Tuesday, October 17, 2006

India running out of people? There are a couple of interesting thoughts in this article about a looming technical worker shortage in India. First, it teaches the fallacy of making linear extrapolations of limited data (like what the daily newspaper journalists love to do for a dramatic story). Curves of human endeavors are typically periodic, such as a sine wave or even more complex. Second, simply counting engineering school graduates doesn't prove anything. I did not finish my formal engineering education but went on to study lots of stuff (all valuable in the long run). Even though I'm hardly a genius, several times I've had engineering jobs where I out-performed engineering school graduates. I'm willing to bet that you've seen similar situations, too. Point? Always look behind and beyond simple data points--even in running your plant. Skills Gap Hurts Technology Boom in India. In a country once regarded as a bottomless well of low-cost, ready-to-work, English-speaking engineers, a shortage looms. By SOMINI SENGUPTA. [NYT > Technology] 7:21:17 AM    comment []

ISA Expo, the day begins Of course, no going brain dead for me today. Breakfast meeting with Laura Patrick where I'll get more news from ABB. Then 4 press conferences, 5 booth meetings and a telephone press briefing from someone not at the Expo who nevertheless has a news announcement tomorrow. Then there are two hospitality receptions (at least) tonight after the show. There had better be news to report ;-) 7:10:48 AM    comment []

TV a culprit? I've noticed for years that if I watch a TV show that I can't go back to a book that requires thinking for a while. It sort of makes me brain dead. Here's an intertesting study I saw on Slashdot. TV Really Might Cause Autism. Alien54 writes "Cornell University researchers are reporting what appears to be a statistically significant relationship between autism rates and television watching by children under the age of 3. The researchers studied autism incidence in California, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Washington state. They found that as cable television became common in California and Pennsylvania beginning around 1980, childhood autism rose more in the counties that had cable than in the counties that did not. They further found that in all the Western states, the more time toddlers spent in front of the television, the more likely they were to exhibit symptoms of autism disorders. The Cornell study represents a potential bombshell in the autism debate." 7:06:22 AM    comment []