TEMBA Gazette, Running Commentary, February 18, 2011

If you ever find yourself hanging out at the Carousel Lounge on a weekday afternoon around 4:55 PM, you may very well witness, or even participate, in one of our city’s finest dive bar rituals.  While it doesn’t have the clever name or buzz like Chicken Sh*t Bingo at Ginny’s, it does carry the same level of excitement, competitiveness and reward. 

I’m sure you’re wondering what magical thing occurs at the Carousel at 4:55 PM?  Well, that’s when all eyes are glued to the television above the bar to see and hear Alex Trebek announce the day’s Final Jeopardy! category.  Unlike most Jeopardy! viewers who simply wait for the final clue to be revealed after the commercial break, the clever Carousel crowd attempts to answer the question based solely on the category.  Get it right and you drink for free.

Once, I correctly answered “Charles Lindbergh” when given the category “20^th Century Americans,” but alas, I was alone in a hotel room in New Orleans instead of the beloved Carousel.  That apparently doesn’t count.

I bring this up because unless you’ve been living under a rock – and based on the number of people who apparently didn’t know who Arcade Fire was before the Grammys, I’m beginning to wonder – you know that a computer created by IBM went head-to-monitor with two humans on Jeopardy! earlier this week.

The computer, named Watson, was indeed impressive, racking up a three-day total of more than $77,000 and earning a decisive victory over its human challengers.  Watson was not perfect, however. 

On Tuesday’s show, under the category “U.S. Cities,” Watson responded with “What is Toronto?????” when given the clue, “this city’s largest airport is named for a famous World War II hero, its second largest for a famous World War II battle.”   Toronto?  A U.S. city?  Really, Watson?  No free drinks for you.  I’ll call that Barflys 1, Computer 0.

All joking aside, the computer’s performance was remarkable and represents a significant technological advance that is sure to have many practical business and humanitarian applications.  IBM has already announced a physician’s assistant service using the Watson technology and is apparently in talks with a major consumer electronics retailer about applying the technical know-how to improve consumer buying decisions and technical support. 

I knew all along that researchers in the Computer Science Department here at the University of Texas were involved in developing the Watson technology.  What I didn’t know until earlier this week was that one of our own, TEMBA 2^nd year student Toan Pham, was also involved.      

Toan referenced Watson in his Facebook status on Monday and I was curious to learn more.  I knew he worked as an engineer at IBM, but beyond that knew very little about his day-to-day activities.  I asked him if he would mind sharing some of his insights on the Watson project and am grateful that he was willing to accommodate my request. 

Here’s what he had to say.

TT:  Thanks for taking the time to do this, Toan.  Tell me about your specific involvement with the Watson project.

TP:  I worked on the P7 chip. This chip is the main processing unit of the system that is Watson. My work involved creating circuit for the L2 cache unit and making sure the unit functioned at the desired frequency. The L2 cache unit acts as a fast, temporary storage area for the processor.  You can imagine the L2 cache as a filing cabinet, versus main storage being a library. It is much quicker to look up information in a filing cabinet than searching through a library.

TT:  When did you first learn that the CPU you are working on would be a part of the Watson project?

TP:  We first heard about this a month ago in an internal memo. When we started the project five years ago, we knew one application of this CPU would be in high-end computing systems for the government.  Typically, our product goes into a six-foot tall metal box that goes into an air-conditioned room, never to be seen again until its replacement time comes. There is not a lot of glitz and glamour.  The Watson project demonstrates that serious high-end computation can be glamorous and fun when used in the right application.

TT:  Question answering (QA) systems obviously have very practical business applications and IBM has already announced some of the plans. Where do you personally see this technology going?

TP:  I see this technology having the potential to change how we interact with computers. An important advancement is how the computer is able to interpret language and select the key words. This intelligence can allow us to interact with the computer through speech instead of a keyboard and mouse. We can dictate instead of using a word processing program. We can specify what we want instead of creating slide decks.  The technology can be enhanced further to aid with interactive computing. Imagine proposing a hypothesis and the computer would cross reference past occurrences, perform the analysis, and present the solution.  One specific example is business strategy exploration.

TT:  Outstanding.  Tell me about the mood in the office over the last few days.

TP:  The mood has been very upbeat. IBM held a three-day Jeopardy! watching marathon, and all employees were encouraged to attend the celebration and check out Watson’s performance. The hallway was buzzing with speculation of Watson’s algorithm, implementation, future applications, as well as Watson’s quirks.  This event has been a great morale booster for everyone.

TT:  U.T., along with seven other universities, researched and developed a lot of the intelligence for Watson.  Did you have any involvement with these groups?

TP:  Regrettably, I have not had any involvement with these groups.

TT:  What’s up with the random $6,435 wager on the daily double?

