tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87948742024-03-06T21:07:21.333-08:00sean ness: hubber on the west coastHubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.comBlogger292125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-78505291588791720152011-09-05T18:17:00.001-07:002011-09-05T18:17:52.702-07:00I've been using Tumblr lately...<a href="http://www.tumblr.com/tumblelog/seanness">catch up with me there</a>.Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-88999922093549407462009-06-21T15:35:00.001-07:002009-06-21T15:48:30.907-07:00Dundee Hills Tasting (Thursday - Day 6)This was the last of our wine tasting for this trip. Six days of tasting over 10 days was enough. Here's where we went...mostly tasting Pinot:<br /><ul><li>Rex Hill Vineyards</li><li>Domaine Drouhin</li><li>Domaine Serene</li><li>Argyle Winery<br /></li><li>Torii Mor</li><li>Erath Winery</li></ul>During this trip we visited 42 wineries..not too bad!<br /><br />Favorites for me:<br /><ul><li>AVA - Lake Chelan<br /></li><li>Riesling (sweet) - Terra Blanca Winery</li><li>Dessert - Zerba Cellars<br /></li><li>Cabernet - L'Ecole No. 41</li><li>Malbec - Wapato Pint Cellars</li><li>Syrah - Lake Chelan Winery<br /></li><li>Pinot - Domaine Serene<br /></li></ul>Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-37453348111669682582009-06-16T17:10:00.000-07:002009-06-16T17:16:55.262-07:00Lake Chelan AVA Tasting (Tuesday - Day 5)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1PyL7tIrMmWeKPXCPu8qOqoI_43uvZeha9K2xpEN1ZkJqJgozV9AhmTf7DnyxwXpM-9YefSFSyMMtP0pEhfSyqcki3J0KH9rwZj0jrCZ0YyFJquZMGZwU5Owpy8THPeZGiYlVJg/s1600-h/Lake-Chelan,-Boyd-Rd-view.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1PyL7tIrMmWeKPXCPu8qOqoI_43uvZeha9K2xpEN1ZkJqJgozV9AhmTf7DnyxwXpM-9YefSFSyMMtP0pEhfSyqcki3J0KH9rwZj0jrCZ0YyFJquZMGZwU5Owpy8THPeZGiYlVJg/s320/Lake-Chelan,-Boyd-Rd-view.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5348083694158587314" border="0" /></a>On Tuesday, we visited the following wineries in <layer id="google-toolbar-hilite-1" style="background-color: Cyan; color: black;">Chelan</layer> and Manson, WA:<br /><ul><li>Tsillan Cellars</li><li>Vin du Lac</li><li>Benson Vineyards</li><li>Wapato Point Cellars</li><li>Hard Row to Hoe Vineyards</li><li><layer id="google-toolbar-hilite-0" style="background-color: Yellow; color: black;">Lake</layer> <layer id="google-toolbar-hilite-2" style="background-color: Cyan; color: black;">Chelan</layer> Winery</li></ul><layer id="google-toolbar-hilite-3" style="background-color: Cyan; color: black;">Chelan</layer> is about 3.5 hours east of Seattle and is a vacation destination for many here in Washington. They received the AVA designation about 3 weeks ago. Nice to break it in!<br /><br />Tomorrow is a drive to Portland/relax day. We pick up again on Thursday with some Williamette Valley Pinot Noir tasting.<br /><a href="http://www.richarduhlhorn.com/"></a>Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-31272799925071015612009-06-15T18:02:00.000-07:002009-06-15T18:06:28.949-07:00Woodinville and Leavenworth Tasting (Monday - Day 4)On Monday, we visited:<br /><ul><li>Chateau St. Michelle (no tasting)</li><li>Januik</li><li>Gold Digger Cellars (Okanogan Estate)</li><li>Kestrel Vintners</li><li>Bergdorf Cellars</li><li>Pasek Cellars</li><li>Maison de Padgett Winery</li></ul>Time to enjoy the evening happenings of Leavenworth, WA.Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-39601221562617613972009-06-15T17:45:00.000-07:002009-06-15T17:47:26.924-07:00Benton City wine tasting (Day 3 - Sunday)We visited:<br /><ul><li>Terra Blanca Winery - great Late Harvest Riesling</li><li>Kiona Vineyards</li><li>Seth Ryan Winery</li></ul>Then we drove to Tacoma for some family time.Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-43959948367380161872009-06-13T16:05:00.000-07:002009-06-13T16:09:20.166-07:00Walla Walla Wine Tasting, Day 2Saturday brought us to:<br /><ul><li>Basel Cellars</li><li>Balboa Winery</li><li>Beresan Winery</li><li>Waters Winery</li><li>Va Piano Vineyards</li><li>Trust Cellars</li><li>Zerba Cellars (Oregon) - Semillon Ice Wine!<br /></li><li>Dunham Cellars</li><li>Patrick M. Paul Vineyard</li><li>Patit Creek Cellars</li><li>Otis Kenyon</li></ul>Busy day!!!Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-48970936715887212742009-06-13T02:13:00.000-07:002009-06-13T02:16:01.566-07:00Walla Walla Wine TastingFriday is finished...here is where we went:<br /><ul><li>Woodward Canyon Winery</li><li>L'Ecole No. 41 Winery</li><li>Waterbrook Winery</li><li>Three Rivers Winery</li><li>Reininger Winery</li><li>Amavi Cellars</li><li>Spring Valley Vineyard</li><li>Slight of Hand</li><li>Fort Walla Walla Cellars</li></ul>More tasting here tomorrow. Sunday = Benton City. Monday = Woodinville and Leavenworth. Tuesday = Lake Chelan. Thursday and Friday = Oregon Pinot. Many wineries to be hit on this trip!Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-23179407899679944632009-05-20T16:53:00.000-07:002009-05-20T16:54:09.060-07:00Wolfram Alpha is no Google KillerWolfram Alpha reminds me of other flirtatious "Google killers" from the past couple of years: Powerset, Freebase and Cuil.<br /><br />I'll set the stage: you are out on the town at a very trendy club and you mozy on up to the bar. You feel flush and entitled and order a high end vodka for your dirty martini (people always tell you that the olive juice kills the premium taste, but what do you care, this is who you are). When you turn back to take in the crowd (and let them take you in) guess who walks up? Wait for it...wait for it...<br /><br />That's right...Wolfram Alpha! You've been hearing all kinds of stories about WA for weeks now. You think to yourself, "Holy shit! I'm gonna get a peek at this before the masses do!" And so you dive on into the experience and are quickly comforted by being able to find out such things as:<br /><ul><li>being able to quickly divide the population of Singapore by the population of Hong Kong and get results for the year 2004 and 2007<br /></li><li>punching in your birthdate and learning that you are over 14,000 days old!</li><li>type in Spokane and learn that it has an elevation of 1873 feet</li></ul>You keep going and going and going, it sucks you in. This is sooooo cool. At the end of the night you lean in, attempt a kiss on the lips, but just get a cheek, go home and tuck yourself in.<br /><br />THEN guess what happens?