Wednesday, July 30, 2008
A New Business Model In Video Games
I found the article on new business model (video games): give away the game and charge avid players for extras @ http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11632829 interesting. I think micropayments and advertising may be the popular choices to stay in business.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Heard On The Street
We don’t always succeed, but we try to make new and unusual mistakes rather than repeat the same ones over and over again. That's business.
Carol Channing
Owen Edwards writes about Carol Channing, the broadway star who sang 'Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend' in the 1974 musical Lorelei + the tale of the lost-and-found bejeweled dress + other viewpoints @ http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/object-rhinestone-dress.html
Useful link:
www.carolchanning.org
The first time I took a bow in that dress, I fell over forward and almost broke my teeth.
- Carol Channing
An interesting story on diamond imitations.
Useful link:
www.carolchanning.org
The first time I took a bow in that dress, I fell over forward and almost broke my teeth.
- Carol Channing
An interesting story on diamond imitations.
Random Thoughts
It's 2kg per seat and 500 seats, a worthwhile saving. We are doing it because of fuel prices and the environment. The printed matter will be replaced by content shown on the aircraft's seat-back TVs.
- Tim Clark
President, Emirates
www.emirates.com
- Tim Clark
President, Emirates
www.emirates.com
Fancy Color Diamonds And Their Investment Potential
Harvey Harris is a leading color diamond expert. His book 'Fancy Color Diamonds' provides excellent insights into the origin and nomenclature of color diamonds + the colorful characters in the industry. It's educational, instructive and entertaining. A must read. The following is an excerpt from the book.
(via Fancy Color Diamonds, 1994) Harvey Harris writes:
It takes a different breed of investor to buy fancy colors, just as it takes a different breed of dealer to specialize in them. Indeed, a fine fancy color diamond can’t be thought of as an investment commodity in the same way as gold bullion is. Rather, it is collector’s acquisition (like painting or piece of sculpture) and is inseparable from connoisseurship. In the 1980s, connoisseurship reached new heights with the full emergence of the Pacific Basin as an industrial colossus and the unbridled creation of wealth during the takeover and leveraged buyout binges that highlighted Ronald Regan’s presidency. Although connoisseur money was attracted to spectacularly large and somewhat rare coloreless diamonds, the magnestism of ever rarer fine fancy color diamonds in all sizes proved stronger. Believe it or not, this author’s experience has shown that when it comes to fancy color diamonds, it is easier to sell a $2 to $3 million stone, than one that costs $20000 to $30000!
With the exception of very large stones, white diamonds do not lend themselves to connoisseurship. Their rarity is relative, constantly undermined or at least disproved by the need for cartel control to preserve their value. The rarity of fancy color diamonds, on the other hand, is absolute. These gems do not benefit from or need the De Beers monopoly to attain or maintain value. Dealers and connoisseurs alike know that most of these stones are already above ground in places often as hard to find as a kimberlite pipe (the site where most rough diamonds are found).
As a result, the fancy color diamond dealer must build a network of contacts in far-flung realms of the gem world if he or she is to be ensured of even the meagerest inventory. That nexus of contacts of course includes the De Beers monopoly which occasionally mines or buys important colored diamond rough. But it just as often extends into the open market where rough appears from countries that are nonaligned, or only partially aligned, with the cartel.
If the fancy color diamond specialist could rely on De Beers and the open market for supply, there would probably be far more specialists—and not just because supplies would be adequate enough to support more traders. Dealers used to what is essentially a monolithic one-stream market would be spared the constant search for goods that characterizes the fancy color diamond dealer’s life. The best possibility to secure fine specimens of rare colors is to know specialists in fancy colors, who have access to all markets, including goods coming out of large, important estates throughout the world. Trustees for these estates, often representing royalty or celebrities, sometimes wish to dispose of magnificent pieces. While nowadays, increasingly many of these stones are offered to auction houses, they often come through dealer intermediaries acting on behalf of owners who require anonymity.
Recently, I was approached directly by a Belgian diamond cutter versed in fancy colors, who was a friend of the owner of a 1.27 carat beautiful green diamond that he had polished, and that had been locked away for 28 years. Of the second of the two near identifical colors, and nearly equal weight stones cut from thte same piece of rough, the first had sold for $500 per carat in 1962! Now its twin, kept all these years as a curiosity, was up for sale at a strong six-figure price, and well worth it.
If the thought of paying several hundred thousand dollars for a stone that would have cost less than $500 three decades before tempts a double-take or if you dismiss such appreciation in value as simple evidence of modern day hyperspeculation, the fancy color diamond business is probably not for you. Specialists in these gems learn fairly quickly not to look back in time because remembrance of past prices invariably induces paralysis in the present. As I have been heard to say in these last five or six years, ‘the crazy prices of today—are the sane prices of tomorrow!’
Since the 1970s, prices for the finest fancy color diamonds have nearly always seemed outrageous in the context of the moment—and every fancy color diamond specialist can tell you of at least one lost opportunity to purchase a truly magnificent stone because he or she initially balked at its cost. Such failures of nerve seem, in retrospect, rites of passage into the world of fancy color diamonds. I had my initiation in late 1975 when I passed up a chance to buy a 12.01 carat, magnificent pink round stone, of fine clarity, that was as notable for its size as its color after the stone’s owner (Harry Winston) asked what seemed an unreasonably strong price of $600,000 ($50000 per carat) for it. Today, Winston’s heirs could ask $400,000 per carat for the same stone in its American or European jewelry salons and find eager, willing buyers!
In hindsight, it seems obvious why fancy color diamond dealers must learn the hard way about price/reality! Almost all start out as specialists in colorless diamonds. In that sector of the market, the general rule is to stand on principle and let goods go, no matter how much one needs or wants them, once their asking price exceeds the bidder’s daily definition of what is fair or rational. Dealers frequently boast that they have the self-discipline to refrain from buying stones if their owners don’t show a certain flexibility regarding price.
But self-discipline in the fancy color diamond world often involves taking leaps of faith; not refusing to budge. After all, the dealer in colorlress diamonds can indulge in the notion that something very similar to, or nearly identical with, the stone he refuses, will shortly come his or her way. The fancy color diamond dealer cannot entertain such a sentiment. Therefore, one of the first lessons to learn is to think in a manner that very often runs contrary to that in white diamond world. That’s not easy because it means transcending a certain mental conditioning that prizes obstinancy over derring-do—perseverance over risk. This mindset pervades the diamond world.
According to this mindset, when prices for fine colorless diamonds rise with any kind of velocity, it is viewed as speculation. Given the abundance of these goods, and the hoarding of them in the trade that has invariably accompanied every steep climb in prices since the 1940s (when dealers stockpiled melee because of wartime shortages), the term is apt. But the term is not apt for the steady acceleration of fancy color diamond prices since the mid 1970s because these goods are too rare and expensive to lend themselves to dealer hoarding or manipulation.
In April 1989, when 16 pink diamonds from Australia were sold at Christie’s in New York, trade dabblers in fancy colors were alarmed and even angry at the above market prices paid for small, often highly-included stones. Only later, when they learned that 10 of the diamonds had been bought by persons of the general public, did they realize that those prices, which had seemed a little irrational from a dealer-to-dealer standpoint, were perfectly rational from a private buyer’s perspective. That Christie’s sale signaled the fancy color diamond’s emergence as a full-fledged connoisseur item. In a time of soaring art and antiquities connoisseurship, when Andy Warhol lithographs that sold for $400 in the mid 1960s captured $40000 or more at auction 25 years later, or Swatch watches bought for $35 in 1983 brought $15000 at watch auctions 8 years later, prices paid at auction for far rarer sub 1 carat pink diamonds began to make sense. But to dealers trying to evaluate such prices from the narrow niche of their own wholesale market experience, there seemed to be no justification. But, here again, dealers were simply the products of the diamond market’s culture—and their thinking reflected the function of auctions experienced until that time.
