by Dyske Suematsu • October 18, 2011
Think of yourself as an iceberg. In the illustration below, you are on the right, and on the left is someone who works in the same field but is more successful than you. The tips of these icebergs are identical, and they represent talent. That is, you are just as talented as your rival is. Now, the rest of the icebergs represents things like confidence, social skills, empathy, ability to manage stress, negotiation skills, understanding what other people want, marketing skills, health, business savvy, etc.. In other words, it represents everything else that the public does not care to know about you. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • July 23, 2011
In the last 10 years, I don't think computers increased our productivity. The processing power of our computers increased dramatically in that period, but for the vast majority of things we do on computers, the increase in power is actually irrelevant because the bottleneck is our brain powers; how quickly we can respond to computers. For instance, as I type this essay, my computer is using a tiny fraction of its power. The computer I was using 25 years ago had more than enough processing power to handle what I'm doing right now. In terms of writing (which is still a huge chunk of what we do on computers), the advancement in computer hardware was pretty much irrelevant. It didn't make us write any faster, because the bottleneck is our own brains, not computers. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • June 26, 2011
“Small talk” has been a bane of my existence all my life. I could never figure out why small talk has such a critical role in socializing with others. Why is it that trying to talk about particle physics at a party is looked down on? In fact, why are parties necessary in the first place? Why can’t we just meet with one another, sit down in a quiet place and exchange our knowledge and insights? As silly as it may sound, this question has baffled me all my life. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • March 3, 2010
Dear DoGooders: I am writing to you because I noticed that you use DoGood Headquarters' advertising service. Please give me a moment to explain to you why DoGood's service is ultimately harmful to all of us. This is not a simple matter to explain but if you could read this letter to the end, I believe we could agree that everyone will lose by using DoGood's service. So, bear with me. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • April 30, 2009
The artist Jenny Holzer said in her work: “The abuse of power comes as no surprise.” I share the same view. In this essay, I want to persuade you to use search engines other than Google because it could come as no surprise that Google’s dominance in the search engine market leads to abuse. Don’t get me wrong: I love many of Google’s products, and I use them every day. I’m not bashing Google as a company. My argument has to do with their dominance in the search engine market, and why it is in our own interest to help others be competitive with Google. Google essentially has a monopoly in this market and a monopoly can happen even if a company has no intention of monopolizing or have no predatory business practices. English as a language, for instance, has a monopolistic power, because our desire to have a universal language is strong. Nevertheless, a monopoly is a powerful and dangerous force because the abuse of that power can happen almost unconsciously to the holders of the power. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • April 20, 2009
I think we often underestimate the value of small talk. I should know, because small talk is something I’m really bad at. When I go to a party, I often start talking about serious issues, business, and/or highly technical things, and within minutes, I’m standing alone in the middle of a crowd. If you intellectually think about the idea of small talk, everyone tends to dismiss it as being superficial and pointless, but it must have a very important social function, otherwise people would not do it so often (and otherwise I should be the life of the party). Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • February 22, 2009
I have a 4-year old girl. As a father, the experience of raising a girl has been enlightening to say the least. It has given me an insight into what girls and women experience as they grow up. Firstly, I am now thoroughly convinced that many of the feminist arguments about the environment causing girls to want to be beautiful, be nurturing, love the color pink, etc., are wrong. Those arguments must be coming from feminists who have never had children of their own. If you do have your own, you would have to be blind to think that. Not just my own girl, but her friends too, required no effort, encouragement, nor even introduction for them to love all things pink and glittery. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • August 31, 2008
I have never seriously wished to be a rock star, but like everyone else, have occasionally fantasized about being one. In my college days and 20s, rock music was practically a religion. (Here, I’m using the term broadly to mean any styles of music popular among the youth, not the specific genre or style of music called “rock”.) Virtually all my friends have, at one point or another, tried to form a band or be somehow associated with one. Rock music is a perfect remedy for the feelings of insecurity, loneliness, and angst that come with being young. To top it all, most parents do not want you to pursue a career in rock music. That makes you want to do it more, so that you can feel you are your own person, not a product designed and programmed by your parents to be a certain way. The unfortunate thing I see now in my 40s is that your parents’ warnings have some truth to them, which is being ignored or misunderstood. Most of the parents don’t explain it well either. They sound like they are making excuses for their failure to pursue their own dreams. So, in an attempt to avoid becoming a wimp like your parents, you try even harder to be a rock star. It’s a vicious cycle. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • October 7, 2007
