(via The Canadian Gemmologist, Vol.III, No.3, Spring, 1982) I am a calcium aluminum silicate, crystallizing in the tetragonal system, and occurring in various colors. I am most often seen in a massive form, sometimes masquerading as a much more expensive green gemstone. They give me quite a variety of names, and one of them sounds like a famous volcano. What am I?
Answer: Vesuvianite (Idocrase)
Monday, August 13, 2007
The New Wave Of Silicon Valley Start-ups
New Business Model (s): Spencer Kelly writes about Silcon Valley's new breed of entrepreneurs + modified mash-ups with interactive content (s) + green innovations + other viewpoints @ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/click_online/6929569.stm
Capitalism At The Crossroads
Good Books: (via Emergic) Stuart Hart's book, Capitalism at the Crossroads: The Unlimited Business Opportunities in Solving the World's Most Difficult Problems highlights the nature of challenges for multinational companies + development of native capabilities + the concept of leadership genius to innovation + its results. An interesting book.
Stuart Hart writes in the prologue:
In a single lifetime, the human population will have grown from two billion to eight billion. This growth is truly unprecedented. Never before in human history has a single generation witnessed such explosive change. It seems self-evident, therefore, that the policies we adopt, the decisions we make, and the strategies we pursue over the next decade will determine the future of our species and the trajectory of our planet for the foreseeable future. That is an awesome responsibility, to say the least. It is also a huge opportunity.
One of the chapters has a discussion on HLL:
Unilever's Indian subsidiary, Hindustan Lever Limited (HLL), provides an interesting glimpse of the development of native capabilities in its efforts to pioneer new markets among the rural poor. HLL requires all employees in India to spend six weeks living in rural villages, actively seeks local consumer insights and preferences as it develops new products, and sources raw materials almost exclusively from local producers. The company also created an R&D center in rural India focused specifically on technology and product development to serve the needs of the poor. HLL uses a wide variety of local partners to distribute its products and also supports the efforts of these partners to build local capabilities. In addition, HLL provides opportunities and training to local entrepreneurs and actively experiments with new types of distribution, such as selling via local product demonstrations and village street theaters.
By developing local understanding, building local capacity, and encouraging a creative and flexible market entry process, HLL has been able to generate substantial revenues and profits from operating in low-income markets. Today more than half of HLL's revenues come from customers at the base of the economic pyramid. Using the approach to product development, marketing, and distribution pioneered in rural India, Unilever has also been able to leverage a rapidly growing and profitable business focused on low-income markets in other parts of the developing world. Even more important, through its new strategy, HLL has created tens of thousands of jobs, improved hygiene and quality of life, and become an accepted partner in development among the poor themselves.
Stuart Hart writes in the prologue:
In a single lifetime, the human population will have grown from two billion to eight billion. This growth is truly unprecedented. Never before in human history has a single generation witnessed such explosive change. It seems self-evident, therefore, that the policies we adopt, the decisions we make, and the strategies we pursue over the next decade will determine the future of our species and the trajectory of our planet for the foreseeable future. That is an awesome responsibility, to say the least. It is also a huge opportunity.
One of the chapters has a discussion on HLL:
Unilever's Indian subsidiary, Hindustan Lever Limited (HLL), provides an interesting glimpse of the development of native capabilities in its efforts to pioneer new markets among the rural poor. HLL requires all employees in India to spend six weeks living in rural villages, actively seeks local consumer insights and preferences as it develops new products, and sources raw materials almost exclusively from local producers. The company also created an R&D center in rural India focused specifically on technology and product development to serve the needs of the poor. HLL uses a wide variety of local partners to distribute its products and also supports the efforts of these partners to build local capabilities. In addition, HLL provides opportunities and training to local entrepreneurs and actively experiments with new types of distribution, such as selling via local product demonstrations and village street theaters.
By developing local understanding, building local capacity, and encouraging a creative and flexible market entry process, HLL has been able to generate substantial revenues and profits from operating in low-income markets. Today more than half of HLL's revenues come from customers at the base of the economic pyramid. Using the approach to product development, marketing, and distribution pioneered in rural India, Unilever has also been able to leverage a rapidly growing and profitable business focused on low-income markets in other parts of the developing world. Even more important, through its new strategy, HLL has created tens of thousands of jobs, improved hygiene and quality of life, and become an accepted partner in development among the poor themselves.
And Now Lot 403: The Old Master Worth £5m. Do I hear £300?
Charlotte Higgins writes about an 18th-century continental school, half-length portrait of an aesthete + the bidding war + the painting's quality + the game of authentification + the intrigue + other viewpoints @ http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/news/story/0,,2128906,00.html
When I read the story it reminded me of high profile stones like diamond, ruby, blue sapphire, emerald with origin report at auction houses + the endless game of hide and seek with prices by the real players + the knowledgeable, ignorant or just plain lucky buyers and sellers + the real drama. It's a theatrical experience watching the bidders at an auction event: a real movie.
