The Portulans Institute supported the conduct of an Oxford Forum on ‘The Implications of the Russian War in Ukraine for Global Information, Communication, and Cybersecurity’, which was held on 26 January 2024 in a Board Room of the Oxford Internet Institute (OII). It was conceived, organized, and chaired by an OII DPhil Candidate, Elizaveta (Lisa) … Continue reading Information, Communication, and Innovation Aspects of the War on Ukraine: A Meeting of Early Career Researchers
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Timeline of Key Moments in the Russia-Ukraine War (RUW) Case Study
Timeline of Key Moments in the Russia-Ukraine Case 1991 Post-Soviet Ukraine gained independence and became a regular member of the UN, the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty[1] 2013 Public protests against the Ukraine government began 21 November in Kyiv’s Independence Square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti) after Ukraine’s … Continue reading Timeline of Key Moments in the Russia-Ukraine War (RUW) Case Study
Cognitive Politics
In the preface to Harold D. Lasswell’s (1936: v) book entitled Politics, he famously defined politics as the study of ‘who gets what, when, and how’ – also the subtitle of his book. He went on to argue that influence is central to politics and that “[c]oncepts for the study of influence must be changed … Continue reading Cognitive Politics
Trump’s Flight to New York City: No Media Event
Donald Trump's flight to NYC on 3 April 2023 from Mar-a-Lago, Florida, seemed initially to have all the making of an extraordinary media event. The press was out in force. UK's Sky covered it continuously, with ‘breaking news’ announcements, such as "Trump Force One has just entered the airspace over North Carolina"! Truly extraordinary coverage, … Continue reading Trump’s Flight to New York City: No Media Event
Digital Kaleidoscope: A Commentary by A. Michael Noll
DIGITAL KALEIDOSCOPE A. Michael Noll February 2, 2023 © A. M. Noll 2023 [The following commentary is authored by A. Michael Noll, and posted with the permission of the author. Michael experimented with many of the technologies of 3D, computational art, and tactile telecommunication in the 1960s and 1970s at Bell Labs. I always find … Continue reading Digital Kaleidoscope: A Commentary by A. Michael Noll
Levelling Up the UK with Information
The UK government has committed to a strategy for levelling up economic activity across the UK.[1] While I am not a geographer or an economist, one need not be to see ways forward on this strategy. The Internet has been seen as a force that might reconfigure the geography of work – what jobs go … Continue reading Levelling Up the UK with Information
Rooting for Twitter and Musk
The future of Twitter and of Elon Musk’s ownership of this platform are problematic. That said, it has been clear that Twitter had lost the plot in several respects and could benefit from new ideas and leadership. I’ve used Twitter for over a decade (13 years) and continue to value this platform, such as for … Continue reading Rooting for Twitter and Musk
History Lessons: 250 Years of the IT Industry in Britain
Question Time Panel at 'Learning from History', BCS, 17 February 2022 The Archives of IT (AIT) held a two-hour seminar on 17 February 2022 in collaboration with the British Computer Society (BCS) and the Computer Conservation Society (CCS). It was entitled ‘Learning from History: Reflections on the past and future of the British IT Industry’. … Continue reading History Lessons: 250 Years of the IT Industry in Britain
The Correct Lesson on Hype from the Theranos Verdict
Looking at the verdict of the court in the case finding Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes guilty of fraud, Brooke Masters (2022) argues that 'there is a crucial difference between rosy optimism and outright fraud'. I agree that an entrepreneur is unlikely to enrol investors and colleagues into a venture that the entrepreneur does not believe … Continue reading The Correct Lesson on Hype from the Theranos Verdict
Public-Private Tensions in the UK
UK Business and Government Tensions: Towards a More Functional Relationship The handwringing over sleaze accusations and the fuss over Peppa Pig referenced as an example of a major business success are just two recent manifestations to what I’ve sensed to be a long-term, awkward, and dysfunctional relationship between business and government in the UK. The … Continue reading Public-Private Tensions in the UK