For more than a decade, diamond dealers had used auctions mainly as a way to buy white and Cape diamonds consigned from the public at below market prices. Suddenly they were confronted with a type of diamond—namely, fancy colors—that consistently sold for above market prices! What’s more, many of these diamonds came from dealers who knew their goods would receive far higher amounts in the highly competitive auction milieu than in the more controlled and restrictive confines of an office. When it came to fairly common colorless and Cape diamonds, auctions were usually buyer-friendly events. But when it came to extremely rare fancy colors, auctions were usually seller-friendly!
It is no coincidence that the Australian pinks sold by Christie’s were consigned by Argyle Sales, the marketers of the best goods from Australia’s mammoth Kimberley diamond mines. For the first time in history, a diamond mining company had sold directly to the public. While this precedent frightened many in the trade, Argyle shareholders applauded the move. And no wonder. It is estimated that Argyle netted 10 – 20 percent more for the 16 diamonds it sold directly to collectors than would have been realized if sold to dealers. It was a profitable experiment. The ploy however, would only have worked with rarities such as pink diamonds. Until Australia’s Kimberley region diamond mine came on stream in 1985, producing around 30 million carats of mostly industrial quality diamonds, pinks were among the rarest of all diamond colors, found mostly in very tiny quantities in India centuries ago and later in Brazil and South Africa. Of these pre-Australian pinks, the vast majority were so pale that gemologists classified them either as ‘faint’ or ‘light’ in terms of saturation, tints more than hues. The few gems that possessed sufficient body color to be considered colored stones almost never earned the stand alone designation of ‘fancy’. Usually, they were judged ‘fancy light pink’.
Australia became the first producer of pink diamonds with hues so saturate that they routinely merited the designation of fancy—without any qualifiers. Here, however, it is important to stress the momentous impact these diamonds had on the world market.
From its onset, Argyle Diamond Sales Limited understood and exploited the unique psychology of the fancy color diamond market. Although the vast majority of the mine’s stones are sold out to the De Beers cartel, Argyle is allowed to keep the very best and biggest of its pinks. Nothing over 2.79 carats (rough) went to De Beers. Although this is now changed, (by agreement in 1991) Argyle is able to retain all that it desires of its pinks. Since 1985 it has cut the top 6000 carats of its production at its own cutting factory in Perth. This includes white, yellow, brown, as well as pink stones. Of this material (around 60 carats per year) so far never more than 83 stones, have been true, fine fancy pinks!
To ensure that it received the highest prices possible for these gems, Argyle reserved them for company-run annual sealed-bid auctions, which is called ‘tenders’, inaugurated in 1986—the first occurred in Antwerp, Belgium, and subsequent ones in Geneva, Switzerland. ‘The list of attendees at these invitation only sales reads like a ‘Who’s Who’ of world’s leading fancy color diamond dealers’ wrote gem journalist David Federman in his essay for Christie’s catalog devoted to Argyle’s 16 pink diamonds sold in April 1989. He continued, ‘Pitting these specialists against one another has resulted in rather breathtaking prices for both Argyle’s ‘tender’ stones in particular and its pinks in general.’
But even so, it was a London jeweler, Laurence Graff, who captured the two main spoils of that 1989 sale—a 7.05 carat pear-shaped fancy blue, and 3.14 carat fancy purplish-pink cushion-cut that went for $2.09 and $1.26 million, respectively. By paying prices many of its colleagues in the audience thought far too high, Graff was forced to make a ‘leap of faith’ that is uncommon among conventional diamond dealers, but all too common among the few in the trade who share his passion for fancy color diamonds.
(via Fancy Color Diamonds, 1994) Harvey Harris writes:
It takes a different breed of investor to buy fancy colors, just as it takes a different breed of dealer to specialize in them. Indeed, a fine fancy color diamond can’t be thought of as an investment commodity in the same way as gold bullion is. Rather, it is collector’s acquisition (like painting or piece of sculpture) and is inseparable from connoisseurship. In the 1980s, connoisseurship reached new heights with the full emergence of the Pacific Basin as an industrial colossus and the unbridled creation of wealth during the takeover and leveraged buyout binges that highlighted Ronald Regan’s presidency. Although connoisseur money was attracted to spectacularly large and somewhat rare coloreless diamonds, the magnestism of ever rarer fine fancy color diamonds in all sizes proved stronger. Believe it or not, this author’s experience has shown that when it comes to fancy color diamonds, it is easier to sell a $2 to $3 million stone, than one that costs $20000 to $30000!
With the exception of very large stones, white diamonds do not lend themselves to connoisseurship. Their rarity is relative, constantly undermined or at least disproved by the need for cartel control to preserve their value. The rarity of fancy color diamonds, on the other hand, is absolute. These gems do not benefit from or need the De Beers monopoly to attain or maintain value. Dealers and connoisseurs alike know that most of these stones are already above ground in places often as hard to find as a kimberlite pipe (the site where most rough diamonds are found).
As a result, the fancy color diamond dealer must build a network of contacts in far-flung realms of the gem world if he or she is to be ensured of even the meagerest inventory. That nexus of contacts of course includes the De Beers monopoly which occasionally mines or buys important colored diamond rough. But it just as often extends into the open market where rough appears from countries that are nonaligned, or only partially aligned, with the cartel.
If the fancy color diamond specialist could rely on De Beers and the open market for supply, there would probably be far more specialists—and not just because supplies would be adequate enough to support more traders. Dealers used to what is essentially a monolithic one-stream market would be spared the constant search for goods that characterizes the fancy color diamond dealer’s life. The best possibility to secure fine specimens of rare colors is to know specialists in fancy colors, who have access to all markets, including goods coming out of large, important estates throughout the world. Trustees for these estates, often representing royalty or celebrities, sometimes wish to dispose of magnificent pieces. While nowadays, increasingly many of these stones are offered to auction houses, they often come through dealer intermediaries acting on behalf of owners who require anonymity.
Recently, I was approached directly by a Belgian diamond cutter versed in fancy colors, who was a friend of the owner of a 1.27 carat beautiful green diamond that he had polished, and that had been locked away for 28 years. Of the second of the two near identifical colors, and nearly equal weight stones cut from thte same piece of rough, the first had sold for $500 per carat in 1962! Now its twin, kept all these years as a curiosity, was up for sale at a strong six-figure price, and well worth it.
If the thought of paying several hundred thousand dollars for a stone that would have cost less than $500 three decades before tempts a double-take or if you dismiss such appreciation in value as simple evidence of modern day hyperspeculation, the fancy color diamond business is probably not for you. Specialists in these gems learn fairly quickly not to look back in time because remembrance of past prices invariably induces paralysis in the present. As I have been heard to say in these last five or six years, ‘the crazy prices of today—are the sane prices of tomorrow!’
Since the 1970s, prices for the finest fancy color diamonds have nearly always seemed outrageous in the context of the moment—and every fancy color diamond specialist can tell you of at least one lost opportunity to purchase a truly magnificent stone because he or she initially balked at its cost. Such failures of nerve seem, in retrospect, rites of passage into the world of fancy color diamonds. I had my initiation in late 1975 when I passed up a chance to buy a 12.01 carat, magnificent pink round stone, of fine clarity, that was as notable for its size as its color after the stone’s owner (Harry Winston) asked what seemed an unreasonably strong price of $600,000 ($50000 per carat) for it. Today, Winston’s heirs could ask $400,000 per carat for the same stone in its American or European jewelry salons and find eager, willing buyers!
In hindsight, it seems obvious why fancy color diamond dealers must learn the hard way about price/reality! Almost all start out as specialists in colorless diamonds. In that sector of the market, the general rule is to stand on principle and let goods go, no matter how much one needs or wants them, once their asking price exceeds the bidder’s daily definition of what is fair or rational. Dealers frequently boast that they have the self-discipline to refrain from buying stones if their owners don’t show a certain flexibility regarding price.
