Web X.0

Paul Graham on college

Great post by Paul Graham on the importance of getting the right college education... Finally I don't feel stupid for not having an academic degree... ;-)

"Practically everyone thinks that someone who went to MIT or Harvard or Stanford must be smart.  Even people who hate you for it believe it.

But when you think about what it means to have gone to an elite college, how could this be true?   We're talking about a decision made by admissions officers—basically, HR people—based on a cursory examination of a huge pile of depressingly similar applications submitted by seventeen year olds.  And what do they have to go on? An easily gamed standardized test; a short essay telling you what the kid thinks you want to hear; an interview with a random alum; a high school record that's largely an index of obedience.  Who would rely on such a test?"

I particularly relate to this part:

"...Because how much you learn in college depends a lot more on you than the college.  A determined party animal can get through the best school without learning anything.  And someone with a real thirst for knowledge will be able to find a few smart people to learn from at a school that isn't prestigious at all."

Anyhow - good post, especially if you're hiring people.   Go and read the whole thing here.

Tevel Angel Club

I've recently volunteered to join the executive committee of a non-profit organization called Tevel. Tevel is the first angel club established in the US, focusing exclusively on bringing US angel investors together with young Israeli startups.

Tevel was founded by Oren Fuerst and Oren Heiman (more here). What got me interested in this project is Oren's (Fuerst...) description of why they started Tevel:

They floated the idea last summer, around the time of the war in Lebanon. Being Israelies in NY, they were approached by friends asking how they can help the community in Israel in a 'real' way (ie - not by giving a donation to a random organization without ever knowing if/how that helped anyone specific). Oren, coming from a business background, thought the best way to contribute would be by helping the economy, and the best way he knew was by supporting entrepreneurs in the beginning of their ventures.

With Tevel the idea is to introduce young and promising Israeli entrepreneurs to American investors. While the hope is that the investments yield investors great returns, the primary goal is to help support the entrepreneurs and through that help support the Israeli economy.

We're now looking for investors who are interested in joining the club, and entrepreneurs looking for early seed investments. If you're interested, shoot me an email (yaron [at] galai [dot] com) or go directly to the Tevel website - www.tevel.org

At the Web2.0 Expo

Just landed in SF for the Web2.0 Expo this week. If you're around for the conference and want to catch some time together, drop me a note!
yaron [at] galai [dot] com

TGIM

I am noticing that the whole definition of TGIF changes significantly after you have kids running around the house...

Mazal Tov Efrat & Uri!

When I started this blog I sort of vowed to myself not to post on any off-topic personal subjects. But this is a special occasion for two very special readers of this blog.

So - Mazal Tov Uri & Efrat!!!

No-more-personal-posts vow reinstated.