Class of ’04
“People who have so much of their personality invested in the Internet can’t really survive as whole individuals without it.” Mark A.Rayner – The Fridgularity Good technology is assimilated effortlessly into our daily tasks. This is why automobile turn signals are always controlled by a lever mounted on the steering column, and never by a […]
Zipperbot
Marvel Comics currently has 10 characters with names beginning in “Z”, but Zipperbot is not one of them. The ability to automatically unzip might pass for a super-power in some settings but that was not what the team at MIT had in mind. In a world where robots can put out fires, respond to disasters, […]
What People Think of You
“People who say they don’t care what people think are usually desperate to have people think they don’t care what people think.” – George Carlin In the business world, just like in the real world, people are your number one resource. Changing “Personnel Department” to “Human Resources” wasn’t just a cheap re-branding ploy; it really […]
Buzz-Kill Tech
For those who are not up to speed on the latest jargon, here is a working definition of “buzz-kill.” The “buzz” – You meet an attractive woman in a bar. You buy her a beer. When you smile and clink bottles, they light up and begin flashing in synch to the music. She laughs in […]
Finding That Special Someone
The phrase “Meeting someone the old-fashioned way” used to refer to starting a relationship at work, school, church or some other group gathering. These days, the “old-fashioned way” is probably Match.com, which has been around now since 1995. Over that 20 year period, there have been plenty of variations, many offering specialty meet-ups based on […]
The Adrenaline Junkie App
One of the coolest things to have (if we limit the discussion to inanimate things) would be the latest smartphone. One of the worst things to have is the anxiety that floods in when you drop that smartphone. As any good product engineer knows, there are two ways of dealing with a problem – fix […]
If Only I Knew Me Better
If a question comes up that no one can answer, the present-day solution is “Google It.” Back around 600 B.C., inquiring minds turned to the Seven Sages of Greece who were widely known for their “pithy and memorable dicta.” Sample dicta from the Seven include the memorable “Nothing in excess”, “Too many workers spoil the […]
Technology is Probably a Good Thing
While most of us struggle to come up with a crisp definition of technology, we somehow agree that it is a good thing. After all, what would life be like without light bulbs, refrigerators or antibiotics? Surveys tell us that twice as many Americans think that technology will make our lives better than think it […]
Merry Xmas
I sometimes wonder why you never see “Happy Xgiving” in November. The words “Thanks” and “Christ” have the same number of letters, so it probably doesn’t have anything to do with saving space or just being lazy. It is quite possible that the “Xgiving” advocates saw how much trouble “Xmas” caused, and decided to opt […]
The Coping Point
Once upon a time, as I waited my turn for some minor surgery (major for me, minor for everyone else), my doctor stopped by the gurney and asked how I was doing. “Fine”, I lied, and then added “More importantly, how are YOU doing?” His simple reply -“Balanced.” Hospitals have really good drugs, and the […]
