ReadWriteWeb writes: "The Internet of Things is what happens when you take everyday ordinary objects and put Internet-connected microchips inside them. These microchips help you not only keep track of your belongings, but many of these devices sense their surroundings and report it to other machines as well as to you when you most need it. From RFID to the Nabaztag Bunny to Arduino hobbyists, innovation is growing at a rapid rate. Our collection features popular videos about how to make your own objects, as well as overviews, interviews and lectures. Read more

Finally also Google CEO Eric Schmidt in a full reversal of former positions on privacy is saying: “I don’t believe society understands what happens when everything is available, knowable and recorded by everyone all the time.” (source) This is indeed what is happening in a move towards smart environments. It seems that Google has decided to become a player in Internet of Things, realizing all stakeholders need to raise debates and allow for controversies, instead of trying to play down logical fears of a growing number of informed citizens. Read more

IKEA has commissioned a report with The Future Laboratory to explore what the kitchen of the future could potentially look like.: "In thirty years time, the kitchen will be so technologically advanced that it will almost be alive, responding actively to our needs like only a mother could. To reflect this IKEA has created an image of the future kitchen – INTUITIV. As you walk into the INTUITIV kitchen of the future, LED light projections adjust to your mood – it will know if you have a hangover via sensors that will read your brainwaves. Read more

New ways of decision making: Representative democracy as we know it in the West is becoming a historical position rapidly and will disappear as a direct result of the internet and the internet of things.  The recent technological developments have begun to change the content and the formats of the old forms of (social) media production and are now beginning to try themselves out on core functions and core models of organization (institutions, representative democracy, national law, copyright, patent law…) Therefore the internet of things touches on the heart of the political and the relationship between the individual and the collective.

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The report entitled "IoT Conference Report 2010" is now online and downloadable. It was written by Rob van Kranenburg of Council, Knowledge Partner. Here are the provisional conclusions:

On a technological level we see a tendency towards many platforms, a high number of solutions and open standards and we foresee a deluge of data. Much like the end of the 90’s when RFID got under the penny cost and database storage became cheaper and cheaper, storage as such might not be the real issue, but turning data into meaningful information for end users remains the key challenge. Read more

"As more people move to cities, it will become increasingly challenging to design infrastructures that support efficiently the needs of inhabitants without sacrificing the quality of life. Vital services such as transportation, healthcare, education and public safety, will need to be delivered in a timely manner for always more people. Read more

"The Internet of Things has been a buzz word that is slowly turning into a reality, depending on what kind of goggles you have on and I thought I’d start trying to map what the current landscape looks like for us. Focusing on the products or product experiments out there, there are 3 assumptions:Read more

• We’re assuming the Internet and the data it produces and real world products both exist in the equation. This can seem simple, but it’s kind of tricky. At the moment, the difference between a “product”, a “device” and a laptop is really blurring.

Call for Workshop Papers INTERNET OF THINGS 2010, International Conference for Industry and Academia Nov 29 - Dec 1, 2010, Tokyo Japan), Organized by Auto-ID Laboratories at Keio University, ETH Zurich & University of St. Gallen and MIT. Call for Workshop Papers

WS1: The 1st Workshop on the Security of the Internet of Things (SecIoT 2010)Read more

The 5th Annual IIDA/Metropolis Smart Environment Awards: PURPOSE: To recognize individuals and collaborative teams creating excellent, leading edge interior environments. WHO SHOULD ENTER: Interior Design and Architecture professionals and teams practicing legally in their jurisdictions. ENTRY REQUIREMENTS:Projects must have been completed after April 2009 (and not previously published).Read more