Month: June 2008

Biotech Paternalism

California’s Department of Public Health has issued cease and desist letters to 13 genetic testing startups – most notably 23andMe. They are mandating that the labs demonstrate that they have been certified by both the state and federal government, and, perhaps more importantly, that all genetic tests were ordered by a patient’s doctor, which is required by state law.

completely retarded. overreaching legislation, as usual in the healthcare sector.

Future Slums

The McMansion will become the new multi-family home for the poor. “What is going to happen is lower and lower-middle income families squeezed out of downtown and glamorous suburban locations are going to be pushed economically into these McMansions at the suburban fringe. There will probably be 10 people living in 1 house.”

the “suburbs == slums of the future” meme is taking hold. many low-density suburbs and McMansion subdivisions, including some that are lovely and affluent today, may become what inner cities became in the 1960s and ’70s-slums characterized by poverty, crime, and decay.

Google Books vs. BISON

Our study also points out the necessity for librarians to investigate aggressively and stay abreast of disruptive technology and build it into new services wherever possible. Libraries and librarians must constantly be attuned to patrons’ behavior; we need to consider how we can use our unique qualities and collections to everyone’s advantage. The bar has been raised. The maturing Internet and evolving array of Web 2.0 services has turned our customer base into what many have called a “Google Generation.” We can debate that moniker, but, clearly, no one is calling this the “Academic Library Generation.” Our BISON catalog may not be extinct, but it is being hunted down by the competition. As in nature, libraries had best adapt, change quickly, and build on past successes.

where the card catalog is revealed to be nearly useless.