We are living a period of oil crisis are we not? This past week the pressure seems to have subsided with a drop of the world market price to a lower level of 125 US dollars the barrel. Forecasters are still maintaining that very soon we shall strike the level of 200 dollars the barrel. Energy or Oil crisis we are all aroused to the issue, we are all concerned. Is it enough? More importantly what are we doing about the crisis? What action each one of us at micro level, macro level, and as a community is taking? Crying over spilled milk and talking about it over the media only raise our conscience to the issue. Does it move us to action?

A bunch of toads were thrown in a pot of warm water. A fire was lit under the pot to warm up slowly the temperature of the water. The toads developed high adaptability to adjusting to the change in temperature. At first, as the temperature rose, they enjoyed the nice and warm environment. The toads felt good, relaxed and even sleepy. Later the temperature became so warm that the toads though they realised the forth coming deadly temperature, they could no more jump away from the pot.

Are we not still in the crisis in spite of the recent adjustments? Do we have to experience another dramatic surge in the price of energy to spur us to action? Does the temporary lull in the rising curve of the price blind our long term visibility? Do we have the acumen to address the issue timely and move to action?

I found a recent article written by E. Ted Prince addressed to business leaders on the subject, from which we could learn. Here are some extracts:

Companies need to identify leaders such as these as a high priority in order to bring human capital solutions to the oil crisis. Ultimately any disruptive environment is a human capital crisis. The crisis will eventually be addressed and solved. The issue is who will address and solve it most rapidly and in the best manner. This will occur through having leaders who, among all the other qualities needed to lead successfully, must also possess high business acumen. This is the challenge for leaders and their HR and LD executives.

Explore three channels:

1. Ask HR and LD to develop an oil-focused human capital action plan based on implications of the oil crisis. In the plan, cover selection, recruitment, on boarding, development, and assessment. Contrast what is happening at present and the areas that need to be changed to meet the challenges.

2. Improve your people’s capability to respond to the oil crisis by developing and implementing a business acumen assessment and development program for managers and executives. The program should focus on assessment of business acumen and on its development to prepare managers and leaders for the new financial and value challenges posed by the oil crisis.

3. Develop new oil-focused succession plans and planning. Stress capabilities that will enhance your ability to address the crisis and choose those managers best suited to confront these issues. We also suggest:

• Prepare an HR impact statement
• Redesign recruitment criteria for new hires and promotions
• Redesign on boarding programs
• Run a simulation on one aspect of the oil crisis
• Integrate acumen approaches with oil issues into LD programs
• Organize an oil crisis workshop
• Develop business acumen courses in corporate universities aimed at oil crisis and addressing it creatively
• Organize an “oil literacy” seminar for high potentials and other leaders
• Establish a human capital crisis team to address the oil crisis issue
• Redesign structures to enhance capability to deal with the crisis
• Prepare recommendations for changes to TM to address crisis
• Hire people with an understanding of oil industry in certain key positions.

Template for Disruptive Change

This issue is not only about the oil crisis—we will soon face more crises whose nature will be unpredictable. All we can do is to prepare and anticipate that crises incorporate challenges that require leaders with exceptional business acumen, independent of their other leadership qualities. So leadership developers need to address the issue of how these challenges will also be addressed and faced.

Answer three questions: Does the leadership template cope with disruptive change? Can the template lead to higher shareholder value? Does it have formal ways to assess the financial and value creation impact of leaders in measuring response to disruptive change?

Fear mongering is a very powerful motivational tool and it will only last a spur or jolt.

I quote Jim Collins: <<I had a personal experience that helped me understand that dynamic. Shortly after receiving a teaching award at Stanford, I began to dread my course. I worried that I could not repeat the performance and that the quality of other courses would exceed mine. I felt motivated, to be sure, but it was a kind of motivation that sapped away the sheer joy I normally felt in teaching.

Around the same time, I was reading about John Wooden, the UCLA men’s basketball coach who led his team to 10 NCAA championships in 12 years during the 1960s and 1970s. It dawned on me that Wooden had never made it a goal to repeat the previous year’s performance—not even if it had been an undefeated season. He focused his attention entirely on how to improve on the previous year. Wooden highlighted for me a supreme truth: that excellence is the residual result of continual creation and improvement for its own sake. Whereas the fear mongers concentrate on the demoralizing effect of failure, Wooden capitalized on the inspiring payoff of achievement—the pure, reenergizing glee that comes from simply creating something new and doing something better.

It was an epiphany that changed my approach. Instead of obsessing about not losing what I had, I shifted to focusing on making the course better, even if just by a little bit. It was a liberating shift that restored the joy of preparation that had formerly guided me. I had fun again! And, most important, the course did in fact improve.

I acknowledge fear as a powerful motivator for all of us. I’m as subject to it as anyone. But the dark side of motivation by fear is that it is like a powerful stimulant: it can jolt you for a while, but it also inevitably leaves you more drained than before. Wanting to survive—to merely avoid losing what we have—is not a goal that can motivate over the long haul. It offers no promise of forward motion, of accomplishment. (You can’t ever finish “not losing” something—until, that is, you’re not alive to “not lose” it anymore.) Indeed, had Beethoven focused primarily on not losing his stature after the Third Symphony, rather than pushing further, I suspect we would not have the Fifth or the Ninth symphonies. And Beethoven would not have become Beethoven.

