Cities, Rethought

Taking Health Care Online Creates Healthier Patients, Better Doctors

GOOD — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 00:00:00 PDT

Checking your symptoms on WebMD is nice, but it's just the beginning of what can happen when we combine technology and health care. Online Care, a new web-based software from American Well, is helping to improve the way doctor and patient interact. Online Care gives patients the ability to look up symptoms, pick the best doctor, and even attend appointments via web cam.

Video: Business in Uncertain Times

GOOD — Wed, 6 Apr 2011 11:00:00 PDT

The business world of today is more complex and uncertain than ever before. To help alleviate some of that complexity, take a look at our latest video, which illustrates the findings from IBM's 2010 CEO Study. The study surveyed business leaders to find out what factors are most important in leading a company through this uncertainty to profitability. Complexity can be scary, the study found, but dealing with it well can be a great competitive advantage.

Infographic: It's Not Business As Usual For Today's Top Executives

GOOD — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 13:00:00 PDT

For a recent survey, IBM asked 6,000 top CEOs, CIOs, and CFOs about what companies are doing to make their business succeed. Their answers were not about doing "business as usual," but finding creative solutions for a fiercely competitive, rapidly moving marketplace. In a world where technology and global demands seem to change every day, here's a snapshot of what the view is like from the corner office.

A collaboration between GOOD and Oliver Munday.

Video: Everything You Need to Know About Electric Cars

GOOD — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 13:00:00 PST

Electric cars are coming. But how much do you really know about them? How much money will you save on gas? Where and when can you charge them? What happens if you want to charge your car at a friend's house? GOOD's latest video answers all these questions and more.

The Power of the Smart Grid

GOOD — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 11:00:00 PST

The "smart grid" is an electric system that includes information and communications technologies to turn the traditional “one-way” grid into a more dynamic “two-way” system. The point is to improve the way electricity gets distributed and used across the entire power grid, from where power is generated to our homes, and back again. A smart grid lets power companies and consumers see more about how power is being used—in near-real time. With that kind of information, the power company can better match supply to the demand, to increase efficiency, and consumers can make more informed decisions about when and how they use energy. For example someone could run appliances at times when demand is low and pay less on their electric bill. The implementation of the smart grid is generally thought to have the potential to significantly cut energy usage and waste. A recent study looked at exactly how beneficial a smart grid could be if we implemented it by 2030.

A collaboration between GOOD and Oliver Munday, in partnership with IBM.

Video: The Astronomical Amount of Data We Deal With

GOOD — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 12:00:00 PDT

From Google to GPS and Twitter to text messages we're creating—and using—astronomical amounts of information these days. And the pace is accelerating. Here's a look at life with data.

The World of Data We're Creating on the Internet

GOOD — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 11:00:00 PDT

In the 21 century, we live a large part of our lives online. Almost everything we do is reduced to bits and sent through cables around the world at light speed. But just how much data are we generating? This is a look at just some of the massive amounts of information that human beings create every da y.

Stay tuned tomorrow for a GOOD video, showing how some of this data comes into play in our daily lives.

SOURCES: Cisco; comscore; MapReduce, Radacti Group; Twitter; YouTube

A collaboration between GOOD and Oliver Munday, in collaboration with IBM.

In Portland, Open Data Makes It Easier to Get Around

GOOD — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 12:30:00 PDT

Imagine being able to travel around your city with public transit information literally at your fingertips. Today this is a reality in Portland, Oregon, thanks to the TriMet transportation system, a new leader in data sharing. By making data on public transit available and accessible to its many tech-savvy riders, TriMet has allowed for the creation of more than 35 phone applications since 2005—all of which are designed to create a more informed user experience. We meet the people behind this creative new approach to transit data sharing, and see how this system makes daily commuting around Portland that much more efficient and enjoyable.

The Cities with the Most Frustrating Traffic Problems

GOOD — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 11:00:00 PDT

What's one major consequence of a city becoming a booming economic center? Increased traffic that leads to mind-numbing, stop-and-go commutes. IBM surveyed drivers in 20 of the world's metropolises to see which city's drivers experienced most traffic-related woes. Its Commuter Pain Index takes into account factors such as time drivers spent stuck in traffic, high gas prices, stress and anger caused by long commutes, and even instances where the specter of a bumper-to-bumper drive pushes drivers to cancel trips. Check out the results here.

