Marketing Ideas For New Generation

I found the Steve Stoute talks with Kelefa Sanneh about marketing to a new generation of consumers @ http://www.newyorker.com/online/video/conference/2008/stoute educational and inspiring. It was brilliant.

Useful links:
www.soundslam.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Stoute

Random Thoughts

The jungle has the greatest biodiversity with thousands of species each occupying a specific niche. The only direct conflicts we saw were between two spiders, and two monkeys fighting over the same niche. The forest had three main levels, first at the ground to 15 meters, 15-35 m and the canopy above 35 m. Some market ideas from the learning experience involve the separation of the levels and the specialization within each level of the forest. The occupants and action at the bottom of the forest are much different than those in the middle or top. As in markets different techniques are needed at tops, middles, and bottoms. It is hard for one species of trader to hope to avoid death at all the levels. It is very hard to start on the bottom of a market and survive to the top. Extreme specialization is the rule in the jungle. There is no reason that same type of specialization would not be required in the market jungle. However in many ways, current markets lack real diversity. The correlation among markets has been a result of this lack of diversity. Too many in the same niche or trade. The lack of diversity causes inability to absorb market shocks. In the jungle, when a large 800 years old kapok tree falls, a huge gap is created. Many species rush in to fill the gap, but due to the rush, the vegetation is weak. Similar action may occur in market gaps when a shock hits. The initial occupiers of the gap are weak holders.

- Jim Sogi

How true!

Tanzanite Mining

Matt Brown writes about tanzanite mining in Tanzania + other viewpoints @ http://www.thenational.ae/article/20080526/FOREIGN/69281946/1017/SPORT&Profile=1017

Vicor Mushi of World Vision, the only aid organisation in town, estimated that 30 to 40 per cent of the population is HIV positive. Other diseases, including cholera, stem from a lack of clean drinking water.

Shocking, really!

101.27 carat Diamond

A 101.27 carat diamond, the size of a ping pong ball, has been sold by Christies at auction in Hong Kong for more than $6m (£3m). http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7423194.stm

Useful link:
www.christies.com

This Gaming Life

This Gaming Life: Travels in Three Cities by Jim Rossignol is an inspiring book + Jim provides excellent insights into gaming history and culture + the impact.

Useful link:
http://rossignol.cream.org

BPP And Paying Bus Drivers in HK

Chaim Even Zohar writes about the guilty verdict against Tse Sui-luen, founder of the listed Tse Sui Luen Jewellery (TSL) empire, and four others, for paying illegal commissions to travel agencies, bus drivers and tour guides to ensure a flow of customers to the company's showrooms + DTC's Best Practice Principles (BPP)/pros and cons + other viewpoints @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullEditorial.asp

I think Chaim Even Zohar was spot on.

Philips + Swarovski Designs

Philips + Swarovski = USB memory keys + Earphones = Multifunctional (designed by women, for women).

Useful links:
www.active-crystals.com
www.consumer.philips.com
www.swarovskisparkles.com

Beautiful designs. I liked it.

Color Specialist + Trend Predictor

Leatrice Eiseman is a color specialist + trend predictor who has been called America’s color guru. She is the author of Colors For Your Every Mood + Pantone Guide to Communicating With Color + More Alive With Color + Color Answer Book.

Useful link:
www.colorexpert.com

Carbon Footprints

(via Wired) The Brookings Institute has released a new 80-page report detailing the carbon footprints of the residents of the 100 largest metropolitan areas in the United States.

Useful link:
www.brookings.edu

I think the findings by the Brookings Institute was informative, educational and insightful. My view is as we gain better access to data and models, local and state governments worldwide should make decisions that will build the cleanest, most livable, most energy efficient cities.

Heard On The Street

The world I’m looking at is filled with inconveniences, and inconsistency about prices. People should be looking at diamond prices and questioning them. We are at the beginning of a real roller-coaster ride. If Rapaport’s increase of 25% is frightening, I’m sorry but that is the world we are living in. If gold can go to $1,000, then hit $880, the same thing can happen to diamond prices. That’s why I’m asking people: Please, don’t speculate. The prices on the Rapaport list are the opinon of Martin Rapaport.

- Martin Rapaport

The Winelands Of Britain

The Winelands of Britain: Past, Present and Prospective by Richard C. Selley is an interesting book on the potential of vineyards in Britain, today and in the future.

Useful links:
www.winelandsofbritain.co.uk
http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/climatechange

Gustav Klimt

(via Wiki) Gustav Klimt was an Austrian Symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Art Nouveau (Vienna Secession) movement. His major works include paintings, murals, sketches, and other art objects, many of which are on display in the Vienna Secession gallery. Klimt's primary subject was the female body, and his works are marked by a frank eroticism--nowhere is this more apparent than in his numerous drawings in pencil.

Gustav Klimt's art works will be exhibited at Tate Liverpool, May 30-August 31, 2008.
www.tate.org.uk/liverpool

Useful links:
www.expo-klimt.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustav_Klimt

Alternate-Reality Gaming

(via Wiki) Jane McGonigal is a noted game designer and games researcher, specializing in pervasive gaming and alternate reality games. She worked with alternate reality game design company 42 Entertainment from 2004 to 2006, on projects including I Love Bees (2004) as Community Lead/Puzzle Designer, and Last Call Poker (2005) as Live Events Lead. Additionally, she has collaborated on commissioned games for the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. In recent years, McGonigal has grown especially interested in the way that massively multiplayer online gaming generates collective intelligence, and interested in the way that the collective intelligences thus generated can be utilized as a means of improving the world, either by improving the quality of human life or by working towards the solution of social ills. She has expressed a desire that gaming should be moving 'towards Nobel Prizes.' These ideas informed her collaboration in World Without Oil (2007), a simulation designed to brainstorm (and potentially avert) the challenges of a post-peak oil future. Most recently, she has served as the director for The Lost Rin, an alternate reality game sponsored by McDonald's and designed as a tie-in to the 2008 Summer Olympics. She received her PhD in Performance Studies from the University of California, Berkeley in August 2006, and currently teaches at the San Francisco Art Institute and the University of California, Berkeley. She is also a Research Affiliate to the Institute for the Future.