So the next time you encounter a “Change or die!” lecture, in print or in person, remember the words of Royal Robbins, the great rock climber who pioneered ascents of Yosemite’s big walls: “The point is not to avoid death—if you want to do that, simply stay on the ground. The point is to reach the top, and then keep on climbing.”>>

I am reminded of the days when as a young boy of 7 years, my teacher preparing me to receive my first communion, motivated me by fear: avoidance of ending up in hell. Our church and the teachings of the time were very much in the spirit before the changes brought by the Vatican II council. ‘Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid’ shifts my focus to loftier highs. ‘And Peter’s reply: Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water’ calls me to go in the direction of my Lord. What a liberating shift! Lord I praise you.

Lord with your help and blessings I want to reach the top with you.

Tonton René Koo est en grande réjouissance en ce moment, accueilli dans son demeure éternelle par ses amis de tout temps mon papa et ma maman. J’ai appris son départ vers le très haut cette semaine. Il a eu une vie bien pleine de grâces, notre cher toton René que nous aimons affectueusement. En effet, proche ami, de la famille, il était le parrain de ma tante Andrée et de mon frère Jean Claude. Je me souviens de mon enfance encore, Koo Fah Sen était le nom que grand-père l’appelait à chaque visite chez nous.

Dès son jeune âge, tonton René né à Maurice partit pour Moyan, village natale des hakkas de Maurice en chine sur l’insistance de son père. Chrétien et pratiquant depuis son enfance, il rejoint l’Eglise catholique à Moyan ou il trouva la tutelle de l’Evêque de Moyan, Mgr Ford si je me trompe pas. Ainsi, aidé par Mgr Ford, il poursuivait son éducation en apprenant aussi bien le chinois, l’anglais que le français. Il a été le chevalier servant de l’Evêque me disait il. Un bon chrétien il sera toute sa vie. Tonton René, un homme droit, il a été non seulement physiquement, toujours tiré à quatre épingles,  mais également moralement, d’une droiture inflexible.

Tonton René m’a connu depuis mon berceau. Il m’a accueilli à mon premier passage à Hong Kong quand j’avais que quelques mois. Il m’avait raconté mes parents et moi, étions logés à l’Hôtel St Francis à Wan Chai, Hong Kong en attendant de retrouver un navire pour Maurice vers la fin des années 40.

En 1968, l’année de mon premier retour a Hong Kong , il organisa un grand diner avec les anciens Mauriciens domiciliés a Hong Kong pour m’accueillir. Ce qui m’avait donné l’occasion de rencontrer les amis de mon père et de les remercier de leurs sollicitudes envers nous 20 ans auparavant. Depuis, a chacune de mes visites a Hong Kong , je me faisait le plaisir de saluer Tonton René.

Je me souviens bien de conseils qu’il me prodiguait toujours : qu’il fallait toujours être droit et honnête, et il se citait en exemple pour dire qu’il aurait pu être beaucoup plus riche qu’il n’était, en compromettant ses valeurs morales et chrétiennes. Dans une ville comme Hong Kong, la tentation est toujours grande mais il avait toujours tenu bon dans sa ligne de conduite. Eclairé et sage, Tonton René m’ouvrit des horizons, surtout le regard combiné confucéenne et chrétienne de la vie.

Sa jeunesse passée, parlant le chinois, l’anglais et le français il trouvait un emploi comme commissaire d’achat de bord dans les navires KPM qui desservaient Hong Kong et l’océan indien. Vous pouvez imaginer les tentations de corruptions qu’il a eu à faire face dans les années 50 dans ce métier ? Il tint bon, et su se doter une réputation d’intégrité pour se mettre à son propre compte et ouvrant un bureau d’achats et d’affaires. Pheonix Trading Import & Export vit le jour. Il y travailla jus qu’a sa retraite, quand il transmettra son fond de commerce à son frère.

A sa retraite, il continua à œuvrer dans des organisations caritatives et organisa des pèlerinages vers des lieux d’apparitions de la Sainte Vierge Marie. Peu après la mort de tante Pauline, sa femme il décida de retourner à mon île natale pour finir ses jours.

J’ai eu la joie de le revoir á son installation au couvent de Bonne Terre. Généreux, affable et doux envers le gens, il resta toujours. Sa carrière lui a donné un esprit vif, une quête d’apprendre, une culture étendue et un amour pour la belle musique qu’il fredonne tout le temps.

Merci Tonton René pour ton grand témoignage de vie et pour les bienfaits que tu laisses. Tu quittes dans ton sillage, le passage d’un homme qui s’est construit lui-même en imitant ton guide notre Seigneur Jésus Christ sous le regard de la Sainte Vierge Marie pour qui tu avais une grande dévotion.