<br /><br />You wake up, turn on your computer and go right back to using Google. <br /><br />Wolfram Alpha is good for a twenty minute quicky...but it'll whither away just like the others.<br /><br />My money is still on Twitter...Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-86027441112981744032009-03-02T17:11:00.000-08:002009-03-02T17:17:19.253-08:00What's the most valuable way you care?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5elPefzavAfH4LHnG-RhzkLvtAqlGnOu1th-CPvnn46_dpTqnkyTxd2cRRYgs1gv0edovI84yqgyFUeImfyUir7PhwTqTfrIBDqPe5JlKwzr06uUhMUMEHOeH0MR-WWJ_X0Us-Q/s1600-h/coin1066.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 169px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5elPefzavAfH4LHnG-RhzkLvtAqlGnOu1th-CPvnn46_dpTqnkyTxd2cRRYgs1gv0edovI84yqgyFUeImfyUir7PhwTqTfrIBDqPe5JlKwzr06uUhMUMEHOeH0MR-WWJ_X0Us-Q/s320/coin1066.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308763084543561202" border="0" /></a>Have you ever been asked a question like that?<br /><br />Attached to this post is a caring coin (the first ever, as far as IFTF knows). I have received coin #1066; and I'm told that they are unique.<br /><br />(You can also view this coin <a href="http://rubysbequest.org/caringcoins/coin1066.jpg">here</a>.)<br /><br />I have already answered the question...and so can you!<br /><br />At <a href="http://rubysbequest.org/coin/">this site</a> you can read how other people have answered this question, including people who've had this particular coin before you. Use the coin's unique number to add your own thoughts, too.<br /><br />Join a giant conversation about the future of caring. Help us out with your 2 cents, and pass this on to someone who cares.<br /><br />Thanks!<br /><br />--SeanHubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-20835950400904895562009-02-22T21:01:00.000-08:002009-02-22T21:38:47.336-08:00Wines from the weekendIt is Sunday night and we are back from a weekend trip to the mountains with some friends. We did some damage to our wine inventories.<br /><br />Friday night:<br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=597451">2006 Aresti Merlot Reserva</a> (sangria)</li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=380719">2006 Page Mill Chardonnay</a> (sangria)</li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=608560">2006 Caves des Papes CdP La Reserve des Argentiers</a></li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=436195">2005 Ladera Syrah Napa Valley</a></li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=427024">2005 Folie a Deux Cabernet</a></li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=392865">2004 St. Clement Cabernet Napa Valley</a></li></ul>Saturday night:<br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=488104">2006 Francis Coppola Black Label Claret</a></li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=623081">2007 Weingut Allram Gruner Veltliner</a> (sangria)<br /></li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=481737">2005 Stags' Leap Winery Cabernet</a> (2 bottles)</li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=600701">2006 Joseph Phelps Syrah</a></li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=519949">2006 Hop Kiln Zinfandel</a></li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=505620">2006 Nickel & Nickel Pinot Noir Spring Hill</a></li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3253">2000 Paradise Ranch Chardonnay Ice Wine</a></li><li><a href="http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=369572">2004 Meeker Zinfandel Fro-Zin</a><br /></li></ul>Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-3961414161561375232009-01-29T19:58:00.000-08:002009-01-29T20:22:58.638-08:00Signtific launches!!!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM1BjAn4_zusYe1HRACGqnLVZMfpDqfO3NdH9VAOcNtdeEgY0UQZCF5VAL1wrojDjuLBqDDfFGrmzbm1SBodHQxJn1nnVt38_ZQ0JqLMyPwlIuFGLJXsB9NpK1qFD_K2nvB-dvEw/s1600-h/signtific-logo.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 145px; height: 93px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM1BjAn4_zusYe1HRACGqnLVZMfpDqfO3NdH9VAOcNtdeEgY0UQZCF5VAL1wrojDjuLBqDDfFGrmzbm1SBodHQxJn1nnVt38_ZQ0JqLMyPwlIuFGLJXsB9NpK1qFD_K2nvB-dvEw/s320/signtific-logo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296933664853670498" border="0" /></a>Reposted from <a href="http://www.iftf.org/">IFTF</a>'s <a href="http://blog.signtific.org/blog/">Signtific blog</a>: (I suggest that you start at the DISCOVER stage to ease into the system). More fun stuff in the works!<br /><br /><blockquote><p><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">After many month of hard work, we are proud to announce the official launch of </span><a target="_blank" href="http://www.signtific.org/">Signtific</a><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">!<br /><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Signtific.org is an innovative and dynamic collaborative web-based platform designed for engaging scientists and technologists from all areas of study in identifying disruptive trends. The platform is three-fold: First, Signals are the foundational indicators that point to larger trends and supply the conversation on Signtific. Second, Notebooks are the organizational hubs where you can collect Signals and choose to share your ideas with trusted colleagues. Last, Forecasts are combine signals in your notebook to identify a key trend, disruption, opportunity, or shift in the competitive landscape.<br /><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Navigation around Signtific is organized into four categories: </span><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">"<a target="_blank" href="http://www.signtific.org/en/node/add/signal"><span style="color: rgb(0, 31, 240);">Create</span></a>", "<a target="_blank" href="http://www.signtific.org/en/discover"><span style="color: rgb(0, 31, 240);">Discover</span></a>", "<a target="_blank" href="http://www.signtific.org/en/og/forum"><span style="color: rgb(0, 31, 240);">Discuss</span></a>" and "<a target="_blank" href="http://www.signtific.org/en/pages/experiment"><span style="color: rgb(0, 31, 240);">Experiment</span></a>." </span><span style="font-family:Helvetica;"><span> </span>In Create you can start signaling and forecasting. Discover is where you can go to dive into the rich information that other users have created, and where you can comment on, rate, and otherwise interact with site content.