Jane McGonigal's talk at the 2008 New Yorker Conference, 'Stories from the Near Future' was inspiring and educational. http://www.newyorker.com/online/video/conference/2008/mcgonigal

Useful links:
www.avantgame.com
www.iftf.org

The Power Of Imaginative Mind

Sir Ken Robinson's remarks on April 10, 2008, at the Apple Education Leadership Summit, was brilliant. Robinson is the author of Out of Our Minds: Learning to Be Creative.

Useful links:
www.edutopia.org
www.sirkenrobinson.com

Work/Life Integration Project

Stewart Friedman, founding director of Wharton's Leadership Program + the Work/Life Integration Project describes the four domains of people's lives -- work, home, community and self -- and what individuals can do to integrate these domains and improve their leadership skills at any stage in their careers @ http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/1970.cfm

Useful link:
www.totalleadership.org

Brilliant!

Interactive Marketing

Ad:tech is the #1 source for interactive marketing. Rajesh Jain has written an interesting note on the complex landscape of online advertising @ http://emergic.org

Useful link:
www.ad-tech.com

Random Thoughts

There is no such thing as the perfect business idea. There are good ideas that reward effort. There are ideas that attract interest and inspire support. There are beautiful ideas that change our perception of what is possible and what is desirable. People invest hope, time, and money in attempting to make beautiful ideas real.

- Max Mckeown

Earthmine

Founded in 2006 by John Ristevski and Anthony Fassero, the start-up is hoping to take mapping to a new level -- the street level + the business model is B2B: subscription service with customers like construction firms, architects, emergency services, and partners that will develop applications for consumers. http://www.fastcompany.com/articles/2008/05/interview-earthmine-3D-map.html

Useful links:
www.earthmine.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BscB1771nZs

Brilliant!

Coffee Society

Describing coffee flavors are subjective, yet interesting. I think a deeper understanding comes only with frequent practice of coffee tasting.

Useful links:
www.coffeeinstitute.org
www.ico.org
http://danielhumphries.typepad.com
http://meetthepresspot.blogspot.com

Beryl Cook

(via Wiki) Beryl Cook who was best known for comical paintings of people has died aged 81.

Useful links:
www.berylcook.org
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7424366.stm

Her paintings were unique for one reason: ordinariness.

Rapaport Diamond Report Update

According to Rapaport, the significantly higher prices in this week's Rapaport Price List do not reflect any sudden change in diamond prices but rather adjustments made to reflect the level of premiums in the trading markets. The trade is cautioned that current high price levels for top quality diamonds reflect volatile external economic forces and may not be sustainable. There is also significant risk that prices for commercial quality diamonds may decline due to unfavorable conditions in the U.S. and other consumer markets. At their current high levels diamond prices are subject to significantly greater volatility and downside risk exposure.

Useful links:
www.diamonds.net
www.rapaportdiamondreport.com

The problem is there are various interpretations on the new prices on the list + I think the markets are confused worldwide and no one knows what will happen next because traders may hold on to their goods in anticipation of another price increase.

Romanov Emeralds

According to Christies, a pair of Romanov emeralds was sold to an Asian private collector for $2,409,241 setting a price-per-carat record for emeralds sold at auction.

Useful links:
www.christies.com
www.royal-magazin.de

Chinese Jewelry Update

According to Research and Markets, world's largest and most respected market research resource, Chinese jewelry industry sales have increased by approximately CNY20 billion ($2.88 billion) since 2005 + they have reached CNY180 billion ($25.92 billion) in 2007 + the jewelry industry has so far become the third largest in the country, preceded only by real estate and automobiles.
Source: Gems & Jewelry Trade Association of China + China Gold Association + Shanghai Diamond Exchange + Ministry of Commerce + National Bureaus of Statistics and statistics bureaus at provincial or municipal level + financial statements of some key jewelry enterprises.

Useful link:
www.researchandmarkets.com

New Ways Of Tackling Climate Change

According to Kurt Volker, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs, there is a huge second wave of investment in green technology. The first one was in the 1980s, which produced a certain level of technology development. That wave ebbed after some time. Now a second wave of massive investment into newer, cleaner technologies. And this wave is proving larger and more immediately profitable than the first one........
View Video (courtesy of ACUS)

Useful links:
www.grestech.com
http://cms.iucn.org
www.climos.com
www.atmocean.com
www.planktos.com

I think the new startup companies who are embarking on clean technology projects may have a huge impact on our world.

American Nerd

American Nerd: The Story of My People by Benjamin Nugent is a fascinating book. I liked it.

Useful link:
www.americannerdbook.com

Sustainable Designs

I have been always intrigued by our limited understanding of where our materials come from or where they go + I believe most people will do the right thing if they were given accurate information, proper training and simple tools + I also think the fashion industry have played a unique role via creativity, innovation and connections to promote green initiatives worldwide.

Useful links:
www.permacouture.org
www.trustforconservationinnovation.org
www.earthpledge.org

Age + Business

The article What's Age Got to Do with It? @ http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_22/b4086098742993.htm was really inspiring.

