A Geek Apart

Just saw a new service called Platewire on Fox News today, and then found mentions of it all over the web. How did I now know? I’m really busy, that’s how. Citizen surveillance is taking a new form, in the car. Now you can use Platewire to report good driving, bad driving, cute drivers, and hazards.

It’s a wee bit ironic though. You use your cell phone to take a picture of the license plate. Well 9 out of 10 people that cut me off are using…wait for it…a cell phone. So, not a great solution overall.
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An army of students armed with video-enabled cell phones deployed technology to capture alleged police brutality against a fellow student. Most have heard about the incident at UCLA, and many (okay 609,994) have seen the video over at YouTube.

The students used their cell phones to capture video of the incident. While this technique is nothing new, it certainly raises the question of what the police are willing to do when no one is watching, since they were willing to do this on video with dozens of witnesses around.

The same sousveillance (really inverse surveillance) technique has been used in high-profile incidents such as the Rodney King trial, and in more mundane events like the New Yorker that caught a pervert on the subway.
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Defining “Informatics” has become an exercise in improvisational technique. Informatics is not a new term, rather it is an old term with new ideas behind it. Take a look over on Google or Wikipedia and you will see long, precise definitions. Of course, several are needed because the meaning has changed over time.

Over at inf-O-pacity there is an interesting article about the “information overload” of the 19th century. Not much has changed, in my opinion. We have better tools to manage information, yet we have more information to manage. Seems like the equilibrium is balanced. Much like the problem with computer boot times. Sure, our computers are much faster, with more ram, and more efficient architecture. But why does it still take forever for a computer to boot up? See, equilibrium.

So, what do you do when you’re confronted by someone asking, “What do you go to school for?”
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This site is proudly powered by WordPress. Since I started using this platform, I have become completely obsessed with customizing and tweaking it. I try to make sure that every new feature I implement works correctly before releasing it onto my site; however, I would ask your patience while I play around. If you try to use a feature, or notice something not working, you can sent me an email, but most likely you have accessed the site just as I was changing something. Give it a few minutes, and all should be well.

If you want to see just what I’m talking about, visit the WordPress site and take a look around at all the themes available. While you’re peeking at those, bear in mind that absolutely everything about the theme is customizable. It’s mind-boggling how much fun you can have with this.

As an Informatics student, my instructors strongly encourage a bit of playfulness when it comes to technology. I suppose a bit of natural curiosity is helpful in this field.

Technorati Tags: blogging, Hacks, technology, Tricks

On The Colbert Report Friday night, Steven interviewed Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway, about his newest invention. During the interview he made a remark about how people should be cautious with their technology, referring to the classic Terminator II movie and the problems people have with advanced technology.

This was very odd, since I had just had a discussion with my Informatics instructor, Jennifer Stewart, about the very same thing on Wednesday night. We were discussing android science, a much more advanced research path within the field of robotics.

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