October 2011 - change - Mailing Lists

hausmann explains why some countries grow
by Yaw Anokwa 21 Oct '11

21 Oct '11

in this video, ricardo hausmann (director of harvard's center for international development) presents some fascinating (and very believable) work on why some countries grow, why some others don't, and how to empower more development. http://www.media.mit.edu/events/movies/video.php?id=nun-2011-10-12-4 (via tapan parikh)

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Paper2Digital in GeekWire
by Gaetano Borriello 20 Oct '11

20 Oct '11

It also won "people's choice" for best poster at UW-CSE Affiliates Day http://www.geekwire.com/2011/typing-walking-cool-stuff-uw-students

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Interested in a MS in ICTD?
by Yaw Anokwa 20 Oct '11

20 Oct '11

The ATLAS Institute at the University of Colorado at Boulder is actively seeking students who wish to combine technology and international development for its Masters of Science in Information and Communication Technology for Development (MS-ICTD). The MS-ICTD program is the first stand-alone ICTD master’s degree in the US, and is welcoming applicants for the 3rd cohort. The first two cohorts are currently spending practicum semesters with ICTD organizations, development agencies and high tech companies, including work in Africa, South Asia, Latin America, and depressed communities in the US. The program aims to attract students from a variety of backgrounds for a three-semester residency program and a semester-long fieldwork practicum. If this sounds intriguing, please come to room 258 in Mary Gates Hall at 3:30 on Monday, Oct 31st, where program director Revi Sterling will discuss the program and answer questions about courses and opportunities. For more information, please visit http://www.colorado.edu/atlas/newatlas/masters/ for a detailed program description or email Dr. Sterling at revi.sterling(a)colorado.edu.

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Re: [change] TASCHA Talk -- POSTPONE UNTIL NEXT WEEK
by Karen Hirst 20 Oct '11

20 Oct '11

Due to unforeseen circumstances, we regrettably need to postpone today's TASCHA Talk until next week. We apologize for any inconvenience. TASCHA TALK: Araba Sey and Chris Rothschild NEW DATE October 27, 2011, from 3:45 to 4:45 pm Roosevelt Commons Building, 4311 11th Ave NE Fourth floor multi-purpose room The Global Impact Study surveys were designed to collect comparable data on uses and outcomes of public access ICT use in five countries on three continents. This TASCHA Talk will reflect on a range of research design and project management issues encountered during various stages of the survey project. About the presenters Araba is the research lead for TASCHA's Global Impact Study. She is interested in the social and economic implications of information and communication technologies in developing countries. Araba holds a PhD in Communication. Chris is a Research Analyst working on the Global Impact Study. His research focus is on the impact of information access users and non-users of technology venues. Chris holds Master's degrees in Public Administration and International Studies. TASCHA Talks are bi-weekly sessions to share, discuss, and advance new ideas around topics related to technology and social change. Learn more at tascha.uw.edu/taschatalks<http://tascha.uw.edu/what-we-do/tascha-talks/>.

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Kentaro Toyama in CSE 403
by Nicola Dell 19 Oct '11

19 Oct '11

Hi everyone ROOM CHANGE FINAL REMINDER! Kentaro will be giving a talk at the Change seminar tomorrow in CSE 403 (not the usual room 203). Details below. Thanks Nicki ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Nicola Dell <nixdell(a)cs.washington.edu> Date: Mon, Oct 17, 2011 at 1:54 PM Subject: Kentaro Toyama: Reflections on the 10 Myths of ICT for Development in CSE 403 To: change(a)change.washington.edu *Please note the room change for this Thursdays talk. We will meet in the Allen Center CSE 403 instead of 203. * This Thursday at Change we will be hosting a talk by Kentaro Toyama ( www.kentarotoyama.org) Kentaro is a visiting researcher in the School of Information at the University of California, Berkeley. For nearly two years, Kentaro has been giving versions of a talk titled “10 Myths of Information and Communication Technologies for Development” (available as slides<http://www.kentarotoyama.org/talks/2010%2006%2023%20Ten%20Myths%20of%20ICT4…> , video <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_mTwm5m8DM>, blog posts<http://ict4djester.org/blog/?cat=4> , magazine article <http://www.bostonreview.net/BR35.6/ndf_technology.php>, or research paper <http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1940772>). The core claim is that technology’s impact is multiplicative, not additive, with respect to human intent and capacity. Responses have ranged from “The way Kentaro [presents] it, we should conclude that nobody can do anything” to “I was convinced, even as my assumptions were being turned around 180 degrees.” All of the feedback has been extremely helpful, and in this talk Kentaro will discuss how it has deepened his own understanding of the topic, sharpened the exposition, uncovered additional myths, and pushed him towards more constructive recommendations. Kentaro is currently working on a book arguing that increasing human wisdom should be the primary focus of international development activities. Until 2009, Kentaro was assistant managing director of Microsoft Research India, which he co-founded in 2005. At MSR India, he started the Technology for Emerging Markets research group, which conducts interdisciplinary research to understand how the world's poorest communities interact with electronic technology and to invent new ways for technology to support their socio-economic development. Prior to his time in India, Kentaro did computer vision research at Microsoft Research in Redmond, WA and taught mathematics at Ashesi University in Accra, Ghana. Kentaro graduated from Yale with a PhD in Computer Science and from Harvard with a bachelors degree in Physics. Please join us for sandwiches, and to hear Kentaro's reflections on the 10 Myths of ICT for Development. *What:* Kentaro Toyama: Reflections on the 10 Myths of ICT for Development *When:* Thursday, Oct 20th at noon *Where:* Paul Allen Center, *Room* *403*

