Reduce to Common Sense

Fidelity

2009-05-06T22:32:00.004+01:00

IPL Day 19. After four games of the season, the Deccan Chargers were top of the league. Their main strike bowler was a skiddy slinger called Fidel Edwards who was finally getting the luck that seemed to have deserted him in the West Indies. However the Chargers lost both games after he was called back for the test series in England, and I gave them little chance today against the mighty Mumbai.

Dropped Chances

2009-05-05T22:40:00.005+01:00

IPL Day 18. After a whole series of close games, a very one-sided game. The Rajasthan Royals posted the highest score of the tournament so far, then bundled out Punjab with only Yuvraj offering serious resistance. But that was just the starter.For the main course, the Kolkata Knight Riders batted first against Delhi, and actually put up a fairly decent target. But defending that score was an

Star Wars

2009-05-04T22:40:00.006+01:00

IPL Day 17. This is g0ing t0 be very difficult. I can't type the letter 0n the t0p r0w 0f the keyb0ard between I and P, neither upper n0r l0wer case - the "0" key has fr0zen - p0ssibly due t0 s0me spilt c0ffee. I c0uld cut and paste every time that letter appears, 0r maybe just use zer0. Anyway, watched s0me c0medy today. N0t a scripted drama but the run chase 0f the Deccan Chargers. While

IPL Day 16

2009-05-03T23:16:00.000+01:00

Kolkata did it again. It looked like they posted a decent score, then had chance after chance after chance to polish off the Punjab innings - but dropped them all. Yet despite the repeated missed catches and run-out opportunities, somehow the game and our hopes were dragged out to the very last ball yet again. And once again we lost.In the second game, a surprise for two reasons. Firstly a

IPL Day 15

2009-05-02T23:40:00.003+01:00

Game one, as I predicted even when they had a 100% record, like my phone when in satnav mode, the Deccans are now fast losing their Charge. Game two, even without Freddie, despite a poor start, Chennai turned the game from the moment Raina pulled off a stunning catch. Yet another last over classic.What else happened today? The sun was shining, went into town for some shopping. Bit scary, saw

Mayday

2009-05-01T22:29:00.004+01:00

Day 14 of the IPL. Finally Ganguly gets to open the batting for the Knight Riders. Out first ball. Can it get any worse?Yes it can. Kolkata won't just crumble to a heavy defeat against the mighty Mumbai. Instead, once again the team wrings every ounce of hope out of its supporters, taking it to the final over yet again.Game two also went down to the last ball, another excellent match, Yuvraj

IPL Day 12

2009-04-30T21:42:00.003+01:00

Maybe things are finally going my way. I predicted that the Chargers were over-achieving, that they didn't have the strength in depth - today I was proved correct. Big game coming up next Tuesday, we'll see if form can be maintained till then.In the second game, another good result. Raina won the match on his own.By the way, I still get people thinking this is all only about the IPL. At one

IPL Day 11

2009-04-29T23:18:00.001+01:00

Game one, Kolkata lost again. With one ball to spare. I had hoped that the Challengers would finally mount a decent challenge, but why now, why against my home team? The cricketing gods are taunting me. However top scorer for Bangalore was a young chap I'd never heard of called Shreevats Goswami. His home town, Kolkata.In game two, another nailbiter. RB from Essex failed again but at least

IPL Day 10

2009-04-27T23:24:00.001+01:00

OK, so I was wrong again, disappointed again. These are tough and demoralising times.So time to make some brave predictions.First game, the Chargers won again, so the commentators say that with their 100% record, they are now favourites for the league title. Just like Alan Hansen always predicts that the team leading the Premiership will win at the end, that the bottom three teams will be

IPL Day 9

2009-04-26T22:03:00.001+01:00

1. No report today.2. It was the London Marathon.3. I got up early to go for the one bit of sport that has become routine, though infrequent.4. As usual though, I could run for perhaps an hour, then the rest was at walking pace.

IPL Day 8

2009-04-25T23:11:00.004+01:00

Stats do not always tell the whole story, and neither do results. Most commentators play a game of post-justification - whoever won deserved to win - that's not a game I play.For the Chargers won "comfortably" - only three batsmen made decent scores but countless edges went just wide of fielders and they only had three decent bowlers. Yet once again in my opinion Mumbai had the best batsmen and

IPL Day 7

2009-04-24T23:28:00.005+01:00

Despite my prediction from Day 5, the Royal Challengers failed to rise to the royal challenge of the Kings XI. Though , like my verdict from Day 6, it was another gut-wrenching result.It's true that the only Bengali playing was for the Punjab side, but there is something about the Bangalore team that makes them a favourite second team. That something is partially the portly figure of Jesse

IPL Day 6

2009-04-23T23:19:00.004+01:00

Gutted. Gutted. A sad day for Kolkata. The worst kind of loss. There was hope till the very end before it was cruelly dashed. Dada did his best, did better than anyone else on his team, but his colleagues let him down. Why do we care?

