Nicholas Carr’s recent controversial book explains how technological, economic, and competitive forces are combining to transform the role information technology plays in business, with profound implications for IT management and investment as well as strategy and organization.
I witnessed the dual edged nature of IT firsthand early Tuesday morning. My delayed flight landed at 2:10a.m…… I walked to the Hertz counter where some very tired folks were scrambling to deal with their customers (including me). I generally just grab the express package and go. Murphy, as always, showed up. The Hertz computers were down. Therefore, the Hertz employees resorted to conventional paper contracts (filled out by hand). They clearly had not done this in awhile (if ever). 30 minutes later, I walked to my car (now 2:40a.m.)
We take so much for granted.
Will Alvarez get Tegen Treatment?
A refreshing column from Tom Oates on long time UW women’s track coach Peter Tegen. Oates’ essential point is that Alvarez’s record the past few years has not been great, therefore will he get the same treatment as Tegen?
Several years ago, I recall reading a Doug Moe column that mentioned that WSJ sportswriter Vic Feuerherd was “forbidden” from writing about the Badgers. (I seem to recall that Feuerherd was exiled to cover the Brewers….). I’m glad to see the WSJ take a more proactive position (which they should!).
L’Etoile to American Girl Cafe???
Julia Moskin checks out the new American Girl Place in Manhattan:
The American Girl Cafe is unmistakably kid-friendly – the chocolate mousse is sprinkled with crushed Oreo cookies, and the napkin rings can be used as hair scrunchies – but it is more reminiscent of Chanterelle than Chuck E. Cheese’s. Embraced by banquettes, plied with smoked salmon and shortbread, and served tea from china pots, American girls here learn the ways of the ladies who lunch.
“American Girl is for kids, but nothing we do is dumbed down,” said Kamille Adamany, the cafe’s manager, who was hired away from the prestigious L’Etoile restaurant in Madison, Wis.
The other night, Maddie Leonard of Pelham Manor, N.Y., observed her eighth birthday in one corner of the cafe with 11 friends and 12 dolls, some sporting crowns of braids fresh from the hair salon on the second floor (the salon specializes in returning frazzled dolls to factory condition).
Mosquito Season
A “must have” product for the backyard bbq set:
The Mosquito Magnet? mimics a human by emitting a plume of carbon dioxide (CO2), heat and moisture, and a short-range attractant, octenol. This precise combination is irresistible to female mosquitoes (the ones that bite), no-see-ums, biting midges, black flies, and sandflies. As the mosquito approaches the trap hoping for a human, it is quietly vacuumed into a net where it dehydrates and dies.
Silent, odorless, no mess.
Methane Digester: generating electricity from cows
One would think that this type of thing should happen here first….
Maria Alicia Gaura writes:
After 25 years of persistent work, Marin County rancher Albert Straus has figured out a way to run his dairy farm, organic creamery and electric car from the manure generated by his herd of 270 cows.
Cheered on by a small gathering of engineers, environmentalists and fellow farmers, Straus stepped into a utility shed Thursday, switched on a 75- kilowatt generator, then stepped outside to snip the ribbon spanning a spanking-new electrical panel.
First to Worst?
Thomas Content writes that “Wisconsin residents are paying more for electricity than consumers in seven other Midwestern states, a reversal from several years ago when power customers here paid the lowest rates, a study found.”
Madison Schools Budget Updates
Quite a few interesting articles on the Madison School Districts 308M+ budget are available at www.schoolinfosystem.org
- Board Member Ruth Robarts offers many useful suggestions, including the rather obvious improvement: drive budget decisions based on academic achievement and curriculum.
- The current process includes the discussion of “cuts” without prior to the presentation & review of an actual budget!
- Rob Hernandez writes about the potential loss of 60 coaching jobs.
- Get involved: Learn about the issues and communicate your ideas. MMSD budget hearing 5.13.2004 @ 5:00P.M. Email the Board of Education: comments@madison.k12.wi.us
Narche jangi – or – War Rugs
Ang?lica Pence writes about Afghan War Rugs:
Narche jangi, or so-called “war rugs,” emerged in Afghanistan more than two decades ago during the Soviet occupation, when the Baluchi tribe began weaving the iconography of warfare — Kalashnikov rifles, jets, helicopters and hand grenades — into their textiles.
The rugs have since taken on the very modern imagery of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the ensuing war in Afghanistan. Much of the imagery is copied from television news reports and aerial propaganda leaflets dropped by the thousands across Afghanistan by U.S. armed forces. The most controversial depict jetliners crashing into the World Trade Center, or tiny black silhouettes plummeting from the smoking twin towers. And to the surprise of some, the divisive folk art has gained a considerable, almost cult-like following in North America.
Lessig Congressional Testimony on Copyright Extremism
Professor Lessig goes to Washington to testify about Congressman Rick Boucher’s Digital Media Consumer Rights Act [pdf].
This is one issue you should support. Contact Tammy Baldwin and tell her you support Boucher’s bill.
This is what happens when the public sleeps…. Support the EFF.
Yet another reason to get involved: Security expert Bruce Schneier writes: Curb electronic surveillance abuses, as technological monitoring grows more prevalent, court supervision is crucial
Madison is #1?
Forbes Mark Tatge writes about our “Miracle in the Midwest”:
David C. Schwartz is right at home in the dark. That’s where his fluorescent microscopes can do their work, scanning thousands of samples of DNA that make a slow crawl across computer screens and methodically map the human genome. All this activity is packed into a cramped room inside a lab at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. “Most people think I came here because I hated New York,” he says with a boyish smile and a twitch of the mustache that curls over his lip. “I came here to start a company
Out-of-state venture capitalists complain that most of these hatchlings need better management. G. Steven Burrill, who runs the San Francisco merchant bank Burrill & Co. and has invested $15 million to $20 million in young Wisconsin companies, bemoans the failure to capitalize on opportunities. “We see 100 deals a month in life sciences,” he explains. “But I don’t see even one a month from Madison
Burrill is correct – while there are many opportunities here, it is not generally a risk taking culture…. unfortunately.