Lancaster University commencing at 10.30 am on 29 September and ending at 4.30pm on 30 September. Numbers will be restricted to a maximum of 50 so as to facilitate debate.
The cost for the 2 days will be £75 to include all meeting costs, meals (including workshop dinner on the 29th) and tea/coffee. Overnight accommodation is available at cost on campus. Please contact Pennie Drinkall if you would like to attend - p.drinkall@lancaster.ac.uk
Registration Form here
Mobile Adverts on London Buses
For the first time London buses can change their advertising messages according to their location, thanks to GPS technology:
'As a bus travels its route, the advertising message will change. For example, it might suggest "Find a gym in Marble Arch" and later "Discover a restaurant in Charing Cross." Marketers will now be able to highlight product promotions near their stores or drive sales of slow-moving products in individual areas.'
Via Smartmobs (via Advertising Age)
Subscription required.
'As a bus travels its route, the advertising message will change. For example, it might suggest "Find a gym in Marble Arch" and later "Discover a restaurant in Charing Cross." Marketers will now be able to highlight product promotions near their stores or drive sales of slow-moving products in individual areas.'
Via Smartmobs (via Advertising Age)
Subscription required.
Carnival of the Mobilists No 42
This week's Carnival of the Mobilists is hosted over at Mobile Active, another decent site that specialises in the mobile's role in civic action and engagement.
A diverse selection of posts, worth checking out as usual.
A diverse selection of posts, worth checking out as usual.
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Anti-mobility
Paul B. Hartzog has made some interesting comments on the growing issue of anti-mobility :
'What do we mean by mobility? Although there are technological forces in the world that promote mobility, are we missing the ones that obstruct mobility? What are the forces of anti-mobility?
For example:
* There are many difficulties posed by anti-terrorist safety measures on airplanes. These measures have already had wide-reaching consequences such as musicians not being able to do their jobs (which involve substantial travel) because they can no longer transport their expensive instruments.
* Border-crossing and passport issues are getting worse. Many people are just staying within their “safe zones.”
So I got to thinking that if the forces of anti-mobility overcome the forces of mobility, we will actually be less mobile than we used to be...One can envision scenarios where society becomes more mobile locally, i.e. within some small predefined boundary, but less mobile within the global context.'
Or what if 'mobility' is itself a form of immobility since the more 'one moves', the more a person is visible and leaving traces, traces that can be applied to forcing greater immobility upon a person? Mobility --> visibility --> potential immobility.... Again, floating ideas here...
Thanks Paul
'What do we mean by mobility? Although there are technological forces in the world that promote mobility, are we missing the ones that obstruct mobility? What are the forces of anti-mobility?
For example:
* There are many difficulties posed by anti-terrorist safety measures on airplanes. These measures have already had wide-reaching consequences such as musicians not being able to do their jobs (which involve substantial travel) because they can no longer transport their expensive instruments.
* Border-crossing and passport issues are getting worse. Many people are just staying within their “safe zones.”
So I got to thinking that if the forces of anti-mobility overcome the forces of mobility, we will actually be less mobile than we used to be...One can envision scenarios where society becomes more mobile locally, i.e. within some small predefined boundary, but less mobile within the global context.'
Or what if 'mobility' is itself a form of immobility since the more 'one moves', the more a person is visible and leaving traces, traces that can be applied to forcing greater immobility upon a person? Mobility --> visibility --> potential immobility.... Again, floating ideas here...
Thanks Paul
A mobile spy in our wheelie bins?!!
The Independent reports how '500,000 wheelie bins 'have a spy in the lid'':
'Hundreds of thousands of wheelie bins are being fitted with special microchips to monitor the amount of waste discarded by householders.
Councils say they are necessary to gather data about people's rubbish disposal habits and are also a vital tool in settling disputes over bin ownership. But experts are warning that these bugs, which transmit information to a central database, could be used to fine those who exceed limits on the amount of non-recyclable rubbish that they put out.About 500,000 bins across England already carry the electronic devices'
Bold is not in the original - thats my emphasis on another surveillance use of these such devices! What's next - RFID in our toilets??
'Hundreds of thousands of wheelie bins are being fitted with special microchips to monitor the amount of waste discarded by householders.
Councils say they are necessary to gather data about people's rubbish disposal habits and are also a vital tool in settling disputes over bin ownership. But experts are warning that these bugs, which transmit information to a central database, could be used to fine those who exceed limits on the amount of non-recyclable rubbish that they put out.About 500,000 bins across England already carry the electronic devices'
Bold is not in the original - thats my emphasis on another surveillance use of these such devices! What's next - RFID in our toilets??
Offset your carbon emissions with a text
The Guardian reports today on 'Offset your carbon emissions with a text' - where mobility can be green:
'Mobile phone users will be able to offset their carbon emissions by sending a text message using a scheme launched by conservation charity the World Land Trust.
For each text received, the WLT will offset 140kg of C02 through various reforestation projects worldwide. This is the equivalent of the amount of C02 produced by a return flight from London to Paris, 16 people sitting down for a restaurant meal, eight nights in a hotel, two nights on a cruise ship or 120 school runs in a 4x4.
The texts will cost £1.50 plus network charges. The number of people logging onto 'carbon footprint' calculators on the internet, to work out how much carbon they produce by, for example, flying abroad has risen dramatically in the past six months.
