tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46541838412742122192024-02-18T22:21:36.095-06:00Syed Karimgoats, squirrels, and windmillsSyedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-63721153652892116752014-03-19T22:18:00.002-05:002014-03-19T22:18:31.511-05:00<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Always fight for progress and reform, never tolerate injustice or corruption, always fight demagogues of all parties, never belong to any party, always oppose privileged classes and public plunderers, never lack sympathy with the poor, always remain devoted to the public welfare, never be satisfied with merely printing news, always be drastically independent, never be afraid to attack wrong, whether by predatory plutocracy or predatory poverty. </blockquote>
--Joseph PulitzerSyedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-64841929056657658182014-01-11T16:09:00.000-06:002014-01-11T16:11:46.174-06:00How Forgiveness Separates Adults from Children<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Every single one of us, all of us — excepting none — walks upon the bones of the conquered, the tortured, the raped, the exterminated, the pillaged. All of us are descended from murderers, rapists, pedophiles and warmongers. Trace each and every one of us back far enough, and there will be ancestors who did things so horrific that there aren't words in any language to describe what they did. NONE of us is immune.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Knowing this, admitting this, we must all conclude that — regardless of whether there's a Nazi near-ancestor who gassed Jews, a distant American colonial settler who pushed an Indian tribe off her ancestral land, a Chinese father who raped his daughters, an Arab warrior who enslaved Africans or something else more horrible — we must not wander the halls of our homes wailing in agony over the sins of our ancestors BUT strive to be better than them. That is the lesson from history that all of us have to learn. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
We can hold grudges against every grave offense and peccadillo, or we can leg go of a better past and work on making something better for our children. </blockquote>
<a href="http://www.quora.com/Atomic-Bombings-of-Hiroshima-and-Nagasaki-August-1945/Why-dont-the-Japanese-hate-the-United-States-for-Hiroshima-and-Nagasaki">--Dan Holliday </a>Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-67079277504444868132013-10-12T19:30:00.002-05:002013-10-12T19:30:16.589-05:00The Genius of the Minimum Income<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The genius of the minimum guaranteed income, and the reason that it could possibly appeal to both liberals and libertarians is because in this case it does precisely the opposite of what you're afraid of: the government doesn't pick anything. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
They give it to everybody. If you think that the government does a poor job of allocating the absolutely colossal amounts of money currently spent by social programs, or you recognize that trying to "do a good job" and prevent fraud, and all the other social engineering requires a vast, wasteful bureaucracy, then this is an interesting option </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
This is a program that eliminates extreme poverty, but requires almost no infrastructure. You'd only need to verify that recipients are citizens and that they file their taxes. Since you can abolish Social Security, a stripped down social security bureaucracy, which already prevents people who haven't paid into social security from receiving benefits, could take over that task. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
It could allow one of the largest and most sweeping reductions in the size of government in our lifetimes. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
And if you believe in freedom, but also want to live in a country where people don't have to beg for food, then this is your best bet. You trust people to make their own decisions about what benefits them and their family. You don't discourage work or enterprise.<br /><br />I think it's a political long shot of epic proportions, but also a great idea.</blockquote>
--<a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6532738">DavidAdams</a> discussing <i><a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/10/11/rather_than_savage_cuts_switzerland_considers_star_trek_economics/">Rather than cuts, Switzerland discusses Star Trek economics</a>.</i>Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-45705616028198087772013-09-19T18:48:00.006-05:002013-09-19T18:48:47.733-05:00Kids Don't Play Anymore Regarding the article, <a href="http://www.aeonmagazine.com/being-human/children-today-are-suffering-a-severe-deficit-of-play/">Children Are Suffering from a Severe Deficit of Play </a><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Having grown up in the late 80s in an East Block country, this article resonated very strongly. Growing up in that place and time was akin to 50s America - no cable, consoles, arcades, VCRs or handhelds. We had TV, but it only had the single state broadcast channel which played only one cartoon.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The only thing to do was play which we did prodigiously - I was part of a large mix-aged group (6-12 kids, 5 years age difference) and we would play everything (sports, house, building things, demolishing things, raising stray animals, foraging fruit, fighting other kids). It was a great childhood and neither I nor my childhood friends (most of us are still friends, even across continents) would trade it for anything. Interestingly, it was almost the same childhood my mom and dad had.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
