Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?
My friends: Alistair Croll (Solve for Interesting, Tilt the Windmill, HBS, chair of Strata, Startupfest, Pandemonio, and ResolveTO, Author of Lean Analytics and some other books), Hugh McGuire (PressBooks, LibriVox, iambik and co-author of Book: A Futurist’s Manifesto) and I decided that every week the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person “must see”.
Check out these six links that we’re recommending to one another:
- OLPC’s $100 Laptop Was Going To Change The World – Then It All Went Wrong – The Verge. “I owned a One Laptop Per Child. They had a program in which you bought one, and one went to Haiti. The device was revolutionary, with a completely new OS. It was also sort of useless. But the ideas and idealism ran into hurdles: Moore’s Law; hubris; warring factions; and the challenges of making tech catch hold at scale. This is a great, and cautionary, tale for anyone who still believes ‘if you build it, they will come.'” (Alistair for Hugh).
- It’s Time to Forgive Eminem – Noisey – Vice. “This was a fascinating piece on how much culture has changed, from the point of view of someone who was shocking at the start, and seems tame by modern standards. I remember the shock and kerfuffle around South Park when it first came out; now, it’s a sitcom. So how has Eminem faced up to time?” (Alistair for Mitch).
- Goldman Sachs report: “Is curing patients a sustainable business model?” – BoingBoing. “Question: What happens if the biotech/genetics industry develops cheap, one-shot cures for chronic diseases? Answer: collapsing business models/revenue streams. (According to investment bank, Goldman Sachs, anyway).” (Hugh for Alistair).
- Brain Break: Watch This 12-Year-Old Boy Solve 3 Rubik’s Cubes While Juggling Them – Entrepreneur. “There are so many edits in this video, and the idea is so crazy, that I call bullshit on it, but, amazing, if true.” (Hugh for Mitch).
- The Comedian Who Bought the Weather Channel – The Wall Street Journal. “Are you old enough to remember the smash TV show, Real People (late seventies/early eighties). One of the stars was Byron Allen. A standup comedian. He went on to do other things in television and comedy. For a while. I read this article and had one thought (not true… two thoughts). 1. I had not heard his name in forever. 2. Wow, I had no idea how successful he had become behind the scenes. What an amazing story. $300 million for The Weather Channel… and so much more. An amazing inspiration!” (Mitch for Alistair).
- Technical Experts Need to Get Better at Telling Stories – Harvard Business Review. “Jargon. Uch. I hate jargon. We all know how important storytelling is. This piece has a nice (and nuanced) spin to the tried and true ideology that every brand should tell a story. Curious to know what you think: Can/should PhDs write about the brand’s story?” (Mitch for Hugh).
Feel free to share these links and add your picks on Twitter
