THE BIG IDEA
Let’s talk proteins.
Proteins are the large, complex molecules that do the lion’s share of the work in your cells and are essential for all living organisms. They’re made up of hundreds of thousands of amino acids, smaller units that are attached long,...
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THE BIG IDEA
A lot of attention is given to the companies that develop blockbuster drugs. Far less attention is paid to those that make the sophisticated manufacturing equipment that allow drugs to be developed, made for clinical trials, then produced at scale when approved.
These...
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THE BIG IDEA
Read slowly. This will take some time to digest.
We are on the verge of a renaissance in the industrial manufacturing industry that will forever change how products are designed, built and introduced to market.
This renaissance is being driven by the same that...
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THE BIG IDEA
Warren Buffett is widely considered one of the best investors in history. Over the last 53 years Berkshire Hathaway’s (BRK/A) per-share market value has grown at an average annual rate of 21%. That works out to 10% better, every year, than S&P...
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THE BIG IDEA
The size of the market for electronic business-to-business (B2B) payments is hard to wrap your mind around. In the U.S. alone, it’s estimated that current B2B payment volume tops $20 trillion.
That’s a lot of Benjamins exchanging hands.
Even in such a big there’s...
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THE BIG IDEA
The year was 1956. Peter Pappas, originally from Cyprus, had recently returned to New York City after fighting in the Korean War. Sensing a need for food deliveries to local restaurants, Mr. Pappas teamed up with his cousin and founded the Butter...
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THE BIG IDEA
Warby Parker launched in 2010 selling eyeglasses online. With prices starting at just $95, its glasses have always been a lot less expensive than many alternatives out there, especially for buyers used to going through traditional eyeglass channels.
The business came about its...
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THE BIG IDEA
You’re as smooth as Tennessee whiskey,
You’re as sweet as strawberry wine,
You’re as warm as a glass of brandy,
And I stay stoned on your love all the time.
- Lyrics from Tennessee Whiskey, originally recorded by David Allen Coe, 1981
A few weeks ago, heard...
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THE BIG IDEA
If you’ve spent much time in the United Kingdom you might be familiar with Reading Buses. The company has been transporting passengers in and around Berkshire, England and the greater London area for over a century. Its fleet of 180 brightly single-...
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THE BIG IDEA
Are you concerned about cyberattacks?
Are your mobile devices, smart home devices and computers secure on your home network? What about in your car? At work?
These are questions people try not to think about too much. But the evidence suggests a dramatic in...
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THE BIG IDEA
Ever so slowly, biotech stocks are making a comeback.
The biotech index is up 7% year-to-date, and up 29% since the beginning of last year. Companies with good trial data and promising pipelines have garnered investors’ attention and their dollars.
The sector’s performance slightly...
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THE BIG IDEA
As the world moves toward knowledge-driven economies, continuous learning is critical. It’s not an option to just sit on your rear end if you want to get into a great college, land a terrific job, move up the corporate ladder or five...
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THE BIG IDEA
With most early-stage investments, who you buy is just as important as what you buy. In other words, a company’s leadership team is as important as its technology.
Which brings us to this man, Sunny Gupta.
Mr. Gupta grew up in India where dad...
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THE BIG IDEA
Remember when 3D printing stocks were all the rage?
Investors couldn’t buy them fast enough. And the technology was widely discussed as the having the potential to turn every garage in North America into a high-tech repair shop.
Then things just seemed to apart...
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THE BIG IDEA
I remember a consulting project I did for an academic medical center a number of years ago. The center was growing revenue at around 10% a year, had 12 divisions (Radiology, Surgery, Women’s Health, etc.), and was on the cusp of $650...
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THE BIG IDEA
A few months ago, my wife Jenni injured her back and was unable to get to the doctor’s office. Thankfully, we tracked down a highly recommended chiropractor, and he made a house call within 24 hours. After three days and three at...
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THE BIG IDEA
July 31, 2017: Anthem, the second-largest U.S. health insurance company, says a partner exposed health information data for over 18,000 Medicare enrollees. Just one month earlier, it agreed to a $115 million settlement related to a 2015 data breach. Hackers gained to...
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THE BIG IDEA
In 2010, U.S. Marine Corporal Jeffrey Cole was on routine patrol with his unit in Afghanistan, checking to see if there had been any Taliban activity in the area.
It didn’t turn out to be a routine day. His patrol began taking from...
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THE BIG IDEA
In 2004, I bought an old farmhouse in Vermont. Motivated by the romantic notion that I would completely update the home with modern materials and technologies, but repurpose every possible scrap of original material that was practical to reuse, I leaned my...
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THE BIG IDEA
How is your heart doing?
This might not be a question you’ve given much thought to. Especially if you’ve never suffered from an irregular heartbeat.
But if you’re among the five million Americans affected by cardiac arrhythmias, you probably want to know the And...
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