As a keen Toastmaster, I immediately moved to get a copy of the speech, to study Obama’s discourse and to analyse his style. I read the text a couple of times to model the way, he catches the attention of his audience, and he keeps the interest of his audience whilst at the same time conveying the message he wants.
The use of repetition and the structuring of the speech and the use of chosen and appropriate words, I thought were great. How would you, listener, not associate ‘Berlin’ with ‘ the fall of Wall’? How did he arouse emotions of his audience in his delivery and what were the keys words he used to leverage passion and the desired effects? Unfortunately, I miss a recorded version of his speech, where I could have experienced the power of his voice, tones, and variations in delivery which no doubt would enhance the written text.
May I suggest to my toastmasters’ fellows to use this very topical, up to date speech, where we are in the understanding of the context and purpose of the speaker, as a model for building a speech in a speech craft lesson.

Text of Obama’s speech in Berlin 24 july2008 (Courtesy of International Herald Tribune)

BERLIN: Thank you to the citizens of Berlin and to the people of Germany. Let me thank Chancellor Merkel and Foreign Minister Steinmeier for welcoming me earlier today. Thank you Mayor Wowereit, the Berlin Senate, the police, and most of all thank you for this welcome.
I come to Berlin as so many of my countrymen have come before. Tonight, I speak to you not as a candidate for President, but as a citizen – a proud citizen of the United States, and a fellow citizen of the world.
I know that I don’t look like the Americans who’ve previously spoken in this great city. The journey that led me here is improbable. My mother was born in the heartland of America, but my father grew up herding goats in Kenya. His father – my grandfather – was a cook, a domestic servant to the British.
At the height of the Cold War, my father decided, like so many others in the forgotten corners of the world, that his yearning – his dream – required the freedom and opportunity promised by the West. And so he wrote letter after letter to universities all across America until somebody, somewhere answered his prayer for a better life.
That is why I’m here. And you are here because you too know that yearning. This city, of all cities, knows the dream of freedom. And you know that the only reason we stand here tonight is because men and women from both of our nations came together to work, and struggle, and sacrifice for that better life.
Ours is a partnership that truly began sixty years ago this summer, on the day when the first American plane touched down at Templehof.
On that day, much of this continent still lay in ruin. The rubble of this city had yet to be built into a wall. The Soviet shadow had swept across Eastern Europe, while in the West, America, Britain, and France took stock of their losses, and pondered how the world might be remade.
This is where the two sides met. And on the twenty-fourth of June, 1948, the Communists chose to blockade the western part of the city. They cut off food and supplies to more than two million Germans in an effort to extinguish the last flame of freedom in Berlin.
The size of our forces was no match for the much larger Soviet Army. And yet retreat would have allowed Communism to march across Europe. Where the last war had ended, another World War could have easily begun. All that stood in the way was Berlin.
And that’s when the airlift began – when the largest and most unlikely rescue in history brought food and hope to the people of this city.
The odds were stacked against success. In the winter, a heavy fog filled the sky above, and many planes were forced to turn back without dropping off the needed supplies. The streets where we stand were filled with hungry families who had no comfort from the cold.
But in the darkest hours, the people of Berlin kept the flame of hope burning. The people of Berlin refused to give up. And on one fall day, hundreds of thousands of Berliners came here, to the Tiergarten, and heard the city’s mayor implore the world not to give up on freedom. “There is only one possibility,” he said. “For us to stand together united until this battle is won�The people of Berlin have spoken. We have done our duty, and we will keep on doing our duty.
People of the world: now do your duty�People of the world, look at Berlin!”Where Germans and Americans learned to work together and trust each other less than three years after facing each other on the field of battle.
Look at Berlin, where the determination of a people met the generosity of the Marshall Plan and created a German miracle; where a victory over tyranny gave rise to NATO, the greatest alliance ever formed to defend our common security.
Look at Berlin, where the bullet holes in the buildings and the somber stones and pillars near the Brandenburg Gate insist that we never forget our common humanity.
People of the world – look at Berlin, where a wall came down, a continent came together, and history proved that there is no challenge too great for a world that stands as one.
Sixty years after the airlift, we are called upon again. History has led us to a new crossroad, with new promise and new peril. When you, the German people, tore down that wall – a wall that divided East and West; freedom and tyranny; fear and hope – walls came tumbling down around the world. From Kiev to Cape Town, prison camps were closed, and the doors of democracy were opened. Markets opened too, and the spread of information and technology reduced barriers to opportunity and prosperity. While the 20th century taught us that we share a common destiny, the 21st has revealed a world more intertwined than at any time in human history.
The fall of the Berlin Wall brought new hope. But that very closeness has given rise to new dangers – dangers that cannot be contained within the borders of a country or by the distance of an ocean.
The terrorists of September 11th plotted in Hamburg and trained in Kandahar and Karachi before killing thousands from all over the globe on American soil.
As we speak, cars in Boston and factories in Beijing are melting the ice caps in the Arctic, shrinking coastlines in the Atlantic, and bringing drought to farms from Kansas to Kenya.
Poorly secured nuclear material in the former Soviet Union, or secrets from a scientist in Pakistan could help build a bomb that detonates in Paris. The poppies in Afghanistan become the heroin in Berlin. The poverty and violence in Somalia breeds the terror of tomorrow. The genocide in Darfur shames the conscience of us all.
In this new world, such dangerous currents have swept along faster than our efforts to contain them. That is why we cannot afford to be divided. No one nation, no matter how large or powerful, can defeat such challenges alone. None of us can deny these threats, or escape responsibility in meeting them. Yet, in the absence of Soviet tanks and a terrible wall, it has become easy to forget this truth. And if we’re honest with each other, we know that sometimes, on both sides of the Atlantic, we have drifted apart, and forgotten our shared destiny.
In Europe, the view that America is part of what has gone wrong in our world, rather than a force to help make it right, has become all too common. In America, there are voices that deride and deny the importance of Europe’s role in our security and our future. Both views miss the truth – that Europeans today are bearing new burdens and taking more responsibility in critical parts of the world; and that just as American bases built in the last century still help to defend the security of this continent, so does our country still sacrifice greatly for freedom around the globe.
Yes, there have been differences between America and Europe. No doubt, there will be differences in the future. But the burdens of global citizenship continue to bind us together. A change of leadership in Washington will not lift this burden. In this new century, Americans and Europeans alike will be required to do more – not less. Partnership and cooperation among nations is not a choice; it is the one way, the only way, to protect our common security and advance our common humanity.
That is why the greatest danger of all is to allow new walls to divide us from one another.
The walls between old allies on either side of the Atlantic cannot stand. The walls between the countries with the most and those with the least cannot stand. The walls between races and tribes; natives and immigrants; Christian and Muslim and Jew cannot stand. These now are the walls we must tear down.