Age also needs to be accompanied by a willingness, and even eagerness, to change. We recently heard Andrea Jung, the CEO of Avon, suggest that leaders (informally) fire and rehire themselves from time to time in order to freshen their mind-sets. Now, at 48, Andrea is still plenty young, but her approach to reinvention is actually the hallmark of the most effective 'older' folks we know. Case in point is K.P. Singh, the Indian real estate developer who, at age 76, has just expanded his business into, of all things, an international cricket league—because, he says, it will teach him 'all sorts of new things.' Or take Rupert Murdoch. At 77, his passion for traditional media opportunities remains unabated, so too his interest in what's next. Chris DeWolfe, CEO of social-networking site MySpace, recently told us that Murdoch has his sleeves rolled up at his new purchase, always asking questions, always pushing to learn more.
- Jack & Suzy Welch

How true! Thanks, Jack.

Useful link:
www.welchway.com

The Fifties In Paintings And Words

Peter Schjeldahl's article Action Figures @ http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/artworld/2008/05/26/080526craw_artworld_schjeldahl was brilliant.

Remembering Sydney Pollack

(via Wiki) Sydney Pollack was an Academy Award-winning Russian-American film director, producer and actor. He directed more than 21 films and 10 television shows, acted in over 30 films or shows, and produced over 44 films. Pollack is best known for directing films Out of Africa (1985), Tootsie (1982), Three Days of the Condor (1975), The Yakuza (1975), The Way We Were and Jeremiah Johnson (1972), along with newer films The Interpreter (2005), Sabrina (1995), The Firm (1993) and Havana (1990). He appeared in over 15 films, including The Interpreter (2005), Eyes Wide Shut (1999), Husbands and Wives (1992), The Player (1992), and The Electric Horseman (1979). In 2007, he appeared opposite George Clooney in Michael Clayton, a film which he also co-produced.

Concerns about Pollack's health had surfaced in 2007 when suddenly he stepped out of directing HBO's television film Recount. The film aired on May 25, 2008. Pollack died the next day of cancer at the age of 73 at his home in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, California surrounded by family.

Useful links:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001628
http://www.dga.org/news/v25_4/feat_Pollack.php3
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/film/2008/05/sydney_pollack_on_youtube.html

I think Sydney Pollack was an intelligent, versatile and a brilliant film-maker.

Clean Gold

According to Communities and Small-Scale Mining, an advocacy group affiliated with the World Bank, at least 13 million people worldwide, from more than 30 developing countries, engage in artisanal and small-scale mining. These are subsistence miners, collecting particles of gold out of streambeds, in many cases making barely enough to live. They don’t use cyanide; instead, they use mercury, and, unlike industrial miners, they are releasing all their byproducts directly into the environment. This is taking place all over the world, in Africa, South America, Asia and Central Europe. Mercury is toxic. Exposure to mercury can cause damage to the brain and kidneys, and it’s especially harmful to children. Released into waterways, mercury accumulates in the bodies of fish, rendering them inedible.

Here comes technology + workshops via Cleangold. Their technology is not only brilliant but also environment-friendly.

Useful links:
www.cleangold.com
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4375612020784552233
www.artisanalmining.org
www.artminers.org
www.aceer.org

WildlifeDirect

(via Wiki) WildlifeDirect is a Kenya, US and UK registered charitable organization founded and chaired by African conservationist Richard Leakey, who is credited with putting an end to the elephant slaughter in Kenya in the 1980s. Its main office is located in Nairobi, Kenya. WildlifeDirect was established in 2006 to provide support to conservationists in Africa directly on the ground via the use of blogs, which enables anybody, anywhere to play a direct and interactive role in the survival of some of the world’s most precious species. WildlifeDirect takes no administration fee for the funds that are transferred through their website so that the financial support can go to where it was intended in its entirety. Their core costs are provided for separately through grants, primarily from the European Union.

Useful links:
http://wildlifedirect.org
www.maraconservancy.com
www.leakey.com

I have huge respect for what he's achieved.

Art Prices

I found the interview (Freakonomics Blog + Olav Velthuis + David Galenson) about the price paid for Lucian Freud's 'Benefits Supervisor Sleeping' interesting/insightful.
http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/23/what-does-336-million-mean-in-the-art-world/

'To put it mildly, it is striking that art still fetches these record prices. I had expected the art market to collapse even before the financial crisis started. Of course, what’s difficult about prices for art is that they have no 'fundamental value,' unlike, for instance, real estate prices or stocks.'
- Olav Velthuis

How true!

Eye Network

Eye Network arranges videoconferencing facilities for customers. The services are great because flying less reduces our carbon footprint, and overall the concept is good for the environment.

Dries Van Noten

(via Wiki) Dries van Noten is a Belgian fashion designer. His work is characterised by a creative use of prints (often ethnic), colours, original fabrics and layering. He has a passionate and faithful following despite the fact he does not advertise. Dries Van Noten works and lives in Antwerp. He has several shops, the first one being 'Het Modepaleis' which opened in Antwerp in 1989, followed by shops in Hong Kong and Tokyo. He sells to around 500 shops around the world; his company is entirely self-financed. In 2008, van Noten won the prestigious International Award of the Council of Fashion Designers of America.

Useful links:
www.driesvannoten.be
www.cfda.com
www.antwerp-fashion.be

I think he is one of very few designers with a sense of style and aesthetics + he has a feel for color that is so subtle, which I believe is unique.

