Bits of Atoms

 I was briefly on NPR/WNYC this week talking about robots [kind of] thanks to an invitation to attend the opening of the Makerbot store in NYC. 

You can listen to the show NewTechCity above. 

I'm riffing lyrical on the ultimate implications what are now called 3D printers, but will hopefully become Fabbers.

I've written in more length on this before, so here you are:

Social production and the new industrial revolution: We, the Makers

Bitcasting, Brandcasting and nanofactories: The New Vitruvians.

The digital world is increasingly 'atomic' [ahem] in that physical things [atoms] are being created from bits. 

More Links To The Awesome

I guest curated the #TuesdayTen last week. 

You can read it here. 

It's full of tasty links and some contextual commentary, about the OED word of the year, the $20 tablet, a new kickstarter project called the AdTrap, and more. 

Have you signed up yet?

You should.

You can see all the previous editions of The Tuesday Ten and subscribe here.

And the companion Tuesday Ten Tumblr here.

Planning For Optimism

As everyone knows, it's impossible to get an entry level planning job, because they don't exist.

Of course, like everything everyone knows, this isn't really true, but what is true is that planners tend to be the least numerous type in an agency, so there are less jobs in planning in general, and they tend to be hard to get, especially at junior levels. 

A nice person from W&K London emailed me to see if I could let all you people who are planners but aren't planning yet, in other jobs or whatever, know that W&K London is offering a paid 3 month placement program in their planning department. 

You have ONE MONTH to apply, so don't dally. You have to answer 4 questions, the first of which is above.

[It was designed by the W&K receptionist. At W&K, even the receptionist is creative.] 

I really like the question. It's the one I was wrestling with back in this piece What Do Advertising Agencies Do?

As I said then, what I meant is what are they for? There are different ways to think about this. 

Anyway, that's for you to decide.

So, go get the rest of the questions and other details over on Welcome to Optimism, the always excellent W&K London blog, one of the last survivors of the first plannersphere.

Ah, they were good times...

[Beware fake nostalgia for the recent past.

Things were never any better than they are.

So don't worry about it.]