Fall Equinox - Seasonal Update

Happy Fall Equinox!

Yesterday - the International Day of Peace - was a day for which I had been preparing for some time. I had been planning some type of pre-release of a 60th Anniversary Gift for the United Nations Community - however that didn't reach fruition so it look as if I will be focusing on October 24 - the actual anniversary date

However, I thought I would see what I can do by way of writing a brief description here of the gift - although its form and shape is still very much evolving.

Part of the impetus for getting back to my blog was an excellent article in the 25th anniversary issue of Discover magazine, titled "Web 2.0 Arrives" by Steven Johnson, noting inter alia "Essentially, the Web is shifting from an international library of interlinked pages to an information ecosystem, where data circulate like nutrients in a rain forest."

When I visited Steven's blog - stevenberlinjohnson.com - I discovered that he was going to be speaking at the Strand bookstore that very evening in a conversation with Malcolm Gladwell - author of Blink and The Tipping Point - so needless to say, I decided I should go.

There was a good crowd, about eighty or more people, with standing room only, and it was an intersting conversation - among other things, Steven, whose latest book Everything Bad is Good For You, talked about his contention that playing video games can be a valuable learning experience as the games involve managing complex situations with many variables, calling for complex strategic thinking - as well as psychomotor coordination - that can provide valuable preparation in the skills of managing complex situations in where one is immersed in a digital environment - my choice of words, not his.

There was a good amount of time for questions form the floor, but I held back as no particular question came to mind, however, after the session ended, I went to the end of the line of people wanting Steven to sign a copy of his book, and introduced myself to him saying it was his article in Discover that had led me to the event, and that I was an information ecologist, and would love to talk more with him. He was very receptive and I said I would send him an email - still on my to do list

anyhow, that's enough for right now, however, I think I will write a separate piece about what is happening with the countdown to the 60th Anniversary of the United Nations - and perhaps start a separate blog for that.