Greg Mortenson Project

Education is the real long-term fix for everything in life. I think Greg Mortenson has done a terrific job in South Asia to promote community-based education and literacy programs, especially for girls, in remote mountain regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. http://www.gregmortenson.com

Center For Cartoon Studies

Get a feel for making comics @ http://www.cartoonstudies.org

Europe Without Hotels

Benji Lanyado's report in the New York Times about the new social B&B networks was interesting. I wish India had a similar B&B network, really. Many thanks.

Useful links:
http://www.couchsurfing.org
http://www.crashpadder.com
http://www.istopover.com
http://www.airbnb.com

Inception

Inception is a contemporary sci-fi movie set within the architecture of the mind. Dense. Intense. Beautiful. Totally immersive cinematic experience. Don't miss. http://inceptionmovie.warnerbros.com

TEDWomen

Upcoming TEDWomen conference.http://conferences.ted.com/TEDWomen

Random Thoughts

It’s very possible we will be more continuously connected. Even today, people have Bluetooth things hanging in their ears. There’s no reason they won’t have a video camera located in a buttonhole, maybe even a video projector. And there’ll be no need to carry a laptop or [computer] notebook, because any flat surface with reasonable visibility could become a display. Virtually any appliance is going to be online. Appliances will talk to each other and to the power-generation system. Our appliances will pay attention to our preferences. One of the real hard questions is, how will we keep up with all [the new applications]? Maybe our [computer] systems will be more aware of what our daily lives are like, what things we want to accomplish in the course of a day, and if that could be built into the software, maybe some of this stuff won’t even require our explicit interaction.

- Vinton Cerf
http://www.google.com

I hope the Internet will emerge as a new tool for education.

The Enough Project Report

Conflict Minerals Legislation. http://www.enoughproject.org

Art Market Update

Souren Melikian's report. In the new era of artistic drought, those who hold the goods will ultimately win the contest. But this does not necessarily mean that life is easier for dealers. It sometimes takes weeks, even months, for transactions to be concluded. Collectors love buying from galleries precisely because they can take all the time they need to finalize a decision. As a direct result of the drying up of supplies, another problem for dealers is the relentless rise of art prices — they invest their own money, unlike auction houses, which levy a percentage on sales. For them, the financial risk inherent in each acquisition steadily increases. Even the most powerful galleries feel the need to join forces. Spot on.

Useful links:
http://www.christies.com
http://www.sothebys.com
http://www.richard-green.com