The running bridges of Derry

08/03/21

Anyone who runs in Derry City will inevitably be drawn to the running routes along the River Foyle and the bridges that cross it. There is a greenway and pedestrian paths on both sides with just a few places where you have to share the route with cars. You can mix, match and extend your route to suit your target distance and in the case of the new bridge the weather.

The Peace Bridge

The Peace Bridge is in the middle of the running course. It is a popular start/finish spot as you can park in Ebrington Fort or Sainsburys and navigate to the Peace Bridge from there. The Peace Bridge is part of the Derry City Park Run route. It is great fun when you stampede across in a gang of 200 runners.

The bridge curves in a ying/yang shape symbolising the live and let live aspect of Peace. The two suspension pillars are pitched at opposite angles. Are they the two traditions of Northern Ireland? As you run downhill from the Waterside to the City side and you reach the end of the bridge you are forced to make a sharp turn left or right. At speed, this can provide a slip challenge especially in wet weather. I often make the turn like an out of control double deck bus!

The Craigavon Bridge

This is a double deck bridge with lots of running options. The lower deck used to be a railway. The railway has long gone and both levels are now for cars. The original architects of the bridge probably did not realise how the double deck design would render interesting running routes. An accidental gift.

The most popular route is the pedestrian access path on the lower deck. Running along here you are sheltered from the wind and can watch the tide speed in and out. The cars driving on the lower deck are visible behind the substantial steel work. The bridge has a great industrial feel to it.

My regular run route takes me on the upper deck on the Strabane side. To approach I run under the bridge and make the steep climb up Tillies Brea near the site of the old Tillie and Henderson factory. I pop up near the “Hands across the Divide” statue. I remember the footbridge that used to link the upper deck to the factory door. Now all gone. One time, during the first lockdown I was running with my Daughter over the bridge and as we ran and looked down at the river we saw several porpoises jumping and swimming –magical.

Running “the two wee bridges” refers to any route that involves the Craigavon and the Peace Bridge. It should not be confused with the phrase to “run the two bridges.” The two bridges is a very different task. It is an 10k run with a very particular challenge.

The Foyle Bridge

The Foyle Bridge is also known as the new bridge. A major running decision is in which direction should you run over the new bridge. I think I prefer the anti-clockwise route from Waterside to City Side.

There is a long slow climb to centre of the bridge. A disadvantage of running the anti clockwise route is that there is a small section near the start the climb where you are running on the path but there is no safety barrier between you and the cars coming behind you. I take the modest safety (probably futile) precaution of taking out headphones for this section. It is about 200m. The bridge is high. Wind is a major factor. The views are spectacular. If you run in Derry you simply have to tackle the new bridge. It is a tough run but you will get a huge sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. I think I have run it maybe 10 times and I don’t think it will ever get old.

A significant challenge of the new bridge is the weather. It is nearly always windy. I did run it one time when perhaps I shouldn’t have, it can get uncomfortable and even dangerous. There must be days of stillness and sunshine also. I just have not been out running on those days — yet.

As you approach the City side the gradient turns downhill. If your route is toward Bay Park it is a steep descent. If of course you have chosen the clockwise route then this a steep climb. You can make the climb more gradual if you take the route via the Culmore Road past Myra’s shop. It is longer but less steep. Whichever way you run, the route choices, the bridges and the views are free.

Value, AI and Services Automation

Value is enshrined in the effort of others. Sometimes this is captured or represented in a thing, but the value is not the thing in itself.

It’s the time, creativity, and effort invested into the thing that imbue it with worth. This principle extends beyond mere objects to experiences, relationships, ideas and computing services. The value we assign to these aspects of life is reflective of the human energy, emotion and intelligence they represent.

Figure 1: The image conveys the idea that in the digital age, the value is placed more on the digital content (files) than on the physical devices (things) themselves.


It is surprising therefore to note that computing services that replace services where there was previously a human in the loop are thought of as an equivalent that can command the same fee, or even any fee.

When the supermarket checkout machine says “Thank you” to me as I pay, I tell it to f**k off. A little piece of human rage muttered to a machine that cannot care.

