Articles
Microsoft’s Satya Nadella on Flexible Work, the Metaverse, and the Power of Empathy
HBR editor in chief Adi Ignatius interviewed the Microsoft CEO to discuss what team collaboration will look like going forward, the next generation of workplace technology, the new imperatives of leadership — and whether and when our future workplaces will in fact start to look like the “metaverse” fantasies of science fiction.
10 Lessons From the Legacy of Apple’s Steve Jobs
Embrace multidisciplinary perspectives and focus on design are a few
Oct 2021 marks the 10th anniversary of the passing of Steve Jobs, a tireless tech visionary, an extraordinary innovator, and the cofounder of Apple.
Jobs's innovations made a profound impact. He redefined computing, enhancing the user experience, and created products and services loved by millions around the world. He reshaped the music industry with the iPod, the mobile phone industry with the iPhone, and the movie industry with Pixar Animation Studios. He also transformed the publishing industry with iBooks and media subscription services.
https://spectrum.ieee.org/10-lessons-from-steve-jobs
The ultimate guide to cybersecurity planning for businesses
This in-depth cybersecurity planning guide provides information and advice to help organizations develop a successful strategy to protect their IT systems from attacks.
This comprehensive guide to cybersecurity planning explains what cybersecurity is, why it's important to organizations, its business benefits and the challenges that cybersecurity teams face. You'll also find an overview of cybersecurity tools, plus information on different types of cyber attacks, cybersecurity best practices, developing a solid cybersecurity plan and more. Throughout the guide, there are hyperlinks to related TechTarget articles that cover the topics more deeply and offer insight and expert advice on cybersecurity efforts.
https://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/The-ultimate-guide-to-cybersecurity-planning-for-businesses
Surge in Ransomware and 10 Biggest Attacks in 2021
Ransomware attacks have increased alarmingly in 2021. No industry is safe from this malicious act, and every computer file is at risk of being encrypted.
As security practitioners have come to learn, ransomware is a type of malicious software created to block access to a computer system until a sum of money is paid – basically, the act of holding your files or computer hostage, and it is only released once the ransom is paid. In the data shown by BlackFog, you can see this year’s steady growth of ransomware attacks compared to last year’s monthly attacks.
To shed further insight on the gravity of the evolving ransomware threat, let’s look at 10 major attacks that happened this year before we explore ways to defend against this growing menace.
NFTs Are Swallowing Up All of the Internet Memes
Also, internet is no longer free the way it used to be.
The global NFT market is currently estimated to have a valuation of around $14 billion. Digital artworks, photos, memes, videos, in-game items, and god knows what else is being sold and bought as NFTs. This blockchain-based system has introduced a new concept of ownership, and now anybody can own almost anything in the form of a digital token.
However, this digital ownership which is sometimes described as a ‘meme gold rush’ is also believed to affect the unrestricted availability of memes, images, and other digital items. Recently, the popular YouTube video “Charlie Bit My Finger” was bought as an NFT by a user named 3fmusic for $760,999 in an online auction, but soon after the deal, the original video was removed from YouTube (duplicate copies are still there), and this is just one of the many examples of how non-fungible token deals affect the "free" market of the internet.
https://interestingengineering.com/nfts-are-swallowing-up-all-of-the-internet-memes
What is Deign Thinking
Customer-centric design is about looking out from the inside—rather than outside in.
Today’s organizations face multifaceted problems that are part of increasingly complex business models. Continued expansion of global transactions, supported by partnerships that can span large ecosystems, create unique opportunities and unique challenges for businesses.
These challenges demand multidimensional solutions and require more than just basic applications of current products and services. This is where design thinking comes into play. By applying this framework, organizations can not only address everyday business problems and challenges but also gain a competitive edge.
To stay relevant, companies must innovate without disruption to drive growth and profitability. As Tim Brown, CEO of the design and innovation firm IDEO, puts it in a Forbes.com interview, “Design thinking is all about upgrading within constraints.”
What Is Design Thinking: In its simplest form, design thinking is a process—applicable to all walks of life—of creating new and innovative ideas and solving problems. It is not limited to a specific industry or area of expertise.
DESIGN THINKING SERIES is a compilation of following six articles for which the links are available at the end of this post.
What Is Design Thinking?
Competing On Design Thinking
An Obsession With Customer-Centric Innovation
The Art & Science of Customer Empathy
Innovation With Design Thinking Demands Critical Thinking
Design Thinking Is About Integrated Solutions
https://www.forbes.com/sites/sap/2015/05/10/what-is-design-thinking/
UI & UX micro-tips: Volume nine
A collection of handy tips to help improve your designs instantly
When creating efficient, accessible, and beautiful UIs, it takes only the smallest tweaks to improve your designs.
In this follow-up article I’ve brought you another selection of easy to put into practice UI & UX micro-tips.
Tips that can, with little effort, help improve both your designs, and the user experience.
