Exactly is a book by Simon Winchester about the world of precision manufacturing. He takes the reader on the journey of problems and inventions that resulted in the creation of the modern world as we know it. In this podcast, I briefly summarise the book and share some of my thoughts on it. You can read the blog at this link This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.learningbyproxy.com...
Aug 01, 2023•10 min
The Indian monsoon is a peculiar phenomenon which is made possible by the unique geographical positioning of the country. It ensures great harvest and has played a key role in ensuring that India has a thriving agricultural economy. That monsoon is being disrupted. It was a never-before recorded event that set off a series of dominoes that culminated in Delhi being flooded. Climate is changing, and we are not prepared for it. You can access my blog to see the images that I used as a part of the ...
Jul 22, 2023•9 min
India launched its latest attempt to land on the moon. No easy feat but a huge one if they are able to pull it off. The country is also working on putting a man in space in the next 2 years. In the meantime, China has already landed on the moon, almost at the same exact spot India is aiming at and it has also started building a space station. The ambitions seem similar but the budgets have a huge difference. Who will come out on top in 20 years? If you are interested in the article I wrote on th...
Jul 15, 2023•11 min
When a cargo ship navigates through the Panama Canal it is not going through a neatly cut waterway from one side to the other, it is mostly navigating a lake which covers half the country. That lake is located 26 Meters above sea level. So the ships need to be raised to the level of the lake and then dropped back into the ocean. Thanks to a drought the lake is drying up and making it harder for ships to navigate the canal. If the canal becomes harder to navigate, it would impact trade between Eu...
Jul 08, 2023•9 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 102. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - India has been exporting software but most often it does not own that software it just makes it on others’ behalf. That has been changing over the last 10 years. But it seems like India’s greatest software export is going to come from the Banks and the Government of India! You can find the whole blog at this link ....
Mar 11, 2022•13 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 101. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Ukraine is at war with Russia. Perhaps the slowest boil war that anyone has seen. Why is this war even taking place? Why is the US so interested in a country which 99.99% of its population cannot place on a map? What is causing Russia to do what it is doing? You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Courtesy...
Mar 04, 2022•15 min
I find that Google does not deliver my newsletters in the ‘Primary’ box if I send two emails back to back. So I will be publishing the podcasts on the RSS and the other platforms ( find them here ) such as Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, Stitcher, etc. If you like listening to the podcast, please subscribe on any of those and it will drop on Friday as it always does. This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 99. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes ...
Feb 18, 2022•11 min
A couple of weeks ago I sat down and spoke with Christina Busch about his book The Serendipity Mindset , also printed as Connecting the Dots. My meeting with Christian was pure serendipity. I did not even know that I was connected with him over LinkedIn. I found a message in my inbox and responded to him. His book focuses on how Serendipity need not be sheer blind luck but something that you can manufacture every day by just keeping your mind open to opportunities and following some simple steps...
Feb 14, 2022•18 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 98. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - The kids who grew up watching Jetsons are trying to turn that vision into reality. A dozen companies are trying their hands at flying cars. They are starting to get approvals as well as setting up demos to get the public excited about it. You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Courtesy Pixabay This is a pu...
Feb 11, 2022•10 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 97. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Supermarkets and retailers had it the hardest during the pandemic with all of the supply chain disruptions that they had to deal with. Now, they are looking at innovative ways to ensure that, that never happens again. Agriculture is finding a huge infusion of cash as a result. You can find the whole blog at this lin...
Feb 04, 2022•10 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 96. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - The 5G spectrum was auctioned in America during the fag end of the Trump administration. They ended up assigning a higher frequency spectrum to increase data speeds. Now, the airlines are left to deal with the problem that hubris has created. You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Courtesy Pixabay This is ...
Jan 28, 2022•12 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 95. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Inflation is the measure of price rise. The increase in price implies that workers would need more money to maintain their standards of living. Not increase, just maintain. The low inflation rate is a farcical creation of corporate America to ensure that workers need not be compensated any more than they absolutely ...
Jan 21, 2022•13 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 94. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Mesh Networks have been around and have been used in WiFi applications for years now. They are being increasingly used with Bluetooth Low Energy devices to ostensibly track missing items. But the work and time that it has taken to build these networks make me think there is a much larger plan in the works here. You ...
Jan 14, 2022•10 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 93. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Buy Now Pay Later is a financial weapon of mass destruction. There is a lot of money at play and a lot of profits to be made. Unfortunately, only those who cannot afford it are falling for it and getting caught up paying interest. There is a need to regulate this space. You can find the whole blog at this link . Mus...
Jan 07, 2022•10 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 92. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - While there are way too many billionaires pretending to do good and giving away money under the garb of a foundation there are those who are actually managing to do it. This is great to know and a great way to end the year. So to end the year on a positive note. You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Court...
Dec 31, 2021•8 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 91. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - The internet is at the end software. Software that most of us do not understand and do not care about. But if that software were to break, then we can be sent back to the Stone Age. We do not realise how much of our life and wealth is dependent on the internet. What would we be willing to pay the warriors who mainta...
Dec 24, 2021•10 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 90. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Cryptocurrency started out as a geeky experiment. It has become important enough to cause a lot of governments headaches. There seems to be a need to regulate it but the governments are not in a position to decide how or who will regulate these. In the meantime startup valuation in this space are skyrocketing! You c...
Dec 17, 2021•8 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 89. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Fusion is the holy grail of energy. It is clean, abundant, safe and controllable. But over the last 70 years, the only way that we have been able to harness it is for destruction. After a period of almost little to no funding going into the space, the startups in the space are beginning to raise boatloads of money. ...
Dec 10, 2021•13 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 88. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - The wealth of the developed economies is forged on the back of immigrants. Those immigrants went away during 2020 since the West did not require their services anymore in a lockdown economy. Now they are having a hard time inviting them back to their countries! You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Courte...
Dec 03, 2021•13 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 87. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Fuels have played a critical role in the way the world works. There have been wars fought over fuel and alliances created between the strangest partners just because of fuel. We are on the verge of a monumental change. A change that could redefine what we mean when we utter the word, fuel. Climate is forcing this ch...
Nov 26, 2021•12 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 86. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Drones are becoming a real contender in the logistics business. They are finding support from governments in the developing world because COVID has made healthcare supplies a necessity. Startups in Africa and Asia are making a concerted attempt to birth this industry that has been only talked about for a long long t...
Nov 19, 2021•12 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 85. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - The world has created various platforms to discuss various things. COP is perhaps the most useless of them all. The biggest polluters would like for the rest of the world to atone for their sins and not be subject to any responsibility. They have been organising these events to convince the rest of the world that th...
Nov 12, 2021•14 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 84. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Facebook has struggled with doing anything other than social media its entire existence. This is not for the lack of trying. It is because the company is built with the sole purpose of monetising its platform. They are attempting to move to another paradigm and pivot the company, will it work? You can find the whole...
Nov 05, 2021•16 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 83. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Shipping is as old as civilisation itself. We have been shipping for millennia and our dependence on the industry has been laid bare by the pandemic. But is it also causing some fundamental shifts in the industry. Will this all result in something better for all of us? You can find the whole blog at this link . Musi...
Oct 29, 2021•12 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 82. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Elections are almost as old as civilisation but they are being conducted almost in the same manner in which ancient Romans and Greeks used to. There is not a single thing in our lives where technology has not found its way, then why are elections still so primitive? You can find the whole blog at this link . Music C...
Oct 22, 2021•12 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 81. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - We have come to elevate the status of sociopaths in our societies. Their disregard for people makes it possible for them to climb the capitalistic ladder of success. Should we be rewarding such behaviour? You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Courtesy Pixabay This is a public episode. If you would like to...
Oct 15, 2021•8 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 80. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Space technology was so improbable at a time that only the government could afford the indulgence. Today, many private companies are sprouting, but they are raiding these organisations that the public paid for, for their personal gain. You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Courtesy Pixabay This is a publi...
Oct 08, 2021•9 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 79. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - Evergrande and its failure in China is not a business failure but part of a larger narrative where China is trying to move away from capitalism. I am not as interested in what is happening right now as I am in where this is headed. You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Courtesy Pixabay This is a public ep...
Oct 01, 2021•11 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 78. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - The subscription model used to be meant for products that were everyday needs. The changing demographics and economic realities are forcing almost every business to adopt the subscription whether they be selling Cars, Fridges or TV. You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Courtesy Pixabay This is a public e...
Sep 24, 2021•12 min
This is the Learning by Proxy podcast for Edition 77. If you do not enjoy reading long-form, get the gist of it in about 10 minutes (or that was the hope). This time in the podcast - The App Store is at a dangerous crossroads. The developers who grew big on the back of it want freedom from the tyranny of it. Apple believes that it can meet the needs of its customers only by keeping it the way it is. You can find the whole blog at this link . Music Courtesy Pixabay This is a public episode. If yo...
Sep 17, 2021•16 min