For more information log onto carbonbalanced.org (or to offset your footprint, text WLT CARBON to 87050.)'
It pays to be green....
'Mobile phone users will be able to offset their carbon emissions by sending a text message using a scheme launched by conservation charity the World Land Trust.
For each text received, the WLT will offset 140kg of C02 through various reforestation projects worldwide. This is the equivalent of the amount of C02 produced by a return flight from London to Paris, 16 people sitting down for a restaurant meal, eight nights in a hotel, two nights on a cruise ship or 120 school runs in a 4x4.
The texts will cost £1.50 plus network charges. The number of people logging onto 'carbon footprint' calculators on the internet, to work out how much carbon they produce by, for example, flying abroad has risen dramatically in the past six months.
For more information log onto carbonbalanced.org (or to offset your footprint, text WLT CARBON to 87050.)'
It pays to be green....
A 'smart' plane?
In a Reuters post recently titled 'Researchers chase goal of non-hijackable plane' :
'The researchers aim to create a "last barrier to attacks" on planes in flight.
Among the non-hijackable plane's features: computer systems designed to spot suspicious passenger behavior, and a collision avoidance system that will correct the plane's trajectory to prevent it from being steered into a building or mountain.
The researchers are also investigating the possibility -- although they say it is probably some 15 years away -- of developing an on-board computer that could guide the plane automatically to the nearest airport, in the event of a hijack.'
An auto-pilot park-itself-plane-under-hijack? Now that's 'smart'...
'The researchers aim to create a "last barrier to attacks" on planes in flight.
Among the non-hijackable plane's features: computer systems designed to spot suspicious passenger behavior, and a collision avoidance system that will correct the plane's trajectory to prevent it from being steered into a building or mountain.
The researchers are also investigating the possibility -- although they say it is probably some 15 years away -- of developing an on-board computer that could guide the plane automatically to the nearest airport, in the event of a hijack.'
An auto-pilot park-itself-plane-under-hijack? Now that's 'smart'...
Digital Planet August 21 2006
Another Digital Planet to download and listen to!
This week: 'Gareth Mitchell talks to Dr. Joseph Feller from University College Cork about the Calibre Project - a Europe wide initiative to encourage industry and academia to share software. Joseph Feller believes it can also benefit computer users at home! We look at how geographical information systems and the creation of digital maps are vital in the drive to eradicate the Polio virus. And does "google-archy" exist? According to new research the wide held belief that search engines distort the popularity of websites simply is not true.'
Download here
This week: 'Gareth Mitchell talks to Dr. Joseph Feller from University College Cork about the Calibre Project - a Europe wide initiative to encourage industry and academia to share software. Joseph Feller believes it can also benefit computer users at home! We look at how geographical information systems and the creation of digital maps are vital in the drive to eradicate the Polio virus. And does "google-archy" exist? According to new research the wide held belief that search engines distort the popularity of websites simply is not true.'
Download here
Tropical Storm Maps
A post from Cartography on mapping some of the global storms:
'This year has been relatively quiet on the tropical storm front in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico areas. This has not been the case in other areas of the world. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (site currently down) has produced a few maps of tropical storms in the Pacific and Indian Ocean areas, one showing trackis of major storms in the past 5o years, the other showing the geographic probability of storms of specific intensities.
Both are available in pdf format.'
'This year has been relatively quiet on the tropical storm front in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico areas. This has not been the case in other areas of the world. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (site currently down) has produced a few maps of tropical storms in the Pacific and Indian Ocean areas, one showing trackis of major storms in the past 5o years, the other showing the geographic probability of storms of specific intensities.
Both are available in pdf format.'
Friday, August 25, 2006
20 Most Popular mobile blog sites
M-trends recently did some Technorati searching and has come up with a list of the top 20 most popular blog sites on mobility - useful list. Of course, I didn't expect New Mobilities to be there!