IPL Day 5

2009-04-22T23:43:00.001+01:00

Thought about taking a Budget Break today. Not sure I can afford one.According to all match reports, the Deccan Chargers comfortably beat the Bangalore Royal Challengers. Well they did win, but in my contrary view it was not so comfortable. I can't believe that Fidel Edwards will continue to outbowl Dale Steyn, that Ohja will continue to outbowl Kumble, that Jesse Ryder and KP will repeatedly

IPL Day 4

2009-04-21T22:54:00.003+01:00

Isn't it ironic ..."the weather was the most important factor" in the decision to move the IPL to South Africa instead of to England. According to Vijay Mallya, the owner of the Royal Challengers team (and of Kingfisher Beer):"I guess weather conditions clinched the issue for South Africa. In England, there were chances that matches would have been rained off. Both teams sharing the point affects

IPL Day 2

2009-04-21T11:53:00.004+01:00

Twenty twenty was meant to be a new type of game. Not the traditional cricket we know and love. It was meant to be all about big hitting, slogging, power plays and military medium restrictive bowling.But it isn't. Stars of the first couple of days are the old dudes: batting legends like Dravid and Tendulkar; bowling legends like Warne, Kumble, Vettori, Bhaji, Murali.It's not just because

IPL Day 1

2009-04-18T22:55:00.008+01:00

Season two of the greatest festival of cricket in the world (see here, here, here) started today. And it got off to a great start - two fabulous games. Of course you can read the official match reports on Cricinfo, but a few words of alternative insight should be published here.First game was the clash of the titans - the mighty Mumbai Indians, the most expensive team in the league, up against

The Corporate Jungle

2009-04-17T20:21:00.000+01:00

I was working a bit in the garden today, first time this year, cutting back the evergreen ivy that appears to have been spreading all winter while the deciduous stuff took a long break.And I thought about the forest. After any clearing, there is a battle for light and a battle for growth between the two types of plant. Who wins?Well it is obvious that the green climbers grow faster than the

The Number One Red

2009-04-05T00:16:00.003+01:00

David James has reclaimed the position of England's national goalkeeper. According to most pundits, he fully deserved it. According to Match of the Day that is verified.Talking of Match of the Day, over the last few seasons they have been raving about how consistently superb Brad Friedel has been for Blackburn.Both James and Friedel were recently released by Liverpool FC for not being good

Maxim Um Pornography

2009-04-03T22:46:00.000+01:00

Firstly, an administrative point unrelated to this note. After a few random bits of spam on my last posts, fearing more now, I've finally decided to put Word Verification on comments to this blog. It should only take a second to use. But there's a serious point to be made here. It has just been announced that the Maxim monthly magazine will cease publishing a UK edition. I have friends who

The Dagenham Dream

2009-04-01T23:51:00.000+01:00

Watching the BBC and random musing1. Started out in poverty in the East End of London - couldn't afford shoes 2. Worked at the Ford plant - protested against the violence in 'Nam3. Eventually found own voice - inspired by Faith4. Manipulated by the puppetmasters - didn't like it5. Recently spent a lot of time with people who need therapy...Obviously, that's Sandie Shaw.

Forward

2009-04-01T16:37:00.002+01:00

It's the first day of the rest of my life.I remember that exactly one year ago today, I discovered God. Though I'm not sure of the capitalisation there, I prefer this style. And just a few days ago, I discovered him again, this time he was lurking around on Twitter. Then somebody told me that my discovery was not "the real God", but in no time at all I found "The Real God" lurking around there

Complexity

2009-03-18T18:52:00.001Z

I work on very complicated things. See here, here, and here. But I am a very simple person. See here, here and here.That's all.

Customer Service Division

2009-03-10T22:17:00.001Z

A true incident. It's been told before, but not on this site.I bought my first car as a student and somehow kept it going for about eight years until the old banger finally died in a blaze of glory (but that's another story). Anyway, I decided that my next car would be better. So on the recommendation of work colleagues, I went to the local dealer and bought a new one. Well it was not 100% new,

Mad Heston's Tea Party

2009-03-04T21:04:00.001Z

For his Victorian Feast, it would have been easy (and boring) to simply cook the type of food that was actually eaten in those times, so instead chef Heston Blumenthal decided to recreate the experience of the mad hatter's tea party from Alice in Wonderland. It was on TV yesterday, and I'm still astounded. For his soup, he did actually catch a wild snapper one-handed, but eventually decided that