We know they have fallen before. After centuries of strife, the people of Europe have formed a Union of promise and prosperity. Here, at the base of a column built to mark victory in war, we meet in the center of a Europe at peace. Not only have walls come down in Berlin, but they have come down in Belfast, where Protestant and Catholic found a way to live together; in the Balkans, where our Atlantic alliance ended wars and brought savage war criminals to justice; and in South Africa, where the struggle of a courageous people defeated apartheid.
So history reminds us that walls can be torn down. But the task is never easy. True partnership and true progress requires constant work and sustained sacrifice. They require sharing the burdens of development and diplomacy; of progress and peace. They require allies who will listen to each other, learn from each other and, most of all, trust each other.
That is why America cannot turn inward. That is why Europe cannot turn inward. America has no better partner than Europe. Now is the time to build new bridges across the globe as strong as the one that bound us across the Atlantic. Now is the time to join together, through constant cooperation, strong institutions, shared sacrifice, and a global commitment to progress, to meet the challenges of the 21st century. It was this spirit that led airlift planes to appear in the sky above our heads, and people to assemble where we stand today. And this is the moment when our nations – and all nations – must summon that spirit anew.
This is the moment when we must defeat terror and dry up the well of extremism that supports it. This threat is real and we cannot shrink from our responsibility to combat it. If we could create NATO to face down the Soviet Union, we can join in a new and global partnership to dismantle the networks that have struck in Madrid and Amman; in London and Bali; in Washington and New York. If we could win a battle of ideas against the communists, we can stand with the vast majority of Muslims who reject the extremism that leads to hate instead of hope.
This is the moment when we must renew our resolve to rout the terrorists who threaten our security in Afghanistan, and the traffickers who sell drugs on your streets. No one welcomes war. I recognize the enormous difficulties in Afghanistan. But my country and yours have a stake in seeing that NATO’s first mission beyond Europe’s borders is a success. For the people of Afghanistan, and for our shared security, the work must be done. America cannot do this alone. The Afghan people need our troops and your troops; our support and your support to defeat the Taliban and al Qaeda, to develop their economy, and to help them rebuild their nation. We have too much at stake to turn back now.
This is the moment when we must renew the goal of a world without nuclear weapons. The two superpowers that faced each other across the wall of this city came too close too often to destroying all we have built and all that we love. With that wall gone, we need not stand idly by and watch the further spread of the deadly atom. It is time to secure all loose nuclear materials; to stop the spread of nuclear weapons; and to reduce the arsenals from another era. This is the moment to begin the work of seeking the peace of a world without nuclear weapons.
This is the moment when every nation in Europe must have the chance to choose its own tomorrow free from the shadows of yesterday. In this century, we need a strong European Union that deepens the security and prosperity of this continent, while extending a hand abroad. In this century – in this city of all cities – we must reject the Cold War mind-set of the past, and resolve to work with Russia when we can, to stand up for our values when we must, and to seek a partnership that extends across this entire continent.
This is the moment when we must build on the wealth that open markets have created, and share its benefits more equitably. Trade has been a cornerstone of our growth and global development. But we will not be able to sustain this growth if it favors the few, and not the many. Together, we must forge trade that truly rewards the work that creates wealth, with meaningful protections for our people and our planet. This is the moment for trade that is free and fair for all.
This is the moment we must help answer the call for a new dawn in the Middle East. My country must stand with yours and with Europe in sending a direct message to Iran that it must abandon its nuclear ambitions. We must support the Lebanese who have marched and bled for democracy, and the Israelis and Palestinians who seek a secure and lasting peace. And despite past differences, this is the moment when the world should support the millions of Iraqis who seek to rebuild their lives, even as we pass responsibility to the Iraqi government and finally bring this war to a close.
This is the moment when we must come together to save this planet. Let us resolve that we will not leave our children a world where the oceans rise and famine spreads and terrible storms devastate our lands. Let us resolve that all nations – including my own – will act with the same seriousness of purpose as has your nation, and reduce the carbon we send into our atmosphere. This is the moment to give our children back their future. This is the moment to stand as one.
And this is the moment when we must give hope to those left behind in a globalized world. We must remember that the Cold War born in this city was not a battle for land or treasure. Sixty years ago, the planes that flew over Berlin did not drop bombs; instead they delivered food, and coal, and candy to grateful children. And in that show of solidarity, those pilots won more than a military victory. They won hearts and minds; love and loyalty and trust – not just from the people in this city, but from all those who heard the story of what they did here.
Now the world will watch and remember what we do here – what we do with this moment. Will we extend our hand to the people in the forgotten corners of this world who yearn for lives marked by dignity and opportunity; by security and justice? Will we lift the child in Bangladesh from poverty, shelter the refugee in Chad, and banish the scourge of AIDS in our time?
Will we stand for the human rights of the dissident in Burma, the blogger in Iran, or the voter in Zimbabwe? Will we give meaning to the words “never again” in Darfur?
Will we acknowledge that there is no more powerful example than the one each of our nations projects to the world? Will we reject torture and stand for the rule of law? Will we welcome immigrants from different lands, and shun discrimination against those who don’t look like us or worship like we do, and keep the promise of equality and opportunity for all of our people?
People of Berlin – people of the world – this is our moment. This is our time.
I know my country has not perfected itself. At times, we’ve struggled to keep the promise of liberty and equality for all of our people. We’ve made our share of mistakes, and there are times when our actions around the world have not lived up to our best intentions.
But I also know how much I love America. I know that for more than two centuries, we have strived – at great cost and great sacrifice – to form a more perfect union; to seek, with other nations, a more hopeful world. Our allegiance has never been to any particular tribe or kingdom – indeed, every language is spoken in our country; every culture has left its imprint on ours; every point of view is expressed in our public squares. What has always united us – what has always driven our people; what drew my father to America’s shores – is a set of ideals that speak to aspirations shared by all people: that we can live free from fear and free from want; that we can speak our minds and assemble with whomever we choose and worship as we please.
These are the aspirations that joined the fates of all nations in this city. These aspirations are bigger than anything that drives us apart. It is because of these aspirations that the airlift began. It is because of these aspirations that all free people – everywhere – became citizens of Berlin. It is in pursuit of these aspirations that a new generation – our generation – must make our mark on the world.
People of Berlin – and people of the world – the scale of our challenge is great. The road ahead will be long. But I come before you to say that we are heirs to a struggle for freedom. We are a people of improbable hope. With an eye toward the future, with resolve in our hearts, let us remember this history, and answer our destiny, and remake the world once again.

