"Good design is the perfect balance between science and art"
-Leonardo Da Vinci
Posts Tagged ‘Food for thought’
Quote du jour: Leonardo Da Vinci
09
Jan
Great Article from Wired.com about why Black Market Entrepreneurs matter
07
Jan
I first read this article in my paper copy of the magazine WIRED (Yes, I know….I know…I'll plant a tree) and thought it'd be worth sharing.
It's something that I have known for a long time, but the quantitative aspect of it being revealed makes it a good read. For those of you who are new to the idea, it's worth reading.
Having said that, I do not promote or support piracy or knock-offs as they disrupt established mainstream economies and artificially inflate the prices of consumables and good. However, there are examples where corporations team up with black markets to allow products that are needed but would not necessarily appeal to the main stream to flow out to those who need it. It is also a great source of innovation.
It has long been known that the marginal of society define the society and the direction of the society. It is not just a disruptive movement, but rather a rattling of the norm which during the adjustment period, establishes new ways to do business or new products which make life more efficient…for most.
This chart (taken from the online article without permission but credited to wired.com) highlights the distribution and size of what the journalist Robert Neuwirth refers to as System D (D for Débrouillard, the French term for what is known in the modern American connotation as a hustler or someone who easily adapts to any situation) in his new book Steal of Nations: The global Rise of the Informal Economy
Source: Friedrich Schneider et al., “New Estimates for the Shadow Economies All Over the World,”International Economic Journal, 2010
What 2012 will bring…!
02
Jan
Well, the new year is upon us. It's out with the old and in with the new. There are plenty of 2011 reviews, so we won't bother with those. Alan Curtis Kay is known for many things, but is particular an uncredited celebrity for the saying
"The best way to predict the future is to invent it."
Since, I cannot predict the future, I'll go with a wish list for 2012.
Technology:
- A new version of the iPhone's mail app which allows one to attach media files from any stored application's library to an email from the mail app itself.
- Less expensive digital storage. This may seem trivial but people who've worked in gigarcinoma or terarcinoma fields know how limiting this could be.
- Cheaper HDTVs. I know the prices are going down, but the price points are pretty high.
- A real green technology. Sorry but shifting the carbon emission from my vehicle to a couple of plants work well to create industries, but does little to curb greenhouse gas emission.
Sports:
- A Miami Heat championship…it would be nice!
- A bit of thoughtfulness and balance in the media covering sports. it's easy to villify athletes, but did you know that the so-called "DECISION" was about raising money for the Boys & Girls Club of America? Most people don't know that or fail to realize that the Connecticut location from which they were broadcasting was not random. Lebron gave all of the proceeds from the show to the club. He also took a major paycut to go play in Miami and this is the one we label as an egotistical person. Really? Really?
- More of Rex Ryan' rhetoric. Yes, I realize that his team would have already been eliminiated by time this will be made public, but it's refreshing to have a coach who vouches for his players. It's your job, care about it.
- More reseach into head and connective tissue injuries using real data.
Politics:
- A net difference?
- An integrated approach to supporting innovation. It's not enough to talk about or create one organization. Everyone who has started a business knows what it takes and while there is absolutely not substitute for hard work and problem solving, the mechanics of a business could be facilitated to allow good ideas to be explored professionally and in depth.
Entertainment:
- Two or more well done science shows on main stream tv. The population eats up science fiction and reality tv, but still remain fairly poorly informed by our media. Europe has done a great job showcasing how it can be done. We should look to them and dilute some of the mindless showings. One does not have to be dumbed-down in order to be entertained.
- Real shows about economics. As a society, we generally have a very poor understanding of economic principles. This basic fact, compounded by the current economic concerns mixed with political games further drive the spread of ignorance by relying on fear and concerns about once's future.
- More Kim Kardashian on TV. This may sound sarcastic, but it's not. It is also not because of her aesthetics. It is mindless entertainment that is well packaged (no pun intended) and it is as much a phenomena as it should be the subject of a course in social psychology.
Finally, my big one: Research:
- I can't tell you…because my goal is to work on it, but let's just say that we need more of the things which allow us to keep on keeping on
- Stronger partnerships between the science and engineering departments of universities with their business/entrepreneur programs, technology transfers and strategic industry partners.
That's it for now, but this may get updated. What do you think?
Sir Ken Robinson:Do schools kill creativity?
17
Jun
This is a pretty good talk by Sir Ken Robinson about the effect that the current education paradigm has on the creativity of attendees.
There is STILL beauty in nature…
12
Mar
We sometimes take nature for granted. We sometimes assume that what is will always be and that what was, is simply gone because it was meant to be this way. There is a saying that goes a little something like this: “The stone age did not end because we ran out of stone.” The same can be said of nature but also of most things in life. It is the consequence of our actions past and present which often engineers the future which surprises us.
Natural occurrences both dynamic and static remind us that there is STILL beauty in nature. There is a certain peace that comes when one is overtaken by the magnificence of nature. The sun rises and the sun falls. Flowers bloom and flowers wilt. There is a beginning and there is an end. We are transient, but nature has been there long before us and will continue to be long after we’re gone. There is STILL beauty in nature.
There are miracles of nature, which is more of an idiom than a fact, but nevertheless it refers to the unexplained events that one witnesses every day. In a world defined by entropy, to find such consistent organization and order is appeasing. If you stare long enough at a plant, you see a smaller one within it and so one and so forth. If you look at a pineapple and count the spirals, you find that they obey the Fibonacci sequence. Ferns, or even “Christmas” trees are well ordered and the progression of is shape and the regularity with which proportionality is maintained is simply remarkable. The growth pattern of a tree is another reminder of this order. A magnetic wave, an electric field, so regular, so geometrically internally consistent. Broccolis, even Romanescos (You’re welcome) are great examples of such beauty. There is STILL beauty in nature.
I once stood outside looking at the snow fall and could not help but admire the flakes. If they fall slowly enough, you can truly appreciate their size, but also the harmony which persists in nature. The same is true of late fall or early spring rainfall. Read the rest of this entry »
Conflicting interests
21
Jan
I was thinking of that song by Tina Turner with the lyrics “what’s love got to do with?” and wondered: What does IT have to do with IT? It is so ambiguous that everyone has a different definition for it. This would not happen with other things. If you ask someone what is an apple, they would normally describe the same thing. The same can be assumed of a question about a car. What does it look like:generally a box with wheels, preferably motorized, etc… Yet love, as ubiquitous as it is, is very difficult to describe.
It is everywhere so much so that some get caught inside of it, they’re IN love. Read the rest of this entry »
20101031 Lessons du Jour: Being outstanding is not equal to standing out!
31
Oct
Well, another update. The day is over, but so is the week and the month, so I'll recount as much as possible of what I learnt this month. This month has been rather informative and revealing both introspectively as well as outwardly, so let's see what sums it up.
Fight for light!
28
Sep
Fight for light,
overcome your plight.
When the time is right,
you will be the light!
Are all Men created equal?
10
Sep
Out of natural rights have evolved the old adage that all Men are created equal. It is so popular that it’s been featured in numerous historical texts of high regards, notably the United States Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Magna Carta to name a few. Read the rest of this entry »