Sunday, December 2, 2012

Oddly Relevant Dec-2-2012


IDC’s top 10 predictions for 2013: (1) The surge of mini tablets, (2) Failure of MSFT and RIMM to capture app developers will lead to the beginning of their demise, (3) Samsung will explore OS alternatives besides Android. (4) >$25bn  in acquisition in cloud service industry. (5) Explosion of PaaS, (6) trend toward industry-specific solutions, (7) Predictive analytics to be a hot spot for big data growth, (8) BYOID will bring consumerization to enterprise security, (9) More acquisitions in social software market, (10) datacenter technologies will show explosive growth. Source: http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/home/permalink/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsLang=en&newsId=20121129005401&div=1853316792

Possibility of Human Evolution Enters an Exciting New Phase: Thanks to the explosive population growth, (1) our species’ cumulative genetic variation (i.e. mutated genes that make differences possible) mushroomed and (2) natural selection has not caught up yet (probably thanks to gazillion-fold increase in productivity). As a result? We are more “evolvable” than ever. The genetic seeds of exceptional traits, such as endurance or strength or innate intelligence, as well as harmful traits, may now be circulating in humanity more than ever before. [Note: Discerning the kinds of selection pressure that are/will be acting on us is not as simple as it might seem, and it has nothing to do directly with social values of political bent.]…Source: http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/11/recent-human-evolution-2?cid=4743134

The big data fallacy: data=/=information=/=insight: The value of any data is only as valuable as the information and insights we can extract from it. It is the information and insights that will help us make better decisions and give us a competitive edge. The promise of big data is that one could glean lots of information and gain many valuable insights. However, people often don’t realize that data and information are not the same. Even if you are able to extract information from your big data, not all of it will be insightful and valuable. [Note: recognition of underlying patterns, logic flows, and laws has always been a rare talent. The access to more information will only make the job of the wise easier.]…Source: http://techcrunch.com/2012/11/25/the-big-data-fallacy-data-%E2%89%A0-information-%E2%89%A0-insights/

How the tax burden has changed for the US people in the past 30 years: Average tax rates have fallen for most Americans, especially high earners mainly due to (1) big drop in federal income tax, (2) higher payroll, state, and local taxes (less so for the affluent), and (3) flat to declining corporate tax burden. The affluent households are earning more (and thus paying more), but the distribution of the tax burden has become less progressive. [Note: A MUST-READ, very intuitive charting]…Source: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/11/30/us/tax-burden.html?ref=us

The full capitalization of UFC lies ahead, as challenges await: Signing an unprecedented $700mm prime-time deal with Fox and with annual revenue approaching $600mm, UFC is at a critical juncture of growth—(1) whether it could join the country's major sports leagues--an ascension fueled by big profits, network TV acceptance, and aggressive international expansion. Or (2) it could mismanage its growth--by fatiguing fans with too many events, failing to resolve labor tensions with fighters, or simply overreaching. Nonetheless, by introducing better rules, education, & advertisement and carefully promoting a star-interaction culture, the inherently electrifying UFC has a serious shot in dethroning soccer, basketball, and other “old” sports. [Note: UFC plays very well with the current health trend, but I think it needs to be less event-driven and more professional looking]…Source: http://www.fastcompany.com/3002947/ufc-tries-prove-its-capable-knockout

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