John Naughton
Encyclopedia
John Naughton is an Irish academic, journalist and writer based in the United Kingdom since 1968. He has worked at the Open University
since 1972, and has held the title of Professor of the Public Understanding of Technology since 2006.
fan, especially of short wave. Of all the things that interested him about the wireless-technology of the time it was the short wave radio
that held the key to what he later recognized was a link to the present World Wide Web: “For this [short-wave radio] was a technology which belonged not to great corporations or governments, but to people.” For Naughton, the early days of radio mirror and inform the experience of the early days of the Internet (the Net) and the World Wide Web.
In 1968 he moved to the United Kingdom.
and with the Jesuits.
Later, he studied engineering at University College Cork and Emmanuel College, Cambridge
. As an undergraduate he became involved with student politics, and as a consequence started to write for newspapers and developed his writing skills.
. They had two children. Sue died in 2002 after a battle with cancer. He also has two sons from an earlier marriage to Carol, who died in 2008.
's systems workgroup in 1972, and has worked at the Open University ever since. He was appointed as Professor of the Public Understanding of Technology at the Open University in 2006.
Naughton is Director of the Wolfson College, Cambridge
Press Fellowship Programme, and a non-executive director of Ndiyo
and Cambridge Visual Networks Ltd. He is also Academic Advisor to the Arcadia Fellowship Project at Cambridge University Library and an Advisory Board Member at the Open Knowledge Foundation
. Naughton has also worked with Newnham Research and Exbiblio.
He is an electrical engineer and also works as a journalist.
A television critic of The Observer
in the 1980s, he now writes a weekly column for the newspaper's Business Section, "The Networker", writing in defence of Wikipedia amongst many other topics.
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
since 1972, and has held the title of Professor of the Public Understanding of Technology since 2006.
Background and personal life
John Naughton was born and raised in Ireland, that part of which he himself describes as being “like the edge of the world—in a remote part of rural Ireland, in a household with few books, magazines, or television.”Radio days
As a boy, John Naughton was a great wirelessWireless
Wireless telecommunications is the transfer of information between two or more points that are not physically connected. Distances can be short, such as a few meters for television remote control, or as far as thousands or even millions of kilometers for deep-space radio communications...
fan, especially of short wave. Of all the things that interested him about the wireless-technology of the time it was the short wave radio
Shortwave
Shortwave radio refers to the upper MF and all of the HF portion of the radio spectrum, between 1,800–30,000 kHz. Shortwave radio received its name because the wavelengths in this band are shorter than 200 m which marked the original upper limit of the medium frequency band first used...
that held the key to what he later recognized was a link to the present World Wide Web: “For this [short-wave radio] was a technology which belonged not to great corporations or governments, but to people.” For Naughton, the early days of radio mirror and inform the experience of the early days of the Internet (the Net) and the World Wide Web.
In 1968 he moved to the United Kingdom.
Education
Naughton went to primary school with the Christian BrothersCongregation of Christian Brothers
The Congregation of Christian Brothers is a worldwide religious community within the Catholic Church, founded by Blessed Edmund Rice. The Christian Brothers, as they are commonly known, chiefly work for the evangelisation and education of youth, but are involved in many ministries, especially with...
and with the Jesuits.
Later, he studied engineering at University College Cork and Emmanuel College, Cambridge
Emmanuel College, Cambridge
Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay on the site of a Dominican friary...
. As an undergraduate he became involved with student politics, and as a consequence started to write for newspapers and developed his writing skills.
Personal life
John Naughton met his second wife Sue in England while working together on a project at the Open UniversityOpen University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
. They had two children. Sue died in 2002 after a battle with cancer. He also has two sons from an earlier marriage to Carol, who died in 2008.
Career
Naughton started working as an academic in the Open UniversityOpen University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
's systems workgroup in 1972, and has worked at the Open University ever since. He was appointed as Professor of the Public Understanding of Technology at the Open University in 2006.
Naughton is Director of the Wolfson College, Cambridge
Wolfson College, Cambridge
Wolfson College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Wolfson is one of a small number of Cambridge colleges which admit only students over the age of 21. The majority of students at the college are postgraduates, with around 15% studying undergraduate...
Press Fellowship Programme, and a non-executive director of Ndiyo
Ndiyo
Ndiyo is a project based out of Cambridge, United Kingdom, which aims to promote networked computing that is "simple, affordable, open." Ndiyo, pronounced nn-dee-yo, is the Swahili word for "yes" according to the project's website...
and Cambridge Visual Networks Ltd. He is also Academic Advisor to the Arcadia Fellowship Project at Cambridge University Library and an Advisory Board Member at the Open Knowledge Foundation
Open Knowledge Foundation
The Open Knowledge Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that promotes open knowledge, including open content and open data. It was founded 24 May 2004 in Cambridge, UK...
. Naughton has also worked with Newnham Research and Exbiblio.
He is an electrical engineer and also works as a journalist.
Publications and journalism
Naughton wrote a book which has become a standard on the history of the Internet, A Brief History of the Future: Origins of the Internet, Phoenix Press, 2000, ISBN 0-7538-1093-XA television critic of The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
in the 1980s, he now writes a weekly column for the newspaper's Business Section, "The Networker", writing in defence of Wikipedia amongst many other topics.
External links
- Homepage at the Open University
- Inaugural Lecture
- Open University Systems Department Website
- John Naughton's Online Diary
- Naughton's contributions at The ObserverThe ObserverThe Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...