Manoratha

Donate to Bletchley Park - Call for Donations

The National Museum of Computing at Bletchley Park in the UK is seeking donors to help maintain and renew the site.  This site was the focal point of allied efforts to break the German Military Codes and is credited with shortening the war by two years by successfully cracking the codes and aiding in the D-Day invasion, among other military operations.  A large number of the brightest minds worked with the bleeding edge technologies of the day, the best known of whom was Alan Turing.  It is sometimes called "the birthplace of modern computing"

My professional life owes a large debt to the seminal work in computing and cryptography that was done at this historical location.  The two major areas that I have spent my professional life in (Artificial Intelligence and Cryptography/Security) have a strong link to this place and to Turing in particular.

Please consider a small donation in any amount you can afford to help this historically significant location and check out the site at:

http://www.pgp.com/stationx/index.html

TechCrunch50 visit: Devices and the Web

Spent a few days in San Francisco at TechCrunch50 churning the imagination a little.  The conference started out mixed on the first day but finished strong.  While it'll take me another week or so to really digest and reflect on all the startups I saw and conversations I had, there were a few insights that stuck out a mile for me personally.  Here one on Devices and the Web

•  I've been muttering about devices and their integration into the web for a few years now and still retain a subscription to "Embedded Systems" mostly to track how much easier and less capital-intensive it has become to put down a bet in this space.  I'll even admit to having a Chumby 1.0 and few other net aware gadgets but one gadget at the conference took my fancy as a great example of how devices and sensors will enrich our world.
• The company was called "Fitbit" and they have a well-designed personal activity monitor that can track physical activity and inactivity like a pedometer and sync wirelessly with its dock which will sync with a web site that allows you to track your activity and goals.  Its a brilliant concept given how much good intent can be reinforced with a little nudge.  Appropriately, the device doesn't do a lot - no fancy heart monitor here - just a basic activity monitor.  Wise choice!

• As a collector of modern automata and kinetic toys (and aspiring designer/maker), I've been eagerly awaiting more "off-the-shelf" parts to design/assemble amusements.  Utilitarian robots (e.g. Roomba) and cute dinosaurs are nice but sure would be nice to have more whimsy, connectivity and character in our devices and less of that "sync" business. There was a snippet in the commentary from the judges about the relative cost of prototyping devices like this coming down into the 150K range (less if you subscribe to Make Magazine and use the local TechShop.)

 

Modelling the Computer of the (near) Future

I get a little irritated at the iPhone/iTouch being pointed to as the model device/computer of the (near) future.  Having traveled the world a few years ago with just a BlackBerry RIM device (no laptop), I can happily report that it serves far better as a model than the iPhone.  The far future clearly has some elements of body-computer integration not widely seen today that neither device models today.  I have both devices and assert that the RIM is a better base for the future computer.

I travel enough to know and understand that it will be a while under we really have ubiquitous connectivity (recent newspaper article points out that Fiber connectivity to homes may stall at 13% in the US).  To me, the ideal device starts with the classical BlackBerry RIM design and adds elements of the iPhone.  In a world that still has large patches where connectivity and bandwidth are scarce and precious, a device that makes smart use of bandwidth for critical communication is far more important than a compelling (but still flawed) user interface.  The Touch interface also has some significant shortcomings -  requiring sight based gestures (you need to look at the device) and  requiring multiple steps for what should be single click access.

Here's my view of my ideal near term portable computer:

• Hip holster form factor
• Flash based high-density storage with a pluggable SD card for sneakernet data transfer (at 30Gb, its a real laptop replacement)
• RIM style messaging (no polling, messages arrive in the background with low bandwidth usage and works even in low connectivity areas)
• Ability to dock device to run keyboard and monitor and full browser/VPN capabilities - I run a desktop tower at work and often will VPN into that machine to run high compute/connectivity requirement tasks.  Perhaps the ideal computer replaces that but I'd be happy to have a window into my home/office computer.
• Some range/choice of analog controls - I remain a fan of the analog click-wheel on the original blackberries which made sight free control possible.  I think current device design has really neglected the clever use of button based controls to accelerate common tasks.
• Ability to span and operate over the best connectivity available (WiFi, 3G, GPRS, etc.
• Full day operation, handcrank recharge (or movement driven constant recharge)

A tribute to Bill Buckley Jr.