Since I got to see the full speech on Youtube. It was great seeing and living this superb delivery. The last poll gives both candidates 40% . I sincerely wish OBAMA to be the next president in November.

Tomorrow will be a very auspicious day according to the Chinese omen seekers. Indeed 8 being synonymous to prosperity at least in pronunciation in Mandarin, the many 8’s on the date should bring good omen and blessings. No wonder China has chosen 08.08.08 for the opening of its first ever Olympic games at 08 hours.

As for me, this date sends me back to twenty years back; 8.8.88 was the date the team at Rogers @ company chose to open the Freight Forwarders Centre( FFC) at the airport. Unfortunately we were not able to hold the date of the opening as the completion of the building was late. The FF C building was completed a few weeks after and the first operations started with the setting up of Plaisance Air Transport Services (PATS) .

Interestingly enough, FFC and PATS as well as the growth of ROGERS aviation activities overseas originated from a strategic exercise that started in 1986. Under the guidance of the planning department of Rogers Group, the team at ROGERS Aviation was asked to think and plan the future of the company. I recall vividly, coming back from my marketing studies, I got myself to strategically work on the issue. How do you expand and grow, when you hold almost 95 percent of the market of air cargo and you are the dominant player in the passenger travel market?

The investment in a building at the FFC was to provide facilities to Airlines beyond the General Sales agent’s contract we had with them. Our aim was to provide ground handling services to them. Rogers were thus expanding the services to their customer base. More spectacularly during this thinking process we also planned the deployment of ROGERS’ competence and know how to extend it to overseas region.

Looking back 20 years after, the team of the early 80’s should be proud for achievements. FFC is still the back bone of the Air cargo activities of the island. Offices as off shoots of Rogers Aviation are in operations in many countries: Reunion Island, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Comoros Islands, Mayotte, and France.

Speak Up, a Computer Is Listening

Of all the high-tech fantasies that sci-fi movies tantalize their escapist audiences with, surely that bit about giving your computer spoken orders is one of the most alluring. Ever since “Star Trek,” we’ve dreamed of being able to say, “Computer, display all known sources of dilithium crystals in the Kraxon Nebula!”