<br /><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">No science is complete without experimentation, so keep an eye out for Experiment going live shortly! In the coming weeks we'll be launching The Lab where you can connect in real-time with colleagues from around the world through science and technology scenarios. We don't want to give away all the cool stuff too quickly so make sure to log in frequently to be a participant.<br /><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Finally, one of the most valuable contributions that you can make to Signtific is rating the site's content base. When reading a signal or forecast, click on <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Submit Rating </span>and you will be asked to rate the signal based on two characteristics: Likelihood (how likely it is that a signal or forecast will occur) and Impact (if the signal or forecast does occur, how important will it be).<br /><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Rating content will help users find strong and relevant content, identify outlying signals and forecasts, and help us with our work visualizing Signtific's data - in short, everybody wins when you rate, </span><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">so <a target="_blank" href="http://www.signtific.org/en/discover"><span style="color: rgb(47, 102, 147);">get to it</span></a>!<br /><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">The Signtific team is looking forward to your contributions, thoughts, and discussions. Check back to the blog for updates where we'll uncover the latest in the world of Signtific, have special guest contributors, interviews, thought-provoking write-ups, and user and affiliation showcases.<br /><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Signal On!</span></p> <p><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">-The Signtific Team</span></p></blockquote>Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-4976348708991468052008-12-22T07:45:00.000-08:002008-12-22T10:39:24.661-08:00Leaders Make the Future - Bob's latest book goes on sale!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha3GQTwsE7hOY4aci8Jt6JQ9FsSsPXIk2P8er-N9oJ1MeLxseaNz4ZhL1HSeKap61eHhHSE9afis6DHMnx0shYrLNzsj44nezKYnvRVKAz-Sjb9rBqFXcSEMuThnw8PGmEXsLLuQ/s1600-h/leaders.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha3GQTwsE7hOY4aci8Jt6JQ9FsSsPXIk2P8er-N9oJ1MeLxseaNz4ZhL1HSeKap61eHhHSE9afis6DHMnx0shYrLNzsj44nezKYnvRVKAz-Sjb9rBqFXcSEMuThnw8PGmEXsLLuQ/s320/leaders.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282685712155408146" border="0" /></a>Berrett-Koehler has announced Bob's latest book: <a href="http://www.bkconnection.com/ProdDetails.asp?ID=9781605090023">Leaders Make the Future - Ten New Leadership Skills for an Uncertain World</a>. It will be released in May of 2009.<br /><br />Their description follows:<br /><br />• Grounded in the most recent ten-year forecast by the prestigious Institute for the Future<br />• Identifies the new skills needed to thrive in the next decade<br />• Provides tools, examples, and advice to help develop your expertise in each of the ten future skills<br /><br />Some leadership skills are enduring. But to be successful in the future, leaders also need an emerging set of skills uniquely suited to dealing with the challenges of the threshold decade we are entering. Today’s businesses and organizations are operating in a world characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. Though they already seemed stressed to the breaking point, Johansen reminds us that we are also more connected than ever before in our history, but we must fully realize the benefits of that connectivity. In the next decade, leaders will not just see the future—they will make it! But they will not be able to do it alone.<br /><br />Institute for the Future has been developing ten-year forecasts for some of the world’s top organizations for forty years—it is the only futures group to outlive its own forecasts. Bob Johansen draws on IFTF’s latest forecast (included in this book) to introduce skills that will help leaders see connections in the larger systems of which they are a part, embrace shared assets and opportunities, and cut through the chaos to make a better future. Separate chapters focus on each skill, identifying the new circumstances that make it necessary and providing examples of the skill in action. How adroit are you at dilemma-flipping—turning problems that can’t be permanently solved into opportunities? What is your level of immersive learning ability—the ability to dive into very different physical and online worlds and learn from them? Do you know what a smart mob is and how to organize one? Johansen provides role models, tools, and advice to help you develop these and seven other skills.<br /><br />We are facing times of unprecedented challenge. Combining research-based forecasts, real-world examples, and his own astute analysis, Bob Johansen helps you identify and acquire the abilities you need to thrive in this difficult world.Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-85263645224466011902008-12-10T21:00:00.000-08:002008-12-18T12:25:42.791-08:00It was inevitable that I would end up at the Institute for the Future!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheY9DUfiWlnWkbDcHLhBClvUrPE4egVzo5YgZZnQ2a9JXZba3k4tlTcrxgNcCLmTG7Sz4DeeY8kCsEjnTk-w_pJZf0IlZ6N81KE3j2W8mi7SJCl-tH3VPoUtz8mufJqhwKtYyEYQ/s1600-h/books.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheY9DUfiWlnWkbDcHLhBClvUrPE4egVzo5YgZZnQ2a9JXZba3k4tlTcrxgNcCLmTG7Sz4DeeY8kCsEjnTk-w_pJZf0IlZ6N81KE3j2W8mi7SJCl-tH3VPoUtz8mufJqhwKtYyEYQ/s320/books.