Lots of new stuff!

A lot of interesting stuff has turned up in my Net surfing over the past few days. It all started with John Battelle's Searchblog on May 20th. Two items he mentioned caught my interest. One was the new Google Notebook feature that allows you to keep a 'scrapbook' of notes from Web pages. I can see this being very useful for comparing items on different sites at a glance... expecially useful when you like to see connections between various ideas, as I do.

The second item of note was StumbleUpon. Simply put, it is a site that leads you to other great sites that may interest you. This may seem like an ordinary concept, but it really is a newer, smarter approach to Web surfing. You download the toolbar for your Web browser, then create an account listing the topics you find most interesting. Then you click on the Stumble button to be taken to a site related to one of your chosen topics. But these aren't just random Web sites; they have been recommended by other people with similar interests as you. So you end up discovering all kinds of great sites that you never would have known about otherwise. Not only that, but then you can add your own rating to the site, and you are encouraged to add tags that will allow others to discover the site in the future. In other words, StumbleUpon is beginning to do some of the work of creating the Semantic Web.

So, I've been stumbling upon various sites and have discovered some really cool things, such as the 20Q guessing game and the FutureMe site. I think the best site I've stumbled upon, however, has been a portfolio site by a graphic designer named Dave Werner. Showcasing some of his work from graduate school, Dave Werner has created not only a beautiful-looking Web site that combines interactivity with content, but he has also given us a window into his thought process. His work entitled Reflect/Respect is particularly worthy of our attention.

More on the future of Web 2.0

Technology commentator Tim O'Reilly recently gave a commencement address that talks about the future of the Web. He talks about his definition of Web 2.0 and what it means for people entering the technology fields. He also gives some nice insights into why certain types of Internet-based companies are ultra successful in the aftermath of the dotcom bust. Anyway, here is the link.

The Global Brain

I am officially a wiki contributor.

In my continuing pursuit for information related to information technology, an article about Google that I read this morning led me to H. G. Wells, who had coined the term 'world brain' way back in 1938. This soon led me to a Wikipedia article about a concept known as the global brain: "the name given to the emerging intelligent network formed by all people on Earth, together with the computers and communication links that connect them together."

This is virtually the same concept that I described last November as the digital world consciousness, so that gave me an idea to sneak my name in with those of some truly revolutionary thinkers. Since this was Wikipedia -- the online encyclopedia that can be edited by anybody -- why not see if I could add my name and a link to my essay? So check out that global brain link above and see if my name appears on the page. It should, unless somebody else has gone on there and removed it.

Back to that global brain concept for a moment. This term was coined by Peter Russell to discuss the emergence of a world-wide consciousness. He points to the early space programs, when astronauts saw the earth as a single body for the first time, as a key starting point for our awareness that the earth may very well be a living organism akin to an animal or plant. His essay can be read here. If, on the other hand, you prefer to visualize this and other concepts, go to Russell's video page and watch the streaming videos.

UPDATE: Well, some guy did go to the global brain page of Wikipedia and removed my name. Not totally surprising, I guess.

The Big Picture

An overview of important stories in recent days:

Steve Jobs' power grows

• First, Stevie J gets his way with the music studios on pricing for the iTunes store, then he wins a court case brought against Apple Computer by the Beatles' company Apple Corps. That's two heavyweight knockouts in less than two weeks, solidifying his position has a growing force in entertainment.

Web 2.0 and the 3D Web

• The World Wide Web stepped into prominence just over 10 years ago, and now it is ready to move past its initial baby steps toward a brighter future. That's right, the Web now has it's own version number - 2.0 - which describes the way the Web now incorporates multimedia functionality (video, for example) and dynamic changes to Web pages (pages that update themselves without the need for clicking the refresh button. Furthermore, there was a recent conference to brainstorm the potential of the 3D Web, a Web universe that allows people to exist in a virtual world. Interesting stuff.

Social networking

• This key buzz term refers to the growth of networks of people with similar interests who come together through the use of technology. My Space has gotten plenty of coverage of late as the platform of choice for teenagers and young adults to post their interests for other like-minded individuals. The other day while watching the ABC News podcast, there was a story about a site called Platial.com that allows people to create their own maps marked with things they think are cool or important (for instance, all good bookstores in San Francisco). And, of course, social networking is the theory behind the latest research into search technology, as companies like Yahoo, Google, and Amazon attempt to use people's interests as a means of providing personalized search results.
  

Sergey Brin lecture/Q&A