Conan O'Brien is getting lots of kudos for his commencement address to the Dartmouth class of '11, and rightfully so.
Here's the highlight version:
Here's the whole thing:
Robert Reich explains the problem with the economy in two minutes. The video was put together by MoveOn.org so I'm pretty sure it's gonna tick off all my conservative friends and family members, but what good's a blog if you aren't pissing someone off?
Is it still an environmental calamity if Mother Nature inflicted it on herself, or only if it's man made? That's what I was thinking after I saw this video. That's what a lake that's had volcanic ash fall into it in massive amounts looks like:
CASSINI MISSION from Chris Abbas on Vimeo.
I'm a big believer in providing students with a well-rounded liberal arts curriculum. I also believe that we made a critical error with our education system when we marginalized the "industrial arts." Not that I think every kid needs to learn how to fix an engine, anymore than I think every kid needs to write poetry on a daily basis, but I do think that our education system is letting down our kids and our industry by not finding a healthy balance between what could be called a "practical education" and a "liberal arts education." Thus you may understand why I found this post by Fred Wilson so interesting:
I've been thinking about what happens at the intersection of science and art, how science impacts art, and how art impacts science, how New York City has been blessed to be at the intersection of science and art for at least two centuries, and how much of what is interesting to me in the technology revolution of the moment, the Internet, is at the intersection of science and art…
Science and art are seen as two very distinct endeavors and I suppose they are. But I see science and art as the yin yang of creative culture and innovation. To quote from Wikipedia, science and art are seemingly contrary forces that are interconnected and interdependent in the natural world, and they give rise to each other in turn.
I was talking to a longtime reader of this blog, Chris Dorr, last night. Chris has been working in the film industry for a long time and blogs at the Tribeca Film Festival Blog. We were talking about changes in the film business and Chris blurted out that "filmakers and software developers need to start sleeping together and it is starting to happen." Filmmaking is art, particularly great filmmaking. But the art of filmmaking has always been based on a number of fundamental scientific inventions. And Chris' point is that the art of filmmaking will continue to be impacted by scientific inventions that are happening in real time…
I was at a meeting yesterday with an economic development group in NYC. We were talking about 3D Printing, an important new technology that was "science" a decade ago. The economic development types were explaining to me why 3D Printing technology is so important to NYC. They explained that our artist and design communities need 3D Printing technology because it allows these artists to turn their ideas into objects rapidly and at lower cost. It is a game changer for artists, designers, and architects. Our portfolio company Shapeways and other innovators like MakerBot are doing just that right here in NYC.
In an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal about Apple's retail strategy I came across this:
Still, Apple is considered a pioneer in many aspects of customer service and store design. According to several employees and training manuals, sales associates are taught an unusual sales philosophy: not to sell, but rather to help customers solve problems. "Your job is to understand all of your customers' needs—some of which they may not even realize they have," one training manual says. To that end, employees receive no sales commissions and have no sales quotas.
"You were never trying to close a sale. It was about finding solutions for a customer and finding their pain points," said David Ambrose, 26 years old, who worked at an Apple store in Arlington, Va., until 2007.
Apple lays its "steps of service" out in the acronym APPLE, according to a 2007 employee training manual reviewed by The Wall Street Journal that is still in use.
"Approach customers with a personalized warm welcome," "Probe politely to understand all the customer's needs," "Present a solution for the customer to take home today," "Listen for and resolve any issues or concerns," and "End with a fond farewell and an invitation to return."
Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304563104576364071955678908.html#ixzz1PNc5
I find it sad that a business is considered a pioneer because it asks its front line employees to listen to customers, help them solve a problem and warmly invite them back. I'm not shocked, hey I saw Glengarry Glen Ross too, but I am saddened. I know many small businesses that do what Apple is being lauded for in this article, but when the Journal of Big Business Wall Street Journal points out that this is different from what you see in corporate retail America I think that's a pretty good indicator of how lots of large companies treat their customers – as raw meat for the sales mill.
As the owner of a house that routinely gets this comment – I've never seen anything like this before – from home improvement professionals I'm glad to say I've never personally experienced what the homeowner in this video has. On the other hand we're not planning on moving any time soon so there's still plenty of time.
The NY Appellate Division has found that MERS does NOT have the right to foreclose on a mortgage in default, nor can it assign that right. From the story (found via VDM):
The ubiquitous Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, nominal holder of millions of mortgages, does not have the right to foreclose on a mortgage in default or assign that right to anyone else if it does not hold the underlying promissory note, the Appellate Division, Second Department, ruled Friday. "This Court is mindful of the impact that this decision may have on the mortgage industry in New York, and perhaps the nation," Justice John M. Leventhal wrote for a unanimous panel in Bank of New York v. Silverberg, 17464/08. "Nonetheless, the law must not yield to expediency and the convenience of lending institutions. Proper procedures must be followed to ensure the reliability of the chain of ownership, to secure the dependable transfer of property, and to assure the enforcement of the rules that govern real property." The opinion noted that MERS is involved in about 60 percent of the mortgages originated in the United States.
This could, and maybe should, end very badly for the mortgage industry.
The oldest had kind of a big day on Saturday. I'm proud to write that he's officially a 2011 graduate of West Forsyth High School:
Befuddled 