Paper or plastic? What you do believe lasts the longest? You may be surprised ...
Category: Stream of Consciousness
Technology’s lie
Easy to use technology requires significant investment. This is less and less understood, but we should become more aware of it.
How governments can (and why they should) ensure right use of taxes
I don’t like paying taxes I have a confession to make: I don’t really like paying taxes. And I’m certain I’m not the only one. Each month, when my pay check arrives, I notice the difference between my gross and net salary. Living in Belgium, known for its elevated taxes, should have made me aware … Continue reading How governments can (and why they should) ensure right use of taxes
“Can” versus “Should”
I’m sure you’ve heard this question before, in both personal and professional contexts: “Can you do this?” And the answer, most of the time, is obvious. It is a question as to capability (“Do you have the skills to do this?”) and capacity (“Do you have the time and/or the willingness to do this?”) Capability … Continue reading “Can” versus “Should”
Presentable – “Designing the Space you work in”
A quick note on an excellent podcast show I recently discovered: Presentable. Episode 32 covered a conversation with Sarah B. Nelson, Program Architect at IBM, about the spaces we work in and how they influence creativity. If you are interested in this kind of thing, this was an interesting almost 50 minutes. I’m looking forward … Continue reading Presentable – “Designing the Space you work in”
What matters about taxes
As Belgians, we “enjoy” a significant level of taxation. And while I, as anyone, would like to pay as little taxes as possible, it is not the level of taxation which vexes me, but the often ineffective and inefficient way in which taxes are being used. In other words, I would mind paying taxes a … Continue reading What matters about taxes
Clay Shirky on newspapers or really any innovative industry
Vacation time is reading time. And I’ve built up quite a queue of Instapaper articles I needed to get through. As I was moving my archive to DevonThink, in order to be able to consult it quicker, I came across this quite old article by Clay Shirky. Titled “Newspapers and Thinking the Unthinkable”, Shirky explains … Continue reading Clay Shirky on newspapers or really any innovative industry
About taking notes with pen on paper
I’m probably one of the more technologically inclined people within my environment. I use an iPhone, work quite a lot with an iPad as one of my main tools, communicate on WhatsApp, use markdown as a language to write documents which I export to Microsoft Word for those who have yet to master the art … Continue reading About taking notes with pen on paper
Why the world is not falling apart
I believe I’ve linked to this article on Slate before, but even so, it’s more than worth reading. With everything going on around us, there is this tendency to think we are all the victims of circumstance and that the world is become a worse place. It isn’t. The only sound way to appraise the … Continue reading Why the world is not falling apart
Redirecting the blog
Exploring the Black Box has been dormant for quite a while, with the exception of some articles on the work of Kourosh Dini. There are a number of simple reasons that led to that sorry state and will lead to this blog changing somewhat in terms of content in the near future. The first reason … Continue reading Redirecting the blog
Exploring The Black Box 