Why We Can't Solve Big Problems

Pontin, Jason. "Why We Can't Solve Big Problems." MIT Technology Review, October 24, 2012. 

From the article: "That something happened to humanity's capacity to solve big problems is a commonplace. Recently, however, the complaint has developed a new stridency among Silicon Valley's investors and entrepreneurs, although it is usually expressed a little differently: people say there is a paucity of real innovations. Instead, they worry, technologists have diverted us and enriched themselves with trivial toys. 

… Let's stipulate that venture-backed entrepreneurialism is essential to the development and commercialization of technological innovations. But it is not sufficient by itself to solve big problems, nor could its relative sickliness by itself undo our capacity for collective action through technology." Read more

Holsen, Sarah and Martial Pasquier. "Insight on Information: The Role of Information Commissioners in the Implementation of Access to Information Policies." Journal of Information Policy 2 (2012): 214-241. 

From the report: "What factors impede “Access to Information (ATI)” laws – or make them effective? Drawing on international experience and analyses of ten different countries, Holsen and Pasquier describe and analyze several different forms of ATI implementation. Factors considered include the oversight bodies’ powers, independence, resources, and leadership. Special consideration is given to appeals processes and types of enforcement. In this context, the benefits of the “Information Commissioner” model have been found to outweigh its drawbacks." Read more

Adapt and Adopt: Governments’ Role in Internet Policy

Dean, David, et al. "Adapt and Adopt: Governments’ Role in Internet Policy." Boston Consulting Group Perspectives, October 23, 2012. 

From the report: "As The Boston Consulting Group’s latest update to the BCG e-Intensity Index indicates, the gap between the world’s Internet leaders and laggards is widening. Governments of countries that are at the top of the e-Intensity Index rankings—or are rapidly moving up—encourage Internet use among consumers, businesses, and within government itself, because they recognize that it can be a powerful edge in the competitive global economy. Countries further down the list in many cases have failed to implement effective policies that encourage widespread adoption and use. These countries risk falling further behind if they do not act.

Back in 1997, the White House also put forth five principles that described how governments should approach Internet policy. The first and most important was that “the private sector should lead.” This has been borne out by time. The Internet has enjoyed widespread adoption in countries with vibrant private sectors that allow the inventions of Apple, Google, Orkut, Rakuten, Spotify, and their kin to thrive.

But if we examine the e-Intensity Index leaders, a more complex—and interesting—story emerges." Read more 

Winning Combo: Social Media and Health Care

Mathur, Charu and Nidhi Mathur. "Winning Combo: Social Media and Health Care." October 14, 2012. 

From the report: "Social Media will be the preferred medium of communication, network and connections in time to come. This paper analyses the co-relationship between Social Media and healthcare sector. The study tried to see if there is link between social media and healthcare. The study found that there is very strong link and ordinary people surf the net to find about ailments and even medications prescribed. The study further found that people even interchange ideas, share issues and queries regarding various drugs, there usage and effect. Even pharmaceutical companies are active across the board. They try and create awareness by developing games, running campaigns etc. For this we studied social media policies of some companies. As healthcare is a vital sector which affects like and quality of life some regulations are required. Study found that US and EU have some regulations already in place. The key recommendation is that the tweets and comments should be carefully made and responded to. The study found that social media and health care is a major winning combo." Read more

HHS Questions GOP Calls to Suspend Meaningful Use

Versel, Neil. "HHS Questions GOP Calls to Suspend Meaningful Use." Healthcare IT News, October 23, 2012. 

From the article: "Health and Human Services officials, who spoke this week at the CHIME12 Annual Fall Forum, are pushing back against Republican questions of the appropriateness of the $27 billion meaningful use EHR Incentive Program.

Four GOP senators sent a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on Oct. 17 questioning whether government-subsidized EHRs sometimes actually promote higher utilization of diagnostic testing and whether wider EHR adoption so far has increased Medicare billing." Read more

Charity Creates World's First Citizen Science Project to Speed Up Cancer Research

"Charity Creates World's First Citizen Science Project to Speed Up Cancer Research." Cancer Research UK, October 24, 2012.