But self-discipline in the fancy color diamond world often involves taking leaps of faith; not refusing to budge. After all, the dealer in colorlress diamonds can indulge in the notion that something very similar to, or nearly identical with, the stone he refuses, will shortly come his or her way. The fancy color diamond dealer cannot entertain such a sentiment. Therefore, one of the first lessons to learn is to think in a manner that very often runs contrary to that in white diamond world. That’s not easy because it means transcending a certain mental conditioning that prizes obstinancy over derring-do—perseverance over risk. This mindset pervades the diamond world.
According to this mindset, when prices for fine colorless diamonds rise with any kind of velocity, it is viewed as speculation. Given the abundance of these goods, and the hoarding of them in the trade that has invariably accompanied every steep climb in prices since the 1940s (when dealers stockpiled melee because of wartime shortages), the term is apt. But the term is not apt for the steady acceleration of fancy color diamond prices since the mid 1970s because these goods are too rare and expensive to lend themselves to dealer hoarding or manipulation.
In April 1989, when 16 pink diamonds from Australia were sold at Christie’s in New York, trade dabblers in fancy colors were alarmed and even angry at the above market prices paid for small, often highly-included stones. Only later, when they learned that 10 of the diamonds had been bought by persons of the general public, did they realize that those prices, which had seemed a little irrational from a dealer-to-dealer standpoint, were perfectly rational from a private buyer’s perspective. That Christie’s sale signaled the fancy color diamond’s emergence as a full-fledged connoisseur item. In a time of soaring art and antiquities connoisseurship, when Andy Warhol lithographs that sold for $400 in the mid 1960s captured $40000 or more at auction 25 years later, or Swatch watches bought for $35 in 1983 brought $15000 at watch auctions 8 years later, prices paid at auction for far rarer sub 1 carat pink diamonds began to make sense. But to dealers trying to evaluate such prices from the narrow niche of their own wholesale market experience, there seemed to be no justification. But, here again, dealers were simply the products of the diamond market’s culture—and their thinking reflected the function of auctions experienced until that time.
For more than a decade, diamond dealers had used auctions mainly as a way to buy white and Cape diamonds consigned from the public at below market prices. Suddenly they were confronted with a type of diamond—namely, fancy colors—that consistently sold for above market prices! What’s more, many of these diamonds came from dealers who knew their goods would receive far higher amounts in the highly competitive auction milieu than in the more controlled and restrictive confines of an office. When it came to fairly common colorless and Cape diamonds, auctions were usually buyer-friendly events. But when it came to extremely rare fancy colors, auctions were usually seller-friendly!
It is no coincidence that the Australian pinks sold by Christie’s were consigned by Argyle Sales, the marketers of the best goods from Australia’s mammoth Kimberley diamond mines. For the first time in history, a diamond mining company had sold directly to the public. While this precedent frightened many in the trade, Argyle shareholders applauded the move. And no wonder. It is estimated that Argyle netted 10 – 20 percent more for the 16 diamonds it sold directly to collectors than would have been realized if sold to dealers. It was a profitable experiment. The ploy however, would only have worked with rarities such as pink diamonds. Until Australia’s Kimberley region diamond mine came on stream in 1985, producing around 30 million carats of mostly industrial quality diamonds, pinks were among the rarest of all diamond colors, found mostly in very tiny quantities in India centuries ago and later in Brazil and South Africa. Of these pre-Australian pinks, the vast majority were so pale that gemologists classified them either as ‘faint’ or ‘light’ in terms of saturation, tints more than hues. The few gems that possessed sufficient body color to be considered colored stones almost never earned the stand alone designation of ‘fancy’. Usually, they were judged ‘fancy light pink’.
Australia became the first producer of pink diamonds with hues so saturate that they routinely merited the designation of fancy—without any qualifiers. Here, however, it is important to stress the momentous impact these diamonds had on the world market.
From its onset, Argyle Diamond Sales Limited understood and exploited the unique psychology of the fancy color diamond market. Although the vast majority of the mine’s stones are sold out to the De Beers cartel, Argyle is allowed to keep the very best and biggest of its pinks. Nothing over 2.79 carats (rough) went to De Beers. Although this is now changed, (by agreement in 1991) Argyle is able to retain all that it desires of its pinks. Since 1985 it has cut the top 6000 carats of its production at its own cutting factory in Perth. This includes white, yellow, brown, as well as pink stones. Of this material (around 60 carats per year) so far never more than 83 stones, have been true, fine fancy pinks!
To ensure that it received the highest prices possible for these gems, Argyle reserved them for company-run annual sealed-bid auctions, which is called ‘tenders’, inaugurated in 1986—the first occurred in Antwerp, Belgium, and subsequent ones in Geneva, Switzerland. ‘The list of attendees at these invitation only sales reads like a ‘Who’s Who’ of world’s leading fancy color diamond dealers’ wrote gem journalist David Federman in his essay for Christie’s catalog devoted to Argyle’s 16 pink diamonds sold in April 1989. He continued, ‘Pitting these specialists against one another has resulted in rather breathtaking prices for both Argyle’s ‘tender’ stones in particular and its pinks in general.’
But even so, it was a London jeweler, Laurence Graff, who captured the two main spoils of that 1989 sale—a 7.05 carat pear-shaped fancy blue, and 3.14 carat fancy purplish-pink cushion-cut that went for $2.09 and $1.26 million, respectively. By paying prices many of its colleagues in the audience thought far too high, Graff was forced to make a ‘leap of faith’ that is uncommon among conventional diamond dealers, but all too common among the few in the trade who share his passion for fancy color diamonds.
Decodeme
I think deCODEme is the world's first service to offer a comprehensive genome scan and online analysis of your unique DNA profile. My concerns include security factors + interpretation skills. Many won't be able to accurately interpret the results. But still I think this is a brilliant idea.
Useful link:
www.decodeme.com
Useful link:
www.decodeme.com
A Lensless Microscope
(via Wired) I found the article on a lensless microscope that Caltech researchers have designed for automatically sorting out cancerous cells in body in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences interesting.
Go to http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/07/mini-microscope.html for further information.
Go to http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/07/mini-microscope.html for further information.
H. Tracy Hall
H. Tracy Hall, the creator of man-made industrial diamond, has passed away at his home in Utah, U.S.A. He was 88.
Useful link:
www.htracyhall.org
My eyes caught the flashing light from dozens of tiny crystals. My hands began to tremble; my heart beat rapidly; my knees weakened and no longer gave support—I knew that diamonds had finally been made by man.
- H Tracy Hall
May God bless his soul. Rest in peace, Tracy Hall.
Useful link:
www.htracyhall.org
My eyes caught the flashing light from dozens of tiny crystals. My hands began to tremble; my heart beat rapidly; my knees weakened and no longer gave support—I knew that diamonds had finally been made by man.
- H Tracy Hall
May God bless his soul. Rest in peace, Tracy Hall.
Forevermark Diamond Grading Laboratory
Forevermark, a De Beers marketing company, has announced the opening of Forevermark diamond grading laboratories in Antwerp, Belgium and Maidenhead, UK. The labs will grade only Forevermark selected diamonds providing added value to Forevermark business partners, as well as consumers.
Useful link:
www.diamantaire.forevermark.com
Useful link:
www.diamantaire.forevermark.com
Monday, July 28, 2008
Innovative Videogames
I found The Virtual Army Experience, a traveling exhibit of the U.S. Army, intriguing. Even though it may be perceived as an innovative tool to teach teamwork, rules of engagement, leadership and high-tech equipments, if not properly utilized the concept may boomerang, really. I think the The Virtual Army Experience-like videogames could be useful teaching business methodologies and social skills.
Useful link:
http://vae.americasarmy.com
Useful link:
http://vae.americasarmy.com
Everything Is Cinema
Everything Is Cinema: The Working Life of Jean-Luc Godard by Richard Brody is an interesting biography on Jean-Luc Godard's artistic journey. A must read.
Jacob Rothschild
The conversation with Jacob Rothschild, an avid art collector @ http://www.economist.com/daily/columns/artview/displayStory.cfm?story_id=11825979 was brilliant and insightful.