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TASCHA Talk -- TOMORROW -- Development and implementation of the Global Impact Study surveys
by Karen Hirst 19 Oct '11

19 Oct '11

Please note: The talk will begin 15 minutes later than originally announced. TASCHA TALK: Araba Sey and Chris Rothschild October 20, 2011, from 3:45 to 4:45 pm Roosevelt Commons Building, 4311 11th Ave NE Fourth floor multi-purpose room The Global Impact Study surveys were designed to collect comparable data on uses and outcomes of public access ICT use in five countries on three continents. This TASCHA Talk will reflect on a range of research design and project management issues encountered during various stages of the survey project. About the presenters Araba is the research lead for TASCHA's Global Impact Study. She is interested in the social and economic implications of information and communication technologies in developing countries. Araba holds a PhD in Communication. Chris is a Research Analyst working on the Global Impact Study. His research focus is on the impact of information access users and non-users of technology venues. Chris holds Master's degrees in Public Administration and International Studies. TASCHA Talks are bi-weekly sessions to share, discuss, and advance new ideas around topics related to technology and social change. Learn more at tascha.uw.edu/taschatalks<http://tascha.uw.edu/what-we-do/tascha-talks/>.

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Fwd: [ICTD2012] ICTD 2012 Call for Participation
by Yaw Anokwa 19 Oct '11

19 Oct '11

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: ICTD 2012 Info <info(a)ictd2012.org> Date: Tue, Oct 18, 2011 at 16:48 Subject: [ICTD2012] ICTD 2012 Call for Participation To: ictd-announce(a)lists.ictd2012.org ** * * *CALL FOR PARTICIPATION * *ICTD2012* *Fifth International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development* *12 – 15 March 2012* *Georgia Institute of Technology* *Atlanta, GA USA* * * *In Co-operation with ACM SIGCHI and ACM SIGCAS* **** We invite you to participate in the Fifth International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development (ICTD2012), hosted at the Georgia Institute of Technology, March 12-15, 2012, Atlanta, Georgia USA. ICTD2012 is held in cooperation with ACM SIGCHI and ACM SIGCAS. Conference website: http://www.ictd2012.org. *Please register at **http://www.ictd2012.org/registration*<http://www.ictd2012.org/registration> ** *Early bird registration (by 14 Dec 2011): $375 Full registration: $450* Registration fee includes admission to all conference tracks, coffee/tea breaks, lunch, electronic proceedings, and selected social activities. ICTD is the world's premier conference examining the role of computers and communications in social, economic and political development. The conference will attract over 500 leading scholars and practitioners working at the intersections of information technologies and global development. ICTD 2012 will consist of two days of single-track peer-reviewed papers, two days of open sessions (interactive workshops, panels, and more), and a series of keynote speakers, demonstrations, and beyond. Atlanta is a world-class city with a rich and passionate history. Spring comes early to Atlanta; March is likely to be sunny, crisp, and pleasant. The conference venue is the Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center. Georgia Tech is one of the top research universities in the United States, distinguished by its commitment to improving the human condition through advanced science and technology. Located in Technology Square and Midtown, Atlanta’s exciting retail and business neighborhood, the conference hotel is on the Georgia Tech campus and minutes from a multitude of restaurants, shops, and attractions. *Conference Venue* Georgia Tech Hotel & Conference Center at Technology Square 800 Spring Street Northwest Atlanta, GA 30308-1015 USA Phone: +1 404-347-9440 Fax: +1 404-347-9088 Email: sales(a)gatechhotel.com *Contact Us* General Information info(a)ictd2012.org Conference Chairs chairs@ictd2012.org** ***Please note that we have attached a PDF file of the Call for Participation. We invite you to print and post it in your institution or place of business.*** _______________________________________________ This is the ICTD2012 announcements mailing list at ictd-announce(a)lists.ictd2012.org To unsubscribe go to https://mailman-mail5.webfaction.com/listinfo/ictd-announce or send email to ictd-announce-leave(a)lists.ictd2012.org Visit us on the web at http://ictd2012.org

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Kentaro Toyama: Reflections on the 10 Myths of ICT for Development in CSE 403
by Nicola Dell 17 Oct '11