When I read the story it reminded me of high profile stones like diamond, ruby, blue sapphire, emerald with origin report at auction houses + the endless game of hide and seek with prices by the real players + the knowledgeable, ignorant or just plain lucky buyers and sellers + the real drama. It's a theatrical experience watching the bidders at an auction event: a real movie.
Thy Neighbor's Laundry
Chaim Even-Zohar writes about two countries: Belgium and Netherlands + Utrecht School of Economics report on money laundering + other viewpoints @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullEditorial.asp?TextSearch=&KeyMatch=0&id=25323
On Getting Up Early In The Morning
2007: This is a fascinating story about Harry Winston + his personal operating system. You’ve got to keep your eyes and ears open in gem identification + business. There are many lessons one can learn from the real events.
(via The Australian Gemmologist, Vol.11, No.10, Serial No.97, May 1973): A N Wilson’s interview with the famous dealer and gem personality, Harry Winston.
Harry Winston is sitting at his desk, loupe in his fingers. He is musing aloud: ‘You know, there’s always a client for something big or wonderful in the way of diamonds. I told you last year about Ibn Saud but there was something more I didn’t tell you then. I was in Geneva and Ibn Saud was on holiday somewhere in the vicinity. He called at my office and I did some very good business with him—something like $3,000,000 worth of diamond and other jewelry. I delivered all the jewelry to his residence myself and was waiting there for his cheque when one of his aides came to me and said the King had just asked whether I happened to have any diamond bracelets available at my office in Geneva. If so, he’d be interested in having half a dozen. I replied that I thought I could help in this direction. The aide then said the King was flying off at eight o’clock the following morning and the bracelets would have to be delivered to him before then. I telephoned my office and told them what was afoot and asked them to set out whatever they had in the way of diamond bracelets. I motored back to my office. There I found the office staff had dutifully put out five or six diamond bracelets selected from those that were available.
‘I called the staff to my office and said: ‘Have you no imagination?’ I had the whole range of diamond bracelets available set out and then had then carefully parceled and ready for display at the King’s residence. The staff then asked me about delivery. ‘You are surely not going to get up at four or five in the morning to take them out yourself?’ they said. I said to them: ‘Look, boys, I’m going myself with these fifty five bracelets. That’s the way to conduct business.’
‘So I got up that morning and took the bracelets with me to the King’s residence. When I arrived the aide told me the King was getting dressed, but would look at the bracelets over breakfast and make his choice. A little later the aide came down to tell me that the King would buy the lot at a price. The price was arranged. The King went off in his aircraft and I went back to my office. The staff was stunned when, the following day, a message came through from Ibn Saud saying that he now found he was short of 25 bracelets and asking me to send him these. Can you blame me if I read a little homily to my staff about how, be getting up early in the morning, you can convert a sale of six bracelets into eighty? A good lesson for any young person in the diamond business!’
Harry Winston chuckled as he remembered another story. ‘You’ve got to keep your eyes open at this business,’ he said. ‘One day a bank director called me up to say that a very distinguished and important client had a collection of jewels he wanted to sell. Would I do him as well as possible? Well the distinguished bank client duly arrived and he spread his collection of diamonds on the table. I looked at them very briefly and said abruptly. ‘Take them away, please!’ I had seen immediately that most of the diamonds were paste but I was not prepared to tell him so. ‘No, I’m not interested,’ I said, “I can’t give you a valuation. I can’t give you a price. I think you ought to go elsewhere.’ He gathered up his pieces in frustration and anger and said he would, indeed, go elsewhere. He said harshly that I had not even looked at them: that here was an emerald worth at least 150,000 dollars on its own and there was a beautiful pearl necklace. I insisted that I was not interested. He went away. Some time later he came back to see me. ‘I’ve come to apologize,’ he said, ‘because it now turns out that my wife must have had maids who took advantage of our traveling all over the place from time to time and they substituted imitations for the real things. We’ve been robbed. I’m sorry that it would appear on the face of it that I tried to defraud you.’
‘Of course, that was not true at all. What was true was that his wife had a very expensive boy friend. My visitor’s special anxiety was that I should not report what had happened to his bank director. I assured him I did not discuss business affairs with anybody else. As those who were then concerned are now all dead, I am at liberty to tell this sad little story.’
(via The Australian Gemmologist, Vol.11, No.10, Serial No.97, May 1973): A N Wilson’s interview with the famous dealer and gem personality, Harry Winston.
