Thinking Analytically

I just stumbled on a great article published at The McKinsey Quarterly earlier this year. In it, Hal Varian, Google’s chief economist, urges executives to sharpen their understanding of analytics and the relationship between technology and innovation.  Buried in the article was this quote:

I keep saying the sexy job in the next ten years will be statisticians.
People think I’m joking, but who would’ve guessed that
computer engineers would’ve been the sexy job of the 1990s? The
ability to take data—to be able to understand it, to process it,
to extract value from it, to visualize it, to communicate
it—that’s going to be a hugely important skill in the next
decades, not only at the professional level but even at the educational
level for elementary school kids, for high school kids, for college
kids. Because now we really do have essentially free and ubiquitous
data. So the complimentary scarce factor is the ability to understand
that data and extract value from it.

Well…maybe there’s hope!

Here’s a great opportunity to help others less fortunate than yourself. If you are reading this, it is probably safe to assume that you have access to a decent computer. I have several computers laying around the house (tough to toss when I upgrade) and I guess I take the opportunity for granted. That’s not the case in many parts of the world. The Give One – Get One program allows you to buy two revolutionary XO laptop computers for $400 for the pair. One is shipped to you and the other to a child in a developing nation. Plus, a $200 tax contribution is sent your way. From what I’ve read, the computer is very unique and is designed to work in adverse conditions. It is spill proof, runs six hours on battery, runs Linux and automatically networks with other similar computers. This laptop is not designed to run Photoshop, or World of Warcraft. Instead, the focus is to provide educational opportunities in developing nations.

Thanks to Tushar Mehta for bringing this to my attention in the Daily Dose of Excel blog. In his post he referenced an excellent article in the NY Times which includes a realistic review of the laptop. Be sure to read it before buying one. Offer ends November 26, 2007.

Cross posted at Random Thoughts.