The Truth About Mobile Advertising? It’s a House of Cards | Adweek

July 29, 2014July 28, 2014 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Like last year and the year before that, 2014 has been dubbed the “Year of Mobile” when ad dollars would start to catch up to smartphone usage. With major players like Facebook, Twitter and Google all pivoting to a mobile-first strategy, pundits claim this accelerated monetization as imminent. Unfortunately, there are fundamental hurdles inherent to the mobile ad ecosystem that must be cleared for this to become a reality.

Without a doubt, mobile marketing has fantastic potential, but we’re not there just yet. Outside of Facebook and Twitter, the majority of ad inventory available to marketers is the mobile banner, which has nearly the worst signal-to-noise ratio of any ad medium ever invented—second only to incentivized clicks. That means that the success of campaigns has almost no correlation to click performance data. Mobile game companies have consequently swallowed this market, buying ads based on inferred lifetime valuations LTV of customers.

Failed Entrepreneurs Find Success the Second Time Around | Businessweek

July 29, 2014July 28, 2014 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Given the slight chances of success, it’s a marvel anyone ever starts a business at all. One-third of new ventures close within two years, half within five years, and so on: only one in four is still around 15 years after opening day. But all that failure may offer its own reward, according to new research from a pair of economists from Stanford and the University of Michigan. They found that failed entrepreneurs are far more likely to be successful in their second go-around, provided they try again.The entrepreneurship studies that grab headlines tend to focus on investor-backed, technology start-ups. Those types of firms aren’t the norm. Most new businesses are still small, local retailers. To understand how these enterprises fare, Francine Lafontaine and Kathryn Shaw studied the successes and failures of retail entrepreneurs in Texas from 1990 to 2011. Over the 21-year-period, 2.4 million retail businesses opened and 2.2 million closed. Three out of every four were founded by first-time business owners.

Solar cells cool themselves to produce more power | Engadget.com

July 28, 2014 ~ knjohn ~ 1 Comment

Solar power cells need to stay relatively cool for the sake of both efficiency and longevity, but active cooling like ventilation isn’t practical; it’s expensive, and may block the very rays the cells are supposed to collect. To tackle this problem, Stanford University researchers have created a new form of solar cell that cools itself. The technique embeds a pattern of very small cone and pyramid shapes into the collector’s silica surface, bouncing hot infrared wavelengths away while letting in the visible light that generates the most energy.

The result is a heavily optimized panel that not only scoops up more power, but avoids cooking itself to death — it’s very nearly ideal, according to scientists. The Stanford team has a long way to go it still has to try the self-cooling tech outdoors, but it foresees commercial products. Don’t be surprised if you can eventually install a refined solar array at home that not only powers more of your gadgets, but doesn’t need to be replaced after suffering through a few too many scorching summers.

4 Ways Entrepreneurs Can Help Save the Economy | Allbusiness.com

July 25, 2014July 24, 2014 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Forget about the politicians in Washington and don’t count on Corporate America to get our struggling economy going — it’s America’s entrepreneurs that will prove to be the saviors. American entrepreneurs, through their creativity, innovation, and willingness to embrace risk, are the real engines that power our economy.

So often we look to the huge, multinational corporations as the drivers and guardians of our economy when the truth is the millions of small businesses across America deserve the credit. A strong, vibrant economy is the result of America’s entrepreneurs embracing the risk of self-reliance and venturing out to create their own opportunities. New small business startups create over three million new jobs each year. The solution to getting this country back on its feet and moving in a positive direction won’t happen because of the government. It requires the fruitful minds and determined drive of everyday citizens who enthusiastically embrace risk and begin the entrepreneurial journey.

Want to be part of the solution? Here are four ways that entrepreneurs can help revitalize our sagging economy:

Malaysia Jet Probe Taps Black-Box Data in Hunt for Rocket Traces | Bloomberg

July 24, 2014 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Data from the downed Malaysian jet’s black boxes has been successfully downloaded a week after the tragedy in east Ukraine, with the examination of bodies also under way as crash experts seek evidence of a missile strike.

