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Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - February 25th, 2018

Sometimes it is nice to be reminded that  great works are often performed by perseverance rather than strength.

 

via BrainyQuote

Here are some of the posts that caught my eye recently. Hope you find something interesting.

 

Lighter Links:

• 5 Ways Blockchain is Changing the Face of Innovation of 2018. (Forbes)

• Singularity's Top 50 Breakthrough Tech Predictions. (Diamandis)

• Don't Be Fooled: Russia Attacked U.S. Troops in Syria. (Bloomberg)

• Not the End of the World:  The Return of Dubai's Ultimate Folly. (TheGuardian)

• The Price Per Square Inch of Pizza at 8 Major US Pizza Chains. (Visual)

 

Trading Links:

• It's Getting Harder to Tell Banks from Tech Companies. (Bloomberg)

• In Praise of Elon Musk. (NationalReview)

• It's Time to Make Every Road a Toll Road. (Wired)

• No End in Sight for Amazon's Wild Ride. (Wall Street Journal)

• Apple Sold More Watches Than Rolex, Swatch, and the Rest of the Swiss Watch Industry Combined. (Insider)

Why Elon Musk's SpaceX Launch Is So Important

Last Tuesday, Musk launched his Tesla Roadster and it's passenger "Starman" into space on his Falcon Heavy rocket. 

Cool?  Clever Marketing?  Or Both?

 

Space via Twitter

This feat is exciting for a number of reasons.

1. Falcon Heavy is cheaper than other heavy lift rockets – yet, it is twice as powerful. 
2. This means we can ship payloads to Mars (or potentially farther). 
3. The boosters landed back on their platform to be reused.
4. And, ultimately, it's inspiring and momentum building to a new age of future space explorers.

When I was growing up, the space race caught the public's hearts and minds.  I was a kid, but I still remember watching the lunar landing.  It was a big deal! 

Likewise, I remember when astronauts were positioned as national heroes.  Now, we're more jaded.

In the past decade, rockets, space-stations, satellites, etc. were often just an afterthought or a small filler news item.  Meanwhile, A.I., Cloning, Voice Recognition, 3D Printing, Drones, and other technological advances were the sexy attention-getting topics. 

Recently, that has changed.  The space race is getting hot again.  Resources are pouring into this area, and SpaceX's launch is proof that we are making progress (and probably altering life's history). 

Take a look. 

 

 

This was supposed to be captivating.  Teachers can show their students a rocket launch where a man shot a car into space ... then they can watch the car float through space.  It's taking what we're used to only seeing in movies ... and making it real. 

Passion in the sciences is important, and successes like this can ignite passion in our future, in more than just space exploration. 

We live in exciting times. 

Onwards!

What Do You Buy Someone Who Has Everything?

I'm getting cynical, I understand planned obsolescence ... but has it occurred to you that Apple could make their phones act sluggish just before the launch of a new version?  

My phone has been driving me nuts.  So, (as I write this) I'm up at 2 am to place my order for the new iPhone X.

On one hand, it satisfies my desire for the new and shiny ... but, on the other hand, it makes it harder for my wife.

Buying gifts is often hard. But it gets harder when the giftee already has everything (or buys it himself).

That is where Neiman Marcus comes in.

Every year since 1959, Neiman Marcus has published a Christmas Book. Primarily comprised of normal Neiman Marcus offerings ... the book also contains pretty amazing "fantasy" gifts.  For example, who doesn't want a rose-gold Cobalt Valkyrie-X private plane (worth $1.5 million) ...

 

Neiman Marcus

 

I don't know about you, but it's a little feminine for me.

Or, there is a private Submarine (worth $20,000,000). 

 

Neiman Marcus

 

But that is only good if you don't have one already.

You can check out NM's 2017 Fantasy Gift List, here, and get a personal trip to Champagne, France or a pair of specially commissioned His and Hers Rolls Royces. 

Let me know if you have any good gift ideas.  I'm always looking for them.

Rich People Spend Their Time Differently: An Income Distribution in Americans' Pastimes

When it comes to American pastimes, many people focus on the big 3 sports: Football, Basketball, and Baseball. Nevertheless, there are a lot of different ways people spend their time.  It is interesting to see what they watch - and what they actually play. 

Nevertheless, there are a lot of different ways people spend their time.  It is interesting to see what they watch - and what they actually play. 

