10 TED talks to help reimagine your work
This is a well-selected bunch of TEDs. Watch one a day for a reenergizing prescription!
Monopoly players around the kitchen table think the game is all about accumulation. You know, making a lot of money. But the real object is to bankrupt your opponents as quickly as possible. To have just enough so that everybody else has nothing.
Richard Marinaccio, the 2009 U.S. national Monopoly champion
Interesting take.
Question: If this is indeed the object, what personality, traits, or demographic background might a good monopoly player tend to have?
Interview: Will Sakran, Product Engineer / Inventor
When I moved to New York, I learned of a fun group of buddies calling themselves MetroMetro who, among other things, hosted Board Game Olympics, which clearly I attended often. This is how I met Will Sakran, who was among the organizers and who I also learned is also a thoughtful entrepreneur. I interviewed him about his new product Toobalink, a product manufactured through Metre Ideas and Design that connects together paper towel and toilet tissue tubes to build kid-sized structures. Here’s what I learned:
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Jen Bokoff: Toobalink’s so smart but so simple! What sparked this idea for you?
Will Sakran: I’m happy you feel that way about it, because we think that’s the real beauty of the idea. It’s one of those ideas where people say, “I can’t believe no one thought of this earlier!” The initial concept came from a clever and talented industrial designer that I work with named Sara Ebert. As a student at Pratt, she took a class that focused on classic play and came up with the idea while observing children play with everyday objects around the house. It was around this time I left my job as an engineer in the toy industry to start my own product design company. I thought the concept was brilliant with lots of potential, so we teamed up with me handling the final design, productization, and manufacture.
JB: How did you settle on the final design and colors? Are you a Mets fan?
WS: I do like the Mets, but that didn’t have any bearing on the color scheme. Sorry. [Editors note: As a Yankees fan, I’m relieved.] The very first prototypes were blue and orange and it felt right from the start. There’s definitely something about orange that feels “construction-y”. The final shade of blue is not quite at dark as what was originally planned, but it was always blue and orange together. As for the design itself, it’s quite different from where we started. The original concept used fixed parts that were more like pipe fittings - there was an elbow piece, a straight connector piece, a cross piece, and so on. I was concerned that this approach would limit what kids could actually build, and I didn’t want to manufacture ten different parts to make the product work, so I starting thinking about how to make it modular. In the end, there are five unique parts which can be put together in any combination to make the fittings that you need. Then you pop the paper tubes onto the fittings.
JB: What do you like to build with a Toobalink starter kit? Any favorite design or type of structure?
WS: Just putting the Toobalink pieces together is really fun, I think - seeing what combinations there are and what you can do with them. I also like the idea of building without a goal in mind, and I secretly hope that kids like this, too. You can absolutely make specific structures if you want to, but I like the abstract stuff. Just building.
JB: Toobalink tangibly feels to me like Tinkertoys, but recycling-friendly and more “DIY”. How are you starting to market the product so it can reach the same scale?
WS: Even though Toobalink is just hitting the market now, prototype versions have been shown at trade shows going back to January 2011. It’s been really well received, buyers are enthusiastic about it, and we got some great press. This gave the product a lot of early exposure and helped us build up a retailer base that was committed to stocking it once it became available. So it’s out there now in many specialty stores - gift shops, museum stores, that sort of thing. We’ll continue to do trade shows to reach more retailers, but now that Toobalink is out I’m turning my attention to reaching individual customers directly. This is mainly though online channels - the Toobalink.com site, Facebook, Twitter, and through really helpful people like you, Jen. [Editors Note: Awwwww!]
JB: If you had an afternoon to construct with Toobalink beyond your wildest dreams, what kids snack would best power you through?
WS: Grilled cheese sandwiches and the occasional Hostess Ding Dong.
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A Toobalink starter package is available for purchase online now, so you should probably buy one. Or two. You can also find Will teaching at the Brooklyn Brainery, but that’s an interview for another day.
This week’s Relatively Prime podcast centers around a game I wish I could win more effectively: checkers. Give it a listen, and see the below description to get you hooked.
You may not think of checkers as an important game intellectually. It certainly has never had the cachet of chess. That did not stop it from becoming the obsession of the University of Alberta computer science professor for nearly two decades and the center of one of the most ambitious Artificial Intelligence projects ever undertaken. This is their story.
In politics and in life, when you feel most in trouble, count on your opponents to overplay their hands.
Monopoly Street Art(?) in Chicago. I like games and fun sidewalk entertainment that you can actually interact with, but I think the messaging is a little unclear and arguably counterproductive. Also, this supposed quote from the artist is intriguing but also punkish:
The goal of this entire project has been to present something different than a stencil painted on the ground or a poster pasted to a wall. Something 3-dimensional that can be picked up, beaten down, kicked, yanked, grabbed, and broken. And if someone ever put forth the effort to remove it, like a weed it will always grow back. And if left alone it will evolve into something different.
Has anyone seen it in the flesh? What do you think?
World Series of Poker // $$$$$$ (for good)
David Einhorn, the president of Greenlight Capital and a generous philanthropist, finished in 3rd place at the World Series of Poker yesterday and plans to donate his winnings ($4.35million!) to City Year.
It’s always great to see (high quality) nonprofits supported such a sincere and unexpected public forum. Way to go, David and City Year!
Making games work for kids of all ages and needs
Neat article about adapting games for kids with special needs. Everyone can play and benefit from games!
Cool game, cool community building, cool report. Thumbs up.
The Knight Foundation recently released an awesome report on their grant to Macon, Georgia for a social game designed by Area/Code to build community through local currency. These are a bunch of my favorite things. (Games! Philanthropy! Sociology! Money!) You really must read more about it, because I can’t embed any here and it’s too good not to look. I leave you with a teaser screenshot:
It is a happy talent to know how to play.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
I was reminded of this quote through a playful blog post reminding us that games and play can be a part of anything we do. It’s a bit cheesy but worth a skim and reflection; the message is spot on.
Are there chores that you’ll do today that you can infuse with a smile?
Watch this short film (10 minutes) by Director Jay Cheel called The Politics of Competitive Board Gaming Amongst Friends. It’s charming, compelling, and beautifully rides the fun line between serious and sarcastic as it explores the dynamics of four buddies playing Settlers of Catan.
Skills: Win at Rock-paper-scissors
According to Graham Walker, coauthor of The Official Rock Paper Scissors Strategy Guide, here’s how to win:
1. Play paper first. Rookies tend to lead with rock, so paper is the safest opener. If you win, claim victory; if not, start the next throw right away, because of course it’s two out of three.
2. Exploit copycats. Casual players often switch to the object that just beat them. You can encourage them to do this by shouting, “Paper wins!” when you defeat their rock. Then throw scissors on the next round.
3. Watch for doubles. People rarely throw the same hand three times in a row; if they play scissors twice, your next move is paper. Also, keep up the pace so they have less time to think and instead fall into patterns.
(via the monthly LifeLabs email)
Chutes and Ladders: Not just a kids game anymore
Still playing Chutes and Ladders with the kids? Are you losing or feeling bored? Let math help you climb that ladder of enjoyment!
DataGenetics gives a fascinating mathematical breakdown of Chutes and Ladders. Learn what squares are most likely to land on, how many rolls will complete a game, and what would happen if you added more ladders.
Maybe it’s time for you host a game night with your buddies and throw this one back into the mix.
DataGenetics has other very cool board game analyses and more. Check it out.
Posts to keep you entertained, thinking, sharing, and discussing. I blog across subject areas because there's a lot of interesting stuff out there; why limit our conversation?
