I chose to talk about the presentations by Bob Sutor of IBM and Jesse Robbins of O'Reilly Radar. Both speeches were similar in the fact that they both addressed the need for utilizing new technology for the betterment and advancement of mankind. Sutor used examples ranging from such things as traffic system improvements to meat packing tags for fresher meat. Robbins concentrated on the area of disaster relief along with using new technology for search and rescue campaigns.
Sutor's presentation was interesting as he feels that we are at an inflection point in the IT industry were partnerships between private and public organizations must happen to be successful. He acknowledges that we have the processing power and connectivity, along with extreme advancements expected in the next few years, but the proper utilization of our growing technologies is key for advancement. Sutor uses the examples of inefficient electrical grids being used in major cities that allow large amounts of energy to be wasted along with inefficient supply chains for consumer goods companies that waste much more than they should. He goes on to emphasize that big projects and "big bets" are required in our world to make things more efficient which will in turn allow us to advance. These "big bets" need the private/public partnerships to work though. These projects need to have privacy and security concerns addressed early and should not be an afterthought of the project when creating and utilizing these new technologies.
Jesse Robbins spoke on how web 2.0 tools are transforming humanitarian aid. Mr. Robbins was actually part of the Katrina relief effort and saw first hand the ineffective use of technology. He drew up a list of four things that lead to disaster tech innovation, they are:
1. Disaster (the event itself)
2. Ad-Hoc Adaptation (people take tools at hand to survive and recover from disaster)
3. Champion (champion needs to emerge after disaster to improve it iteratively)
4. Iterative Improvement
His example on the matter is when he was helping in the Katrina effort (disaster) and they were using handheld GPS units and Google maps (ad-hoc adaptation) because many of the street signs had been blown down. The google maps were not current though and the American Red Cross was under the impression that they were so people were told to cross bridges that were destroyed and time was lost. A champion had to emerge to give advancement and that was a geo hacker named Mikel Maron who teamed with Google, Yahoo, and the UN and aid agencies to update the maps for humanitarian organizations. With his collaboration came a new champion and improvement in the form of internet SAR organization that helps analyze aerial and satellite imagery for search and rescue efforts. If a disaster comes and there is no champion, there is no iterative improvement.
The two presentations were similar in the fact that both addressed the need for improvements in technology and the use of private and public organizations in implementing the new advances. They must work together to achieve progress and efficiency. Whether the progress be made in traffic systems or search and rescue campaigns, both stressed the need of companies working with public organizations to advance themselves and mankind in general.
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