I can’t stop collecting, I’m afraid.
- Jacob Rothschild
I can’t stop collecting, I’m afraid.
- Jacob Rothschild
Heard On The Street
Traders and professionals are one thing, and their twists and turns give us insights into the behavior of markets. Main street is a different story.
Random Thoughts
In college …I avoided science, math, and accounting-all the normal preparations for business. I was on the arts side… As I look back on it now, it’s obvious that studying history and philosophy was much better preparation for the stock market than, say, studying statistics. Investing in stocks is an art, not a science, and people who’ve been trained to rigidly quantify everything have a big disadvantage. All the math you need in the stock market…you get in fourth grade.
- Peter Lynch
- Peter Lynch
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Tuesdays With Morrie
Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson by Mitch Albom is a fascinating book on lessons he learned from his dying college professor. I think it's also a reminder to appreciate the simple, little things in life. A must-read.Useful link:
Madinat al-Hareer
(via Wiki) Madinat al-Hareer is a proposed 250 square kilometer planned urban area in Subiya, Kuwait, an area just opposite Kuwait City which, upon construction, would include the Burj Mubarak al-Kabir , the world's tallest structure, a natural desert reservation of 2 square kilometres, a duty free area which will be beside a new airport, in addition to a large business center, conference areas, environmental areas, athletic areas, and areas that concentrate on media, health, education, and industry. The City of Silk will also include numerous tourist attractions, hotels, spas, and public gardens. As of this time, it is unclear as to the scope of this project, if it has received any approvals, or if it has the required funding; however, the city will be built in individual phases with total completion within twenty-five years. The development will cost an estimated 25 billion Kuwaiti Dinars (136 billion USD).Useful link:
We are not dreamers at all when we talk about investing $132 billion. We’re thinking on a different plane because we cannot afford to think like everyone else. We’re thinking about something that might seem unimaginable. We’re going to outmaneuver everybody who is going to remain in the old mode of thinking about economic prospects.
Ambitious + Contemporary architecture + Highly motivational. I hope the Silk City would be operational on time.
Unique Bordeaux Collections
The Antique Wine Company is offering limited-edition collections of the finest vintages from each of Bordeaux's eight most illustrious châteaux. Go to www.antique-wine.com for further information. Don't miss it.
Useful links:
www.chateau-margaux.com
www.vins-bordeaux.fr
Useful links:
www.chateau-margaux.com
www.vins-bordeaux.fr
Art Market Update
Souren Melikian has an interesting update on the state of the art market + the new economic environment @ http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/07/26/arts/melik26.php
A must read.
A must read.
The Country Girl
I accidentally came across the movie, The Country Girl (1954) directed by George Seaton, and decided to watch. Bing Crosby + Grace Kelly + William Holden were brilliant. Grace Kelly won the Oscar for Best Actress for her role as the singer's long-suffering wife. In fact I am a huge fan of the trio, Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, and William Holden. A must-see movie for classic movie fans. Useful links:
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Vatican Splendors
The Vatican Splendors exhibition will be on display at the Minnesota History Center in St. Paul, Minnesota beginning September 27, 2008. To be notified when advance tickets go on sale, go to www.mnhs.org/vatican
Useful links:
http://vaticansplendors.com
www.mnhs.org
A must visit.
Useful links:
http://vaticansplendors.com
www.mnhs.org
A must visit.
Random Thoughts
What we . . . refer to confidently as memory. . . is really a form of storytelling that goes on continually in the mind and often changes with the telling.
- William Maxwell
How true!
- William Maxwell
How true!
Fine Wine Market
I found the article on fine wine market @ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7521282.stm intriguing. In fact the fine wine market craze parallels more recent big diamond, rubies and emerald purchases by the rich and famous speculators. Amazingly buying wine through auctions, like gems and jewelry are becoming increasingly popular.
Useful links:
www.zachys.com
www.auctionconsultants.net
Wine is the new must have thing of the ultra-rich. Nothing says 'I'm rich' like pulling a $10,000 (£5,000) cork out of a bottle and in cultures like Asia and Russia that sort of behaviour is really a part of new wealth.
- Scott Zenko
With art you can collect it and enjoy it at the same time. Unless you are into the pleasures of simply looking at bottles the only way to enjoy a wine collection is to open the bottles and consume what' s inside, so you have just destroyed the value, if you will, of that particular piece of your collection.
- Douglas Barzelay
We believe wine is there to be drunk. We will try and make sure that the market is a bit more fair than simply one person having complete control and using it as a commodity really, as opposed to various bottles of slightly intoxicating fermented grape juice, which is really what we are talking about in the end.
- Simon Berry
Useful links:
www.zachys.com
www.auctionconsultants.net
Wine is the new must have thing of the ultra-rich. Nothing says 'I'm rich' like pulling a $10,000 (£5,000) cork out of a bottle and in cultures like Asia and Russia that sort of behaviour is really a part of new wealth.
- Scott Zenko
With art you can collect it and enjoy it at the same time. Unless you are into the pleasures of simply looking at bottles the only way to enjoy a wine collection is to open the bottles and consume what' s inside, so you have just destroyed the value, if you will, of that particular piece of your collection.
- Douglas Barzelay
We believe wine is there to be drunk. We will try and make sure that the market is a bit more fair than simply one person having complete control and using it as a commodity really, as opposed to various bottles of slightly intoxicating fermented grape juice, which is really what we are talking about in the end.
- Simon Berry
The Gridlock Economy
The Gridlock Economy: How Too Much Ownership Wrecks Markets, Stops Innovation, and Costs Live by Michael Heller is a brilliant book on the tragedy of the anticommons (a phrase I like) + too many people blocking each other from creating or using a scarce resource. How true!
Useful links:
www.gridlockeconomy.com
www.law.columbia.edu/fac/Michael_Heller
A must read.
Useful links:
www.gridlockeconomy.com
www.law.columbia.edu/fac/Michael_Heller
A must read.
James Biber's Idea
I found James Biber's Starbucks proposal + a better experience concept @ http://blog.pentagram.com/2008/07/james-biber-remakes-starbucks.php interesting and insightful. I think it was brilliant.
Useful link:
www.pentagram.com/en/partners/james-biber.php
Useful link:
www.pentagram.com/en/partners/james-biber.php
JVC, One Spin Too Many
Chaim Even Zohar writes about FTC/JVC cultured diamond debate + other viewpoints @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullEditorial.asp
I fully agree with Chaim. The JVC spin was unnecessary.
I fully agree with Chaim. The JVC spin was unnecessary.
Luxury Interest Group
LuxuryLifestyle + Luxury Institute = Business opportunities to serve their clients' needs.
Useful links:
www.luxurylifestyle.com
www.luxuryinstitute.com
www.luxuryboard.com
I wish them good luck.
Useful links:
www.luxurylifestyle.com
www.luxuryinstitute.com
www.luxuryboard.com
I wish them good luck.
Hyderabad Jewelry Fair
The Hyderabad Jewellery, Pearl and Gem Fair (HJF) 2008, the largest international jewelry show in South India, commenced on July 24, 2008 at HITEX Exhibition centre, Madhapur. The fair will be on till July 27, 2008.
Useful link:
www.jewelleryfair.in
Useful link:
www.jewelleryfair.in
Comic Book Confidential
(via Wiki) Comic Book Confidential is an American/Canadian documentary film that was released in 1988. Directed by Ron Mann and written by Mann and Charles Lippincott, the film is a survey of the history of the comic book medium in the U.S.A, from the 1930s to the 80s, particularly from the point of view of its being an art form. The film includes profiles of a number of notable and influential talents in the comics field, such as Charles Burns, Art Spiegelman, Françoise Mouly, Frank Miller, Stan Lee, Will Eisner, Robert Crumb, Harvey Pekar, and William M. Gaines. In addition to the talents discussing their best known contributions to the art, they also give readings of passages of their work. A live action version of Bill Griffith's character, Zippy the Pinhead, also appears.Useful links:
In my view comics are an incredibly sophisticated narrative format that can be understood by the illiterate + literate alike.
