Those familiar with the animated comedy The Simpsons may recall that Homer has a once long-lost brother named Herb. While making a valiant effort to pull himself from the gutter, Herb invents a device that will translate a baby’s cries into intelligible language that will tell parents exactly what the baby wants or needs.
Whether in our work or personal lives, whether for an individual endeavor or to benefit an entire organization or whether collectively or subconsciously, we’ve all asked the question: What is the best approach to getting the best result?
Disruption seems to be a very popular term in the media recently. Traditionally, something described as disruptive has a negative connotation. However, this new definition can be viewed as positive, depending on whether you believe in the status quo or not.
It is said that “necessity is the mother of invention.” It is an idiom that has been adopted from the more specific insight of Greek philosopher Plato. In Republic, Plato writes, “A need or problem encourages creative efforts to meet the need or solve the problem.”
We’ve all heard the term “practice makes perfect.” It’s something instilled in us from a young age, from the repetition of the alphabet to the memorization of the multiplication table.
Tom Canterbury once said, “The trouble with referees is that they just don’t care which side wins.” For many sports fans—actually a great majority—it is, obviously, incredibly important which team wins. But seemingly more important is that SOMEONE wins.
“On a long enough timeline, everyone’s survival rate drops to zero.” It’s a quote from the popular 1999 film, “Fight Club,” and the same can be said for many of the things and ideas we create.
Socrates said, “The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” Another great mind, Ed Morse (in his keynote address at this past year’s Coordinate Metrology Society Conference), said, “Data is only as good as what you can do with it.” If you were so inclined to put these two thoughts together, you could see the current dilemma regarding Big Data.