Silicon Valley and the Meaning of the Words: Case 'Open'

Words are the main tools for communicating new ideas. In the Silicon Valley, and other places as well, words can also be used quite innovatively as marketing tools. After critical inquiry some of these words can be later identified, and called as buzz words.

Mass media, classical or new, are the main forums for presenting new ideas, and new infomation. Therefore it is really important that especially the journalists are aware of the very meaning of words.

Financial Times has a great supplement called Digital Business, which is continuously dealing with new, emerging technologies. It was most excellent to find out that Chris Nuttall in San Francisco has realized that "open" is the latest word with which you have to be very carefull.

Obviously, there are several different levels of openess.

Innovation - Already Vol 7.

Sustainable energy and health seems to be on the top of the themes when reporting about innovations, especially in a Singaporean magazine called Innovation. It is a joint publication of The National University of Singapore and World Scientific Publishing Co.

BBC at Silicon Valley

BBC News Online: Inside the Silicon Valley tech bubble

"Silicon Valley and the Bay Area around San Francisco have long been a crucible for technology innovation. In decades past it led the world in chip development, and more recently it has been at the forefront of web applications."

Science Journalism/U.S.

Knight Science Journalism Tracker: The decline in daily US newspaper science writers

EU & Science Awareness

European Comission: Commission launches call for analysing public perception of science programmes on European TV and radio stations

"A special edition of DG Rearch's quarterly was dedicated to European attitudes on research.The European Commission wants to improve public awareness of science among the largest number of European citizens possible, including young people, and mass media are an important tool in achieving this goal."

Science Journalism

SciDev.net: How journalism can hide the truth about science

"The process of science is far less linear than the media's image of a neat series of breakthroughs suggests."

Innovation Editor

E&P: 'Trib' Sports Editor Adee Named to New AME/Innovation Position

Chicago Tribune is pushing forward innovations in news room. The paper created a new position of associate managing editor for innovation that will focus on internet and digital journalism.

Media & Techno Hype in 2005

CIO Asia: Technology Predictions - Failures and Futures

"Much technology was hyped for success in 2005, but many did not deliver to the levels expected by technologists, media and industry.The reality is that many companies are not yet mature enough in terms of process, governance and understanding of the business value of IT—resulting in a lack of business drivers and delays in adoption. But the fundamental reason is much simpler—despite the outwardly expressed desire to adopt such technologies, in many cases neither business nor technology is ready."

Trust & Science Journals

NY Times: Reporters Find Science Journals Harder to Trust, but Not Easy to Verify

"Now news organizations say they are starting to look at the science journals a bit more skeptically."

The Future of the News Media

CNNMoney.com: Is Slashdot the future of media?

"If you want to see the future of media, go to Slashdot.org. Two things distinguish it - it's the most popular news and information site with the tech cognoscenti, particularly programmers and engineers. And all of its content is created by its users. They submit about 700 stories per day, which staff editors vet and reduce down to the 30-35 that get published. Of the site's 5.5 million unique visitors per month, about 25 percent post comments about those stories."

Internet TV start-up

MediaDailyNews: New York Times Co. To Unveil Online Video Channel

"In a move that signals an intention to significantly expand its online video offerings, The New York Times Co. has tapped Internet TV start-up Brightcove to facilitate distribution of online video content, the companies will announce today. Brightcove will help the Times Co. syndicate video content to other Web sites via its customized video player. The company also will facilitate production of videos submitted by consumers.The deal will roll out in the next several months with the New York Times Co.'s About.com's new "About Gadgets" videos, which focuses on technology."

UK/Business Journalism Awards

Silicon.com: silicon.com wins online business journalism award

Silicon.com has been named as online business publication of the year at the annual Work Foundation media awards in London this week.The Work Foundation (formerly the Industrial Society) WorkWorld awards, sponsored by Amec, celebrate excellence in print, broadcast and online journalism on subjects of work, business, management and economics.Other winners on the night included Dow Jones, the Economist, the Financial Times, BBC Radio 4's Today programme, The Money Programme and BBC Two's Newsnight.