Random Thoughts
I have had a very adventurous life but not because I have an adventurous nature or yearned for a life full of adventure. Fate just wanted it this way.
- Vaclav Havel
www.vaclavhavel.cz
- Vaclav Havel
www.vaclavhavel.cz
AIAS + D.I.C.E
(via Wiki) The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS), founded in 1996, is a non-profit organization that promotes computer and video game entertainment with the annual D.I.C.E. Summit event, where its Interactive Achievement Awards ceremony has been held annually since 1998. Its membership consists of industry professionals, and only professional members who meet a set of minimum criteria are able to vote for the best entertainment software of the year.
D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit is an annual multi-day gathering of videogame executives held in Las Vegas, Nevada. Established in 2002 by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, the conference is host to the annual Entertainment Software Association's Interactive Achievement Awards. The conference differs from other industry conferences in its emphasis on the business and production end of the industry, with a focus on trends and innovations in videogame design. The conference specializes in providing a more intimate, orderly venue for select industry leaders to network.
Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon University computer scientist, who became an Internet sensation for his 'The Last Lecture' speech on September 18, 2007, died of pancreatic cancer on July 25 (Friday), 2008. He was 47. In February, 2008, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences in California announced the creation of the Dr. Randy Pausch Scholarship Fund for university students who pursue careers in game design, development and production.
Useful links:
www.interactive.org
www.dicesummit.org
www.cs.cmu.edu/~pausch
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5700431505846055184
Randy's 'The Last Lecture' was really inspiring. He will be dearly missed but will always remain in our hearts.
D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit is an annual multi-day gathering of videogame executives held in Las Vegas, Nevada. Established in 2002 by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, the conference is host to the annual Entertainment Software Association's Interactive Achievement Awards. The conference differs from other industry conferences in its emphasis on the business and production end of the industry, with a focus on trends and innovations in videogame design. The conference specializes in providing a more intimate, orderly venue for select industry leaders to network.
Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon University computer scientist, who became an Internet sensation for his 'The Last Lecture' speech on September 18, 2007, died of pancreatic cancer on July 25 (Friday), 2008. He was 47. In February, 2008, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences in California announced the creation of the Dr. Randy Pausch Scholarship Fund for university students who pursue careers in game design, development and production.
Useful links:
www.interactive.org
www.dicesummit.org
www.cs.cmu.edu/~pausch
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5700431505846055184
Randy's 'The Last Lecture' was really inspiring. He will be dearly missed but will always remain in our hearts.
Friday, July 25, 2008
The Most Expensive Cups Of Coffee
(via Forbes) According to a new survey by the London office of U.S. consulting firm Mercer, the average cup of coffee in Moscow costs $10.19, including service, $6.77 in Paris, $6.62 in Athens, $2.03 in Buenos Aires, $2.36 in Johannesburg, and $3.75 in New York. Intriguing! Go to www.mercer.com for the annual cost of living survey, which covers 143 cities across six continents and measures the relative cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment. A real eye opener!
John Mellencamp's Life, Death, Love And Freedom
Life Death Love and Freedom by John Mellencamp is unique and distinctive + he is enjoying a mini renaissance after his recent Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, but in my view his songs still have the same luster, electricity and character. Useful link:
Zhengrong Shi
Dr Zhengrong Shi is the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Suntech Power, China's largest photovoltaic manufacturer. He is also an adviser to the Chinese government on renewable energy policies. He predicts solar power will rival oil and coal before the end of the next decade. I think he is the right man at the right time--China's Sunshine Boy!Useful links:
www.suntech-power.com
www.metropoliscongress2008.com
New Acropolis Museum
(via Wiki) The New Acropolis Museum is a purpose built museum by architect Bernard Tschumi to house the archaeological findings related to the Acropolis Hill, in Athens, Greece. It is located near the Acropolis. A must-visit.Useful links:
Lucky Lakshmi 2008
Lucky Lakshmi, India’s largest jewelry shopping festival, will be held September 30 - November 3, 2008.
Useful links:
www.luckylakshmi.com
www.gjf.in
www.gold.org
A must-visit.
Useful links:
www.luckylakshmi.com
www.gjf.in
www.gold.org
A must-visit.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Bird
Charles Parker was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. A biographical film called Bird, starring Forest Whitaker as Parker and directed by Clint Eastwood, was released in 1988.
Useful links:
www.imdb.com/title/tt0094747
www.cmgww.com/music/parker
I love jazz, and 'Bird' was an inspiring jazz movie.
Useful links:
www.imdb.com/title/tt0094747
www.cmgww.com/music/parker
I love jazz, and 'Bird' was an inspiring jazz movie.
The New Jewelry Gallery At The Victoria And Albert Museum
Suzy Menkes writes about the new high-tech jewelry gallery at the Victoria and Albert Museum + the imaginative designs by the architect Eva Jiricna + other viewpoints @ http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/07/22/arts/fvanda.php
Useful links:
www.vam.ac.uk
www.ejal.com
A must-visit.
Useful links:
www.vam.ac.uk
www.ejal.com
A must-visit.
Comic-Con 2008
(via Wiki) Comic-Con International: San Diego, commonly known as Comic-Con or the San Diego Comic-Con, is an annual multigenre fan convention founded as the Golden State Comic Book Convention and later the San Diego Comic Book Convention in 1970 by Shel Dorf and a group of San Diegans. It is traditionally a four-day event (Thursday through Sunday—though a four hour preview night on Wednesday is open to guests pre-registered for all four days) held during the summer in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Comic-Con is both the name of the annual event and the common name of the organization.
Useful link:
www.comic-con.org
I am a huge fan of comics. The Comic-Con 2008 exhibition starts on July 24 - 27 at the San Diego Convention Center. It's an interesting venue to observe and enjoy. Don't miss it.
Useful link:
www.comic-con.org
I am a huge fan of comics. The Comic-Con 2008 exhibition starts on July 24 - 27 at the San Diego Convention Center. It's an interesting venue to observe and enjoy. Don't miss it.
African Diamonds
I found John J. Teeling's (Executive Chairman, African Diamonds) views on mining and natural resources at the recent Wharton Global Alumni Forum in Cape Town, South Africa @ http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2018 interesting. As he rightly put it, if there's no geology, you cannot have a mine.
Useful link:
www.afdiamonds.com
Useful link:
www.afdiamonds.com
The Oil And The Glory
The Oil and the Glory: The Pursuit of Empire and Fortune on the Caspian Sea by Steve LeVine is a fascinating book on greed, corruption and risk-taking by the largest oil and gas companies in the world + the history of the great oil fields of Caspian Sea region, from its first development in the 19th century, through to today. A must-read.Useful link:
Carbon Trading In The New Markets
It's interesting to observe bankers and investors immerse into environmental revolution, as full scale carbon trading takes shape in the United States. Experts believe the volume of carbon trading in the new markets is projected to surge from the equivalent of $64bn last year to $3,000 in a decade, which is quite phenomenal. This will happen only when and if the US ratifies the Kyoto Agreement, and then it's business. In an attempt to make the world a better place, the key players will not only revolutionize the concept but also reap huge profits. Let's watch and wait to see if it actually works.
Useful links:
www.earth-policy.org
www.carbonexpo.com
www.climos.com
www.grestech.com
Useful links:
www.earth-policy.org
www.carbonexpo.com
www.climos.com
www.grestech.com
Burmese Gem Ban
The U.S. Senate has passed a bill to place a total embargo on the importation of gemstones (rubies, jades, etc) from Burma reaching the United States, that are mined there and subsequently passed through third-party countries such as Thailand, etc. Earlier the U.S. House of Representatives approved the bill and sent to President Bush to be signed into law. If enacted, the legislation will have a large impact on imports of Burmese rubies, since more than 90 percent of the world's rubies originate in Burma.
