Episodes

During 2020 when COVID locked down the world, video was the “king” of media types. Consumption went mobile, as Americans spent almost twice as much time viewing digital video on their phones as on their computers. After the TV era, YouTube era, and TikTok era, we’re now entering the Video 2.0 era of video-first products beyond entertainment and gaming – more interactive and participatory, with users engaging with the platform, giving direct feedback on the content, and shaping the experience in ...

The Buzz 1: “The alcoholic beverage industry is not known for being stagnant. Significant changes and surprising trends emerge every year…The best-selling cocktail of 2019 was the Old Fashioned. Sake is no longer just popular in Japan. Craft beer is no longer just a niche. Whisky, high-end spirits, and ready-to-drink are gaining popularity. Wine is going beyond the bottle. Buying alcohol online is becoming more popular.” (linchpinseo.com) The Buzz 2: “2021 is likely to be a transition year for t...

The Buzz 1: “Nobody brings the creepy better than women mystery and thriller writers. The literary world has always been a bit of a good ol' boys club, but since Anna Katharine Green, ‘the mother of the detective novel,’ published The Leavenworth Case in 1878, right up to the Gone Girl frenzy, women writers have excelled in the genre.” (Erin Enders, www.bustle.com/articles/58552-11-female-mystery-writers-to-start-reading-now-because-these-suspenseful-stories-are-too-good-to) The Buzz 2: “Women’s...

The Buzz: “The word entrepreneurship has been defined as the 'discovery, evaluation and exploitation of opportunities' but until just a few years ago, saying you were a young entrepreneur was a creative way to say you were in between jobs. Today, entrepreneurs are the modern day rockstars. The story of how Mark Zuckerberg hacked The Crimson at Harvard is a legend amongst millennials. Hustling and side-hustling is no longer just a way to make more money, it can be incredibly fun. There are so man...

The Buzz 1: “Bicycle, bicycle, bicycle. I want to ride my bicycle, bicycle, bicycle... I want to ride it where I like.” (Queen, Bicycle Race) The Buzz 2: “When my legs hurt, I say: ‘Shut up legs! Do what I tell you to do!’” (Jens Voigt, German former professional road bicycle racer) The Buzz 3: “Cyclists see considerably more of this beautiful world than any other class of citizens. A good bicycle, well applied, will cure most ills this flesh is heir to.” (Dr K.K. Doty, 19th century New Yorker a...

The buzz: “Ten years ago, e-books made up less than 1 percent of the trade book market, yet they now make up 40 to 50 percent of units sold…In genres like fantasy, romance, and science fiction, traditional publishers have lost their former iron grip on the industry…Successful major authors are even choosing to self-publish.…As smartphone ownership expands internationally, so will the market for e-books.…Books could take advantage of the capabilities of digital devices by offering color, interact...

The buzz: Stress has been defined as a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances – or as the non-specific response of the body to any demand for change. In her verywellmind.com article, When Stress Is Actually Good for You, Elizabeth Scott, MS, observes, “We rarely hear people say, ‘I’m really feeling stressed. Isn't that great?’ But if we didn't have some stress in our lives—the ‘good stress’ variety—we'd feel rudderless and unhappy. I...

The buzz: “Most people think of hackers as young techno-thugs who pound Moutain Dew and tap at their computers stealing data, crashing websites, or sending spam about Viagra. But there are good hackers, too, top-security professionals that governments and companies hire to protect them from the bad guys. And among these, there are a select few who don’t specialize in the technical side of breaking into computers, but rather the messy, human side…fast talkers who convince unsuspecting people to l...

The Buzz: During 2020, video was the “king” of media types. Americans were Zooming into work meetings, logging into online classrooms, FaceTiming friends and family, and streaming entertainment more than ever. Binge-watching and gaming were up 25 percent and 75 percent, respectively. Americans spent an average of 42 minutes a day viewing digital video on their phones last year, compared to 23 minutes on computers. [Connie Chan: https://a16z.com/2020/12/07/social-strikes-back-video/] But this beg...

The Buzz: In 2013, Terry Heick wrote, “While learning by no means requires technology, to design learning without technology is an exercise in spite—proving a point at the cost of potential. And it’s difficult to forget how new this is…Fifteen years ago, a current high school sophomore was born. So was Google.” www.teachthought.com/the-future-of-learning/30-incredible-ways-technology-will-change-education-by-2028/ Heick predicted that by 2024, learning simulations will begin to replace teachers ...

The Buzz: According to FutureWineExpo.com, “Just a decade from now, the wine industry is likely to look a lot different than it does now. A number of important factors – including the rise of China as the next great wine nation, the global impact of climate change, and the wide-scale embrace of technological change by growers, winemakers and retailers – are making it highly likely that the way we drink and enjoy wine will continue to change at a rapidly accelerating pace.” 10 Ways the Future of ...

The Buzz: The first modern ‘detective story’ is considered to be The Murders in the Rue Morgue by Edgar Allan Poe. First published in the April 1841 issue of Graham’s Magazine, the short story is about an amateur detective who sets out to solve the murders of a mother and daughter within a locked room of their apartment. (https://www.biblio.com/blog/2020/01/a-brief-history-of-mystery-books/#) The first mystery novel: Wilkie Collins’s The Woman in White (1859). The Moonstone (1868): the first det...