My sister (the de-facto leader of our group) now has children and their childhood could not be any different - constantly shuttled from home to school to organized activity. Play only for a bit under heavily supervised conditions (ie, birthday party at another kids house) and filled to the brim with tablets, phones, computers etc.<br />I feel very bad for my nephew's effective lack of childhood, even more so because it seems that doing something differently is a big social taboo. My mom, siter and I have talked about this, and my sister described being almost powerless - who would they play with? Where? What are other parents going to think? etc etc.<br /><br />When I go to places like rural Belize or small-town Costa Rica I see kids still playing and I wonder if that's not the best place to raise a small kid (4-10 years old).</blockquote>
--<a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6407138">martythemaniak</a><br />
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-42719477565185451312013-09-18T11:54:00.002-05:002013-09-18T11:54:18.381-05:00The 20 Smartest Things Jeff Bezos Has Ever SaidGolden nuggets, originally <a href="http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/09/09/the-25-smartest-things-jeff-bezos-has-ever-said.aspx">posted here</a>. <div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">1. "</strong>All businesses need to be young forever. If your customer base ages with you, you're Woolworth's."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">2.</strong> "There are two kinds of companies: Those that work to try to charge more and those that work to charge less. We will be the second."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">3.</strong> "Your margin is my opportunity."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">4.</strong> "If you only do things where you know the answer in advance, your company goes away."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">5.</strong> "We've had three big ideas at Amazon that we've stuck with for 18 years, and they're the reason we're successful: Put the customer first. Invent. And be patient."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">6.</strong> "I very frequently get the question: 'What's going to change in the next 10 years?' And that is a very interesting question; it's a very common one. I almost never get the question: 'What's not going to change in the next 10 years?' And I submit to you that that second question is actually the more important of the two -- because you can build a business strategy around the things that are stable in time. ... [I]n our retail business, we know that customers want low prices, and I know that's going to be true 10 years from now. They want fast delivery; they want vast selection. It's impossible to imagine a future 10 years from now where a customer comes up and says, 'Jeff I love Amazon; I just wish the prices were a little higher,' [or] 'I love Amazon; I just wish you'd deliver a little more slowly.' Impossible. And so the effort we put into those things, spinning those things up, we know the energy we put into it today will still be paying off dividends for our customers 10 years from now. When you have something that you know is true, even over the long term, you can afford to put a lot of energy into it."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">7.</strong> "If you're not stubborn, you'll give up on experiments too soon. And if you're not flexible, you'll pound your head against the wall and you won't see a different solution to a problem you're trying to solve."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">8.</strong> "Any business plan won't survive its first encounter with reality. The reality will always be different. It will never be the plan."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">9.</strong> "In the old world, you devoted 30% of your time to building a great service and 70% of your time to shouting about it. In the new world, that inverts."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">10.</strong> "We've done price elasticity studies, and the answer is always that we should raise prices. We don't do that, because we believe -- and we have to take this as an article of faith -- that by keeping our prices very, very low, we earn trust with customers over time, and that that actually does maximize free cash flow over the long term."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">11.</strong> "The framework I found, which made the decision [to start Amazon in 1994] incredibly easy, was what I called a regret minimization framework. I wanted to project myself forward to age 80 and say, 'OK, I'm looking back on my life. I want to minimize the number of regrets I have.' And I knew that when I was 80, I was not going to regret having tried this. I was not going to regret trying to participate in this thing called the Internet that I thought was going to be a really big deal. I knew that if I failed, I wouldn't regret that. But I knew the one thing I might regret is not ever having tried. I knew that that would haunt me every day."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">12.</strong> "We innovate by starting with the customer and working backwards. That becomes the touchstone for how we invent."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">13.</strong> "When [competitors are] in the shower in the morning, they're thinking about how they're going to get ahead of one of their top competitors. Here in the shower, we're thinking about how we are going to invent something on behalf of a customer."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">14.</strong> "A company shouldn't get addicted to being shiny, because shiny doesn't last."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">15.</strong> "I think frugality drives innovation, just like other constraints do. One of the only ways to get out of a tight box is to invent your way out."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">16.</strong> "If you double the number of experiments you do per year, you're going to double your inventiveness."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">17.</strong> "If you never want to be criticized, for goodness' sake don't do anything new."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">18.