KopiTalk Digest: Creative Quotient 2:17 pm

Found this interesting blog post by Nussbaum, who was actually in Singapore last year for the World Design Congress. It is about Creative Quotient (CQ); its not a very detailed blog entry, but a good teaser to the subject for those who are interested.

Talk about getting creative! A Kansas mayor decided he would change his town's name to Google! WTH! So read here for the article, followed by the witty response from Google's chief.

a town in kansas deciding to call itself Google. Source: CNN

in its generosity, Google decided to return the favour to the Mid-Western Kansas town. one more reason to love Google. Source: Google Blog

Finally, here's the latest creative innovation based on Google's gmail. For those with a romantic and nostalgic slant, here's one for you. Only in its concept stage, this is the Google Mail Envelopes. See if it makes you smile :)



Uncle T

i want one of these...please? 2:09 pm

I get to have a new phone in May! And naturally, its a toss up between the few big boys: BB, iPhone or an Android phone.

But being nostalgic and loyal, I miss my Palm; I used to use a Palm for close to 4 years in the earlier years; it was simple to use no frills and then it was still rather cutting edge. Sadly, Palm has fallen behind in the game as other technology players started cutting into Palm's market, leaving the old boy with lower market share, lower revenues and hence lack the pace and quality of research and innovation. Such is the free market.

But Palm has a hugely sexy phone! Do check out its review on youtube here. Alas, they have no intention to bring it to the Asia Pacific region, let alone Singapore. This is truly sad. I really wish I had one of those, more than an iPhone or an Android; well, at least for now :)

Uncle T

managing info:google timeline 12:13 pm

In the office on a public holiday (Good Friday), and somehow not seeming to mind it. The office is quiet, safe for another colleague. It is so quiet I can hear myself thinking; and that's good. Knowing that I think gives me validation, and a self-worth. Sadly, my cerebral swirls are not for some sophisticated intellectual pursuit, its just for completing a work-related paper and...random tidbits of information!

The latter is something of late I've had quite a craving. I'm turning into a geek! And the sure-sign is idling on Google's blog and blogging to an invisible audience (like right now, talking to myself via a screen + keyboard).

Here's the latest random bit of info for you. A latest google innovation of organising search results of news chronologically in graphical form. Say for instance you wanted to follow the scandal that hit the Vatican of late, and you searched for it in Google News. Now with Google Timeline, you can view the news in a chronological form. Try it! Its quite convenient!

Link: http://newstimeline.googlelabs.com/

Uncle T

turning the calendar 9:13 am

On this day in history,
Yong was born, so did Jimmy Cliff.
MJ's "Beat it" short film got TV-premiered,
And Justinianus became emperor of Byzantium (0527).
Paris and Berlin (1953) were linked by phone,
And Apple Computers was born (1976).

And on this very day,
I turned the calendar from March to
April, asking myself:
"What have I done?
What am I going to do?"

Another month further from birth,
Another closer to legacy.
Scary.

Source: Google Images

Uncle T

china to rule? 8:47 am

Old Chinese saying say a journey begins with a single step (or something like that). Indeed, China has taken yet another big step towards the direction of being a global economic bigwig.

China group Geely recently announced buying over the Swedish-icon Volvo. Dad and I were pondering how it would feel as a Swede, that for one of your national icons to now be owned by a 'Chinaman'; especially with the Western wariness of China, it makes for a pill even harder to swallow. Perhaps I won't really be able to empathise with the Swede until Singapore Airlines becomes foreign-owned.

Source: Google Images

China is currently the world's largest auto market (see Newsweek). Naturally, the impact for Volvo and the Chinese automobile market will be impacted by this buyout; Volvo will aim to turn its loss-making business around and to have a foothold in the Chinese market, and the Chinese market will now have a branded car for cheaper (how much depends on their strategy ahead). But there will also be impact on global markets, in particular the market I'll like to highlight would be the American one.

As it is, there has been huge pressures of late by the US for China to allow the allegedly undervalued Yuan to float more freely. I am certain there are domestic pressures for the Obama administration to address this as well; if not from the public (which might be too busy talking about the new Health Bill to worry about this) but surely from the disgruntled Republicans who want all the knives they can get to throw at the administration especially since the bitter-sweet passing of the Health Bill. Can you imagine what kind of pressures the Administration will then be under when the American auto market be inundated with cheaper Volvo cars? The trade deficit will just widen to epic proportions. And this Chinese thirst for global brand names, at least in the auto market (see The Independent), is definitely not quenched; this Geely-Volvo deal I suspect is the tip of the iceberg.

Source: Google Images

I know its abit of a far-off protraction, but definitely not improbable: will China rule the global economic system? If yes, what kind of hegemon will they be like? From the current looks of it, surely not a benevolent one, and that is a scary thought for a wild dragon-panda running amock in the world.


Uncle T

swings: a pretentious poem 2:03 am

sitting on swings in parks
never fail to get me thinking;
especially on a cloudy night with
some stars and some Moon
forcing their agenda against the dark mantle.

"thinking about what," she asks
from a continental distance.
"about life, love, Holy Week, about
what has died in my life and what i'll like to
resurrect this Easter," i reacted.

only silence's incessant blades could be heard.

on the very same swings
not long before, she on left and i
on right, she inducted me into her
inner circle with sharings;
tonight into the inner inner circle
with confessions, swing confessions
i was in. i was honoured. i am scared.

as st augustine beckons me
to slumber, i do wonder what
lies ahead. sometimes you reflect on your
life like a grand-slam spectator, seeing
the ball toggle back and forth,
really uncertain as to where the
ball will ultimately land.

perhaps i'll just stand at the
baseline, waiting to give my best
reaction. if its a drop-shot, i'll
run like hell to save the point.
if its a rally to baseline, i'll
give my all and hit it as if the championship depended on it;

perhaps that is my best response.


Uncle T

flashdance: an un-elegant poem 1:45 am

A precious Saturday afternoon,

4 different spirits congregated 

Just like old kindred days, yet not;

It was the first time in a decade

That they gathered this way.

Sweltering heat pushed them

Into a room too familiar from yesteryears

Yet clinically new for their current

Endeavour. Slowly, they

Began their Journey of 

Reflection, Community, Accountability; brotherhood.

Though lasting not longer than the

Hour, they parted with a gentle fire

Newly-lit with a desire to see it further

Burn.

As the crowd grew from 4 to

2, old opportunities to rekindle old

Times arose. We shared like boy-days

Of man-days; the same warmth amid the

Evening's gentle breeze. "We should do

This when we're old" came up yet again.

I smile. We smile.

For as much as we want such evenings 

Every evening, one is thankful for

Them each time they preciously come by.

These flashback opportunities are like a 

Flashdance, dancing between past and 

Present, a tension that is taut like a 

Dancer's line; elegant yet sanguine.

So here is to unabashed desire for such more

Flashdances.

one of the unforgettable scenes of the movie. no, not for its wetness or redness or hotness, but for its sheer ingenuity and innovation.

it was a very enjoyable movie, albeit one that professional critics love to hit out at. yet somehow, its many elements have topped different charts when it was released, and inspired many other movies in years to come.

Uncle T