Bill Buckley Jr. passed away on Feb 28th last month and I would be remiss if I did not note here of his passing.  Can't say I agreed with Buckley very often and know him to have been an imperfect man, but I admired him for his articulate, passionate and erudite defense of his ideas and for his unfailing courtesy to his guests and civil discourse on "Firing Line" on PBS.  In the wasteland of talk radio and the partisan rhetoric of the Reagan years (when I first saw him), Buckley stood out as a beacon who dealt in ideas rather than partisan purpose.  In doing so, he set a standard for political discourse that continues to be exemplary.

On today's Charlie Rose broadcast, Richard Brookhiser (of the National Review), related an anecdote that says everything about why so many people I know admired and envied him:

Commenting on why Buckley befriended and admired so many liberals who stood with ideas so contrary to him, Brookhiser speculates that it had to do with writing and command of language and then quoted Bill Rusher (publisher) talking about Buckley's weakness for language: "Its a good thing the communist manifesto was not better written..."

There in a line is why I enjoyed Bill Buckley's company (on television and in print).  The world is poorer for losing him.

JLS Science Fair & Resources...

A couple of folks have been asking me for a while for the resource page I had put together for the JLS Middle School Science Fair while building out a web site for the fair to help with publicity and organization.  I ran the science fair for 3 years with some other JLS parents and a JLS staff representative (and the strong support of the principal Joe Di Salvo).  While it was a lot of work, it was a blast to see 350+ kids bring in their work over two days and talk directly to the judges that we brought in from the community.  I'll write more about that experience this summer.

The resource page lists everything I have known and used over the years to get kids to have fun with science - including books, videos, museums, activities, birthday gift suggestions etc.  By popular demand, it is now cached here besides its usual location on the JLS Science Fair Web Site.  It'll be stashed under the ThinkerTinker area.

PC Forum Day One in Carlsbad, CA

I have always been a fan of Release 1.0 since I discovered it in the IntelliCorp library many years ago.  Esther Dyson and (at the time) Jerry Michalski's writing hit the perfect pitch for the way I learned about new ideas and technologies.  From my first day at PC Forum, I can happily say that the conference measures up to those expectations as well.

Unlike the relative chaos of last year's Web 2.0 conference, the conversations on stage were thought provoking and Dr. Barry Schwartz's talk on the Paradox of Choice had me scribbling notes instead of doing my usual doodles.  Among the more interesting tidbits (all paraphrased):

• Dr. Schwarz described a compelling argument (Libertarian Paternalism) based on solid results that when formulating public policy, that more choice isn't always the right thing (not an argument for eliminating choice but of structuring defaults and better/easier decision making) quoting some great examples like particpation in the organ donor program as a default vs. active choice at time of driver's license renewal (25% participation when active choice, 90% participation in Europe where its the default).
• Ajit Balakrishnan, founder of Rediff.Com (prominent Indian portal), spoke about Douglass North's work on transaction costs in the context of his work reforming legislation in India related to the fallout from the unfortunate arrest of an eBay India executive over the posting of porn on the site.  Ajit was very impressive.
• Philip Rosedale of Linden Labs (maker of Second Life the onine game) spoke about how in the 85,000 hours logged by 150,000 users so far, approximately 30% of the time is spent on creation - tinkering with things as an active choice.
• All the panelists spoke about the merits of "too many choices" aspect of modern societies vs. and the default in many traditional societies of limited choice or in economically backward countries of "no choice".  That discussion reminded of the most eloquent essay I have heard/read on the paradox of the immigrant experience (as it relates to choice).  The essay is by Andre Codrescu on the compilation "The Dog with a Chip in His Neck" (out of print, best listened to on audio tape, try Alibris).  The essay contrasts his mother's experience vs. his own as an immigrant to the US (from Romania).  It is a riff that left my head whirling and in awe that someone could spin words like that.  A "must hear" for any immigrant or anyone who wants to understand the paradox of choice.

I will go back and read Dr. Schwartz's book but I think he brings crisply into focus something that every young person should be armed with as they go into this world.  My outline based on earlier struggles with choice are:

1. Take the default.  The default could be implicit as driven by a social norm, personal recommendation or explicit.  This is a good reason to belong to a social group.
2. Use economics of time or money to establish constraints that could help you make the choice faster.
3. Become a Maker or Tinkerer and create or modify to suit your needs.

Dinner conversation was equally interesting.

Promising book on Neuroscience...