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Stuart Goldenberg

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Version 10 of Dragon NaturallySpeaking is available this week, and its maker said its accuracy has improved 20 percent.

So far, the closest we can get is strapping on a headset and dictating, using a program like Dragon NaturallySpeaking to do the typing. This software is great for anyone who can’t type or doesn’t like to. And it lets you speak the names of menu commands and “click” links on a Web page.

But that’s not the same as telling the computer what to do in conversational English.

NaturallySpeaking 10, available Thursday, takes some baby steps in the right direction. It doesn’t turn your computer into the “Star Trek” mainframe; it doesn’t know what you mean by, for example, “Make this document shorter and funnier.” But in its timid, conservative way, it takes voice control unmistakably closer to that holy grail of computing.

NatSpeak’s principal mission, though, is to type out, into any Windows program, whatever you say. And in version 10, its maker, Nuance, claims to have eked out yet another 20 percent accuracy improvement.

I installed the program, donned the included headset and clicked “Skip initial training.” (In the early days of speech recognition, you had to read a 45-minute sample script to train the program to recognize your voice. Today, the software is so good, you can skip the training altogether.)

As a quick test, I read aloud the first 1,000 words of “Freakonomics” into Microsoft Word. Impressively enough, NatSpeak effortlessly transcribed words like “Ku Klux Klan” and “Punic war.” It did, however, mistype seven easier words (“addition” instead of “edition,” for example, and “per trail” instead of “portrayal”). Accuracy tally with no training: 99.3 percent. Not too shabby.

Then I tried a second test: I read one of the five-minute training scripts (a Kennedy speech), which is recommended for even better initial accuracy. I again read the first 1,000 words of “Freakonomics,” and the program mistyped five words. Accuracy this time: 99.5 percent.

In both cases, the number of spelling mistakes was zero. People who use NaturallySpeaking never make typos, only wordos.

As you correct the mistakes with your voice — a speedy, streamlined procedure — the program learns. Whether you skip initial training or not, accuracy inches toward perfection over time.

One way that Nuance has improved accuracy is by acknowledging, for the first time, that not everyone speaks alike. Version 10 recognizes eight accents: general (none), Australian, British, Indian, Great Lakes (Buffalo to Chicago), Southeast Asian, Southern United States and Spanish. If you don’t specify, the program will identify you automatically.

Isn’t that somehow politically incorrect? Should a software program treat you differently depending on how you sound?

Ah, the heck with it. It’s dictation software. A little stereotyping can go a long way.

Speed is another virtue in version 10. The program still waits for a pause in your talking before it types, so that it can use context to choose, for example, the correct homonym (there/they’re/their). But that waiting period has been halved; text appears almost instantaneously at each pause.

Second — and here’s where things start to get Star Trekky — the program understands more “natural language” commands.

For example, italicizing something you’ve already typed, say, the phrase “gas prices,” used to require three separate commands. First, “Select gas prices.” Then, “Italicize that.” Finally, to move your insertion point back where you stopped, “Go to end of document.”

In version 10, a single command does the trick: “italicize ‘gas prices.’” The program makes the change and returns to where you stopped, all in a blink. The same trick also works with the verbs “bold,” “underline,” “delete,” “cut” and “copy.” (Yes, “bold” is a verb now.)

You can speak a series of new Search commands, beginning with “Search computer for …,” “Search the Web for …,” “Search e-mail for …” and so on.

For example: “Search maps for Chinese restaurants near Hoboken.” Or “Search Wikipedia for Bay of Pigs.” Or “Search images for Gwyneth Paltrow.” These shortcuts work 100 percent reliably and do truly save you time and typing. Next version: more of them, please.

And now, the NatSpeak Frequently Asked Questions:

“Does NaturallySpeaking work on a Mac?” Yes, but only when the Mac is running Windows and you’re using a U.S.B. headset adapter. It works fantastically in Boot Camp and fast enough in VMware Fusion, an emulator program.

Of course, it might be simpler just to buy MacSpeech Dictate, a Mac program that uses the same Dragon recognition technology. The current version is fast and accurate, but it lags behind NatSpeak in features and power; it doesn’t even let you make corrections by voice, and therefore the accuracy never improves. But a 1.2 version, with voice correction and voice spelling, is in testing now.

“Can I transcribe interviews with it?” No. NatSpeak knows only one person’s voice: yours. It also requires a clean audio signal, like the one from a headset mike half an inch from your mouth.

“Can I dictate with a wireless Bluetooth earpiece?” Yes. In fact, version 10 greatly expands the number of compatible earpiece models (18 so far, listed at nuance.com). Accuracy may take a hit, though.

“Can I dictate into a pocket recorder and transcribe it later?” Yes. The setup is more involved, though: only some recorders are compatible, and you have to record 15 minutes of training.

“Doesn’t Windows Vista come with speech recognition?” Yes, and it’s really good — quite similar to NatSpeak, actually. But Nuance says that, oddly enough, Vista has had virtually no effect on NatSpeak sales.

I’m guessing that obscurity is part of the reason; most people aren’t even aware that Vista offers such a feature. Vista doesn’t come with the required headset, either. Nor does the Vista version offer the same accuracy, features or power of NatSpeak, and it isn’t available in other languages (French, Italian, German, Spanish, Dutch and so on).