Whole Earth Catalog

(via Wiki) The Whole Earth Catalog was a sizable catalog published twice a year from 1968 to 1972, and occasionally thereafter, until 1998. Its purpose was to provide education and 'access to tools' so a reader could 'find his own inspiration, shape his own environment, and share his adventure with whoever is interested.' Apple Inc. founder and entrepreneur Steve Jobs has described the Catalog as a conceptual forerunner of Web search engines. The Catalog's development and marketing were driven by an energetic group of founders, primarily Stewart Brand, whose family was also involved with the project. Its outsize pages measured 11x14 inches (28x36 cm). Later editions were more than an inch thick. The early editions were published by the Portola Institute, headed by Richard Raymond. In 1972, the catalog won the National Book Award, the first time a catalog had ever won such an award. Brand's publishing efforts were suffused with an awareness of the importance of ecology, both as a field of study and as an influence upon the future of humankind and emerging human awareness. The catalogs disseminated many ideas now associated with the 1960s and 1970s, particularly those of the counterculture and the environmental movements. Later editions and related publications edited by Brand popularized many innovative ideas during the 1970s-1990s.

Original Whole Earth Catalog, Special 30th Anniversary Issue by Peter Warshall + Stewart Brand is a great book, full of practical and inspiring solutions for people like you and me.

Useful link:
http://sb.longnow.org

Shopping, Seduction And Mr Selfridge

Shopping, Seduction and Mr Selfridge by Lindy Woodhead is a fascinating book (the roller-coaster life of the maverick American retail tycoon Harry Gordon Selfridge) on social history, marketing and shopping. It's eye opener and I liked it.

World Oil Reserves

Here is an interesting/informative update on world oil reserves @ http://www.wired.com/special_multimedia/2008/oilreserves

Useful link:
www.ogj.com

Who would have thought Canada would be No.2! Amazing!

Business Of Theatre

I found www.ebroadwayplays.com interesting (theatrical investment + philanthrophy), in fact, I liked it.

The Phoenix Lander

The animation of the Phoenix lander @ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7400375.stm was brilliant.

Useful links:
http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu
NASA - Phoenix

Will Self

William Self is an English novelist, reviewer and columnist. His latest novel, The Butt, won the 2008 Wodehouse prize for comic fiction.

Useful links:
www.will-self.com
www.hayfestival.com

Shigeru Miyamoto

(via Wiki) Shigeru Miyamoto is a Japanese video game designer. He is the creator of the Mario, Donkey Kong, The Legend of Zelda, Star Fox, Pikmin and F-Zero franchises for Nintendo game systems. He has also supervised many titles published by Nintendo on behalf of other developers, including Metroid Prime and Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games. Miyamoto is a world-renowned game designer, and is often called the 'father of modern video gaming'. Video games designed by him typically feature refined control-mechanics, intuitive gameplay, simplistic story lines, and imaginative worlds in which the players are encouraged to discover things for themselves.

Useful links:
www.miyamotoshrine.com
www.nintendo.com
www.gameinformer.com

I am huge fan!

Dima Bilan

(via Wiki) Dima Bilan is a Russian pop artist of Karachay descent. Dima represented Russia at the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with 'Never Let You Go', finishing second, and he won the contest in 2008, with the song 'Believe'.

Useful links:
www.eurovision.tv
http://bilandima.ru/enghtm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDJxR0fsbN8

Entre Les Murs (The Class)

(via Wiki) Entre les murs is a work of contemporary fiction by French writer François Bégaudeau. It is a semi-autobiographical account of Bégaudeau's experiences as a literature teacher in an inner city middle school in Paris. Published in 2006, it won the Prix France Culture/Télérama. In 2008, it was made into a movie by Laurent Cantet, also called 'Entre les murs', this film received the 2008 Palme d'Or at the Cannes film festival, making it the first French film in 21 years to do so.

Useful links:
Festival de Cannes : Film details 2008
Entre les murs (2008)
Festival de Cannes

New Tanzanite Treatment

According to the American Gem Trade Association Gemological Testing Center (AGTA-GTC) + American Gemological Laboratories (AGL), a color-enhancing coating on tanzanite containing cobalt have been detected in faceted samples of tanzanites provided by their clients. Obviously the purpose of the treatement have been to improve the overall appearance of the stones, but with standard gemological testing + advanced analytical tools like X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, the treatments are identifiable. Coatings are not considered permanent.

Useful links:
www.agta.org
www.agta-gtc.org
www.aglgemlab.com
www.ftc.gov

Mobile U.S Dollar + The Diamond Industry

The diamond/jewelry industry are concerned because every level of the pipeline in the industry are being affected by the U.S. dollar’s weakness + calculating diamond/gold prices in the mobile U.S. dollar has become unprofitable for many diamond/jewelry companies worldwide.

Are there any stable currencies in the world? Swiss franc? Who knows!

ArtTactic Update

(via livemint) ArtTactic’s latest survey of the Indian art market shows a 13 percentage point dip in its Indian Art Market Confidence Index, a measure based on the responses of 80 experts to questions on the current and future prospects of the economy and the primary and secondary markets for art. The sample of 80 respondents included a mix of collectors, gallery owners, auction houses, dealers and advisers. It included no artists.

Useful link:
www.arttactic.com

There might be a slowdown in external factors, but Indians still have the money to buy.
- Ganieve Grewal, Christies India

How true!

Jim Collins

Jim Collins has served as a teacher to senior executives and CEOs at over a hundred corporations. He is a well-known author + his work has been featured in Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Harvard Business Review, and Fast Company.

Useful link:
www.jimcollins.com

Cat On A Hot Tin Roof

(via Wiki) Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is a Tony-nominated play by Tennessee Williams. The play won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1955. The big-screen version of the play was made in 1958 by MGM, and starred Paul Newman, Elizabeth Taylor, Judith Anderson, Jack Carson.

Useful links:
www.cat2008onbroadway.com
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)

It's a great movie.

African Contemporary Art

I found the article on African contemporary art @ http://www.economist.com/opinion/displayStory.cfm?story_id=11436150 interesting, because I think African art works are wonderfully vibrant and evocative, it will be a matter of time that collectors will be chasing the artists with impressive prices.

