As ‘predicted’ last week, this newsletter is arriving a day late, due to the obligations on Monday (more below), and a bumpy train ride. Thanks for reading. Let me know if you have any questions or comments!
Typing this in an ICE back from Munich. Monday 11 October was an important moment for Cities of Things Knowledge Hub, the activity I have been setting up the last year and since this summer in a separate foundation. At already beginning of 2020 we were invited to contribute to the renewal of the Creative Embassy Munich-Amsterdam with the establishment of a field lab. We formed the first consortium of interested companies and had two online sessions with both the Dutch and the German interested organizations. We organized a symposium at ThingsCon and MAB20, everything online. Yesterday we were finally able to have a in person event in Munich to sign the letter of intent for the CE and field lab. Referent Clemens Braumgärtner of Munich and Alderman Victor Everhardt of Amsterdam signed the LoT together with representatives of multiple other locations. In a workshop, we discussed the challenges in the Munich context.
The day was very fruitful if only to meet the fellow organizers in person. More reports will follow soon, including an aftermovie. This moment is only the beginning of the field lab forming, starting up projects and collaborations. Let us know if you like to be involved. Keep an eye on the Cities of Thiings website.
And we will not limit it to the Amsterdam creative ecosystem of course.
Preparing for this event including making a presentation and video took a great part of last week. But I had also some time for other projects and follow parts of the Cross Media Cafe 100st edition, Data Transparency in Privacy Space conference by UTente and AMS. Especially the talk of Kars Alfrink on contestability.
Next tot that Lisa kicked off officially her graduation project that I commissioned together with PGGM, research the potential role of predictive knowledge for pension planning of young people.
And I had two good meetings with both Creating010 and Dcode project to organize workshops in the Rotterdam Salon part of this year’s ThingsCon event.
In this week – next to the Munich trip, I will do a walking tour of the smart & liveable city in Rotterdam organized by Waag, and check in with O’Reilly Radar Data & AI on Thursday. I let you know how it was. Tomorrow evening another edition of General Seminar is planned. On Crypto Gaming; a view spot are left at the moment I am typing this. Or you dive into the disruption of urban logistics in this webinar.
Dutch Design Week is also starting this weekend. I will be there on Monday and Wednesday probably next to visiting DRIVE of CLICKNL ao. Have to check what tips, like this one. Also, next week but worth mentioning is the next edition of the workshop on Embodied AI & Ableism.
Some articles from the news of last week. Could only make a quick scan now…
These virtual obstacle courses help real robots learn to walk“Specialized chips, simulations teach a four-legged robot to navigate stairs and blocks.” Try and error.
‘Dystopian world’: Singapore patrol robots stoke fears of surveillance state“Trial of robots to police ‘undesirable’ behaviour such as smoking or breaching social-distancing rules”
The Death and Birth of Technological RevolutionsWhat can we learn from our history odf tech revolutions?
Do We Need to Work?“In Work: A Deep History, from the Stone Age to the Age of Robots, anthropologist James Suzman asks whether we might learn to live like our ancestors did—that is, to value free time over money.”
Digital and hybrid will define success for the future city“A city’s attractiveness won’t be based on tax policy and corporate presence, but on amenities, experience, talent and people.”
This Japanese robot toy is made for your cat to play with“Like a Roomba with feathers, the Nekojara Sitter will provide hours of entertainment for your pet” Only in Japan
European Parliament calls for a ban on facial recognition“The European Parliament today called for a ban on police use of facial recognition technology in public places, and on predictive policing, a controversial practice that involves using AI tools in hopes of profiling potential criminals before a crime is even committed.”
The Future Farmers of France Are Tech Savvy, and Want Weekends OffImpact of tech revolutions on habits…
Blockchain technology could provide secure communications for robot teamsThe use of blockchain technology as a communication tool for a team of robots could provide security and safeguard against deception,
Robots can now skateboard, thanks to researchers from Caltech“A research team at The California Institute of Technology has built a robot with hybrid walking and flying movement. The robot can carry out maneuvers such as flying to avoid stairs and skateboarding.” Useful
So far for now. I entered the Netherlands by train with 2 hours delay, but this newsletter is ready :)
Enjoy your week!
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