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kruken

110 karma · joined September 23, 2012

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kruken··on The Fall of Academics at Harvard
Yes, absolutely possible - it's just a lot more work. As simonsarris points out above, this will be the exception rather than the rule in a system where universities and faculty are not measured/rewarded for quality of teaching.
kruken··on Throwing and catching an inverted pendulum with quadrocopters
Lots of scary things are possible as the hardware gets smaller/lighter/stronger and the control algorithms get more sophisticated.

Grenade lobbing is quite pedestrian compared to "precision targeting" in the video here: http://bit.ly/W6DnuO

kruken··on Watch YC Startup School 2012 Live
Perhaps they are expecting too many f-bombs...
kruken··on Making Yourself a CEO
Sage advice not just for CEOs but for anyone leading a team. Direct, constructive feedback is a great way to encourage open communication. Give early, give often.
kruken··on For Better, Or Worse, Modern Love Is Nothing But An Algorithm
Apparently the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences doesn't realize how hard it is to get a taxi in SF, otherwise Al Roth and Lloyd Shapely might have shared this with Travis Kalanick.
kruken··on Winning on Product, not on Price
Very much agree that winning on value rather than price is critical, especially for B2B companies working to establish themselves in the market. Focusing on price is fraught with peril and impossible to maintain for long. (Note that cost vs. price is a key distinction here - selling a product that reduces cost for the customer is great, but that's very different from using price to differentiate against competitors.) Nailing the solution to a tough customer problem is a much better formula for sustained growth... not to mention higher margins.

The allusion to the whole product is a big deal, too, because this is how that value is perceived your customers. Getting the core functionality right is a big piece of the puzzle, but I have often been amazed how much importance customers place on other things like a less painful sales process, service, support, training, etc. Building a coherent package across several of these dimensions can be a great way to differentiate in a crowded market and avoid the slippery slope of discounts.