Web Secret #228: Nobelprize.org

Do you ever feel like your faith in humanity needs to be restored?

When that happens to me, I go to the Nobelprize.org website.

We all know that Nobel Prizes are among the most prestigious in the world. And thanks to the Internet, we can now listen, watch and learn from winners past and present. It's like watching a TED talk on steroids.

Dozens upon dozens of Nobel speeches, interviews, documentaries and more are curated on the site. Here are three examples:

1. Faulkner's Nobel Prize in Literature Acceptance Speech. One of my all time favorite quotes, "I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance," is from William Faulkner's Nobel acceptance speech. How great would it be to listen to him give that speech? You can do it right now.

2. Aung San Suu Kyi's Nobel Lecture. In 1991, Burmese Aung San Suu Kyi was under house arrest and unable to collect the Nobel Peace Prize, awarded for her non-violent struggle for democracy and human rights. On 16 June, 2012, she finally delivered her amazing Nobel Lecture (a requirement for all winners) in Oslo, Norway. In addition to being privy to her speech, you get to see the spectacularly beautiful hall where the lecture is delivered.

3. Interview with John Nash. All Nobel Prize winners are interviewed. John Nash was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1994. Many people know about him through the Oscar winning motion picture "A Beautiful Mind." In this 2004 interview, Nash talks about the impact the Prize had on his life, his talent for mathematics as a child, the work that gave him the Prize, talks about important economic issues of today, and shares his thoughts about the movie on his life.

In 1895, Alfred Nobel endowed the Prizes in his will, instructing that they be given to those "who have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind."

Think about it.

Web Secret #227: Museum of Endangered Sound

In a previous blog post, I wrote, "My memory of what my life was like pre-Internet is rapidly fading."

Part of remembering the past is sensory. It is remembering not only events, but smells, sounds and sights. One scientist wanders around our national parks, collecting continuous acoustic data documenting an intangible, invisible and - increasingly - endangered resource: natural sound.

As change accelerates, even the sensory memory of our recent mechanical and electronic past is receding rapidly.

This prompted 3 millenials to create the Museum of Endangered Sound. Curated sounds include:

• a manual typewriter
• a needle being placed on a record
• static on an old cathode ray tube TV
• a dialup modem
• Windows 95 booting up

It is an amazing experience to click on some of these sounds. Quick - can you remember what Tetris sounded like on a first generation GAMEBOY? I can't, but as soon as I click on the picture, it's like hearing from an old friend.

The museum hopes to complete its initial data collection phase by the year 2015.

Entrance is free.

Web Secret #226: 6 Tips for More Online Privacy

Recently, I came across a fabulous article offering tips on how to improve online privacy.

Here are six of the best:

1. Be careful on social networks. Almost everything you say and do on social networks is public by default. Post with caution or a pseudonym. Facebook has dozens of privacy settings, so start with the biggest ones: turn OFF tag suggestions, turn ON tag and profile review, disable access to apps you don’t use or trust, and only share with friends. If you’re sharing with friends of friends, more than 150,000 people on average can see your info.

2. Use your browser’s private browsing mode. Private browsing mode stops other people who have access to your computer from knowing which sites you’ve visited. Cookies are automatically deleted when you close your window, and your history of web sites visited, passwords, autofills, searches, and downloads isn’t saved. Enable private browsing mode in your browser’s preferences. It’s called Incognito Mode in Chrome, Private Browsing in Safari, InPrivate in Internet Explorer, and Private Browsing in Firefox.

3. Use secure browsing (HTTPS) whenever possible. HTTPS prevents others from snooping on your wireless connection. It’s particularly useful when you’re using insecure wireless connections, like those in cafes or airports. You’ll know that a site is secure and using HTTPS when you see a lock icon next to the URL of the site you’re visiting.

4. Use multiple email addresses. Have a different email for each of the following areas of your life: people you trust, signups for online accounts, signups for offline accounts, legal, work, & acquaintances (or any other category you’d like to create). That way, one email getting hacked or compromised won’t affect the others.

5. Google yourself regularly. Search for all variations of your name and contact info to find out if your personal info is publicly available online. Information about you can also show up in more than a dozen of Google’s other search services, such as Images, Videos, Blogs, Groups, News, and Realtime (which monitors social network mentions).

6. Think before posting under your real name. Whether you’re posting in a forum, social network, news article, or online group, there’s a good chance your comment will persist forever. If you decide to post something under your real name, ask yourself the New York Times question: “If this content were ever publicly released, would I be okay with seeing it on the cover of the New York Times?” If the answer is “no,” use a pseudonym.

All the above are common sense, but on the Internet, common sense is in short supply...

Web Secret #225: I Live Like a Billionaire

Two months ago, while I was sitting in my virtual front row seat watching the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games on my HDTV, it occurred to me that I have a better quality of life than John Jacob Astor IV.