Technology for Marketing Again

2009-02-26T20:34:00.005Z

It's one year after my last note on this subject, and I went to the TFM conference again this week. It continues to surprise me just how high a proportion of the material was directly relevant to my work, and the organisers should be very happy with the quality of speaker that they continue to attract.But another thing surprised me too, and this is not something for the organisers to be happy

25 Personal Things

2009-02-19T22:36:00.001Z

Well I said I'd start on the 25 random things. So I did.I wrote them, but they aren't published yet. None of them are secret, but there is a nagging doubt whether this blog is the appropriate place for them. Obviously there is nothing embarrassing or illegal there, but they look inward whereas most of this blog looks outward.And I still wonder how the revelation of further personal details

25 Random Things About Me

2009-02-16T22:41:00.001Z

I'm not going to list 25 random things about me. Not today anyway. But I am going to point to some ideas about that particular meme. However I will (eventually) divulge some new personal facts, because this whole site is a form of self-expression, and using standard templates to represent content can make sense both for the writer and the reader.Also, I am not going to explicitly "tag" selected

Jerome Taylor Harbinger of Doom

2009-02-15T08:51:00.000Z

Not the most common name in the world, but cropped up in the news twice just within the last few days with devastating deliveries.1. Out of nowhere, produced a man of the match performance to bowl the complete England cricket side out for 51 measly runs in humiliating innings defeat.2. Reported that the editor of my hometown newspaper was arrested for "hurting the religious feelings" of Muslims

Wilder Geese Chase

2009-02-12T20:07:00.002Z

In order to prevent violent people from inflicting violence, controversial MP Wilder Geert has been chased out of the country. BBC link. Other bad foreigners who are to be banned from UK entry in similar legislation:1. PJ O'Rourke. His book was known to cause extreme offence to all devotees of the lord David Icke. He won't be allowed any nearer than Lizard Point.2. Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin.

Legal Stuff - Creative Commons

2009-02-11T21:48:00.000Z

Other sites aggregate good content from the web. On this blog I tend to reflect my own thoughts in my own words. That's one of the rules, though I don't always follow the rules, I do prefer to avoid parroting of popular opinion. And when I link, I attribute source.Similarly I try to avoid obvious and predictable clichés - that is only worth doing if you can be Steinmanesque about it: the future

Goallessness

2009-02-06T19:21:00.000Z

Not about my objectives for the year, I'm still considering those.My last post was a very simple one. But it was topical, posted just a few minutes after the incident to which it referred, and it was short, just 34 of my words around the quote.One of those 34 words was goallessness. Anyone who watched the game, anyone who has watched any football, will know exactly what that word means. But it's

A Poorly Placed Ad Break

2009-02-04T23:23:00.002Z

From the Guardian minute by minute report a few minutes ago today:After nearly two hours of goallessness:117 mins: Everton roll forward anew .... and ITV cut to commercials!? Eh? I said EH? Get it sorted please. [...]118 mins: GOAL! Everton 1-0 Liverpool (Gosling 119')118 mins: Yes, while ITV were inexplicably, unforgivably on a commercial break, Van Der Meyde

Campaign Project and Stock Management

2009-02-04T22:27:00.003Z

To maintain effective marketing, or to run effective projects, both require constant cycles of prediction and measurement.For example, first you measure the current one, use that to plan and predict the next one. Measure that one. And so on.Having been through plenty of campaigns and plenty of projects, I know there are some things that I can predict well. Perhaps an odd predilection for stats

Tweeting is for birds?

2009-01-30T18:45:00.001Z

From JP on January 17th: Twitter is fast becoming my personal submarine and periscope to the ocean of the World Wide WebFrom Ann on January 23rd: I think this year is Twitter’s year. I think their tipping point has been reached and passed.From Stephen Fry just yesterday: Welcome to my twitterworldBut I'm still not sure about it. Two possible reactions:From the stereotypical new woman,

Just Giving Public Signals

2009-01-26T18:25:00.001Z

From the generic to the specific. Invented figures. You are prompted to contribute to a good cause by a solicited group email that links to a public page showing individual amounts. You go to the site, and see just one donation there, showing £50, and the date suggests it was placed there a while ago. You know from history of similar appeals that most individual contributions tend to be smaller.

