Twenty-five links to podcasts from this digest are found in two formats here and here.
Printing Solar Cells 58 mins – This is a 2008 item about new energy technologies and how they will be affected by an economy in credit crisis. The speaker is associated with Nano solar that is printing solar cells. He advises entrepreneurs that IT, bioengineering and energy issues are the current long waves to ride. US innovation is centered in ten to twelve learning centers, a phenomenon peculiar to this country. We now have a life style disease that is the cause of obesity which needs to be addressed. We we presently deal with disease using trial-and-error-treatments instead of individualizing it. Bioengineering can correct this and is a major reason for applying engineering to biology. In 1996 the speaker started the first entrepreneurship class at Stanford sixteen years ago, about eight years before presentations began appearing on the internet.
Big and Small Entrepreneurship 57 mins – Polly Sumner is interviewed about entrepreneurship that occurs in both large and small companies. Innovation and risk-taking occur in any-sized company where the culture emphasizes “no idea is a dumb idea.” Sumner advises young entrepreneurs not to fear risk: every failure teaches you a valuable lesson, and once learned, success is that much sweeter.
Entrepreneurial Skills 62 mins – JOYUS Founder Sukhinder Singh Cassidy says entrepreneurs should leverage trademark strengths and lean in all the way when it’s time to deliver. In this lecture he explores concepts such as defining operational range, operating at different levels of organizations, testing ideas with trial runs, ownership, using data to support gut beliefs, and developing big ideas that teams and customers can rally around. Older woman with lots of experience now exist in places like Google and entrepreneurship is possible in such large companies. Testing ideas by trial runs. Empathy is essential to working with others.
Public vs Private Entrepreneurs 60 mins – Former California State Senator Jackie Speier shares engaging stories about taking risks, learning from failure, overcoming adversity, and challenging the status quo based on her extensive leadership experience. She was shot six times during a visit to Jonestown in 1978 to rescue people. She’s a businesswoman, politician, and single mom who has faced difficult personal challenges. Her favorite phrase is “What would you do if you knew you could not fail.” She describes private versus public sector responsibilities and the impact of male culture in business world. Place pointer on “Podcast”, right click “Download MP3” then “Save File As…”
Commercial Radio 64 mins – Discussion amongst broadcast radio professionals about radio usage stats, on and off line; CD use, history, transmitters, interactivity (text to radio station). Engineers – people who did for radio what bio engineers are doing for medicine. Audio vs video. National Association of Broadcasters where new technology and ideas are presented has an annual convention and is the voice for the nation’s radio and television broadcasters.
Pakistan’s Economy at a Crossroads 63 mins – A Conversation with Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Finance Minister of Pakistan about the economic future of his country and the steps taken by Pakistan to overcome the challenges among other issues crucial to the future of his country. Tedious 15 minute introduction, then 15 minutes by the minister followed by several questions from the host. The last third of the time seven audience members ask about fifteen questions. The IMF, infrastructure improvement, international relationships, decentralization of government, female education and literacy (good answer) are addressed.
Why Do People Do Bad Things 26 mins – On Planet Money 363 they talk to a man who started out as an upstanding businessman, and went on to commit bank fraud involving millions of dollars. It drove several companies out of business and resulted in the loss of around a hundred jobs. They try to figure out why he did it, and what it means for the rest of us.
Japanese Relocation 60 mins – In Selected Shorts episode, “Arrivals and Departures”, Freda Foh Shen performs Nahid Rachlin’s “Strangers in the House,” about Persians, and Julie Otsuka’s “Imagining” is performed by Jane Kaczmarek about the relocation of Japanese during WWII that’s reminiscent of holocaust victims. Find “Pcast_SS201129.mp3”, right click it and select “Save file As…” to download.
Suitcase Solar 35 mins – All over the world, reproductive health is suffering because of medical facilities with insufficient or unreliable power. Some mothers are turned away from as many as four or five facilities in a row because capacity is limited by issues like poor lighting and lack of blood storage. In this audio interview co-founders of WE CARE Solar, describe their effort to combat this issue worldwide. WE CARE stands for Women’s Emergency Communication and Reliable Electricity. They have advanced their distinctive “suitcase design” to a standalone, plug-and-play solar system that is already seeing use in medical facilities in Haiti and Africa. Right click “Download” and select “Save File as…” The product is also discussed in a video presented as part of an award series. Prices for it vary and a variety of sources/models exist, but the cheapest appears to be a $150 for a minimum order of five.
Are Women Better Investors? 3 mins – Yes they are, but just barely! At the link right-click “Download” and select “Save Link As” from the pop-up menu.
In Praise of Reason 15 mins – There is a lack of agreement nowadays on everything, so is there anything upon which agreement can be reached? “In recent years, skepticism about the practical value of reason has emerged even within the scientific academy. Many philosophers and psychologists claim that the reasons we give for our most deeply held views are often little more than rationalizations of our prior convictions. Praise of Reason gives us a counterargument. Although skeptical questions about reason have a deep and interesting history, they can be answered. In particular, appeals to scientific principles of rationality are part of the essential common currency of any civil democratic society. The idea that everything is arbitrary–that reason has no more weight than blind faith–undermines a key principle of a civil society: that we owe our fellow citizens explanations for what we do. Reason matters–not just for the noble ideal of truth, but for the everyday world in which we live.” Right click on “MITP Lynch.mp3” and select “Save File As…” A PDF “Democracy as a Space of Reasons” and a book, “In Praise of Reason” are also available.
