Last year I was honored to be asked to speak about entrepreneurship at Rice’s “Unconvention” in celebration of its centennial year. Instead of talking about lean startup, customer development, fundraising, or many of the other very well covered topics out there, I chose to focus on a framework for entrepreneurship that is, well, unconventional. MyContinue reading “TEDx Talk About Entrepreneurship”
Tag Archives: Rice
What is it like to attend Rice?
I was recently asked to answer the question, “What is it like to attend Rice?” on Quora. My answer: There is no better word than “magical” to describe my experience as an undergrad at Rice University. Indeed, Rice often invites comparisons with Hogwarts due to its Residential Colleges (much like being sorted into Hogwarts Houses),Continue reading “What is it like to attend Rice?”
The First Cleanweb Hackathon in Texas
Last weekend marked the culmination of a special project I’ve been working on for many months: bringing the Cleanweb Hackathon to Houston! Cleanweb is a global movement of people developing IT-based “clean” technologies instead of the traditional “cleantech” like solar and wind which require massive investments and decades to commercialize. The purpose of a cleanweb hackathonContinue reading “The First Cleanweb Hackathon in Texas”
Why I Donate to Rice Part 2
18 months ago I responded to a Thresher op-ed that advocated for withholding donations. Now I find myself doing the same. The original Thresher article is here. My initial response was as follows: “As humans we fear change and we always long for our alma mater to remain the [often idealized] snapshot of our ownContinue reading “Why I Donate to Rice Part 2”
Rice Centennial Celebration in Istanbul, Turkey
Katie and I spent last weekend in Istanbul, Turkey as part of the Rice Centennial Celebration there. When Edgar Odell Lovett, Rice’s first president, traveled the world collecting ideas for the institution he was about to launch, Istanbul was an important stop on his journey. Therefore, as one of many celebrations Rice has organized thisContinue reading “Rice Centennial Celebration in Istanbul, Turkey”
School Pride
These last two weeks have been full of involvement with my university (Rice) and MBA (IMD) almae matres. After the Finnish wedding (which was itself an IMD connection), Katie and I spent a few days in Lausanne, Switzerland before returning to the US. Being in Switzerland always brings back memories of times at IMD, partiallyContinue reading “School Pride”
The Right Path
Last Friday I had the privilege to attend the dedication event of the new Rice Center for Engineering Leadership. What an exciting new center, dedicated to helping engineering students identify and solve the world’s most pressing problems. How I wish something like this had existed back when I was a Rice engineering student! The eventContinue reading “The Right Path”
Why I Donate To Rice
After reading Falan Mouton’s article laying out her rationale for not donating to Rice (“Rice just a business; donations are purely optional for graduates,” October 8, 2010), I was tempted to write a response pointing out flaws in her logic–e.g. contending that the Rice “product” ceases creating value for its “consumers” the moment they graduate–andContinue reading “Why I Donate To Rice”
Business Schools and Buffett
The last two weeks have been full of “B”s–business schools and Jimmy Buffett! September 16th was the 8th annual Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship Energy and Clean Technology Forum. We won an award at the elevator pitch competition last year and we were excited to be asked back to compete again this year. IContinue reading “Business Schools and Buffett”
The Big Lebowski
I can’t believe that June is almost over already; it has really flown by! It began with (although technically this was the end of May) dogsitting our friend’s awesome chocolate lab. We took her on long walks around the neighborhood and frequent visits to Houston’s many dog parks. Some couples are described as “baby crazy.”Continue reading “The Big Lebowski”