1. Smart Mobs - rank: 1,033 (4,755 links from 1,081 blogs)
2. textually.org - rank: 1,181 (3,213 links from 1,009 blogs)
3. MobileBurn - rank: 1,868 (5,609 links from 766 blogs)
4. All About Symbian - rank: 2,833 (1,864 links from 589 blogs)
5. MobileCrunch - rank: 3,465 (1,538 links from 508 blogs)
6. MobHappy - rank: 4,920 (1,344 links from 390 blogs)
7. pasta and vinegar - rank: 6,187 (1,145 links from 332 blogs)
8. The Mobile Technology Weblog - rank: 7,928 (2,565 links from 262 blogs)
9. Mopocket rank: N/A (569 links to this URL sorted)
10. Open Gardens - rank: 9,230 (510 links from 232 blogs)
11. Mobile Mentalism - rank: 11,626 (465 links from 189 blogs)
12. Techdirt Wireless - rank: 12,632 (434 links from 175 blogs)
13. Darla Mack - rank: 13,125 (859 links from 169 blogs)
14. Communities Dominate Brands - rank: 13,203 (446 links from 166 blogs)
15. m-trends.org - rank: 17,238 (435 links from 132 blogs)
16. mobile jones - rank: 18,012 (343 links from 127 blogs)
17. The 3G Portal - rank: 18,195 (352 links from 126 blogs)
18. The Pondering Primate - rank: 19,256 (255 links from 120 blogs)
19. gotomobile.com - rank: 22,255 (226 links from 106 blogs)
20. Mobile Opportunity - rank: 23,427 (229 links from 101 blogs)
We're on our way! Thanks to m-trends
1. Smart Mobs - rank: 1,033 (4,755 links from 1,081 blogs)
2. textually.org - rank: 1,181 (3,213 links from 1,009 blogs)
3. MobileBurn - rank: 1,868 (5,609 links from 766 blogs)
4. All About Symbian - rank: 2,833 (1,864 links from 589 blogs)
5. MobileCrunch - rank: 3,465 (1,538 links from 508 blogs)
6. MobHappy - rank: 4,920 (1,344 links from 390 blogs)
7. pasta and vinegar - rank: 6,187 (1,145 links from 332 blogs)
8. The Mobile Technology Weblog - rank: 7,928 (2,565 links from 262 blogs)
9. Mopocket rank: N/A (569 links to this URL sorted)
10. Open Gardens - rank: 9,230 (510 links from 232 blogs)
11. Mobile Mentalism - rank: 11,626 (465 links from 189 blogs)
12. Techdirt Wireless - rank: 12,632 (434 links from 175 blogs)
13. Darla Mack - rank: 13,125 (859 links from 169 blogs)
14. Communities Dominate Brands - rank: 13,203 (446 links from 166 blogs)
15. m-trends.org - rank: 17,238 (435 links from 132 blogs)
16. mobile jones - rank: 18,012 (343 links from 127 blogs)
17. The 3G Portal - rank: 18,195 (352 links from 126 blogs)
18. The Pondering Primate - rank: 19,256 (255 links from 120 blogs)
19. gotomobile.com - rank: 22,255 (226 links from 106 blogs)
20. Mobile Opportunity - rank: 23,427 (229 links from 101 blogs)
We're on our way! Thanks to m-trends
Six Mobile Innovations That Will Change Your Life
Forbes has an interesting article called 'Six Mobile Innovations That Will Change Your Life' - I post here their 6 headings, yet follow the link to get all the details in full:
1. Pay By Phone
2. Commanding Presence
3. Internet Everywhere And Embedded In Everything
4. Ubiquitous Media
5. Easier, Better Health Monitoring
6. Do You Know Where Your Kids (And Trucks) Are?
Read in full
1. Pay By Phone
2. Commanding Presence
3. Internet Everywhere And Embedded In Everything
4. Ubiquitous Media
5. Easier, Better Health Monitoring
6. Do You Know Where Your Kids (And Trucks) Are?
Read in full
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
The Megacommunity Manifesto
Worldchanging has a very interesting post on megacommunities where it considers the implications put forth from the Megacommunity Manifesto along with complex adaptive communities:
'The concept of "megacommunity" is another way to perceive "power to the edges" thinking about emergent organization and leadership. Megacommunities are large multi-organizational systems that are oriented to multilateral action. The megacommunity approach acknowledges that no single organization or entity can make the decisions required by today's complex social and infrastructural systems. The challenges facing community leaders are based on "complexity: the growing density of linkages among people, organizations, and issues all across the world," according to the authors of "The Megacommunity Manifesto."
Because people communicate so easily across national and organizational boundaries, the conventional managerial decision-making style — in which a boss exercises decision rights or delegates them to subordinates — is no longer adequate. Solutions require multi-organizational systems that are larger and more oriented to multilateral action than conventional cross-sector approaches are. In such systems, the most successful leaders are not those with the best technical solutions, the most compelling vision, or the most commanding and charismatic style. The “winners” are those who understand how to intervene and influence others in a larger system that they do not control. We call this type of larger system a “megacommunity.”...
...This is just the kind of thinking that drives the Megacommunity Manifesto. Pollard's been influenced by Hugh Brody's study of indigenous cultures, The Other Side of Eden. Pollard notes that these indigenous cultures are "profoundly complex-adaptive." I.e. rather than attempt to dominate the environment, they adapted themselves to its demands and became an integral part of it.'
This post and The Megacommunity Manifesto is worth a read.
'The concept of "megacommunity" is another way to perceive "power to the edges" thinking about emergent organization and leadership. Megacommunities are large multi-organizational systems that are oriented to multilateral action. The megacommunity approach acknowledges that no single organization or entity can make the decisions required by today's complex social and infrastructural systems. The challenges facing community leaders are based on "complexity: the growing density of linkages among people, organizations, and issues all across the world," according to the authors of "The Megacommunity Manifesto."
Because people communicate so easily across national and organizational boundaries, the conventional managerial decision-making style — in which a boss exercises decision rights or delegates them to subordinates — is no longer adequate. Solutions require multi-organizational systems that are larger and more oriented to multilateral action than conventional cross-sector approaches are. In such systems, the most successful leaders are not those with the best technical solutions, the most compelling vision, or the most commanding and charismatic style. The “winners” are those who understand how to intervene and influence others in a larger system that they do not control. We call this type of larger system a “megacommunity.”...
...This is just the kind of thinking that drives the Megacommunity Manifesto. Pollard's been influenced by Hugh Brody's study of indigenous cultures, The Other Side of Eden. Pollard notes that these indigenous cultures are "profoundly complex-adaptive." I.e. rather than attempt to dominate the environment, they adapted themselves to its demands and became an integral part of it.'
This post and The Megacommunity Manifesto is worth a read.
All forms of travel can lead to blood clots
According to The Times in their article 'All forms of travel can lead to blood clots':
'BLOOD clots are linked to many different modes of transport, not just flying, according to a study.
