Posts filed under ‘Giving Back’
Ways to Help the Philippines Recover
This past weekend the Philippines and surrounding areas were decimated by super typhoon Haiyan. The storm was estimated to have sustaining winds of 195 mph with winds gusts up to 235 mph. It is believed to be one of the strongest storms ever recorded.
For those of us who have lived through typhoons and hurricanes (myself included) and felt the power of those storms, what we saw was nothing compared to what the Philippines endured. The death toll is now estimated to be above 10,000 and climbing and the devastation it left is likened to the destruction wrought by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
It will take years to rebuild and recover from such a disaster and our hearts go out to the people impacted by the typhoon as well as the relief workers who are providing much needed aid to that region. For those of you who would like to help, the New York Times and Reuters have provided lists of organizations (with links) that are providing aid. I would also point you to a local organization (in the Washington area), World Vision, that is intent on providing relief to children and families devastated by the typhoon.
In times like these we are all reminded of the fragility of life, the power of nature, and the undeniable fact that we are truly all in this together. Please help if you can.
Boston Marathon Bombings: How To Help
Sadly, this week we were reminded once again of the fragility of life and the resilience of the human spirit. Terence, myself, and the PatternBuilders team send our condolences to all who were impacted by this tragedy. For those who would like to help, donations can be made to:
- The One Fund—specifically formed to help those most affected by the bombings.
- The New England Patriots Charitable Foundation—all donations denoted with the words “Boston Marathon” will be earmarked for The One Fund.
- Boston’s First Responders Fund—also specifically established to benefit the victims of the bombings.
A number of resources can also be found here.
Much as it pains me to say this, beware of bogus Boston Marathon charity websites. Melanie Hicken of CNNMoney offers some advice on what to look out for.
Finally, there have been many moving tributes made by people via blogs, twitter, and other media sources. We leave you with this simple statement projected on the wall of the Brooklyn Academy of music:
Black Founders Conference
I am thrilled to be a mentor at the Black Founders Conference in San Francisco. The event, is sponsored by Black Founders a group that is attacking the digital divide by promoting entrepreneurship. With luminary speakers such as Mitch Kapor (Lotus), Steve Blank (E.phinany) and Charles Hudson (Softech VC), it is sure to be a great event.
A quick thought on #BlackoutSopa day.
In our book Privacy & Big Data that was written pre-SOPA, Mary and I spent a fair amount of time looking at the ways that big media interests are pushing both technical and legislative solutions that were inimical to both privacy and free speech. On this day when the Internet is raising its collective voice against one of the most ill thought laws of the Internet age, I thought it would be a great time to quote from the conclusion of Chapter 4 – The Stakeholders.
“Powerful groups, like the MPAA and RIAA and their international counterparts, have borrowed from advertising’s playbook and extended it to every device we own. Today, it’s not just about tracking our online behavior; it’s about tracking what we do within the “four walls” of any device that we own and being able to remotely control them without our permission. These technologies and policies could end up delivering a mortal blow to privacy as well as cede to the government and IP holders unprecedented control over what media we are allowed to consume and share. However you look at this, it’s a pretty high price to pay to support an old business model that is unable to adapt to new technology.”
Tell your congressperson – SOPA/PIPA is bad for the Internet, bad for free speech and bad for due process and should be rejected! More info on the law here.
Steve Jobs – The man who bought style to computing
Although I never met the man – I think that I and every programmer or entrepreneur that has worked in the valley felt like we had a personnel relationship with Steve Jobs. He was without a doubt the most polarizing technology figure in the valley – known for his brilliant design sense, ability to excite an audience, uncompromising desire to get it right, and pithy emails.
My first real computer was a Mac. That Mac Plus with an additional acoustic coupler modem – (a blazing fast 300 baud baby!) helped pay my way through college writing other peoples programs for them uh, I mean tutoring other students. The Mac was amazing it showed us that computers could be fun, quirky, and artistic. It introduced stylistic concepts that we are still having trouble bringing into mainstream computing today. In a world of VT220 terminals and ascii art (btw the link is amazingly cool ascii), the Mac with Steve as her father proved that the digital world could be thrilling as well as functional. For that we all, whether in technology or otherwise, owe him a great debt.
Finally, lets all remember that despite his laudable achievements, Mr. Jobs was a human being who had family and friends that are mourning a man that cancer took away from them at an early age. While we can and should honor his many achievements, let’s not forget to take a breath and send good thoughts to them and all the other families who have been stricken by this deadly disease. Or better yet, donate to the Cancer charity of your choice.
RIP – Steve.
Calling All Big Data and Analytics Companies: It’s Time to Help Change the World
The PatternBuilders team is a community of people who all believe Big Data can change the world in positive ways and that there is a huge commercial opportunity for the companies that can make it easy to use. But we not only like working together, we also share some core values about ethical behavior, and doing our bit to make the planet a more pleasant, equitable, and safe place for everyone. We take this pretty seriously and had been talking about ways we could leverage what we love (big data analytics) to help non-profits and NGOs (non-governmental organizations) become more efficient at supporting their missions. We had made some progress but finding the right group to help was a pretty daunting task! (more…)
Big Data Big Analytics 