eugene gordin

Newspaper This week’s collection is limited in political articles, filled instead with innovation and technology. This may or may not be the result of me not yet understanding what type of articles you readers prefer most. Therefore, if you are so inclined, please let me know in the comments what types of articles you guys prefer. Otherwise, your silence (and clicks!) will be construed as approval. Enjoy!

1

Stereomood - Emotional Internet Radio

Sometimes a genre, or an artist, or a title doesn't quite encompass the kind of music you want to hear - sometimes that desire is best described by an emotion. That's the concept behind Stereomood, which, with a single click lets you hear the kind of music you want, whether it's raining, you just woke up, or you're simply happy. It's simple, straightforward, and surprisingly good.

2

A Better Understanding of Stoplights

It's always refreshing to come across someone improving a seemingly dead-end product, which is exactly what Damjan Stankovic is doing with the traditional stoplight. Stankovic's stoplight gives drivers a bit more information as to just how much longer they have to wait until they see green. Considering most of us just watch that crosswalk timer count down anyway, we might as well look straight into this great little idea. For extra credit, check out the Piece of Cake, another refresh take on the common split the check problem.

3

Still Waiting for An Evil Google? It's Not Going to Happen.

As one of those people who has basically relinquished all personal data to Google while complaining of its ever increasing dominance of everything everywhere, I was slightly comforted by this Louis Gray piece which reassures us tin-foilers that all will be ok.

4

MIT Harnesses Online Crowds to Beat Darpa Balloon Challenge

A curious nationwide contest took place this weekend, celebrating and harnessing the power of the internet to locate and report the location of 10 giant red balloons released all over America. The challenge was organized by the Pentagon DARPA unit, which aimed to highlight the true power of social networking today. As it turns out, a team of graduate students at MIT took the $40,000 prize, using a creative monetary incentive scheme to do it. While its not completely clear what lessons can be garnered from this type of widespread experiment, the fact that the challenge was over less than 9 hours after the first balloon was released speaks volumes about our collective (incentivized) power.

5

The Case of Anna Anderson

This short post is from a great website I found called Iconic Photographs, which, in addition to showing the photographs themselves, also reveals a bit of the history behind it. Anna Anderson was the name of a woman who claimed to be Grand Duchess Anastasia of Russia, Nikolai II's daughter. Although the Romanovs had been murdered in the run up to the Bolshevik Revolution, that fact didn't stop the controversy around Anna Anderson more than three years later.

Newspaper History and politics seem to dominate this week’s Aggregate, quite possibly the result of the tragedy at Fort Hood and my own increasing frustration with the leadership in Washington. While the future may be uncertain, there is comfort in the lessons of the past. I’ll mix it up the topics a bit more next week, but for now, enjoy.

PS I have greatly appreciated the comments you guys offer on the things I post – it’s this type of discourse that pushes me to keep sharing these articles.

1

September 10? It’s Worse Than That

Written by the attorney who prosecuted the first World Trade Center terrorists, this article explores America's seemingly forgotten history with Islamic Extremism. In the wake of Fort Hood, and all of the recent developments that have highlighted the breadcrumbs leading to this act of terrorism, the importance of history and context cannot be greater.

2

Deciphering the Mohammed Trial

The unparalleled complications of bringing 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed to trial in a New York criminal court propelled George Friedman to analyze the legal quagmire that Eric Holder and the Obama Administration has now created. I found the short background on the Geneva Convention particularly fascinating, especially in light of last year's Gaza War, where Hamas fighters launched rockets from schools and fired from civilian-populated areas.

3

America's Top College Professor

Despite the gameshow-sounding title, this article describes a contest for the best college professor in America. As someone who has been in school for almost eight full years, I can personally honestly attest to the troubling state of the nation's academics. With an ever-increasing focus on research and publication, many professors place teaching at the end of their priorities, leaving a select few professors who truly care give their students their all. Although I have been fortunate to work frequently with the latter, I have unfortunately experienced the saddening apathy of the former as well.

