San Francisco

The Economist, December 9 2009: Street traders can now accept credit cards—so long as you trust them THE economy might be cashless but people still use the stuff, if only to reimburse a colleague who bought their lunch or pay for a newspaper from a street vendor. Now a new device called Square that was launched on December 4th will enable individuals and small businesses to accept electronic payments by turning any device with an audio-input jack—such as a computer…

Archived talk is after the jump. Thanks to all those who watched/participated!

I’m pleased to announce that on October 27, I’m hosting the first of a series of monthly panel discussions called Tech Atlas SF (Facebook, Twitter) — where we’ll tackle global tech issues, many of which I’m probably covering anyway and/or am generally interested in. We’ll invite notable guests from the Bay Area (and sometimes farther afield) to come and chat with me at the Parisoma coworking space in San Francisco (10th/Howard, near Civic Center BART). You can RSVP via the…

Dear Friends, I’ve been informed that my commentary on Park(ing) Day will be on Weekend Edition Sunday (September 20)! It will be available on any of these stations (and their Internet streams). New York – 8 to 10 am Eastern – WNYC – 820 AM – www.wnyc.org Washington, DC – 8 to 10 am Eastern – WAMU – 88.5 FM – www.wamu.org Los Angeles – 5 to 10 am Pacific – KPCC – 89.3 FM – www.kpcc.opg Boston – 8…

Thanks to all who showed up (and participated online!) at BayFF last night to talk tech, Iran and all kinds of other stuff. It was a pleasure to speak with Danny O’Brien again and meet Jacob Appelbaum of Tor for the first time. Thanks also to David Farris, Alex Farivar and Nate Cardozo for coming and supporting me. Also big ups to Sean Savage (who I’ve written about before, and first met six years ago!) and PariSoMa for organizing this…

I’m speaking at this event in San Francisco on August 3! August 3, 2009 WHAT: The recent protests over the elections in Iran have shown that social media can be a force for good — and a target for misinformation and censorship. How can technologists build tools for freedom, and defend Net users across the world? WHEN: Monday August 3rd – 7 pm to 9 pm WHO: Danny O’Brien is EFF’s International Outreach Coordinator. He works to help us collaborate…

Hot damn! I reported on WiFi Rail back in July 2008 for NPR. Well done! From WiFi Rail‘s press release: Service on BART is scheduled to begin on selected segments during 2009. Four downtown San Francisco stations and some segments of the tunnels are already fully functional, and have been providing premium service free to subscribers for the past year. “We are thrilled to showcase our technology in the network designed for the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit system,…

SF Chronicle: But [Stephanie Reyes, senior policy advocate with San Francisco’s Greenbelt Alliance] and other advocates acknowledge that the importance of SB375, signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in late September, lies as much in the tone it sets as in what it will accomplish, which remains unclear. Essentially the law, which will take years to implement, uses incentives and requirements to encourage local governments and builders to concentrate growth in urban areas or close to public transportation hubs…

Man, this guy is my hero. Why? Not only because he has a great podcast and has interviewed everyone from Ira Glass to Ted Leo. Not only because his podcast was picked up by WNYC and then PRI. Not only because he’s America’s Radio Sweetheart. Not only because his wedding was covered by The Grey Lady herself. But mostly, because his wedding was catered by, yes, a taco truck. The Times neglected to mention which truck provided the food. Because,…

Associated Press: LOS ANGELES (AP) — California faces an almost certain risk of being rocked by a strong earthquake by 2037, scientists said in the first statewide temblor forecast. New calculations reveal there is a 99.7 percent chance a magnitude 6.7 quake or larger will strike in the next 30 years. The odds of such an event are higher in Southern California than Northern California, 97 percent versus 93 percent. ”It basically guarantees it’s going to happen,” said Ned Field,…