From the article: "Cancer Research UK has launched the first ever interactive website - www.clicktocure.net - that will allow the public to delve into real-life cancer data from research archives and speed up lifesaving research, outside of the laboratory.

At the moment, cancer samples are given special stains that highlight certain molecules as part of research. These molecules could reveal how a patient will respond to treatment. But this process is slow and analysis is mostly done by trained pathologists, who are often also cancer researchers." Read more

Physician, Steel Thyself for Electronic Records

Valinoti, Anne Marie. "Physician, Steel Thyself for Electronic Records." The Wall Street Journal, October 22, 2012.

From the article: "At first I thought EMR sounded like a good idea. Then our practice started using one.

Tasks that once took seconds to perform on paper now require multistepped points and clicks through a maze of menus. Checking patients into the office is an odyssey involving scanners and the collection of demographic data—their race, their preferred language, and so much more—required by Medicare to prove that we are achieving "meaningful use" of our EMR. What "meaningful use" means no one knows for sure, but our manual on how to achieve it is 150 pages long.

Now the staff scurry about, rictus-like grins plastered to their faces, trying to hide their underlying stress. The patients, each a Job after completing the elaborate new check-in process—and wondering why the government needs to know if they are an Alaska native, among many other things—arrive in my exam room bewildered by their bureaucratic ordeal.

When the clicks don't get me what I want, I naughtily handwrite a prescription. I skip ordering certain tests I might want because it takes too much time—I'll do it next visit. I dreaded the arrival of this season's flu-shot supply—now there were more orders to input" Read more

MasterCard Mines Purchase Data For Analytics

Davis, Wendy. "MasterCard Mines Purchase Data For Analytics." MediaPost, October 17, 2012.

From the article: "Credit card giant MasterCard has rolled out a new analytics offering that draws on purchase data to predict buying patterns. The company is offering that analysis to BlueKai, which can make it available to ad networks through its platform.

For the initiative, MasterCard is mining data from 34 billion annual transactions. The company then sifts through aggregated, anonymous data to figure out how that activity can predict people's propensity to make certain kinds of future purchases -- such as meals in restaurants." Read more

FTC Releases Facial Recognition Tech Guidelines

Osborne, Charlie. "FTC Releases Facial Recognition Tech Guidelines." ZDNet, October 23, 2012. 

From the article: "The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has released "best practices" guidelines for companies that use facial recognition technology.

For many of us, tagging friends on Facebook or handing over biometric information may not seem like such a big deal -- but that information, stored on servers worldwide, can sometimes border on privacy infringement. Commercially, it's no longer a rare thing for such technology to be used -- but as adoption expands, if agencies wish to protect consumer rights, guidelines at the least should be implemented.

The new FTC report, titled "Facing Facts: Best Practices for Common Uses of Facial Recognition Technologies," is aimed at guiding businesses through the murky waters of using facial recognition for innovative products, but at the same time maintaining consumer privacy and rights." Read more

See also

Federal Trade Commission. "FTC Recommends Best Practices for Companies That Use Facial Recognition Technologies." October 22, 2012. 

Report: Building A Culture Around Big Data

Glick, Deanna. "Report: Building A Culture Around Big Data." AOL Government, October 16, 2012. 

From the article: "A report released today by the Partnership for Public Service aims to educate federal managers on how agencies can do just that. The report, From Data to Decisions II: Building an Analytics Culture, examines how to best use data – not anecdotes – to base decisions.

Building on an original report released last November that examined how several federal agencies use data, the new report identifies strategies for how to develop and grow an analytics culture within agencies and incorporate it into how federal workers perform the mission. It profiles seven agencies using analytics to achieve better results and the strategies used in a budget-cutting climate.

Both reports were joint efforts between the partnership and the IBM Center for The Business of Government." Read more

Social Media and Political Engagement

Rainie, Lee, et al. Social Media and Political Engagement, report prepared by the Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project, October 19, 2012.  

