The movie everyone should have been waiting to see….on your computer before at the cinemas.
In an unusual move Freakonomics the Movie is coming to iTunes first on September 3rd and then to a theater on October 1.
Since I read this book (review)
Tags: SUPERFreakonomics, Stephen Dubner, Steven Levitt, Economics, datasets, innovation, energy, population, poverty, technology, Sudir Venkatesh, terrorist, trends
Sometimes a 2.0 release is viewed as a fix for shortcomings in the initial release of just about any product….except this update from Tom Friedman: Hot, Flat, and Crowded 2.0: Why We Need a Green Revolution–and How It Can Renew America.
I quickly read version 1.0 as soon as it hit bookshelves and was just amazed at Friedman’s writing about the state of research, business and culture surrounding our planet. Missed reading this when it was originally released?
Yet as of late I have been reading so much about Wall Street’s clusterf*ck that I missed his update Hot, Flat, and Crowded 2.0: Why We Need a Green Revolution–and How It Can Renew America.
An overview to the version 2.0 release:Friedman explains how global warming, rapidly growing populations, and the astonishing expansion of the world’s middle class through globalization have produced a planet that is “hot, flat, and crowded.” In this Release 2.0 edition, he also shows how the very habits that led us to ravage the natural world led to the meltdown of the financial markets and the Great Recession. The challenge of a sustainable way of life presents the United States with an opportunity not only to rebuild its economy, but to lead the world in radically innovating toward cleaner energy. And it could inspire Americans to something we haven’t seen in a long time—nation-building—by summoning the intelligence, creativity, and concern for the common good that are our greatest national resources.
In vivid, entertaining chapters, Friedman makes it clear that the green revolution the world needs is like no revolution before. It will be the biggest innovation project in American history; it will be hard, not easy; and it will change everything from what you put into your car to what you see on your electric bill. This is a great challenge, Friedman explains, but also a great opportunity, and one that America cannot afford to miss. Not only is American leadership the key to the healing of the earth; it is also our best strategy for the renewal of America.
Or consider the following accolades for his writing:
Remember the last time you read a great story that you caught yourself peaking at the remaining unread pages because you didn’t want the story to end? That’s how I can best describe Clay Shirky‘s book Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age. His stories were coming to a close before I was ready to put the book down.
This is a great follow-up to his first book Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations. Shirky is right on target with engaging, connecting stories to share his ideas about our new ability today to share collective knowledge.
Over 1 trillion hours of TV is watched per year. Imagine what can happen when people turn TV off and begin contributing. And Shirky elegantly shares the shifting nature of professionals vs. amateurs in the age of the internet. Pretty amazing reading.
I believe there have been attempts to move in the direction he outlines but a tipping point has been the mass availability of consumer devices at very affordable price points. I recall Peter Gabriel‘s interview on the Today Show in 1988 talking about the efforts of Amnesty International and their attempts to videotape human rights abuses with large, analog cameras.
Today we know all to well from the murder of Oscar Grant that cameraphones have made their efforts real.
The Napster thing
IMHO Clay’s single oversight in the book surrounds Napster. I think he was trying to communicate a holistic answer to why people (not just Gen Xers) were stealing music. He called it sharing — it was stealing plain and simple.
Tonight Amazon introduced a new Kindle. Set to ship August 27th, the new revision is 21% smaller and 15% lighter than its predecessor. The new unit will ship with an display E Ink that has a 20% faster refresh rate.
The unit will also have two wireless options: a $139 WiFi only version and a $189 3G version. Storage has been increased to 4GB.
Let the eBook price wars continue!
Tags: Amazon, Kindle, ebook, price war, ebook sales, reading, trends
Amazon plans to introduce a new version of their Kindle e-book reader in August. However after a recent price cut just three weeks ago, Amazon is now out of their current Kindle and their site suggests a new model is on the way.
The device is rumored to be even thinner an updated refresh screen and enhanced imaging. The new Kindle will remain greyscale and will not support a touch screen….but may include apps.
Tags: Amazon, Kindle, ebook, price war, ebook sales, reading, trends