</strong> "If you're long-term oriented, customer interests and shareholder interests are aligned."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">19.</strong> "Invention requires a long-term willingness to be misunderstood. You do something that you genuinely believe in, that you have conviction about, but for a long period of time, well-meaning people may criticize that effort. When you receive criticism from well-meaning people, it pays to ask, 'Are they right?' And if they are, you need to adapt what they're doing. If they're not right, if you really have conviction that they're not right, you need to have that long-term willingness to be misunderstood. It's a key part of invention."</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: 11px; padding: 0px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">20</strong>. "You want to look at what other companies are doing. It's very important not to be hermetically sealed. But you don't want to look at it as if, 'OK, we're going to copy that.' You want to look at it and say, 'That's very interesting. What can we be inspired to do as a result of that?' And then put your own unique twist on it."</div>
</div>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-40881338985539977392013-07-25T10:10:00.003-05:002013-07-25T10:10:31.521-05:00Modified SerenityChange what you can. Accept what you must. And know the difference.Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-84927085499735469402013-07-14T15:55:00.004-05:002013-07-14T15:55:48.466-05:00Comfort and Happiness<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Comfort sells easier than happiness. Comfort is easy. It requires no effort and no work. Happiness takes effort. It requires <a href="http://postmasculine.com/happiness">being proactive</a>, confronting fears, facing difficult situations, and having unpleasant conversations. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
-<a href="http://thoughtcatalog.com/2013/10-things-most-americans-dont-know-about-america/">Mark Manson</a></blockquote>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-90968939257055226102013-05-25T20:23:00.000-05:002013-05-25T20:23:01.665-05:00What Others Want<blockquote class="tr_bq">
A lot of people spend decades chasing something that someone convinced them they should want without realizing it won’t make them happy.</blockquote>
<div>
Derek Sivers</div>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-90675760437757999152013-05-25T12:39:00.001-05:002013-05-25T12:39:03.932-05:00List of Online Retailers for Prescription EyeglassesOne of the lenses on my five-year-old frames popped out yesterday. I know it's around the house somewhere, but it seems to be doing an excellent job of hiding. Although I don't have horrible vision, having corrected-vision makes interacting with the world so much more pleasant. <div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Since I was looking at the various options for purchasing glasses online, I thought I'd post my findings here. It's a short list, but at least it saves me 30 minutes of searching the next time I need glasses. </div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.zennioptical.com/">Zenni Optical</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.39dollarglasses.com/">39 Dollar Glasses</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.eyebuydirect.com/">Eye Buy Direct</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.optical4less.com/">Optical 4 Less</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.goggles4u.com/">Goggles 4 U</a></li>
</ul>
<div>
They all have relatively high search-rankings and were mentioned a few times on various discussion boards. I have yet to purchase anything, so I can't comment on purchase-experience or product-quality. </div>
</div>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-82035849421262443192013-04-04T21:27:00.003-05:002013-04-04T21:27:44.693-05:00Swedish Pride<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">Swedes are secure in their identity because even the poorest and least talented Swede can expect a good life and the richest, most talented ones don't grudge them their standard of living as "unearned" or "undeserved" the way capitalists do in the US and India.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">This is not an argument for state socialism of the Swedish variety. It is perfectly fine to attempt to get there in other ways (through entrepreneurship or whatever). It is perfectly fine to end up with unequal societies and launch moon rockets. So long as there is continued attention to </span><i style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.399999618530273px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">raising the floor </i><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">continuously.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">The important lesson to take away from countries like Sweden is that social identity and pride is NOT based on your greatest achievements. It is based on the things you are </span><i style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.399999618530273px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">least </i><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;">proud of. The dark stuff. The stuff you like to sweep under the carpet. The stuff you put in closets when visitors show up at your home. Which in general translates to "how a society treats its least fortunate members."</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/Psychology/Why-are-the-Subcontinental-people-so-uncomfortable-with-their-core-identity-yet-pretend-to-be-proud-of-themselves">Venkatesh Rao </a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.399999618530273px;"><br /></span>
<br />Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-35596277352037721852013-02-26T20:48:00.004-06:002013-02-26T20:48:36.293-06:00Sentences and ParagraphsA sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.<div>