There is also a big difference based on income distribution.   Here is an infographic.

 

via VisualCapitalist

Apparently, rich people like golfing,  yoga and racquet sports ... while poorer people disproportionately liked relaxing, writing for personal interest, and having hobbies.

It is also kind of interesting to see when people tend to do certain activities.   Here is a chart showing the peak time for various sports and activities.

via Henrik Lindberg

You could build a business around data like that.

Interesting?

A World of Languages

I've been in Indonesia during the past week.  I'm surprised by how little is known about it, despite its size and population.  

Here are a few strange facts.  Indonesia is the world's largest island country, with more than seventeen thousand islands.  It has an estimated population of over 260 million people and is the world's fourth most populous country, as well as the most populous Muslim-majority country.

While the official language is Indonesian (also known as Bahasa Indonesia), a variant of Malay, most Indonesians speak other languages, such as Javanese, as their first language.  More than 700 regional languages are spoken in Indonesia's numerous islands.

That got me thinking about language.

There are over 7000 known languages still spoken in the world today. 

23 of those languages create the native tongues of over 4 Billion people.

This chart below is a pretty helpful illustration of prevalence and location.

Alberto Lucas López via InformationIsBeautiful

 

While American's tend to think English is the most prevalent language, we actually come in third behind Chinese and Spanish.

While based on population density, and reproduction, it seems like Chinese (Mandarin) will only widen its lead, it's worth noting that its influence wanes greatly outside of Asia.

How long will that last?

When I was younger, English was the language of business, but it may be time for you to brush up on your Chinese.

For more, here is a link to the Washington Post's article: The world’s languages, in 7 maps and charts.

向前! (Onwards!)

Inspiration Comes In Many Forms ...

Once a year, I go to the World BBQ Championship at Memphis in May. 

It's three days of friends, food, and fun.

This year was special. My friend, Andy Daniels' tent won third place in the ribs contest.

In addition, I gained some inspiration while spending time at Doug McKnight's tent with Blake Carson.

Have you ever been to a Brazilian steakhouse?  On top of an endless supply of meat, they also have a unique "churrasco" cooking and presentation style.

Blake saw that style of cooking - and innovated it - creating the Carson Rodizio kit (which started as a Kickstarter project).  It is a multi-rotisserie rack that converts your favorite backyard grill into an open and spinning Brazilian style Steakhouse.  It's clever, functional, and cool ... and it's been used to win multiple barbecue championships.

I love to experience an entrepreneur's mind at work.  

It's not always about what you add.  Sometimes, it is about what you take away.  Less is often more. 

Here is a one-minute interview with Blake.

 

 

For more on Carson Rodizio, here is their Facebook page.

Innovation, like opportunity, is all around you.

But it's not there for you if you don't see the opportunity, and seize it. 

Tasty! 

Here Are Some Links For Your Weekly Reading - May 27th, 2017

There is a place to go with deep wishes  ...

 

 

Here are some of the posts that caught my eye. Hope you find something interesting.

Lighter Links:

• What the Dying Teach the Living. (LongNow)
• Why Close Encounters with Animals Soothe Us. (New York Times)
• Will We Ever Elect an AI as President? (Wired)
• 'SNL' Releases McCarthy's 'Spicey' Outtakes. (CNN)
• The Dark Art of How (And When) to Buy an Airline Ticket. (NYMag)

Trading Links:

• The Quants Run Wall Street Now. (Wall Street Journal)
• The MMC Ventures AI Investment Framework: 17 Success Factors For The Age Of AI. (Medium)
• The Real Reason Saudis Rolled out the Reddest of Red Carpets. (Bergen)
• SoftBank and Saudis Launch Largest Tech Investment Fund Ever, $93 Billion in Committed Capital. (CNBC)

Size Matters: Comparing the U.S. to the Rest of the World

This week, I saw a chart that ranks countries by the number of Olympic medals won in relation to their GDP and population.

Sometimes it helps to employ unconventional perspectives when thinking about the size of things.

So here's an interesting map from the American Enterprise Institute that shows how massive and productive America's $18 trillion economy is on a global scale.

The map compares the gross domestic product of U.S. states with the national GDPs of other nations.

