The chance to get rich in new communications technology has led many to liken it to the California Gold Rush. A more apt metaphor would be the Comstock Lode and its intimate embrace with the San Francisco Stock Market. Dr. Gray Brechin will examine the forgotten social and environmental costs of the Comstock speculative frenzy and its parallels with Silicon Valley today. More on Gray Brechin's books Imperial San Francisco and Farewell, Promised Land.
Panelists discuss their experiences in pursuing financial success while supporting the public good.
Despite dropping computer costs and a wide range of online providers, recent reports show that the digital divide still exists, both for economic and social reasons. These panelists all have experience with trying to bridge the digital divide. Tomorrow's computing may well be determined by its choice of software development methods. The Open Source Movement, recently discovered and highly acclaimed by the public and press, thrives using a very different mode of software development. This panel will explore the potential effects both of these initiatives will have on computing in the future.