Why Things Are the Way They Are

Albert Einstein is famous for many reasons, and left behind many memorable quotes about all manner of intelligent subjects. That said, my favorite quote of his, by far, is this:

“Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not sure about the universe.”

Not a day goes by that I don’t think of this quote. Walking down the street. Driving. Reading posts on Facebook or Twitter. Wars, mass shootings, moronic politics. Observing people, anywhere, it is constantly obvious…

Humans are incredibly fucking STUPID.

And yet…

Humans are also creative, and in many ways truly brilliant. No other species on our planet has, or is even remotely capable of, accomplishing what we’ve accomplished. And our future potential is virtually unlimited.

But herein lies the problem, this juxtaposition of stupidity and brilliance. Continue reading…

Millions of Jobs Are Going Away, But Universal Basic Income Isn’t the Answer

Jobs Lost Universal Basic Income

The idea behind universal basic income (UBI), in which one’s government would provide every citizen in a country with a set amount of cash each month, is thought by some to be a potential panacea to our global inequality and under/unemployment woes.

But to many others the idea is ludicrous and utterly unsustainable. So which is it?

Some countries and cities have run or are running pilot tests, and while it’s still quite early, it seems unlikely that UBI is going to work exactly as planned. Of course, it’s not that UBI isn’t helpful or beneficial to the people receiving it…it is, more or less across the board.

Rather, it’s the seemingly insurmountable hurdle of figuring out how to make UBI happen, effectively and sustainably for everyone over the long-term (particularly in well developed countries), without breaking the bank or collapsing consumption driven economies.

For better or worse, the idea of UBI has been gaining traction rapidly in the minds of the people in recent years.

Why? Automation. And fear. Continue reading…

Hacking Humanity

Hacked Binary CodeIn the world of computer security, there’s a term known as pentesting (short for penetration testing). Pentesting is the process of testing a computer system or network (or a building) for weaknesses that can be exploited.

Companies will hire a hacker or a team of hackers to attempt to break into their physical and/or digital properties preemptively. Talk about fascinating! Considering how many massive computer security breaches we’ve seen in the last few years, perhaps a few more companies should be investing in pentests.

When a hacker conducts a penetration test, they typically start with the most common weaknesses: people, default passwords on servers and software, easy to guess user passwords, well known and unpatched vulnerabilities, etc. They start with the low hanging fruit, and in far too many cases, that’s sufficient to break into a system. As Einstein said, “Two things are infinite, the Universe, and human stupidity.” Continue reading…

Spoken Like a True Gentleman

Barack Obama Speaking Gentleman

The pen may be mightier than the sword, but neither holds a candle to the power of the spoken word. From commanding armies to captivating audiences, what you say, and how you say it, can become one of the most powerful weapons at your disposal.

To speak effectively, you need to master the three E’s: elocution, eloquence, and economy.

1 – Elocution is the skill of speaking clearly and expressively, pronouncing and articulating your words with care and precision. No umms or hmms, no awkward pauses or mindless filler, no provincial pronunciations, nor linguistic faux pas.

Even if English is your first language, you’ll benefit from some polishing up in this department. Continue reading…