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5281228795563681938" border="0" /></a>We were doing some fall cleaning at home and I went through books to keep, donate to charity or give to friends/family. While doing so, I noticed a trend...the future! Take a look at these titles/authors of some of the books that I had read over the years:<br /><ul><li>Blur: the Speed of Change in the Connected Economy - Stan Davis & Christopher Meyer<br /></li><li>Burn Rate: How I Survived the Gold Rush Years on the Internet - Michael Wolf<br /></li><li>Detour: The Truth about the Information Superhighway - Michael Sullivan-Trainor<br /></li><li>Digital Economy: Promise and Peril in the Age of Networked Intelligence - Don Tapscott<br /></li><li>Fuzzy Logic: The Revolutionary Computer Technology that Is Changing the World - Daniel McNeill & Paul Freiberger</li><li>Growing Up Digital - Don Tapscott</li><li>New Rules for the New Economy - Kevin Kelly</li><li>Out of Control - Kevin Kelly<br /></li><li>Rethinking America - Heidrick Smith</li><li>The 500 Year Delta: What Happens After What Comes Next - Jim Taylor & Watts Wacker<br /></li><li>The Future and Its Enemies - Virginia Postrel<br /></li><li>The Hacker Crackdown - Bruce Sterling</li><li>The Last Best Thing - Pat Killon<br /></li><li>The Secret of the Universe - Isaac Asimov</li><li>The Virtual Community - Howard Rheingold<br /></li><li>Unbounding the Future: The Nanotechnology Revolution - K. Eric Drexler & Chris Peterson</li><li>Virtual Reality - Howard Rheingold<br /></li></ul>Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-9080715672680996672008-12-04T10:10:00.000-08:002008-12-04T10:15:34.813-08:00IFTF announces its 2009 Technology Horizons Research AgendaFun agenda we have next year, huh?<br /><h1 class="title"> <a href="http://www.iftf.org/node/2409">2009 Technology Horizons Research Agenda</a> </h1> <div class="content"> <p>Creativity and control have always been necessary, if uneasy, partners in the advance of human ingenuity and technological and social development. At times we need the discipline and tools of control in order to enable creativity, at other times we must release control in order for creativity to blossom. This ageless cosmic dance is now entering new domains once unavailable to direct human intervention.</p> <p>These include: more powerful and precise tools that unite computation and matter, bestowing upon us the ability to functionally re-design our minds, our senses, and our environments; the proliferation and ubiquity of visual media across our electronic communication networks, and the shift from text-based culture and cognition to a way of thinking and communicating that engages and rewards other sensibilities; and the power of ad hoc collectives of distributed agents, especially when combined with nimble prototyping technologies, to solve problems and transform traditional strategies for innovation.</p> <p>As the stakes of human action increase, wielding the power of design requires both grace and humility, and the wisdom to know when to lead and when to let go. </p> <p>In 2009, the Technology Horizons Program will explore these new ways we have begun to mediate, manipulate, and re-design our world, and what that means to the way we live our lives. </p> <p>Our three core research themes are:</p> <p>• When Everything is Programmable<br />• The Future of Video<br />• The Future of Lightweight Innovation</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">When Everything is Programmable</p> <p>Trends we have been exploring in Technology Horizons in the past few years, such as the layering of digital information on the physical world, sensory rich data streaming 24/7, use of a host of technologies to extend people’s cognitive and physical abilities, blending of physical and digital realities, the emerging maker mindset-- when taken to their foreseeable culmination--are pointing to profound new powers to computationally design, i.e. program, our world. Imagine a world in which almost every material object (including our brains and bodies) is programmable, running code to achieve desired results, from particular moods to how the physical and social worlds around us function. Because once we have all the data and we can decode what the data means, the next logical step is to design to spec. What will these new powers mean for our individual and collective identities, as well as our fundamental relationships to our environment and to each other? In 2009, we extend the investigation of how layers of information and computation are embedded, ensconced, and entangled in the material world, into the examination of how we will use new technologies to intentionally and directly design and program our minds, our senses, and matter itself. We will take deep dives into three areas: </p> <p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Programming the Mind</span><br />Powerful new scientific understandings and technologies are emerging that will significantly increase the level of precision and control we have over the manner in which our minds function. Already we have neuro and cogniceuticals that increase or modulate mental focus, attention, and memory. As our understanding of neurochemical processes increase, will are likely to acquire the ability to press chemical “buttons” to quickly and effectively change the way our minds work. Stimulation of certain regions of the brain, either by direct electronic current or by transcranial magnetic stimulation, has been correlated with particular outcomes—such as increased attention and recall. Already, we have seen crude brain-computer interfaces that allow directly channeled communication and interaction between mind and machine. As our precision of use with these devices grows, so will our ability to “dial” our minds to certain states. As our minds become further extended into the material world, and machines more fully integrated into our minds, what new affordances and blindspots will these relationships create? Who will control them and how will we use them? What will this mean for organizations? What types of practical and ethical dilemmas will our increased ability to program the mind create?</p> <p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Programming the Senses</span><br />A large population of the “hearing impaired” (those with cochlear implants) have a level of control over their audible world that those with “normal” hearing can only imagine. Because sound is routed through an electronic receiver, and processed by complex computational algorithms before being transmitted to the cochlea and auditory nerve, a cochlear implant recipient can filter out certain sound frequencies (like high pitched noises), and tune into distant conversations using a directional microphone. As new sensory replacements and augmentations are developed, we will see more widespread use of technologies that allow us to modulate and partition the sensory world around us,<br />We are likely to add new senses to our repertoire of five, and create new kinds of sensory blends. Imagine a future in which we could sense danger in a way similar to many animals, or reprogram our senses so that we can hear the color blue. How will this impact how we experience the world and what is available to our perception and consciousness?