BY LINDA BAKER
BY LINDA BAKEROn April 1 I attended a forum at the University of Portland on the sharing economy. The event featured panelists from Lyft and Airbnb, as well as Portland Mayor Charlie Hales. Asked about the impact of tech-driven sharing economy services. Hales said the new business models are reshaping the landscape. “But,” he added, “I don’t pretend to understand how a lot of this [technology] works.”
BY LINDA BAKER
On April 1, I attended a forum at the University of Portland on the sharing economy. The event featured panelists from Lyft and Airbnb, as well as Portland Mayor Charlie Hales. Asked about the impact of tech-driven sharing economy services. Hales said the new business models are reshaping the landscape. “But,” he added, “I don’t pretend to understand how a lot of this [technology] works.”
Out of the mouths of — mayors. Although we’re living in the era of ubiquitous technology, few of us understand How Technology Works. Or, for that matter: How The Internet Works. When it comes to software and hardware, most of us are like Hales: It’s Greek to us.
Exposed: Reporter Chris Higgins by |
The mystery behind technology is the theme of our cover story this month about Tripwire cybercrime fighter Ken Westin. As writer Chris Higgins observes, Westin’s job is to expose things we can’t see and can’t understand: the malware, the pathways information travels as it moves from computer to computer; the digital fingerprints left behind.
In this issue we tackle another hidden, tech-related problem: lack of diversity. Our feature, “It’s a Man’s, Man’s Man’s World” (thanks, James Brown) tells that story from the perspective of the technology everyman: the male engineers, app developers and UI designers who are suddenly in the media spotlight, not necessarily because of individual failings but because of the implicit bias that is manifest in almost any homogenous group of people.
Our Tactics column tells a similar story, from the perspective of Dwayne Johnson, cofounder of ScaleUp Partners, a consultancy that aims to make the tech industry more inclusive.
Tech companies are beginning to address some of their workplace diversity challenges. Cybersecurity experts like Westin are working to expose the online criminals that are wreaking havoc on businesses and individuals.
As technology continues to penetrate the mainstream, and as the real world makes inroads on the tech sector, all of us, public officials and civilians alike, are getting a lesson in how the world works.
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