“Emotional Intelligence” is much talked about these days. Even though I can see its significance in certain areas of our lives (especially in business), I am skeptical of those who are rushing to apply the theory to child development and psychology. The term “Emotional Intelligence” was popularized by Daniel Goleman who was interested in identifying the quality that made people successful in the corporate world. The data of his research are kept private, so we do not know for sure, but I would imagine that his research does not cover successful people in the arts or anyone outside of the corporate world (the likes of, for instance, Woody Allen, Kurt Cobain, Andy Warhol, Noam Chomsky, Bobby Fischer, etc..). Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • September 2, 2007
In watching the TV commercials where countless starving children from around the world are staring at me in desperation, I cannot help but ask this question: “Why did their parents decide to have children in the first place?” Their dire predicaments are undeniable to anyone. The severe suffering of their children are virtually guaranteed even before their birth. So, why? For many, this is an immoral question to ask. It is an obvious question to everyone, but the desire to have children is so fundamental and deep-rooted that most people can relate to the predicaments of those who have children in abject reality. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • December 1, 2006
The amount of stress we endure is increasing because of our focus on efficiency. Stress is caused by uncertainty, more specifically, by doubts in our ability to handle something. As machines and computers handle more things that are predictable and certain, we are pressured to deal with more things that are unpredictable and uncertain. This inevitably leads to more stress. As soon as our tasks become predictable and certain, we automate them using our technology. The result of this process of streamlining is that we are increasingly called upon to use our, what I would call, irrational abilities, such as instincts, sensibilities, creativities, and interpersonal skills. These things are, by nature, unpredictable. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • November 26, 2006
Coming from Japan, the abundance of choice offered in America has always frustrated me, not because I don’t like having choices, but because many of them are meaningless for me. For instance, a typical diner in New York offers hundreds of items on the menu, but none of them are particularly good. Wouldn’t it make more sense to offer a limited number of items, but make them really well? Unfortunately the answer appears to be no. In this country where the concept of individualism is almost sacred, having choice is unequivocally considered as a good thing. No one even questions it, except for a few theorists like Barry Schwartz, the author of “The Paradox of Choice”. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • November 18, 2006
There is a saying that goes “Wise men learn more from fools than fools from the wise.” This can be extended to our relationship with our TVs. Even if TV is a fool, it should not prevent a wise person from learning something from it. In recent years, I’ve noticed a growing number of people around me who tossed their TVs out of their living rooms, asserting that TV is stupid, superficial, and annoying. Whenever I would mention something on TV, they would proudly announce that they don’t own a TV. I’m sure this is not a national phenomenon, but within my own circle of friends and associates, it is becoming a trend, or even a fad. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • May 14, 2006
“The Nurture Assumption” by Judith Rich Harris offers an alternative view on the topic of parenting which is dominated by the idea that parents are the most influential figures in the lives of children. I find many of her arguments to be relevant, but this book overall is marred by her own personal biases. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • March 12, 2006
The recent study conducted by the two sociologists at the University of Virginia sparked a series of debates on the Internet, arguing whether women are happier staying at home or working. According to the study, stay-at-home wives are overall happier than their working counterparts. In the various arguments I read, no one mentioned the point that has concerned me for years: the unfortunate consequence of feminism on our household economies. My theory is not backed up by any research, but it seems apparent to me that women joining the workforce decreased the amount of money one person can earn for the household. Read »
by Fred Soffa • February 17, 2006
The dislocating anomie lifts as you part the clouds over Los Angeles. You haven’t landed yet, but at 500 feet you recognize you have arrived. The basin stretches taut between the mountains and the water, welcomes you in its embrace. Buildings crouch low, hunkering from the sweep of the sky. Hills that later will tower starkly above now read as bumps of Braille. Green saturates as you near, intensified by the pounding rains of an absurdly early spring. The basin embraces you, hugs you. Read »
by Fred Soffa • January 21, 2006
Admittedly I am on the sidelines of the Harry Potter explosion. My exposure has been limited to a mere chapter: I was pleased that such a challenging book was the rage for kids. The movies I have yet to experience. Yet, in this strange world, I had a perfect opportunity to observe the stars firsthand at The Goblet of Fire New York Premier. What I saw struck me, and I’d like to share. Read »
by Dyske Suematsu • July 21, 2005
It’s been my dream to coin a word that gets used by the general populace, and today my dream came true. This morning, I woke up to my wife calling my name excitedly. A local TV news channel, NY1, was describing an article in New York Daily News called “Muffin-top mayhem!” I coined that word, “muffin-top”, back in May of 2003, and I submitted it to pseudodictionary.com. Read »
by Ken Stuart • April 27, 2005
It’s the 21st Century. You now have a vast array of music channels to choose from, either from Satellite Radio, Internet Radio or Satellite and cable TV music channels. Read »
by Rasheed Tazudeen • January 18, 2005
Shiina Ringo, a 25-year-old Japanese singer / guitarist / drummer / pianist, has been invaluable in suggesting a much-needed new direction for contemporary Japanese music in an age when modern Japanese culture in general is commonly (and almost reflexively) perceived if not as a direct imitation of Western culture, then as something that is and always has been derived from a limited understanding of the West (a perception over 100 years old). Read »
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