Tom Friedman mentioned this essay in his recent talk at MIT. I have long been familiar with the classic work of Thomas Hughes in this area, but I hadn't read Paul David's short essay on the subject, which serves nicely as a concise summary.

Many observers of recent trends in the industrialized economies of the West have been perplexed by the conjecture of rapid technological innovation with disappointingly slow gains in measured productivity.

Our cultural inheritance assigns high value to (previously scarce) information, predisposing us to try screening whatever becomes available. Yet, screening is costly; while it can contribute to a risk-averse information recipient’s personal welfare, the growing duplicative allocation of human resources to coping with information overload may displace activities producing commodities.

There is likely to be a strong inertial component in the evolution of information-intensive production organizations.

There are special difficulties in the commercialization of novel (information) technologies that need to be overcome before the mass of information-users can benefit in their roles as producers.

Are popular memes a waste of our human resources? Aren't we better off to divide and conquer?

The Dynamo and the Computer

He dances from the spicy flavor of Hawaiian seaweed to the scientific method of creating no-stir peanut butter, quoting Chinese poet Shu Xi and biblical proverbs along the way. McGee's conversational style -- rich with exclamation points and everyday examples -- allows him to explain complex chemical reactions, like caramelization, without dumbing them down.

On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen

"Georgia Hard" is a sensational songwriter's record, a swift mix of pathos and wit, where every lyrical and vocal nuance is essential to the bigger picture. And it's populated with a number of airtight genre exercises that speak to the breadth of Fulks's talent. But it's not without Fulks's endearing offshoots into disarmingly humorous fare.

If you're new to Robbie Fulks, I recommend starting with "She Took A Lot Of Pills (And Died)" from 1996's "Country Love Songs" and his fantastic rendition of Johnny Cash's "Cry, Cry, Cry" from the "Dressed in Black" tribute album.

Robbie Fulks

This is a call for papers to be published in a new IEEE Transactions series.

I think there are at least a few MemeStreams regulars who could get published here ...

The aim of the IEEE Transactions on Information Forensics and Security is to provide a unified locus for archival research on the fundamental contributions and the mathematics behind information forensics, information security, surveillance, and systems applications that incorporate these features.

Technical topics within the scope include:
Digital rights management technology, including watermarking and
fingerprinting of images, video, and audio;
Steganography and steganalysis;
Tampering, modification of, and attacks on, original information;
Signal processing for biometrics;
Signal processing for forensic analysis;
Signal modeling and channel modeling for secure content delivery;
Quality metrics and benchmarking;
Technical analysis of system vulnerabilities;
Content identification and secure content delivery;
Information embedding and media annotation;
The interplay of technology with legal and ethical issues.

IEEE Transactions on Information Forensics and Security

Do not try and spin the story. That's impossible. Instead only try to realize the truth.

What truth?

There is no spin.

There is no spin?

Then you'll see that it is not the story that spins, it is only yourself.

Fundamentalism -- the idea that information is a fundamental particle and makes up knowledge, which in turn makes up wisdom -- is problematic.

"Information is something we create, not something we find as substance in the world."

"Information comes with a brand."

Prof. Tarleton Gillespie, communication, called Duguid's use of the word "brand" within the context of information "a bold move, a deliberately bold move." Duguid is taking the idea of brands from the commercial arena and putting it in a space where people don't like to think about it, Gillespie said.

Information Comes With A Brand

The nation's and the world's long-term threats often get ignored altogether or are even made worse by shortsighted decisions. In everyday life, responsible people look out for the long term despite the needs of the here and now: we do homework, we save for retirement, we take out insurance. The same principles should surely apply to society as a whole. But how can leaders weigh the present against the future? How can they avoid being paralyzed by scientific uncertainty?

Shaping the Future

Last week's arrests included an executive of a major satellite television company, suspected of spying on a cable television rival; two cell phone companies suspected of eavesdropping on a mutual rival; and the Israeli importer of Volvos and Hondas who is suspected of spying on the company that imports Audis and Volkswagens.

Caught in a Web of Spies

Except when it comes to the problems that can't be solved.

Count Him In

So it is best from a career standpoint to play it safe ... and the drumbeat of criticisms of the intelligence agencies as risk-averse will, ironically, make them play even safer by underscoring the career repercussions of an intelligence failure.

Maybe if we made them wear uniforms, they would act more like professional athletes. Instead of agencies, we'd have leagues, with annual drafts, and free agents, and salary caps.

Imagine the Ivy League graduate proudly exclaiming to his family: "I got drafted! I made the team!"

Danger in 'Fixing' CIA

Who doesn't love this film?

A compelling case can be made for "The Sound of Music," as the last picture show of its kind, a triumph of craftsmanship and the apogee of the studio system that produced the kind of entertainment that dominated mid-20th-century mass culture.

A film that was easy to mock as stale and conventional in the wake of the French Nouvelle Vague (and on the brink of "Bonnie and Clyde") is far easier to appreciate now for its old-fashioned gloss and arch performances from silken pros.

"Not only too sweet for words but almost too sweet for music," Walter Kerr wrote in The New York Herald Tribune.

But from the very beginning, the public lapped it up.

"Nobody has the magic wand, or there'd be movies like this done all the time, In retrospect, it's a very good story, with very good tunes. The score doesn't really sound like a score written by 60-year-old men. There's a kind of youthfulness and honesty to the songs, about how to learn music, but also how to break down barriers. It doesn't sound like someone's trying to phony something up."

The Hills Still Resonate