Eye Phone?

Consider this article, from IEEE Spectrum:
"Eye-Tracking Software Goes Mobile" by Ariel Bleicher
http://spectrum.ieee.org/computing/software/eyetracking-software-goes-mobile

The article talks about "the potential to transform the way consumers interact with their devices." It talks about new applications (drivers dozing off, chefs browsing recipes), which is great.

But I think technology like this might better suited to help people with physical limitations interact with their devices on a very basic level, a level that most of us take for granted. For instance, my uncle died with ALS. Unable to speak or move at the end, but still mentally sharp and still able to move his eyes (I saw him a few hours before he died), he could really have benefited from this technology. I'm sure people with other disabilities would also benefit.

From Wikipedia:
"...although bladder and bowel sphincters and the muscles responsible for eye movement are usually, but not always, spared until the terminal stages of the disease."

From both National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and MedicineNet.com:
"ALS does not affect a person’s ability to see, smell, taste, hear, or recognize touch. Patients usually maintain control of eye muscles and bladder and bowel functions..."

So when I see technological advances like this, I think of ways in which we can improve the lives of people with certain diseases.  I hope to see many more such advances.

The Rise of Google?

Interesting article about the rise of Google, and the underlying trends and business models that Google appears to be counting on.

From Datamation:

"How to Understand the Rise of Google"by Mike Elgan

http://www.datamation.com/commentary/how-to-understand-the-rise-of-google.html

The article has an excellent summary:

Two or three years ago, people might have said that Apple was on the rise and Google was in decline. Today, people say Google is on the rise and Apple is in decline.

Pundits and press are generally confused about why this is true. They say it’s because Apple used to make better stuff, but now Google does. But that’s wrong.

The best way to understand the main difference between these two Silicon Valley giants is to divide the consumer electronics world into products and services.

Apple and Google both make products and services. Products include hardware and software, and services include things like, say, iTunes or Gmail. But that’s where the similarity ends.

Apple is a product company. Their services exist to support their products.

Google is a services company. Their products exist to support their services.

The shifting fortunes of these two companies is less about which company is succeeding and failing and more about which model is succeeding or failing.

Right now, the product model is on the ropes, and the services model is on the rise.

The author did a little experiment.

As an experiment, I have put away my MacBook Pro, iPad and iPhone for the month of May and am instead using only Google hardware. In addition, I’m using only Google software and Google services.

This experiment has been amazingly easy so far. It has been easy in part because I was already a heavy user of core Google services like Google+, Gmail, Contacts, Calendar, YouTube, Chrome, Maps, Search and others. Since beginning my Google experiment, I’ve become an even heavier user of Docs, Now, Keep, Drive and others.

And it’s taught me something devastating about the difference between Apple and Google: I could live without Apple. But I would not be willing to live without Google.

I can get great products from multiple sources—Apple, Google, Samsung, HTC and a world of software startups. But I can get the best services only from Google.

 Conclusion:

By the end of Google I/O, I believe the new direction for consumer technology will be clear. With the commoditization of products, the new focus of differentiation is on services.

In other words, the world is shifting in Google’s direction. When consumers choose products, they will increasingly choose them based on how well they connect to the services that really matter.

People might choose Android not because Android phones are better products, but because they do a better job of connecting to services. Likewise, people might choose Apple for the same reason—because they judge that Apple products do a better job connecting them to services.

It’s all about services. And that’s the house that Google built.

Song of the Day: Lissie - Go Your Own Way (Live)

Here's a great cover of a great song:

Lissie - Go Your Own Way (Live)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OltcXMV-9Vk

And the original.  Actually, originals, because I couldn't decide on just one version.  Check out that 1977 live version!

Fleetwood Mac - Go Your Own Way (HQ)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ul-cZyuYq4

Fleetwood Mac - Go Your Own Way - 1977
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GN2kpBoFs4

Fleetwood Mac/Lindsey Buckingham ~ Go Your Own Way ~ Live 1982
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBYcbJBtjgE

Google Poetics

Why are manhole covers round
If we knew what we were doing it wouldn't be called research
Poets are eaten as a delicacy in Japan


What did we ever do before the Internet?  Seriously, there is so much material out there, there are so many great sites!

With that in mind, consider this site:
Google Poetics
http://www.googlepoetics.com/

Click the "Archive" or "Random" links on the age to start reading.  Maybe even think about how you might contribute!

I find these "poems" to be a FASCINATING look at what people are actually thinking (and typing).  Absolutely fascinating.



As I've pointed out before: There is one person (thing?) you never lie to--your search engine!  As such, the Google algorithms will attempt to autocomplete your search based on what others have searched for.  The general objective of Google Poetics appears to be to capture some of the more interesting and amusing autocompletions that result.

From Google Poetics:
http://www.googlepoetics.com/post/35060155182/info

Google Poetics is born when Google autocomplete suggestions are viewed as poems.
Google’s algorithm offers searches after just a few keystrokes when typing in the search box, in an attempt to predict what the user wants to type. The combination of these suggestions can be funny, absurd, dadaistic - and sometimes even deeply moving.

There is, however, more to these poems than just the occasional chuckle. The Google autocomplete suggestions are based on previous searches by actual people all around the world. In the cold blue glow of their computer screens, they ask “why am I alone” and “why do fat girls have high standards”. They wonder how to roll a joint and whether it is too early to say “I love you”. They seek information on ninjas, cannibals, and Rihanna, and sometimes they just ask “am I better off dead?”

Despite the seemingly open nature of Western society, forbidden questions and thoughts still remain. When faced with these issues, people do not reach out to one another, instead they turn to Google in the privacy of their own homes. The all-knowing search engine accepts and embraces these questions and tangles them with popular song lyrics, book titles and names of celebrities: often with hilarious results.

Obviously Google is not Shakespeare, Whitman or Dickinson - it can not illuminate the unknown. But it does reveal our inner workings, our fears and prejudices, secrets and shames, the hope and longing of a modern individual.

This is why Google Poetics is important.
November 4th 2012
Helsinki, Finland

Sampsa Nuotio and Raisa Omaheimo

[Side note: Why am I not surprised that this site originated in Finland?]

Quote of the Day: Ron Paul on the Year 1913

Ah, the old "kill two birds with one stone" approach...

"What we really need to do is repeal 1913.  That way we could get rid of the income tax and the Federal Reserve at the same time."  - Dr. Ron Paul

Stray Dogs, Smarter than Urban Planners?

Love this story, from ABC News:

"Stray Dogs Master Complex Moscow Subway System" by Alex Marquardt, Bill Blakemore, and Ross Eichenholz 

http://abcnews.go.com/International/Technology/stray-dogs-master-complex-moscow-subway-system/story?id=10145833#.UZp1d8rIjgY

I love the fact that dogs are able to master this aspect of life in a big city.  Good for them!

But there's more.

Did you catch how they have a statue dedicated to a stray in Mendeleyevskaya station?  "It commemorates Malchik, a stray who lived there until he was stabbed by a fashion model in 2002 who didn't like how Malchik barked at her terrier." Looks like fashion models and terriers are the same all over the world.

I also love how even dogs are smarter than politicians and urban planners who want to pack everybody into high density housing.  It's not for everybody, or even for every dog!

Kind of reminds me of our immigration policy, too...

Those Crazy Finns!

If you think I'm crazy, check this out!  And Ice Fishing to top it all off!

From some guys that call themselves the "StuntFreaks Team", here is a crazy video:
StuntFreaksTeam - Killing IT - The Movie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaMk_nt1AHg