Useful links:
http://foreignaffairs.house.gov
www.senate.gov
www.house.gov
I think it will hurt small gemstone dealers in Burma and the gem and jewelry industry that processes the goods in Thailand, more than the Burmese government.
Useful links:
http://foreignaffairs.house.gov
www.senate.gov
www.house.gov
I think it will hurt small gemstone dealers in Burma and the gem and jewelry industry that processes the goods in Thailand, more than the Burmese government.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
The Batman Character
I am a huge fan of comics. Batman Unmasked: The Psychology of the Dark Knight @ http://www.history.com/shows.do?episodeId=322796&action=detail is a fascinating show. If you are a fan of comics, don't miss it.
Useful link:
www.history.com
Useful link:
www.history.com
FATF Update
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has developed a guidance document in close consultation with representatives of the dealers in precious metals and dealers in precious stones industries. Go to www.fatf-gafi.org for further information.
InnoCentive
I found the article on Innocentive, a company that links organizations (seekers) with problems (challenges) to people all over the world (solvers) who win cash prizes for resolving them @ http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/22/science/22inno.htmlpagewanted=1&ei=5087&em&en=df5efa6eea21c9b7&ex=1216958400 brilliant.
Useful link:
www.innocentive.com
Useful link:
www.innocentive.com
Random Thoughts
You give all of your inspiration and everything you want to do to the dancers, and it’s up to them to make it work, actually. The choreographer really depends on the dancers in the end.
- Alexei Ratmansky, Choreographer
How true!
- Alexei Ratmansky, Choreographer
How true!
Marcel Tabuteau
Marcel Tabuteau: How Do You Expect to Play the Oboe If You Can't Peel a Mushroom? by Laila Storch tells a remarkable story in an engaging style.Solar Power From Saharan Sun
Alok Jha's article on solar power from Saharan sun + the impact @ http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/jul/23/solarpower.windpower was interesting. As Doug Parr (Greenpeace UK) rightly put it, if it's cost-effective, a largescale renewable energy grid is just the kind of innovation we need if we're going to beat climate change.
Useful links:
www.esof2008.org
http://ie.jrc.ec.europa.eu
www.greenpeace.org.uk
www.jrc.ec.europa.eu
Useful links:
www.esof2008.org
http://ie.jrc.ec.europa.eu
www.greenpeace.org.uk
www.jrc.ec.europa.eu
FTC Update
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has rejected a petition from the Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC) and nine other trade associations requesting that the commission use its industry guides on the use of the term 'cultured' to describe laboratory-created gemstones. The groups that had signed on to the petition included the JVC, American Gem Society, American Gem Trade Association, CIBJO (World Jewellery Confederation), Cultured Pearl Association, Diamond Council of America, Diamond Manufacturers and Importers Association of America, Jewelers of America, Manufacturing Jewelers and Suppliers of America and World Federation of Diamond Bourses.
Useful links:
www.ftc.gov
www.jvclegal.org
www.americangemsociety.org
www.agta.org
www.cibjo.org
www.cpaa.org
www.diamondcouncil.org
www.dmia.net
www.jewelers.org
www.mjsa.org
www.worldfed.com
Useful links:
www.ftc.gov
www.jvclegal.org
www.americangemsociety.org
www.agta.org
www.cibjo.org
www.cpaa.org
www.diamondcouncil.org
www.dmia.net
www.jewelers.org
www.mjsa.org
www.worldfed.com
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
The Best Places For Business
Forbes 2008 survey of the best places for business lists the following countries.
1. Denmark
2. Ireland
3. Finland
4. United States
5. United Kingdom
6. Sweden
7. Canada
8. Singapore
9. Hong Kong
10. Estonia
For the complete list, go to www.forbes.com/bestbizcountries
Little else is requisite to carry a state to the highest degree of opulence from the lowest barbarism but peace, easy taxes, and a tolerable administration of justice: all the rest being brought about by the natural course of things.
- Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations (1776)
1. Denmark
2. Ireland
3. Finland
4. United States
5. United Kingdom
6. Sweden
7. Canada
8. Singapore
9. Hong Kong
10. Estonia
For the complete list, go to www.forbes.com/bestbizcountries
Little else is requisite to carry a state to the highest degree of opulence from the lowest barbarism but peace, easy taxes, and a tolerable administration of justice: all the rest being brought about by the natural course of things.
- Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations (1776)
Beyond Orientalism
The exhibition, Beyond Orientalism, opens on 25 July 2008 - 25 October 2008 at the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia (IAMM) in Kuala Lumpur. The show highlights Islamic calligraphy, tile designs, beautiful geometrical motifs + the art of M.C. Escher + a rare 19th century Koran, made for a Malay sultan with lashings of gold illumination + Chinese calligraphic wall scrolls with Koranic quotations. A must-visit!
Useful link:
www.iamm.org.my
Useful link:
www.iamm.org.my
Andrzej Klimowski + Danusia Schebal
The visual translation of The Master and Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov's masterpiece of Soviet magical realism, by Andrzej Klimowski and Danusia Schebal was brilliant.Useful links:
Random Thoughts
You can know the name of a bird in all the languages of the world, but when you're finished, you'll know absolutely nothing whatever about the bird... So let's look at the bird and see what it's doing -- that's what counts. I learned very early the difference between knowing the name of something and knowing something.
- Richard Feynman
www.feynmanonline.com
- Richard Feynman
www.feynmanonline.com
Two American Music Icons
Two Men With The Blues by Willie Nelson/Wynton Marsalis, two of contemporary American music's greatest icons, is a great album with great music. You will love it.Useful links:
A Green New Deal
According to the New Economics Foundation, a unique new group of specialists in finance, energy and environment, a Green New Deal will deliver a comprehensive solution to the triple crunches of the credit crisis, high energy prices and climate change. In order to achieve positive results many countries will have to learn the art of rapid transition (economic + political + behavioural). The Green New Deal group's inspiration comes from President Roosevelt's response to the 1929 Wall Street financial crash. A Green New Deal Report can be downloaded from the New Economic Foundation's website @ www.neweconomics.org
Monday, July 21, 2008
Geometric Informatics
The video of Radiohead's 'House Of Cards' by director James Frost using 3-D and radar technologies was brilliant. I liked it.Useful links:
www.geometricinformatics.com
www.radiohead.com
I liked the idea of making a video of human beings and real life and time without using any cameras, just lasers, so there are just mathematical points - and how strangely emotional it ended up being.
- Thom Yorke
Jamie Hewlett
Jamie Hewlett is an English comic book artist and designer. He is best known for being the co-creator of the comic strip Tank Girl and co-creator of the band Gorillaz. He is a major creator in the comics industry, and one of the few to break into mainstream media. I am a huge fan of Jamie Hewlett.Useful links:
www.gorillaz.com
www.monkeyjourneytothewest.com
The World's Most Sought-after Champagnes
I found Vidya Ram's article on highest-quality Champagnes @ http://www.forbes.com/lifestyle/2008/07/18/champagne-prices-rising-forbeslife-cx_vr_0718wine.html interesting. I think demand is definitely outstripping supply, really.
Useful links:
www.liv-ex.com
www.wamllp.com
Champagne is what is drunk in the casinos of the world, on the yachts of Russian oligarchs and by footballers' wives, so there is an element of flash money about it.
- Justin Gibbs
Useful links:
www.liv-ex.com
www.wamllp.com
Champagne is what is drunk in the casinos of the world, on the yachts of Russian oligarchs and by footballers' wives, so there is an element of flash money about it.
- Justin Gibbs
An Interesting Gem Dispute
David K Li writes about a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against Harry Winston company + the 733-carat sapphire connection @ http://www.nypost.com/seven/07162008/news/nationalnews/heavyweight_gem_cuffle_120112.htm
The New Museum
The New Museum has announced plans for a triennial exhibition devoted to emerging global artists, slated to open in the spring of 2009. Go to www.newmuseum.org for further information.