--<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Strunk,_Jr.">William Strunk</a></div>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-33593605554968496682013-01-18T00:03:00.000-06:002013-01-18T00:03:05.570-06:00Always-on 56kbps ConnectionI wasn't able to quickly find the answer to this question, so I thought I'd just figure out the answer and post it here for anyone else who is ever curious.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Question: How much bandwidth is consumed if a 56kbps connection is left open (and used to maximum capacity) for a month.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Answer: 17.3 MB</blockquote>
<br />
The easiest way to do the arithmetic is by making the numbers as small as possible right off the bat. Since 8 bits make a byte, a dial-up modem is able to push 7 bytes a second. And since there are 86,400 seconds in a day, we have a maximum of 604,800 bytes in a day, or 0.576782 MB. Multiply that by 30 and we find that the maximum capacity of a dial-up connection is 17.3 MB per month. Wow. That's nothing.<br />
<br />
The reason I was thinking about this is because I just received a new Huawei cellphone for $15. It's a backup phone in case I ever lose my main one. For that price, you just can't go wrong. I'm surprised at how cheap and relatively full-featured it is, for a basic phone (though it does feel a bit like a toy). Since I don't make many calls at all, I was wondering what else could be done with something like this. Well, how about an always-on dial-up connection for a stop-motion camera?<br />
<br />
But based on the math above, this wouldn't make much sense. The cheapest unlimited voice-only plans I've come across are $20 a month, which equates to over $20 per MB in this case. That's higher than roaming data rates in Russia. Nuts to that. I'll stick with a 4G connection, especially since there are at least a couple of new providers offering free data of up to 500 MB per month. <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
</blockquote>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-14391056039669963112013-01-13T21:23:00.001-06:002013-01-13T21:23:18.644-06:00Making EnemiesYou have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life.<br />
-Winston Churchill-<br />
<br />
I'm not sure if the attribution is correct (it may be--I just haven't checked). Regardless of whose words these are, the point is sound. Change is friction and friction is pain. Those who move cheese and rock boats are bound to piss at least a few people off--it just comes with the territory. But so what? Why is it so important to a nice person? I'd rather be an effective asshole than a pleasant bystander.Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-63639059223688783182013-01-06T13:37:00.002-06:002013-01-06T13:37:21.068-06:00Parental Praise<blockquote class="tr_bq">
I sometimes felt angry about how we were treated until one day I realized that they made a great parental sacrifice, exchanging their own popularity for our potential.</blockquote>
--<a href="http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5013139">edw519</a> on Hacker NewsSyedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-10303718072616387942013-01-05T22:11:00.001-06:002013-01-05T22:11:22.966-06:00What Happens When My Balloon Lands in China?I'm not sure how I came across the topic, but I'm a new fan of high altitude balloons. Actually, I do know why I'm interested in them, but I'll save that for a later post. <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CEEQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FHigh-altitude_balloon&ei=n_PoUNbyDYrS2QXL_YHgBw&usg=AFQjCNE7WwHn352nrZ0YH7CGK4IuedLcdg&sig2=h1p-uTEpZ9NnhiiNr6HgWQ&bvm=bv.1355534169,d.b2I">High altitude balloons</a> are generally used for measuring the weather, but there are also amateur radio enthusiasts (HAM radio operators and the sort) interested in this type of aircraft. Anyone curious about this subject should check out <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CEEQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FHigh-altitude_balloon&ei=n_PoUNbyDYrS2QXL_YHgBw&usg=AFQjCNE7WwHn352nrZ0YH7CGK4IuedLcdg&sig2=h1p-uTEpZ9NnhiiNr6HgWQ&bvm=bv.1355534169,d.b2I">Amateur Radio High Altitude Ballooning</a>. <div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The amazing thing about these specialized balloons is that they can reach altitudes upwards of 10 miles--and they usually stay airborne for about 90 minutes. I would have thought they stay up for a longer period of time, but the balloons expand and pop at altitude. There are, however, some balloons that have much longer durations--I think they're referred to as long-duration high altitude balloons. I haven't read much about these high pressure balloons yet, but I seem to recall that they can stay aloft for days. If the normal weather balloons can travel a distance of 150 miles in just 90 minutes, then I wonder what kind of distance a balloon can cover over a few days worth of drifting? And this train of though led me to the question I've been researching for the last hour: </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
What happens when a balloon crosses international borders into the airspace of another country?</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I assumed that the answer would have something to do with the altitudes associated with sovereign airspace, but based on this paper published by the <a href="http://spaceandtelecomlaw.unl.edu/">Space and Telecommunications Law Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln</a>, there is no universally agreed upon altitude limit for sovereign airspace (though 100km is starting to look like the going rate). But even if the figure is much lower and high altitude balloons are technically sailing in unregulated/unowned airspace, they still come back to Earth at some point. So the next question is: </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