Carnival of the Godless 109

2009-01-25T10:06:00.002Z

As in the skeptic games, this is a case of my own post not following my own rules. But it's probably justified occasionally - the big beasts of the blogworld like Pharyngula and Bad Astronomy rightly get plenty of traffic and plenty of publicity, but these odd carnivals are a chance for some less prominent posters to get a little more exposure. So all 19 submitted, in order of receipt:01. If you

The Paine and the President

2009-01-22T22:43:00.000Z

On the night in November when Barack Obama's victory was confirmed, he quoted Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, and most would see a clear line of descent from those great orators. But there was little of the soaring exultation of "Yes We Can" in Obama's first presidential speech on Tuesday. Instead, delightfully, he went back to the true founding fathers of his great nation.In fact CNN

Air Bust

2009-01-16T23:19:00.001Z

I said it would get personal, and it will get there gradually. First, I've mentioned regularly that I have a degree of competence in marketing technology, and once that I have a degree of competence in jet engine technology.Consequently, topically, I was reassured to hear comparatively little bleating about the supposed "miracle" on Hudson river, and instead more emphasis on the skill and

A blog not a website

2009-01-14T22:13:00.002Z

OK, the personal stuff can wait. First to clarify something from the last post. I am not going to continue to "advertise" my company website on this blog, but I am going to continue to make arguably important points here about the nature of web 2.0 and technology and social networking. From Tamar Weinberg's best internet marketing posts of 2008, I picked up a top five (outdated) reasons why a

Advertising

2009-01-11T21:16:00.004Z

Recall the Top Ten rules to which we should aspire, including speed, simplicity, etc. Rule number 8 was simply No Advertising. So, despite potential revenue, no google ads here. But I said explicitly that this blog could only ever reach 9/10 for that measure, "I lost a mark for the intrinsic self-promotion".I still maintain that every word and every picture that we ever leave anywhere on the

Me and Warren Buffett

2009-01-09T21:43:00.001Z

Five things in common?1. I never attempt to make money on the stock market. I buy on the assumption that they could close the market the next day and not reopen it for five years.2. It's far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price.3. Our favorite holding period is forever.4. We believe that according the name 'investors' to institutions that

Interest in the Economy

2009-01-08T21:52:00.003Z

Despite the significant losses documented yesterday and in earlier notes, I don't claim poverty. Particularly compared to most in my home town, I'm doing ok.However worse times are coming. News today: The Bank of England has cut interest rates to 1.5%, the lowest level in its 315-year history, as it continues efforts to aid an economic recovery. The Bank of England is shafting us.Manufacturers'

Stock Tips

2009-01-07T22:09:00.003Z

I'm a big investor. No real job, no real pension, so my future income is dependent upon my investments.Admittedly this has been done without any major research. But in principle, without even thinking about it, my basic investment strategies have broadly followed the legendary Motley Fool guidelines and the even more legendary Warren Buffett guidelines:Even my biggest financial mistake was made

Perspective

2009-01-06T21:49:00.001Z

It's traditional to write a new year blog post. I'm not very traditional.The big news at the moment is the Israeli assault on Gaza in apparent retaliation for the rockets that Hamas has been firing into Israel. No opinion on that here, but I think that I'm more knowledgeable on the subject than the average Brit. Even at school, I did a whole semester researching the background of the conflicts.

Happy New Year (eventually)

2009-01-05T21:40:00.003Z

Top five reasons to have a New Year's Day blog post:1. These are the best places that I visited this year2. These are the best books and films of the past year 3. These are my resolutions and predictions for the new year4. These were my most commented posts of last year 5. I should post every day.Actually that wasn't meant to be critical, those are all perfectly good reasons. I'd have done one

Knights of the Round Table

2008-12-29T21:04:00.001Z

Apart from the guy mentioned in yesterday's note and his playwriting colleagues Alan Bennett and Michael Frayn and a host of actors like Paul Scofield, another five who refused to accept a knighthood:1. LS Lowry - painter2. David Hockney - artist3. Michael Faraday - chemist, experimenter, demonstrator, and the man who made electricity usable4. Frederick Sanger - the only living double Nobel

Cricket and Life and Death

2008-12-27T23:00:00.001Z

In memory of Harold Pinter who died on Christmas Eve, my top five test batsmen:5. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar - Needs no introduction4. David Ivon Gower - Apparently all style and grace and elegance, played as if without a care in the world, but still England's most reliable run-getter3. Sourav Chandidas Ganguly - India's David Gower, but also an explosive one-day batsman and an agressive

Cooking Christmas Lunch

2008-12-24T21:37:00.003Z

As it's festive break, please excuse a short personal post.I rarely cook. But a recent long vacation in India (see here and here) reignited my taste buds. And I've discovered it's easy. Time-consuming and tedious, but easy. The results are excellent, even though I say so myself. Nobody else does.My wife says it's because I have such low expectations. Because I like simple dals and tarkaris

Bidding Gambling and Voting

2008-12-22T21:34:00.001Z

There 's stuff in the news about "penny auctions". For example the BBC reports:I think bidding on penny auction sites is akin to a gambling-like experience," Professor Griffiths said. "Obviously, when people are bidding again and again and again and they don't actually win the item in the end, that's very much like gambling."However, Juha Koski from online auction site Madbid.com disagrees. "

