Thinking About Technocracy

Cyberocracy?  See iRevolution’s article here.

I’m curious if there are any technocratic software tools out there in the open source world such as means of implementing energy accounting or other similar processes on a wide scale?

I got this via a blurb at BreakthroughAlerts.com.  It’s published at ICT Results and covers the seemingly rapid rise of the eTEN system.  While the hosannas are rolling in, I must say that nothing about eTEN strikes me as particularly new or interesting.  They have systemized their product quite well into something governments can absorb and purchase.  Whether that is good or bad depends on one’s perspective.  Maybe I’m being too snarky about this.  Product use often leads to open systems copies and broader acceptance even if the sort of product developed was originally more along open access lines.

A currently for sale product that promises to handle customers with AI: SmartAction

HT to BreakthroughAlert.com

I found this paper on the Terra Nova blog.  It’s by Mira Burri-Nenova of the World Trade Institute.  Greg Lastowka of Rutgers is right in giving high praise to the paper…it has a number of innovative approaches to user generated content and the implications.  I’d rate it as essential reading in a contemporary technocrat’s library.

Reference:

Burri-Nenova, Mira,User Created Content in Virtual Worlds and Cultural Diversity(January 1, 2009). NCCR Trade Regulation Working Paper No. 2009/1. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1316847

Livingston Buzz covers MIT Media Lab research in Alex Pentland’s book, Honest Signals, on evaluating social media participation for value of content.  It’s a very interesting article and highly recommended.  I haven’t seen Honest Signals, but I will keep an eye out for it.  It’s under $15 at Amazon US.  Geoff Livingston provides the link there.

As we move toward a semantic web, the prospects for technocracy increase markedly.  John Breslin is certainly at the forefront and Sebastien Wiertz provides the link to the interview.  Breslin’s SIOC is essential reading for knowledge management, information worker and Web 2-3.x types.