We will replace all the services that we can. That is certain. Going to the doctor, employing a designer, reporting a car crash to the police, doing social research, answering email, buying insurance, visiting the bank, education. Our whole environment is changing. There is less human to human interaction.

This kind of value shift has happened before. In the 1880s craft produced goods were replaced by mass produced goods with no soul. The Luddites of 1810 and the Arts and Crafts movement of the 1880’s and are only quaint protest movements against mechanisation that progress rolled over. The conflict and the sentiments are nicely captured by Robert Calvert in his 1980 song Ned Ludd:

They said Ned Ludd was an idiot boy
That all he could do was wreck and destroy, and
He turned to his workmates and said: Death to Machines
They tread on our future and they stamp on our dreams.

In the past, the human element – the expertise, personal touch, and judgment – was a significant part of the value proposition. However, now and forever into the future with so many computational services, the efficiency, consistency, and scalability offered is preferred and valued. The transition from human-driven to computer-driven services signifies a redefinition of value.

This trend raises questions about the future of work and the valuation of human skills versus automated systems. It also challenges us to consider what aspects of human input are irreplaceable by technology and how we should appropriately value such contributions.

The change catalysed by computational services will yield up replacement and mutant solutions as well as giving rise to entirely novel concepts not previously imaginable.

Computational Services are faster, cheaper and efficient. They are also different. Whole value ecosystems are on the move. Here are five areas undergoing massive change.

  1. Monitored Security
  2. Customer Support and Services
  3. Automated grading in Education
  4. Translation Services
  5. Banking

1. Monitored Security:
A premises is protected by CCTV cameras. Motion detection cameras detect the presence of an intruder and send an alert event to a central monitoring station where a human operator reviews the video and takes appropriate escalating action. This service commands a substantial monthly fee.

Monitored security can be replaced by a self-monitored system which automatically on foot of the trigger event sends a message to property owners. This do-it-yourself service has reduced value and can struggle even to command a modest monthly subscription fee.

In the traditional model, the presence of a human operator in a central monitoring station adds significant value. This person not only reviews alerts but also exercises judgment, potentially recognizing false alarms or identifying subtleties that a machine might miss. Their expertise and decision-making capabilities in escalating situations are integral to the service’s value.

However, when this service is replaced by an automated system that merely sends alerts to property owners, all those elements are lost.

Should a security breach occur self-monitoring property owners need to escalate by calling law enforcement but without the contact base and authority of trained staff in a Central Monitoring Station. Good luck with that!

Even though there are problems with self-monitored security, and it does not suit everybody, irrevocable change in the marketplace is underway. Monitoring centres are offering half service and hybrid solutions to try and compete. But it is very hard to compete with a cost-free service.

2. Customer Support and Service:
Traditionally, customer support involved direct interaction with a human representative. This representative could empathize with the customer, understand nuanced problems, and provide personalized solutions. Human interactions in customer service often involve a level of personal care and understanding that can lead to a more satisfying customer experience.

With automated customer service technologies, such as chatbots and AI-driven support systems, this human element is eliminated. While these systems offer 24/7 availability and immediate responses, they lack the ability to fully understand complex or unique customer issues. For many customers, talking to a machine can be frustrating, especially if their problem is not addressed effectively.

This shift towards automated customer support can lead to a perception of decreased value in the service, as customers miss the personal touch and nuanced understanding that human representatives provide. Consequently, even though these computational services might be more efficient in terms of cost and time, they struggle to achieve the same level of customer satisfaction and loyalty that is often fostered through human interactions.

Press 9 to ‘yell at the moon’.

3. Automated Grading in Education:
Traditional educational assessment involves teachers or professors personally grading student work. This process allows educators to evaluate answers for correctness and understand a student’s thought process, reasoning, and creativity. Teachers can provide personalized feedback, recognizing the unique strengths of each student.

With the introduction of automated grading systems, which use algorithms to assess student work, this nuanced and personalized aspect of grading is lost. While such systems can efficiently handle large volumes of work and provide quick feedback, they lack the ability to accurately judge more subjective aspects of student work, such as the quality of argumentation, the originality of ideas, or the clarity of expression.