All's Well That Starts Well

2008-12-20T23:51:00.004Z

Why the guy playing lead role in a Shakespeare play is like the priest conducting a religious wedding:1. they both need to learn their lines2. they both dress in uncomfortable period costumes3. they both need to be male (very few exceptions)4. they both talk in an old form of language that nobody really uses these days5. the better the actor, the better the performance

The Peopleweb

2008-12-19T19:27:00.003Z

Really just a follow-up to the previous post. In the style of economist Tyler Cowen and his regular sentence of the day, I quote Seth Godin, author of Permission Marketing and other new marketing handbooks. From Seth's blog today:57% of the marketers surveyed hadn't read a blog in the last year. These people are incompetent and should be fired.Sorry, that's more than one sentence. Anyway,

Recruiters - Employ Firestarters

2008-12-14T19:31:00.001Z

People should listen more than they speak. So we should read more than we write. Consequently I often find great blog posts that I likely could have written. Examples here and here. But recently I found a great blog post that I likely would have written.Firestarters from Neil Perkin, Director of Marketing & Strategy for the commercial functions of IPC Media. It's excellent. Not only is it "I

Recipe to build a Kolkata suburb

2008-12-13T18:48:00.001Z

Ingredients:1. A few acres of land2. A few thousand familiesCooking time:Sixty yearsFor each family:1. Fence of your personal area with bamboo and twine, then string up a temporary shelter in the middle of it.2. When you can afford to, replace the temporary shelter with a mud shack, keeping a small plot to grow your vegetables or tether your goat3. When you can afford to, replace the mud shack

The Urban Village

2008-12-12T19:26:00.002Z

I've been away. Top five reasons why a congested Kolkata suburb of 2008 is like a traditional English village of 19081. The same people have lived in the same houses for generations. Almost no geographical mobility. Everybody hangs out at the same local watering holes.2. The local store owner lives above his shop just a couple of houses down the road from you. He stocks everything and knows the

Far From Feeling

2008-11-30T07:52:00.000Z

I read Marginal Revolution. There found a link to the Typealyzer. It parses the text of a submitted URL and then makes an automated attempt to show the parts of the brain that were dominant during writing.So, this is not really me, but this is my blog:The logical and analytical type. They are especialy [sic] attuned to difficult creative and intellectual challenges and always look for something

Length DID Matter

2008-11-29T07:26:00.002Z

Diversion. A few of my favourite things. Guests on the classic BBC radio show Desert Island Discs are allowed to choose eight records. I know it's only a hypothetical game, but it's not called "your eight top tracks". So why don't guests choose longer tracks to maximise enjoyment? My epic list here.1. Bat out of Hell - Meat LoafPossibly Jim Steinman's best known song, but as already noted here,

Bloody Bombay Bombers

2008-11-28T19:12:00.000Z

I did actually write a few words here on Wednesday evening but withheld hitting the "post" button. Methinks there was some insight there, but my gut reaction to the attack on Mumbai did not make pleasant reading. One day, when the war is over, then perhaps I'll publish it.For now I'm going to try to think of some softer material for a few days till the dust settles and the red mist clears.

Big Apple

2008-11-25T20:20:00.002Z

One of my old posts has been picked up today at the world's favourite Metrotwin site. At last. Superb.http://blog.metrotwin.com/?p=383

Network Design

2008-11-21T21:04:00.001Z

I mentioned that I did database design. From early readings of Codd and Date nearly two decades ago, have spent a professional lifetime grappling with the practical implementations of third normal form relational models and also their "modern" multidimensional variants. The process of mapping real world phenomena to basic binary patterns is to me the single most important factor in the success of

B of the Bang

2008-11-19T23:02:00.000Z

Councils in the UK are often sued for frivolous, even dishonest reasons. Examples here.But in an almost literal reversal of fortune, the makers of a supposedly dangerous sculpture this week paid over a million pounds in compensation to Manchester City Council. Story here.Now I have noticed something similar in my own home town, and I'm wondering who I can sue. Admittedly it took many years to be

Free Will Defined

2008-11-18T21:17:00.000Z

Yes, I know that my previous note quoted Rush completely out of context, I know the lyrics actually appear to be a simple rejection of astrological and theological bullshit rather than any serious objectivist anthem, and it was certainly not written to be a justification for indecision.But within the simplified hundred-word school-level boundaries of this blog, can I define free will? Without

Schadenfreunde

2008-11-17T23:03:00.000Z

See jhal. If Lewis Carroll and Douglas Adams and Stephen Fry can coin their own words, then so can I.Without the "n", the word is a well known import from Germany. But the original carries strong negative connotations, malicious pleasure from the discomfort of others. And that is not nice.But sometimes the others are your friends, people for whom you genuinely wish well. Yet occasionally, despite