What if I launch a balloon that ends up landing in China? Is there some kind of international treaty that covers this scenario, as is the case with FAA regulations and domestic weather balloons? Or is this something that long-duration ballooners need to be constantly aware of? </div>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-3322700157642305522012-11-07T15:24:00.003-06:002012-11-07T15:24:29.110-06:00Risk and Entrepreneurship <blockquote class="tr_bq">
Agreed... in essence this is why we're all here. As entrepreneurs we all educated risk takers, and we realize any venture is essentially gambling if there is no edge. At any time, there could be a new idea that pushes any one HFT algorithm (or mobile photo sharing app, or words with friends clone) past the established mindshare into blue ocean territory. When that time comes, do you want to be caught with your pants down, lumbering under the excuse that you thought the oceans were too red for you to bother?</blockquote>
--<a href="http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4749151">demione </a>Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-51156354418214992362012-11-07T15:22:00.004-06:002012-11-07T15:22:33.052-06:00Speculation<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The market can stay irrational longer than you can stay solvent.</blockquote>
--<a href="http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4749057">toomuchtodo </a>Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-3701036687435641992012-11-04T22:51:00.000-06:002012-11-04T22:51:21.935-06:00Lingua FrancaI don't think culture matters. And as language is a subset of culture, by logic and extension, I don't believe that language matters, either. Cultures have been evolving--and going extinct--for millenia. No different from what species have been doing over the same period of time.<br />
<br />
As far as I can tell, all culture (and language) are just constructs created by minds from various places and times. Culture is not a sentient being; it does not mourn the fact that it is becoming less relevant or less significant. It does not mourn its obsolescence.<br />
<br />
By logic and reason, this is true. But if it is, then why is it so sacrilegious to openly make this statement? I don't usually come across many people who agree with my perspective, especially in normal, real-life situations. But on the internet, well, that's a whole 'nother story. <br />
<br />
A few days ago I came across a post on Hacker News--where I come across a lot of great nuggets of thought. I believe the top-level of the thread was discussing the <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/sugata_mitra_the_child_driven_education.html">TED talk</a> related to dropping off computers/tablets to illiterate primary school students and then coming back a few months later to see how much progress had been made by the cohort. But that's not really the reason for this post (though it's a fascinating TED talk).<br />
<br />
What I thought was most interesting in the Hacker New thread was the following comment, which talks about the importance of English when it comes to the propagation of knowledge and information. What I appreciate most about this comment is that it was written by someone from a completely different worldview.<br />
<br />
I don't really care about the English language. I'm lucky that I speak it as my first language, but that's not what matters. What matters is that the world--humanity--is coalescing around a universal mode of communication. And if other languages die out as a result, then so be it.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Precisely. I see no point in teaching them in anything but English. They're children, if they don't know it, they will learn fast. In fact, teaching them in any other language would be a step backwards. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
I am not a native English speaker myself. I am Mexican. Yes, native Spanish speaker which is supposedly one of the top 3 most widely spoken languages on Earth and I must confess that most of the time I don't see the point in reading any content in Spanish anymore (except for some literature - in other words, yes, you probably want to read Shakespeare in English and Cervantes in Spanish, etc) </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Foreign news, science, technology in Spanish? all that content is nothing but translations (sometimes bad ones) from the original English source. I see how something could get posted on HN one day and only after many days (usually weeks) it would finally appear in the "Technology News" section of the most "cutting edge" newspapers and media in Latin America or Spain. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
I live here in Japan and most scientific papers and research from major universities (like Kyoto or Tokyo University) is also published in English. I think it's cute to try to keep one's traditions and culture alive but at the end of the day being able to communicate efficiently with each other and do stuff like hacking Android is what keeps the world spinning. Anything else in your way is just extra overhead.</blockquote>
<a href="http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4726551">--captaintacos </a>Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-60448499073899993302012-10-28T21:44:00.002-05:002012-10-28T21:44:53.203-05:00One and the Same<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours.</span></blockquote>
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parody_religion"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 12.800000190734863px; text-align: right;">Stephen F. Roberts</span></a>Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-60231702269491550772012-10-27T13:33:00.002-05:002012-10-27T13:33:30.810-05:00Power DistanceI learned something new today--a concept in cultural economics known as power distance. <div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Taken from <a href="http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4703213">JumpCrisscross of HackerNews</a>:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<blockquote>
