A reflection on circumstances

Would a different person have done better than me in the my circumstances? Certainly. And perhaps there would have been others who would have done worse.
Would I have done better in different circumstances? Certainly. But no doubt there many circumstances in which I would have done much worse.

Treat of the day

A treat for me is a difficult subject explained well.

Incentivised blogging

It has become commonplace for mobile apps to offer some kind of feature enhancement in response to a user's review of the app on its relevant app store. Would such a system be possible with off-app-store reviews, typically blogs?

Obviously with human intervention it would be possible for the publisher/developer to check the review, an then unlock features on the user's account. An automated system might be possible where the users submits a url to the blog post, which is then downloaded by a bot and scanned for keywords and sentiment analysis.

Due to the cost overhead of developing the keyword and sentiment analysis, an incentivised blogging solution would probably only make sense as an independent service shared by many app developers/publishers.

Noise contained baby sleep and changing cubicle

I like the sound of babies crying as much as the next person. Ok, perhaps less.

The thing is, babies cry, and sometimes there's little that can be done to stop them crying. But that doesn't meet there isn't something to be done to stop everyone in the surrounding area suffering from it.

The solution I propose is a sound-proof baby care cubicle. The cubicle would be large enough for an adult to sit with the baby, and would also have a cot area. The cubicle would have a built-in baby monitor (as well as some of the features of the previously discussed baby pod).

Such cubicles would allow one care-giver to look after the baby (and suffer the noise) without nearby people suffering the consequences of the noise (including other children that might be woken up).

The cubicles could be used in maternity wards, and could be rented to new parents.

An extreme version of the cubicle would have a sound-proof vestibule that would allow entry and exist of the cubicle without any of the baby's noise being released into the environment.

Stocking shops at airports based on arrivals

With increasing restrictions and costs on what you can take with you on aircraft, and the ever-present threat of forgetting to buy some thing in the first place, being able to pickup souvenirs and gifts in arrivals as you return home is a good idea.

The challenge for the shops in arrivals is to carry enough stock to tailor to every destination that's being arrived from, and also to put that stock on display. One solution to this might be to have the display of arrivals' shops on a conveyor belt. The conveyor belt would be connected to a computer with access to the arrivals data, allowing relevant gifts and souvenirs to be brought into view to meet each arrival.

Work optimally, play optimally

Perhaps the expression "work hard, play hard" has an element of balance to it. But it seems to me that it doesn't capture the importance of balance in life. So I propose "work optimally, play optimally".

Hunger based dining experience

Have you ever noticed that food tastes better when you're hungry?

I wonder whether that presents an opportunity for a hunger based dining experience that relies on this fact.

A simple method might be for a restaurant to ask customers to, in advance, take a short survey regarding their eating habits, and then recommend the timing of their last meal before their reservation. The timing would be to maximize the food-improving hunger.

A more elaborate scheme would involve guests at the restaurant being fitted brainwave monitors that could measure the guests's hunger and so present food at the optimum time.

Resolutions

It is not just at new year that resolutions are made. We eat unhealthily, and resolve to eat more healthily in future. We drink too much and resolve to drink less. We allow our places of residence to become untidy or unclean, and resolve to tidy or clean more frequently. We find that we have been unproductive at work, and resolve to work more diligently. We find that we have been disorganised in our personal affairs, and resolve to be more organised. We argue with loved ones or friends, and resolve to be more understanding.

It appears as though there is a cycle of resolution, attention to subject area of the resolution, a gradual slip of that subject area from the fore of ones attention, and the slip in standards.

How long does this cycle last? How does duration vary between people? Do similar resolutions (e.g. diet resolutions) have similar durations?

How many resolutions does the average person make per year?

Does failure of a resolution weaken our resolve in keeping to others (i.e. make other resolutions more likely to fail)?

It seems that there are many interesting questions that can be asked of this subject, and perhaps a need for tools to capture the data to answer them.