Gore: Wireless access to info means power
Summary
Topics
Well, perhaps not all of life's problems. But in his address to CTIA 2009 attendees on the final day of the show, Gore made the case that previous revolutions in communications technology--such as the printing press and the radio--have dramatically improved access to information that has made the world more scientifically advanced and productive, and that modern wireless technology is capable of doing the same thing over time.
"Information is the dominant strategic resource of the economy in the 21st century," Gore said, drawing an analogy to the 1970s and the strain put on the economy by the dramatic rise in the price of oil. Information, on the other hand, has become cheaper and cheaper, with advances in processing power and wireless networking saving businesses untold amounts of money and giving average people a wealth of information at their fingertips.
See also: CTIA Special Report: Apps and new phones galore
Gore's hour-long speech touched on many of his usual themes about the environment, which won him the Nobel Prize in 2007. He also called on attendees to focus less on short-term business concerns and more on making the kinds of investments that will pay off in the long run at the expense of a short-term hit, such as adopting energy-efficient technologies.
Wireless technologies can be used to help monitor the health of the planet, he said, pointing to disappearing polar ice caps and rising temperatures. He also made sure to make several references to how wireless devices--namely the iPhone, produced by the company he oversees as a member of Apple's board of directors--have transformed the political process, allowing President Obama to tap a decentralized network of contributors to his successful campaign last year.
Gore's speech was originally supposed to be closed to the press, but he apparently changed his mind a few weeks ago. He did not allow photographs to be taken at the event, however.
Gore also declined to take any questions or address mounting concerns surrounding two journalists for his Current TV venture. American reporters Laura Ling and Euna Lee are being detained in North Korea and are set to be tried for allegedly conspiring to perpetrate hostile acts against the Communist state.
This article was originally posted on CNET News.
Talkback Most Recent of 19 Talkback(s)
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Screwball
People will one day shake their heads and wonder why anyone gave this guy the time of day.
Dorkyman3rd Apr 2009 -
Ony a "dork" would have a shallow reply like your
Your alias is fitting. You're a moron and part of the problem the nation has today.
Here we have a former VP and noble prize winner contributing back to society with ideas for renewal and schmucks like you come out of the sewer to attack.. Shame on you.
Prognosticator4th Apr 2009 -
Gore has a carbon footprint 20 times that of the avg American's
If he wasn't such a hypocrite, he might be a bit more palatable. Someone who flys across the country, burning more fuel than my car does in a year. Just to scream in my face about how much greenhouse gas my car produces?
Cutting down old growth trees, when remodeling his house, to match original wood.
His ideas? Do as I say, not as I do. He wants to live the good life, pampered in luxury. And me to live in a dung powered cave, eating organically alfalfa, driving a flintstone mobile, and give all my pay to the government.
Nobel Prize? Terrorist, Yasser Arafat has one of those. He practically invented the child suicide bomber. The nobel prize has become a political tool, losing much, if not all of its credibility over the last 2 decades.
invmgr@...6th Apr 2009 -
That much?
Where do you get your facts? Does he travel in a private jet?
If he does, you're right, if not, you're not. Airplanes are very energy efficient "per capita"
If he travels around the globe, he has no choice about that, safe to chose in which plane/airline to travel. You can chose what car you but, you can't chose not to travel.
If you have souces, I'd be interested in seeing them. However, even if it would make him less credible, that wouldn't make him less right.
Are you looking for a role model or are you looking for a way to "make a difference" ? I will always look for a way to minimise my carbon footprint, whatever anyone says, but that wont change the fact that I need airplanes to travel internationnaly
FanaticGeek6th Apr 2009 -
Yes, but most dont NEED to travel internationally
Of course he has a choice.
I'd have a lot more respect for the guy if he was ever seen seeking out the low carbon solution to some issue or other. Let's face it, what does the guy do? He speaks, that's all. It's not an activity that requires physical contact to happen, so why does he not cut his flying time, and do more video conferencing.
For by far the most part international travel is a choice. It's better to meet people in the flesh, better than reducing my carbon footprint. That's a choice I make but I am clear about it, and I have thought about it. People don't NEED to travel overseas for anything that doesn't require their specific hands to operate it - they choose to. Gore chooses to travel the world by plane, he should be a bit more honest about his own carbon footprint, explain the choice to us before pontificating.
Gore and many others preach loudly but practise little, they seem to belong to a group that want to use tax enforced curtailment of our lifestyles as carbon offset for their own.
alec.wood@...7th Apr 2009 -
Google, Gore Carbon Footprint. WOW I didn't touch the tip of the iceberg
Just his house alone, with it's eight bathrooms, is running at 20 times the avg american home.
"The average household in America consumes 10,656 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, according to the Department of Energy. In 2006, Gore devoured nearly 221,000 kWh?more than 20 times the national average. "
I don't begrudge a wealthy person enjoying life while paying their share.
But dangit don't scream all redfaced at me to conserve, when I REALLY am and you aren't.invmgr@...15th Apr 2009 -
Screwball2
Hey, I'm totally with you--so I must be a screwball, too. The problem I have is that Gore always seems to be 'Captain Obvious'...worse yet someone pays him for comments like this [and this guy is the self-proclaimed 'inventor of the internet,' remember.] I wish I could get hooked up with a speakers bureau who would pay me for telling people stuff like "It's a sunny day today."...
And they talked about Bush being lame? Jeesh...give me a break.
Jack5164th Apr 2009 -
Check your history
Anyone who says Al Gore is the "self-proclaimed 'inventor of the internet'" immediately loses credibility. If you can't be bothered to check your history, I can't be bothered to regard your rantings.
Reality-based4th Apr 2009 -
I did just check the history...
Gore's exact statement was:
"During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the internet."
In fact, all Gore ever seems to have done was popularise the term "information superhighway"--and he didn't even invent the phrase.
Henry Miller5th Apr 2009 -
And if you look at that so called book of his
he claims in it that plant expel co2 not intact it. He claims plants (green trees and such) cause the c02 to rise. not that they take the co2 and make o2 out if it.
rparker0096th Apr 2009 -
FanaticGeek6th Apr 2009
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invmgr@...6th Apr 2009
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Jack5164th Apr 2009
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Spiritusindomit@...4th Apr 2009 -
RE: Gore: Wireless access to info means power
Right, um, not invented though. He created the
Internet in exactly the same way Eisenhower created
the highway system, which nobody would deny, given
that its full and never used title is the "Dwight D.
Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense
Highways." Did he put on a hard hat and get to mixin'
asphalt at all hours of the day to get our highways we
love so much made? No, don't be silly, but we still
say that it was because of him that they're around.
Similarly, Al Gore seems to have done rather more than
popularize the phrase, if all he did other than
popularize it was to, um, draft the bill that mandated
the so-nicknamed US infrastructure's creation. From
Wikipedia:
"As a Senator, Gore began to craft the High
Performance Computing and Communication Act of 1991
(commonly referred to as "The Gore Bill") after
hearing the 1988 report Toward a National Research
Network submitted to Congress by a group chaired by
UCLA professor of computer science, Leonard Kleinrock,
one of the central creators of the ARPANET (the
ARPANET, first deployed by Kleinrock and others in
1969, is the predecessor of the Internet).[50][51][52]
The bill was passed on December 9, 1991 and led to the
National Information Infrastructure (NII) which Gore
referred to as the "information superhighway."[53]"
Now, this was pretty hard to find. I did a Wikipedia
search for Al Gore, then hit Ctrl+F, and typed
"Internet." You may need to take a class or something
to get these techniques under your belt, if you have
difficulty with it.
malenkylizards@...6th Apr 2009
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