Weekend July 14, 2012

Design is what set the original Mac Computer at right from the original

PC  at left. Do you see the difference?  Steve Jobs wanted his machine to have the sleek elegant look

of a cuisinart. He wanted the foot print small enough so that it could fit on everyone's desk. 

The PC was much larger, and anything but elegant. But ironically enough since itwas larger everyone assumed it was more powerful, and IBMs got bought by the millions.

but I digress, This post is about Sergio Pininfarina.

While he is most famous for designing gorgeous Italian automobiles, 

his design house did everything from watches to my back up hard drive. 

A Ferrari GTO by the way just became the world's most expensive car selling for over $30 M at auction. But at that price this is not a car, this is rolling auto sculpture. 

I beleive that Universities putting an emphasis on Design would do their students a big favor. Clearly the better designs, like the now famous Apple i series of products, are consumer hits. 

What makes for great design, how does one learn from the great art masters about design. what can engineering teach us about the importance of feel, touch, and lines?  I will be incorporating more of these ideas in our classes. 

Weekend July 14, 2012

Now that $2 B loss at JP Morgan is up to $5.8 billion. Is  Jamie Dimon still more worried about Europe than his own out of control trading group?  But here is the funny part. Amid five billion in losses, JPM announces that it will 'claw back' earnings from the errant traders. Are they serious, a few million in earnings to cover five billion in losses?  

It seems the traders were a bit slow in marking or admitting to their losses. One can just hear Captain Renault, What gambling in this establishment, I am shocked. 

 I suspect that along with continunig debacles like Madoff, MF Global, and Peregrine, see previous post, we will learn that the banks are out of control. Just this week we learn of the expanding losses at JPM, and Barclay's manipulation of the LIBOR rate. 

Is anyone going to jail?  Oddly Corzine is still out while Madoff is in and Peregrine is certainly on his way. Would Corzine's prominent status as a fund raising Democrat have aything to do with that?

Wednesday July 11, 2012

Meredith Whitney  took a lot of flack for her prediciton of massive defaults at the municipal level. I suggested that if Mert had broadened her definition of default, she would be right on the money, so to speak. 

By that I mean the municipality will have to default on a promise to either or

employees

bond holders

stakeholders, citizens

The default may take the form of reduced services such as closing libraries or lower wages, Scranton, PA is now paying $7.50 an hour and is out of cash, or it might be a post poned payment to bond holders or some or all of the above. 

Three cities in CA  have gone Chapter 9 in the last two weeks. That legitimizes the process for others to follow. The rush to BK Court won't wait until the November election. It will be interesting to see if the Romney campaign chosses to make this an example of Political Promising Gone Wild. CA is after all a Democrat controlled state.