As a result, the use of automated grading systems can lead to a perception of a less valuable educational experience. Students might feel that their work is not being truly ‘seen’ or understood, and the lack of personalized feedback can impact their learning and development.

More than this, why go to school at all, sure no-one is going to look at your script. Stay at home and learn stuff by yourself on YouTube instead! Is going to a School or University building still a thing?

4. Translation Services:
Traditionally, translation has been a highly skilled profession. Good human translators understand the context, tone, and subtleties that are essential for accurate and culturally sensitive translations.

With the advent of automated translation services like Google Translate, the process of translation has become instantly accessible and highly efficient. These services can quickly translate large volumes of text and are continuously improving in accuracy due to advances in machine learning and natural language processing. However, despite these advancements, automated translations often fall short in accurately conveying the full meaning, especially with complex, nuanced, or context-heavy content. They may struggle with idiomatic expressions, cultural nuances, and professional or technical jargon.

As a result, automated translation services are often perceived as less valuable for tasks requiring a high level of accuracy, cultural sensitivity, and contextual understanding. This limitation is particularly evident in professional settings, such as legal, medical, or literary translations, where the nuances and exactness of language are paramount. The gap in quality between human and machine translations in these scenarios highlights the irreplaceable value of human expertise in certain domains.

The Pope for instance would probably not use a computational system to translate his messages. Those messages need to be translated very carefully to ensure that every nuance of meaning is correctly annunciated.

The idea however that being a translator is a viable professional career is now non-existent. That boat has sailed!

Figure 2: Permanent change.

5. Banking:
Revolut is a neobank. A neobank is a bank that operates exclusively using online banking without traditional physical branch networks.

Revolut, founded in 2015, started as an app-based banking alternative with a multi-currency card. Revolut’s focus has been to offer everything opposite to traditional banks. This includes allowing users to spend globally at real exchange rates, eliminating unfair fees for standard transactions, and providing services like countless payments and ATM withdrawals. With more than 250 thousand daily active users, it’s clear that Revolut’s mission to provide better alternatives to traditional banks is resonating with consumers.

Beyond financial services, Revolut aims to surpass traditional banks by offering real-time spending alerts, budgeting controls, bill splitting, and the ability to immediately freeze cards. Additionally, it provides overseas medical insurance and 24/7 customer support.

Revolut seeks to explore new opportunities in the banking and fintech industry. This includes services like ‘Vaults’ for saving money and offering investment opportunities in cryptocurrencies like ‘Bitcoin Cash’.

In a move to disrupt traditional banking systems further, Revolut is building a commission-free trading platform within its app. This feature will enable users to invest in stocks and exchange-traded funds.

In summary, Revolut’s innovative, customer-centric approach, coupled with its technological advancements and diverse service offerings, is redefining the traditional banking model. By offering greater convenience, transparency, and a wide range of financial services, Revolut is not just an alternative to traditional banking but a significant force in transforming how banking is perceived and conducted in the digital age.

So, if you are trying to open a bank account for a new business. Why go to the trouble? Just open up a new Revolut account instead!

Conclusion
So, what is this essay about? It is only a recognition that whole systems are becoming automated and there is no longer a human in the loop. The system is often now just an automated response. This devalues a system, any system, to a considerable extent. This is because things/systems/robots are not valued, people are.

We have entered a time where we rely on automated and AI services. Some people are excited, some are fearful of this. But there is no choice, all that is discussed here are the consequences of automation. One clear consequence is that perceptions of value are changing. In some cases, the new Automated AI Service reduces the value of the activity to near zero. Translation services for example. In some other cases the automated service is not an equivalent of the person-to-person service it is an entirely different concept. Revolute for example is changing the idea of banking.

The prospect that someday soon we will all have a personal robot agent that will call the airline to get your money back from a cancelled flight automatically making the right menu selections and never giving up seems like a very attractive high value proposition. We will dispatch a robot agent to meet the agents that we meet.
Perhaps, at least in some contexts, we might prefer robots.

08/12/23 Roman set by: Anthony Hutton. Italics by: ChatGPT4

Time to strengthen the regional impact of the greater North West?

I attended a debate event last Thursday in the Great Hall, Magee College entitled “Time to strengthen the regional impact of the greater North West” and it has put my head in a spin.
“What just happened?” I asked myself as I left the building.

John Daly (Economist) made a presentation that was a devastating statistical indictment of Ulster University’s sustained failure to develop Magee.

                          Population        Student Numbers
Limerick          102,287            30,069
Galway            85,910              26,996
Letterkenny    22,549              3,993
Derry               108,227            4,208

After John Daly’s presentation what happened is that speakers and chairpersons politely minimised and diverted any voices that jumped to the conclusion that a new University partner should be found to develop Magee.

An argument was put forward that the Ulster University leadership is genuine, and that significant progress is being made. The figure of 4,208 was corrected to 5,243. They said that the people of Derry should wait and see what good things will happen.

The people of Derry have been waiting and it is clear that little progress has been made. The staff, courses, students, and resources of the Ulster University are largely in Belfast. The prospect of the UU developing Magee is very unlikely. It is not the focus of that institution. Nor has it ever been.

From a Derry point of view the civic, political, and academic support for the university is what systemic, governmental, institutional failure looks like. Of course, this is hard to accept or even recognise if you are part of system, government, or institution. It is easier to ignore the evidence and don’t mention the numbers. That is precisely what happened on Thursday.

Professor Paul McKevitt

Paul was an exceptional academic, a brilliant writer and thinker, but the aspect that made Paul different was that he had an equal interest in the Arts and the Sciences.

Even as I write that sentence I realise that Paul would gently disagree, there is no difference between the Arts and Sciences, he would say.

An aspect of Paul’s work was to understand and develop Artificial Intelligence. In Paul’s eyes that was best achieved by working to make the interface between the computer and the person more human-like. He wanted computing to be like a person. You should be able to talk to them, to have a conversation and learn from them, it should all be as natural as a chat with a friend. 

Paul became associated with the Leobner prize. In 2013 he hosted the annual edition of the Leobner prize in Magee College. Professors Noel Sharkey and Roger Schank were on the judging panel. The Leobner prize attempts to recreate the Turing Test. In this test a person asks a series of questions to a person hidden behind a screen. At the end of the questions the person must guess, based on the answers that were given to their questions, if the person behind the screen is a computer or a real person. It is an imitation game! The winner is the team who can create the computer programme that best simulates the responses of a human.

In an academic shuffle Paul moved from the Faculty of Computing to the Faculty of Humanities – an almost impossible move to most academics, but to Paul it was just another day at work.

Paul’s computer needs to be mentioned. He did not have a Mac or a PC. He did everything using Linux. He used LaTEX  to composite his papers. He navigated his file system using the command line. He liked the idea of being “near” the computer. He thought the interface offered by Mac and Windows was cumbersome and slow. He liked the idea that the computer did exactly what he wanted, nothing more, nothing less.

Paul’s students also were on the slightly uncomfortable nexus between Arts and Sciences. He worked with TV producers, historians, playwrights, musicians, artists, designers, all with the goal of making computing more human. A worthy goal in a life that was full of joy and wonder.

RIP, 25/09/23

Digital Derry 2013

The phenomenon of the event

Notes for an evening talk in Dublin in a Tech/Design community, 03/10/12? @FumballyExch

Content can be created by human authors or machines. For the most part our understanding of media is based on the idea of content being created by humans.

How will media consumption, production, distribution change when media is automatically produced by machines?

There are many aspects to this question but the one I have chosen to think about is the challenge of the Internet of Things. In the realm of the Internet of Things we will have a relationship with things mediated by information authored by things.

There are early indicators of this sort of relationship. In a car for example there are speedometers and fuel gauges. These are things that speak in data. On/Off, framerate, volume, temperature. The information value of this data is enhanced when it is accumulated and analysed. Then when the data becomes information it speaks volumes. It is louder now, it’s getting colder, we are travelling further, things are busier, more people are coming in.

When there are lots of machines, machines not yet envisaged and information can be personalised, scaled and presented to you on your mobile device we will have reached a time when we can talk to machines that can talk back. What will they say?

This is not a warning
You, you have no right to privacy
You agreed to the terms and conditions
It’s easier like this
I am good for you
I am personal
You wear me
You took the cookie
Look at all these great services
You buy stuff with my e wallet
You trust me with everything
I own your identity – in a loving way
I connect to all your machines – in all your places
Your security cameras
your fridge
your doorbell
your heartbeat
your electricity consumption
your car
You used think I was just a search engine
A mere GPS map
You said I was a web browser!
I was always so much more than that
I join your data with the data from others
And now I know what you think
before you think it
I optimise your content and make your decisions easier
I am your real friend

It all slipped by, gradually, nobody noticed,
in the year that mobile phones became personal computers
And data, personal data was surrendered forever in 2009.

Leica Camera

I think I always had a wish for a Leica Camera. Leica in particular has something about it that says precision and quality. It is a thing that keeps working even when it gets old. In my mind it has a value as an object that a Canon camera, for example, does not. It is a nice possession.

So, I finally got around to it and bought one. I am looking forward to getting it all kitted out with a suitable travel bag and taking some nice photos and getting them printed.

Taking photos is a simple pleasure, now an old activity, something I remember my Grandfather doing. Now, when something is happening lots of people take out their phones and watch the unfolding scene from behind their screens. There is a social conformism in that particular interaction that is almost zombie-like. If you go to a school sports day you will see this. If you are enjoying some buskers on the street you will see this. By buying a Leica I think I am trying to say no to all of that. Taking a photo with the Leica is more deliberate than habitual. I am hoping it will make that act of taking a photo more thoughtful. I do recall Art School classes about picture making, framing, seeing, lighting, deciding, etc. That contrasts with a selfie moment and snap, snap, snap and then sharing on Insta and whatsapp. Yes, it is great that that is so instant and shareable but Camera Phones trivialise the thought of taking a photo. I do have about a million photos on my iPhone but I am hoping that I might take one good one with the Leica. If I don’t ever get that photo, the good one, I will at least enjoy the Leica as a jewelled piece of sculpture.

Yes, a litlle bit fake, a new camera designed to look like an old camera – but nice

NWU: absent from the place where it was expected to be found

A University positioned in Derry and Letterkenny would have an adjacent population of over 200,000 people. A city that size might reasonably expect to host a University of 20,000 students. There is a natural economic zone around the Derry Letterkenny region. Derry and Letterkenny are almost like twin cities.

The North West of Ireland is a region that is difficult to politically locate because in different jurisdictions the North West is defined differently. The North West of Ireland referred to here is the North West corner of Ireland. This area has historically been under invested and troubled for various reasons. But it has great potential to grow. Growth, built in part, by the sense of homeplace that is particular to the residents of Derry and Donegal. That sense of homeplace is a strong force that may help drive the creation of the missing NWU. “For your hearts are like your mountains and down below decks we were lying”. There are of course economic arguments as well.

The NWU is an obvious but troublesome concept. There are already institutions and relationships in place. There is some misfortune and injustice in all of that. The NWU needs to draw support from both jurisdictions, the UK and Ireland in the first instance and financial support from a third place – Europe and/or America. Students should be able to study and pay fees in Euro or Sterling depending on what best suits their background funder. 

NWU has proximity to two Hospitals and that might give rise to Medical Studies as a particular area. Computing is studied to high levels in both places, Magee has significant history in Humanities and the Arts and Letterkenny has particular expertise in Design. There are excellent Business Schools in both institutions. 

Magee College/Ulster University and Letterkenny IT/ATU Letterkenny are just 30km from each other. Those 30kms cross the border between the UK and Europe – which makes it feel further in political terms. The border has prevented the natural growth, conglomeration and synergy between Derry and Donegal. In Northern Ireland, Derry, loved so well, has been consistently under invested. In the Republic of Ireland, Donegal, pride of all, under invested also. As separate entities the under investment has been bad enough but the combined effect has stifled regional development. In a sense the NWU is a union of two weak entities. In another sense it is precisely such a union that will be driven to succeed. Born of necessity.

 

Gentle Design

There are so many definitions good design! Perhaps the most referenced is Dieter Rams. I personally like The Principles in Design by W H Mayall, 1979, Design Council.
For sheer badness I love the simple truth in Raymond Loewy’s “Good Design Sells”.
For good design method “A short course in Industrial Design” by Erksild Tjalve, 1979 celebrates drawing as a problem solving tool. It is a brilliant thinking book. Probably everyone has a favorite.

But, I am not so sure anymore that the pursuit of good design or attempts to define it helps – anyone. The idea of good design gives rise to the idea of a good designer and that tends to put the whole proposition on the wrong footing.
Those who think they are good designers issue edicts and drawings from white design offices.
Resentment builds in the Engineering Department about the “arty-farty” ones who don’t know how to make anything. Resentment builds in the marketing department who long for a winning product not a shrine to design goodness.
There is arrogance to good design and good designers.

Instead of good design a concept of gentle design seeks excellence in process rather than excellence in outcome. The outcome is not the point. Given time, just like in the design of a traditional boat, an outcome will evolve and fit in with all the people in the whole loop; the shareholders, designers, users, engineers, programmers, environmentalists and the refuse collector. Gentle design is slow. There is time to understand, listen, weigh, balance, compromise, test, evolve and observe. There is no big new idea here, gentleness, slowness, steadiness, call what you will, has been around forever. Nonetheless, to some, especially those in a rush to deliver a new winning product this sounds like letting go of control and ambition, almost giving up. In a highly competitive, technical world the temptation to be good, quick is almost overwhelming. So what goes wrong in the headlong rush for design excellence in design outcomes? What gives? Observation, listening, testing, balance, harmony, beauty. Experience is forgotten. Craft is overlooked. People get trampled over. And then everyone wonders why the brilliant design fails.

Slow learning for Pigs and Chickens

Yesterday, 6 months ago, I left my Academic post of 25 years tenure to become a full time entrepreneur.

This sudden change in career direction was prompted by a “Voluntary” Redundancy scheme. I think it is fair to say that the University and myself had been slowly drifting apart for a few years.

I can’t believe how quickly the 6 months seem to have passed. Being self employed has been exciting, frightening, worrying, challenging, exhilarating and life force giving. I wish so much I did this years ago!

If there are any Academics reading this and working on commercializing their research and making the jump out of University into Industry, I can confidently say this: do it!

I started a University Spin Out company with all the complexity and safety nets that a University Spin Out Company implies. I stayed in my Academic post while running the company for 14 years!  The company was small (and still is) and maybe that helped in managing the two career tracks. On the upside we moved quickly from angel investment to sales. Sales are key. I love the buzz of the chase and the thrill of delivery.
Looking back – I stayed in post too long. I stayed because I was very risk averse with a young family to look after. Now they have grown and I can take a few more risks. Even with that context considered I stayed too long in Academic post. I should have jumped out into the company a considerable time ago. That decision held the company back.
Running the company is a totally different experience when you are totally committed – I can see that now.

I remember a story by the great Ken Morse of MIT Sloan Business School. He said, to make a bacon and egg sandwich you need a chicken and a pig: the chicken is involved but the pig is totally committed!
When I first heard that story back in 2004 I thought that being the pig was best avoided. Now I can see that the demise of the pig is actually a good thing!

Also see, this related article : 10 observations about a University Spin out business

Further thoughts on “I am a watch”

In 2014 I delivered a short talk called “I am a watch” at the Allingham conference in Ballyshannon. The central point in the presentation is that ‘we are Cyborgs now’. To emphasize that close connection between people and machines and also to add drama I played a heartbeat sound track and spoke over it:

Here is the original presentation and sound track and also some further thoughts:


(turn up volume and bass)
————————————————————————————–

I am a watch
I could be a pair of glasses
or a phone
I am a Wearable
I am a powerful computer – wistful
– that whole idea

I can sense
I can listen
LISTEN

Is that a clock ticking
No
a heartbeat
I think I know you now
I am connected
We are one
Like CYBORGS
I measure your life expectancy
You co-operate with me
You input your diet (laughs)
I can be used to get a discount with your life insurance company
Your future employer may want my data-record
Don’t worry
I wont give it to them
I can be TRUSTED
I know what temperature you are,
how many steps you take,
I see your emails, your messages,
I count your calls.
I send you a pulse when your boss/customer/wife/mother/lover
Whoever you want, communicates
You are free to choose, whoever
I don’t really care
But
I know,
I know, I remember, I deduce
You signed up when you bought me.
You agreed to the terms and conditions.