Random Thoughts
I like to wait for the noise in the brain to recede and to have a better relation to the unconscious. Anyone who spends time with young people knows that you can’t fake play. There’s real play, and then there’s fake play, and when young people are fake playing you see it immediately. I’m deeply suspicious of the craft in which I have expertise, because I grew up in a dictatorship. Whether it was the shadow of the dictatorship of Trujillo, or was my father who was part of the military apparatus of the dictatorship, I always knew the dangers of authoring, and authority, and storytelling.
- Junot Díaz
www.junotdiaz.com
- Junot Díaz
www.junotdiaz.com
The Vikram Talwar Story
The Vikram Talwar story + the differentiator factor between a good C.E.O. and an average one + other viewpoints @ http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/jobs/20boss.html was insightful and inspiring.
Useful link:
www.exlservice.com
Useful link:
www.exlservice.com
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Green Technology
(via fastcompany) I found the article on Frank Pringle @ Popular Science Best of 2007 Innovators + Best Inventions of the Year intriguing.
Useful link:
www.globalresourcecorp.com
I’ve been told the oil companies might try to assassinate me.
- Frank Pringle
I think Frank Pringle has figured out a way to extract fuel from hydrocarbons by using microwaves. I sincerely hope Frank is legitimate and can deliver on the promises.
Useful link:
www.globalresourcecorp.com
I’ve been told the oil companies might try to assassinate me.
- Frank Pringle
I think Frank Pringle has figured out a way to extract fuel from hydrocarbons by using microwaves. I sincerely hope Frank is legitimate and can deliver on the promises.
Heard On The Street
Most business panics are like summer storms. They come up abruptly, are erratically intense, then suddenly dissipate.
CIBJO Update
The 2009 CIBJO Congress will be held on March 2-5 in Macau, at the Macau Venetian hotel.
Useful links:
www.cibjo.org
www.venetianmacao.com
Useful links:
www.cibjo.org
www.venetianmacao.com
Random Thoughts
When a management with a reputation for brilliance tackles a business with a reputation for bad economics, it is usually the reputation of the business that remains intact.
- Warren Buffett
How true!
- Warren Buffett
How true!
When Markets Collide
When Markets Collide: Investment Strategies for the Age of Global Economic Change by Mohamed El-Erian is an insightful book + he is a doer and a thinker + someone who understands risks. He is one of the world’s most respected financial and economic analysts.Useful link:
www.pimco.com
Ecotourism
What is ecotourism?
The International Ecotourism Society defines ecotourism as responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people.
Useful links:
www.ecotourism.org
www.rainforest-alliance.org
www.sustainabletravelinternational.org
www.tia.org
www.wildland.com
Green travel has gone from a trend to a part of mainstream consumer and corporate culture.
- Brian Mullis, Sustainable Travel International
Enjoy nature + relax.
The International Ecotourism Society defines ecotourism as responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people.
Useful links:
www.ecotourism.org
www.rainforest-alliance.org
www.sustainabletravelinternational.org
www.tia.org
www.wildland.com
Green travel has gone from a trend to a part of mainstream consumer and corporate culture.
- Brian Mullis, Sustainable Travel International
Enjoy nature + relax.
Politicians + Art
Jerry Adler writes about the art of politics + other viewpoints @ http://www.newsweek.com/id/147791
When I get to heaven, I mean to spend a considerable portion of my first million years in painting, and so get to the bottom of the subject.
- Winston Churchill
Useful link:
www.pbs.org
When I get to heaven, I mean to spend a considerable portion of my first million years in painting, and so get to the bottom of the subject.
- Winston Churchill
Useful link:
www.pbs.org
Great Collectors Of Our Time
Great Collectors of our Time: Art Collecting Since 1945 by James Stourton is an interesting book on art collectors. A must-read.Useful link:
www.sothebys.co.uk
Sometimes you have to buy out of the box and pay out of the box. That’s the collector. They are the pilot fish of taste.
- James Stourton
Astonishing Photos
The photographs taken by Hal Brindley of a leopard savaging a crocodile @ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/07/18/ealeopard118.xml was brilliant.
Useful links:
www.halbrindley.com
www.krugerpark.co.za
Useful links:
www.halbrindley.com
www.krugerpark.co.za
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Before The Rains
Before the Rains directed by Santosh Sivan is a romantic drama/tragedy set in the Colonial India of the 1930's. A strong narrative, interesting characters and good acting = Good movie. A must see.
Useful link:
www.beforetherains.net
Useful link:
www.beforetherains.net
Video Games Artwork
Louis Marchesano gives a tour of video games artwork designs @ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7514493.stm
Useful link:
www.getty.edu
Useful link:
www.getty.edu
Sir John Marks Templeton
Sir John Marks Templeton was an American-born British stock investor, businessman and philanthropist. It was very inspiring to read the obituary of Sir John Marks Templeton @ http://www.economist.com/obituary/displayStory.cfmsource=hptextfeature&story_id=11745591, a man with such great a life philosophy, who seemed to live close to God and at the same time a dedicated investor. Congratulations to the Economist.Useful links:
None of us know what’s going to happen after we die, any more than that caterpillar knows.
- Sir John Marks Templeton
Thomas Schütte
Thomas Schütte is an important German contemporary artist + his Model for a Hotel 2007, a sculpture that has occupied the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square since last November is rather interesting. It's made from transparent plates of red, blue and yellow glass stacked like bookshelves. What's intriguing is its simplicity. Great concept.Useful link:
Millimeter Wave Technology
According to TSA (Transport and Security Administration), Millimeter Wave Technology, another form of body-imaging technology, uses non-ionizing electromagnetic waves to generate an image based on the energy reflected from the body. The images generated through millimeter wave are lower-resolution than that of x-ray backscatter, and as a result, privacy may be less of a concern for the traveling public. TSA anticipates that both 'passive' and 'active' millimeter wave technology will be deployed at pilot sites in the near future.
Rafi Gabay, Head of Customs at Israel’s Ben Gurion airport, believes that the ‘Millimeter Waves’ device, manufactured by TSA can be used to detect smuggled diamonds.
Useful links:
www.tsa.gov
www.iaa.gov.il
Rafi Gabay, Head of Customs at Israel’s Ben Gurion airport, believes that the ‘Millimeter Waves’ device, manufactured by TSA can be used to detect smuggled diamonds.
Useful links:
www.tsa.gov
www.iaa.gov.il
Making Diamonds Work For Development
The Madison Dialogue has published a new white paper that looks at the efforts being made to use diamonds for sustainable development. Great work.
Useful links:
www.madisondialogue.org
www.srk.com
www.fataltransactions.org
www.mineralpolicy.org
www.earthworksaction.org
Useful links:
www.madisondialogue.org
www.srk.com
www.fataltransactions.org
www.mineralpolicy.org
www.earthworksaction.org
Heard On The Street
The gem market is filled with individuals who know the price of everything, but the value of nothing.
A Floating Ecopolis
Vincent Callebaut's designs are phenomenal, a completely self-sufficient floating city intended to provide shelter for future climate change refugees. A unique biomimicry. What a great concept! I hope Callebaut's designs will inspire creative solutions to climate change problems.Useful link:
Random Thoughts
If you don’t fully understand an instrument, don’t buy it. If you would not buy a specific product for yourself, don’t try to sell it. If you do not know your customers very well, don’t lend them any money. If you do these 3 things you will be a better banker, my son.
- Sñr Emilio Botín
Chairman, Banco Santander
www.santander.com
How true!
- Sñr Emilio Botín
Chairman, Banco Santander
www.santander.com
How true!
The Official Filthy Rich Handbook
The Official Filthy Rich Handbook by Christopher Tennant is a great book about the über rich + it's informative and witty. I liked it.Useful link:
Friday, July 18, 2008
Random Thoughts
The four most expensive words in the English language are, 'This time it's different.'
- Sir John Tempelton
How true!
- Sir John Tempelton
How true!
