Notations From the Grid: On The Latest From the White House

 +The White House has hosted the first White House Demo Day.    It has been quite fun to be privy to some of the great innovations out there.     This, though, underscores the challenge still being faced to create the ultimate "Vision of the Possible":

RT @DCxchange: Why the economy needs more women entrepreneurs @jeremyquittner @Inc @KauffmanFDN #WHDemoDay @Inc_Ent http://t.co/nXEDJeD1bs

— Case Foundation (@CaseFoundation) August 4, 2015

 

On the Eve of a New Week & a New Month....

A late "virtual run" by our team w/this final "thought"...wishing all a Fab rest of the day as we look to Aug :-) https://t.co/8S9vxHvv5u

— The Daily Outsider (@DailyOutsider) August 2, 2015

Notations From the Grid (weekend edition): Thought(s) For the Week

As the new month dawns here in #Outsiders, our team chose this courtesy of +Jonathan Huie  which we hope all enjoy and embrace:

The three controlling desires of every normal man seem to be:

First, to live. Not merely to exist.

Second, to be a man among men.

Third, to do that which will endure.

- James Hulme Canfield

Lives of great men all remind us, we can make our lives sublime,

and, departing, leave behind us, footprints on the sands of time.

- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The ultimate test of a man's conscience
may be his willingness to sacrifice something today
for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard.
- Gaylord Nelson

The Friday Musical Interlude: "Dream Seeker"

It is time for the Friday Musical Interlude here in Outsiders.   Our team chose "Dream Seeker" which is ever so in line with the mission of the Visions Channel as we bid farewell to July 2015 and gear up for a month throughout #Outsiders:

Thought(s) For the Week

For this edition of "Thought(s) For the Week", we wanted to note an updated selection of one of our daily "Must Reads" From +Jonathan Huie which is in line with the mission of our "Visions" channel and the broad objectives of the on-going development of #Outsiders:

 

Quotations help us remember the simple yet profound truths
that give life perspective and meaning.
- Criswell Freeman


Examine, inquire.
Look into the nature of things.
Search out the grounds of your opinions,
the for and against.
Know why you believe, understand what you believe,
and possess a reason for the faith that is in you.
- Frances Wright

If you would be a real seeker after truth,
it is necessary that at least once in your life you doubt,
as far as possible, all things.
- Rene Descartes

Everything is not as it appears to be.
- Proverb 

An #Outsider Newsflash: An Update on Project C.H.I.P

We here @ #Outsiders are enthusiastic supports of Project C.H.I.P and are eager to get our hands on it.     We received some late breaking developments and wanted to share two very interesting headlines here--What we find so amazing is how everything is free and how they are striving to create the "Vision of the Possible"...

This is a "Developing Story" ....

C.H.I.P. IS OPEN SOFTWARE!

Meanwhile, back in Oakland, Wynter, Alex and the Free Electrons team have been hacking away at C.H.I.P.s software, opening up the software repositories. Take a look! 

Alex and Wynter love open sourcing!

Want to help with C.H.I.P.'s software?  Just miss the Kernel Hacker reward tier? Visit kernel.nextthing.co and let us know how you can help!

CHIP IS OPEN HARDWARE!

C.H.I.P.'s design files are licensed Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike.  That means you can download all the files to build your own C.H.I.P. modify it and use it as a starting point for your own projects! Git the files @ http://docs.nextthing.co/

The folks at Make Magazine put together a nice summary of C.H.I.P.'s open source status - http://makezine.com/2015/07/22/with-linux-and-creative-commons-the-9-chip-computer-reveals-its-open-source-details/

On the Dawn of a New Week.....

It is the dawn of a new week and our team chose this admonition from Rumi.   It is about the creation of the art of the possible to carry on--we hope it serves as an inspiration for all:

When you plant a tree every leaf that grows will tell you,what you sow will bear fruit.So if you have any sense, my friend don't plant anything but love,you show your worth by what you seek. ~Rumi <3 <3 <3
Posted by Rumī Quotes on Monday, July 27, 2015

Notations From the Grid (Week-End Edition): A "Thought 4 the Week-End"

The Week-End is before us here in #Outsiders.    Our team put together a "Grid" of periodic thoughts we ran across which we wanted to feature.   It is in turn with the Mission of this Channel and the broad view our team has in reflecting upon ideas and as we discuss emerging technologies and trends:

😁 1 must learn to be still in the midst of activity and to be vibrantly alive in repose. - Indira Gandhi pic.twitter.com/rEg6Qt0lom

— The Daily Outsider (@DailyOutsider) July 25, 2015

The Friday Musical Interlude: Only Tomorrow Knows

Our team settled on "Only Tomorrow Knows" for our "#Visions" Property which we hope all enjoy:

Notations On our World: A Wonderful "Newsflash" From the UK re: #Quran

We have been on the "daily roundup" today and saw this from the UK.  This is a fantastic discovery to celebrate the Islamic Faith especially as the World has been witness to the savagery of the Daesh Gang--referred to as the Islamic State/IS in the West:

World's oldest Koran found after sitting in library for 100 years http://t.co/SSv6j4iPgN pic.twitter.com/Qc15IF9PLU

— The Independent (@Independent) July 22, 2015

Notations On Our World: On #Apple, #Gold & Other Brief Thoughts

 
It has been an interesting day on the Business Scene.  Apple is about to report results tomorrow.  We have been  assessing how everything has been going since the big announcement back in April that saw wide adoption of Apple Pay and the launch of Apple Watch.   Our assessment is on-going.