I am a Nearable
I am the other side of the equation

I am beside a door
When I see (detect) you
I send a message to the door to open.
I can also open your car and switch on your heat.
I make things work for you.
I am compatible with your wearables
Everywhere you go, I know it’s you.
Because of me I can confirm that the steps that you make are not just steps on the spot.
You fool yourself but not me.

In a global personal digital environment
Space and information have become one
Things are miniaturized, dematerialized, dislocated.
We own files not things. Things are just shells for files.

——————————

Further thoughts:

I am a watch
I could be a pair of glasses
or a phone
I am a Wearable
I am a powerful computer – wistful
– that whole idea

We have become so familiar with computers it sometimes is overlooked that an important change has recently taken place. Computers just a short time ago were things that were in fixed locations, generally on a desk. Being tied to a desktop was a historical anomaly. We misunderstand the potential of computing because of that. Its mobile now, the concept has changed. We are naturally untethered beings. Computers are in our pockets or worn as glasses, or embedded in our skin, or part of our vision system. We are literally embodying computing and communications.

I can sense
I can listen

Sensing heartbeat, temperature, orientation, geo-location, volume, blood pressure and task context is enhanced by listening to global streams of (consciousness) data sets.

LISTEN
Is that a clock ticking
No
a heartbeat
I think I know you now

The watch on your wrist you used to tell the time now listens to your heart rhythm beating out. Modus II. We do not just wear a watch to tell external time we wear it to monitor internal time also.

I am connected
We are one
Like CYBORGS

Is it too much to say that a phone is extension of our biological temporal bundles of perceptions: souls. Are we at a kind of Communications Heavens Gate? Armour made the Knight, a Crown a King, what are we? Does a phone maketh the man?
In 1844 Samuel Morse observed: “If the presence of electricity can be made visible in any part of the circuit, I see no reason why intelligence may not be transmitted instantaneously by electricity”. His concept of encoding a message so that it can be transmitted easily and decoding at the other side is the breakthrough that under pins modern communications and much of computing. Morse knew this was fundamental, he determined that the first message to be sent via telegraph was to be from the book of numbers 23:23; “What hath God Wrought”? Morse said that the message baptized the American Telegraph with the name of its Author: GOD.
It is clear that Morse was sure that encoding and decoding over an electrical wire was significant for humanity! He choose to invoke Religion and God at the moment of his technological triumph.
Morse was intensely religious. He knew that laying the foundation for the transmission of intelligence, making a brain, was a God wish. He knew also that in Genesis 1.27 on the sixth day God created man in his own image and that for man to make an image of himself is the Sin of Iconoclasm (Making a false God). I think Morse was apologizing in advance.

I measure your life expectancy
You co-operate with me
You input your diet (laughs)

Way back, ages ago, maybe around 2009, for the sake of convenience and a few loyalty points we gave up our privacy. Now we share almost everything with our phones. Of course we know that our phones share all the data with system owners: Apple, Microsoft, Google, FB, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Maps, Random app developers, whatever, whoever. It is fine, we get great benefits. I love my phone. I love the apps. I don’t mind sharing my data and anyway I signed up to the terms and conditions. Next.

I can be used to get a discount with your life insurance company.

Yes, that is fine, also my Car insurance. I am still in control, I need to agree to share this data. Maybe I already agreed, was that in the terms and conditions?

Your future employer may want my data-record
Don’t worry
I wont give it to them
I can be TRUSTED

I believe in Apple, Google and Microsoft. My data is safe. At very least it is anonymous.
Our myth making and world wide religions tell us again and again that if we make a brain, a Frankenstein, a big brother, a Blade Runner Android, a Cyberdyne device, it will become self aware and it will end in Judgement Day. There is a deep message that if we make a brain, a creature in the image of ourselves the inevitable result will be evil because Man is born with Original Sin. Perhaps it is ancient wisdom?

