Pattern problems vs logic problems

Suppose three men can paint three fences in three hours. How long would it take one man to paint one fence? I ran across this interesting problem in The Joy of x: A Guided Tour of Math, from One to Infinity, a very accessible and interesting tour of mathematics. It turns out most people quickly answer “one hour.” As Strogatz opines, The words themselves nudge you that way. [Read More]
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How to measure anything

Over the past year I have had the opportunity to advise a number of people I have worked with in the past who are starting companies. In the past few years my role had been that of a director of both design and R&D teams and so I enjoy continuing that type of role in providing direction to these exciting new startup ventures. One thing many of these early phase projects lack is clarity and proper measurement of the problem and opportunity; having only a vague sense of their relative probability of success given their chosen direction versus alternative approaches. [Read More]
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