Paula LaBrot

Paula LaBrot is a 30-year resident of Topanga, a futurist with a special interest in the uncharted waters of cyberspace. plabrot@messengermountainnews.com

Memphis Meats: A World Without Slaughter

Linda McCartney said, “If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian.” My great shame is a love of a good, rare steak. What do you expect from a kid out…

Consumer Electronics Show 2018—Rebooting the Future

Ben Franklin, I wish I could resurrect you for the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES ) in Vegas. Ever since you put that key on the kite, electronics inventors have gone crazy…

Matchmake, Matchmaker…? Yenta Has Gone Cyber

Back in the day, you could meet someone to date through friends, work, activities, hobbies, religious affiliations, clubs, parties, concerts, marches, bars or other serendipitous meeting places. One, often excruciating, way to…

Connections

My beloved editor, Flavia Potenza, named this column “All Things Connected.” I’ve been thinking about that while picking a subject to write about at this most wonderful time of the year. I…

The IoT: The Internet of Things

Words are symbols for objects and concepts. We hear the word, dog, and we have an immediate understanding of what the word means. So, what the heck does Internet of Things (IoT)…

Reincarnation of Stuff

In the jungle of northern Panama, a shocking image seared into my psyche. I came upon a slashed clearing in the pristine greenery crammed with mountains of black plastic garbage bags. On…

History in the Making

We, good neighbors, are creating a history lesson that future people will study looking back at the dawn of technology. Given that we hold that place on the timeline of human existence,…

Once Upon a Time…

My father, a world class story-teller, invented the 16mm Ampro projector. He never forgot the technologies he was developing were simply new platforms from which to practice an art as old as…

Future Cities

In 2050, it is predicted that 70 percent of the world’s population will live in mega-cities.  Today, many previously decayed urban neighborhoods are being reclaimed, renovated and re-populated by young Millennials who…

Tech RX

Early this year, Floating Doctors helped a remote island village off the northern coast of Panama get electricity. I don’t know how Ben and Noah did it, but they and the volunteers…