Apple is fundamentally known as the "iPhone" company although it has worked to create an ecosystem centered on the iCloud.    The seamless process is continuing as iOS9 is about to "hit the street" very soon.   It is now available as a "public beta" download.     The Sydney Morning Herald reflected upon ways that iOS9 will transform the way we will do business in the mobile ecosystem:

Seven ways iOS 9 will change your iPhone

When you first boot up the iOS 9 beta on an iPhone, things don't seem that different. But then you start to notice some changes.


There has been speculation about how Apple Watch will be reported out.    There are "rumors" that the Apple Watch sales are not going well.   The World awaits!!!
Beyond Apple, there is the Commodity Space as well.    We have been quite shocked at the collapse of the Price of Gold.   It is right now at a 5-year low partly due to the changing economic circumstances in addition to the continued slide in the price of Oil as well--as the Federal Reserve in the United States is about to raise interest rates later on this year and as China has slowed down and adapting to the so-called "new normal".     On a side note, our team was shocked at the valuation by PayPal after it was spin off by Ebay.    The last valuation was 50 Billion Dollars.    It is quite a juggernaut to be dealth with Worldwide especially as alternative payment arrangements to the traditional systems continue to be developed.
"Virtually Breathless" as our on-going assessments continue.....

Notations For the Week-End (Special Edition): Vying For Peace

For this, we wanted to feature this we received from the team +TED that is in and of itself quite telling--we can all use Five minutes of Peace!!!

PLAYLIST OF THE WEEK

Talks to watch when you need five minutes of peace

Calming, short talks to watch when you just want to peace out for a bit. Watch »

9 TED Talks • Total run time 41:25

The Friday Musical Interlude: Earl Klugh Live :-)

We hope all enjoy our choice for this week's Musical Interlude as we wish all a fabulous WeekEnd:

Thought(s) For the Week (II) : On Being Fearless & Overcome the Impossible

As our week draws to a close, our team decided on a second "Thought 4 the week" in line with the  Vision of the Possible.   It is about embracing the possibilities.  We hope these two clips underscores the need to be fearless and overcoming the impossible.   In some ways, it is the story of #Outsiders: 

Notations On Our World: On The Art of the Possible in #IranDeal & the quest 4 #Vote4Peace

As we have been on the "Prowl" in the aftermath of the #IranDeal, it is just amazing the stories we continue to run across about all in Iran who have done wonders despite the punishing sanctions.    We saw reports of the German Government sending a 60-member strong delegation to Iran for Trade as others are gearing up.

Al Jazeera's Ali Velshi has been in Tehran reporting on the current landscape and the possibilities.   One of the entrepreneurs he interviewed was the founder of Saba Idea--an incubator that has done some fantastic work developing a "You Tube" like site called Aparat that has 15,000,000 unique visitors a month.    There is also "Mihan Blog"--the second largest blogging platform in the Country with 10,000,000 unique visitors a month to its' sites.    These are just two examples of a very vibrant and emerging scene that is exciting to write about--and our team is also ever so excited by it!!!

Please check them out @ http://www.sabaidea.com/en/

Thought 4 the Week: On #IranDeal & "Thinking Beyond The Now"

Iran and World Powers have agreed on a deal to transform the relationship Iran and the World have had for 10 years as a result of Iran's Nuclear Program.    Our team just published the "Notations" series within the past 30 mintues as we await statements by President Rouhani of Iran and President Obama in Washington.

As our team continues to assess the agreement and the possiblities it represents, our team ran across this from William Faulkner that goes to the heart of what can be possible.   Diplomacy has triumphed as all lived up to the admonition by him--something that hopefully all who oppose understand it: 

“You cannot swim for new horizons
until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.”

Our team also chose this from our daily must reads by +Jonathan Huie  on Peace which is in and of itself ever so crucial for us all to embrace:

There is no way to peace; peace IS the way.
- A. J. Muste

I am not only a pacifist but a militant pacifist.
I am willing to fight for peace.
Nothing will end war unless the people themselves refuse to go to war.
- Albert Einstein

Never believe that a few caring people can't change the world.
For, indeed, that's all who ever have.
- Margaret Mead

Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
- St. Francis of Assisi

We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Notations For the Week-End: Admonitions to Remember to Create "A Vision of the Possible"

Our team has been working away and ran across these that goes to the heart of what must be done to create the "Vision of the Possible"--we were just blown away as our on-going journey here @ #outsiders continues:

Go out and do it! #ThinkBIGSundayWithMarsha pic.twitter.com/Cpg8pQfQ2L

— For the Entreprenuer (@IWantToBeABoss) July 11, 2015

#entrepreneur #ThinkBIGSundayWithMarsha @reidhoffman pic.twitter.com/8pj01yuQlZ

— Neeraj Kumar Singal (@nksingal) July 11, 2015

The Friday Musical Interlude: Roman Street plays Windjammer

It is Friday here in #Outsiders and time for another "musical interlude" on the eve of a Week-End in Outsiders.    Our team chose this beautiful selection from Roman Street which we hope all enjoy on the dawn of the Week-End here in #Outsiders: 

An #Outsider Newsflash: The Evolution of Microsoft

Image Source: eWeek

One of the more fascinating companies that is continuing to reinvent itself is Microsoft under Satya Nadella.  There is a new Mission Statement to, "...to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more."  It is a broad brush that suggests (as noted in the EWeek article) that Microsoft will continue to leverage its' existing strength while enhancing its' capabliities in Mobile & Cloud.   We will be assessing it here in "Visions".

Notations From the Grid: On #Iran

As #Iran is making the headlines, our team wanted to release classic +TED talk from the emminent Iranian Scholar Professor Abbas Milani from Stanford that reflects upon the true Iran which is ever so critical for all who are sceptical about the true nature of Iran today: