Lots of new info a Singularity Hub here about the quest for brain / computer interfaces, which I think will be the next ‘really big thing’ on planet earth, in part because they’ll be cool and helpful and in part because they are very likely to speed up the creation of a conscious mechanical computer which will quickly surpass human abilities in all respects.

One of the odd things about following this science and these technologies is that about 90% of the world still thinks these are for the most part “kooky sci fi whacko” kinds of technologies and ideas, even as they become mainstream ideas in many tech circles.

Looking North along Las Vegas Strip. House of Blues Foundation Room at Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas

Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

One of the best views of the Las Vegas Strip is from the Foundation Room high up at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. There’s also a House of Blues restaurant below, but the Foundation Room is different. Not sure if this is only reserved for special events or not, but it sure was a great view.

Unfortunately the Web 2.0 party here didn’t have many Web 2.0 companies. However I did enjoy talking to the “Life Extension” folks who were doing some really interesting research on the relationship of the telomeres in a gene and longetivity: http://www.telonauts.com/

People should be more forthcoming with their political opinions.

I think we’ve spawned a generation of folks who think it’s unbecoming to make a political case for what they believe and who tend to simply sit back and watch while others – usually with uninformed ranting – take the political stage.

You know who you are.   Speak up!

This video clip does not do it justice, but the Aria Resort fountain was really cool.

LeVar Burton and Joe Duck (Hunkins)

Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

Tonight at the Parnassus group blogger party I had a chance to meet LeVar Burton and Brent Spiner. Both were really personable guys and great with all the fans who wanted pictures.

CES Intel – Brilliant

Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

This is the best exhibit at the show I have seen – a touchscreen with a specialized (non public ) application that pulls in a world of info according to customizable commands from a PC screen. It showcases the power of Intel’s new processor which I understand is substantially faster and is expected to drive many of the coming generation of processing intensive applications for TVs, phone, and computers.

CES Intel – Brilliant

Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

This is the best exhibit at the show I have seen – a touchscreen with a specialized (non public ) application that pulls in a world of info according to customizable commands from a PC screen. It showcases the power of Intel’s new processor which I understand is substantially faster and is expected to drive many of the coming generation of processing intensive applications for TVs, phone, and computers.

Lenovo’s hybrid – very, very clever integration CES 008

Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

1.6 pound tablet PC detaches from the top…. cool.

Drew Carey with Joe Duck (Hunkins), Technology Report

Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

Just me hanging with one of my tech buddies here at CES 2010 in Las Vegas.

Drew was very cool about taking pictures with folks before he ran a trivia contest here at the show, and also had the best CES 2010 summary so far:

The $50 gift certificates were going to be $100, but CNET had a tough year.

CES Social Media in action – Twitter feed at blogger lounge

Originally uploaded by JoeDuck

This screen, located in the blogger’s lounge at LVCC at the CES show, displays Tweets that relate to CES. This year the CES folks are experimenting even more with social media and it’ll be interesting to see how all that shakes out.

The press / blogger / buzz continuum here offers a great look into how journalism is being reshaped, though it’s really hard to generalize about what we’ll see in the future as “citizen journalists” and tech hobby folks begin to dominate the info landscape. I think some of the best innovations may come as traditional journalists figure out the best ways to leverage new media to bring quality content at lower costs. However they will need to feed their families while they figure that out, and I predict this means we’ll continue to see mainstream journalists under pressure even as blogging journalism thrives.