Useful links:
www.caacart.com
www.chrisspring.co.uk

Disney + Popley

It has been reported that Popley Group + Disney Consumer Products will be launching Disney fine jewelry across India.

Useful links:
www.popleys.com
www.disney.in

The Diamond Development Initiative

The Diamond Development Initiative (DDI) has released standards and guidelines for Sierra Leone's artisanal diamond mining sector @ http://www.ddiglobal.org/login/Upload/Standards%20&%20Guidelines.pdf

Useful link:
www.ddiglobal.org

I hope through proper education and dialogue with artisanal diamond miners and their communities, let diamonds become a catalyst for individual and national development.

New Rough Diamond Regulations

New U.S. regulations governing the import and export of rough diamonds were published on May 21, 2008 in the Federal Register in an effort to strengthen the international Kimberley Process Certification Scheme.

Useful links:
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2008/may/105110.htm
www.state.gov/e/eeb/diamonds
http://www.jvclegal.org/index.php?categoryid=228

I hope the new regulations will improve international implementation of the Kimberley Process.

Grainger McKoy

Grainger McKoy's designs are striking and unique work of art. I liked it.

Useful link:
www.graingermckoy.com

From Mines To Finger

I have always been intrigued by the convergence of technology and diamond quality identification + in my view the interesting thing about isee2 is its authenticity + the experience factor. Brilliant!

Useful link:
www.isee2.com

The Backpacker Company

The Backpacker Company is India's first backpacking company. The story @ http://www.livemint.com/2008/05/23001501/Alternate-Life--Snail-male.html was interesting and informative.

Useful link:
www.thebackpackerco.com

I liked it + when I am in India I will plan a trip for the experience.

How To Be Useful

How to Be Useful: A Beginner's Guide to Not Hating Work by Megan Hustad is a wonderful book with interesting anecdotes from the contemporary workplace.

Useful link:
http://meganhustad.com

Che Guevara Movie

I think Steven Soderbergh's Guerrilla (2008), a movie about Che Guevara, one of the most fascinating lives in the last century + Benicio Del Toro as Che Guevara was a brilliant choice because he has the intensity to portray the revolutionary.

Useful links:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyqOByAB76k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_g3BegC67w&feature=related

British Prints 1914-1939

Rhythms of Modern Life: British Prints 1914-1939 examines the impact of Futurism and Cubism on British Modernist printmaking from the beginning of World War I to the beginning of World War II. The fascinating exhibition is @ Torf Gallery, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, till June 1, 2008. A must-visit.

Useful link:
www.mfa.org

Truth And Justice – No Blackmail Or Extortion

Chaim Even Zohar has an interesting update on Julius Klein Diamonds (JKD) + John Stafford + 'Certifigate' information + other viewpoints @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullEditorial.asp

Thomas Moran's Work Of Art

(via Wiki) Thomas Moran was an artist of the Hudson River School. Thomas Moran's vision of the Western landscape was critical to the creation of Yellowstone National Park. His pencil and watercolor field sketches and paintings captured the grandeur and documented the extraordinary terrain and natural features of the Yellowstone region. Moran's artwork was presented to members of Congress by park proponents. These powerful images of Yellowstone fired the imagination and helped inspire Congress to establish the National Park System in 1916. Mount Moran in the Grand Teton National Park is named for Moran.

Useful links:
http://www.nga.gov/feature/moran/moranhome.shtm
http://www.museumsyndicate.com/artist.php?artist=543

Thomas Moran’s 'Green River of Wyoming' was sold at Christie's in New York on May 21, 2008 for $17.7 million. www.christies.com

I think he is one of the finest artist of the mountains!

The Chelsea Flower Show

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show is the ultimate event in the gardening year. It sets the latest gardening trends, features the newest and most desirable gardening products and creates an explosion of colours and scents.

Dates: May 20 - 24, 2008
Venue: Royal Hospital, Chelsea, London.

Useful link:
www.rhs.org.uk/chelsea

Don't miss it!

Design Experience

(via businessweek) For unique consumer experience, visit @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXzWeMCTUGo&eurl + http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/429573

Useful links:
http://adaptivepath.com
http://beta.criticalmass.com

I think's it's one of the best videos on design experience (s). I liked it.

Telectroscope

(via Wiki) From May-June 2008, artist Paul St George will exhibit two outdoor interactive video installations linking London and New York City in a simulated 'telectroscope'. Although St George claims that the device works using a transatlantic tunnel started by his great-grandfather, it is actually the product of two high definition cameras connected through a fiberoptic link.

Useful links:
www.paulstgeorge.com
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7415911.stm

It's incredible! I liked the concept.

Post-Doi Moi: Vietnamese Art After 1990

The Singapore Art Museum will be exhibiting, Post-Doi Moi: Vietnamese Art After 1990, until Sept. 28, 2008. It examines what happened to Vietnamese art when the Communist government opened up to a market economy with the Doi Moi, or 'renovation,' policies. A must-visit.

Useful link:
www.nhb.gov.sg/sam

(via Wiki) Hanoi University of Fine Arts is an art school in Hanoi, Vietnam. It was established under the French occupation in 1925. The university has trained many of Vietnam’s leading artists and each year it participates in many cultural exchanges with sister institutions overseas. The long and distinguished history of the Hanoi University of Fine Art may be traced back to the colonial École Supérieure des Beaux Arts de l’Indochine (1925-1945) (the Indochina College of Fine Arts) which trained successive generations of Vietnamese students in the western art tradition, laying the essential groundwork for the development of a distinctive Vietnamese style of modern art. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanoi_College_of_Fine_Arts

Luck: The Essential Guide

Luck: The Essential Guide by Deborah Aaronson + Kevin Kwan is an interesting book on luck, from historical tidbits to more practical tips.