NatSpeak is available in a number of versions. The Standard edition ($100) has the same accuracy as the others, but it’s just for bare-bones dictation.

To get the more advanced goodies described in this review — the natural-language commands, Bluetooth mikes and recorders — you need the Preferred edition ($200). It also lets you set up voice macros that type out boilerplate text. For example, you can say, “Buzz off,” and it will type: “Thanks for thinking of me! Unfortunately, I’m afraid I’m unable to accept your kind offer at this time.”

There are also medical and legal editions ($1,600 and $1,200, yikes), as well as a Professional edition ($900) for corporate administrators who want to manage many NatSpeak installations from a central server. The Pro version also recognizes natural-language commands for Microsoft Outlook, like “Send e-mail to Mom” or “Schedule a meeting with Barack Obama and John McCain.”

Apart from Vista, NatSpeak really has no competition. Philips has dropped out of the American market. I.B.M.’s own ViaVoice hasn’t been updated since 2003, and its sole distributor is, get this, Nuance.

Maybe that’s why Nuance makes only small, confident changes from one version of NatSpeak to the next. Without any rivals, why add bells and whistles that risk mucking up the program’s virtues?

As a result, existing NaturallySpeaking owners can usually afford to skip a generation between upgrades. Version 10 is a healthy leap ahead of version 8, but version 9 owners shouldn’t feel compelled to upgrade.

And now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some real work to do: “Search maps for dilithium crystals near New York City. …”

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I had a few years ago a copy of Dragon version 1 to try out. I was not impressed, may be version 10 have improved considerably! Have any of you tried out the latest version?

La musique des années 60 et 70, c’est bien la musique de ma jeunesse. D’ailleurs, je ne cesse pas d’écouter mes oldies. J’ai eu ce matin un renvoi vers cette période de ma vie en regardant sur Télé matin, une interview rediffusée de Sacha Distel, un des mes chanteurs préférés de l’époque dans Discorama des années 70. Et la, mon intérêt c’est dirigé vers Denise Glaser qui m’était inconnue car nous n’avions pas les émission télévisées d’ ORTF. Denise Glaser avait un style particulier pour interroger ses invités : le silence. Elle a réussi à laisser des blancs dans ses interviews pendant près de quinze ans et ces silences là valaient de l’or parce que les artistes avaient le temps de chercher leurs mots ou de ne rien dire non plus. Une époque où le silence était d’or et la chanson souvent intelligente.

Durant plus de quinze ans il en fut ainsi chaque dimanche. Le générique laissait place à un plateau de studio avec deux chaises Napoléon III pour tout décor. Au loin des échelles se dressaient sur un fond blanc. Le réalisateur avait pris le parti de monter ce que d’habitude la caméra ignorait. Même les caméras étaient visibles, les micros aussi, ici point de camouflage. Denise Glaser apparaissait le cheveux noir, l’Å“il noir et vif.

Pour faire découvrir de nouveaux talents souvent elle se rendait le soir dans les salles de spectacles de Paris et de province. Parfois de ses sorties elle ramenait un ou une inconnue, elle croyait en son art et lui offrait un passage à Discorama. Ainsi elle fut à la base des carrières de Catherine Lara, Moustaki, Brel, Hallyday, Ange, Maxime Le Forestier, Sardou, Yves Simon…

La rencontre était ponctuée de chansons et d’interviews.

Elle parlait peu, écoutait l’invité, écoutait les silences de l’invité. Les silences importaient plus que les paroles. Ils étaient souvent lourds de sens, l’émotion naissant ainsi. Elle a ouvert un nouveau genre d’interview-confidence dans le respect de l’autre. Elle disait : « Quand on veut que quelqu’un parle et l ‘écouter, le mieux est encore de fermer sa gueule…. »
Lors d’un Discorama par son silence Léo Ferré se mit à pleurer à chaudes larmes.(texte de Francois Faurant)

Voici une autre histoire que nous pouvons rajouter sur notre phare artiste, poète, héros et génie de Maurice

Malcolm de Chazal : de la quête identitaire personnelle à la découverte d’une identité collective.

(Contribution de christophe chabbert)

Les Mauriciens, généralement, connaissent le nom de l’ancêtre qui, un jour, a quitté son pays natal afin d’établir sa famille à Maurice. Malcolm de Chazal n’échappe pas à cette règle et la fin des années 1940, qui a vu l’irruption formidable de son ?uvre sur la scène littéraire française et internationale, a déclenché chez lui une formidable quête identitaire.

Ses ouvrages publiés à l’aube des années 1950 lui ont permis de développer toute une rêverie poétique ayant contribué à proposer à ses compatriotes une geste légendaire dans laquelle tous pouvaient se reconnaître : dans les temps très anciens, l’île Maurice était peuplée par une surhumanité, les géants lémuriens, dont les peuples de l’océan indien peuvent revendiquer l’héritage.

