Against Technological Relinquishment (Part Two)

Editor’s Note: This article is part of an ongoing series: Against Technological Relinquishment. Click here to read Part One. Part Three will be published on 09/28/13. —— [easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B00A17IAO0″ locale=”us” height=”115″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/417mxjzpiNL._SL160_.jpg” width=”160″]The very beliefs that Neo-Luddism share with Techno-Progressivism and Transhumanism constitute one of the best reasons for arguing that their specific approach…

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Against Technological Relinquishment (Part One)

[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”0486295834″ locale=”us” height=”160″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61Al1UezsqL._SL160_.jpg” width=”100″]It is all too easy to assume that techno-optimists and techno-pessimists are diametrically opposed. But while they may have different destinations in mind, the road to get there – what they need to do to achieve their respective ends – is a shared one. Techno-optimists and Techno-Progressives express hope…

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Will We Start Living Through Surrogates?

[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B001Q4FGXK” locale=”us” height=”128″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/411oOsuvh9L._SL160_.jpg” width=”160″]This article is inspired by the 2009 movie, Surrogates, and the reason is the oft occurrence of life imitating fiction, where the technology we read about in novels or see in movies appears eventually in real life. Fantasy or imagination has nothing to do with this article, save the declared inspiration…

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Inverting a Techno-Political Trope (Part Three)

Inverting a Techno-Political Trope: On The Hubris of Neo-Luddis (Part Two) (Editor’s Note: This article is Part Three of a series. Read Part One and Part Two.) [easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B000VM4P9Y” locale=”us” height=”160″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41mlV3t79IL._SL160_.jpg” width=”120″]The dichotomy between knowledge and device, between technology and methodology, doesn’t have a stable ontological ground in the first place. What is technology but…

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Biomimetic Treehouse: Your Future Home

Biomimetic design is the imitation of the structures, elements, and systems of nature. The future will be filled with biomimetic inspiration. Architecture, transportation and furniture design are all moving in this direction. The Embryo and Roost treehouse designs by Antony Gibbon Designs  are perfect examples of biomimetic design. Could this be your new future home? According to Gibbon’s website: “The cylindrical…

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Monday Marvels: This Week’s Top 5 Wonders

Monday Marvels: This Week’s Top 5 Marvels September 9th -16th 1.      Robo Bugs for Your Brain The disgusting, slimy, creepy crawlies might just one day save your life.  J. Marc Simard of the University of Maryland School of Medicine is working on the first ever “robot maggot” prototype designed to eat away brain tumors. These…

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Monday Marvels: This Week’s Top 5 Wonders

Monday Marvels September 2nd – 9th, 2013 [easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B000PGRBGA” locale=”us” height=”160″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41b3qXkvX7L._SL160_.jpg” width=”124″]1.) Blind But Now I See: The First Bionic Eye Second Sight Medical Products, Inc. has created a retinal chip for the blind named Argus II that will soon be approved in countries across the globe, including the USA.  The bionic eye…

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Interactive Television is Coming

[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B00DR0PDNE” locale=”us” height=”160″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31Hgfy4y9DL._SL160_.jpg” width=”121″] In July 2013, Google released the Chromecast Dongle, which allows the streaming of internet audio-video content on HD television sets from mobile devices. The initial stock sold out overnight. Now, the world is headed towards a future where television broadcasting will no longer exist as it has before. Have…

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Cloud Intelligence: The Future of Decision Making?

[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”0132091534″ locale=”us” height=”160″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51fUX3aj0TL._SL160_.jpg” width=”126″]In the last decade, a range of digital technologies and services have hit the market and moved from niche use toward the mainstream, changing how we communicate, socialize, and entertain ourselves. Consider that Facebook is less than 10 years old, but is used today by 67% of American adults (and 94% of…

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Solar Powered Airplanes May Become Commerical

[easyazon-image align=”left” asin=”B005ZSVZRY” locale=”us” height=”157″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41f6r2J2agL._SL160_.jpg” width=”160″] The first AA battery powered manned plane was successfully flown in 2006, and in 2009, the the first solar powered aircraft prototype was successfully test flown. Manned test flights have been conducted since, new prototypes have been developed, and currently, a project called Solar Impulse in Switzerland is in progress that…

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Drone To Deliver Defibrillators To Heart Attack Victims

A German technology non-profit has created an “octocopter” drone to deliver a defibrillator to people experiencing a heart attack. There is no doubt that these drones could arrive faster than any ambulance thus increasing the chance of survival. Fredrich Nölle from Definetz held a press conference in the town of Halle in North Rhine Westphalia to display…

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