Useful links:
www.societyforfortuitousevents.com
www.theluckguide.com

Michael Specter

Michael Specter is an American journalist who has been a staff writer, focusing on science and technology, at The New Yorker since September 1998. Francesco Vezzoli talks with Michael Specter about cinema, kitsch, celebrity, and democracy @ http://www.newyorker.com/online/video/conference/2008/vezzoli

Useful links:
www.michaelspecter.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKgbO-E_xss

I think Franceso Vezzoli was brilliant!

BIS Standards For Diamonds

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has recently published details of the new Indian Standard (IS) for polished diamonds. The IS – 15766 code covers both classification and testing methods.

Useful link:
www.bis.org.in

I think regulation in the diamond grading sector in India is essential because those consumers in the smaller cities and towns have no knowledge or expertise recognizing international labs and their standards. I hope the BIS Hallmark will prevail.

Prettified Labradorite

I always had my doubts about the new-find labradorite, and now David Federman explains the gemological facts in detail @ http://www.colored-stone.com/stories/may08/sunstone.cfm

A must-read. I think David Federman was spot on.

Jewelers Row

Visit Bangkok, Bombay, Hong Kong, Singapore, New York, Tokyo, London, Paris, Antwerp, Amsterdam etc, it makes an interesting study in the economics of marketing to visit the collection of dozens of jeweler shops all crowded into a couple of blocks. Why?

Read this blog @ http://www.philadelphia-reflections.com/blog/1071.htm

It must be pretty boring to sit all day every day in a little shop that makes one or two sales a week, except at special holidays. One jeweler I know has a portable computer under the counter and spends a lot of time day-trading , which is buying stocks in the morning and selling them in the afternoon. Although competition in the district goes well beyond vigorous, there is an active fraternity of jewelers in the area, steering customers to each other when they don't have a requested item themselves, eating lunch at one of the local bistros, exchanging gossip of the trade, carefully observing the traffic up and down the sidewalks. And then, you can always have your wife, daughter or neighbor sit on a high stool in front of the counter. Trying on jewelry.

How true!

Surrealist Manifesto

(via Wiki) Two Surrealist Manifestos were issued by the Surrealist movement, in 1924 and 1929, respectively. The first Surrealist manifesto was written by the French writer André Breton in 1924 and released to the public 1925.

The document defines Surrealism as:
Psychic automatism in its pure state, by which one proposes to express -- verbally, by means of the written word, or in any other manner -- the actual functioning of thought. Dictated by the thought, in the absence of any control exercised by reason, exempt from any aesthetic or moral concern.

The second manifesto written in 1929 Breton asked Surrealists to assess their 'degree of moral competence', and along with other theoretical refinements issued the Second manifeste du surréalisme.

Useful links:
http://www.screensite.org/courses/Jbutler/T340/SurManifesto/ManifestoOfSurrealism.htm
http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,,2281350,00.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrealist_Manifesto

After intense bidding war @ Sotheby's Paris auction house, the nine manuscripts were eventually acquired by Gérard Lhéritier, a noted collector and the founder of the Museum of Letters and Manuscripts in Paris, for a total of €3.6m (£2.9m).
www.sothebys.com

Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) started as an idea...today big firms are called upon to be good corporate citizens, and they all want to show that they are.....
http://www.economist.com/specialreports/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10491077

Useful links:
www.corporatephilanthropy.org
www.unglobalcompact.org
www.mckinseyquarterly.com
www.bcccc.net

Heard On The Street

Good people can set their own price tag, and they want jam tomorrow, not in five years.

The Alchemist

(via Newyorker) Harvey Weinstein will produce a movie version of the novel 'The Alchemist,' by Paulo Coelho, directed by and starring Laurence Fishburne. At a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival, Weinstein said that film adaptations of best-sellers—'pre-sold commodities'—were safer box-office bets.

Useful links:
www.weinsteinco.com
www.paulocoelho.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oaybo46kMC8

I liked the book. Paul Coelho is awesome. I love his work.

Art + ASCII

Art and ASCII is intriguing, in fact, I liked it. Detailed review @
http://www.wired.com/techbiz/people/multimedia/2008/05/mf_hiroyuki_ss?

Useful links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASCII_art
www.2ch.net (thought to be the largest Internet forum in the world)
http://www.wired.com/techbiz/people/magazine/16-06/mf_usfans

The Coffee Trader

The Coffee Trader by David Liss is a brilliant historical thriller. I found myself drinking more coffee than usual while reading this novel.

Useful link:
www.davidliss.com

Transparency In The Colored Gemstone Trade?

I found the article titled, Transparency In The Colored Gemstone Trade? interesting because the trade has been so different and secretive for so long, they abhor the thought of transparency and accountability. The colored stone market has no market control. The routes followed by colored stones to the marketplace are tortuous + far more individuals are involved, each with their own interests.

Useful links:
www.fairjewelry.org
www.madisondialogue.org
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2008/0804.frank.html

The Pixar Touch

The Pixar Touch: The Making of a Company by David A. Price is a story of technical innovation that revolutionized animation, transforming hand-drawn cel animation to computer-generated 3-D graphics. I think it's an excellent book on a successful entrepreneurial venture. A must-read.

Useful link:
www.pixar.com

Brainstorm Exchange

I found Brainstorm Exchange interesting + I saw it as a unique platform for ideas and solutions. I liked it.

Useful link:
www.brainstormexchange.com

Mobile Marketing Handbook

The Mobile Marketing Handbook: A Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Dynamic Mobile Marketing Campaigns by Kim Dushinski is an interesting book on the new trend in business.