Stay tuned later this week for a GOOD video about innovative solutions to these traffic problems.

SOURCE: IBM 2010 Commuter Pain Index

A collaboration between GOOD and Oliver Munday, in partnership with IBM.

The Business Collaboration Boom

GOOD — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 12:00:00 PDT

Businesses and individuals are becoming exponentially more productive and efficient thanks to the innovations that connect them. Between email, Skype, and telecommuting, the landscape of business communication and collaboration is vastly different than it was even a few years ago.

Does Technology Make Us More Productive Workers?

GOOD — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 11:00:00 PDT

Technology has many benefits, one of which is to make us more efficient workers. And throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, productivity has increased as technology has made it easier for us to work faster and connect with our fellow workers. This is a look at the United States's labor force's productivity—as expressed by a measurement of the output of workers as determined the U.S. government—and the technological advancements that have occurred during its growth.

View the infographic here and keep an eye out tomorrow for a GOOD video accompanying this piece.

SOURCES: Bureau of Labor Statistics; National Academy of Engineering

A collaboration between GOOD and Oliver Munday, in partnership with IBM.

The Benefits of Building a Smart Energy Grid

GOOD — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 11:00:00 PDT

A smart energy grid—which can measure usage and help efficiently manage power grids—could reduce power costs and benefit the environment as well, since a more efficient grid would require less energy from power plants. To see this in action, look at the findings of a recent Department of Energy study that examined the hypothetical costs and savings of installing all the components of a smart grid in the state of West Virginia starting this year.

A collaboration between GOOD and Oliver Munday.

Barcelona Street Lamps

GOOD — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 05:30:00 PDT

Think of all the electricity that's wasted by city lights that stay on when no one needs them. To solve this problem, one Barcelona neighborhood is using a system of Endesa LED lights, controlled wirelessly, to provide light exactly when, and where, it's needed. It keeps the streets safe while saving the city money.

Comparing the Country's Largest Public Transit Systems

GOOD — Wed, 3 Feb 2010 06:30:00 PST

Taking public transportation is one of the best way to combat congestion in our cities. But to encourage individuals to take mass transit, cities must invest to keep their transportation systems running efficiently and serving citizens' needs. See how the country's largest subway and rapid transit systems stack up in terms of how many riders they serve and how well they serve those riders.

A collaboration between GOOD and Oliver Munday.

Saving Money by Cutting Traffic

GOOD — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 13:00:00 PST

America is known for its car culture—but we haven't designed our daily commutes from home to work (and back) to be easy. In fact, they're getting longer. Meanwhile, time spent, fuel wasted, and costs accrued as a result of sitting in traffic are piling up. Here's a look at the traffic in a few major U.S. metropolitan areas, as well as what the municipalities are doing to combat the congestion.

A collaboration between GOOD and Oliver Munday.

Internet Retail

GOOD — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 10:30:16 PST

More and more of our shopping is happening online. And in the digital marketplace, shoppers write and read millions of reviews each year, transforming the way we make buying decisions-and how companies make their products. Welcome to the information-saturated world of internet retail.

Using Technology to Improve City Services

GOOD — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 12:30:00 PST

Most city government agencies tend to gather their own data in parallel, and they rarely share information with each other. This can make life frustrating for city residents trying to access city services. Click here to see how can cities can use technology to be smarter?

A collaboration between GOOD, Oliver Munday, and Redub.

Using Technology to Make Shopping Better

GOOD — Tue, 5 Jan 2010 10:56:00 PST

As people worldwide flock to social networks such as Facebook and Twitter—which boast 350 million and 18 million users, respectively—savvy businesses are migrating into these arenas as well, in order to speak directly to their customers. By setting up pages on Facebook or feeds on Twitter, retail outlets can respond to the needs of their customers and find new ways to herd shoppers into their storefronts or onto their homepages. Here's a look at some of the companies making the best use of this brave new socially networked world.

A collaboration between GOOD and Oliver Munday.