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Unanswered Question: The most important implication of this shift out of the lab, it seems to me, is that fewer experiments are occurring under so-called "controlled conditions." Is this a revolution in the scientific method, contradicting the conventional wisdom that empirical truth can only be discovered amid "controlled variables"?
• AD SPACE
Advertisers may be their own worst enemy; they've swallowed so much space in the world that they're now drowning themselves out, writes advertising executive Steve Hayden. "A viewer's ability to recall a given message drops 45 percent when the number of ads in a commercial break doubles, according to Nielsen Media Research," he reports. "Advertising has the most impact in countries with low clutter—Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands—and the least impact in the most saturated countries: Japan, Hong Kong, Italy, and Spain." Hayden concludes that to compete amid the din, ads need that "water cooler" element—the creative gimmick that gets people talking. It's the conclusion you might expect from Hayden, who created famous 1984 Apple commercial. Full story
Unanswered Questions: But won't a redoubled effort to find that gimmick only result in even more clutter? Does a "high clutter" country such as the United States, even with our fondness of free speech, have an interest in cutting down on ad space in order to reduce noise pollution?
Related from Wired:
When cities speak to us: the voices behind public address announcements
• SECURE SPACE
We need a new metaphor when we talk about Internet security, says author Bruce Schneier in Wired. We usually think of network security as a wall that keeps the bad guys out and the good guys in; for better security, build a stronger wall. Schneier says it makes more sense to compare Internet security to a town, which monitors people within its boundaries and allows well-meaning newcomers to enter. "In a town, security space is fluid. Barriers exist, yet they're only part of the solution." Just as trust among neighbors keeps the streets safe, Schneier says, "I'd also like to see Internet users develop relationships with each other based on trust." Full story
Unanswered Questions: How do current, "wall"-based security systems discourage trust and vigilance of neighbors? Doesn't technology work to discourage the kind of interpersonal intimacy required for trust to flourish? And what does Schneier mean by his closing line: "In both the real and virtual world, nothing improves security more than gentrification"?
PLACES & CULTUREFrom the BBC:
The tiny Polynesian island of Niue has become the first country to get a free nationwide wireless Internet service. The free wi-fi link will be accessible to all of Niue's 2,000 residents as well as tourists and business travellers. People will need a laptop with a wi-fi card installed to access the service. The service is being supplied by a charitable group called the Niue Internet Users Society and will employ the same radio technology used for the numerous wireless networks springing up around Europe. Wi-fi uses radio technology to send data over the airwaves, removing the need for computer cables. Niue is already a sophisticated internet nation. Free e-mail services were introduced in 1997 and free broadband has been offered at the island's internet café; since the spring. Full story
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