Nurturing reliable, creative, nimble organizations
Olfactory training of bees has been used to locate mines and weapons of mass destruction. The Hybrid Insect Micro Electromechanical Systems (HI-MEMS) program is aimed at developing technology to provide control over insect locomotion, just as reins are needed for effective control over horse locomotion. Read more »
Neurons fire much slower than computers do. But brains still work faster than computers, because they are massively parallel in design. Bandyopadhyay and his colleagues are experimenting with molecular technology that mirrors that capability. [...]
Elon Musk says he can get to Mars for less than $20 billion within 20 years. The key is to develop reusable rockets. [...]
Broken circuits could fix themselves using an emergency capsule of liquid metal, invented by researchers at the University of Illinois. [...]
The US legislature entertains an Internet piracy bill that threatens current freedoms even as it preaches Internet freedom to the world. Such structural upheavals of technology are better discussed without the pressure of special interest groups and unaware politicians. But at the heart of these conflicts lie current copyright laws. They must be reviewed and arguably revised. [...]
The dichotomy of the bourgeoisie and the proletariat is still prevalent. In fact it is difficult to walk the hallways of any company and not hear the unspoken assumption of management vs. worker, even as the media increase the volume regarding greed, income inequality and capital vs. worker. But is that the dichotomy that defines a society? And if it is not, how do alternatives impact organizational structure? [...]
Complicated rules make adding value more difficult, just as convoluted communication is confusing. Worse, they engender frustration and disengagement, and the effect is exponentially related to the size of the population. Last, complication raises the cost of living. [...]
The lessons of complexity are instructive when it comes to the challenges of education. Any system with single points of failure or success will adapt very slowly. When they are administered by bureaucracy, they will adapt and succeed and evolve even slower, to the point of stagnation. While industries decentralize and empower smaller groups to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world, our governments are centralizing further. This method constrains innovation and ignores cost, regardless of the purity of our experts' hearts. We are doing a great deal of research, but little trial. The prejudice between thought and action should be reversed. [...]
Every man who acts beyond the line of private life, must expect to pass through two severe examinations. First, as to his motives; secondly, as to his conduct. [...]
States have been going bankrupt since we created them. What does that have to do with the currency or their sovereignty? Stop with the Chicken Little story. And this is not Maya. Read more »