4

Our 'Constitutional Moment'

The recent and seemingly infinite expansion of the federal government has sparked a very simple question in the minds of those weary of getting their rights trampled on: where the hell does the Congress [or the President for that matter] get the power to do any of this? They key to the answer lies within our Constitution, which, unlike our contemporary legislative defilements, clearly and masterfully outlines the powers (and, more importantly restrictions) of our government. So in keeping with the spirit of this article, I encourage all of you to know and understand the backbone of our great nation.

5

2012 already? GOP wannabes jockeying early

With the heat of New Jersey and Virginia's election results behind them, GOP bigwigs are ramping up for potential nomination bids. Unfortunately, the only deficit bigger than that of the federal government is the deficit of inspiring presidential contenders in the Republican Party.

Newspaper I’m writing this Aggregate post from a lakeside cabin in Massachusetts, and the entire thing was written on my iPhone. Therefore I ask you to disregard the spelling and grammar mistakes, which are hard to catch on this little device (proofreading will definitely happen when I get back!). That said, if you’re interested in reading about my weeklong roadtrip across New England, you can find my trip journal here.

1

Newsom's Nanny Problem

One of the front running Democratic candidates for governor of California, Gavin Newsom seems to be running on the platform that his success in San Francisco can simply be ratcheted up to Sacramento. There's only two problems with that plan: first, the city of San Francisco isn't representative of the state of California, and second, his "success" in San Francisco is minimal at best. That's all we need in Sacramento - another politician telling us how to live our lives from the pulpit of a bankrupt state house.

2

Revolutionary Anti-Semitism

While I have a thorough understading of Anti-Semitism in Europe and the Middle East, I must admit that I knew little about it in South America. This article sheds some (scary) light on the matter. Venezuela's friendship with Iran is only second to that of Russia's and President Obama's criticism of the well justified removal of the leftist Hunduran despot only serves to confirm his lack of historical understanding.

3

Two Leaks and the Deepening Iran Crisis

With the situation with Iran quickly brewing into a serious geopolitical moment, no one can explain the entire tangled web better than Stratfor's George Friedman. The analysis is thorough, insightful, and awefukly frightening for anyone with a president who keeps being rewarded for his consistent lack of productivity.

4

Our Gross National Happiness

If you've ever wondered what good can come of the vast amount of information that Facebook knows about the world around all of us, here's one example. Facebook created an algorithm which examines people's (anonymous) status messages for indications of positivity and negativity. The result is an almost realtime plot of what they call our "Gross National Happiness." Although this kind of infographic is fascinating to look at, it should be noted that the people who consistently post status messages indicating their mood are likely (even collectively) not representative of anything except our gross national need to get a life.

5

Google Wave's Unproductive Email Metaphors

Google Wave has been well touted as the next greatest thing, and as someone who has had an account since Google unveiled the product, I have to say that in it's current state, I fail to see it ever reaching the ubiquity of email. I'm not talking about the bugs, I mean the concept - it's just too difficult, unintuitive, and just plain overwhelming for the vast majority of the general public. Robert Scoble explains some of the reasons why.

6

Why Obama Should Not Have Received the Peace Prize -- Yet

The morning I found out that Obama had won the Nobel Peace Prize, I, like most everyone was shocked. One of the most astounding aspects of the whole fiasco is that it angered people across the political spectrum, particularly because he hasn't, um, done anything. While the "yet" part of this Reich post title is debatable, the first part definitely rings true.

Newspaper It was difficult to avoid focusing on the foreign policy issues facing America this week, but I limited myself to the two articles which most clearly explained our current situation.

I really appreciate the feedback I’ve been getting on these articles, and have thought about the different ways to share them with you all. While I’m working on it, I have set up a special twitter account where I store the most interesting articles I read throughout the week. You can receive these articles in real time (as opposed to this digest form) by either following @egaggregate on Twitter, or subscribing to the RSS feed.

As always, let me know what you think about all of this!

1

Misreading the Iranian Situation

Written prior to Obama's abandonment of the Bush European missile shield, this Stratfor intelligence report describes (in great and frightening detail) the current situation between the United States, Russia, Israel, and Iran. Promises were made, but whether or not people can keep them leaves Israel's national security waving in the balance.