America's largest state economy is California. In 2015, the Golden State's GDP was about $2.46 trillion.  As a separate country, California would have been the 6th largest economy in the world last year (just behind the U.K. and slightly above France's GDP of $2.42 trillion). But France's population is about 66.48 million, while California's is only about 39.14 million — meaning California produces about the same as France – with about 40% fewer people.

America’s second largest state economy is Texas.  In 2015, the Lone Star state's GDP was about $1.59 trillion.  This would have ranked Texas as the world’s 10th largest economy last year.  To compare, Canada’s GDP last year was $1.55 trillion. However, to produce about the same amount of economic output as Texas required a workforce in Canada (18 million) that was 50% larger than employment in the state of Texas (12 million). That is, it required 6 million more workers in Canada to produce the same output as Texas last year.

Check out the rest of the states in the map below:

  

 via AEI.

Based on population, the US is the third-largest country in the world.

To put that in perspective, below is a a map that renames each state with the country that has the closest population to it.

 

via Business Insider.

The map, below, is interesting in a different way.  I'm sure you've heard that "a picture is worth a thousand words."  Here, a couple dozen words capture the world.

 

by Michael Tompsett via Fine Art America.

The Voice of Nature: Words of Wisdom from Koko the Gorilla

Jennifer and I traveled to the Roaring Lion Ranch in Hamilton, Montana last week.  

 

 

It was an amazing few days in the High Plains ... Especially since there was a major forest fire there just a few weeks ago.

Many fires, like this one, could be avoided with some common sense.

You don't have to be a rocket-scientist to understand the issues.

Koko (the gorilla is that can talk with humans using sign language) was recently informed about some nature-related issues.  Then, supposedly, she was allowed to improvise.

This video is the result.

 

 

 

The Gorilla Foundation via YouTube.

 

 

Regardless of whether the editing was intense or Koko's handlers led the conversation ... it is compelling to watch.

  

Related articles

How Human Should A Gorilla Be?

On TV: KOKO: THE GORILLA WHO TALKS

The Most Expensive Coffee In The World Is Made From Cat Poop

I was in Indonesia last week – and had some exotic experiences.

 

 

That picture was taken in Bali, where I first met my wife many years ago.

Indonesia is famous for coffee.  For example, "Sumatra" is their biggest island – with “Java” coming in close behind (and both are synonymous with coffee).

They also make one of the most expensive coffees in the world … Luwak Coffee.

It is a very particular coffee, created using a very particular process.

In traditional coffee production, the cherries are harvested, and the beans are extracted, before being shipped to a roaster, ground into a pulp, and brewed by a barista at your local Starbucks.

In contrast, with Luwak coffee, something different happens.

The coffee cherries are harvested by wild animals.

Specifically, they’re harvested by the Asian Palm Civet, a small, cat-like animal that absolutely loves the taste of coffee cherries.

But, if the civets eat the cherries, how can they still be used to make coffee?

Here comes the gross part—the civets eat the coffee cherries, but their digestive tract can’t effectively process the beans, only the flesh surrounding them.

When the partially digested, partially fermented beans are eventually excreted, coffee producers harvest them. The beans are then cleaned, roasted, and used to make astonishingly expensive (“with retail prices reaching up to $700 per kilogram”) coffee.

Now is the coffee that mind-blowing to warrant a price north of $300 a pound?

No, not really.  In fact, many critics will openly call it bad coffee, or as Tim Carman, food writer for the Washington Post put it, "It tasted just like...Folgers. Stale. Lifeless. Petrified dinosaur droppings steeped in bathtub water. I couldn't finish it."

To be fair, the Luwak coffee industry is an experience. When I toured a plantation near Ubud, Bali, a smiling tour guide greeted and led me on an in-depth exploration of the forested property, where I was allowed to immerse myself in the various spices, roots, beans, and civets used to produce this one-of-a-kind coffee.  Here is a video I shot of the process.

 

 

 via YouTube.

If you think about it, I paid a premium to drink exotic cat poop coffee.  Kind of strange!

I wouldn't drink coffee made from people poop (or even domestic cat poop).

It’s the story that allows this not so awesome coffee to fetch awesome prices.  People are paying for the experience, not the commodity itself.

The same is true when you buy Starbucks.  The coffee at 7-Eleven is cheaper – and Consumer Reports tell us that McDonalds coffee is better.

Nonetheless, I'd still rather drink at Starbucks.

We live in an Experience Economy.