From the report: "The use of social media is becoming a feature of political and civic engagement for many Americans. Some 60% of American adults use either social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter, and a new survey by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project finds that 66% of those social media users—or 39% of all American adults—have done at least one of eight civic or political activities with social media. 66% of social media users have employed the platforms to post their thoughts about civic and political issues, react to others’ postings, press friends to act on issues and vote, follow candidates, ‘like’ and link to others’ content, and belong to groups formed on social networking sites." Read more

Now It Gets Interesting: How to build a Social Contract for Broadband

Levin, Blair. "Now It Gets Interesting: How to build a Social Contract for Broadband." GigaOm. October 19, 2012. 

From the article: "For a century, our country has benefited from a communications social contract in telephone, broadcast, and multi-channel video in which through law, regulation, and franchise agreements, providers obtain public benefits in exchange for providing certain, limited public obligations. But how will we write the terms of the social contract between communities and communications providers in building the next infrastructure of world-class IP communications for the 21st century?

The question regarding how to build it has become increasingly important as Internet communications begin to supplant 20th Century methods of delivering voice and video, but it remains unanswered. When we developed the National Broadband Plan, we expressed our concern that the current social contracts governing communications would not create a critical mass of communities with world-leading bandwidth, without which the United States might lose its international leadership in developing the next generation of broadband applications." Read more

Is Google a Free Speech Opportunist?

Roberts, Jeff John. "Is Google a Free Speech Opportunist?" GigaOm, October 20, 2012. 

From the article: "Rumors are swirling that the federal government is about to sue Google over claims that the company rigs its search results. Google has responded by invoking its right to free speech — but not everyone is buying this.

Tim Wu, a prominent law professor at Columbia, is not convinced that Google is invoking its First Amendment rights in good faith. He suggests that Google and other big companies are cynically invoking constitutional freedoms as part of a corporate deregulation agenda.

“We’re living in a golden age of First Amendment opportunism,” said Wu, speaking Friday at a Penn Law School conference titled “The Evolving Internet.”

In Wu’s view, search results are not really speech in the first space. Instead, he argues, Google’s algorithms are closer to other automated communication tools like navigation devices or even car alarms." Read more

Internet Anti-censorship Tools Are Being Overwhelmed by Demand

Ball, James. "Internet Anti-censorship Tools Are Being Overwhelmed by Demand." The Washington Post, October 21, 2012.

From the article. "U.S.-funded programs to beat back online censorship are increasingly finding a ready audience in repressive countries, with more than 1 million people a day using online tools to get past extensive blocking programs and government surveillance.

But the popularity of those initiatives has become a liability.

Activists and nonprofit groups say that their online circumvention tools, funded by the U.S. government, are being overwhelmed by demand and that there is not enough money to expand capacity. The result: online bottlenecks that have made the tools slow and often inaccessible to users in China, Iran and elsewhere, threatening to derail the Internet freedom agenda championed by the Obama administration." Read more

Big Data to Create 1.9M IT Jobs in U.S. by 2015, Says Gartner

Thibodeau, Patrick. "Big Data to Create 1.9M IT Jobs in U.S. by 2015, Says Gartner." Computerworld, October 22, 2012. 

From the article: "Big data, which refers to data collected and analyzed from every imaginable source, is becoming an engine of job creation as businesses discover ways to turn data into revenue, says Gartner. By 2015, it is expected to create 4.4 million IT jobs globally, of which 1.9 million will be in the U.S.

Applying an economic multiplier to those jobs, Gartner expects that each big data IT job added to the economy will create employment for three more people outside the tech industry in the U.S., adding six million jobs to the economy. That's the kind of estimate that presidential candidates, if they focused on IT's impact on the economy instead of fossil fuel fracking and pipelines, might jump on.

But Sondergaard's estimate included a caveat -- namely, that there's a shortage of skilled workers. Only a third of the big data jobs will be filled." Read more

See also

"Gartner Says Big Data Creates Big Jobs: 4.4 Millions IT Jobs Globally to Support Big Data by 2012." Daily Finance, October 22, 2012. 

Internet Market Model: Don't Fix What's Not Broken - OECD

"Internet Market Model: Don't Fix What's Not Broken - OECD." Cartt.ca, October 22, 2012. 