Useful links:
http://kimdushinski.com
www.mobilemarketingprofits.com

Eurovision

(via Wiki) The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition. Each country participates via one of their national EBU-member television stations, whose task it is to select a singer and a song to represent their country in the international competition. The Contest has been broadcast every year since its inauguration in 1956 and is one of the longest-running television programmes in the world. It is also one of the most-watched non-sporting events in the world, with audience figures having been quoted in recent years as anything between 100 million and 600 million internationally.

Useful links:
www.eurovision.tv
www.ebu.ch
http://www.bbc.co.uk/eurovision
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurovision_Song_Contest

What interests me is the special skills performing artists display to sway audiences + their ability to read the house and tune their message to engage listeners. I am always amazed watching the magic combination.

Art + Architecture

David Adjaye is a British architect, who makes buildings as if they were conceptual artworks. There is a certain quality in his work that I like, it becomes an emotional incubator, morphs into new fusions.

Useful links:
www.adjaye.com
http://www.newyorker.com/online/video/conference/2008/adjaye

Business Leader = Performance Artist

The article titled, What Rock Stars Can Teach Leaders @ http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/may2008/ca20080515_689576.htm was brilliant and insightful.

Useful link:
www.accenture.com

It's all about practising = rehearsing = performing, it's amazing, it works. I think listening deeply, testing for understanding, and inspiring others = ultimate goal.

Gold Toothpick, Etc

Experts have found a tiny gold combined toothpick and earwax spoon, believed to be more than 385 years old, during the search for a shipwrecked Spanish galleon off the Florida Keys.

Useful links:
www.bluewaterventureskw.com
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080520/ap_on_sc/florida_artifacts

I think the thrill of discovery is always exciting + it's definitely underwater detetive work. Good story with a happy ending.

The Simpsons

(via Wiki) The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a satirical parody of the middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its titular family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. The show is set in the fictional town of Springfield, and it lampoons many aspects of the human condition, as well as American culture, society as a whole, and television itself.

Useful links:
www.thesimpsons.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Simpsons
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096697
http://www.simpsonsmovie.com

I think The Simpsons is one of the greatest sitcom ever made because it does everything (playful, subversive, funny, intelligent, joyful, etc.), with animated characters. I love it.

Hay Festival

Hay Festival is running a variety of green events from May 22 - June 1, 2008. Don't miss it!

Useful link:
www.hayfestival.com

Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art

(via Wiki) The Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, or mima, is a contemporary art gallery based in the centre of Middlesbrough, in the North East of England. The gallery was formally launched on Sunday 27th January 2007, although it was originally planned to open in late Summer 2006. It is one of three institutions run by the Middlesbrough Museums & Galleries Service, along with the Dorman Museum and Captain Cook Birthplace Museum.

Useful link:
www.visitmima.com

A must-visit. Jeffrey + Ruth Sherwin's art collections will be part of the three-month show @ mima (http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/news/story/0,,2280883,00.html)

Cellscope

CellScope = cell phone microscope
(via Wired) The cell phone microscope, called a CellScope, is designed to uncouple the need for a physician to be in the same place as a patient, allowing those who lack the benefits of health care to be properly diagnosed. A diagnosis is performed by putting a slide containing a blood or tissue sample on the Cell Scope. A ring of bright LEDs illuminates the sample, and if faint blue dots appear, the patient is positive for malaria. The image can then be transmitted to medical experts for analysis and recommendations.

Useful links:
http://fletchlab.berkeley.edu/research_cellscope.htm
http://www.economist.com/science/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11367989
http://blumcenter.berkeley.edu/telemicroscopy-disease-diagnosis
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_44YIAGpf4

Brilliant! I think the technology is going to help millions, save lives. I am also thinking if cellscope could be modifed for gemological applications/precious metals testing.

The Richest Of The Rich

The rest of the world may be feeling an economic pinch, but for the richest of the rich, the luxury spending spree goes. I found the article, Shining In The Gloom @ www.newsweek.com/id/137480 interesting.

I've been waiting for prices to come down ever since the financial crisis started, but it's not happening. It's bizarre. Logically it should all come falling down, but it isn't.
- Nicholas Berggruen, Berggruen Holdings

How true!

Business Of Creativity

I found the article, Getting Down to the Business of Creativity @ http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5902.html
educational and informative. At the end of the day innovation is a team sport.

An Earth Friendly Home

Impact analysis @ www.time.com/time/2007/green_home

It was a real eye-opener. Try it!

Chandler Burr

Chandler Burr is an American journalist and author + he is the perfume critic for the New York Times. Look at this interview with Chandler Burr for the website parfumessence.

Useful link:
www.chandlerburr.com

The aesthetics of perfume have always intrigued me. A good perfume is a work of art.

The CEO Sheik

I found the article titled, The CEO Sheik @ http://www.newsweek.com/id/32716/page/1 interesting and insightful.

Useful link:
www.sheikhmohammed.co.ae

If the cart is politics and the horse is the economy, then we have to put the horse before the cart and not the other way around.
- Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktum, the ruler of Dubai + the prime minister of the United Arab Emirates
What's good for the merchants is good for Dubai.
- The late Sheik Rashid

Brilliant! I think the story of Dubai is the story of good governance.

Chester Beatty Library

(via Wiki) The Chester Beatty Library was established in Dublin, Ireland in 1950, to house the collections of mining magnate, Sir Alfred Chester Beatty. The present library, on the grounds of Dublin Castle, opened on February 7, 2000, the 125th anniversary of Sir Alfred's birth and was named European Museum of the Year in 2002. The Library's collections are displayed in two collections: "Sacred Traditions" and "Artistic Traditions". Both displays exhibit sacred texts, manuscripts, miniature paintings and art on paper from the world's great oriental and western religions as well as secular items. The Library is one of the premier sources for scholarship in both the Old and New Testaments and is home to one of the most significant collections of Islamic and Far Eastern artefacts. It includes the Gospel of Mani believed to be the last remaining artefact from Manichaeism.