The links to earlier 8 articles are available in this post
https://www.marcandrew.me/ui-ux-micro-tips-volume-nine/
FOSS Tools Alternatives
Below is a (non-exhaustive) list of FOSS alternatives to various proprietary packages compiled by the Computer Center of Indian Institute of Technology Bombay
http://sedemos.blogspot.com/2021/10/foss-tools-alternatives.html
Karnataka Open Educational Resources
The Karnataka Open Educational Resources (KOER) portal is an OER repository with collaborative resource creation by the teachers, of the teachers and for the teachers from Karnataka. The portal seeks to bring together teachers, students, schools and institutions in Karnataka to share their experiences and resources. The KOER is also available in Kannada.
KOER began as an initiative to publish all the resources being shared by the teachers in the Subject Teacher Forum mailing lists. All content created and uploaded on KOER is licensed as OER using the CC BY SA Creative Commons license. KOER is a collaborative platform, curating resources shared by teachers on the Subject Teacher Forum mailing lists, resources created and shared by other organizations as well as from the world wide web to make a resource repository relevant to the teachers of the state of Karnataka.
https://karnatakaeducation.org.in/KOER/en/index.php/Main_Page
Inspire Kids to Study STEM with These Educational Resources
Careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics are on the rise around the world. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, STEM careers were expected to grow by nearly 9 percent between 2017 and 2029. The Economic Times reported that India experienced a 44 percent increase in STEM jobs from 2016 to 2019. The Danish Technological Institute estimated that the European STEM labor market would grow by 12.1 percent from 2013 to 2025.
It is crucial to teach preuniversity students about the potential of STEM careers through outreach programs. To help increase the number of qualified professionals, IEEE has created the IEEE Pre-University Volunteer STEM Portal.
This new portal includes best practices, programs, and events
50 Years of Gaming History, by Revenue Stream (1970-2020)
Every year it feels like the gaming industry sees the same stories—record sales, unfathomable market reach, and questions of how much higher the market can go.
We’re already far past the point of gaming being the biggest earning media sector, with an estimated $165 billion revenue generated in 2020.
But as our graphic above helps illustrate, it’s important to break down shifting growth within the market. Research from Pelham Smithers shows that while the tidal wave of gaming has only continued to swell, the driving factors have shifted over the course of gaming history.
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/50-years-gaming-history-revenue-stream/
Office Machines, Forerunners of the Computer
In our modern age of pervasive personal computers and smartphones, it can be difficult to remember what life was like before those technologies, even for those of us who worked in an office “back then.” Here we take a quick illustrated trip through the evolution of office machines.
https://americanbusinesshistory.org/office-machines-forerunners-of-the-computer/
Jim Casey: The Unknown Entrepreneur Who Built The Great UPS
These days the news and chatter on the Internet are filled with stories of Apple, Amazon, Google, and Facebook. In this environment, it can be easy to forget or take for granted the other great enterprises that make the world go ’round.
On August 28, 1907, nineteen-year-old James Emmett “Jim” Casey and his friend Claude Ryan borrowed $100 and founded the American Messenger Company in a six-foot by seven-foot basement office below a Seattle saloon. They hired six boys to deliver telegraph and other messages throughout Seattle and run errands for people. Nine competing messenger services already existed in booming Seattle, America’s closest port to Asia and gateway to the riches of Alaska and the Yukon.
From those humble beginnings sprang United Parcel Service, known today as just “UPS,” the world’s largest and most valuable transportation company. In 2017, the company delivered over 5 billion packages to 220 countries. UPS is one of the world’s largest (and best) non-government employers, with 454,000 employees.
Yet few know the name of Jim Casey, and not enough of us know the amazing story of the creation and rise of UPS. Here is the remarkable story of a man, his obsession, and his legacy.
https://americanbusinesshistory.org/jim-casey-the-unknown-entrepreneur-who-built-the-great-ups/
We still know what you’re reading this summer
McKinsey’s annual reading list is back for 2021.
The world has changed in ways we couldn’t imagine. And more than halfway into 2021, societies, leaders, and organizations are still grappling with all that’s happened—and the uncertainties of what’s to come. This year, either we’re trying to come to grips with our new realities, or we’re seeking respite from them. It’s perhaps unsurprising, then, that—among the 100-plus books shared by more than 40 leaders and personalities with McKinsey Global Publishing’s Raju Narisetti—the most robust categories are fiction, history, and politics.
https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/we-still-know-what-you-are-reading-this-summer
The Guidelines for Comprehensive Sexuality Education
The guidelines, developed by a national task force of experts in the fields of adolescent development, health care, and education, provide a framework of the key concepts topics, and messages that all sexuality education programs would ideally include.
https://siecus.org/resources/the-guidelines/
eBook: Be Smart Be Prepared Disaster Survival Guide
The frequency and intensity of disasters are increasing the world over. These can lead to colossal human and economic losses. Awareness is key to minimising these losses.
Some disasters strike without warning, others give ample lead time for preparedness. Whatever the case may be, an understanding of things one should or should not do before, during and after a disaster can spell the difference between safety and risk.
This book aims to empower the citizens with the right knowledge to judiciously deal with crisis situations. It gathers even more importance in the context of Climate Change and increasing incidents of extreme weather events.
