David Lidsky's Blog, page 3113
November 24, 2014
How Decrepit Piers Inspired Thomas Heatherwick's Vision For A Floating Park
British designer Thomas Heatherwick discusses his vision for Pier55, a sort of aquatic High Line on the Hudson River in New York.
Last week, the Hudson River Park Trust announced a plan to build an elevated pier park and performance space on the Hudson River in New York.
It's more floating park than pier.
What I Learned From Building An App For Low-Income Americans
The brief was simple: build a tech product for low-income American households. It wasn't simple at all.
I was lost in the Bronx. It was my first week as a Significance Labs Fellow, where my job was to create a tech product for some of the American households who earn less than $25,000 a year. In 2013, 45.3 million Americans lived at or below the poverty line, which for a family of four is $23,834.
The Rejectors: How The Most Selective Gatekeepers Say "No"
A matchmaker, casting director, a former Stanford admissions officer, and a book publisher share their philosophies on saying "no."
Everybody needs to say "no" sometimes. But not everybody needs to say it to the about 30,000 hopeful high school students who don't get into Stanford every year. Or to the hundreds of authors who hope to sell a book to a top publisher. Or to the many actors hoping for a single part in a television show or movie.
5 Difficult Conversations Managers Hate To Have
No employee wants to hear "you're fired" or "you're not getting a raise," but it's no picnic for the manager either.
From delivering poor performance reviews to telling someone that their coworkers have been complaining about them, no one likes to be the bearer of bad news, but as a manager, it's likely that you'll face at least a few instances where you're required to confront an employee.
November 21, 2014
Can This Bracelet Help The Blind Better Understand Their Surroundings?
Ustraap, a wearable technology startup, helps the blind more effectively sense their surroundings.
While technology helps the visually impaired better access the digital world (making it easy for them to quickly dictate emails or speak instructions into smartphones, for instance), trying to get around in the real world can be somewhat more challenging. Many of the more than 6 million blind people in America rely on a trusty guide dog or a white cane to sense what is in front of them. Ustraap, a startup founded by three Mexican entrepreneurs, is hoping to improve the tools blind people can use to understand their surroundings.
Dyson Plans To Launch 100 New Products In The Next Four Years
A $2.35 billion innovation investment will help spur their development.
Dyson plans to invest $2.35 billion into new technologies—$1.56 billion of that into its research-and-development efforts—and launch at least 100 new products in the coming four years.
The Recommender: Claudia Rojas Sees Numbers In Color
The three best things on the Internet each week, as recommended by Fast Company team members.
Claudia RojasPhoto: Celine Grouard for Fast Company Name: Claudia Rojas
Role at Fast Company: Director of Web Projects. "I make sure the marketing team, developers, and editors are happy with each other and the website."
Twitter: @panterita
Titillating Fact: Claudia is graphic, web, UX, and UI designer, but she's also classically trained as a printmaker— working mostly with etchings. Claudia also has synesthesia, meaning that she can experience simultaneous sensations from one stimulus. "I can see colors in numbers (2 is always red, 5 is always green, 8 is black, etc.)"
Uber's Emil Michael Probably Won't Be Fired, Says Report
The executive lit an enormous media firestorm this week. So why is he still with the company?
Uber senior vice president of business Emil Michael triggered a firestorm this week when his dinner comments about snooping on reporters with "opposition researchers" were published by BuzzFeed. Michael soon offered a mea culpa to the journalist targeted, PandoDaily founder Sarah Lacy, and Uber CEO Travis Kalanick continued the apology tour with a 14-part tweetstorm (see our video rendition of Kalanick's Twitter apology below).
I Attended A Conference Remotely Thanks To This Robot (And It Was A Very Strange Experience)
With a telepresence robot, you can meet people and go to talks... kind of physically?
It's just another morning for me in my Los Angeles apartment. When I get out of bed on November 18, I put on a flannel shirt, a large sweater, and sweatpants. I spread almond butter and grape jelly on a pita. I make coffee.
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