Lang Lang
Chinese pianist Lang Lang, at age 26, is one of the most visible, in-demand classical musicians in the world today + his story, published in the new autobiography, Journey of a Thousand Miles, is an interesting book.Go to www.langlang.com for further information.
The Gore Energy Speech
Andrew Revkin writes about former Vice President Al Gore's energy speech in Washington + other viewpoints @ http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/the-annotated-gore-climate-speech
Useful link:
www.algore.com
Great idea. I think a combination of wind, solar, and geothermal + right policies and attitudes among industry experts may provide changes to our energy infrastructure, but we'll need more time. A 10-year transformation is hard to come by, really.
Useful link:
www.algore.com
Great idea. I think a combination of wind, solar, and geothermal + right policies and attitudes among industry experts may provide changes to our energy infrastructure, but we'll need more time. A 10-year transformation is hard to come by, really.
Up-And-Coming Travel Destinations
I found the list of up-and-comers with the fastest growing travel and tourism earnings via World Travel & Tourism Council interesting. They are:
- Macau
- Angola
- Montenegro
- Seychelles
- Libya
- China
- Azerbaijan
- Romania
- United Arab Emirates
- Chile
- Macau
- Angola
- Montenegro
- Seychelles
- Libya
- China
- Azerbaijan
- Romania
- United Arab Emirates
- Chile
The Green Bible
The Green Bible by Harper Bibles is interesting. Here is the description from Harper:The Green Bible will equip and encourage people to see God's vision for creation and help them engage in the work of healing and sustaining it. With over 1,000 references to the earth in the Bible, compared to 490 references to heaven and 530 references to love, the Bible carries a powerful message for the earth. This Green-Letter edition of the Bible will highlight scriptures in green ink that teach about God's care for creation and how God interacts with creation, in an effort to bring greater awareness to how this message is woven throughout the Old and New Testaments. Essays from leading conservationists and theologians on how to read the Bible through a "green lens" as well as a green topical index and Green Bible trail guide for personal study will be paired with teachings throughout the ages to show people how caring for God's creation is not only a calling, but a lifestyle.
Go to The Good Book Business for a different perspective.
The World's Best-Loved Statesman
The Mandela Story @ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/7500615.stm as he turns 90, was brilliant.Useful link:
Heard On The Street
Mistakes of judgment are the toughest to learn from, because each one is different.
Future Headline: ‘DTC Sightholder Jailed For Attending Sight’
Chaim Even Zohar writes about the current impasse in South Africa + foreign diamond traders dilema + the licensing mess + other viewpoints @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullEditorial.asp
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Random Thoughts
The primary type of mistake we make – and everyone makes – is when something changes that we didn’t see coming.
- John Osterweis
www.osterweis.com
- John Osterweis
www.osterweis.com
Heard On The Street
A common expression we use around here is the Chinese one, 'to have known and not to have acted, is not to have known.'
Real-World Lessons
Students from West Hawaii Explorations Academy build electric cars from start to finish and, in the process, learn how to practically apply what they learn to everyday life. Go to http://www.edutopia.org/race-knowledge for further information.
Kirkland Uncorked
Kirkland Uncorked: A Festival of Style and Taste is a grand celebration showcasing Washington’s finest wines, gourmet foods, engaging art and the best the Northwest has to offer in jazz and classical music—all in one elegant and entertaining weekend on the shores of Lake Washington.
Go to www.kirklanduncorked.com for further information. A must-visit!
Go to www.kirklanduncorked.com for further information. A must-visit!
Billy Joel
Billy Joel is an American pianist and singer-songwriter. Joel's music reflects influences from many different genres + these various influences have in part led to his broad success over a long period of time. I am a huge Billy Joel fan. Go to www.billyjoel.com for further information.
Consumer Mistrust In The Jewelry Industry
(via gem market news, july/august 2008, issue 4) Stuart Robertson writes:
Recently, De Beers released the results of a survey they did regarding the trust factor that consumers have with jewelers. The results are staggering. Consumers had multiple choice answers and only 5% of all respondents said they trusted jewelers a lot. More than half of all respondents said they 'actively mistrust' or 'mistrust jewelers a lot.' De Beers stated that as an industry, we must do better (note that one could speculate that De Beers released this information in an attempt to eventually lead consumers to the De Beers diamond brand as a name consumers can trust). These results might have been about diamonds, but the same would probably hold true if the questions were posed regarding color.
For more than 25 years that I have been in the jewelry business, I have been talking about the lack of disclosures in the industry. Twenty five years later, it is marginally better. On the wholesale end, it has improved due to efforts of organizations such the American Gem Trade Association. The AGTA requires members to disclose treatments of gems. However, on the retail level, other than some brave stores that have implemented full disclosure policies, it is still greatly lacking. As independent appraisers, we continue to successfully educate consumers regarding treatments with only minimal problems from the consumer learning this information. If anything, their problem is that they were not told of the treatment. How do retailers expect to gain consumer trust if they knowingly hide information relevant to the sale of the gem? Retailers are so fearful of losing out a sale, some will seem to do anything or say anything to make that sale.
How true! What's the gem and jewelry industry's trust quotient? I think the gem and jewelry sector (North America + Asia + other emerging markets) have a long way to go to prove that they can be 'trust-builders' not 'trust busters'.
Recently, De Beers released the results of a survey they did regarding the trust factor that consumers have with jewelers. The results are staggering. Consumers had multiple choice answers and only 5% of all respondents said they trusted jewelers a lot. More than half of all respondents said they 'actively mistrust' or 'mistrust jewelers a lot.' De Beers stated that as an industry, we must do better (note that one could speculate that De Beers released this information in an attempt to eventually lead consumers to the De Beers diamond brand as a name consumers can trust). These results might have been about diamonds, but the same would probably hold true if the questions were posed regarding color.
For more than 25 years that I have been in the jewelry business, I have been talking about the lack of disclosures in the industry. Twenty five years later, it is marginally better. On the wholesale end, it has improved due to efforts of organizations such the American Gem Trade Association. The AGTA requires members to disclose treatments of gems. However, on the retail level, other than some brave stores that have implemented full disclosure policies, it is still greatly lacking. As independent appraisers, we continue to successfully educate consumers regarding treatments with only minimal problems from the consumer learning this information. If anything, their problem is that they were not told of the treatment. How do retailers expect to gain consumer trust if they knowingly hide information relevant to the sale of the gem? Retailers are so fearful of losing out a sale, some will seem to do anything or say anything to make that sale.
How true! What's the gem and jewelry industry's trust quotient? I think the gem and jewelry sector (North America + Asia + other emerging markets) have a long way to go to prove that they can be 'trust-builders' not 'trust busters'.
Economic Growth + Attitude
Meinhard Miegel, director of the Bonn-based think tank Denkwerk Zukunft, analyzing a mass of survey data finds that while two thirds of Germans favor economic growth in principle, only about a sixth of them are willing to work for it. The rest value leisure, safety and early retirement over work and achievement. Given these attitudes the popular idea that a low-birthrate country like Germany can grow its way out of the rising costs associated with an aging population 'is reckless and built on sand.' Go to http://www.newsweek.com/id/145810 for further information.
Useful links:
www.iwg-bonn.de
www.monitor.com
www.eur.nl
How true!
Useful links:
www.iwg-bonn.de
www.monitor.com
www.eur.nl
How true!
Floating Windmills
I found the article on floating windmills and the technology @ http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/jul/16/windpower.renewableenergy interesting and insightful + Blue H's film of the prototype turbine platform launch here + a consortium called Windsea + Statoil project called Hywind
Useful links:
www.bluehgroup.com
www.statoilhydro.com
www.statkraft.com
http://sway.no
Great ideas + innovate approaches.
Useful links:
www.bluehgroup.com
www.statoilhydro.com
www.statkraft.com
http://sway.no
Great ideas + innovate approaches.
True Or False
True of False. The Internet is the New Sweatshop.
Answer: True
http://www.newsweek.com/id/143740
I couldn't agree more.
Answer: True
http://www.newsweek.com/id/143740
I couldn't agree more.
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