The U.K. Air Accidents Investigation Branch gained access to the Boeing Co. 777’s flight-data readings today after yesterday retrieving cockpit-voice recordings, according to Dutch authorities who are leading the probe in recognition of the fact that almost 200 victims were from the Netherlands.

Specialists from the Dutch National Forensic Investigation Team are working in Kharkiv in government-controlled Ukraine after some of the 298 dead were moved there by train, with bodies being flown on to the Netherlands. While the flight recorders may reveal evidence of a missile attack, the fragmentation warhead thought to have been used will have peppered the 777’s fuselage and potentially its occupants, leaving the probe less dependent on an examination of a crash site that’s been heavily disturbed since the July 17 incident.

3D Printed Earbud | CoolBusinessIdeas.com

July 24, 2014 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The fit on earbuds varies wildly, largely because each person’s earlobe is a unique and beautiful snowflake. Okay, maybe not beautiful. But if a pair of earbuds matched the exact shape of your ear, the days of painful buds that fall out too easily could be numbered. That’s the concept behind OwnPhones, a San Francisco-based start-up that has created 3D printed wireless earbuds that are custom fitted to the shape of your ears.

The startup isn’t alone in the 3D printed earbud space. A few weeks ago, Normals came out of the shadows with a similar concept. And in much the same way, OwnPhone users upload video of their ears, which will be converted into a 3D mold. The company offers a number of customization options, including the ability to choose the color, style and even earbud material, but OwnPhones doesn’t elaborate on what those materials are.

See More Cool Business Ideas.

The World’s Largest Indoor Farm Produces 10,000 Heads of Lettuce a Day in Japan | Inhabitat

July 23, 2014July 22, 2014 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

A former Sony Corporation semiconductor factory in Japan has been converted into the world’s largest indoor farm. Japanese plant physiologist Shigeharu Shimamura, CEO of Mirai Co., partnered with GE Japan to make his dream of a water, space and energy efficient indoor farming system a reality. Despite having only started production a year ago, the farm is already shipping out 10,000 heads of lettuce per day.

The farm is located in Miyagi Prefecture in eastern Japan, the area that was badly hit by a powerful earthquake and tsunami in 2011. At 25,000 square feet, it is nearly half the size of a football field, and 17,500 LED lights spread over 18 cultivation racks reaching 15 levels high are a key to the farm’s success. The LEDs were developed for the project by GE and emit light at wavelengths optimal for plant growth, allowing Shimamura to control the night-and-day cycle and accelerate production.

Split decisions on Obamacare subsidies: The impact on 4.7 million Americans | CnnMoney

July 22, 2014 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Two opposing court rulings issued Tuesday sowed confusion about whether 4.7 million Americans can keep their Obamacare subsidies.

A federal appeals court panel in Washington, D.C., ruled Tuesday morning that individuals cannot use tax credits or subsidies to buy health insurance on the federal exchange, healthcare.gov.

A few hours later, another set of appeal judges in Richmond, Va., unanimously upheld the ability for people applying for coverage on the federal exchange to receive subsidies.

The Obama administration said it plans to appeal the D.C. court ruling.

For Americans receiving subsidies, nothing will change until the legal court battle ends. People in the 14 states and Washington D.C. that run their own exchanges would not be affected by these rulings.

Subsidies are key to the Affordable Care Act’s success: About 87% of those who signed up for Obamacare plans on healthcare.gov received them.

Malaysia Airlines Disaster Could Be Setback for AIDS Research | Live Science

July 22, 2014 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The HIV/AIDS research community expressed sadness today over the loss of prominent AIDS researchers and activists who were aboard Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, saying that the tragedy could also be a setback for research in the field.

The flight, which was carrying nearly 300 passengers from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was brought down yesterday July 17 by a surface-to-air missile while flying over an area of conflict between Ukraine and Russia, according to U.S. government officials. At least several of the passengers on the flight were believed to be headed to the International AIDS Conference in Melbourne, Australia.