International icebreaker
I am not even twelve hours into the Italy trip and it is clear that the iPhone may be the surprise social lubricant of the journey. People are unabashed about asking about it, wanting to hold it, play with it. And I am of course obliging.
The great thing is that being wowed by the iPhone has nothing to do with language. It is visual and tactile and immediate. An Italian at O’Hare and an Indian in Milan (where I am now) were flicking through my kids’ photos in no time flat. A great conversation-starter.
For what it’s worth, the phone works great over here and EDGE isn’t too bad either.
Hi, I’m John Tolva!
Here's a little bit about me and how to get in touch.
Views From The Tank
Clowns at the circus
Marginalia
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Humans walking through a city don't take the shortest route but the one that physically points them at their destination most consistently.
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Placing this here to remind future me.
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LIght pollution of course ruins this.
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Clever. Would be even better using LEGO's bioplastic bricks.
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It doesn’t solve the problem to buy a hybrid and retrofit your house if all of that takes place 20 miles from your job.
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Eno on urban design is masterful.
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Railroad marketing ploy. But it's still quite nice here.
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Particularly proud of this project from the Colorado Smart Cities Alliance.
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"'There is an Italian phrase,' said Marco after we ordered our food. '"Li ti avvelenano", which translates to "there they will poison you." This is my prediction for the night.'"
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Bringing together a few things I'm working on.