Free Will

2008-11-16T22:00:00.000Z

This is not going to be a textbook philosophical treatise, more just the view from the hangover after a big night out.There is an oft-quoted saying - that people regret more of the things they didn't do than the things they did do ...but like all oft-quoted sayings, that's a load of context-specific twaddle.Sometimes you might think that you'll regret not going somewhere - but when you later

Frying Language

2008-11-10T21:32:00.002Z

Oh frabjous day. I love it when "someone famous" expresses the same opinion that I've been banging on about here since the dawn of blogtime, especially when that "someone famous" is a linktastic legend. Five quotes almost randomly selected from 5000 words of pure bliss:1. People seem to be able to find sensual and sensuous pleasure in almost anything but words these days. Words, it seems belong

Burying Bridges

2008-11-07T21:09:00.002Z

There were once-in-a-generation news headlines this week. The presidential election (RB wins). The drastic cut in interest rates (RB loses). These massive stories are a chance for political cowards to bury bad news.That's what Boris Johnson and his gang seems to have done. For all the pre-mayoral-election talk of needing to regenerate and improve London's infrastructure, yesterday there was a

K K Konquered

2008-11-05T21:38:00.002Z

There has apparently been a major election recently. You might have heard about it, it's been on the news. There is a new president on the block.I used to live there, so I take more of an interest than much of the world. Yet I don't really have a strong opinion on this one. Without knowing the details, the new president seems a decent choice. It seems a good thing that the more

Kitchen Space

2008-11-02T19:46:00.000Z

The basic layout of the typical house has changed radically over the last couple of centuries in the western world, and over the last couple of decades in the developing east.Take the kitchen. In the traditional English Victorian house this was way out the back, cold and unfurnished except for necessary appliances. In India, even in the new build of twenty years ago, the kitchen has even less

Light and Sound

2008-10-29T23:11:00.000Z

Discussed at lunchtime today - the less controversial subject: I generally think people should keep their music to themselves, leakage from home or vehicle is just noise pollution.Insight is sometimes simply finding a new relationship between old variables. So like Jessica Hagy with her Indexed cards:

The Bond Villain

2008-10-28T22:54:00.002Z

I mentioned it briefly in the old world. Now, as Quantum of Solace is about to hit the screens, five reasons why we should support the James Bond villain rather than James Bond himself.1. They are more diverse. Not just upper class Englishmen. All sorts of strange foreigners. And we like diversity.2. They give the opponent a chance. Could easily just shoot Bond in the head, instead always

A Moronic Oxymoron

2008-10-26T11:20:00.001Z

But let's not discuss Daylight Saving Time. Let's talk of cars and traffic ...In some countries, particularly in the remnants of the British Empire, people drive on the left. In others, including most of continental Europe and America, people drive on the right. Which is better? To answer the question, we need to consider the facts. Most people are right-handed. Old Roman tradition was to

Cheesy Break

2008-10-24T23:48:00.000+01:00

Not my usual style of blog post, just a little incident from lunchtime yesterday:On seeing menu item: Chilli Con QuesoMe: I like chilli, but I'll decline that one because it has cheese in itOz colleague: Oh, so that dish has cheese in it?(I honestly didn't say anything at this point)Serving lady: I don't know. (Then shouts across to kitchen area) Does this dish have cheese in it?Answer from

Not Meeting Project Deadlines

2008-10-21T21:49:00.001+01:00

A few days ago I mentioned a top five ways of working to achieve project deadlines. They were all fairly common sense, all fairly predictable, all fairly practical, but not actually the most common ways suggested. Usually we hear:1. You only need to work smarter, not harder.2. Have you thought of ways of improving the process to achieve the same result?3. Have you got a plan to achieve it?4. That

For better or for purse

2008-10-20T21:23:00.000+01:00

Last week I dropped my wallet at a market in a notorious Essex town. Five things that were in there:1. Credit Card - I've heard that all its details may already be on sale in pubs across the land, but it would still be disconcerting to lose it.2. Driving Licence - we don't actually need to carry this in the UK, but it's habit from my US days, and some form of Photo Id often comes in useful3.

