Intel studying idea of using micro-robots to create shape-shifting computers

Glimpse into the future: Intel is exploring the possibility of making computers that change shape to fit the various ways they are used.
For example, millions of tiny micro-robots, called catoms, could build shape-shifting materials, the Santa Clara company's chief technology officer, Justin Rattner, said today during a talk at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco.

That might allow a mobile computer to be tiny when in a pocket, change to the shape of an earpiece when used as a mobile phone, and be large and flat with a keyboard for browsing the Internet or watching a movie, he said.

"The industry has taken much greater strides than anyone ever imagined 40 years ago," Rattner said. "There is speculation that we may be approaching an inflection point where the rate of technology advancements is accelerating at an exponential rate, and machines could even overtake humans in their ability to reason, in the not so distant future."

Speaking of Intel: The company also revealed today that it has made progress in a technology that could lead to the wireless recharging of gadgets and the end of the power-cord spaghetti behind electronic devices.

Download the electronic version of Dynamic Physical Rendering Research Paper free of charge. 

Frédéric CAVAZZA

Download the electronic version of Chart free of charge. 

Adage Mobile News

Three marketers -- Paramount, Betty Crocker and Adidas -- are quietly alpha testing Facebook "engagement ads," units that let users become "fans" of a brand, comment on an ad or give a gift directly from an ad, making the process of doing those things far easier and likely leading to more brand fans on the site.

There are three types of the new ads. One lets users comment on an element of the ad, such as a video or image. Another format lets users give a gift without leaving the ad. A third format lets users become fans of a brand without having to leave their profile pages and head to the brand page, as they do now. When users take action, it is broadcast to a handful of friends in their networks; marketers can choose to buy distribution beyond the organic delivery.

Also critical: being what she called "hyper-surgical" about targeting the right content to the right people.

Logic+Emotion

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Adage Mobile News

Almost six months after the companies started talking, WPP and Microsoft have reopened talks that could have the software company unloading Avenue A/Razorfish.
Here's how a deal could unfold: Microsoft unloads the agency in exchange for a WPP package that includes 24/7's Open AdStream publisher ad-serving tool plus cash.

Today a digital shop, because of its growth prospects, can command a multiple of eight to 10 times that figure -- making Avenue A/Razorfish's estimated value about $800 million.
The market cap of WPP rival Interpublic Group of Cos. ($4.4 billion), and WPP's own market cap is $10.7 billion.

Nielsen//NetRatings - Presentation Library

Thanks to the Web, the referral/recommendation zone is growing dramatically:

Social Media Integration: Where the CGM/social media platform combines with an existing property in a meaningful way so as to
enhance the customer experience and drive increased value for the organization.

Lower barriers to providing feedback have opened up gates to CGM, and brands are both amplified and implicated in the ensuing digital trail:

• In this environment, satisfaction and retention is no longer enough; nurturing and managing advocacy becomes mission critical
• Advocacy is nurtured from “total brand experience,” including service -- before, during, and after the purchase cycle
• Business operations impact advocacy: consumer affairs, HR, employee training, product quality. Understanding ‘talk drivers’ is critical. Employee ownership (Heskett/Sasser) is more important than ever
• Think beyond quantity to “quality” of conversation (bad quality is viral)
• Opportunity space is huge for getting this right, from CGM measurements and Brand Advocacy Quotients (BAQ) to highly participatory Web 2.0 tools

Download the electronic version of Webniar: BAQ free of charge.

ANA Insights Widget

(5 million terabytes represent around 9% of the world's information - Google)

Public - Windows Live SkyDrive

In case you haven't noticed my publicly available "Windows Live Sky Drive" to your right:

Every time I come across an interesting whitepaper, research, flow-chart, concept, presentation or podcast, I upload it here for you (today: 119 Items):

Creative Capital

It’s Official: U.S. Social Networking Sites See Slow Down

Since December 2006, when MySpace engagement peaked at about 234 minutes spent per visitor, time spent on the site has dropped consistently throughout the year (24% year-over-year drop).
It seems to be an industry-wide issue. The total audience of U.S. social networks seems to be stuck at a low-to-mid-single digit growth rate, while the engagement metrics are falling for just about everyone. Time spent on Bebo.com has been sliced in half over the last four months, while Friendster’s time spent has plummeted nearly 75% in the same time period. Overall, minutes spent per site fell 5% in December 2007 compared to the year-ago period.

Social Network Retention-- How to Achieve Engagement Nirvana
Some guidelines you can follow if you want to achieve engagement nirvana:

1. Serve Individuals — think ‘Email’
2. Be Relevant– think ‘Personal Assistant’
3. Exploit Vanity – think ‘Hot-or-Not’
4. Build in a ‘Grab’– Think ‘Dashboard’

Online Publishers Association

Online Advertising Effectiveness Gets Significant Boost from Branded Content; Online Publishers Association Analysis of Independent Data Shows that Branded Content Sites Consistently Provide Greater Impact than Industry Norms, Portals and Ad Networks.

Branded content sites are particularly effective at improving two of the most difficult metrics to impact: brand favorability and purchase intent. When it comes to brand favorability, branded content sites provide a 29% improvement over average online advertising performance in MarketNorms. For purchase intent, branded content sites provide a 20% improvement. With both measures, there is an even greater bounce among affluent audiences. Branded content sites are 24% more effective than overall MarketNorms at impacting purchase intent among those with household incomes of $75,000 or greater.

"Nearly all forms of online media have an important role to play throughout the purchase 'funnel,'" Horan continued. "But branded content sites have a notably greater impact at the points where consumers are establishing brand preference and making purchase decisions.

Download the electronic version of Ad Effectiveness Study free of charge.

Morgan Stanley - Institutional Services

Various Technology & Internet Trends presentations, including the latest Trend presentation form June 2008.

 Download the electronic version of Technology Trends free of charge.

IBM | Syndication | Podcast

Podcast series presents interviews with thought leaders on how technology will change our experience of different aspects of everyday life, and how a shift in the economics of a system can dramatically improve its performance and value. Upcoming topics include the future of traffic, work, intelligent energy, water and rivers, environmental care and more.

 Download the electronic version of Future of Smart IT Podcast free of charge.

Foreign Policy

An advanced highway system is often credited for the rise of the Roman Empire; goods, soldiers, and tax revenues could move across great distances at remarkable speed for the age. But if all roads once led to Rome, today’s Internet superhighway leads to the world’s most open countries. More-globalized countries tend to have more international Internet bandwidth, a measure of the size of the “pipe” through which e-mail and Web pages cross borders.

Akkamai Quarterly Report

Starting with the January to March (1st quarter) 2008 time period, Akamai will be publishing a quarterly “State of the Internet” report. This report will include data gathered across Akamai’s global server network about attack traffic and broadband adoption, as well as trends seen in this data over time. It will also aggregate publicly available news and information about notable events seen throughout the quarter, including Denial of Service attacks, Web site hacks, and network events.

 Download the electronic version of State of the Internet Report free of charge.

Akamai

Continually-updated visualizations provide a picture of global Web traffic, viruses/attacks, the speed of data moving between major cities, and the volume of data and users on the Akamai platform (20% of the world's Internet traffic).

Adaptive Path's Subject to Change @ Google Tech Talks

The way most organizations think and work on products and services isn't suited to the unpredictable world we live in. Instead, companies need new ways of think...

 Download the electronic version of Tribalization Study free of charge.