Whatever your views on war, the stories of these brave soldiers are worth reading – UK deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan

Aneesh Chopra is a great appointment for CTO. I have heard him give the keynote at the State of the Net conference in January (along with MEP James Elles) at the State of the net conference where I was speaking later that day.

His views are truly refreshing especially on the topic of liberating government data

Watch the talk and an outline on Sean Garret’s blog Aneesh Chopra: National CTO

Certainly one of the most interesting announcements I have seen recently

Also, Don’t miss this excellent article from Tim O Reilly which summarises why his thinking is truly revolutionary

Why Aneesh Chopra is a Great Choice for Federal CTO

Image source:

http://hrchamber.poweredbyindigo.com/images/AneeshChopra.JPG

I must admit I had never seen Britain’s got talent before I heard of Susan Boyle.

The video speaks for itself. I can’t embed it because embedding is prohibited

However … four things we can all learn from Susan Boyle

a) People do judge you by your looks ..

b) However, if you have talent – looks do not matter

c) If you have talent .. both media and social media don’t matter. They all come to you .. apparantly she has never heard of youtube, twitter etc etc

d) Have a good time and don’t take youselves seriously

I truly found this video inspiring .. Susan Boyle Britain’s got talent video

Also an interview

Not just for African Americans – but for people all over the world!

Image source: The BBC

Jacques Piccard is no more. A true Captain Nemo. Has been an inspiration to me since childhood.

The Hat ..

Julain Bond, Matt, Peter, Anne and Howard Rheingold ..

Mark Selby and David Smith

We had a splendid evening Monday evening with Howard and Judy Rheingold. I wanted to give Howard a true English experience and we met at the Rules (the oldest restaurant in London) – you can’t get any more English than this !

See here for a history of Rules.

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Throughout its long history the tables of Rules have been crowded with writers, artists, lawyers, journalists and actors. As well as being frequented by great literary talents – including Charles Dickens, William Makepeace Thackeray, John Galsworthy and H G Wells – Rules has also appeared in novels by Rosamond Lehmann, Evelyn Waugh, Graham Greene, John Le Carré, Dick Francis, Penelope Lively and Claire Rayner.

The actors and actresses who have passed through Rules are legion. Down the decades Rules has been an unofficial “green room” for the world of entertainment from Henry Irving to Laurence Olivier, and the history of the English stage adorns the walls. The sibling art of the cinema has contributed its own distinguished list of names including Buster Keaton, Charles Laughton, Clark Gable, Charlie Chaplin and John Barrymore.

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Mark Selby of Nokia kindly hosted the evening - and it was very much appreciated. Thanks Mark!

Apart from Howard, Judy, Mark and me; we also had David Smith, John, Julian Bond, Peter Feltham aka ‘oink’, Matt Jones , Tom Coates and Anne Marie McEwan

There were many interesting stories round the table - here is one.

It’s a good use of 'cheap' SIM cards - and one which I had not heard before.

In the Middle East, there is a concept called 'numbering' - where apparently you contact a girl by writing your number and then throwing it at her.

A unexpected variant has arisen due to abundant phones and cheap SIMs

Instead of throwing the number on a piece of paper, the guy throws the phone itself into her car – and then dials the number!

That’s the first anyone had heard of this before!

With such conversation, it was only befitting that the toast to the evening was to ‘(the rise of) moral decadence in the UK.

Lefsetz Bob, Wolfgang’s vault and Eve Online – all got a recommendation at the table from their respective fans

In any case, it was a great evening! Thanks all for making this happen!

Luciano Pavarotti

I am organising a small dinner with Howard Rheingold in London on the evening of Sep 10th. It will be in Knightsbridge. If you are interested in attending please email me at ajit.jaokar at futuretext.com.

Howard is a great person and we follow each other’s work avidly but I have never met him – so I am looking forward to this. Note that this is a small, private dinner – not an event etc.