The Editors

2008-10-19T21:06:00.002+01:00

I was asked to provide an initial review of the first draft of a first novel. Am happy to do so and look forward to it.However, when it comes to the editing of my own written work, my views correspond almost exactly with those of Giles Coren. Read them here, but be warned about the language.If it appears as though I have forgotten the rules of English grammar, that I have split an infinitive or

One Bold Act to Solve the Financial Crisis

2008-10-17T19:54:00.000+01:00

We appear to be on the brink of global economic meltdown. The government needs to be bold and decisive. One simple Act would have these major benefits:1. Increase financial stability.2. Increase innovation, entrepeneurial spirit and small business development.3. Promote equal opportunity.4. Increase charitable donations.5. Reduce poverty.I've mentioned it before. Simply raise inheritance tax to

Meeting Project Deadlines

2008-10-16T20:35:00.001+01:00

Following a comment on my note yesterday.There are no panaceas, only checks and balances and choices, while we hope that management has enough experience and insight to choose appropriately. By the way, insight and lateral thinking to me are just the identification of hidden variables, but that's another subject.Anyway, no miracles, but these are five genuine ways to achieve deadlines, all that I

Outlook Rules

2008-10-15T19:53:00.003+01:00

We have already had the Top Five Spreadsheet Rules and Top Five Powerpoint Rules, and today I received an email suggesting that there should be only five Outlook rules for managing your email.However, as you should know, I don't put stuff up here without adding some personal slant to it, so I suggest the five rules could be re-written as a few simple words that Dovetail (Alliterate).So, Five

The Financial Times

2008-10-12T22:56:00.001+01:00

Compared to most people in the western world, here are five types of people who are so far almost unaffected by the credit crunch:1. Self-sufficient smallholders2. People with rich relatives or inherited wealth3. People with secure jobs4. People with final salary pension schemes5. Lottery winnersNone of those apply to me.Compared to most people in the western world, I am so far almost unaffected

My Most Embarrassing Moment

2008-10-09T19:29:00.000+01:00

Celebrity interviews often ask that. I am no celebrity, but I do comment on the pathetic banality of celebrity interviews.I was at a sports centre where we played five-a-side football. After the game I took off my kit and glasses, picked up my towel and stepped out of the changing room which had one door leading out to the shower area and another back out to the gym's reception. Obviously (

Diversity (again)

2008-10-08T20:23:00.007+01:00

I like it.1. I like it that there are people like Sir David Attenborough who talk about the wonder of the natural world while casually throwing out metaphors such as "creatures perfectly designed for their environments".2. I like it that there are people like Hemant Mehta who carefully prod the religions of the world, gently deconstructing outdated traditions with humour and civility.3. I like it

Powerpoint Rules

2008-10-06T19:38:00.000+01:00

There is only one rule actually.But first, my top five spreadsheet rules were noted here earlier, and I was going to follow with similar principles of Powerpoint design. However it looks like Seth Godin has just done it. He actually lists nine, but I'll quote five of them below (with some slight paraphrasing):1. Keep it short. Ten minutes. The rest of your time should be answering questions

Question to David Cameron (or John McCain)

2008-10-03T21:05:00.002+01:00

Do you believe in meritocracy, that every child and every adult should have equal opportunity to make the most of their ability and work without discriminationOrDo you believe that certain children and certain adults should have a privileged start in life, for example with the most productive and most valued resources allocated forever to the descendants of those who acquired them?It's a very

Social Media in 33 words

2008-10-01T19:51:00.001+01:00

Neil Perkin asks: I'd love to know in one sentence - what is your maxim for how best to engage and facilitate an online community?Within 3 hours he had 17 responses from agency digital strategy leaders, media researchers, account planners, media owners, creatives, and some of the most renowned thinkers on social media strategy. But not from me.And a slightly broader question, could I sum up the

Absolute Drivel

2008-09-30T20:57:00.000+01:00

Virgin Radio changed its name yesterday. I used to listen to it in the morning when Pete and Geoff did the breakfast show, then a cock took over and today I am back with the BBC. Yes I know that Geoff is back on evening drivetime now, but they've lost my goodwill.The new name is Absolute Radio. It was an absolutely obvious choice, especially considering that the company who bought the franchise

Moore Questions for Sherry Jones

2008-09-29T23:44:00.002+01:00

There was a firebombing in Central London a few days ago, a terrorist incident, albeit one on a small scale. But there was not much in the news about it. That's why I refer to it here. Perhaps reporters and editors are too scared to report it. They should be.The house attacked was that of Martin Rynja, and his company was considering publication of the novel The Jewel of Medina by the author

Big Decisions

2008-09-26T23:07:00.001+01:00

Thoughts of a colleague who is a mid-level manager at the client:Despite earning those huge salaries for doing so, despite the oft-quoted pretence that it is tough at the top, actually it is easy to drastically reduce losses and consequently earn big bonuses. You simply close the loss making operations. It might require a degree of heartlessness and loss of popularity with those whose jobs you

My Biggest Mistake

2008-09-24T21:07:00.003+01:00

(financial)Recall the days of the great boom in technology shares in the late 1990's. When companies like Yahoo and Amazon and eBay and a thousand other internet start-ups were soaring in value. In England companies like Freeserve and Easynet and FriendsReunited were setting the pace.I was very much part of the early internet wave, my work was new media marketing, and I can honestly say that I