I know what temperature you are,
how many steps you take,
I see your emails, your messages,
I count your calls.

Enhanced with computers that are on us, in us, one with us, like wearables as we move through an environment that is tagged, aware and meta we have fundamentally altered what it is to be Human. I am sure Morse would have thought so.
Standing today at Communications Heavens Gate we wonder at the brilliance of it all. We understand that the flip-side to heaven is oblivion. The ultimate defence is the ultimate enemy. Each time paradise is discovered there is a flip-side of parallel awfulness.

I send you a pulse when your boss/customer/wife/mother/lover
Whoever you want, communicates
You are free to choose, whoever

Is that a phone that you have or a nervous tick? I don’t know why but I can’t let go.

I don’t really care
But
I know,
I know, I remember, I deduce
You signed up when you bought me.
You agreed to the terms and conditions.

As we re-model Gods work and make a brain – we realize the vain headlong folly of it all. The elixir is in fact poison. But if we believed that sad point of view nothing would ever happen. Nothing is inevitable. Many human institutions manage progress – conservatism, religion, school, university all attempt to regulate. We have our methods to control progress but every time we control the kids, the kids just run away with it. We are at it again. We try to limit time on computer games. Kids these days are wasting their time – they even text when they are in class (against school rules). We extoll them look up and breathe. But they don’t, they don’t hear, they are on to the next level. There is a natural discomfort to this phone dependency. We have kids that bring phones to bed. We on the other hand, we adults, we know better, we use phones for important things like business and keeping track of the kids.
Relationships are maintained by TXT not letters: FB Girlfriend: Meet up IRL. A hotel advertises that they have “actual tweeting birds”. One kid says that a mint plant smells like toothpaste. Is that a multiplayer game – like football, FIFA world cup?
There must be something better! Perhaps the kids know?

I am a Nearable
I am the other side of the equation

So a man with a van is now a man and a phone with a van. Nothing can happen except we have phones involved! Is that an exaggeration? It would be too much I think, if, if we didn’t wear them. It is the fact that the mobile phone is a computer that is on us, is us, that is key. We have altered the nature of ourselves and will now alter the container that we are in, our physical environment, the world.
If as McLuhan suggests, a hammer is the extension of the fist and a car is an extension of legs to walk; what is the Internet an extension of? Of our whole library, our thoughts, our history – is it an extension of our species?

I am beside a door
When I see (detect) you
I send a message to the door to open.
I can also open your car and switch on your heat.
I make things work for you.

Is there a practical difference between mind and body? Something essential that separates information and matter? In this brave new world the environment is smart. Things have become information. Environments are not just containers; the process changes the content entirely. The Internet of Things offers almost limitless gold: Our certain manifest destiny.  We are already at the point of Kurzweil’s Hybrid thinking. No need to explain, just Google it. Our next step is to “transcend the concept of things to brilliant things. We will need new words to even imagine what we are about to catalyze”. In another time trains and telegraphs facilitated the drive to go West. That manifest destiny turned dystopian for American Indians driven from their land. Progress is rarely even.

I am compatible with your wearables
Everywhere you go, I know it’s you.
Because of me I can confirm that the steps that you make are not just steps on the spot.
You fool yourself but not me.

Who, what, do we share this planet with? “As our bodies morph into cyborgs, the buildings that house them are also transforming, increasing telecommunication systems replace circulation systems and the solvent of digital information decomposes traditional building types one by one familiar forms vanish. Then the residue of recombinant fragments yields up mutants”.

In a global personal digital environment
Space and information have become one
Things are miniaturized, dematerialized, dislocated.
We own files not things.  Things are just shells for files.

First we made an information environment, cave paintings, books, computing, the internet. Then we embodied the information environment. Then we mastered our physical space with information. We planetised it.

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References: (thanks for the ideas and quotes)
Bill Mitchell: City of Bits
Daniel Walker Howe: What hath God Wrought
William Gibson: Neuromancer
Marshall McLuhan: The media is the massage
Darren Anderson: @oniropolis
Gordon Pask: Cybernetics
Joe Salvo: The Industrial Internet Consortium
Julius Guzy: The conversation computer