Nathan Taylor

Why a new Star Trek is a bad idea, even though a new Star Wars is fine. Science Fiction ≠ Fantasy.

(note: no spoilers below! I haven’t even seen the new Star Wars movie yet.) As mentioned in an earlier post, a few years ago my son came home from school saying Darth Vader was Luke’s father. The problem? He hadn’t seen Star Wars. Grade school playgrounds being the source of many hard truths. As good parents we soon watched… Continue reading Why a new Star Trek is a bad idea, even though a new Star Wars is fine. Science Fiction ≠ Fantasy.

Since cars replaced horses, won’t robots replace people? The future of technological unemployment.

My favorite analogy for understanding technological unemployment is “peak horse.” Below is the version told in Greg Clark’s book A Farewell to Alms: there was a type of employee at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution whose job and livelihood largely vanished in the early twentieth century. This was the horse. The population of working horses actually peaked in… Continue reading Since cars replaced horses, won’t robots replace people? The future of technological unemployment.

Using Hannah Arendt to understand the Islamic State. And other recommended reads.

The primary focus of my blog is understanding how trends in technology, society and economics will unfold over the next 5-10 years. So on twitter I follow people like Nick Szabo, arguably the world’s most famous cryptocurrency expert. Last week, in regards to Syrian refugee policy, Szabo retweeted this:

The current Perez tech cycle is software driven. Which is great, except now monopoly is eating the world.

I just finished Carlota Perez’s Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages. First thought: not for everyone. It’s big picture tech cycle theorizing about economic history. Yet I found it first rate, and can see why it’s popular with some Silicon Valley investors. In particular Marc Andreessen cites Perez so often, I finally bought the book. It got me thinking. Our current tech cycle is well captured by… Continue reading The current Perez tech cycle is software driven. Which is great, except now monopoly is eating the world.

An iPad with a keyboard is not a PC! Technology transitions and PCs in the Clipper ship era.

In September Apple announced the iPad Pro, which supports a keyboard cover and stylus. Then in October Microsoft announced their latest Surface Pro 4 and new Surface Book. Inevitably they were compared, with many claiming Apple copied Microsoft. Business Insider “Apple just admitted Microsoft is right”. And the Verge “Everyone is copying Microsoft’s Surface“. From that piece: “Apple missed… Continue reading An iPad with a keyboard is not a PC! Technology transitions and PCs in the Clipper ship era.

Homo naledi and the braided stream of humanity. It’s miscegenation all the way down.

Above are reconstructions of three famous fossil hominins by paleo-artist John Gurche. From left to right: Australopithecus afarensis (Lucy), Homo erectus (Turkana boy) and recently discovered Homo naledi (paper). The Homo naledi announcement last month of fossils discovered in a cave in South Africa was a blockbuster for human origins. Even better, two more big origins papers were published in the… Continue reading Homo naledi and the braided stream of humanity. It’s miscegenation all the way down.

Why I’m excited about the new Apple TV for gaming, movies, TV, apps, Siri

Tomorrow is September 9, Apple’s fall event where they’ll announce their new iPhones and Apple TV. The new Apple TV is expected to be a large break from earlier versions, supporting an app store and providing better gaming capability. It’s been widely anticipated for years. In fact most of my posts about Apple TV date from 2013 and 2014. So… Continue reading Why I’m excited about the new Apple TV for gaming, movies, TV, apps, Siri

The algorithmic hand is replacing the invisible hand. But Hayek still applies.

Last week Adam Ozimek posted an interesting piece Big Data Versus Hayek. He noted how centralized algorithmic price setting, for real estate, airlines and hotels, was displacing local and decentralized decision making. Because it works better and is more profitable. And how this development was very “un-Hayekian.” Friedrich Hayek of course famously arguing centralized planning and pricing could never do… Continue reading The algorithmic hand is replacing the invisible hand. But Hayek still applies.

Science Fiction movie priorities should be movie first, science second. Because movies are hard.

Hugo award winning science fiction author Greg Egan complained recently about science fiction movies, starting his post with the line “Why is almost every contemporary science fiction movie irredeemably stupid?” He digs into three movies: Her, Ex Machina and Interstellar. Regarding Her, he noted:

Twitter’s Temptation: The False Allure of Anonymous Users.

Like many who spend a lot of time reading on the internet, I love twitter. It’s an invaluable source of information. One especially prized by journalists and infovores. But the product has stagnated. In particular casual users have struggled with it. One billion people have tried it (!) but only about a quarter of those stayed with the product. So it… Continue reading Twitter’s Temptation: The False Allure of Anonymous Users.