</p> <p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Programming Matter</span><br />Quantum dots, 3-D printing, claytronic atoms (catoms), dynamic physical rendering, rapid prototyping, flexible displays, and other forms of nanoscale assemblage are among the emerging technologies for programming (or hacking) matter. These, combined with mobile cloud computing, context-aware environments, and ubiquitous sensing, point to a world in which the objects, materials, and built environment are radically plastic, programmable, and responsive. We will investigate these converging technologies to uncover how these new levers and levels of control will alter the ecology of machine-to-machine, human-to-machine, and human-to-human relations. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;">The Future of Video</p> <p>The ascent and currency of visual media signals a transformation on the order of the shift from manuscript to print. As the web continues its metamorphosis from a text vehicle to an image (moving image) vehicle, spurred on by the availability and adoption of such technologies as the phonecam, the webcam, voice (and video) over internet protocol, tiny handheld cameras like the Flip, and online video platforms like YouTube, it seems ever-more likely that video will overtake the written word as the predominant communication form for coming generations. </p> <p>We are seeing the emergence of a new digitally-mediated oral society—one that will alter the way we shape our identities, communicate knowledge, create authority, and experience our sense world. A new public sphere, bringing together the semi-literate as well as the hyper-literate, will generate new channels for art, commerce, politics, and education.</p> <p>Video comes with its own language, a language with a multitude of spontaneously generated and evolving vernaculars. We will examine trends in vernacular video, from lifecasting to collaborative content creation, with particular attention to the way technology, culture, and policy shape (and are shaped by) this massive participatory movement. </p> <p>We will outline the new key players in the emerging realm of vernacular video: companies, organizations, campaigns and networks that are putting the power of video into the hands of individuals and channeling it to the world, and consider the implications for media, entertainment, political and social movements, indigenous and diasporic communities, marketing, and educational sectors. </p> <p>Throughout antiquity and through the middle ages, even when reading alone, the written word was “read” aloud, audibly. Those who read silently were remarkable, viewed askance by their peers. We will be looking for the equivalent of ancient ‘silent readers’ in today’s media landscape, pointing to tomorrow’s “innate” habits and practices. We will seek out the ways (and the significance of) individuals and groups turning towards electronic recording and communication of sight and sound in search of something more personal, more meaningful, and more immediate.</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">The Future of Lightweight Innovation</p> <p>As the global economy slows down, the pressure to innovate faster and cheaper will only increase. Over the next decade, we will see a rapid expansion of lightweight models for innovation, drawing on new ideas about organizing research and development, and new tools for collaboration. Just as web startups now move from idea to implementation without traditional incubation, more and more of new product and service development will happen outside of existing pipelines. As open innovation casts a wide net for ideas, it will merge with lightweight infrastructures that put the tools into everyday people's hands as well. In this research area we will define key features of the emerging lightweight innovation models and analyze strategies for employing such models in different kinds of organizations.</p> </div>Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-80294163229350273882008-11-19T06:12:00.000-08:002008-11-19T06:13:42.226-08:00Please take five minutes to play a game by noon today!Reblogging a Jane email:<br /><br />WHOAH it's a no-holds barred 19-hour FORECASTING race!! have 60 seconds? we need your brains! help a team WIN!<br /><br />http://tinyurl.com/replynow<br /><br />(We're competing to invent the future! PLEASE JOIN OUR GAME!<br /><br />At 5 PM Pacific Time on Tuesday November 18, 2008, we unleashed onto the Internet five forecasting questions about the year 2019. Each question is posed by a different forecasting team at the 2008 Blended Reality conference at the Institute for the Future. Each team is competing to collect the most answers, and the most interesting examples, from the most diverse community possible.<br /><br />PLEASE JOIN OUR GAME! Answer one, answer two, or more BEFORE 12 NOON PACIFIC TIME WED NOV 19, 2009Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-7800118260172034002008-11-11T11:27:00.000-08:002008-11-11T13:35:49.890-08:00IFTF's After Shock: How to Play<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiouwlm_U6Ssc5xFdN6NTfC3ipiXXxBji4EVEJWj3Yu-L_EHdPHV0EU-p5yAlXNoMYB6R2eKny1ZY031JPlbyS3lFbtG_fOXWSYVuV7ovkfrES0tPeAeb-Zt7Ct6WDGj-6tHgKa6Q/s1600-h/image002.png"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 130px; height: 126px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiouwlm_U6Ssc5xFdN6NTfC3ipiXXxBji4EVEJWj3Yu-L_EHdPHV0EU-p5yAlXNoMYB6R2eKny1ZY031JPlbyS3lFbtG_fOXWSYVuV7ovkfrES0tPeAeb-Zt7Ct6WDGj-6tHgKa6Q/s320/image002.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5267484058578065746" border="0" /></a>In addition to just jumping in and playing solo as an earthquake survivalist, here are some thoughts about how you might play IFTF's <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.aftershock.net">After Shock</a> with others.<br /><br />Beginning this Thursday, November 13, and continuing for 3 weeks, After Shock will simulate the landscape of Southern California after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake as if the disaster is happening in real time.