JVC + Green Pack

The Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC) is going green + the JVC's Green Pack includes an informational CD, templates, forms, an AML DVD to help jewelers train their employees on the requirements of the law, new guidance for the industry and a storage binder.

Useful link:
www.jvclegal.org

Václav Havel

(via Wiki) Václav Havel is a Czech writer and dramatist. He was the tenth and last President of Czechoslovakia (1989-1992) and the first President of the Czech Republic (1993-2003). He has written over twenty plays and numerous non-fiction works, some of which have received international acclaim. He has received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Philadelphia Liberty Medal, and the Ambassador of Conscience Award.

Useful link:
www.vaclavhavel.cz

I am huge fan of Václav Havel.

Planet Green

Planet Green's 24-hour eco-lifestyle television network with online and on-air presence represents a broad range of ideas and perspectives. I think the solutions-oriented tips and information are practical and inspiring. Let's go green!

Useful links:
http://planetgreen.discovery.com
www.planetgreengame.com

Film School

Here is what San Francisco's Film School site has to say about filmmaking:
'At the San Francisco School of Digital Filmmaking the film set is your classroom – whether you’re directing your own film, writing your first screenplay, or working with professionals on a feature. For aspiring filmmakers, screenwriters or film actors, our film school gives you the three most valuable tools you need to start your career - a reel of your own work, credits on student and professional projects, and contacts in the industry. Our film school curriculum is entirely project-based, allowing you to develop your skills hands-on while bringing your creative ideas to life. SFSDF has a powerfully simple philosophy 'the best way to learn the craft of filmmaking is to make films!' At our film school, students produce hundreds of films every year.'

Useful link:
www.sfdigifilm.com

Faith + Globalisation

I think the links between the religious, economic and political forces shaping our world are either translucent to opaque or too rarely explored or explained. I hope The Tony Blair Faith Foundation will put this right. Good luck!

Useful link:
http://tonyblairfaithfoundation.org

Blue Print

Sylvia Hochfield writes about the disputed fingerprint on Jackson Pollock's paint can + other viewpoints @ http://www.artnewsonline.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=2504&current=True

Useful links:
www.jacksonpollock.org
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackson_Pollock
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0487092
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_the_Fuck_Is_Jackson_Pollock%3F

Selling works of art with ambiguous or questionable authenticity requires special skills. I encounter the same problems in the gem and jewelry industry. Catch me if you can!

Random Thoughts

Sushil Kedia writes: My father handed over the wealth of his knowledge from a lifetime of speculating the night before I was leaving home and starting a career in the markets of Mumbai:
1) Sleep well and enough and at regular hours. Deprived sleep doesn't get compensated by catching up.
2) Eat well and at regular hours. An upset stomach makes the mind waver. Drink lots of water.
3) Speak only when necessary. Never loudly.
4) Listen.
5) Gather facts, steer clear of opinions.
6) Stay away from losses. Money will come from chance.
7) Don't trust anyone completely. But trust.
8) Write your books of accounts everyday.
9) Adjust sleep if any of these don't work well.

Brilliant!

Humanitarian Engineering

Amy Smith talks with Rebecca Mead about applying new technology in the developing world @
http://www.newyorker.com/online/video/conference/2008/smith which I thought was innovative and brilliant.

Useful link:
http://web.mit.edu/d-lab

World Science Festival

I found Wired's article on World Science Festival educational and insightful + what's intriguing was a model city now under construction in Dongtan, China (Wired's profile of the city at Dongtan here). Brilliant! http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/05/five-people-who.html

Useful links:
www.worldsciencefestival.com
www.arup.com
www.verticalfarm.com
www.ssbx.org
http://transstudio.com
http://cities.media.mit.edu
http://www.archinode.com/peristalcity.html
http://www.archinode.com/bienal.html

I hope there were more sustainable cities worldwide.

Working Longer

Working Longer: The Solution to the Retirement Income Challenge by Alicia H. Munnell and Steven A. Sass is an interesting book on retirement issues and how to stay well-off after retirement.

Useful links:
www.brookings.edu
http://crr.bc.edu

I think much depends on individual's attitude (hard work + updating skills = productive).

An Inconvenient Truth Opera

The legendary La Scala opera house in Milan has commissioned a full-length work to be based on Al Gore's book, An Inconvenient Truth, and the Oscar-winning documentary of the same title, by Italian composer Giorgio Battistelli, to be staged in 2011.

Useful links:
www.teatroallascala.org
www.climatecrisis.net

I think Al Gore is a winner and may feel humbled by the latest distinction.

William Scott

Economist writes about William Scott's art works + other viewpoints @ http://www.economist.com/daily/columns/artview/displayStory.cfm?story_id=11478453

Useful link:
www.williamscott.org

Don't be an art critic. Paint. There lies salvation.
- Paul Cézanne

I liked it.

The Nature Of Diamonds

The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) will be presenting 'The Nature of Diamonds', the most wide-ranging exhibition ever developed on the allure of diamonds. From Saturday, October 25, 2008 until Sunday, March 22, 2009, visitors to the ROM’s Garfield Weston Exhibition Hall on level B2 in the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal will be dazzled by the exhibition’s spectacular jewellery and stunning gemstones.

Useful links:
www.rom.on.ca
www.amnh.org
www.hmns.org

A must-visit.

Art In Moscow

Sonia Kishkovsky writes about Moscow's new trend: art-related parties + pre-auction previews (by big auction houses) for the Moscow’s elite + other viewpoints @
http://blogs.iht.com/tribtalk/travel/globespotters/?p=426

Useful links:
www.moscow-faf.com
www.aidan-gallery
www.janekahan.com
www.rusmuseum.ru
www.sothebys.com
www.christies.com

Ockham's Razor

Ockham's Razor is the principle proposed by William of Ockham in the fourteenth century: 'Pluralitas non est ponenda sine neccesitate', which translates as 'entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily' or 'keep it simple'.

He was spot on.

Great Wines From Argentina

Robert Parker is the world's most influential wine critic. He writes about malbecs @ http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/may2008/bw20080529_268512.htm

Useful link:
www.eRobertParker.com

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