TP:  I believe Watson’s betting algorithm is quite complex. As in any financial decision, it has to examine the risk-reward trade-off while taking into account the question’s category, its past performance and the competition’s position.  Humans are comfortable with ranges and variation so we tend to round off. Watson, like any computer, is comfortable with being exact.

TT:  Makes sense.  OK, one more. Toronto?

TP:  Well, there are conspiracy theories…I’ll share one of my own.   I think Watson purposely gave the wrong answer for the first day’s final question. Knowing that it was so far ahead of the competition, Watson wagered practically nothing and got the answer wrong so the competition could “catch up”. Compare that to the second day’s final question where Watson was neck and neck with Ken Jennings. Watson wagered most of its earnings, then correctly answered an arguably more difficult question.

TT:  Interesting theory…I didn’t think about it that way.  Again, thanks for sharing your insights and congratulations on the project’s success!

Well, almost time for Jeopardy!.  Carousel anyone?

TEMBA Gazette, Running Commentary, February 11, 2011

Every now and then, I come up with an idea for my weekly commentary that actually results in some practical and useful information as opposed to the absurd drivel that often permeates this column.  Today’s entry is hopefully one of those rare instances.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve taken a number of simple steps online designed to enhance my online security, assist in my tax preparation and even protect the environment.  Heck, I even found some “lost” money out there.  Collectively, these actions took only a few minutes to complete, but could potentially save me a lot of time, effort and hassle down the road. 

None of these things are new or revolutionary - and I bet many of you are already well ahead of me -  but for those who aren’t, please read on and then carve out a few minutes later today to tackle what I’m calling “Five Things- Five Minutes.”  It’s really that simple.

Make Your Facebook Account More Secure:  You probably heard that Mark Zuckerberg’s personal Facebook account was hacked last week, and while I personally suspect a vast Winklevi conspiracy (take the $65 million and run…er, row, boys!), it does show that this can happen to anyone.  Facebook is in the process of introducing a new encryption option that will greatly enhance the site’s security.  To see if this option is currently available to you, click on “Account” in the top right hand corner of your page, then select “Account Settings”.  Once on this page, click “Account Security”.  If the encryption option is available for your account, the term “Secure Browsing (https)” will appear.  Simply click on this and hit save.  Time Required:  30 seconds.

Opt Out of the Yellow Pages and Save Some Trees:  I have to credit David Welguisz with this gem.  When was the last time you actually used the hard copy Yellow Pages?  If you’re like me, the voluminous tome goes straight from the front door to the recycling bin.  What a waste!  To opt out, go to http://www.yellowpagesoptout.com/, register and then enter your zip code.  It’s pretty self explanatory after that.  Time Required:  1 Minute 30 Seconds

Check Our Your Profile on Spokeo.com:  OK, so people really hit the panic button on this one a few months ago when claims that the site could reveal your income, credit score and other personal information went viral.  For the record, some of those claims are not completely true, but you may be surprised how much information this site can provide by simply typing in a name.  It’s not uncommon to see phone numbers, emails, physical addresses, photos of houses and even home values on the site.  Granted, this is all public record, but the ease of which it is available may be unnerving to some.  If you don’t like what you see, click on the “Privacy” tab at the bottom and remove your listing,  http://www.spokeo.com/privacy Time Required:  45 Seconds

Find Money That Rightfully Belongs to You:  I don’t recall what led me to this site, but while waiting on hold one day I entered my name into the Texas Unclaimed Property Database and….ChaChing!  $50 from an old Verizon Account and $2.33 from Memphis Light, Gas & Water!  Simply download the form and request your money, http://www.window.state.tx.us/up/.  Time Required:  45 Seconds (a tad longer to complete the form, but hey, if you are doing that you’ve discovered some unclaimed money!).  Not from Texas?  Google other states along with the term “unclaimed property”…nearly every state has a similar site. 

Estimate Your Tax Refund or What You Owe:  If you’re like me, you keep all of your tax information in a drawer and then scramble to complete it by the April 15^th deadline.  TurboTax has introduced a nifty tool called Taxcaster that requires limited information and provides a fairly accurate estimate of your refund or required payment.  If you have money coming your way, this will be good incentive to finish your taxes now.  If the Taxcaster shows that you owe like me, well, all the more reason to go to the Texas Unclaimed Property Database.  Have your W-2s ready and go to http://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/calculators/taxcaster/?s=1&cid=int_mint_site_overview_ty10widget.  Time Required 1 Minute 30 Seconds.

Still have some time?  Here’s a special bonus step exclusively for the Class of 2012.  The deadline to register for the Vietnam trip is only four days away.  Have your passport and flight information in hand and complete the CVENT form today.  If you don’t have this info, no worries…I’m sure I can find it on Spokeo. 

TEMBA Gazette, Running Commentary, February 4, 2011

Even if Punxsutawney Phil didn’t see his shadow on Wednesday (indicating an early spring), the record low temperatures and gloomy conditions in our fair city have undoubtedly thrust a case of the mid-winter blues on many of you.  Let’s face it…you’ve probably lost a little motivation and haven’t been bringing your A-game to class or work in recent weeks.