Useful link:
www.cbl.ie

Chester Beatty Library in Dublin has probably the most beautiful collection of rhinoceros-horn carvings in the world. A must-visit!

Neurobotics

I found Yoky Matsuoka's presentation on Neurobotics @ http://www.newyorker.com/online/video/conference/2008/matsuoka educational and insightful.

Useful links:
http://neurobotics.cs.washington.edu
http://www.cs.washington.edu/homes/yoky

Van Gogh Update

I found the article, Experts fall out over Van Gogh's 'last painting' @ http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/news/story/0,,2280882,00.html interesting because anyone who claims to be holding Van Gogh painting (s) will be a target by the media/auction houses/collectors + the provenance issue (s) will have to be sorted out by the experts to weed out fakes + the price!

Useful link:
www.vangoghmuseum.nl

Diamond-encrusted Helmets

Here is what Mclaren's site says about the design:
Woking, United Kingdom, Friday 16th May 2008: In the build up to the 2008 Monaco Grand Prix, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and Steinmetz, creators of the world’s finest diamonds, are proud to announce the continuation of their long-running partnership. This year Steinmetz has worked closely with the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen, in creating their own personalised race helmets, which both drivers will use throughout the Monaco Grand Prix weekend. Lewis and Heikki’s helmets have been custom-made to their tastes after working closely with Steinmetz’s in-house designers. Each helmet has the signature of the driver pavéd with a line of hundreds of Steinmetz’s handcrafted diamonds. This also marks the first time that the Steinmetz logo - or any other sponsor’s logo in Formula 1 history - has been incorporated into the design of the helmets through the application of diamonds. In celebrating Steinmetz’s unprecedented attributes of master craftsmanship and integrity, the Steinmetz logo has been pavéd using Forevermark diamonds. Forevermark diamonds are the world’s most preciously selected diamonds. "I really like what Steinmetz has done this year and am looking forward to the Monaco Grand Prix weekend," said Lewis. "As some people might know I am very particular about my helmet but it looks great and will add some extra sparkle to the event." "I’m always really excited about the Monaco Grand Prix - it really is the one that all drivers want to win," said Heikki. "To be able to race at this prestigious event with Steinmetz diamonds on my helmet will bring something special to the occasion." Lewis was presented with his helmet at the McLaren Technology Centre earlier this week whilst Heikki will receive his on Wednesday in Monaco. Steinmetz is renowned for cutting and polishing some of the most important diamonds throughout history. Amongst these are the De Beers Millennium Star, the Steinmetz Pink and The Blue Empress. Steinmetz has a deep-rooted presence in the African sub-continent with four modern factories in South Africa, Botswana and Namibia. Through the Forevermark initiative Steinmetz has raised the standard of diamond cutting and polishing to world-class levels, trained and created new talent, whilst embracing the latest technology, as well as providing jobs in these countries. Forevermark diamonds only come from mines, which, attain the highest standards; are beautifully crafted by a select group of diamantaires; and are exclusively available in only a few jewellers worldwide. With less than 1% of the world’s diamonds being eligible for Forevermark status, these diamonds really are precious.

Useful links:
www.mclaren.com
www.steinmetz-group.com

Brilliant! I liked it.

Globality

Globality: Competing with Everyone from Everywhere for Everything by Hal Sirkin + Jim Hemerling + Arindam Bhattacharya is a fascinating book on new emerging market economies and the new rules of competition. The world of business is suddenly different/has changed. A must-read.

Useful link:
www.bcg.com

Sketching User Experiences

Sketching User Experiences: Getting the Design Right and the Right Design by Bill Buxton is a great book on design + design thinking.

Useful link:
www.billbuxton.com

Like any secret society, the design community has its strange rituals and initiation procedures. Bill opens up the mysteries of the magical process of design, taking us through a land in which story telling, orange squeezers, the Wizard of oOz, I-pods, avalanche avoidance, bicycle suspension sketching, and faking it are all points on the design pilgrims journey. There are lots of ideas and techniques in this book to feed good design and transform the way we think about creating useful stuff.
- Peter Gabriel

Shwedagon Pagoda

(via Wiki) The Shwedagon Pagoda, officially titled Shwedagon Zedi Daw, also known as the Golden Pagoda, is a 98-metre (approx. 321.5 feet) gilded stupa located in Yangon, Burma. The pagoda lies to the west of Kandawgyi Lake, on Singuttara Hill, thus dominating the skyline of the city. It is the most sacred Buddhist pagoda for the Burmese with relics of the past four Buddhas enshrined within, namely the staff of Kakusandha, the water filter of Konagamana, a piece of the robe of Kassapa and eight hairs of Gautama, the historical Buddha.

May, 2008. According to Reuters, the Shwedagon Pagoda was also hit by the cyclone's 120 mile-an-hour (190 kilometer-an-hour) winds, stripping gold leaves from the temple's giant 320-foot (98-meter) domed shrine + dislodging thousands of precious stones, including rubies, emeralds, and sapphires from the surface of the structure. I believe the complex is undergoing renovation.

Spring Awakening

Spring Awakening is a Tony Award-winning rock musical with music by Duncan Sheik and book and lyrics by Steven Sater. I think it's great! It makes you think and feel!

Useful links:
www.springawakening.com
www.duncansheik.com
www.newyorker.com/online/video/conference/2008/sheik