2

Kremlin says Israel promised not to strike Iran

After giving up the European missile shield as a concession to Russia in hopes that they'll back off their undying friendship with Iran, the US gets yet another example of our appeasement efforts resulting in a swift kick to our national family jewels. President Obama's insistence on folding to leaders of countries like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela is dreadfully reminiscent of Jimmy Carter's impotent foreign policies. As it turns out however, the missile shield might have been scrapped in part due to concerns about costs. Sure, how could we not do some cost-cutting in the (inter)national defense department, we have ObamaCare to pay for.

3

Nearness – interacting without touching

This creative video is part of a project investigating interaction through mobile phones. In addition being very well made, it is highly reminiscent of one of my favorite commercials: The Honda Accord Cog. For those interested, both of these types of creations are examples of what's called a Rube Goldberg Machine, which is a "deliberately overengineered apparatus that performs a very simple task in a very complex fashion."

4

The Left Is Right - Taxes Are a Moral Issue

Written by Dennis Prager, this article tackles one of the arguments heard so frequently on the left side of the political spectrum: that progressive taxation is what morality demands. The article makes excellent points, but didn't answer the one taxation question which has stood out in my mind for a while now: isn't taxing a percentage of everyone's income already progressive? Our tax system seems to double count, first with a percentage, and again with an increasing one.

5

There Was Something About Harry

Being a conservative living in the Bay Area (a young one at that), this article particularly resonated with me, despite the fact that the liberals of Noe Valley treated Harry Aleo as their token rightwing nut-job at best, and a ironic threat to their "diversity" at worst. Of particular interest are some of the letters that Harry Aleo posted in his window (you can find them attached to the article on the left side). It is difficult to read about Harry and not feel a renewed sense of conviction, particularly in a place where the abundance of tolerance seems to stop at a differing opinion.

Newspaper Well “better late than never” is the theme of this week’s Aggregate. After tracking the popularity of the articles from last week, I can’t say that I’m too inspired to keep posting them. However, I’ve decided to give it another shot and see if last week’s articles were just not that interesting. Let me know what you guys think!

That said, here’s what I have for you this week:

1

Jones Resignation Deals Blow to Obama and the Left

Although the convenience of hindsight may have rendered the Van Jones resignation a buried story, the public is slowly becoming aware of the types of people that surround the president. From Jeremiah Wright to Bill Ayres to Van Jones, the old adage once again rings true: show me who your friends are, and I'll show you who you are.

2

Scanwiches

And now for something completely different - Scanwiches is a website which, in the most simplest of terms, takes sandwiches, cuts them in half, scans them as if they were this month's TPS report, and posts them online. They sometimes list the ingredients. Food for thought.

3

The Lessons from History on Health Care Reform

Just a quick look at how the über-left looks at history. My favorite quote is "it’s not so much that presidential economic advisers have been wrong — in fact, Medicare is well on its way to bankrupting the nation — but that they are typically in the business of thinking small and trying to minimize risk, while the herculean task of expanding health coverage entails great vision and large risk." Risk bankrupting the nation to cover less than 5% of people who can't afford health insurance? Sure. Why not.

4

The Hierarchy of Digital Distractions

Pretty much sums up my day to day struggles, with the iPhone trumping everything else. Push notifications, along with Instapaper, Google Reader, and Twitter have pretty much rendered the world inefficient at best.

5

If architects had to work like software & web developers

This is a letter written to an architect by a client detailing what he wants from the architect. A funny and well written read for anyone, including those of us who have tried to work for finicky clients, constantly changing their mind due to a fundamental lack of understanding of what they want.

Newspaper From crime research to terrorism, century-old photography to universal healthcare, this week’s Aggregate is truly a random collection of links from throughout the interweb.

I’ve modified the links a little bit to better understand what people are finding interesting among the articles in this series. Therefore, since you can’t see the sources of the links by mousing over them, I have added a [via …] to the end of each post indicating the source. Let me know if that’s helpful (or unnecessary). Also, I really appreciate all of the feedback people have given me on the articles – keep it coming – would love to hear what you guys think!