In Praise of Brian

2008-09-22T20:23:00.004+01:00

Not the messiah, obviously.Question: Who links:The best American novelist of the 19th century. Quotes here.The best action series of the 20th century. Covered here.The best fantasy movie of all time. Extolled here.Answer:Brian Clemens. Creator and main scriptwriter of The Professionals. Directly related to Mark Twain. Went on to write the first sequel to Highlander. Yes, I said sequel, everyone

Rob 'n' Plunder 'n' Sink t' Ship

2008-09-20T10:38:00.001+01:00

Yesterday was International Talk Like A Pirate Day.On Wall Street, every day is International Behave Like a Pirate Day.The embattled company paid out $US5.7 billion in bonuses in 2007 alone, with senior executives including CEO Dick Fund receiving the biggest payments.It really said "Dick Fund" - that's not funny, those were our funds they were dicking around with. Actually, Lehman CEO Richard

Economic Opinion

2008-09-19T23:11:00.003+01:00

It's now common news that Scott Adams, yes the Dilbert guy, got so sick of the inane blathering and vindictive name-calling of the US presidential campaigns that he funded and published a survey of 500 prominent economists in order to try to get a more unbiased opinion. Or perhaps to put it another way, he seemed to believe that people needed to know who economic experts considered would have the

Stimulating the MPG-spot

2008-09-18T20:21:00.003+01:00

The opening line of a recent high profile article, you'll probably have seen these results elsewhere too:A study commissioned by a phallically named insurance company proves beyond all doubt that the unbridled roar of an Italian supercar turns women on but the soft purr of a fuel-efficient econobox doesn't stimulate anyone's MPG-spot.It's from a respected source, Wired. It specifically says "

May Brian Forgive Me

2008-09-16T20:58:00.002+01:00

Pure coincidence. From Brian's Soapbox last Sunday:And what do I want to share with you right now? This photograph was taken by Stacey Bywater, who lovingly tends my garden. It's a common or garden creature, called a snail [correction: slug]. A creature which so many people regard as a 'pest' (simply because they don't know how to garden properly)Left to their own devices, these animals are

Pop Idol

2008-09-14T21:33:00.002+01:00

Decent weather today, so I did some work in the garden. While trudging across, I accidentally stepped on a snail. Horrible.Because a symbol can represent an idea, and those who hold the idea sometimes cannot or will not argue for it rationally, it might be required to manipulate symbols to get a point across.According to someone I don't know who calls himself the "Friendly Atheist":A communion

Wacky Taxes

2008-09-10T19:29:00.000+01:00

Where I completely agreed with the economic adviser to George W Bush. Five quotes from Greg Mankiw:1. voters are worse than ignorant about basic economic principles of good policy. Ignorance, at least, would have the virtue of being random and so perhaps would average out to zero in a large population. Instead of being merely ignorant, voters hold onto systematically mistaken beliefs.2. To many

Third World Economics

2008-09-07T21:55:00.002+01:00

in 200 words.Five things that are not significantly cheaper in the developing world, for example in the city of my birth compared to the city of my work:1. Computers. Despite the image of India as a cheap IT supplier, the hardware is expensive.2. Appliances and gadgets. The things that litter your home.3. Fuel. Most of it is imported, and OPEC controls the price.4. Clothes and food. This

Palindrome

2008-09-03T21:33:00.003+01:00

I just got the idea from the Language Log, but imagine how the GOP poll ratings might slide if Sarah Palin were to be caught in an embarrassing situation after a few bottles of vino...Lo Ho! Claret fades. Sarah harassed after alcohol.

Weekend Abroad

2008-09-03T21:06:00.000+01:00

Which of these reasons could you use to justify (if only to yourself) a weekend away that is very far away?1. if the journey at each side is very easy. At this end if you live close to a tube station and can hop on the train to Heathrow. At that end if your destination is only 15 minutes from the airport.2. if the flight itself is direct. Things can get stressful if there are interchanges and

Why I Don't Watch Movies

2008-09-02T20:11:00.000+01:00

It's not consciously a money-saving activity, it really isn't.It's mainly about time and attention span. I rarely make the time to watch a two hour movie any week. If I have a few minutes for viewing, I'll watch music videos. If I have 25 minutes, I'll watch a comedy show. If I have 45 minutes, I'll watch an action or detective show. If I have more, I'll do something else. And I simply

Snake Oil

2008-09-01T21:20:00.004+01:00

He's got a new book out. Just from his most recent column, five thoughts from Ben Goldacre:1. these so-called "fish-oil trials" were so badly designed that they amounted to little more than a sham. In the case of the biggest, "the Durham trial", the county council has refused even to release the results, which I have every reason to believe were unflattering.2. if you think about it rationally,