In 1912, Astor was considered to be the richest man in the world, with a fortune of close to $3 billion in 2012 dollars. In case you don't remember from watching Titanic reruns, he drowned during the sinking of the ship, (interesting but irrelevant to the point I am trying to make.)

True, I don't have a summer "cottage" in Newport, Rhode Island. Nor am I likely to travel first class anywhere, anytime. But in every other respect, compared to him, I live like a billionaire.

• I have air conditioning (not in widespread use until the 1940s.)
• I have hot and cold water, anytime, (not in widespread use until the 1920s.)
• My car, a modest Honda CRV, is equipped with GPS (invented in 1990) and satellite radio (Sirius Satellite Radio, 1990.)
• Through my cable TV set, I always have a seat to an endless list of concerts, shows, and sporting events, (HBO was created in November 1972.)
• I am vaccinated against multiple horrific diseases, (polio vaccine 1952) and have access to antibiotics (penicillin, commercially available in 1945) if I get an infection, and insulin (discovered in 1922,) if I get diabetes.
• I own or have access to a dozen other wonderful technical wonders that help make my life pleasant, safe, longer, and entertaining.

I am very rich indeed.

Web Secret #224 - Sandwich Video

There is a man who has mastered the art of the under 2 minute promotional video. His name is Adam Lisagor and his company is called SandwichVideo.com.

Adam's videos are short and quirky, odd but entertaining. They do not use celebrities or supermodels. In fact most of his videos look like something that anyone could produce with an iPhone, if only they were smart and creative.

Here is an example of a classic Sandwich Video:

It's only one minute long!

Get inspired - watch all of Adam's videos. It will only take you 15 minutes...

Even if your self made promotional video is only half as good, (think half a sandwich,) why couldn't you do it too?

Web Secret #223: Generation Screwed

Our twins have left for college, but no empty nest angst for us - our recently graduated daughter has caromed back into our lives.

She is part of what Newsweek Magazine calls "Generation Screwed." To quote the article:

"How has this generation been screwed? Let’s count the ways, starting with the economy. No generation has suffered more from the Great Recession than the young. Median net worth of people under 35, according to the U.S. Census, fell 37 percent between 2005 and 2010; those over 65 took only a 13 percent hit. The wealth gap today between younger and older Americans now stands as the widest on record. The median net worth of households headed by someone 65 or older is $170,494, 42 percent higher than in 1984, while the median net worth for younger-age households is $3,662, down 68 percent from a quarter century ago, according to an analysis by the Pew Research Center."

In New York City, (where I live,) things are even worse. While I paid $280 for a studio apartment in Manhattan after I finished grad school, my daughter will eventually pay close to $1,000 to share a space with several roommates in Queens.

What has happened since I graduated? In New York City, from 1970 to 2010 (the most recent year for which data are available), the median rent rose by 75 percent, while the median income remained stagnant (after adjusting for inflation). Further, in 2010, 54 percent of New Yorkers spent over 30 percent of their income on rent, compared with only 28.5 percent of New Yorkers in 1970.

Unsurprisingly, according to a Pew Study published early this year, employment for 18-to-24-year-olds is at 54 percent, the lowest rate for this age group since 1948, when the government started keeping track. The Pew Study also noted that one in four of all 18-to-34-year-olds said they had moved back in with their parents after having been on their own. Moving home is no longer necessarily indicative of laziness or pathology.

While these trends have been brewing for two decades, they are now at their peak. A popular blog written by 20 something Emma Koenig is aptly called "F**ck, I'm in my Twenties!"

The blog must resonate because Ms. Koenig has been offered a related book deal and TV show.

That's Blog Power.

Web Secret #222: Babbel

I spend a fair amount of time standing on line, waiting in airports and otherwise being unproductive. Sure there's "Words With Friends" but what about doing something more rewarding?

How about downloading Babbel and learning or perfecting another language?

Babbel is a free app (on iOS and Android) that allows you to study a choice of 11 different languages and have fun while doing it. Babbel:

Is a mobile vocabulary trainer. Make the most out of travel and waiting time: With Babbel Mobile you can study vocabulary even on your smartphone or tablet. Speech recognition and basic and advanced vocabularies are integrated.

Is interactive. The Babbel apps contain 2000-3000 vocabulary words per language. All words are accompanied by images and pronounced for you by native speakers.

Offers speech recognition. With our integrated speech recognition you can practice your pronunciation and make significant progress. Lose that fear of speaking!

Offers a review manager. Babbel gathers the words and phrases that you've studied and then presents them back to you for review at optimal intervals: all in good time. What you've learned automatically embeds itself in your long-term memory!

Gracias Babbel! Merci Babbel!