Security Pie

The government is now asking people to avoid eating raw alfalfa sprouts, including sprout blends that contain alfalfa sprouts, because of possible salmonella contamination.  According to the FDC press release, 

Initial investigation results trace the contaminated raw alfalfa sprouts to multiple sprout growers in multiple states. This suggests a potential problem with the seeds used, as well as the possible failure of the sprout growers involved to appropriately and consistently follow the FDA Sprout Guidance issued in 1999 . The guidance recommends an effective seed disinfection treatment immediately before the start of sprouting.

To me, this whole issue sounds like a classic case of malfunction with the risk management process: I’m not an expert in food safety, but I know few things about risk management. From reading the last reports, it looks like someone in the FDA should start to enforce better controls on food manufacturers.  We can’t change our diet because someone forgot to read a manual from 1999. 

Our friends down under at the University of Melbourne completed a study showing that surfing the net at work for pleasure actually increases the employee concentration levels and helps make a more productive workforce. 

According to the study of 300 workers, 70% of people who use the Internet at work engage in Workplace Internet Leisure Browsing (WILB). Among the most popular WILB activities are searching for information about products, reading online news sites. Playing online games was the fifth most popular, while watching YouTube movies was seventh.

In today’s world, I can’t understand how “searching for information about products” is considered not work related, unless of course the study talks about products that are not related to work. In this case, I would categorize this action as “surfing”. But then, the reports adds that “People who do surf the Internet for fun at work – within a reasonable limit of less than 20% of their total time in the office – are more productive by about 9% than those who don’t”.

To me, it makes a lot of sense. I’m more productive and have the time to “clean” my mind, not to mention the expsure to related technologies. 

Assaf might want to comment on the following statement: 

“Firms spend millions on software to block their employees from watching videos on YouTube, using social networking sites like Facebook or shopping online under the pretense that it costs millions in lost productivity, however that’s not always the case.”

Silicon’s Alley Dan Frommer thinks that Twitter is attracting “normal people” from real life , “not just other nerds on the Internet”.

I disagree.

I can’t argue that Twitter is gaining popularity but I argue that it is used by “normal people”. See, I recently joined the crowds and started to twit. Thus far, it distracted my blog(s) and some other activities…   Yes. it is becoming addicting.

Now at the holiday season I find it to be an anti social tool. According to my family’s tradition we reach out to our friends and families, wish happy holiday, visit and reconnect. Twitter is the antimatter of real life social networking: One sends (very short) messages, typically not waiting for an answer and expects in return to maintain the relationship.  In the past we had to (at least try to) work hard in order to maintain a meaningful relationship. Calling, sending emails, visiting.

As much as I enjoy it, I see it more as a research tool or a communication protocol, similar to SMS but more efficient. 

Drop me a line. I’m listening (on Twitter…) 

My friend Dean is inspired by military battle plans. Recently, he used some to explain competitive marketing tactics (sorry, you can’t get those secrets from me). I’m thinking that we shouldn’t stop there. Inspired by the way that Dean is recycling old battle plans (recycling and going green are still very trendy) I decide to find additional solutions.  Amazon’s “new” cloud platform is an ideal candidate.

It’s vulnerable, easy target and holds a lot of strategic value. Bring the Hawks

The Next Generation of Cloud Attack Prevention

Image source: http://www.aladad.org/HawkFiring.jpg

Seriously,