When I first thought about a trip to South America, I had some ideas in my head about how things were - I knew it was no longer the place of the past decades, when some revolution or another would push one government out for another, be it from democracy to communist or military junta, or indeed vice versa. Hell, Brazil is right on the list of economies challenging the developed nations. I do admit though there’s a little part of me that clung to the notion so deeply instilled by the Tin Tin comics, of all things, where one dictator was replaced by another only to himself be thrown out at the end of the day. It’d be a hell of a thing of it did happen, but let’s just say I wouldn’t mind Tin Tin’s role :-) With this kind of context in mind, getting into Buenos Aires, I first felt a shock of the new - Ezezia Airport is very new and nicely fitted out - and then the polar opposite as we approached our hotel. In an ostensibly decent neighborhood, there was a feeling that you were in a place you didn’t necessarily want to hang out at night, judging by the sidewalks and the graffiti, which was ubiquitous. I felt a perverse thrill that perhaps trouble was bubbling under the surface… So what did we do after putting our stuff down at 10pm? Naturally we wandered outside, assured by the nearby lights, late night pharmacy, McDonalds… And it turns out appearances are deceptive, because this was the kind of neighborhood where people were out with their kids at 11 in the evening, as others strolled to restaurants to get started on their meal. ...

In 2008, I think I was far more nervous and yet also more confident of Obama’s election - surely, the US would see after the disaster of the Bush presidency that something different was needed, and they delivered. The elation, the sheer relief of Bush being over and done with was as big a factor in the aftermath as the historic election of a ‘Black’ President. Obama would have that label no matter what, now that he was elected - and the Hope & Change message was a powerful one. ...

“Wait… you have an iPad, a desktop, a Kindle, an iPhone… what the hell do you need a Nexus 7 for?” It’s the first question I get asked with this thing. The answer I’m tempted to give is sheer technolust: who can resist getting another toy that seems to play a role, well, at least somewhere in the pantheon of devices available. The iPad allowed me to get rid of the laptop - so what would a 7 inch tablet do for me? ...

Simply beautiful: a circuit diagram for a radio made from the London Tube map, instantly recognisable

Hey, just a little cross-promotion, my dad’s new site for his consulting firm is up at Lean Pursuit - they specialize in implementation of Lean principles for process improvement in a variety of companies, such as the manufacturing industry. If you haven’t heard of Lean techniques, you might know of Six Sigma - similar concept, all about reducing defects and smoothing the process of production. Anyway, I’m helping out with the site, so fingers crossed it gets up and running soon enough. ...