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An interesting read on US biggest privately held company, Koch Industries, which is largely unknown to the public.

Koch Industries, Inc. owns a diverse group of companies that are engaged in trading, operations and investments worldwide. It has a presence in 50 countries in such industries as petroleum, chemicals, energy, fibres, resins, fertilisers, pulp and paper, ranching, securities and finance. 

(via @GreatDismal)

Interesting writeup by Tim Maly via Futurismic:

If you are an early adopter for this kind of thing, the only thing we can say for sure about it is that it’ll be slow and out of date very soon. Unless they find a way to make easily-reversible surgery, your best strategy is to wait for the interface that’s whatever the brain-linkage equivalent is to 300dpi, full colour, high refresh screens

This is not only a boring downside of technology, but an intersting way of how cybertech will enhance or create the difference between classes: those who afford upgrades, those who have to look in the bargain bins and those who can’t even fix their failing cyborg body.

Buying up a part of Madagascar big as half of Belgium, not to feed the locals but to supply palm oil for Korea (more of those beauty products, perhaps?)

The Bay Area in California, dominated by San Fransisco, has a very active economy, where the rest of the state is suffering. Will we see a Bay Area city state? It certainly sounds Gibson- or Stephenson-esque! (via always excellent Futurismic)

Excellent take on why Africa, and the developing world, is the more likely place for real world cyberpunk than shining Europe and US…

Africa = Cyberpunk argues Ghanian Jonathan Dotse at the blog AfroCyberPunk. How exactly does that equation work? Like this:

…

The science fiction/spec fic/future worlds of developing nations is something I’ve been thinking on over the past few months.

Science Fiction (that which generally…