The Atlantic Wire — March 12, 2012 | Dashiell Bennett

This is a summary. Read original article in full here.

We’re into the Monday doldrums at SXSW. Three straight days of walking and talking and drinking, yet somehow people still feel compelled to go outside and keep talking and walking and drinking. On a weekday! The nerve of this town.

Meanwhile, Skype has paid this “town crier” to read Tweets out loud on the street, making the concept of shouting into the void all too literal. It’s almost enough to make us think these SXSWi Power Rankings are being treated like a serious analytical breakdown of cultural as it stands.

Monday’s undisputed power rankings:

1. Ray Kurzweil: There was hardly an empty seat available to watch Ray Kurzweil’s keynote talk today. Not pictured: Ray Kurzweil. Because he was in a totally different room that was also filed to the brim with his adoring fans. This was taken in the room to watch him on TV. I have not read The Singularity Is Near, but I assume this is what it’s about. […]