Travelling for more than four hours by air, car, bus or train can all increase the risk of blood clots, with air travel no worse than the others, researchers said yesterday.
A team in the Netherlands studied 2,000 people who had suffered a venous thrombosis — a blood clot in a vein — for the first time. They found that 233 of them had travelled for more than four hours in the eight weeks preceding the event.
Travelling doubled the chances of having a venous thrombosis. The hazard was greatest in the first week after travelling, and the overall risk of flying was no worse than that of going by car, bus or train.'
Mobility it seems does come with a price - another aspect of the 'burden of mobility'? Is it worth the blood-price??
'BLOOD clots are linked to many different modes of transport, not just flying, according to a study.
Travelling for more than four hours by air, car, bus or train can all increase the risk of blood clots, with air travel no worse than the others, researchers said yesterday.
A team in the Netherlands studied 2,000 people who had suffered a venous thrombosis — a blood clot in a vein — for the first time. They found that 233 of them had travelled for more than four hours in the eight weeks preceding the event.
Travelling doubled the chances of having a venous thrombosis. The hazard was greatest in the first week after travelling, and the overall risk of flying was no worse than that of going by car, bus or train.'
Mobility it seems does come with a price - another aspect of the 'burden of mobility'? Is it worth the blood-price??
Digital Planet - August 21 2006
On this week's Digital Planet:
'Are you an open source software fan? Gareth Mitchell talks to Dr. Joseph Feller from University College Cork about the Calibre Project - a Europe wide initiative to encourage industry and academia to share software. Joseph Feller believes it can also benefit computer users at home! We look at how geographical information systems and the creation of digital maps are vital in the drive to eradicate the Polio virus. And does "google-archy" exist? According to new research the wide held belief that search engines distort the popularity of websites simply is not true. Does Digital Planet agree?'
Download here
'Are you an open source software fan? Gareth Mitchell talks to Dr. Joseph Feller from University College Cork about the Calibre Project - a Europe wide initiative to encourage industry and academia to share software. Joseph Feller believes it can also benefit computer users at home! We look at how geographical information systems and the creation of digital maps are vital in the drive to eradicate the Polio virus. And does "google-archy" exist? According to new research the wide held belief that search engines distort the popularity of websites simply is not true. Does Digital Planet agree?'
Download here
Does mobility decrease cooperation?
This paper may be of some interest as it looks at populations and mobility through the lens of cooperation:
Authors: Mendeli H. Vainstein, Ana Tereza Costa Silva, Jeferson J. Arenzon
Comments: 5 pages, 6 figures, submitted to J. Theor. Biol
Subj-class: Populations and Evolution; Statistical Mechanics; Biological Physics
Abstract: We explore the minimal conditions for sustainable cooperation on a spatially distributed population of memoryless, unconditional strategies (cooperators and defectors) in presence of unbiased, non contingent mobility. We found that cooperative behavior is not only possible but may even be enhanced by such an ``always-move'' rule, when compared with the strongly viscous (``never-move'') case. In addition, mobility also increases the capability of cooperation to emerge and invade a population of defectors, what may have a fundamental role in the problem of the onset of cooperation.
Link to pdf download here
Thanks to Paul Hartzog
Authors: Mendeli H. Vainstein, Ana Tereza Costa Silva, Jeferson J. Arenzon
Comments: 5 pages, 6 figures, submitted to J. Theor. Biol
Subj-class: Populations and Evolution; Statistical Mechanics; Biological Physics
Abstract: We explore the minimal conditions for sustainable cooperation on a spatially distributed population of memoryless, unconditional strategies (cooperators and defectors) in presence of unbiased, non contingent mobility. We found that cooperative behavior is not only possible but may even be enhanced by such an ``always-move'' rule, when compared with the strongly viscous (``never-move'') case. In addition, mobility also increases the capability of cooperation to emerge and invade a population of defectors, what may have a fundamental role in the problem of the onset of cooperation.
Link to pdf download here
Thanks to Paul Hartzog
Monday, August 21, 2006
When not to be at a wedding
The time has arrived when weddings no longer require people being mobile and travelling half-way around the world for a relative-of-a-relative. This Guardian article titled 'Guests to watch wedding via webcam' tells how...
'Guests will log on to the internet to watch a wedding under a new initiative giving absent friends and family the chance to become part of a "virtual" ceremony...
The "virtual" guests will see the ceremony from different camera angles and later view wedding pictures on a password-protected website...The benefit of the webcam service is that it allows couples to share their special day with everyone they would want to be there in person.'
And with all those whom you didn't want there in person on the day! Great...
'Guests will log on to the internet to watch a wedding under a new initiative giving absent friends and family the chance to become part of a "virtual" ceremony...
The "virtual" guests will see the ceremony from different camera angles and later view wedding pictures on a password-protected website...The benefit of the webcam service is that it allows couples to share their special day with everyone they would want to be there in person.'
And with all those whom you didn't want there in person on the day! Great...
People provide power of mobility
Wired once again touches upon the notion of extracting power from mobile people. A recent article called 'Power From the People'. Here, embedded technology connects with the movement of people to create a power source:
'Last week, JR East, one of the regional subdivisions of the national Japanese railway network, completed a pilot study looking into ways that parts of a station's electrical needs could be met by people power.
