evolving communication

On the 20th of April, this happened.

One day - very soon - we will be able to twitter with our brains.

(This happened just 4 days after Ashton Kutcher's Twitter feed crossed 1 million followers. I don't know if the two are related, though I would like to think of some scientist guy somewhere getting up and saying, 'enough already, dude. you need a brain to twitter!')

As a friend of mine said - it's cool, but also - in some way - sad. Is the human conversation going to go the way of the physical letter, with all it's nostalgia, memory power, emotional significance? They said that a cold heartless email could never replace it. But it did. And letters went through the ignonimity of being branded 'snail mail' on their way out. Now, it's only couriers, emails, sms's.
Conversation disappearing might seem fantastic now, but that's how they felt about the letter, too. Every generation has it's favorite means of communication - which they defend passionately, and lament it's demise in their old age, and curse the new replacement - which has been equally passionately embraced by the next generation, for whom it's as essential as oxygen.

makes you think - how many such other forms have disappeared forever, which we'll never even know about, never mind remember how to use. What might the Incan quipu have spoken, if we'd known how to listen? Not just the sight of words on a page, but texture, color, complexity...

And tomorrow - is a hive mind. When our thoughts become the primary means of communicating with the outside world... will there be another learning curve? Self-censorship? Another BBC Sitcom ripoff called Dimaag Sambhal Ke?

Self-disciplined begins with the mastery of your thoughts. If you don't control what you think, you can't control what you do. - Napolean Hill
Soon, it won't be a philosopher's aspiration, but a basic requirement for getting into kindergarten.

Domino's versus Social Media

This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Kristy Hammonds.

This story is very much available, and forever will be.

On 13th April, two employees put out a youtube video showing them - um, pulling a practical joke with their company's product.
It's not that bad, by itself. Do you really know what is in every morsel of food you it? what touched it, it's nutrition content, are the ingredients safe, etc, etc. A vast majority of the world regularly eats food with a lot more repugnant content than a trace of booger and a dash of methane.

There's two sides to everything.
Overworked, underpaid, bored minimum-wage employees, with poor prospects and (possibly) work pressure from the employer as well as their peers / family. This was just a way to make life a bit more bearable. Stupid, immature, disgusting, but understandable. We've all been there. We've all had that moment - which we may or may not have acted on. That's why we watch the underdog movies.

Thousands of other franchises where this doesn't happen, and hundreds of thousands of people whose jobs depend on customers continuing to order food. Millions of people wanting to eat that food.

But today, there's a third - the giant eye in the sky, social media.
Look at what's happening. It's not that big a deal, yet it is treated as such. People watch it, scream in outraged horror, and send it to a hundred friends. The cycle repeats. A week passes. The employees are fired, a decent percent of people swear never to touch that company's food again, and life goes on.

Transparency. Social media makes everyone outside feel like they have a special privileged view, that they can see what happens behind what was previously an opaque wall. You just heard stories - now you can see the proof!
Yet - that's not the whole truth. One video is not ALL videos. Everyone doesn't do this, yet we react like they do. The logical response is, next time Kristy and Michael throw a barbecue party, watch a movie instead.
Yet we assume that if one did it, all might do it. Yeah, they might. Some probably do. Everywhere, in every restaurant, fast food outlet, hospital, cafeteria... in food processing plants... and they may not even be aware they do it.

That is the world. You cannot seal yourself in a bubble and grow your own food.

The wall is no longer opaque - but it's not transparent either. It's bubbled, fractured, cracked. What happens inside is distorted. All you can do is guess, nd form an opinion of whatever little gets out.

What can Domino's do? Make reassuring noises. One bad bit got out. They need to consciously ensure that other good bits get out as well. GET out, and are not put out. It has to be real stuff.
And if they go back to the wall - that's suicide.
One plane crash makes news for months. Yet thousands fly safely that we never hear about.

Put the security cams, by all means. Make them publicly viewable. And if a customer complains, finds something off in his order - give him the access to check.

Face it - it's never going to be like it was, whether good or bad. It's goiung to be what it is. We can just try and make it good.

Satyam ke Sholay

Jay : Mausi, ladka Satyam mein kaam karta hai..
Mausi : Hai ram..!!! Aur kahin try kar raha hai kya??

Jay : kahan mausi, 2 saal Satyam me rahne ke baad koi Company leti kahan hai...
Mausi : Hi Raam to kya 2 saal se Satyam mein hi hai..

Jay : haan socha tha 2 saal me salary hike hogi hi. Aajkal to salary
bhi jyada NAHI mil rahi hai use..
Mausi : To kya salary BHI KAM milti HAI..?

Jay : Ab appraisal bhi to asaani se kahaan hota hai mausi..
Mausi : Hai hai ...!! To kya appraisal bhi nahi hota uska..? Jay :
Senior se ladhai karne ke baad appraisal mein achhi rating to
nahin milti hai na... Mausi..
Mausi : To kya seniors se ladhta bhi hai..?

Jay : Ab 2 saal tak onsite Jane ko na mile to ho jaati hai kabhi kabhi anban..
Mausi : To kya AB tak ek baar bhi onsite nahi gaya ..???

Jay : Ab Outdated technology ke developer ki kismat mein to yehi
likha hai mausi..
Mausi : kya kaha ladka Outdated technology mein kaam karata hai..!!!

Mausi : Kaunse college se padhai ki hai..?
Jay : Uska pataa lagte hi hum aapko khabar de denge!! Jay : To main
rishta pakka samjhuna mausi???
Mausi : Beta, kan khol kar sun Le...Sagi mausi hoon basanti ki, koi
sauteli maa nahi....Bhale hi hamaari Basanti Call Center wale Chandu
se shaadi kar Le par Satyam ke employee se katai nahin karegi .