Quinolones Hazard 32 mins – Puscast for April 1 to 15 notes that quinolones or fluoroquinolones have been blamed in some cases for retinal detachment. Dr Crislip extrapolates that as many as 1400 possible cases could occur in the USA. He also notes in this digest of reviewed literature that only one viral particle of Norovirus is needed to contract it, that there are six types of salmonella and that MRSA has been found in ambulances. Right click on “apra11.mp3”and select “Save File As…”
Human or Computer Control 52 mins – In “Humans Need Not Apply” intelligent, interactive machines out-perform humans in tasks beyond data-crunching. Find out why humans are hard-wired to be attached to androids. Also, the handful of areas where humans still rule… as pilots, doctors and journalists. Scratch that! Journalism is automated too – tune in for a news story written solely by a machine. Seven guest experts and specialists provide insight. And Ray Kurzweil adds insights. Surprisingly, nothing on the robot car. Find “Humans Need Not Apply”, right click on “BiPiSci12-04-16.mp3” and select “Save File As…”
Epigenetics: How Genes and Environment Interact 58 mins – “Human epidemiological and animal experimental data indicate that the risk of developing adult onset diseases and neurological disorders is influenced by persistent adaptations to prenatal and early postnatal environmental exposures. One group of epigenetically regulated genes that potentially links environmental exposures early in development to adult diseases are those with metastable epialleles. These genes have highly variable expression because of stochastic allelic changes in the epigenome rather than mutations in the genome. The viable yellow agouti (Avy) mouse harbors a metastable Agouti gene because of an upstream insertion of a transposable element. We have used the Avy mouse to investigate the importance of epigenetic alterations in determining adult disease risk in response to early developmental exposure to both chemical and physical agents. The importance these studies with regards to human health and disease will be discussed.” Radiation affects is a major topic towards the end. Right click “Play” in Podcast box at bottom of page and select “Save Target As…” to download audio file.
Synthetic DNA and RNA to build devices. 12 mins – It’s a forty minute digest. The first part deals with synthetic D/RNA. They are highly stable in the body, less affected by enzymes and pH in body. No other molecules in chemistry can store and propagate info like DNA. Tools to determine how this information is stored and what can be done with that open up areas of more and more divergent chemistry. Another segment, later, deals with Citrus Greening bacteria, a world-wide disease that is spreading in Florida and California. Psyllids spread it. It’s a slow disease but doubles the cost of growing oranges. Click the link will auto download the audio file.
LittleBit Circuits 5 mins – LittleBits are like concrete blocks or Leggos in the electronics world. They are magnetic linked circuits that form an open-source library of electronic modules that snap together with tiny magnets for prototyping and play. The modules lack variety, but hundreds of new module types have been suggested that will make the concept more useful, although the module prices are high unless used intensively.
Liquid-metal Batteries 15 mins – Donald Sadoway is working on a battery miracle — an inexpensive, incredibly efficient, three-layered battery using “liquid metal.” Three layers are used with magnesium on top, a salt layer next, and antimony on the bottom. The storage process produces heat and sustains it for the charging process. Two megawatt capacity can be placed on a tractor trailer.
Patent Trolls 7 mins – Drew Curtis, the founder of Fark.com.http://www.fark.com/, tells the story of how he fought a lawsuit from a company that had a patent, “…for the creation and distribution of news releases via email.” Along the way he shares some nutty statistics about the growing legal problem of frivolous patents.
Women’s Rights 7 mins – Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee has two powerful stories to tell — of her own life’s transformation, and of the untapped potential of girls around the world. Can we transform the world by unlocking the greatness of girls? She is a peace activist in Liberia who led a women’s movement that was pivotal in ending the Second Liberian Civil War in 2003, and now speaks on behalf of women and girls around the world.
Street Warriors 52 mins – In Barcelona about the 15 minute mark, for about five minutes a Colombian wages war on pickpockets after witnessing insulin being snatched from one victim. She patrols three hours a day for the last 3.5 years against organized pickpockets who have offered to pay her three to four thousand Euros protection if she would back off.
Cloud Storage Solutions 89 mins – On Security Now #349 Steve Gibson reviews twenty cloud storage solutions. Particulars for the solutions are given here. No single product was singled out because our requirements are so varied.
Film Making 57 mins – Acclaimed film and television producer Gale Anne Hurd knows what it takes to build a career from scratch in a tough industry. She describes her path from entry-level roles in the entertainment industry to becoming a leader in the Hollywood community, based on taking chances, making yourself indispensable and staying committed to what you love. She says nowadays any smart phone owner can make a movie and put it on YouTube. Sixteen directors have made films for less than $15,000 and one for about $400. The last ten minutes may be the most interesting.
Lucretius 54 and 62 mins – In 1417, a Renaissance book hunter rescued from the dustbin of obscurity the last known manuscript of On the Nature of Things by Lucretius that changed the world. It is a tale that the noted Shakespearean scholar Stephen Greenblatt takes up in his newest bestseller Swerve: How the World Became Modern. The chance discovery of the manuscript that day in a German monastery was one of those small but transformative events, Greenblatt argues, that inspire some of the greatest minds of the ensuing centuries. And to change the way we moderns live and think today. Two of many interviews are available in audio form. The first, from Canada, here, lasts for 54 minutes and is downloaded by locating “The Swerve, right clicking the download options and selecting “Save Link As”. The second at 64 minutes is very slow moving and only becomes as interesting as the first one half way through, but can be downloaded here.
The 110 feeds used to prepare this weekly blog are gathered using Feedreader3 and are available as an opm file at Google Docs. Free Commander is used to compare old and new downloads to remove duplicates. MP3SpeedChanger is used to change playback speed of multiple files as a batch.
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Media Mining Digest 