Daily Diigo Public Link 02/19/2008
Place Wars – Seattle vs. Silicon Valley (Richard Florida and The Creative Class Exchange)
tags: business, creatives, richard_florida, seattle, silicon_valley, technology
Florida points to two techologists, one SV-based (Michael Arrington), the other now once again Seattle-based (Glenn Kelman), having a bit of a dust-up over whether one region/ city is better than the other. Robert Scoble also weighs in, as do several others. Of particular interest is that Crosscut today also published Margaret Pugh O’Mara’s article on the Seattle – Silicon Valley comparison. I commented here (and in Crosscut).
We are not ‘the next Silicon Valley’ by Margaret Pugh O’Mara (Crosscut Seattle) Annotated
tags: business, creatives, crosscut, margaret_o’mara, seattle, silicon_valley, technology
Really interesting article from the historian’s perspective on what it takes to “be” Silicon Valley (hint: certain historical confluences helped) and why it’s unlikely that another place will “be” just like that. On the other hand, great places can build on their core strengths, and there are lessons to be learned in this. As O’Mara writes: “In this worldwide network, the most vital innovation centers are those that know their own strengths, provide exciting and dynamic environments for people and firms, and have the resources and institutions that provide a home for new and exciting ideas.” I added a comment to this article, particularly as it jives with something Richard Florida also posted today.
“Yikes” – Richard Florida and The Creative Class Exchange
tags: american_stupidity, fame_seeking, narcissism, purposeful_ignorance, richard_florida, youtube
Florida quotes from a NYT review of Susan Jacoby’s book, “The Age of American Unreason,” which describes the spectacularly stupid Kellie Pickler, who claimed on television that she had never heard of Hungary, didn’t know what country Budapest is the capital of, and believed that Europe was “a country.” Her performance has earned her a wildly popular view rank on YouTube. But you have to wonder, as I did in my comment to Richard’s entry, whether it wasn’t a purposeful exercise on Pickler’s part. If you can’t win prizes for being smart, what better way to ensure your 15 minutes of YouTube fame than by being the absolute stupidest of the moment? I’m sure it’s a growing trend and we’ll see plenty more people competing in this …”category.”
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