China Envy

"Everyone knows" that China may be the economic powerhouse of the 21st century. This columnist, writing China: A Tech Powerhouse? - Columns by PC Magazine, sums up the case in the most ebullient terms. So, maybe it's time to start that long intended plan to learn Mandarin?

But this may not be the best moment to invest financially in China, as their stock market looks like a bubble waiting to pop: China: First BRIC To Crumble?

Aart de Geus, Renaissance Man

Congratulations are in order for Aart de Geus, Synopsys' CEO. Last week, the Silicon Valley Leadership Group honored him with its Spirit of Silicon Valley Lifetime Achievement Award. Read all about it in San Jose Mercury News - Takahashi: Synopsys leader's quiet impact.

I had the pleasure of attending the awards banquet, since my company purchased a table.

The keynote speaker for the luncheon was California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. It's the first time I've seen and heard "Ahnold" live, and he is quite impressive. He is very charismatic and his answers to audience questions made a great deal of sense. Of course, sound bites are easy and the devil is in the details when enacting policies and making hard choices. Voters are not easy to please. (We'll have our cake and eat it too, please.)

But enough of the Governator. For Aart, there was a fine tribute video shown with testimonials from business and community leaders. Aart was gracious and humble in his acceptance, noting all the contributions from his family, the Synopsys Foundation, and his colleagues in the Leadership Group.

Aart has been a true leader in the local community and Synopsys has been especially strong supporting Education and Science Fairs. Congratulations on a well deserved honor!

You Know You're an Engineer When...

I'm sure you've seen such engineering humor before, but this list has some clever points and is written by a software engineer at Google: Niniane's Blog: You Know You're an Engineer When...

Check out the rest of Niniane's Blog, too. She writes with great openness and gives insight into life at Silicon Valley->Web 2.0->Google.