According to the Japanese newspaper Chunichi Shimbun, the JR East program, assisted by researchers from Keio University, plans to embed piezo pads in the floor under the ticket gates. As people pass through, vibration and pressure on the pads is converted by piezo crystals into an electrical charge which can then be channeled to highly efficient power storage systems and provide clean, ecologically friendly power to parts of the station. Although the piezo current is apparently a small one, if enough passengers pass through (and bounce a bit as they do), quite respectable amounts of electricity can be accumulated....
For the environmentally conscious, it's a thrilling idea. Suddenly a typical city looks like a series of energy-generating opportunities currently being missed. All those people walking, cars driving, elevated iron bridges vibrating as the trains roll across -- aren't they a bit like wind, sun or waves just waiting to have their energy harnessed and turned into power?'
An alternative 'green' power source for future megacities? Or does this sound too close to the Matrix idea of human batteries??
'Last week, JR East, one of the regional subdivisions of the national Japanese railway network, completed a pilot study looking into ways that parts of a station's electrical needs could be met by people power.
According to the Japanese newspaper Chunichi Shimbun, the JR East program, assisted by researchers from Keio University, plans to embed piezo pads in the floor under the ticket gates. As people pass through, vibration and pressure on the pads is converted by piezo crystals into an electrical charge which can then be channeled to highly efficient power storage systems and provide clean, ecologically friendly power to parts of the station. Although the piezo current is apparently a small one, if enough passengers pass through (and bounce a bit as they do), quite respectable amounts of electricity can be accumulated....
For the environmentally conscious, it's a thrilling idea. Suddenly a typical city looks like a series of energy-generating opportunities currently being missed. All those people walking, cars driving, elevated iron bridges vibrating as the trains roll across -- aren't they a bit like wind, sun or waves just waiting to have their energy harnessed and turned into power?'
An alternative 'green' power source for future megacities? Or does this sound too close to the Matrix idea of human batteries??
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Japan planning intelligent road systems
Smartmobs reports on Japan's taking the currently installed Vehicle Information and Communication System (VICS) to the next level:
"The Driving Safety Support System being developed by the Universal Traffic Management Society of Japan, plans on utilizing two-way infrared beacons -- installed about 5.5 meters above the street -- to analyze real-time information about street conditions, hazards, and pedestrians who aren't paying attention.
The beacons will reportedly beam the data to your in-car navigation system, and depending on your specific location, will be tailored to address intersections and crossroads that you are actually approaching."
Read more via Endgadget
"The Driving Safety Support System being developed by the Universal Traffic Management Society of Japan, plans on utilizing two-way infrared beacons -- installed about 5.5 meters above the street -- to analyze real-time information about street conditions, hazards, and pedestrians who aren't paying attention.
The beacons will reportedly beam the data to your in-car navigation system, and depending on your specific location, will be tailored to address intersections and crossroads that you are actually approaching."
Read more via Endgadget
The Age of Distraction
Paul B. Hartzog in his blog 'Politics, Economy, Society, Culture, Complexity, and Networks' has coined the term “age of distraction” to describe what he thinks is the period we are moving into. For example, he states that:
"Multitasking becomes continuous partial attention: One possible response to the explosion of devices and access is the development of “continuous partial attention”.
Second, after continuous partial attention, we enter an era in which the ability to focus on anything for long periods of time diminishes. In effect, using technologies like RSS and cellphones, we have trained ourselves to be constantly aware and on the lookout for distractions."
Another way of approaching 'our' fast forward converging culture, amidst an acceleration of devices, connections, always-on networks + mobilities, and information bombardment and complexities.
Do mobilities of information destabilise as much, or more, than it enables?
"Multitasking becomes continuous partial attention: One possible response to the explosion of devices and access is the development of “continuous partial attention”.
Second, after continuous partial attention, we enter an era in which the ability to focus on anything for long periods of time diminishes. In effect, using technologies like RSS and cellphones, we have trained ourselves to be constantly aware and on the lookout for distractions."
Another way of approaching 'our' fast forward converging culture, amidst an acceleration of devices, connections, always-on networks + mobilities, and information bombardment and complexities.
Do mobilities of information destabilise as much, or more, than it enables?
Friday, August 18, 2006
Carpooling made easy
Welcome to KoolPool - India's first organised carpooling system!
SMS technology is helping to curb the traffic and commuting problems in India with the launch of KoolPool.
In fact, KoolPool business model looks closer to a citizen taxi pool than car sharing. Every driver could subscribe to the service for an annual fee of about €3.5. Every transportation should be accepted. Passengers willing to get a cab text the booking service, which checks who is driving towards them. It sends back an SMS.
Currently registrations are open in Mumbai only. Bangalore, Delhi, NCR coming soon.
SMS technology is helping to curb the traffic and commuting problems in India with the launch of KoolPool.
In fact, KoolPool business model looks closer to a citizen taxi pool than car sharing. Every driver could subscribe to the service for an annual fee of about €3.5. Every transportation should be accepted. Passengers willing to get a cab text the booking service, which checks who is driving towards them. It sends back an SMS.
Currently registrations are open in Mumbai only. Bangalore, Delhi, NCR coming soon.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
The President blogs
For those interested in movements in the Blogosphere - here's the latest news: Iranian President Mahmood Ahmadinejad has started his own blog, which is also translated into English, and which begins by outlining his meek beginnings... so far, he hasn't gone into any rants, yet everyone deserves a space.
Mahmood Ahmadinejad's blogsite
Mahmood Ahmadinejad's blogsite
Duran Duran move into virtual space...
Now this is a first! Duran Duran were the first band in the early 80s to shoot videos on location (Remember 'Rio'? Yes, I was there...). Now they will be the first music band to become residents of a virtual world in Second Life. According to a BBC article titled 'Duran Duran to give virtual gigs':
'British band Duran Duran are to create a virtual island within online game Second Life, on which they will perform actual live concerts.
The band is the first major group to announce a virtual world presence in the game.
Second Life is an online 3D digital world, which is imagined, created and owned by the residents.
More than 370,000 people have Second Life characters, called Avatars, who exist in the world.
Earlier this year, BBC Radio 1 rented a virtual island in Second Life where it held music festivals and BBC Two's Newsnight hosted an interview inside the game.'
Does this mean others will follow? Will Billy Bragg get an avatar??
'British band Duran Duran are to create a virtual island within online game Second Life, on which they will perform actual live concerts.
The band is the first major group to announce a virtual world presence in the game.
Second Life is an online 3D digital world, which is imagined, created and owned by the residents.
More than 370,000 people have Second Life characters, called Avatars, who exist in the world.
Earlier this year, BBC Radio 1 rented a virtual island in Second Life where it held music festivals and BBC Two's Newsnight hosted an interview inside the game.'
Does this mean others will follow? Will Billy Bragg get an avatar??
Megacities and the Developing World
Megacities and the Developing World is an article by George Bugliarello that has now been published full online:
'The large urban agglomerates we call megacities are increasingly a developing world phenomenon that will affect the future prosperity and stability of the entire world...
Despite the fact that megacities are increasingly a phenomenon of the developing world, there are three major reasons why the developed world needs to pay attention to them. First, what happens in the megacities of the developing world affects the rest of the world. The combination of high population density, poverty, and limited resources makes the developing world megacity an environment which favors the incubation of disease, from cholera to tuberculosis to sexually transmitted infections, that in an age of rapid communication can almost instantaneously be propagated to the rest of the world. Vulnerability to terrorism, natural hazards, ecological disasters, war conditions, and food scarcity are also exacerbated in the megacities of the developing world.'
'The large urban agglomerates we call megacities are increasingly a developing world phenomenon that will affect the future prosperity and stability of the entire world...
Despite the fact that megacities are increasingly a phenomenon of the developing world, there are three major reasons why the developed world needs to pay attention to them. First, what happens in the megacities of the developing world affects the rest of the world. The combination of high population density, poverty, and limited resources makes the developing world megacity an environment which favors the incubation of disease, from cholera to tuberculosis to sexually transmitted infections, that in an age of rapid communication can almost instantaneously be propagated to the rest of the world. Vulnerability to terrorism, natural hazards, ecological disasters, war conditions, and food scarcity are also exacerbated in the megacities of the developing world.'
Travel around social networks
TripHub is an interesting site that is allowing people to organize travel around social networks and group events. You can create a homepage, then send out invitations to where you are travelling, discuss plans, and form social networks around the destinations/travels. A new way to plan and share group travelling!
Saturday, August 12, 2006
AIR TIME-SPACES: NEW METHODS FOR RESEARCHING MOBILITIES
AIR TIME-SPACES: NEW METHODS FOR RESEARCHING MOBILITIES
Lancaster University UK - 29 & 30 September 2006
Confirmed Speakers:
Gillian Fuller, University of New South Wales
Ross Harley, University of New South Wales
Rob Kitchen, University of Maynooth
Claus Lassen, Aalborg University
David Pascoe, University of Glasgow
Peter Peters, University Maastricht
Frank Witlox, Ghent University
Saulo Cwerner, Lancaster University, plus possible art and film installations
Monumental airports of glass and steel designed by celebrity architects, gigantic planes that dwarf jumbos, flights greatly cheaper than surface travel – these are icons of the new global order. Such air time-spaces are global transfer points, entries into a world of apparent hypermobility, extensive time-space compression/distanciation, and apparent boundless opportunities. Work and play, leisure and pleasure are opened up through such reconstituted spaces. They link the local to the global, and place particular cities and societies upon the global map. The transformation of China, India and other countries into societies of hyper-aeromobility brings these issues centre-stage in the early years of the twenty first century. Even as air travel is taken for granted, these spaces are simultaneously sites of intense contestation especially around the environmental, economic and social impacts of cheap flights, new runways and airports, and novel security issues in managing the complex flows of baggage and passengers. This all indicates the intensely political nature of “making aero-mobilities”.
The social sciences and humanities have had relatively little to say about these systems and processes, partly because such time-spaces are gated and off-limits. This next meeting of the CosMobilities Network will seek to remedy this neglect by addressing through papers, discussions, and media installations just how to analyse and research some ways in which the most dramatic changes in the contemporary world are being reorganised through time and space.
This Air Time-Spaces Workshop is intended to be a substantial contribution to a cosmopolitan perspective within mobility research. Issues of theory and especially methods will be highlighted since research techniques will have to be as 'mobile' as the passengers, the staff, the security instruments, baggage, and the gleaming, cheap airplanes.
The Workshop is organised by the Centre for Mobilities Research, Lancaster, and the CosMobilities Network. It will be held in the new state-of-the-art Institute for Advanced Studies, County College South at Lancaster University commencing at 10.30 am on 29 September and ending at 4.30pm on 30 September. Numbers will be restricted to a maximum of 50 so as to facilitate debate.