1

American Vice: Mapping the 7 Deadly Sins

This series of infographics plots the various sins by geographic area, clearly pointing out the most "devilish" as well as the most "saintly" places in America. The fascinating plots are the result of some crime research conducted at the Kansas State University, and I highly recommend you look at the graphic for Lust. What would you say is going on in Louisiana? [via Wired Magazine]

2

The Amazing Color Photography of Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii

The Library of Congress has on display a collection of color photographs by a Russian photographer named Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii. What is fascinating about these color photographs is that they were taken almost 100 years ago, with a clever photography technique. Although apparently my dad already knew about these, seeing them for the first time was quite eye-opening. [via Mike Industries]

3

How Team of Geeks Cracked Spy Trade

Far from the dark cobwebbed halls of Washington's intelligence agencies, a new team of young programmers are chasing terrorists from their lax Silicon Valley offices. These guys are truly innovating the industry, and the intelligence agencies are closely (and gratefully) cooperating. [via WSJ]

4

Incorrect conventional wisdom about health care reform

With Congress coming back into sesssion, Keith Hennessey dispels some of the misconceptions surrounding the healthcare debate. He provides some much needed context, as well as insider knowledge, to this evermore troubling piece of legislation. [via Keith Hennessey]

5

Labor Day and the American Dream

Since this week ends just as Labor Day begins, this Wall Street Journal article does due diligence to the laborers of America by highlighting the simple truth that college is not for everyone. The article discusses the alternatives to the four-year degree, and arrives at wise point that "arguably the most valuable skill in today's economy is the ability to learn new skills." [via WSJ]

Newspaper As hard as I tried to limit myself to my 5 most favorite articles to post this week, I simply couldn’t do it. This week’s Aggregate tackles some serious topics, with a little bit of humor thrown in for good measure.

I’d love to hear what you guys think of these articles (or any that you’ve seen here so far), so feel free to comment.

1

How American Health Care Killed My Father

Written in an intriguing Gladwell-esque style, this article from the Atlantic Monthly examines the flaws of our current healthcare system, and offers logical, practical, market-based solutions for healthcare reform. It's a lengthy read, but highly recommended. Although I doubt that all of the proposed solutions can be implemented, it is the essence of the author's approach which offers hope for a brighter (and healthier) tomorrow.

2

Defusing the Google Bomb

While the internet might have brought us closer together, and flattened the world as we once knew it, a series of lawsuits involving bloggers, celebrities, and a whole lot of libel has once again reminded us that the "free" in free speech, does not mean free of consequence.

3

A Conservative Manifesto

Mark Levin this week decided to post the epilogue to his best selling book Liberty & Tyranny. Having read the book and thoroughly enjoyed it, I found this epilogue to be a thorough structure for a lot of the principles I was brought up with, and currently believe.

4

Not So Fast: A Manifesto For Slow Communication

A nice follow up to the Google Bomb article above, this piece argues that our ability to communicate faster does not mean that we communicate better or more effectively. I didn't ever think I'd ever have any manifestos on my website, nevermind two, but both, albeit different, are quite interesting.

5

Toyota Will Shut California Plant in First Closure

Toyota is closing NUMMI, a GM joint-venture assembly plant in the Bay Area (I have actually visited it!). This closure is particularly important not only because it is the first plant closure in Toyota's 72-year history, but also because it is more evidence of just how anti-business California has really become. Grossly high tax rates, overbearing pollution laws, and unbelievably unrealistic labor requirements have just shut out the world's most efficient company, leaving 5400 people unemployed in an unforgiving economy.

6

Random thoughts from people 20-35 years old

On a more lighthearted note, this collection of 35 thoughts came from an email chain bouncing around offices worldwide. My favorite so far: "How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?" After doing some research, it turns out that this collection is actually taken from popular entries on a digg-type site called ruminations, which lets people submit their thoughts & vote for their favorites.

7

Kennedy's Seat Sparks Political Storm

Ted Kennedy's death this week has causes quite a political stir in Massachusetts, where apparently Democrats are trying to overturn a law they themselves passed requiring vacant senate seats to be filled by general election rather than gubernatorial appointment. Quite a turn of events, particularly in light of the healthcare debate facing the nation & congress when it resumes in September.

Newspaper This week’s entry was a little easier to write because I have create a simple form to enter the article titles, links, and description – all of the rest, including the formatting, is done automatically using custom fields. Yet another reason why WordPress is truly amazing.

