Author Archives: flybrand1976

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About flybrand1976

Find me on twitter @flybrand.

Biography: Harry S Truman

Posted on June 24, 2013 by flybrand1976

The accomplishments of the 33rd US President, Harry S Truman, and the methods he used to achieve them are a great guide for the increasing complexity of the modern world.  Truman spoke clearly and did what he thought was right. … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

An Apology to my European IT Team

Posted on June 23, 2013 by flybrand1976

In 2008 when we were opening the US office for a European maker of membrane production equipment, we had all of the early IT choices someone has to make when first opening a business. How should we access email? What … Continue reading →

Posted in Business | Tagged , , , , , | 17 Comments

Filtration in the Popular Media: Singapore Smoke

Posted on June 23, 2013 by flybrand1976

This June 21st article from the Economist, “Hazed and Confused; Smog over Singapore” covers the recent pollution challenges in Singapore.  The pollution is caused from fires used to clear lands in neighboring Indonesia – the smoke crosses the sea, making … Continue reading →

Posted in Disruption, Industry, Textile | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Autonomous Vehicles: The Future of the Car

Posted on June 23, 2013 by flybrand1976

There’s a coming inflection in how data and computational power are used in how we interact with vehicles.  Google is focused on self-driving vehicles, Ford is betting big on connected vehicles and finding business models that improve the safety and … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized, Vehicle | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Autonomous Vehicles: The Future of the Car

X is a Historical Accident

Posted on June 22, 2013 by flybrand1976

This article from paidContent explores the question, “What if the ‘mass media’ era was just an accident of history?”  Matthew Ingram, the author, talks about how there is “pervasive nostalgia” within the media business for the good old days.  The … Continue reading →

Posted in Innovation, Theory | Tagged , , | Comments Off on X is a Historical Accident

Materials Science Reporting: Stronger, Lighter Elevator Cables

Posted on June 20, 2013 by flybrand1976

Reporting on innovations in the materials science field tends to follow the Gartner Hype Cycle – most early reports are vague, full of promises, and ultimately a few years later, nothing has been delivered.  The Economist’s recent article on innovations … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Disruption, Industry, Innovation, Invention, Materials Science | Comments Off on Materials Science Reporting: Stronger, Lighter Elevator Cables

Email is the New Telegraph

Posted on June 19, 2013 by flybrand1976

India currently sends about 5,000 telegrams a day.  The same telegram that was pioneered in 1837 by Samuel Morse.  Telegram service is scheduled to end ‘next month’ according to the article and India’s system is the last of its type … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Disruption, Industry, Innovation | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Email is the New Telegraph

X is the New Y!: Product Succession

Posted on June 18, 2013 by flybrand1976

“Cycling is the new golf” proclaimed The Economist in an April 2013 article, which caused me to go dig up an older series of articles that began in 2006 stating, “Is World of Warcraft the New Golf?”  Maybe we should … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Disruption, Industry, Innovation, Invention | Comments Off on X is the New Y!: Product Succession

Peak X: Applying Hubbert’s Peak Theory Beyond Natural Resources

Posted on June 17, 2013 by flybrand1976

Shell Oil Geologist Dr. M. King Hubbert (1903 – 1989) coined the phrase ‘Peak Oil’ based on his observations about petroleum production rates for a given geographic area.  Hubbert’s “Peak Theory” would be broadly stated as, “for a given geographic … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Industry, Innovation, Materials Science | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Filtration Challenges: Too Many Circles in my Venn Diagram

Posted on April 12, 2013 by flybrand1976

When we are working with a customer to design a new porous material, the first two criteria we often look at are (1) the efficiency (how much of the particulate are we going to capture, usually expressed as a % … Continue reading →

Posted in Industry, Innovation, Materials Science, Textile | Comments Off on Filtration Challenges: Too Many Circles in my Venn Diagram