The cost for the 2 days will be £75 to include all meeting costs, meals (including workshop dinner on the 29th) and tea/coffee. Overnight accommodation is available at cost on campus. Please contact Pennie Drinkall if you would like to attend - p.drinkall@lancaster.ac.uk. Unfortunately, Saturday 30 September is the start of our academic year and there is no accommodation available in university guest rooms. Should you need to stay on Saturday night please book your alternative accommodation very soon (see list attached to the registration form). Pennie can also help you with this.
Registration Form here
Lancaster University UK - 29 & 30 September 2006
Confirmed Speakers:
Gillian Fuller, University of New South Wales
Ross Harley, University of New South Wales
Rob Kitchen, University of Maynooth
Claus Lassen, Aalborg University
David Pascoe, University of Glasgow
Peter Peters, University Maastricht
Frank Witlox, Ghent University
Saulo Cwerner, Lancaster University, plus possible art and film installations
Monumental airports of glass and steel designed by celebrity architects, gigantic planes that dwarf jumbos, flights greatly cheaper than surface travel – these are icons of the new global order. Such air time-spaces are global transfer points, entries into a world of apparent hypermobility, extensive time-space compression/distanciation, and apparent boundless opportunities. Work and play, leisure and pleasure are opened up through such reconstituted spaces. They link the local to the global, and place particular cities and societies upon the global map. The transformation of China, India and other countries into societies of hyper-aeromobility brings these issues centre-stage in the early years of the twenty first century. Even as air travel is taken for granted, these spaces are simultaneously sites of intense contestation especially around the environmental, economic and social impacts of cheap flights, new runways and airports, and novel security issues in managing the complex flows of baggage and passengers. This all indicates the intensely political nature of “making aero-mobilities”.
The social sciences and humanities have had relatively little to say about these systems and processes, partly because such time-spaces are gated and off-limits. This next meeting of the CosMobilities Network will seek to remedy this neglect by addressing through papers, discussions, and media installations just how to analyse and research some ways in which the most dramatic changes in the contemporary world are being reorganised through time and space.
This Air Time-Spaces Workshop is intended to be a substantial contribution to a cosmopolitan perspective within mobility research. Issues of theory and especially methods will be highlighted since research techniques will have to be as 'mobile' as the passengers, the staff, the security instruments, baggage, and the gleaming, cheap airplanes.
The Workshop is organised by the Centre for Mobilities Research, Lancaster, and the CosMobilities Network. It will be held in the new state-of-the-art Institute for Advanced Studies, County College South at Lancaster University commencing at 10.30 am on 29 September and ending at 4.30pm on 30 September. Numbers will be restricted to a maximum of 50 so as to facilitate debate.
The cost for the 2 days will be £75 to include all meeting costs, meals (including workshop dinner on the 29th) and tea/coffee. Overnight accommodation is available at cost on campus. Please contact Pennie Drinkall if you would like to attend - p.drinkall@lancaster.ac.uk. Unfortunately, Saturday 30 September is the start of our academic year and there is no accommodation available in university guest rooms. Should you need to stay on Saturday night please book your alternative accommodation very soon (see list attached to the registration form). Pennie can also help you with this.
Registration Form here
Personal Mobilities book
A new book titled 'Personal Mobilities' by Aharon Kellerman could be of interest to mobility researchers. The publication blurb says:
'Living in a contemporary developed society means having access to a myriad of ways to communicate. One can either use public or private transport to meet others and talk face to face, or use a variety of communication networks, like mobile or fixed telephones or the internet, to travel virtually.
Personal Mobilities provides a systematic study of personal movement focusing on the dimensions of space, individuals, societies and technologies. Kellerman examines a variety of personal mobilites, including air transportation, through several perspectives, examining the human need for movement, their anchoring within wider societal trends, commonalities and differences among mobility technologies and international differences.
Although spatial mobility seems geographical by its very nature, the topic has been so far treated only partially, and mainly by sociologists. Personal Mobilities highlights geographical as well as sociological aspects and is the first book to focus solely on personal mobilities.'
Kellerman, Aharon, Personal Mobilities. London and New York: Routledge, August 2006. ISBN 0-415-39159-8 (hbk). 212pp+xii. Networked Cities Series.
'Living in a contemporary developed society means having access to a myriad of ways to communicate. One can either use public or private transport to meet others and talk face to face, or use a variety of communication networks, like mobile or fixed telephones or the internet, to travel virtually.
Personal Mobilities provides a systematic study of personal movement focusing on the dimensions of space, individuals, societies and technologies. Kellerman examines a variety of personal mobilites, including air transportation, through several perspectives, examining the human need for movement, their anchoring within wider societal trends, commonalities and differences among mobility technologies and international differences.
Although spatial mobility seems geographical by its very nature, the topic has been so far treated only partially, and mainly by sociologists. Personal Mobilities highlights geographical as well as sociological aspects and is the first book to focus solely on personal mobilities.'
Kellerman, Aharon, Personal Mobilities. London and New York: Routledge, August 2006. ISBN 0-415-39159-8 (hbk). 212pp+xii. Networked Cities Series.
