Clive Thompson writes in Wired Magazine ... We're more likely to act on a subtle but continuously present message than an intermittent one we're forced to stare at. It's "the psychological paradox of ambient information".
Imagine using the device for measuring customer interaction with your company or knowledge sharing among your employees. If it is up, customers are benefiting. Let's call it a "Connected Intelligence Meter!"
This device exists and is used extensively by project teams at Google, eBay, Microsoft, and the Arkansas Children's Hospital. Ambient Devices CEO David Rose designed the technology which enables his device to tap into data streams which already exist but in their numerical form do not have as great an effect as a glowing orb which changes color. You can even have the orb as part of your tool bar.
One of the latest applications is to track your personal energy use - are your adding to carbon consumption or helping to reduce it?
We just finished an article on connected intelligence for Knowledge Tree, an Australian online journal by using a wiki which Jenny Ambrozek has posted about here.
Although we will not be using an ambient device this time we will be taking real time questions on our live webcast on August 20th if you are in the Northern hemisphere - midnight for east coast USA and 9 PM for west coast or August 21st for those past the international dateline.
Please join us by registering at the Knowledge Tree Elluminate Portal prior to the event.
To view the hardware and software pre-requisites for Elluminate Live! please visit
http://www.elluminate.com
Wiki's and other highly interactive social media which depend on collaboration - "connected intelligence" would definitely benefit from an ambient information system to measure participation. A subtle pervasive indicator to let you know your participation has an effect.
~ Victoria G. Axelrod