Those insightful comments you once delivered with confidence and ease are no longer rolling poetically off your tongue.  Those well-crafted memos that once amazed and awed both co-workers and clients just aren’t hitting the mark anymore.  It seems that you’ve lost your MBA touch. 

Well, never fear…the MBA Sentence Generator is here.  Yes, with the help of this extraordinary tool you will no longer be at a loss for words.  Your memos and proposals will be downright Shakespearean…well, that is, if Shakespeare had gone to business school.  It’s a no-fail approach to impressing everyone you encounter. 

Let’s say, for example, you’re not paying attention in class and out of nowhere Dr. Brandl asks for your opinion on the effectiveness of the TARP bank loans.  A quick spin of the MBA Sentence Generator and you can confidently declare:

“Upping the ante, performance-based positioning broadens our horizons toward corporate ethos.”

Boom!  How can you argue with that, Mike?

What if you are tasked with providing an executive summary to management on a high-profile project at the office?  Just one simple spin and…

“With evolving marketplace needs, the asteroid event effectively delivers a win-win strategy.”

Why, the keys to the executive washroom are effectively yours.

This clever tool can even work in non-business situations.  Say you’re asked who will win this weekend’s Super Bowl.  Who could argue with this analysis?

“Unleashing the visionary, our specific evaluation criteria places a premium on the team-based organization.”

Go Packers….I guess?

Dr. Mikhael Shor is the genius behind this remarkable invention.  An assistant professor of economics at the Owen School of Management at Vanderbilt, Mike developed the “MBA Writer:  Automatic MBA Sentence Generator” in 2001 and now has over forty million possible combinations.  You can find this clever tool here:  http://www2.owen.vanderbilt.edu/mike.shor/Humor/MBAWriter/.

I caught up with Mike earlier this week and asked him what sparked his interest in developing the MBA Sentence Generator.  Here’s what he had to say:    

MS:  As you would have guessed, when I first started teaching MBAs, I was impressed by the level of analysis I would see in their memos, but it was cloaked in entire paragraphs of meaningless drivel. To demonstrate the abuse of language, I created the MBA writer. If the sentences make sense, even when formed randomly, then it is likely that little information is being conveyed when they are constructed deliberately. All I understood about "the 30,000 foot view," for example, is that the air is thin up there, so it isn't a very good vantage point. I endorse clear, direct writing. For example, I often tell my students "the passive voice should be avoided" though few pick up on the joke.

TT:  Was it easy to build?

MS:  Programmatically, I am a geek, so yes. In terms of source material, my first three years of teaching MBAs provided more than enough content.

TT:  So, all of your material comes from students? 

MS:  Originally, all of the phrases came from student assignments. Now that I show the MBA Writer in class, it has had the dual effect of improving the quality of their assignments, but also eliminating my initial source of material. However, business school administration obliges with new material every time rankings, placement statistics, or admissions figures need to be justified…can I say that?

TT:  Of course…you’re among friends here.

MS:  Look for an update this summer which should double the number of combinations.

TT:  Wow!  That’s impressive.  Any idea how many visitors you’ve had to the site?

MS:  I haven't checked in some time, but I used to average about 100 unique visitors a day, though I suspect it has grown quite a bit in the last year.

TT: What do you consider the most overused business speak words or phrases?

MS:  My issue is not the frequency of use, but the context. Even "synergy" has its place, but usually seems like a stand-in for "some reason that I cannot identify or verbalize." Often, when I write a first draft of a paper, I have lines like "and then synergies happen" which is my placeholder for expressing the actual effects once I understand them. One pet peeve is the use of adjectives that are obviously implied. "Strategic alliance" for example implies to me that there are companies out there forming "non-strategic alliances."

Dr. Mikhael Shor

TT:  Good point.  Do you call out your students for using excessive business speak in comments or written assignments?

MS:  Yes! I often in class, ask "what does that mean" or "give me an example" when given wonderfully-sounding phrases that are devoid of content.

TT:  Any advice for current MBA students on how best to avoid falling into the business speak trap?

MS:  Communicate with non-business people. If you often find yourself defining terms for their benefit, rather than expressing yourself with language that they understand, that's a hint...

TT:  Excellent advice, Mike!  I know I speak for many grateful TEMBA students when I say end-to-end, our aspiration statement accelerates the improvement towards evolutionary not revolutionary game plans.  Thank you. 

To learn more about Mike, read his faculty profile here, http://www.owen.vanderbilt.edu/vanderbilt/faculty-and-research/faculty-directory/faculty-profile.cfm?id=133

There’s an app for that.   Yes, MBA writer now has an iPhone app version which contains a subset of the phrases.  It’s appropriately called MBA BS’er.  Go to http://www.appstorehq.com/mbabser-mobile-402468/app