Internet & People & Products

Fortune/CNN Money: Internet people and products to watch

"Ever since a few college kids at the University of Illinois invented the Web browser in 1993, the Internet has never been boring. But it just gets livelier and livelier. What happens on the Internet matters more every year."

The visionary: Jimmy Wales

The hottest product: The iPod

Hottest product runner-up: The Firefox web browser

Hot technology: Voice over Internet Protocol

Hot site: Flickr

Hot Hire: Ray Ozzie

Mogul of the moment: Rupert Murdoch

Alliance to watch: Google and AOL

Thinker to watch: Jay Rosen

Japan & Innovations

The Economist: The future of Japanese business Competing through innovation

"Japan's style of innovation failed it in software and biotechnology in the 1990s. It might work better in robotics, aerospace and other burgeoning technologies."

Tech Innovatios and Company Co-operation in Research

NYT: Three Technology Companies Join to Finance Research

"With federal funds for basic computer science research at universities in decline, three of the industry's leading companies are joining to help fill the void. University of California computer scientists plan to announce on Thursday that the companies - Google, Microsoft, Sun Microsystems will underwrite a $7.5 million laboratory on the Berkeley campus. The new research center, called the Reliable, Adaptive and Distributed Systems Laboratory, will focus on the design of more dependable computing systems. The Berkeley researchers say that under the terms of their agreement with the three companies, the fruits of the research will be nonproprietary and freely licensed. Each company has agreed to support the project with $500,000 annually for five years. Although the companies are frequently rivals and only occasionally allies, they have concluded that they can operate most effectively by bringing technology innovations to market quickly."

Science on Web/Awards

Journalism.co.uk: Newscientist.com scoops top editorial award

"Newscientist.com editor Damian Carrington has been awarded web editor of the year at the 2005 British Society of Magazine Editors awards. Mr Carrington, who previously worked at BBC News Online, was praised by judges for the speed and quality of Newscientist.com - now one of the most popular science websites in the world. Since Mr Carrington helped launch Newscientist.com in 2000, traffic has risen to more than 1.7 million unique users each month and the web team is about to recruit its eighth editorial team member."

New Dot-com Bubbles and Media

OJR: Is the bubble back in online media?

"Venture capitalists and Big Media are showing intense interest in blogs, social media and highly trafficked content sites. Are we reliving dot-com mania?"

Worth of Watching Columns/Tech/FT

FT

"The Worth watching column follows some of the most promising new developments in industry emerging from fields such as nanotechnology, chemistry, geology, physics, healthcare and information technology. Regular contributors to Worth watching include Jonathan Loades-Carter and Malini Guha."

A car that can make its own fuel

Music for the deaf

Virtual input pen

VTT, a Finnish research centre, has developed a technology that could take the pain out of keeping mobile accessories - such as phones and laptops - secure if they end up in the wrong hands.

China/Universities/Innovations

NY Times: China Luring Scholars to Make Universities Great

"China is focusing on science and technology, areas that reflect the country's development needs but also reflect the preferences of an authoritarian system that restricts speech. The liberal arts often involve critical thinking about politics, economics and history, and China's government, which strictly limits public debate, has placed relatively little emphasis on achieving international status in those subjects. In fact, Chinese say - most often euphemistically and indirectly - that those very restrictions on academic debate could hamper efforts to create world-class universities."

"Students here are not encouraged to challenge authority or received wisdom. For some, that helps explain why China has never won a Nobel Prize. What is needed most now, some of China's best scholars say, are bold, original thinkers."The greatest thing we've done in the last 20 years is lift 200 million people out of poverty," said Dr. Xu. "What China has not realized yet, though, if it truly wants to go to the next level, is to understand that numbers are not enough. We need a new revolution to get us away from a culture that prizes becoming government officials. We must learn to reward real innovation, independent thought and genuine scholarly work."

Technology & Fashion

MediaWeek: Future unveils Gadgetcandy.com

"Future Publishing has launched Gadgetcandy.com, a new website to target women with a mix of fashion and technology."