<br /><br />Through headlines, photographs, maps, and continual updates from After Shock’s grassroots reporters “on the scene” spread over Southern California, visitors to aftershock.net will experience the earthquake from the immediate aftermath of the initial 2 minutes of shaking, to the crucial 48-72 hours afterwards in which life-saving decisions still need to be made, to a massive aftershock that hits a now weakened region. Finally, the timeline of the After Shock simulation will accelerate to weeks and months after the earthquake, as Southern Californians shift from survival and recovery to rebuilding: lives, schools, businesses, networks.<br /><br />How are you going to survive? Imagine your future now so you will be better prepared prepared for this inevitable future. How you are going to respond to a major earthquake in your city? Tell us your story by writing a scenario, uploading images, drawings or creating videos.<br /><br />1. Join the After Shock <a href="http://www.facebook.com/n/?group.php&gid=31826700207">Facebook group</a> and the <a href="http://twitter.com/After_Shock">Twitter stream</a>.<br />2.. Play as a Group: SURVIVAL to RECOVERY to REBUILDING<br /> * Choose a group to play (2–10 people, or more) from your organization to play as a team project for the 3 weeks of game play<br /> * Decide on a minimum amount of time to devote to playing, say an hour a week, to make it fun and realistic (create a competition in your group for best stories and solutions)<br /> * Tell stories about what your organization is doing to address the disaster for individuals and for the company<br /> * Start an After Shock discussion group focused specifically on your community or organization (for example, new ways your company/org can come together to assure that everyone has survived or has communication tools )<br /> * Create a discussion to engage with new kinds of groups you don't ordinary work with to solve disaster-related issues<br /> * Use your networks and preferred networking tools such as Twitter and Facebook to convene your peers in other groups/organizations in After Shock to start discussions on issues you all share<br /> * Look for other institutional players you may not have worked with in the past to team up with<br /><br />3. Play even though you are out of the CA region!<br /><br />Imagine you have colleagues or loved ones in So. Cal:<br /><ol><li>How would you communicate with them?</li><li>How would you transfer support resources (money, water, health care)?</li><li>Tell you story about what is happening outside of the disaster region.<br /></li></ol>At it’s culmination, data will be collected and analyzed to help us understand how Southern California citizens might respond to this type of disaster and their degree of preparedness which IFTF will share in addition to key learnings form this project.<br /><br />Be sure and <a href="http://www.iftf.org/node/2371">watch the video</a> at and game play starts Thursday!Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-69268327429100420922008-10-20T15:34:00.000-07:002008-10-20T15:37:24.249-07:00IFTF releases the Future of Work research to the public domain<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4dN-tk1BR6Beu42teaswxDe2sDatYsfOHlwd-qpS2dPUVysWqyA7dHJasQ2gQOL98jThlZeruKT1QygMrOH9LLWtFgAovYUHi9hY-TT8Ue2P4FHc-QThmurrRdtoSEhpjZDMYDg/s1600-h/fowperspectives.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4dN-tk1BR6Beu42teaswxDe2sDatYsfOHlwd-qpS2dPUVysWqyA7dHJasQ2gQOL98jThlZeruKT1QygMrOH9LLWtFgAovYUHi9hY-TT8Ue2P4FHc-QThmurrRdtoSEhpjZDMYDg/s320/fowperspectives.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5259368690489961970" border="0" /></a> The Future of Work:<br /><div class="content"><div class="download"><div class="files"><div class="item-list"><ul><li class="application-pdf"><a href="http://www.iftf.org/system/files/deliverables/FOW_map_screen.pdf">Future of Work: Map</a></li><li class="application-pdf"><a href="http://www.iftf.org/system/files/deliverables/SR-1092_B_tech_foundations_screen.pdf">Future of Work: Technology Foundations</a></li><li class="application-pdf"><a href="http://www.iftf.org/system/files/deliverables/SR+1092-A_FoWPerspectives_screen.pdf">Future of Work: Perspectives</a></li></ul></div></div> </div> <p>The Technology Horizons Program’s research on the Future of Work comes at an exciting time for the intersection of work and technology. Technology has become integrated into virtually every aspect of work. And because we spend so much time working, work really is the place where we most directly feel the impact of developing technologies. From collaboration to productivity; from new ways of approaching workspace design to the increasing ability to work from virtually anywhere; and from hiring and recruitment to new skill sets—it is a time of experimentation for companies and organizations as trends in technology converge to change what it means to work.</p> </div>Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-62961507486757047782008-10-19T19:20:00.001-07:002008-10-19T19:30:53.348-07:00Trip to Johannesburg<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMlT3JUvV0BITk8KP4S4SK2e316xnpsKoTkP5glvnN5hPIz32WEjEqA0R0JsJWsteWVvn2klWL11hhOIvtN56WsZxOY76zCi5zPC_RqyJAF4JGB0mN3EUmPvpxWjn8LbiZDk58KQ/s1600-h/DSC00728.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMlT3JUvV0BITk8KP4S4SK2e316xnpsKoTkP5glvnN5hPIz32WEjEqA0R0JsJWsteWVvn2klWL11hhOIvtN56WsZxOY76zCi5zPC_RqyJAF4JGB0mN3EUmPvpxWjn8LbiZDk58KQ/s320/DSC00728.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5259057336378270226" border="0" /></a>In September, I took a trip to Johannesburg for work. I visited <a href="http://www.pilanesberg-game-reserve.co.za/">Pilanesburg</a><a href="http://www.pilanesberg-game-reserve.co.za/"> Game</a><a href="http://www.pilanesberg-game-reserve.co.za/"></a><a href="http://www.pilanesberg-game-reserve.co.za/"> Re</a><a href="http://www.pilanesberg-game-reserve.co.za/">serve</a> and Soweto while there. My pics <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/seanness/sets/72157608193780039/">are here</a>. A co-worker's <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/agreatnotion/sets/72157607290433175/">are here</a>. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/seanness/sets/72157608193780039/"> My </a>pics are here.<br /><br />Go visit!Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-36134554381585585432008-10-15T21:33:00.000-07:002008-10-15T21:34:06.599-07:00The Sarah Palin EffectHere's a great video from my pal Tom. Funny!