From the article: "A new OECD report concludes that despite ongoing and future challenges, the existing market model for the Internet has performed remarkably well, boosting growth and competition and driving down prices for data to 100,000 times less than that of a one minute telephone call.

The report, entitled Internet Traffic Exchange Market Developments and Policy Challenges argues that governments should largely take a hands-off approach to regulating the Internet market.

“If a regulatory obligation to interconnect were to be established, then this choice could be imposed unilaterally by one of the parties, which would dramatically change the dynamics of the market. It is extremely unlikely that the efficient outcomes produced so far would be maintained in this environment,” writes the report’s authors Dennis Weller, Bill Woodcock." Read more

See also

Weller, Daniel and Bill Woodcock. "Internet Traffic Exchange: Market Developments and Policy Challenges." OECD Digital Economy Papers, October 17, 2012. 

'Copyright World' and Access to Information: Conjoined Via the Internet

Sebastian, Tania. "'Copyright World' and Access to Information: Conjoined Via the Internet." Journal of Intellectual Property Rights, 17 (2012): 235-242.
 

From the report: "Access to information, despite wide intellectual acceptance, is still a struggle for many in various quarters of the world. In today’s era there exist constraints in the way information is shared; dividing continents based on the way information is accessible to its people. This paper strives to understand the underpinnings of the accessibility to information in the human rights perspective, with a special mention of the current debate on the accessibility of the Internet on the lines of concepts which constitute emerging access to knowledge coalition. The arguments of the present paper take the following form: it begins with an introduction to the oft-debatable access to information question; goes on to elucidate the view of various scholars on why information needs to be free and extends the aspect of freedom to information to the human rights paradigm; then expounds the activism of ‘access to knowledge’ advocates for access to information; and finally talks about European Union’s legalization of access to information on the internet as a ‘fundamental right’ before the conclusion." Read more

The Internet at 20: Evolution of a Constitution for Cyberspace

Perritt, Henry H. "The Internet at 20: Evolution of a Constitution for Cyberspace." William & Mary Bill of Rights, Chicago-Kent College of Law Research Paper, October 19, 2012. 

From the report: "The Internet’s “constitution” is not expressed in a single document. Instead, it comprises the open architecture inherent in the Internet’s technological protocols together with a collection of government policies, legislative enactments, and judicial decisions that seek to protect the basic architectural philosophy, ensure space for entrepreneurial freedom, and guard against the abuse of economic or political power.

This Article looks back over the Internet’s first twenty years, highlighting the crucial legal decisions by the executive, legislative, and judicial branches that have led to the Internet’s success, and which now frame its constitution. I participated in many of these decisions and wrote more than a dozen law review articles and reports suggesting directions for public policy and law. This Article uses this foundation to consider the future, focusing on major legal controversies, the resolution of which will define the Internet’s third decade — either strengthening or undermining its constitution." Read more

Defense Chief Calls Cyberspace Battlefront of the Future

Alexander, David. "Defense Chief Calls Cyberspace Battlefront of the Future." Reuters, October 19, 2012.

From the article: "Cyberspace is the battlefield of the future, with attackers already going after banks and other financial institutions and developing the ability to strike U.S. power grids and government systems, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said on Friday….Panetta said last week the United States has made significant investments in cyber forensics to deal with the problem of identifying the source of a cyber attack. He warned potential attackers that the United States has "the capacity to locate them and hold them accountable." Read more

See also 

"Secretary Leon Panetta's Speech about Cybersecurity" (Remarks to the Business Executives for National Security, New York City, October 11, 2012). 

Research: Online Pediatric Health Information Is Not Reliable

Hamaker, Paul. "Research: Online Pediatric Health Information Is Not Reliable." Examiner, October 21, 2012.

From the article: "A first of its kind assessment of the reliability of internet web sites as sources of pediatric health information was presented at the October 21, 2012, session of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans. …“The content of each website was scored out of a possible 100 points. Overall, academic websites had the highest content score (mean: 60.8 ± 15.5), followed by physician (57±18), non profit (54.2±20.2) and commercial (46.7±22.2). Among the disease/condition-specific information, osteochondroma websites had the highest content scores (mean: 75.8 ± 11.8), and those on leg length discrepancy had the lowest (39.5 ± 16.5).”

