Recently read books

Here is a partial list of books that I've read recently:

Words That Work: It's Not What You Say, It's What People Hear by Frank Luntz
Advertising for Dummies by Gary R. Dahl
Small Business Marketing for Dummies by Barbara Findlay Schenck
Jump Start Your Business Brain by Doug Hall
Showcase Presents: Batman and the Outsiders by Mike W. Barr et al

Another 'streak' of arrogance

Three years ago, I commented on a certain message board poster. She was arrogant and intolerant beyond belief of differing opinions. She also attempted to shut down anybody who disagreed with her, and she appeared to be immune to civil discourse. Yeah, she was a real piece of work.

For a while, she appeared to have simmered down. In recent months though, I've seen her old persona slip through again. I wonder if she ever truly changed at all.

It looks like she's really hit the fan again. In a current discussion, she's been hurling considerable vitriol at anybody who deigned to voice criticism -- even polite, civil criticism -- of a certain amateur TV script. People tried to explain that dissecting a writer's work is simply part of the normal editorial review process. Frankly though, such explanations should not have been necessary; after all, this is common knowledge.

I really liked what one of the more civil participants in this discussion said. Here is a sampling:

"Ruby, before I do the point by point thing, a serious question: has it
ever occurred to you that anyone, ever, might know more about literally anything
that you do? Because the breadth of subjects on which you claim expertise is
astounding."

"It is not the fact that you disagree with me that brands you an inadequate
judge. It is the fact that you can brook no disagreement with your opinion, and
have no ability to incorporate the knowledge of those with experience in the
field in question. An adequate judge would consider experienced and trained
opinions, give them weight, use them to add nuance and color to the opinions
they already have. You read a line of Dio's dialogue and say, "I think that's
great," and someone else - someone who evaluates scripts for a living (once
again, I'm referring to others in this thread) - comes in and says that X, Y,
and Z are problematic, and your response is to stick your fingers in your ears
and attack him for daring to speak. Thus does your arrogance make you an
inadequate critic, because a decent critic is capable of learning from others;
you're too certain that you know more about everyf***ingthing than everyone else
in the world to be in any danger of learning from anyone."

"And what you're refusing to address is that the people who've posted
opinions closer to mine than to yours - ie, relatively critical opinions - have
been reasonably nice about it, within the limits of how nice it's possible to be
when submitting criticism. You, on the other hand, blasted the living fuck out
of Pochacco for having the temerity to do something other than tell Diogenes how
wonderful his script is."

I get the feeling that Rubystreak can be a pretty decent person in some respects. She needs to learn how to tolerate differences in viewpoint though, and to avoid shouting down the people who disagree with her. I voiced the same observation in a previous blog posting, and so I don't think this is an unfair evaluation.

A membrane mounting system

This product announcement discusses a rather nifty system for mounting, sealing, and preserving microtiter plate membranes. I'm familiar with the hardware and techniques used, and trust me, it's a thing of beauty. It's a terrific example of finding an elegant solution that solves multiple problems at once. It provides a terrific way to protect optical patterns formed within the membranes, seal them from the elements, mount them on a flat and optically clear surface, and store them in a highly compact manner.

The way this system works with its matching plate reader is also truly magnificent.

The best engineering solutions solve multiple problems using minimal cost and a minimal number of steps and components. I daresay that it would be nigh impossible to develop a better solution that the system described in this article. I can't divulge the technical details, but trust me -- to anyone who's knowledgeable in this field, it just overflows with elegance.

I know that one other company developed a different technique for solving this problem. Suffice to say that it's a clumsy approach, and one that's practically doomed to fail, thanks to the laws of physics. Knowing something about material properties and material compliance can be truly helpful.

The old SuperFriends

I've been on a nostalgia kick, catching old episodes of the original SuperFriends show on Boomerang. A lot of people disparage the show, due to its annoying powerless junior SuperFriends (Wendy, Marvin, Wonderdog). I think that's an unfair assessment though, due to the reasons given in this article on the SuperFriends.

I was impressed at the way Aquaman was depicted as a thinking man's hero. In one episode, he was the one who figured out that a certain famous scientist/engineer had most likely faked his own death. He often used his brains to solve problems, rather than simply using his marine telepathy to call for help. And of course, his vast knowledge of marine phenomena was also of immense help.

Robin was likewise shown to be a thinking hero. He worked his way into Dr. Shamon's hideout, for example, and demonstrated his own deductive abilities. He was not just some kid who took orders from the Bat, whipping out whatever Bat-gadget would help save the day. (I hated that!)

Now that's a clever name

I came across the following name for a chimney sweep company recently: Chimney Cricket. Now that's a clever name. Dick van Dyke would have been proud.

Personally though, I wouldn't use their services unless I had some quotations which showed that their prices were comparable to those of other companies. A clever name can be attention-getting, but one should avoid making it the primary factor in choosing a company.

Ten Secrets of a Master Networker

These are from an article by Keith Ferrazzi:

Rule 1: Don't network just to network.

Rule 2: Take names.

Rule 3: Build it before you need it.

Rule 4: Never eat alone.

Rule 5: Be interesting.

Rule 6: Manage the gatekeeper. Artfully.

Rule 7: Always ask.

Rule 8: Don't keep score.

Rule 9: Ping constantly.

Rule 10: Find anchor tenants. Feed them.