There’s a bit of a focus on the healthcare issue this week, but next week I’ll try to post on some other important subjects too. I’m trying to limit myself to the 5 most interesting finds of the week, which is proving to be a challenge in and of itself. Enough delay, here goes:

1

U.S. tests system to break foreign Web censorship

Not sure why this didn't get more news coverage, but the very idea of it seems both liberating and, to pull a word out of the White House's vocabulary, fishy. Unfiltered access to the wide array of knowledge on the web has become the cornerstone to societal progress, and the pinnacle of free speech.

2

Advertising Bliss: Lego's New Ad Campaign

This new ad campaign for Legos pretty much sums up my childhood. Kids across the world have been building entire cities, expanding their imaginations piece by piece, brick by brick, and this marketing approach captures that very idea.

3

An Anesthesiologist's Take on Health-Care Reform

In the ongoing health care debate, it is the doctor's perspective which interests me. Not that of the AMA, not that of big pharma, but of regular doctors that are out there working. This article is by one such doctor, and highlights some of the concerns about the quality of medical care under the proposed socialized medicine, as well as the resulting diminished financial incentives for future & current doctors.

4

Six Simple Ways For Freelancers to Increase Productivity

As a PhD student, my schedule may most closely resemble that of freelancers or the self-employed. Smashing Magazine last week presented productivity tips for those out there who are their own worst boss.

5

John Mackey: The Whole Foods Alternative to ObamaCare

After trying to distance his views from those of his company (Whole Foods), John Mackey sets the record straight about his position in th health care debate. Grounded in the founding principles and the tenents of libertarianism, Mackey explains the alternative actions congress can take to reform our health care system without turning it into a muddied swamp of beaurocratic tangles. While the people of San Francisco may be boycotting Whole Foods for these very words, I'll gladly enjoy the shorter lines and concurring conscience.

Newspaper After mulling it over (and not posting for what seems like a lifetime), I have decided to start a new series of posts in this Journal portion of my site. The section will be published weekly, and will consist of a collection of articles, posts, and information that I have found interesting in the course of the previous week. This new section shall hereby be appropriately named The Aggregate. These posts will include minimal commentary (although your thoughts are very much appreciated and encouraged). Therefore, in this spirit of brevity, here’s the first Aggregate post.

1

Sex Americana: Infidelity is No Longer a Political Career-Killer

Instead of holding our leaders to a higher standard, we’ve merely lowered the bar. From the JFK to Clinton to Stanford and back, how much is what we’ve tolerated in the past setting standards for the future?

2

Dear Economist: The Readers Respond

In celebration of the release of his new book Dear Economist, Tim Harford checks in with those who wrote him letters to see the about the effects of his advice. For those that do not know, Tim Harford is an economist who, for the past six year, has responded from the economic perspective to “Dear Abby”-type letters. Very funny, and enlightening, all at the same time.

3

The Russian Economy and Russian Power

Stratfor’s George Friedman looks at Russia’s history in order to better understand its actions today. His analysis is both thorough as well as insightful, helping understand the lens through which Russia sees the world.

4

Ronald Reagan Speaks Out Against Socialized Medicine

Although I do not remember how I came about this clip, but this 1961 Reagan speech resonates as if it was written yesterday. While we’re on the subject, be sure to check out Reagan’s amazing response to Sam Donalson’s serious question.

5

The Economic Recovery: One Structural Engineer’s Take

One response to an off-topic discussion on the Structural Engineers Association International listserv. Written by Bill Polhemus, the post careful outlines the problem with our current so called “economic recovery,” and explains exactly why the Republicans deserved everything they lost in 2006 and 2008.

[The Aggregate] Week of November 30th, 2009

December 7th, 2009

[The Aggregate] Week of November 9th, 2009

November 16th, 2009

[The Aggregate] Week of October 5th, 2009

October 12th, 2009

[The Aggregate] Week of September 14th, 2009

September 20th, 2009

[The Aggregate] Week of September 7th, 2009

September 16th, 2009

[The Aggregate] Week of August 31st, 2009

September 7th, 2009

[The Aggregate] Week of August 24th, 2009

August 30th, 2009

[The Aggregate] Week of August 17th, 2009

August 24th, 2009

[The Aggregate] Week of August 10th, 2009

August 18th, 2009