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Presidential candidate Ron Paul (R-Texas) became the "Internet" candidate this month when 36,672 people contributed more than US$4 million online to his campaign in a single 24-hour period. This impressive feat demonstrates the power of an open source culture, a lesson that should not be lost when it comes to other important issues ...

This month America's first baby boomer, Kathleen Casey-Kirschling, signed up for the Social Security benefits she will start to collect in January. The new phase of life that she and her generation are entering is creating demand for new industries that affect everyone, one of which involves "brain fitness." ...

Last weekend, 150 people attended the Alcor life extension conference in Scottsdale, Ariz. The main subject was cryonics, the use of technology to cool and preserve the human body with the aim of future revival. The technology, still speculative, raises many present-world issues ...

At a time when most people agree that Google or Apple have replaced Microsoft as the tech industry's top player, government regulators on two continents are going retro, pushing old antitrust arguments. This backward-looking thinking threatens innovation for all companies and needs to stop now ...

This week, Dr. Gordon Lithgow, associate professor at the Buck Institute, showed up in San Francisco and spoke to a packed house on aging, new technologies and why interdisciplinary connections are helping to unravel the mysteries of growing old. While politics often slows down progress, computer scientists can play a role in speeding things up ...

While most technology fans are still drooling over Apple's new iPhone, a future crisis awaits unsuspecting consumers. Reed Hundt, former Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman, along with a gaggle of self-interested advocates, are attempting to use politics and government regulations to turn back the clock on the Internet ...

Google's mapping service just introduced a new feature called "Street View," offering detailed photos of addresses in San Francisco, New York, Las Vegas, Denver and Miami. While the company might not be breaking any privacy laws, the service raises concerns that need to be addressed ...

Observers of recent legislative action in Sacramento should be forgiven for thinking they have been transported back to 2002, when policy makers were pushing government mandated software standards and micromanagement of cell phone companies. Five years later, in 2007, the same bad policies are being recycled -- with one saving grace ...

Comcast recently surprised users when it cut off Internet access to those it considers "bandwidth hogs." The incident calls for an examination of the link between net neutrality and digital piracy ...

Last week's first annual Tech Policy Summit in San Jose, Calif., turned out smaller than expected, but did feature some big names and key insights into tech issues. The biggest surprise was Google's apparent flip-flop on the issue of net neutrality ...

What do liberal House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Christian Coalition have in common? No, it's not a penchant for government-funded jet rides -- it's a misguided belief about net neutrality, proposed rules that could affect the future of Internet management ...

Late last year, a congressional committee began examining the idea of taxing property inside digital worlds such asSecond Life. If that happens, a digital Boston Tea Party should break out, perhaps making it the only place in America where a real revolution could still happen ...

There are only 10 days left in 2006, ample time to review -- and hopefully learn from -- past mistakes, including at least five policy blunders that should not have happened in California this year. Start with the most recent: the city of Berkeley's new nanotech regulations ...

Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., caused a political firestorm recently when he said he wanted to reinstate a military draft. His radical proposal brings to light a growing theme that both political parties should consider very closely ...

Shopping is normally good for the economy, but not when the shoppers are net neutrality advocates looking for friendly deals on a regulatory forum. Policy makers in Michigan, their current target, should tell pro-regulatory activists to go home, with good reason ...

New scientific studies showing that it is possible to slow down the aging process are important for those interested in life extension but also key for those who want to see greater economic growth. That's because life-extending treatments generate what some call the "longevity dividend" -- an idea that deserves more attention ...

This week the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) released "American Made: The Impact of Immigrant Entrepreneurs and Professionals on U.S. Competitiveness," a new study that reveals something that Silicon Valley netizens already know but scream for others to recognize: The immigration debate affects America's economy in a big way ...

North Korea's detonation of a nuclear bomb has made Silicon Valley, Calif., leaders even more eager to offer their expertise to help spread freedom and peace. Technology can jumpstart this quest at home and abroad, but not alone. A human element has to be present as well ...

In the recent movie "Thank You for Smoking," a tobacco lobbyist comes under fire for working to protect people's right to smoke. A similar movie could be made about gambling and the villain would be Representative Bob Goodlatte ...

For years, Microsoft has come under heavy fire for not making its systems secure enough. Now, with the upcoming release of its new operating system (OS), Windows Vista, the company is being unfairly attacked by self-interested competitors for adding more security to protect consumers ...