An element to this article that stood out to me was the judges' reactions to the time-frame involved, and the methodology of the participants.

As to the former, there seems to be a fundamental lack of understanding on the elders' part of what software is running out there. Between torrents, which collect the bandwidth of thousands to drive content downloads, to VOIP, gaming platforms, even more gaming platforms....even more gaming platforms.

To ignore an industry that has produced the wildly popular Nintendo DS, PSP, PS3, and Wii, two portable and all with wireless out of the box, is to be blind to the fact that a "worldwide internet" is very much a reality. Big Cities, in fact, are the EASIEST part of the equation. Commercial vendors of every kind want a wireless network to shovel advertising through. And we NEED access to the internet to function. It's not about addiction, it's about the demands of minds that have become used to having real solutions to any problem they have at their fingertips. Boredom, hunger, curiosity, being horny and alone....everything.

On top of that, the DS and PSP have the ability to connect to one another using wireless signals. I have friends who ride the subway in their cities, and they play games, with voice communication, with people on different cars. On top of extending signals everywhere, these devices are encouraging interactions in places where most people stare at the floor.

I know I'm rambling, but I think we need to rethink our devices when we talk about expanding the speed of the internet. There are numerous studies at Universities and beyond involving the coordination of thousands of computers and PS3's. Pooling computing power to tackle really difficult data. Apply hive intelligence to the devices we use. And if we accidentally find ourselves wondering what that means about our definitions of life, well, maybe that's ok too.

We carry the supercomputers of the past in our pocket. Those super smart looking guys in those filmstrips with their house-sized computers. Complex simulations running on machines leagues beyond those houses are so easy for us to manipulate, they are literally games to us. I think it's folly to take that lightly, both in a practical and philosophical sense.

As to the latter, I believe those MBA's approached the situation like they would any other problem they face in a simulation: With precise and decisive action based on long-term success.

They were figuring out how to Save the Princess while the judges tried to figure out what the deal was with the evil walking mushrooms.

This exercise was a perfect representation of the current generational chasm. No more gaps. In many ways, there is an insurmountable leap that the older generation are physically incapable of making. Pharmaceutical companies should get on that. Everyone loves drugs.