03v50vwe's Profile

Awesome post, and glad to see it highlight what many people think of as an unsexy industry. The power grid is truly critical, and you’re right, the security and talent retention problems are real. On security, I’m not sure it’s even a wise move to try to connect all parts of critical power infrastructure. While there may be a reason for “read only” views into data regarding the power grid, permitting anything more may be riskier than it is worth. On retention, I’m not sure GE is the kind of organization that can refashion its hierarchy and culture to adapt to a competing organization with less at stake. On one hand you want creativity and risk-taking, on another perhaps not so much in the power industry.

Is classic, expensive, and expertise-required investigative journalism in the public appetite anymore? Given trends in how consumers spend their media money, it does raise the question of how these classic news organizations as businesses can survive. The NYT Co. just bought The Wirecutter, a trusted network of reviews on a variety of products. While The Wirecutter should be commended for its effort, it’s hard to call this investigative journalism. Do you think the play is to swap traditional advertising dollars with potential premium models enabled by places like The Wirecutter?

Great insight into this cultural icon. I’m interested in your take on the big loser here–Nintendo. Somehow, as owners of the intellectual property, they seem to have lost out on what is now proven to be a massive opportunity to pursue monetization. This is a company slow to adopt mobile games, and clearly undervalued its existing creative assets. Do you think this is a lesson for them, or a one-hit wonder? If you look at other opportunities, it seems like this one is particularly suited for augmented reality. I’m not sure their other assets can be as transferable to this model.

I like the take on a consumer’s future with autonomous cars. I am, however, worried about the future where industries depending on long-haul shipping needs are eliminated. I don’t believe in stopping technological progress for this reason, but I do think serious thought and policy need to be developed alongside autonomous vehicles. I’m skeptical competent economic policy can transition these industries into other parts of the labor economy at the same rate as public acceptability of autonomous vehicles.

An interesting phenomenon! I’m aware of how difficult it is to distribute streaming and other royalties in other kinds of intellectual property. I’m curious if you think there can be a suitable arrangement where all parties involved in a Broadway production feel compensated fairly. The number of claims on a Broadway show seem particularly difficult, as there are many parties involved that receive contracts only on the premise that shows are done live. A bit selfishly, I hope the streaming show becomes real. I’m tired of only listening to the live soundtrack without any video.

I reluctantly agree that the barbecue I love may not be sustainable. It’s tough to take. While I understand pricing’s role in this matter, I hope there’s a world where low-quality commodity McD’s beef is phased out over time. This way connoisseurs of beef can use it in top quality preparations such as carpaccio, yakiniku, and of course smoked brisket.

A pertinent issue. I wonder if the IFRC can be trusted to be the best organization for leading this change. While they are involved in important missions, various components of IFRC seem variable on abilities to respond in the near and long terms to floods. I have hope in your suggestion for partnering with climate scientists and having better assessment capability, but I’m not as confident in their on-the-ground ability to use these insights.

Certainly an issue on my mind. There’s an interesting element here where, traditional climate-sensitive coffee may not be the needed. Other large agricultural conglomerates invest in research from universities and industry looking at creative ways of engineering or curating crops cultivated with creative properties. Peet’s, while a consumer coffee, may be able to justify such an investment, particularly given the scary coffee supply outlook.

Thought provoking. I’m curious if CS or any other vintners have been able to replicate grape yields in more controlled environments. If renewable energy is readily available, do grapes of a similar quality do well in indoor or other engineered growing environments? Applying some ingenuity to the grape cultivating process may yield a promising innovation to meet demand and reduce the pressure on the environment.

Definitely through provoking. Curious how the CSO role plays out at a place like Tyson. I’m more sympathetic with the CSO role where there’s a more proximate existential threat to the firm’s supply chain. It seems like Tyson understands its need for future investment, but is keeping its core business largely the same. I’m a little skeptical about how much a CSO could accomplish at Tyson, but I’m encouraged by your mention of the supply chain partner push. There could be a collective action problem where Tyson could be powerful.