I've been catching up on my RSS feeds this afternoon, and man are there some interesting things going on. Too many to write a post about each (and I'm feeling a tad lazy), so here's link roundup instead:
Meetings
Adrian Segar issues this challenge to all meeting organizers: Make the results of your evaluations public I am so behind this idea—why everyone isn't already doing this, I can't imagine. It's not like attendees don't already know what worked and what didn't, so what's the issue? Also, don't miss his great suggestions on how you can get great attendee evaluation response rates.
Ken Molay over at the Webinar blog offers up why webinar registration is like Christmas shopping. I'd expand it to encompass any type of event registration.
Brains and Behavior
You really are what you know (Slashdot) This one is pretty cool—MRI scans of London cabbie brains show that the brains physically change after training. Wouldn't you love to be able to scan to see what your sessions are doing to your attendees?
The Meeting Space Should Not Define The Use, The Behavior Should While he doesn't cite any MRI data, Jeff Hurt does talk about how behavior and learning are affected by the physical space in which we expect people to learn (and, theoretically, behave).
Travel
TSA Facing Death By 1,000 Cuts (Slashdot) This fall has not been without incident for our screeners.
XL passengers invade my economy class seat — and airlines let them (Elliott.org) Not sure how I feel about this one. I've been painfully squished by oversized seatmates, and it's not fun. Then again, it's not fun for them, either. I'd like to see airlines set aside a certain portion of seats designed specifically for larger folks, but in this era of "cram 'em in and forget about passenger comfort," I can't really see it happening. But to ask someone to buy two seats also doesn't seem all that fair either.
Just Because I Found Them Interesting and Hope You Do Too
Most hated buzzwords
2012 color of the year: tangerine tango (Special Events). It's actually a very striking color, if it actually looks anything like it renders on my netbook. Plus, what a great name! Brochure designers, take heed!
This story is so sweet and charming and wonderful that I had to share it: Who left a tree, then a coffin in the library?
Last but by no means least, check out this list of the 56 best/worst similes. Prepare to laugh until the dog looks at you funny if you click this link! Among my faves:
6. She had a deep, throaty, genuine laugh, like that sound a dog makes just before it throws up.
9. Her vocabulary was as bad as, like, whatever.
18. The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn’t.
48. I felt a nameless dread. Well, there probably is a long German name for it, like Geschpooklichkeit or something, but I don’t speak German. Anyway, it’s a dread that nobody knows the name for, like those little square plastic gizmos that close your bread bags. I don’t know the name for those either.