Gift giving in the information age

Given the world as it is right now, how do you give a holiday gift?

I realized over the course of this season the best gifts are unexpected, should reinforce human connections, and can even call to a higher purpose.

Most people reading this post have enough money to buy all the average physical gifts they desire. There is very little physical scarcity in today's world. If it exists and I can connect to the internet, it can be at my home in a couple of days.

If I give a gift that is expected, be it a trending gift of the moment or a variation on a tradition, there is very little delight. It is better if I try give a gift from my heart, from one human to another human. To make a gift truly special, I try to call to a higher purpose. That higher purpose could be helping the people the gift receiver cares about or an improved version of the gift receiver themselves.

The art of this gift giving style is calling to a higher purpose without preaching.

Unquestionable Beliefs

Everyone has unquestionable beliefs (Hint - They probably wouldn't call them beliefs.). If a belief is unquestionable, it is a waste of everyone's time to discuss it. Either it is two people reinforcing their common world view or two people talking past each other. The more interesting space is where beliefs are allowed to be questioned.

Data, Method, or Narrative

What do you spend the most time and attention on?

What do you read first?

What do you read most often?

What has the most value in science?

A map of the brain: Allan Jones on TED.com

Allan Jones shows a powerful direction for the future of neuroscience. He combines the best of science (i.e, technical skills and cutting-edge technology) with the latent power of crowd sourcing. You can explore those human brains here.

Slip Slidin' Away in Science

“Life is like skiing.
Just like skiing, the goal is not to get to the bottom of the hill. It’s to have a bunch of good runs before the sun sets.”
Seth Godin

Here is how my work in science is similar to skiing:

Some runs are easy; some runs are hard. A classic day has the proper mixture of both. Every paper won't get published in Science or Psychology Review. Some data sets will end up in the file drawer.

The best equipment isn't necessary but can help bring out the joy. The synthetic clothes and properly-tuned skis of science are access to data and fast computers. Those elements are more available and cheaper everyday.

The solitude of quiet runs and writing are intrinsic elements. If they are embraced, they can be delightful. However, ski buddies and science colleagues are more likely to push me in interesting directions, often towards personal blind spots.

Sometimes the logistics of skiing (e.g., traffic and snowy mountain roads) keeps me from even getting to the mountain. That is a shame. Sometimes logistics get in the way of my science goals (e.g., publish quality data, propose new models, and mentor as many people as possible). I need to be more mindful of minimizing everything that does not help me to achieve my goals.

I wonder how many good science runs can I get in before my sun sets.

Free Data

In the past, there has been a scarcity of data. Data was expensive to collect and analysis. It is cheaper every day. What happens when it is free? Will that decimate how you do science? Or will you use it to ask and answer more interesting questions?