An influential Dutch researcher in cultural economics identified, in 1981, a cultural dimension he terms "power distance", defined as "the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organisations within a country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally".<br />On PDI, scaled zero to one hundred, the U.S. scores 40 and China scores 80 (Russia scores 93).<br />Another dimension of significance is individualism, defined as "the degree of interdependence a society maintains among its members".<br />On IDV the U.S. scores 91 and China 20 (Russia scores 39).<br />China (and Russia) value social cohesion along implicitly informative, i.e. highly contextual, information flows. Leaders are given tremendous leeway to do their jobs and are to be questioned only in cases of extreme breach of obligation, i.e. when they threaten social harmony.<br />Note that Russians, in surveys, explicitly prefer social stability to free speech and a free media. Chinese find the legalistic contortions American politicians have to go through to do something generally favoured as awkward and wasteful. We see allowing elites to enrich themselves off market reforms to help them buy into the idea of change as distasteful whereas from a social utilitarian perspective it's strategically kosher.</blockquote>
The next question that comes into my mind is, "Which countries have the lowest PDI?"<br />
<br />
The answer, taken from <a href="http://www.clearlycultural.com/geert-hofstede-cultural-dimensions/power-distance-index/">ClearlyCultural.com</a>: Austria--11, Israel--13, Demnark--18, New Zealand--22<br />
<br />
I'd like to see (rather, I should create) a table that shows power distance, press freedom, corruption, etc. My guess is that we'd see the same global leaders (Austria, Scandinavia, New Zealand, Costa Rica), but it would still be an interesting exercise.<br />
<blockquote>
</blockquote>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-64966288749641524042012-10-25T21:58:00.000-05:002012-10-25T21:58:04.276-05:0010 CommandmentsOften times, non-profits and educational institutions have pretty lame mission statements--and even lamer tag lines. But hats off to IMSA, the Illinois Math & Science Academy, for coming up with something non-wishy-washy.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
IMSA: igniting and inspiring creative, ethical scientific minds that advance the human condition. </blockquote>
Who can argue with that. Well, if you're any kind of religious fundamentalist, you may want to.<br />
<br />
And their beliefs:<br />
<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ul>
<li>All people have equal intrinsic worth.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>All people have choices and are responsible for their actions.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Belonging to a community requires commitment to the common good.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Diverse perspectives enrich understanding and inspire discovery and creativity.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Honesty, trust and respect are vital for any relationship to thrive.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Learning never ends.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Meaning is constructed by the learner.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>No one’s path in life is predetermined.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>The ability to discern and create connections is the essence of understanding.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>We are all stewards of our planet. </li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
I prefer these bullet points over the Ten Commandments.<br /><br /><br />Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-8835486879917296002012-10-22T21:04:00.000-05:002012-10-22T21:04:19.195-05:00State of the Internet<br />
<div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
Akamai recently published its annual State of the Internet report, which can be found<a _mce_href="http://www.akamai.com/dl/whitepapers/akamai_soti_q311.pdf" href="http://www.akamai.com/dl/whitepapers/akamai_soti_q311.pdf"> here.</a></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
If you scroll down to the bottom the page, there is a chart that lets you see average connection speeds in a country over time. It's an interesting display of information related to the growth of the internet across the world. </div>
<div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">
From 2008 to 2011, the difference between Algeria and Macedonia is night and day. </div>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-36013288582080579502012-10-14T18:33:00.001-05:002012-10-14T18:33:07.594-05:00Passion and Greed<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Passion burns out, whereas greed is sustainable.</blockquote>
<a href="http://www.yosefk.com/blog/do-you-really-want-to-be-making-this-much-money-when-youre-50.html">Yossi Kreinin</a>Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-89524263203305957582012-10-11T11:54:00.001-05:002012-10-11T11:54:31.677-05:00Am I left or right? Although I don't write nearly enough, one of the reasons that I do is to track my opinions and perspectives over time. I like to think that I am very progressive in the way that I think. If my thoughts are in line with reality, then most of my beliefs will change--evolve--as I age.<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I came across a <a href="http://www.quora.com/The-Economist/Is-The-Economist-left-or-right">post on Quora</a> that asks about the political leanings of The Economist. I'm including the best answer, which was written by the organization's digital editor below because I think it does a better job of explaining my current beliefs than anything I could put down in words. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="qlink_container" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/The-Economist" routing="q://topic/(4329)" style="color: #19558d; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><i style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The Economist</i></a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"> is not inherently left-wing or right-wing; its political philosophy is rooted in 19th-century </span><span class="qlink_container" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/Classical-Liberalism" routing="q://topic/(19905)" style="color: #19558d; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Classical Liberalism</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"> of the </span><span class="qlink_container" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/John-Stuart-Mill" routing="q://topic/(67145)" style="color: #19558d; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">John Stuart Mill</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"> variety. Essentially we are fans of </span><span class="qlink_container" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/Free-Markets" routing="q://topic/(16358)" style="color: #19558d; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Free Markets</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"> (</span><i style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The Economist</i><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"> was founded to oppose the Corn Laws) and individual choice. So we favour, for example, a small state and the abolition of</span><span class="qlink_container" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/Agricultural-Subsidies" routing="q://topic/(276496)" style="color: #19558d; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">agricultural subsidies</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"> </span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Generalising hugely,</span></span><ul style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 5px 0px 0px 1.6em; padding: 0px;">
<li style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Right-wing parties tend to be fiscally liberal but socially conservative; they think it's OK for companies to do what they like but want to intervene in people's private lives.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 5px 0px 0px 1.6em; padding: 0px;">
<li style="margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Left-wing parties tend to be keener on individual choice in private affairs but think they know better when it comes to spending people's money (via taxation) or regulating the market.</span></li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;">In </span><span class="qlink_container" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/France" routing="q://topic/(1482)" style="color: #19558d; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">France</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;">, a "liberal" is a right-winger keen on free markets; in the </span><span class="qlink_container" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/The-United-States-of-America" routing="q://topic/(24936)" style="color: #19558d; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">US</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;">, a "liberal" is a left-winger keen on letting people make their own personal choices. </span><i style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The Economist</i><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"> is liberal in both these senses.</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">... </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;">In theory our position might be characterised as </span><span class="qlink_container" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/Libertarianism" routing="q://topic/(7781)" style="color: #19558d; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">libertarian</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;">, but that term also has baggage: unlike many American libertarians, </span><i style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The Economist</i><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"> is in favour of </span><span class="qlink_container" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.quora.com/Gun-Control" routing="q://topic/(27929)" style="color: #19558d; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">gun control</a></span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;">, for example, on the liberal ground that your freedom to do what you want (own lots of guns) ends where my freedom to do what I want (not being shot) begins. So, is </span><i style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The Economist</i><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 17.906665802001953px;"> left or right? The answer is yes and no.</span></span> </blockquote>
I may have a different opinion on gun control, but I haven't put any real thought into the matter.Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4654183841274212219.post-81313269323529840002012-10-01T22:13:00.004-05:002012-10-01T22:13:57.522-05:00Time and IdeasEven with much of the world having instantaneous access to anyone's ideas from all over the world, we still see vacuums of improvement, innovation, and creativity. Why are some cities more maker-oriented than others? Why do some cities have more meetups than cities many times their size?<br />
<br />
From <a href="http://www.siliconvalleywatcher.com/mt/archives/2012/09/steve_blank_on.php">Silicon Valley Watcher</a><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="clear: both; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.383333206176758px; margin: 4px 4px 0.9em;">
I refer you to Foremski's Universal Constant of Kultura (Polish for culture, and for which there is no polite acronym) which states that ideas take about six months to travel about 3,000 miles.</div>
<div style="clear: both; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.383333206176758px; margin: 4px 4px 0.9em;">
I've noticed that It takes people in New York about 6 months to understand key ideas from Silicon Valley; and London and Europe takes about a year.</div>
</blockquote>
Syedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02780039664901088863noreply@blogger.com