17 Oct '11

*Please note the room change for this Thursdays talk. We will meet in the Allen Center CSE 403 instead of 203. * This Thursday at Change we will be hosting a talk by Kentaro Toyama ( www.kentarotoyama.org) Kentaro is a visiting researcher in the School of Information at the University of California, Berkeley. For nearly two years, Kentaro has been giving versions of a talk titled “10 Myths of Information and Communication Technologies for Development” (available as slides<http://www.kentarotoyama.org/talks/2010%2006%2023%20Ten%20Myths%20of%20ICT4…> , video <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_mTwm5m8DM>, blog posts<http://ict4djester.org/blog/?cat=4> , magazine article <http://www.bostonreview.net/BR35.6/ndf_technology.php>, or research paper <http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1940772>). The core claim is that technology’s impact is multiplicative, not additive, with respect to human intent and capacity. Responses have ranged from “The way Kentaro [presents] it, we should conclude that nobody can do anything” to “I was convinced, even as my assumptions were being turned around 180 degrees.” All of the feedback has been extremely helpful, and in this talk Kentaro will discuss how it has deepened his own understanding of the topic, sharpened the exposition, uncovered additional myths, and pushed him towards more constructive recommendations. Kentaro is currently working on a book arguing that increasing human wisdom should be the primary focus of international development activities. Until 2009, Kentaro was assistant managing director of Microsoft Research India, which he co-founded in 2005. At MSR India, he started the Technology for Emerging Markets research group, which conducts interdisciplinary research to understand how the world's poorest communities interact with electronic technology and to invent new ways for technology to support their socio-economic development. Prior to his time in India, Kentaro did computer vision research at Microsoft Research in Redmond, WA and taught mathematics at Ashesi University in Accra, Ghana. Kentaro graduated from Yale with a PhD in Computer Science and from Harvard with a bachelors degree in Physics. Please join us for sandwiches, and to hear Kentaro's reflections on the 10 Myths of ICT for Development. *What:* Kentaro Toyama: Reflections on the 10 Myths of ICT for Development *When:* Thursday, Oct 20th at noon *Where:* Paul Allen Center, *Room* *403*

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Samasource is hiring software engineers (remote locations OK)
by Rosalyn Mahashin 16 Oct '11

16 Oct '11

Samasource is looking for enthusiastic, idealist engineers who want to write code that meaningfully impacts the human condition. Ideal candidates will want to leverage their problem solving and creative talent to hack real-world social systems. They see the fundamental application of technology as human empowerment. If you are an engineer with a passion for building brilliant solutions that address tangible problems, we need your help to re-imagine work. Link: http://samasource.theresumator.com/apply/yVLsQD/Software-Engineer-Generalis… The Company: Samasource is a social enterprise that connects people living in poverty to work via the Internet. We are a small, dynamic team committed to changing the world with an innovative business model. To get a quick overview of what we do, watch this 50 second video on YouTube of two of our workers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96bSBNRCSoQ. Then watch the suggested videos on the right, and if that's not enough, watch the 9 minute TEDx talk our founder gave: http://vimeo.com/9305118. The Code: We're building a global distributed microwork platform customized to our unique ecosystem. This is a big space with lots of unsolved technical problems, here are a few we're trying to solve this month: - Distributed, collaborative education and training - Remote rural content delivery - Intelligent task allocation and adaptive workflow - Operational and platform scalability - Mobile payments and messaging The Tools: We keep up with the latest Rails 3.0.X releases, test with Test::Unit/Shoulda, use Redis for some fanciness, plan with Pivotal Tracker, and template with Haml and SASS. See something missing? Tell us, show us, make it happen. Responsibilities: - Write elegant, high quality, unit-tested code in Ruby. Be prepared to send in samples of work that you're proud of, bonus points for contributions to open source projects - Own new platform components from conception to deployment - Proactively communicate with workers and customers to understand and fix problems - Fearlessly learn new technologies and comprehend new problem spaces - Share your work with internal and external stakeholders in team meetings and at conferences Requirements: - Comprehensive understanding of a web application stack - 2+ years of software development experience - 2+ years of relational database experience - API design experience is a plus! - Strong working knowledge of unit testing frameworks - Self directed, self motivated, and at home in a very fast-paced environment

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The African Laptop Killer: Android And The Developing World
by Yaw Anokwa 14 Oct '11

14 Oct '11

interesting talk on the growth of android in the developing world (or at least in kenya) from claire hunsaker of samasource. The African Laptop Killer: Android And The Developing World "More than half of the 1 billion people in Africa carry a cell phone, but only 12% are online. In the last few years, mobile technologies have revolutionized everything from actual revolutions, to rural commodity pricing, to how people pay for bubble gum. With the advent of inexpensive smartphones this year, the revolution is picking up steam. Huawei’s IDEOs has sold 350,000 handsets in Kenya since launching in January – a startling number for a country where 40% of the population live on less than $2 a day. Developers around the world are responding to the emerging market with impressive speed and focus. Claire Hunsaker, from Samasource, will explore applications and integrations that are shaping frontier app development around the world." source: http://androidopen.com/android2011/public/schedule/detail/22305 slides: http://goo.gl/x3cGt (pdf) video: http://youtu.be/sGPkssyVzeg

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