• WOWOW: Cognition Nutrition

    edited by Alexander Becker

    Food for thought, very elaborate, circular visualizations, cable ties and ghost towns, Knol and as always, ... things to do before you die.

    • Cognition Nutrition --

      Children have a lot to contend with these days, not least a tendency for their pushy parents to force-feed them omega-3 oils at every opportunity. These are supposed to make children brainier, so they are being added to everything from bread, milk and pasta to baby formula and vitamin tablets. But omega-3 is just the tip of the nutritional iceberg; many nutrients have proven cognitive effects, and do so throughout a person's life, not merely when he is a child.

    • Circos: Visualizing the genome, among other things --

      Circos uses a circular composition of ideograms to mitigate the fact that some data, like combinations of intra- and inter-chromosomal relationships (alignments, duplications, assembly paired-ends, etc) are very difficult to organize when the underlying ideograms (or contigs) are arranged as lines. In many cases, it is impossible to keep the relationship lines from crossing other structures and this deteriorates the effectiveness of the graphic.

    • Art Students Build Massive Environment Using Only Cable Ties --

      Students at the Academy of Arts in Munich spent over 16,000 hours weaving together an impressive environmental installation made entirely out of cable ties. The space was made using 1.3 million ties and has the look of a highly advanced plastic spider web.

    • Knol is open to everyone --

      Knols are authoritative articles about specific topics, written by people who know about those subjects. Today, we're making Knol available to everyone.

    • 10 Most Amazing Ghost Towns --

      The Kowloon Walled City was located just outside Hong Kong, China during British rule. A former watchpost to protect the area against pirates, it was occupied by Japan during World War II and subsequently taken over by squatters after Japan's surrender. Neither Britain nor China wanted responsibility for it, so it became its own lawless city.

      Its population flourished for decades, with residents building labyrinthine corridors above the street level, which was clogged with trash. The buildings grew so tall that sunlight couldn't reach the bottom levels and the entire city had to be illuminated with fluorescent lights.

    • Things to Do Before You Die ... Yes, I know, but you too know what and why --

      At least once in his life, a man should...

      There is no checklist. Nothing on this list is that automatic. Every element here is a matter of the choices you make, the chances you take, the courage you are willing to show. You can trick yourself into thinking bungee jumping somehow satisfies those criteria, but willfully falling off a crane in a mall parking lot is more or less a rite of passage by now, isn't it? Maybe you call that a big moment. The trick is choosing to experience them all that way.

    Once you participate in life, it really works. I'll see ya.

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  • WOWOW: The Kids Edition [Links of the Week]

    edited by Alexander Becker

    Square watermelons this week, a bunch of nested lists, the what and the where, and something for the kids, from Steve Jobs and Bill Gates -- no, not the fisticuffs...

    Brainstorming

    • ... discovering blog topics, yes, but even more, following your excellence works this same exact way --

    • The Reverse-Process Technique of Discovering Blog Topics --

      Have a good think about the activities and events in your own routine, what can you find that gets results, sets you apart, or might be interesting then drill right down. Think from the point of view of a curious prospect and you might be surprised how many topic ideas you can think of!

    • Also, compare mindmaps here and there, where Hundreds of Post Ideas for Your Blog create the luxury of selecting the best and most appropriate ones --

      The key when you do it is to let your creativity run wild (because it can take you in some wonderful directions) but then to be ruthless in culling ideas that don't actually add anything to your blog. Remember - everything that you post on your blog either adds to or takes away from your blog's perceived value - so not everything that you come up with should make it through to the front page of your blog.

    • Ultimately, make sure to keep it in check: Master Your Muse and Multiply Your Blogging Effectiveness

    • Square Watermelon Problem Solving is one more instance of the common uncommon --

      Been there, done that: Believe it or not, your problem has most likely been encountered by others. This could be other companies, other departments within your company, even the guy sitting next you right now. Seek out those that have had similar issues and study their response. You shouldn't necessarily mimic what others have done, but clearly there is something to be said for taking an idea and customizing it so that it solves your problem.

