to Hani:

I have been using the Multiples of 1 comment card as a mouse pad for the last 3 months, as a reminder to send in a little feedback. Better late than never?

Anyway, I wanted to let you know that I thoroughly enjoyed the conference. At a company like Zipcar, we don’t have many opportunities for the kind of thinking that this conference evoked. We’re too busy and too small to step very far from our daily work, but I’m so glad I had the opportunity.

I know the conference was broken up into separate sessions, but when I think back on it I remember the individuals, not the sessions as a whole. I think you managed to draw people from such diverse areas that, in the end, the common theme of each session was blurred. That didn’t diminish the experience for me.

First, I think when you invite a speaker, you can only impose so much— they’re likely to make a few changes to a presentation they’ve given a number of times and deliver that. It’s good because they stay within their area of expertise, just putting a slight spin onto it for the conference.

Second, even if I didn’t always see the relationship between topics within a session, I loved the variety. I think there’s still a value in having a theme for each session, if only to steer the panel discussions and look for commonalities. But for me the conference was not about finding specific answers to the questions presented— for most questions answered, new ones arise, and that’s OK. I think that’s how we make progress.

As for next year, an interesting theme might be found by looking further into the past and future. How can we help social networks stay afloat through revolutions, wars, and other major historical events? Can we look to history for inspiration? How about far, far ahead?

Example topics: What can we learn from the role that text messaging played in the overthrow of President Estrada in the Philippines a couple years ago? Or, how might technology better prepare us for an emergency on the magnitude of Sept. 11th— mobilizing emergency crews during a crisis, perhaps using P2P mesh networks to facilitate communication when a dispatcher is no longer available or feasible?

Anyway, thanks again.

best,
Carl Tashian