Information Society – Page 36 – Public Intelligence Blog

2000/05/292009/12/04

Review: The Structure of Scientific Revolutions

5 Star, Change & Innovation, Culture, Research, Economics, Education (General), Education (Universities), Games, Models, & Simulations, History, Information Operations, Information Society, Intelligence (Commercial), Intelligence (Extra-Terrestrial), Intelligence (Government/Secret), Intelligence (Public), Strategy, Truth & Reconciliation, Values, Ethics, Sustainable Evolution, Voices Lost (Indigenous, Gender, Poor, Marginalized)

Enduring Classic on the Hard Truth about Changing Minds,

May 29, 2000

Thomas S. Kuhn

Two points are worthy of emphasis: 1) the paradigm shift is always forced and 2) until the paradigm shift occurs, always suddenly, the incumbents can comfortably explain everything with their existing paradigm. There will be many from the current “laissez faire” academics without accountability environment who would be critical of this book, but the fact is that it's fundamentals are on target; as the sociology of knowledge has shown time and time again, “thinkers” are nepotistic, incestuous, and generally lazy, as well as mono-lingual and culturally-constrained, and it takes a major shock-wave to push any given intellectual domain up to the next plateau.

2000/05/292009/12/04

Review: World Brain

5 Star, Consciousness & Social IQ, Culture, Research, Decision-Making & Decision-Support, Democracy, Economics, Education (General), Education (Universities), Future, History, Information Operations, Information Society, Intelligence (Collective & Quantum), Intelligence (Commercial), Intelligence (Extra-Terrestrial), Intelligence (Government/Secret), Intelligence (Public), Intelligence (Wealth of Networks), Misinformation & Propaganda, Philosophy, Strategy

Updated Edition is Even Better,

May 29, 2000

H. G. Wells

First published in 1938, a modern edition is vastly improved by the addition of a critical introduction by Alan Mayne. Very much focused on how a world-brain might alter national policy-making, how Public Opinion or an “Open Conspiracy” might restore common sense and popular control to arenas previously reserved for an elite. The information functionality of the World Brain easily anticipated the world wide web as it might evolve over the next 20-30 years: comprehensive, up to date, distributed, classification scheme, dynamic, indexes, summaries and surveys, freely available and easily accessible. We have a long way to go, but the framework is there. The communication functions of the world brain would include a highly effective information retrieval system, selective dissemination of information, efficient communication facilities, effective presentation, popular education, public and individual awareness for all issues, and facilitate social networking between organizations, groups, and individuals. The world brain is the “virtual intelligence community” qua noosphere. This is one of the fundamental references for anyone thinking about the future of politics, economics, or social systems.

2000/05/292009/12/04

Review: The Digital Economy–Promise and Peril in the Age of Networked Intelligence

5 Star, Best Practices in Management, Budget Process & Politics, Capitalism (Good & Bad), Change & Innovation, Complexity & Resilience, Economics, Information Operations, Information Society, Information Technology

Focus on Decentralized Human Expertise,

May 29, 2000

Don Tapscott

After demolishing Business Process Reengineering (BPR) as a necessary element of but insufficient substitute for corporate strategy, organizational learning, or reinvention, the author goes on to address twelve themes central to success in an economic environment characterized by networked intelligence: knowledge, digitization, virtualization, molecularization, integration/internetworking, disintermediation, convergence (a big one), innovation, prosumption, immediacy, globalization, and discordance (another big one). He stressed the need for “busting loose from the technology legacy”, the need to dramatically transform both the information management and human resource management concepts and also a turning on its head of how government works-from centralized after the fact “leveling” and gross national security to decentralized, proactive nurturing of individual opportunity before the fact, providing individual security through individual opportunity and prosperity within the network.

2000/04/172009/12/04

Review: Out of Control–The New Biology of Machines, Social Systems, & the Economic World

5 Star, Change & Innovation, Consciousness & Social IQ, Culture, Research, Economics, Environment (Solutions), Information Operations, Information Society, Information Technology, Intelligence (Collective & Quantum), Intelligence (Commercial), Intelligence (Extra-Terrestrial), Intelligence (Government/Secret), Intelligence (Public), Intelligence (Wealth of Networks), Technology (Bio-Mimicry, Clean), Values, Ethics, Sustainable Evolution

Co-Evolution of Man and Machine,

April 17, 2000

Kevin Kelly

Kevin has produced what I regard as one of the top five books of this decade. A very tough read but worth the effort. I had not understood the entire theory of co-evolution developed by Stewart Brand and represented in the Co-Evolution Quarterly and The Whole Earth until I read this book. Kevin introduces the concept of the “hive mind”, addresses how biological systems handle complexity, moves over into industrial ecology and network economics, and concludes with many inspiring reflections on the convergence of biological and technical systems. He was easily a decade if not two ahead of his time.

2000/04/082009/11/01

Review: Unleashing the Killer App–Digital Strategies for Market Dominance

5 Star, Best Practices in Management, Change & Innovation, Information Society, Information Technology

Twelve Steps for the Information Entrepreneur,

April 8, 2000

Larry DownesTwelve principles of killer app design: 1) Outsource to the customer, 2) Cannibalize your markets; 3) Treat each customer as a market segment of one; 4) Create communities of value; 5) Replace rude interfaces with learning interfaces; 6) Ensure continuity for the customer, not yourself; 7) Give away as much information as you can; 8) Structure every transaction as a joint venture; 9) Treat your assets as liabilities; 10) Destroy your value chain; 11) Manage innovation as a portfolio of options; 12) Hire the children.

2000/04/082009/11/01

Review: Business @ the Speed of Thought –Using a Digital Nervous System

4 Star, Best Practices in Management, Change & Innovation, Economics, Information Society, Information Technology

900 Pound Gorilla Speaks–Worth Listening,

April 8, 2000

Bill Gates

No doubt largely written by staff assistants, this book can be considered a watered-down version of Microsoft's game plan for taking over the world, i.e. being the operating system for everything. Each chapter has a useful figure that sums up business lessons and methods for diagnosing one of the aspect's of one's digital nervous system. This is a great airplane book.

2000/04/082009/11/01

Review: Net Gain–Expanding Markets Through Virtual Communities

5 Star, Best Practices in Management, Capitalism (Good & Bad), Change & Innovation, Civil Society, Information Society, Information Technology

Community Building in Cyberspace–Cuts to Core Values,

April 8, 2000

John Hagel III

This is a very serious handbook for how to create communities of interest, provide value that keeps the members there, and establish a foundation for growing exponentially from day one.