Michael Reddell • Jun 30, 2017 •
I usually don’t pay much attention to the output of the Ministry of Education or its ministers. I often fear that if I did it would turn out to be about disconcerting as MBIE’s output. I focus on getting my own kids through the school system with as little enduring damage as possible (one of the real joys of … Read More
Guest Work • Mar 20, 2017 •
By Daniel J. Kruger, University of Michigan Have you ever experienced a phantom phone call or text? You’re convinced that you felt your phone vibrate in your pocket, or that you heard your ring tone. But when you check your phone, no one actually tried to get in touch with you. You then might plausibly wonder: “Is … Read More
Robert Hickson • May 30, 2016 •
Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) has a futures group. They’ve just released a report called Australia 2030: navigating our uncertain future. There are some nice aspects to the report, and it is good to see rigorous futures techniques being applied in our hemisphere. But, overall, I was underwhelmed. The report is based around four scenarios: Digital … Read More
Robert Hickson • Apr 08, 2015 •
On a per capita basis New Zealand, reputedly, is a hot spot for top computer coders. That’s according to an analysis by Venture Beat of rankings from Stack Overflow – a site where programmers rank each others answers to coding questions. That comes as a surprise. Sure we have innovative IT firms like Xero, TradeMe, Sidhe, Animation … Read More
Robert Hickson • Nov 14, 2013 •
An uplifting read for the end of the week. The Nominet Trust has selected applications of digital technologies that are making a positive contribution to social change. As the blog that accompanies the list notes, its not about the technology but how it is used. They also point out how quickly the application of digital technologies is … Read More