Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?
My friends: Alistair Croll (BitCurrent, Rednod, GigaOM, Human 2.0, the author of Complete Web Monitoring and Managing Bandwidth: Deploying QOS in Enterprise Networks), Hugh McGuire (The Book Oven, LibriVox, iambik, Media Hacks) and I decided that every week or so the three of us are going to share one link for each other (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person "must see".
Check out these six links that we’re recommending to one another:
- America’s dish detergent wars – Guardian UK. "This piece in The Atlantic looks at how government bans on phosphate detergent – which we know choke waterways and destroy ecosystems – have become a lightning rod for stubborn libertarians, who see the ban on them as simply another freedom destroyed. As author Amanda Marcotte points out, it’s an object lesson in bipartisan politics and the influence paranoia has on political discourse". (Alistair for Hugh).
- Flash Ad: BMW Burns Logo onto Cinema-Goers’ Eyes – Wired. "I considered a bunch of heavy links this week, including a great discussion of why Assange is doing what he is, or a tirade about Zuckerberg being the man of the year. In the end, I decided for something a bit lighter: BMW pushed the envelope (and ethics) of advertising with this unconventional movie trailer that literally burned its logo into the unsuspecting audience’s retinas. It’s an interesting technique – but it made me step back and think about the ways NLP, targeted messages, and a life lived in front of a screen makes us easy to manipulate." (Alistair for Mitch).
- Zebra Imaging Creates 3-D Holographic Maps, Glasses Not Required [Video] – Fast Company Design. "Oh, Hi there Future! I didn’t realize you’d arrived already. Now, where’s that darned droid?" (Hugh for Alistair).
- Locksmiths – Dan Ariely. "Dan Ariely reports on a locksmith who, when an apprentice, took a long time to do his work, broke lots of locks, so he had to charge extra. Results: tips and no complaints. Now that he’s more skilled, he fixes locks quicker, and doesn’t break them. Result: no tips, and lots of complaints. Ariely speculates that we are often more willing to pay for people’s effort, than for results. So: should we give worse service and charge more? Probably not, but especially on the internet – it’s worth thinking about how we do or don’t charge for things, and why." (Hugh for Mitch).
- Predictive Modeling Isn’t Magic – Technology Review. "Some people think that predictive modeling can’t possibly work, but what if there was science, mathematics and logic behind it? So, the bigger question becomes: can we predict the future. This article says we can… and already are." (Mitch for Alistair).
- Marketers Test Ads In E-Books – The Wall Street Journal. "I suspect that if we can ever pull another episode of Media Hacks together (it’s like herding cats) that this would be a worthwhile topic to discuss and debate. Ads in books. Imagine that. On one hand, us Marketers are constantly looking for another place to shove an ad in front of a mass and captive audience. On the other hand, there is a sanctity in books that has never really been broached by ads. So what happens when Marketers shove those ads into e-books… a new format?" (Mitch for Hugh).
Now it’s your turn: in the comment section below pick one thing that you saw this week that inspired you and share it.