Part of the problem in accuracy and reliability was adjudged to be the fault of the site creator. An unaddressed part of the equation was the pay for placement schemes used by search engines to promote web sites that pay them to rank that web site in the top ten." Read more

See also

American Academy of Pediatrics. "Academic Websites Offer the Most Reliable Pediatric Orthopedic Information Online." October 21, 2012.

Computer Viruses Are "Rampant" on Medical Devices in Hospitals

Talbot, David. "Computer Viruses Are 'Rampant' on Medical Devices in Hospitals." Technology Review, October 17, 2012. 

From the article: "Computerized hospital equipment is increasingly vulnerable to malware infections, according to participants in a recent government panel. These infections can clog patient-monitoring equipment and other software systems, at times rendering the devices temporarily inoperable….

Software-controlled medical equipment has become increasingly interconnected in recent years, and many systems run on variants of Windows, a common target for hackers elsewhere. The devices are usually connected to an internal network that is itself connected to the Internet, and they are also vulnerable to infections from laptops or other device brought into hospitals. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that manufacturers often will not allow their equipment to be modified, even to add security features." Read more

Data from Health Care Reviews Could Power “Yelp for Health Care” Startups

Howard, Alex. "Data from Health Care Reviews Could Power 'Yelp for Health Care' Startups." O'Reilly Radar, October 17, 2012. 

From the article: "Combining patients review data with government-collected performance data could be quite powerful in helping to drive better decisions and adding more transparency to health care. 

… More data collected by patients, advocates, governments and industry could help to shed light on the performance of more physicians and clinics engaged in other expensive and lifesaving surgeries and associated outcomes. 

Should that be extrapolated across the medical industry, it’s a safe bet that some medical practices or physicians will use whatever tools or legislative influence they have to fight or discredit websites, services or data that puts them in a poor light. This might parallel the reception that Bright Scope’s profiles of financial advisors have received in industry." Read more

Ad Spending Tops $800 Million; On Pace to Reach or Come Close to $1 Billion

Montanaro, Domenico. "Ad Spending Tops $800 Million; On Pace to Reach or Come Close to $1 Billion." NBC News, October 17, 2012.

From the article: "Ad spending in the presidential campaign has now topped $800 million and is on pace to reach or come close to $1 billion, according to an NBC analysis of data provided by ad-buying firm SMG Delta." Read more

Exclusive: White House Review Finds No Evidence of Spying by Huawei - Sources

Menn, Jospeh. "Exclusive: White House Review Finds No Evidence of Spying by Huawei - Sources." Reuters, October 17, 2012. 

From the article: "A White House-ordered review of security risks posed by suppliers to U.S. telecommunications companies found no clear evidence that Huawei Technologies Ltd had spied for China, two people familiar with the probe told Reuters.

Instead, those leading the 18-month review concluded early this year that relying on Huawei, the world's second-largest maker of networking gear, was risky for other reasons, such as the presence of vulnerabilities that hackers could exploit.

These previously unreported findings support parts of a landmark U.S. congressional report last week that warned against allowing Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE Corp to supply critical telecom infrastructure.

But it may douse speculation that Huawei has been caught spying for China." Read more

See also
Martinez, Jennifer. "White House Denies Huawei Investigation Report." The Hill, October 17, 2012.  

Asian Countries Top in Connection Speed, Attack Origin

Phneah, Ellyne. "Asian Countries Top in Connection Speed, Attack Origin." ZDNet, October 18, 2012. 

From the article: "Internet speeds worldwide continue to be faster, led by Asia-Pacific countries South Korea, Japan and Hong Kong, while China remains the source of the largest amount of observed attack traffic.

According to Akamai's Second Quarter 2012 State of the Internet report released Thursday, the global average connection speed increased 13 percent to 3Mbps in the second quarter compared with the first quarter, continuing a trend of strong growth." Read more

See also 

The State of the Internet, report prepared by Akamai, second quarter, 2012.