In mid-December last year, I sat mesmerized by a conversation between James Watson. E.O. Wilson and Charlie Rose on the Charlie Rose show (PBS).  In paying a tribute to Dr. Watson, E.O. Wilson called out what he saw as the three most meaningful milestones in the history of science that changed fundamentally how people saw the world around them (structure of DNA being one of them).  I'll save the detail for another post, but in responding to Dr. Wilson, Dr. Watson called out the enigma of memory as the fourth major milestone ahead of us.  That Dr. Watson believes that we can and will achieve this milestone was enough to make me dig out all my old neuroscience books (Richard Restak, Oliver Sacks) and the notes I kept while puzzling over what was known and what was not known about the brain.

So when I arrived at  PC Forum a day early this week and while walking through Warwick's bookstore in La Jolla found Eric Kandel's recently published book "In Search of Memory", I was utterly delighted at the serendipity.  Dr. Kandel won the Nobel prize for his work on the cellular and molecular process of memory.  Despite being here on official business, I could not resist reading it immediately.  He's a good plain spoken writer and in the first 10 pages does what I wish many other science writers would do - he puts the science he is talking about in context, succinctly.  He describes the evolution of Biology from a descriptive science to a coherent science with the articulation of the structure of DNA and speaks to the role of molecular biology in unifying three disparate ideas evolution :

• Evolution
• Genetics as the basis of inheritance and the
• Theory that the cell is the basic unit of living things

by focusing on the gene and the its action through the manufacture of proteins and its role as the underlying actor in all three dramas.

Wonderful passage as well on the role of memory in intelligence and shaping human experience.  You can also purchase a tape of some of Dr. Kandel's appearances on the Charlie Rose show.  While you're there, you could also pick up a copy of the Watson/Wilson interview - a rare and wonderful interview with two people at the pinnacle of their profession, who love what they do, talking about the world from their point of view with a clarity that only masters can achieve.

American Inventor...

Just heard on NPR's Talk of the Nation: Science Friday that ABC is premiering a show called American Inventor showcasing the aspirations of up and coming inventors in a bake-off format leading to "America's most promising inventor".  Naturally as an entertainment show, it will feature the "human drama" highlighting the wacky and heart-warming.

My first reaction was to cringe at the potential freak-show that might marginalizes further any hope that science and engineering become first class careers for young people.  Thinking about it a little more, maybe its not such a bad idea to showcase how creativity and enterpreneurship can blend with science and engineering as an area of interest to young people.

Too bad, shows like PBS program Rough Science don't get more play.  The series tossed a group of scientists from different disciplines on an island with a time limited challenge without the support of a lab, instruments or refined ingredients to meet their challenge.  It ended up showcasing creativity, teamwork, ingenuity and how personalities drive achivement - great example of the real world.

Ali Farka Toure passes away

Ali Farka Toure passed away today of bone cancer.  A hard death for someone who gave so much joy to those around him.   If you like string instruments, blues or West African music, you have to listen to his music.  He was one of the progenitors of the African Blues sound. "Soukora" from his album with Ry Cooder "Talking Timbuktu" is on my all-time favorite list of music.. 

To get a taste of the music try NPR (with context and commentary) or Amazon.com.  Heart of the Moon, his last album with Toumani Diabate is a great album as well.

For a remembrance of the man see this fond recollection from the former BBC correspondent in Bamako, Mali (only the Beeb), as well as an obituary.
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Lamenting the loss of F2.0...

I finally gave up hope of recovering my Olympus Camedia 2000.  While just a 2 MegaPixel camera, it carried a F2.0 lens which allowed some amazing available light shots.  With the extension barrel and a filter, I managed some very nice shots in low light situations.  Terrific lens and it beat the pants off some higher MegaPixel cameras.  Here are some samples from Point Reyes, Innsbruck, and the Exploratorium.  The night shot was an opportunistic shot from Panaromic Highway looking into San Francisco Bay, taken while bracing the camera on the car window.

I thought it would be simple to replace it but with the exception of the Canon Powershot G6 which runs F2.0-F3.0 (unfortunately, a clunky camera) the rest of the crappy prosumer cameras are all F2.8 and higher.  Olympus seems to have abandoned the inclusion of quality lens on their product line, I believe they had a F1.8 lens consumer digital camera out at one point.  The MegaPixel junk out there now forces a flash or shake in low light everytime.  Time to spring for that digital SLR and F1.4 lens...Nikon D series seems awfully attractive now.