Governing by internet architecture

In the past thirty years, the exponential rise in the number of Internet users around the word and the intensive use of the digital networks have brought to light crucial political issues. Internet is now the object of regulations. Namely, it is a policy domain. Yet, its own architecture represents a new regulative structure, one deeply affecting politics and everyday life. This article considers some of the main transformations of the Internet induced by privatization and militarization processes, as well as their consequences on societies and human beings.En los últimos treinta años ha crecido de manera exponencial el número de usuarios de Internet alrededor del mundo y el uso intensivo de conexiones digitales ha traído a la luz cuestiones políticas cruciales. Internet es ahora objeto de regulaciones. Es decir, es un ámbito de la política. Aún su propia arquitectura representa una nueva estructura reguladora, que afecta profundamente la política y la vida cotidiana. Este artículo considera algunas de las principales transformaciones de Internet inducida por procesos de privatización y militarización, como también sus consecuencias en las sociedades y en los seres humanos

Let them eat laptops: the limits of technicism

Nicholas Negroponte, the MIT Media Labs 'onlie begeter' and one of digital techonologies most persuasive salespersons, has a new project. With undeniable logic and unimpreachable intentions he wishes every Third World child to be given a laptop. His reasoning is that without education, all other attempts at development are doomed to fail and that since education can be accomplished by computers, the way to make good its grievous failings in the South is with computers. He has therefore developed an elegant device of considerable sophistication but great ease of use – a brightly-coloured, plasticencased clockwork-powered computer which costs (or rather, he promises, will cost) around $100. This contrivence, a toy in appearance but a serious machine in operation, is what he intends to give away in millions and, according to his own publicity, he has already apparently had great success both in persuading Southern governments – Rwanda, Libya, Uraguay – and manufacturers – Quanta Computers -- to back his scheme. Negroponte's website is somewhat coy about how much money the initiative will involve but the budget is clearly in the order of billions: two billion children in the developing world x$100 a machine. Seed money alone -- from the likes of eBay, Google and Norstar, all at $2 million each -- would seem to exceed$12 million

Electronics and control technology

Until recently, there was no requirement to learn electronics and control technology in the New Zealand school curriculum. Apart from isolated pockets of teaching based on the enthusiasm of individual teachers, there is very little direct learning of electronics in New Zealand primary or secondary schools. The learning of electronics is located in tertiary vocational training programmes. Thus, few school students learn about electronics and few school teachers have experience in teaching it. Lack of experience with electronics (other than using its products) has contributed to a commonly held view of electronics as out of the control and intellectual grasp of the average person; the domain of the engineer, programmer and enthusiast with his or her special aptitude. This need not be true, but teachers' and parents' lack of experience with electronics is in danger of denying young learners access to the mainstream of modern technology