Friday, October 28, 2005

Hoodwink.d

I think once again, something's brewing under the scope of the net. And it falls under the name of Hoodwink.d It's a bit esoteric as to what it is and what you'd use it for, but I think that's part of the charm/lure. It's definitely for first adopters.

I haven't tried it, but basically, it's an RSS feed for commenters of blogs.

Wednesday, October 26, 2005

Remote Influence, more than Remote Control

I think this is actually a pretty neat technology, even if it has horrific implications as to what you can do with it. But it's like any new technology, you'll have people for and against it for any number of reasons.

But don't be quick to jump the gun. It is more of a motion influencer, rather than an actual mind controller. It makes you feel like in order to keep your balance, you need to swerve left or right.
The technology is called galvanic vestibular stimulation — essentially, electricity messes with the delicate nerves inside the ear that help maintain balance.

I felt a mysterious, irresistible urge to start walking to the right whenever the researcher turned the switch to the right. I was convinced — mistakenly — that this was the only way to maintain my balance.


I think there is potential for good and evil here. I think the article mentions some more evil ways to use it. I will ruminate on the good ones.

Humans are social creatures, and generally like to feel like they're coordinated, to be a part of something bigger. An example of this feeling that I'm talking about is the euphoria of band members or dancers after a performance that went well. A more advanced version of this technology can centrally orchestrate collaborative movements, whether it's a game or performance. And eventually, it would become an experience, when everyone's in sync. Some will like it. Others won't. Just as some like bungee jumping, and others don't.



Tuesday, October 25, 2005

Shut the door, you're letting all the cold air out.

It's commonplace for me and every other fool to stand in front of the fridge with the door open, trying to decide what to eat....and being yelled by our mothers in the process.

So it came to me today...Why are refridgerator doors at home not made of glass, so you can look at food without opening the fridge?

Sunday, October 23, 2005

The essence of tagging

Chris and I had been arguing about the nature of tagging. He believes that tagging should be an activity that's private. He never looks at tags that other people have. I'm more on the side that tagging is an activity that's public. The fact that you have thousands of people labeling things, there will be some overlap in calling it the same thing. In that way, you can find other related things.

I think I just realized the main difference between our philosophies is what type of keywords that we think we would employ. If the tags that you put on an object are intrinsic properties of the object, then there's no problem that it is public. However, if the tags that you put on an object are properties of how it related to you, then that's how they could be seen as private.