    • ... with a mention of TRIZ (Theory of Inventive Problem Solving), which 40 principles I happen to use, printed on small index cards --

      Two basic principles in TRIZ maintain that:

      1. Somebody, someplace, has already solved your problem or one similar to it. Creativity means finding that solution and adapting it to the current problem.
      2. Don't accept compromises. Eliminate them.

    Knowledge Units

    • Speaking of already solved problems: Google to Wikipedia: "Knol" thine enemy --

      The system is called "Knol" -- which refers to a "knowledge unit" -- and it will let anyone create, edit, and profit from creating a page packed with information on a specific topic.

    What to do and How

    • Triple Your Productivity Tomorrow on a --

      Project-Kill Day. This is a day where I am at my most productive state. I set aside large amounts of time to kill off the projects on my to-do list and get ahead. I've found, if you plan it properly, you can make tomorrow up to 3 times as productive as ordinary days.

    • From the Duh-department, but still --

      Provide Context for Better Ubiquitous Capture

      If it's worth capturing, it's worth capturing well, so take the extra couple seconds to remind yourself what the hell you were thinking about.

    Where to Get and How

    • Should You Write a Personal Mission Statement?

      Absolutely --

      Your personal mission statement should be a concise representation of what's most important to you, what you desire to focus on, what you want to achieve, and, ultimately, who you want to become. In its purest form, it's an approach to your life, one that allows you to identify a focus of energy, creativity, and vision in living a life in support of your inner-most beliefs and values.

      [...]

      A great personal mission statement is one that inspires you, motivates you, and offers you the opportunity for continued happiness and fulfillment.

      Making you look even better.

    • While we're here --

      Achieving Your Dream: How to Take the First Step

      Don't --

      • Wait until the situation is perfect.
      • Wait until other people agree with you.
      • Wait until your skill is good.

      Do --

      • Believe in your dream.
      • Visualize your dream.
      • Expect a hard way ahead.
      • Take one bite at a time.

      In other words: Baby steps are still all the rage -- la rage, that is........

    • Tony Soprano's Top 11 Tips for Success

      Three out of eleven --

      • The smartest route isn't always the easiest one -- in most cases there will be multiple paths to obtaining your goals. Instead of going with the easy route, you need to go with the smart route.
      • Think things over -- if you are angry or desperate you probably start acting based off your instincts in hopes of satisfying your feelings. Instead of acting on things right away, start thinking things over because then you will be able to act based on logic instead of on feelings.
      • Don't show off -- there is nothing wrong with buying nice things every once in a while but don't buy something just to show off. Although attention is good, if you are someone worth knowing sooner or later people will get to know you. People who just show off draw too much attention and in many cases are hated by others due to jealousy.

    • Why I Started Punching Jerks Again

      Is there a chance that we would have fewer AK-47-toting high schoolers if it were socially acceptable to take of a glove, slap it across an offender's face, and issue the good 'ol Sir, you have insulted my honor challenge? I think a little fisticuffs would do most men a world of good, giving options to the masses who put up with too much, consequences to loudmouthed idiots who would then think twice, and a release valve to a gender that otherwise comes up with far worse things to do to men, women, wives, and children.

      Don't miss the comments. Very insightful and they prove the point. Either point.

      Do what is right. You decide.

    Kids Corner

    • 5 Signs That You Have Settled --

      So all this begs the question: what do I do if I have settled? As Steve Jobs said in the same speech: if you haven't found it yet, keep looking... As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it.

    • Bill Gates: The skills you need to succeed --

      • A solid working knowledge of productivity software and other IT tools has become a basic foundation for success in virtually any career.
      • Beyond that, however, I don't think you can overemphasize the importance of having a good background in maths and science.
      • Communication skills and the ability to work well with different types of people are very important too.

    Don't settle.

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