Hyper-coordination
An influential article several years ago was by Rich Ling and Birgitte Yttri on “Nobody sits at home and waits for the telephone to ring: Micro and hyper-coordination through the use of the mobile telephone." Now, Lee Humphreys reports on her more recent research on "hypercoordination" in Out with my mobile - exploring social coordination in urban environments:
"I recently returned from a trip to Germany with twelve of my colleagues. Being Americans and therefore behind the mobile technology curve, I was the only one of the group who had a mobile phone which worked abroad. Therefore, we were forced to coordinate our gatherings and meetings sans mobile phones. Needless to say, life without the mobile makes you realize just how much you rely on it. There were missed meetings and dinners. Awkward interactions with acquaintances who just sort of showed up. And then there was the waiting. There was a lot of waiting. This waiting felt different than in the States without the ability to send a quick text message to say one would be 10 minutes late or the ability to call to double check the location. Am I in the right place? Did we really say 6:30? This place isn't cool, can we find a new place? And for someone who is accustomed to the hyper-coordination that Rich Ling & Birgitte Yttri suggest is associated with mobile phone use, this waiting felt not only highly constraining but was also anxiety inducing.
This waiting, however, also provided a moment to reflect on how mobile communication technology has become integrated into social interaction processes. Not only do we use mobile phones to say we're running late, but we also use them to coordinate ourselves in space and time. In order for my colleagues and me to have dinner together, we had to coordinate beforehand the when and the where to meet. In a densely populated urban environment, the chances of running into one another at the corner bar is not likely when there are so many venue options within a particular neighborhood. Therefore, communicating the where and the when of the meeting becomes an important factor in social coordination for urbanites. But mobile social interaction is not nearly so blunt as just when and where. Particularly for small groups of colleagues or friends, coordinating who will (and will not) be there can also become an important negotiation. Mobile technology is beginning to play an evermore important role in this social coordination."
Via Smartmobs
"I recently returned from a trip to Germany with twelve of my colleagues. Being Americans and therefore behind the mobile technology curve, I was the only one of the group who had a mobile phone which worked abroad. Therefore, we were forced to coordinate our gatherings and meetings sans mobile phones. Needless to say, life without the mobile makes you realize just how much you rely on it. There were missed meetings and dinners. Awkward interactions with acquaintances who just sort of showed up. And then there was the waiting. There was a lot of waiting. This waiting felt different than in the States without the ability to send a quick text message to say one would be 10 minutes late or the ability to call to double check the location. Am I in the right place? Did we really say 6:30? This place isn't cool, can we find a new place? And for someone who is accustomed to the hyper-coordination that Rich Ling & Birgitte Yttri suggest is associated with mobile phone use, this waiting felt not only highly constraining but was also anxiety inducing.
This waiting, however, also provided a moment to reflect on how mobile communication technology has become integrated into social interaction processes. Not only do we use mobile phones to say we're running late, but we also use them to coordinate ourselves in space and time. In order for my colleagues and me to have dinner together, we had to coordinate beforehand the when and the where to meet. In a densely populated urban environment, the chances of running into one another at the corner bar is not likely when there are so many venue options within a particular neighborhood. Therefore, communicating the where and the when of the meeting becomes an important factor in social coordination for urbanites. But mobile social interaction is not nearly so blunt as just when and where. Particularly for small groups of colleagues or friends, coordinating who will (and will not) be there can also become an important negotiation. Mobile technology is beginning to play an evermore important role in this social coordination."
Via Smartmobs
Citizen journalism in airport coverage
Smartmobs posts on Leonard Brody who has pointed to a piece in today’s Globe about their coverage of the London Terrorist Bombing: 'The post illustrates with clear examples from Flickr and other new media the importance of "citizen journalism" or "social media" in the coverage of todays terrorist plot on Heathrow.'
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Who killed the electric car?
A new docu-film is being released from Sony Pictures called 'Who killed the electric car?' which follows the story behind the early production of electric cars in the 80s, and why they never took off!
Has been getting some good reviews in the British press - worth a mobility mention me thinks...
Has been getting some good reviews in the British press - worth a mobility mention me thinks...
Harvesting mobile energies
A recent post titled 'Japan Railway harvests passenger energy for fun and profit':
"The East Japan Railway Company is getting experimental with ways to make their train stations more environmentally friendly, and have turned to the warm bodies that fill their train seats for part of the solution. They've started installing ticket gates that generate electricity as people pass through them, harvesting the vibrations and pressure that results when people walk through the gates. It's not quite as nefarious as we were hoping for -- we think a bit of time chained to a stationary bicycle inside the train could do a commuter good -- but it still seems a pretty good idea, and we look forward to the results. Testing should last through August 11th, and most indications point to this being a fairly effective manner of getting electricity to where it's needed."
Well, it makes sense - hence Microsoft's patenting of the human skin as receiver - humans are highly electrical!
Via Engadget
"The East Japan Railway Company is getting experimental with ways to make their train stations more environmentally friendly, and have turned to the warm bodies that fill their train seats for part of the solution. They've started installing ticket gates that generate electricity as people pass through them, harvesting the vibrations and pressure that results when people walk through the gates. It's not quite as nefarious as we were hoping for -- we think a bit of time chained to a stationary bicycle inside the train could do a commuter good -- but it still seems a pretty good idea, and we look forward to the results. Testing should last through August 11th, and most indications point to this being a fairly effective manner of getting electricity to where it's needed."
Well, it makes sense - hence Microsoft's patenting of the human skin as receiver - humans are highly electrical!
Via Engadget
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