Harry Winston is sitting at his desk, loupe in his fingers. He is musing aloud: ‘You know, there’s always a client for something big or wonderful in the way of diamonds. I told you last year about Ibn Saud but there was something more I didn’t tell you then. I was in Geneva and Ibn Saud was on holiday somewhere in the vicinity. He called at my office and I did some very good business with him—something like $3,000,000 worth of diamond and other jewelry. I delivered all the jewelry to his residence myself and was waiting there for his cheque when one of his aides came to me and said the King had just asked whether I happened to have any diamond bracelets available at my office in Geneva. If so, he’d be interested in having half a dozen. I replied that I thought I could help in this direction. The aide then said the King was flying off at eight o’clock the following morning and the bracelets would have to be delivered to him before then. I telephoned my office and told them what was afoot and asked them to set out whatever they had in the way of diamond bracelets. I motored back to my office. There I found the office staff had dutifully put out five or six diamond bracelets selected from those that were available.
‘I called the staff to my office and said: ‘Have you no imagination?’ I had the whole range of diamond bracelets available set out and then had then carefully parceled and ready for display at the King’s residence. The staff then asked me about delivery. ‘You are surely not going to get up at four or five in the morning to take them out yourself?’ they said. I said to them: ‘Look, boys, I’m going myself with these fifty five bracelets. That’s the way to conduct business.’
‘So I got up that morning and took the bracelets with me to the King’s residence. When I arrived the aide told me the King was getting dressed, but would look at the bracelets over breakfast and make his choice. A little later the aide came down to tell me that the King would buy the lot at a price. The price was arranged. The King went off in his aircraft and I went back to my office. The staff was stunned when, the following day, a message came through from Ibn Saud saying that he now found he was short of 25 bracelets and asking me to send him these. Can you blame me if I read a little homily to my staff about how, be getting up early in the morning, you can convert a sale of six bracelets into eighty? A good lesson for any young person in the diamond business!’
Harry Winston chuckled as he remembered another story. ‘You’ve got to keep your eyes open at this business,’ he said. ‘One day a bank director called me up to say that a very distinguished and important client had a collection of jewels he wanted to sell. Would I do him as well as possible? Well the distinguished bank client duly arrived and he spread his collection of diamonds on the table. I looked at them very briefly and said abruptly. ‘Take them away, please!’ I had seen immediately that most of the diamonds were paste but I was not prepared to tell him so. ‘No, I’m not interested,’ I said, “I can’t give you a valuation. I can’t give you a price. I think you ought to go elsewhere.’ He gathered up his pieces in frustration and anger and said he would, indeed, go elsewhere. He said harshly that I had not even looked at them: that here was an emerald worth at least 150,000 dollars on its own and there was a beautiful pearl necklace. I insisted that I was not interested. He went away. Some time later he came back to see me. ‘I’ve come to apologize,’ he said, ‘because it now turns out that my wife must have had maids who took advantage of our traveling all over the place from time to time and they substituted imitations for the real things. We’ve been robbed. I’m sorry that it would appear on the face of it that I tried to defraud you.’
‘Of course, that was not true at all. What was true was that his wife had a very expensive boy friend. My visitor’s special anxiety was that I should not report what had happened to his bank director. I assured him I did not discuss business affairs with anybody else. As those who were then concerned are now all dead, I am at liberty to tell this sad little story.’
Tremolite
Chemistry: Calcium magnesium silicate
Crystal system: Monoclinic; in compact mass as nephrite; long bladed crystals; fibrous aggregates often radiated; twinning common.
Color: Transparent to opaque; hexagonite: rare pink variety (Mg); phenomenon: greenish chatoyancy: tremolite cat’s eye.
Hardness: 6.5 - 6
Cleavage: Good: in 2 directions; fracture: brittle, uneven.
Specific gravity: 2.976; 2.98
Refractive index: 1.62 mean; 1.60 – 1.63; 0.027.
Luster: Vitreous.
Dispersion:-
Dichroism: -
Occurrence: In metamorphosed dolomites or ultrabasic rocks; Burma, Taiwan, Canada, USA.
Notes
An end member in the tremolite-actinolite series of the amphibole group; transparent specimens faceted; translucent to opaque specimens carved or cut cabochon.
Crystal system: Monoclinic; in compact mass as nephrite; long bladed crystals; fibrous aggregates often radiated; twinning common.
Color: Transparent to opaque; hexagonite: rare pink variety (Mg); phenomenon: greenish chatoyancy: tremolite cat’s eye.
Hardness: 6.5 - 6
Cleavage: Good: in 2 directions; fracture: brittle, uneven.
Specific gravity: 2.976; 2.98
Refractive index: 1.62 mean; 1.60 – 1.63; 0.027.
Luster: Vitreous.
Dispersion:-
Dichroism: -
Occurrence: In metamorphosed dolomites or ultrabasic rocks; Burma, Taiwan, Canada, USA.
Notes
An end member in the tremolite-actinolite series of the amphibole group; transparent specimens faceted; translucent to opaque specimens carved or cut cabochon.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
From Russia With Love
Idexonline profiles Russia, the world’s second largest producer of rough diamonds + the expansion and development of domestic cutting and polishing operations + the export markets + the domestic jewelry industry + other viewpoints @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullMazalUbracha.asp?id=27889
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