Did you know that as of 2005, only 15 percent of the world was mapped? Google’s Lalitesh Katragadda thinks we can do better. Not having detailed maps in the developing world slows the delivery of aid after a disaster and hides the economic potential of unused lands and unknown roads. Said another way, access to better information yields better results and vice versa, especially when the timeliness of that information is critical. In the short talk below, Lalitesh demos Map Maker, a group map-making tool that people around the globe are using to map their world. Inspiring stuff that highlights just one more instance where individuals can use technology to better the world and make a difference.
Also, for those of you interested, Fast company wrote a great piece a few days ago on how critical Google Maps were to the aid effort in Haiti last week and put up a slide show of how Google maps could be used to gather information in the midst of the crisis.
We’ve got a talent problem. We’ve got too many brilliant marketers getting us to love stuff. Somehow they’ve gotten us to buy into this formula: bigger, better, shinier, more expensive stuff = self-esteem. Being the self-esteem seeking creatures that we are, we consume gratefully. The issue is that it’s not doing us much good.
In Small Is The New Big, Seth Godin points out exactly why the side effects of great branding is a problem that needs fixing, and why we should worry that (as he puts it) “the unintended consequences of excellent branding…is one of the great tragedies of [the marketing] profession”. He says -
I think when traditional marketers talk about “brand”, self-esteem value is what they mean. A true brand is something where the self esteem value far exceeds the utility. It might be Heinz ketchup or a Rolex watch or a Marlboro cigarette, but in each case there’s a truly emotional connection between the brand and the user….It might be Timberland boots downtown, or Prada bags uptown. Both are ridiculously overpriced for the utility they deliver, but it’s the story we tell ourselves that matters, the label, the image, the peace of mind.
The problem, of course, is that the values and the messages that are selling us the promise of peace of mind are also leading us astray, and there’s no way to market our way out of the problem. Or is there?
A week has gone by since I eagerly placed the order for The Wisdom Book on Amazon. To tell you the truth, I can’t remember the last time I’ve been this amped to get a book in the mail. When it got here this morning, I was genuinely excited. The box is massive (because the book is), and opening it felt deliberate and ceremonious – like the size and weight of the book was symbolic. I’ve been flipping through it for a half hour and I’m grinning. I normally don’t get worked up about binding, design and photography the way I am right now – I generally read happily on whatever surface, wherever the words happen to be – but I feel some empathy for true bibliophiles today. The book is gorgeous. Read More
On Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 12pm, Barack Obama became the 44th president of the United States of America. As we all watched Obama being sworn in front of the massive crowd, Twitter lit up with excitement worldwide. One of Flowing Data’s latest visualization projects shows us just how excited the Twittersphere was over time as Obama got sworn in by displaying the tweets worldwide that included inauguration with a “positive attitude” as the event took place. You’re literally watching millions of people broadcast positive vibes 140 characters at a time.
The map starts early Monday morning. As the day moves on more people wake and tweet at a steady rate with increasing volume as the time comes nearer. Europe gets in on some of the action when the US goes back to sleep. Tuesday morning comes in with a new beginning in the air. Then boom, it’s time, and Twitter bursts with excitement.
The moment that Twitter really starts to groove is when Obama gives his speech and is sworn in. I think that this little clip is absolutely mind-blowing. Watch for yourself.
