Attention!

Folks, I have no time to explain.

Just see the comic and if you like it visit our (?) latest invention:

The Attention Economics Wiki

By the way, some knowledge sharing: Don’t ever apply for PhD programs, have exams and accept projects at the same time. It will kill you!

Our President…

New Cat: Miss Gilberth

There are four cats in the faculty of management that I know of. This one is my favorite.

She usually comes to me when I call her and is always very friendly – a very rare phenomena with cats- . I wanted to name a cat after a management guru ever since I’ve read a book about “artificial intelligence” where every example was about a cat named “Minsky” which refers to “Marvin Minsky” who is one of the founding fathers of Artificial Intelligence. It was very cool because the examples in the book would go like:

Minsky is a cat; therefore Minsky has four legs.

The logic would go like this:

If Cat(Minsky)=true Then put Legs(Minsky)=4

I don’t know about you but I find that amusing. Yes! that’s how geeky I am sometimes.

I really wanted to name it “Mintzberg” but -and accidentally not that I touched anything- found out it was not a “He”. Plus, Henry Mintzberg teaches at McGill and I’m applying to McGill and things could get very very ugly.

So, I had only two options left. Mary Parker Follett and Lillian Gilbreth. I am very fond of Follet. I have a complete set of her works in my library and actually feel some sympathy for her since she was never appreciated when she was alive. Her Ideas are 16 generations ahead of her time (now we are in generation eight.)

I decided to name her Mary Follet but for some reason she didn’t look like a Mary. I don’t know about you but I hear Mary; I go for Jesus. If Mr. Jesus hears I named a black cat the same as her mother he is going to be pissed and he is friendlier with God than I am. I even though of naming it God but it would create much confusion.

So, Say hello to “Lillian Moller Gilbert II”.

The Parallel Ahmadinejad

I’ve spent a substantial fruitless amount of time trying to understand why Ahmadinejad says things that he says, up until now! Recently, he said:

“In Iran we don’t have homosexuals like in your country (USA). […] In Iran we do not have this phenomenon. I don’t know who’s told you that we have this.” [Yahoo][NY Times][CNN]

Many thought he said that to gloss over the fact that homosexuals are executed in Iran. Many are wrong. I know why he says things like that. Read these quotes from him before I make my argument:

• We thank God that our enemies are idiots. (6 February 2006) [Source]

• The world is rapidly getting ‘Ahmadinejadized,’ if I’m allowed to make a joke. (20 November 2006 (Source(s): [Source 1], [Source 2])

• I went to a couple of real state agencies in my neighborhood and checked. Home prices have not risen at all where I live(About 6 months ago when home prices nearly doubled in Tehran.).

And, of course, my favorite:

• “I’ve been informed of a 16 year old Iranian girl who has created nuclear energy in her home with the tools she bought off the market.” I talked to her teacher. She is now a nuclear scientist. (Link to Video on youtube)

Why do you think that happens?

I have been convinced there is only one possible way to explain it. It’s called the “Parallel Universe Theory of Ahmadinejad“. The guy lives in a totally different world. I know it’s hard to believe but this seems to be the only sound explanation and scientific method says when there is only one possible explanation to a phenomena then there is only one possible explanation.

When you imagine him living in a parallel universe, his words start making sense. He says there are no homosexuals in Iran because in the parallel-Iran there are no homosexuals. Members of his cabinet and all the people around him( what a pity Wikiquote has no page on those guys) live in the same universe. Anyway, the parallel universe that he lives in has the following attributes:

1. has no homosexuals.
2. no inflation or price increase either.
3. no homosexuals “parallel” U.S.A
4. Homosexuality is a taboo in “parallel” Earth.
5. Homosexuals are not people.

How do they switch universes is unknown. Well, if there were more quantum physicists.

[Background: As I am writing this the Iranian government news is on and it's quoting Fox news to say Ahmadinejad's Speech in Columbia university was an absolute success. I am convinced that I ,too, am living in a parallel universe. Strange one too. ]