<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/VmmRGELjlC0&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/VmmRGELjlC0&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-53794419601839534852008-10-09T06:22:00.000-07:002008-10-09T08:16:50.437-07:00Why Mad Men the best show on TVLast night, I finished watching the last episode of Mad Men (Season 1). The closing episode brought to light why it is the best show on TV. <br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/R2bLNkCqpuY&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/R2bLNkCqpuY&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />This episode, <a href="http://www.ffwd.com/saved/81594/0/0">which I was able to quickly find by using ffwd</a>, took me back to 1976, to sit in my great grandmother's house and watch my grandmother's pictures of her trips around the country. At the time, it opened my eyes to the wonder of travel and was an initial connection to many of my distant cousins. I can still smell the popcorn and feel the hardwood floor underneath me.<br /><br />You may not approve of the people in the show, but it is truly the best of TV. Watch it!Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-14318672067147171132008-10-01T22:20:00.000-07:002008-10-01T22:28:46.378-07:00My longest international flights...part 2I made another long international trip a couple of weeks ago (South Africa!), so I thought I would update my list of my longest international flights. The best website I could find is Web|Flyer's MileMaker <a href="http://www.webflyer.com/travel/milemarker/">Mileage Calculator</a>. (Please let me know if there is a better site.)<br /><br />Here they are (apologies to those who prefer to use kilometers!):<br /><ol><li>8130 miles: Washington, DC - Johannesburg, South Africa <-- NEW!<br /></li><li>5680 miles: San Francisco - Frankfurt, Germany<br /></li><li>5620 miles: San Francisco - Seoul, Korea<br /></li><li>5520 miles: Los Angeles - Nadi, Fiji<br /></li><li>5110 miles: San Francisco - Tokyo, Japan<br /></li><li>4760 miles: New York - Sao Paulo, Brazil<br /></li><li>4170 miles: Johannesburg, South Africa - Dakar, Senegal <--NEW!<br /></li><li>4080 miles: Miami - Sao Paulo, Brazil<br /></li><li>3970 miles: Dakar, Senegal - Washington, DC <--NEW!<br /></li><li>3210 miles: Miami - Santa Cruz, Bolivia</li></ol><br /><br />What is your longest flight?Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-41400408230931162922008-09-22T11:25:00.000-07:002008-09-22T16:02:34.300-07:00How to play IFTF's Superstruct game<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEdsrBQMxMhmnchCj-W8tatRQhsVTvxlWBpSyuQSQjmNs37kbNK9oikhtkCA_8FkZn9tN62VSqZAWqk7ro2h6aUEAZQ6LtHbOAijmEZz2ljWwCFlJxsbLxvNvxad7BhBDsRocV2Q/s1600-h/ss_teaser1.gif"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEdsrBQMxMhmnchCj-W8tatRQhsVTvxlWBpSyuQSQjmNs37kbNK9oikhtkCA_8FkZn9tN62VSqZAWqk7ro2h6aUEAZQ6LtHbOAijmEZz2ljWwCFlJxsbLxvNvxad7BhBDsRocV2Q/s320/ss_teaser1.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5248916296773856050" /></a> From my colleagues...here are some thoughts about how you might play Superstruct:<br /><br />• Play by yourself, or choose a team (or teams) of 3 to 10 people from your organization to play Superstruct as a team project for the six weeks the game will run. Players will probably need to devote a minimum of an hour a week to make it worthwhile, but if you can devote at least three hours a week, you'll get a lot more out of it. Give different members of the team different assignments, such as: 1) telling stories about what your organization is doing to address one or more of the superthreats; 2) starting Superstruct discussion groups focused specifically on your community (for example, new ways your community can come together to assure that everyone has safe Internet access in 2019); create a superstructure to engage with new kinds of groups you don't ordinary work with to solve the community dilemmas in 2019 and then personally invite people in those groups to join you--either people who are playing the game already or people you know in the community who might be willing to play.<br /><br />• Use the superstructures as a way to engage the organizations that you currently support. Create a superstructure with a mission that you would like to see addressed, and invite your community/business groups or other participants to join the game and come up with new approaches to that mission, engaging the resources of other the SEHIs in Superstruct.<br /><br />• Convene your peers in other organizations in Superstruct to start discussions on issues you all share. To get the most innovative thinking in your discussions, set them up the discussions in a way that invites input from the vast range of SEHIs who will play the game. If interesting ideas come up in the discussions, start a superstructure to test drive the ideas.<br /><br />• Look for other institutional players you may not have worked with in the past. Many of IFTFs Ten-Year Forecast members are large corporations engaged in the food industry, the health industry, and the information industry. We also have a number of government and nonprofit members, like the CDC and United Cerebral Palsy, for example. Superstruct is a low-risk way to try out collaborations you might not have considered in the past.<br /><br />• Use Superstruct as a "windtunnel" for testing your long-term strategies. Tell stories in Superstruct about how you've succeeded in your long-range goals in the challenging world of 2019. Then see how other players respond to the stories--how many "raves" you get for your stories or how they comment. The more compelling the stories are, with images or videos, the more likely you will be to get responses.<br /><br />You can play the game with any name you choose, so you can be as public or anonymous as you want. And you can't really lose. Everything that happens in the game will almost certainly enrich your understanding of the dilemmas we face locally and globally--and of unique ways to collaborate to on a very large scale to address these complex problems.<br /><br />Please feel free to contact me/IFTF if you have more questions or would like some hands-on help getting started in the game. We look forward to working together in the world of 2019!<br /><br />Be sure and visit the video page now at <a href="http://superstructgame.org">http://superstructgame.org</a> and game play starts on October 6.Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-81919647009425102012008-09-10T09:08:00.001-07:002008-09-10T09:09:55.932-07:005 minute Geography Test!Just wish they showed a map of the results when you were finished. Can you beat me?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.oneplusyou.com/bb/view2/countries" style="display: block; background: #333 url('http://www.oneplusyou.com/bb/img/countries/badge.jpg') no-repeat; width: 320px; height: 90px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 35px; color: #fff; text-decoration: none; text-align: center; padding-top: 110px; ">81</a><div>Created by OnePlusYou - <a href="http://www.oneplusyou.com">Online Dating</a></div>Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-36649721720122405052008-09-07T09:28:00.000-07:002008-09-07T09:31:38.381-07:00Headed to South Africa on ThursdayI'll be there for a week for work. Headed to Johannesburg for the <a href="http://www.iaspsa2008.com/"><layer id="google-toolbar-hilite-0" style="background-color: Cyan; color: black;">2008</layer> International of Science Parks conference</a>. Traveling with a few co-workers...should be fun! Will visit a game park and Sun City while there.Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8794874.post-49097298271037702752008-07-18T13:58:00.000-07:002008-07-18T14:03:02.424-07:00IFTF is hiring: Community Leaders/Game Masters for SuperstructThe Institute for the Future is hiring five community leaders/game masters for the upcoming future forecasting game <a target="_blank" href="http://www.iftf.org/node/2098">Superstruct</a>.<br /><br /><p>It’s an eight-week position beginning September 8, 2008. You can be a game master from anywhere in the world (outside of US is okay; we will have players from all over the world, although primarily playing in English), and it will require ~ 12 hours of online work per week. You’ll work very closely with <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.avantgame.com">Jane McGonigal</a> (Avant Game) and <a target="_blank" href="http://openthefuture.com/">Jamais Cascio</a> (Open the Future). This is a non-profit game with no commercial sponsors; the position comes with a stipend of $2500.<br /><br /></p><p>Skills required: Great forum writing skills; online storytelling experience (blogs, videos, photos, Twitter, etc.); curiosity about the future; some expertise in issues related to sustainability, global health, environmental or climate issues, global business, social networks, or anything else you think might be useful to solving the problems of the future. We're open to considering anyone with great writing skills and a desire to investigate the future! No technical skills required, just great Internet skills.<br /><br /></p><p>Your job will be to lead a team of players (at minimum, hundreds of players; more likely, thousands of players) in creating a collaborative online forecast of the year 2019. The forecasting will take place through wikis, forums, videos, blogs, Twitter, online comics, photo sets, and whatever else our players use to depict and talk about the future. You'll be reading and watching lots of player-created content, in addition to making your own content. You'll give the players feedback, and you'll synthesize and summarize the most interesting things in a short weekly story. You'll be moderating forums and wikis dedicated to solving a particular future-problem. You'll have to help your community manage a careful balance between "wow, the future might be scary" storytelling to "you know what, we might actually be able to solve this problem before it kills us all" optimism. Because the game isn't just about imagining the future. It's about inventing the future. This game is a kind of working prototype for the year 2019!<br /><br /></p><p>Each game master will focus on one of five "superthreats", ranging from a devastating disruption of the food supply chain, to a pandemic, to "global weirding" weather patterns to create millions of climate refugees. (Depending on your interest and area of expertise, we'll make sure you get the right topic!) In the two weeks before the game launches, we'll give you a crash course in the IFTF research that is guiding this game, so you'll be an expert on your area when the game launches on September 22, 2008.<br /><br /></p><p>To apply: Send a letter to Jane at <a target="_blank" href="mailto:superstruct@iftf.org">superstruct@iftf.org</a> explaining why you want to join us on the Superstruct team. Mention any previous experience as a writer, or thinking about the future, playing or making games, running online communities, or being an interesting person online. Include a CV or resume if you think it will help explain who you are, but most importantly, in your letter, answer this question: It's the summer of 2019. You are yourself, but 10 years in the future. Describe where you are having for dinner, what you're eating, and what you're thinking or talking about. How did you wind up there, compared to where you had dinner most often in the summer of 2008?</p><p><br /><strong>Superstruct! Play the game, invent the future. </strong></p><p>This fall, the Institute for the Future invites you to play Superstruct, the world’s first massively multiplayer forecasting game. It’s not just about envisioning the future—it’s about inventing the future. Everyone is welcome to join the game. Watch for the opening volley of threats and survival stories, September 2008. </p><p>*</p><p>This is a game of survival, and we need you to survive.<br /><br /></p><p>Super-threats are massively disrupting global society as we know it. There’s an entire generation of homeless people worldwide, as the number of climate refugees tops 250 million. Entrepreneurial chaos and “the axis of biofuel” wreak havoc in the alternative fuel industry. Carbon quotas plummet as food shortages mount. The existing structures of human civilization—from families and language to corporate society and technological infrastructures—just aren’t enough. We need a new set of superstructures to rise above, to take humans to the next stage.<br /><br />You can help. Tell us your story. Strategize out loud. Superstruct now.<br /><br /></p><p>It's your legacy to the human race.<br /><br /></p>Want to learn more about the game? Read the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.iftf.org/node/2096">Superstruct FAQ</a>.Hubberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12164951570270747353noreply@blogger.com0