Every home and office should have functional first aid and emergency survival kits, clearly marked evacuations plans and emergency phone numbers. Everyone should be trained to use these aids efficiently during an emergency.
These Do’s and Don’ts have been prepared after a series of consultations among experts and other stakeholders. While care has been taken to make these comprehensive, Do’s and Don’ts for disasters are dynamic in nature and change according to latest innovations and technological developments. We hope that this book helps generate deeper interest and better preparedness among the individuals, families and communities.
https://ndma.gov.in/sites/default/files/PDF/pocketbook-do-dont.pdf
Video: The Many Intricacies of Microsoft's Underwater Data Centers
The firm is submerging its data centers to keep them cool.
Slowly but surely, everything is moving to the cloud making our data more accessible and secure. But as we make this move, we start to need increasingly more data centers. Ideally, these servers will also be as close as possible to their users for super-fast access and powered by clean energy for the sake of our environment.
This has led Microsoft to try installing data centers on the ocean floor.
Microsoft’s first test of the concept was Project Natick, a data center that was submerged in the Northern Isles back in 2018. It is located in the Pacific Ocean, just off the coast of Scotland’s Orkney Islands.
https://interestingengineering.com/video/the-many-intricacies-of-microsofts-underwater-data-centers
The Brain Doesn’t Think the Way You Think It Does
Familiar categories of mental functions such as perception, memory and attention reflect our experience of ourselves, but they are misleading about how the brain works. More revealing approaches are emerging.
https://www.quantamagazine.org/mental-phenomena-dont-map-into-the-brain-as-expected-20210824/
COP26 climate summit: A scientists’ guide to a momentous meeting
Despite 30 years of climate diplomacy, urgent and aggressive action is needed to halt global warming. Nature explains what success looks like, and what’s on the line.
A scientists’ guide to COP26: Some 20,000 people will soon converge in Glasgow, UK, for the most anticipated United Nations climate summit in years. Researchers have been warning about the dire and increasing impacts of global warming for more than three decades — and for some, the meeting represents one final opportunity for world leaders to craft a collective plan to meet their climate goals. This immersive explainer explores what’s on the line at COP26 and takes stock of scientists’ hopes and fears for the meeting.
https://www.nature.com/immersive/d41586-021-02815-w/index.html
33 Small, Nice Things to Do When Your Relationship Feels Distanced
We’ve all been there at one time or another. Something is…just a bit off in your relationship. You can feel it. No, this isn’t a lets-draw-up-the-divorce-papers scenario. But there’s a palpable sense of distance and disconnection. Maybe it’s due to a sudden change in schedules. Maybe it’s because every day feels the same and you’ve both fallen into a little bit of a funk. Maybe it’s something else entirely. Whatever the case, you’ve noticed that your relationship feels distanced and want to take some steps to close that space. Good for you. Here, then, are a variety of small, nice things to do if you feel disconnected from your partner. Will they all work for you? No, but each requires effort. And effort is what’s needed to make a change.
https://www.fatherly.com/love-money/feel-disconnected-in-relationship-small-nice-things/
IRAI Quiz -- 211101
1. Infosys Narayamurthy's first venture was a consulting firm called ------------- which didn't last very long and was closed down in one and a half years time.
2. A ----------- phone is an inexpensive mobile phone that is designed for temporary use, after which it may be discarded.
3. The first-ever Google Doodle was made in honor of the --------- (Holloween / Burning Man) Festival of 1998.
4. On 1st Oct 2021 Google paid tribute on the 93rd birthday of the legandary actor --------- with a Doodle
5. Which IT startup's IPO is touted to be India’s largest market debut at a consideration bof Rs. 18300 crores.
6. Google: Alphabet = Facebook : -------------
7. The focus of the movie "Free Guy" is on -------------
8. Who are the couple: Paul and Clara
9. The first documented Ransomware was created by a --------------- (Computer Science Student / Biologist)
10. While a classical application (App) are supported by a centralised database, a -------- is supported by a smart contract that is connected to a blockchain
Forthcoming Events
13th Nov 2021 at 6 pm IST. Webinar on "The Future of Mobility: Convergence of Electric, Connected and Autonomous Vehicles" by Dr. Shankar Venugopal, Vice President, Technology Innovation, Mahindra & Mahindra & Mr. S. Ramachandran, Lead for Manufacturing and Engineering, Infosys Knowledge Institute. Register at https://bit.ly/3iI0E4p
27th Nov 2021 at 6 pm IST. Webinar on "IPv6 Migration: Need, Issues and Process" by Dr. Mohit P Tahiliani, Asst. Prof. Dept. of CSE, NITK Surathkal, Ms. Nalini Elkins, President, INTC, CEO, Inside Products, Inc., & Mr. Dhruv Dhody, President, IIESoc. Register at https://bit.ly/3BqYvl2
Other events in Nov 2021: https://bit.ly/3mnU4kG
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nft memes Thanks to non-fungible tokens (NFTs), memes have recently turned into something no one ever really expected: assets that anyone can own.
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