Google's Project Wing

Google does it again! Now they are pushing the envelop in finding new ways to distribute goods using unmanned drones.

Coming from a developing country with over 7,100 islands, I can say that this type of technology will definitely have a positive impact. At the basic level, imagine delivering emergency relief goods to areas affected by natural calamities possibly hours just after the said calamity has left the area. With roads and airports possibly not usable after severe calamities, this technology will be life saving.

Is the iWatch Finally Here?

Invitations to their September 9 event were sent out yesterday by Apple to members of the press with the cryptic message "Wish we could say more" leading to speculation as to what they will be announcing.

Link to article from Forbes here

Plenty of people are expecting the announcement of the new iPhone 6 but quite a few are also speculating that Apple may finally be ready to unveil the much speculated and talked about Apple watch called "iWatch".

Facebook and Click-baiting

It was announced by Facebook last August 25 that they are taking steps to improve the News Feed of its users by reducing the number of headlines that trick users into clicking on them by having incomplete information or cliff-hanger type of headlines (also called click-baiting).

First off, why do websites do click-baiting? For one, some websites use this as a strategy to increase traffic count to their websites. The cliff-hanging and incomplete headlines normally encourage a user to want to read more. Increased traffic to the said website can translate to more advertising revenue if the user also ends up clicking on an ad unit while on the said website. Also, more clicks on Facebook meant the content is kept on the News Feed for a longer period of time, thus encouraging even more people to click on it. In a way, this type of click-baiting post exploited the existing Facebook algorithm by keeping a piece of news/content artificially relevant and in the News Feed without spending for advertising. 

Facebook is using a two pronged strategy to put an end to this practice.

Case Study Method

As I'm 2/3 done with my MBA from IE Business School (yey!), I thought it would be a good time to share some thoughts on the experience so far. I'd like to focus on the main method of teaching that the MBA course used: the case study method.

So far, I've really enjoyed the case study method of teaching. I'm not sure whether Philippine universities today use more of this method, but I don't recall having too many case studies when I was enrolled as an undergrad in Ateneo. If that's still the case, I hope that it changes in the near future.

Link to the IE Business School website here for more information

Pope Francis, the CEO

I brought along the latest copy of Fortune while waiting in line at the US Embassy this morning and the cover story just so happened to be on Pope Francis.

Link to the original Fortune article here

Pope Francis has fascinated me since he became Pope in 2013. His charismatic and humble presence has renewed the faith of so many people. The article itself  talks mainly about how Pope Francis has changed the way the Vatican's finances are run. Like a great leader, he has led and inspired change within the Catholic Church. He has openly embraced and turned to outsiders and professionals instead of the traditional Church elites. He also does not micromanage them and instead has become a "inspirational leader".

Uber's The Corner Store

I stumbled upon the news of Uber's launch of a same-day grocery delivery service called The Corner Store (available only in Washington DC for now) and couldn't help but feel amazed at how this start-up, valued at $18B, continues to push the envelope and challenge conventional business models.

Link to the news article from BBC here

Trying Out Eric Kayser

We found ourselves in Greenhills this morning before most of the stores opened. We walked around and found ourselves trying the newly opened Eric Kayser Patisserie in Promenade.

We got the kids an eclair each, vanilla (P135) for Kyle and chocolate (P125) from Ashley. I'm not really a food expert, but judging from the way they "ravaged" through both eclairs and how Kyle wanted another piece (a request we declined), I have to say that it was pretty good.

Their breads looked good (you could point out and choose what you wanted while in line) and they also had sandwiches on their menu which could be ordered before paying. The place is quite small though so I can imagine that it can get easily filled during peak hours.

I look forward to visiting again soon to try their other goodies.

Play Time with Lego

My wife and I have always encouraged our kids to play using their imagination. At home, we limit their time spent watching TV. They also don't have any game consules or tablets.

The result? Our kids love playing with physical toys like Lego blocks. We started with Duplo blocks and then graduated to more and more complex Lego sets. My wife and I sit down with them to build the sets as it can get difficult for them to follow the instructions.

Reboot

It's 2014. And I've decided to reboot this blog.

I've had a grand total of two posts in the past 32 months so there's not much to reboot anyway.

Many things have changed. Hopefully, this time this sticks.