Throughout recorded human history, people have figured out how to use the latest “technology” to scam, con or hack others for their own benefit. William Chaloner (1650–1699): Serial counterfeiter and confidence trickster proven guilty by Sir Isaac Newton. Gregor MacGregor (1786–1845): Scottish con man who tried to attract investment and settlers for the non-existent country of Poyais. Cassie Chadwick (1857–1907): Canadian who defrauded banks out of millions by pretending to be the illegitimate d...

The Buzz 1: “Don’t it always seem to go That you don’t know what you’ve got Till it’s gone.” (Big Yellow Taxi, Joni Mitchell, 1970) The Buzz 2: “I would be proud to partake of your pecan pie.” (Harry Burns (Billy Crystal), When Harry Met Sally, 1989 film) The Buzz 3: “Covid-19 revealed the everyday activities many people take for granted until they’re no longer for an option—like eating out in a restaurant…more than 70,000 restaurants across the U.S. have permanently closed. Restaurants had to q...

The Buzz 1: “You care more about that car than you do about most people.” [Thelma (Geena Davis) to Louise (Susan Sarandon) in Thelma & Louise (1991) The Buzz 2: “A driver don't pick the cars. Mmm-mm. Cars pick the driver. It's a mystical bond between man and machine.” (Bernie Mac as Bobby Bolivia in Transformers,2 007 film) The Buzz 3: “The next few years should be exciting. We’re in the midst of an electric vehicle onslaught and seeing a flood of new EV pickup trucks. We're also watching more s...

The Buzz: “The Fourth Industrial Revolution…a fusion of advances in AI, robotics, IoT, 3D printing, genetic engineering, quantum computing, other technologies…collective force behind many products and services that are fast becoming indispensable to modern life.” [salesforce.com] Every industrial revolution has had a profound impact on how we live, work and relate. The first industrialized our world with steam and water. The second electrified it. The third computerized it, setting the technolog...

The Buzz 1: “During the Revolutionary War, women served the U.S. Army in traditional roles as nurses, seamstresses and cooks for troops in camp. Some courageous women served in combat either alongside their husbands or disguised as men, while others operated as spies for the cause. Though not in uniform, women shared Soldiers' hardships, including inadequate housing and little compensation.” [www.army.mil] The Buzz 2: “The U.S. military has been one of America’s most progressive institutions…But...

The buzz 1: “Women earn about half of science and engineering degrees, but they make up less than 20 percent of people employed in those fields.” (mckinsey.com) The buzz 2: “Women are missing out on entrepreneurial success, making up just 17% of IT specialists in the UK. Worse still, a new survey shows that the number of women in the tech sector has barely moved over the past 10 years despite an industry-wide push. When tech has never had it so good, where are the women?” (theguardian.com) The b...

The Buzz 1: “Social media can also be a powerful tool for your professional life…It can also be full of pitfalls. More employers and recruiters now regularly check candidates’ social media profiles before hiring them, and screenshots of status updates and tweets mean your electronic words can live forever, even if you delete them later…it’s not just your own posts—your activity, including those stealth “likes,” can come back to haunt you, too… every post you’ve liked, commented on, or shared, in...

The buzz: In a 2017 ISACA survey, only 53% of surveyed business technology professionals believe their organization’s leadership is digitally literate. The other 47% don’t think their leaders have a solid understanding of tech and its impacts or are unsure. (helpnetsecurity.com) Despite better AI, easier app developing, and robots joining the workforce, there’s still a huge disconnect between non-technical CXOs and their tech teams, even in Silicon Valley. If you are a non-techy entrepreneur or ...

Buzz 1: “Time spent in conversation is never wasted.” [Insidious: Chapter 3] Buzz 2: “I had a really long talk with a squirrel one time, longer in fact than I can with most people.” [Charlie’s Angels] Buzz 3: “Do you always begin conversations this way?” [The Princess Bride] If you’re hoping to gaze into a crystal ball to see what 2021 holds for your company, your industry and the world, we’ve got the next best thing. You’ll hear predictions on the technologies, strategies, and trends that can h...

Buzz. 1: Robin to Batman: “In the circus, the Flying Graysons were a team. We had to trust each person to do their jobs.…Sometimes, counting on someone else is the only way you win.” Buzz 2: Fred Astaire: “For ballroom dancing, remember that your partners have their own distinctive styles also…adapt your style…you are not surrendering your individuality, but blending it with that of your partner.” If you’re hoping to gaze into a crystal ball to see what 2021 holds for your company, your industry...

Buzz. 1: “Oh, my goodness! Shut me down! Machines making machines. How perverse!” (C-P3O in Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones, 2002 space-opera film). Buzz 2: “Never send a human to do a machine’s job.” (Agent Smith in The Matrix, 1999 sci-fi film). If you’re hoping to gaze into a crystal ball to see what 2021 holds for your company, your industry and the world, we’ve got the next best thing. On our 7-episode 2021 Predictions Special [more on Jan. 20 and 27], you’ll hear insights from m...

Buzz 1: Doc Brown: “Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads” (Back to the Future). Buzz 2: Mr. Spaceley: “Where's Jetson, and why is the plant shut down?” Rudy2: “It's the middle of the night, sir.” Mr. Spaceley: “Machines don't sleep. Start it up! Every second lost means money lost. And money lost means I scream a lot!” (Jetsons). If you’re hoping to gaze into a crystal ball to see what 2021 holds for your company, your industry and the world, we’ve got the next best thing: thought leader...