Cependant, la rédaction de cette geste des géants sculpteurs de montagnes est alimentée souterrainement par une découverte personnelle tout aussi étonnante : René Guénon lui écrit en effet du Caire pour lui demander s’il connaît l’existence d’un de ses ancêtres, François de Chazal de la Genesté qui a établi la famille à Maurice en 1763, dont le nom circule dans les milieux ésotériques de la franc-maçonnerie et de la Rose-Croix.

La réception de cette lettre va conduire Chazal à enquêter sur son aïeul et à trouver une inspiration nouvelle. Dès lors, que découvre-t-il en réalité ? Quel rôle joue cet ancêtre devenu personnage de fiction dans ses oeuvres du début des années 1950 ? Quels arrangements au profit de la fiction concède-t-il à la réalité ? C’est ce que nous tenterons d’établir au cours de cette communication.

This the claim for the new search engine!

Welcome to Cuil—the world’s biggest search engine. The Internet has grown. We think it’s time search did too.

The Internet has grown exponentially in the last fifteen years but search engines have not kept up—until now. Cuil searches more pages on the Web than anyone else—three times as many as Google and ten times as many as Microsoft.

Rather than rely on superficial popularity metrics, Cuil searches for and ranks pages based on their content and relevance. When we find a page with your keywords, we stay on that page and analyze the rest of its content, its concepts, their inter-relationships and the page’s coherency.

Then we offer you helpful choices and suggestions until you find the page you want and that you know is out there. We believe that analyzing the Web rather than our users is a more useful approach, so we don’t collect data about you and your habits, lest we are tempted to peek. With Cuil, your search history is always private.

Cuil is an old Irish word for knowledge. For knowledge, ask Cuil.

I invite you to read the philosophy of this new venture.

http://www.cuil.com/info/our_philosophy/

Do let me have your comments and appreciation of the search engine.

Evangile de Jésus-Christ selon saint Matthieu 14,13-21.

Quand Jésus apprit cela, il partit en barque pour un endroit désert, à l’écart. Les foules l’apprirent et, quittant leurs villes, elles suivirent à pied.
En débarquant, il vit une grande foule de gens ; il fut saisi de pitié envers eux et guérit les infirmes.
Le soir venu, les disciples s’approchèrent et lui dirent : « L’endroit est désert et il se fait tard. Renvoie donc la foule : qu’ils aillent dans les villages s’acheter à manger ! »
Mais Jésus leur dit : « Ils n’ont pas besoin de s’en aller. Donnez-leur vous-mêmes à manger. »
Alors ils lui disent : « Nous n’avons là que cinq pains et deux poissons. »
Jésus dit : « Apportez-les moi ici. »
Puis, ordonnant à la foule de s’asseoir sur l’herbe, il prit les cinq pains et les deux poissons, et, levant les yeux au ciel, il prononça la bénédiction ; il rompit les pains, il les donna aux disciples, et les disciples les donnèrent à la foule.
Tous mangèrent à leur faim et, des morceaux qui restaient, on ramassa douze paniers pleins.
Ceux qui avaient mangé étaient environ cinq mille, sans compter les femmes et les enfants.

Le Seigneur révèle la véritable signification du don de sa propre vie pour tous les hommes, nous montrant aussi la profonde compassion qu’il a pour toute personne. En effet, à de nombreuses reprises, les évangiles nous rapportent les sentiments de Jésus à l’égard des hommes, tout particulièrement des personnes qui souffrent et des pécheurs. À travers un sentiment profondément humain, il exprime l’intention salvifique de Dieu pour tout homme, afin qu’il atteigne la vraie vie.

En pensant à la multiplication des pains et des poissons, nous devons reconnaître que le Christ, encore aujourd’hui, continue à exhorter ses disciples à s’engager personnellement : « Donnez-leur vous-mêmes à manger ». La vocation de chacun de nous consiste véritablement à être, avec Jésus, pain rompu pour la vie du monde.

(Pape Benoît XVI Sacramentum caritatis, 88)

Quand j’habite l’esprit du Seigneur dans ce récit de Saint Matthieu, je rejoins justement la compassion profonde que notre Pape Benoit nous parle. Un regard des autres, dans une union des sentiments pour être ‘saisi de pitié envers eux’ et d’agir pour guérir les infirmes. Puisse que je voudrais que le Seigneur habite en moi, que j’ai Son regard en tout temps, apprends moi Seigneur Dieu d’avoir ce regard de compassion profonde et de donner à manger, et de soulager ceux que je rencontre.

Comment Cinq pains et deux poissons peuvent nourrir une multitude ? Si j’étais présent à cette scène, j’aurai réagi devant l’impossibilité de la tache. Dois-je encore reconnaitre que les voies du Seigneur ne sont pas celles des humains. Les disciples ont exécutés scrupuleusement les instructions du Maitre. Une confiance sans conteste et une foi inébranlable. Fait grandir ma foi en toi et donne moi le détachement. Je voudrais tellement que je vis pour Toi et par Toi. J’aurais à aguerrir la partie ‘homme’ en moi pour me transcender vers la partie ‘divine’. Donne-moi Seigneur les grâces, la force, le courage et la volonté pour y arriver. Comme le miracle de la multiplication des pains, opère le miracle de ma transcendance vers Toi.