Guided by Nature

Musings on Dependency on Google Maps, Mumbai Dabbawalas, and the Robotic Revolution

Bird migrations are fascinating.?

Falcons, for example.

They migrate from South Africa to India, every winter, undertaking a yearly journey of about 20,000 km! The ‘Tern’ migrates 90,000 km from pole to pole every year!?

Some of us get lost getting home, 20 km away, if we take a side road to beat traffic. And shudder to think of not having Google Maps telling us where to go! Google Maps was launched in 2005, and in India only in 2008!?

How come we are worse than the birds?

Birds detect the magnetic field generated by Earth's molten core and use it to determine their position and direction, called magnetoreception. It has ensured their survival and successful navigation across vast distances over a millennium.

Humans might also possess an ability to sense these magnetic lines. But it is a skill lost in time in the modern era.?

Today Google Maps has become an indispensable tool for millions worldwide.

Google Maps has over 1 billion active users monthly, is available in 220 countries and offers real-time traffic information in over 50 countries.

Google Maps has 60 million active users in India making it the country with the largest contributing community globally.

Some of the latest statistics reveal its immense popularity and reach.

- Google Maps has mapped over 10 million miles of Street View imagery

- 63% of users prefer Google Maps to other navigation platforms

- Google Maps covers over 36 million square miles of the Earth’s surface

- Google Maps app is on average used 13 times per month by smartphone users

This innovation laid the foundation for numerous travel-based businesses. It transformed our commute with a layer of real-time information and location-sharing features.

It ensures our safar is khoobsurat AND safe, manzil se bhi.?

Newer advancements like the Fuel-Efficient Routing feature help users identify eco-friendly routes based on real-time traffic data, road elevation, and the vehicle's engine type, aiming to minimise CO2 emissions.

When Google Maps was conceived, no one could have imagined how it would fundamentally shift behaviour for everyone in the world.?

The birds may not need it, but we definitely do!?

Leadership Code ~ Mindful Musings with Vani

Mini Masterclass on maintaining shareholder trust

The Mumbai Dabbawalas made a simple task of delivering hot lunch - a Harvard case study.

They deliver hot meals from homes to offices with an efficiency that has garnered global acclaim.?

The scale, precision and predictability they mastered have inspired many lessons in supply chain and customer service. Proving that even simple problems can be innovated to build scale and profitable businesses.

Their error rate is 1 in 16 million deliveries. Can you imagine?

This statistic has astonished even the most sophisticated logistics companies! They have proved how critical stakeholder trust is - by transforming a fledgling idea into a super-thriving enterprise.

However, trust is equally fragile when it comes to betrayal.?

A small breach of trust can have haemorrhaging consequences. And rebuilding trust is not always easily possible.?

Here’s my life’s code: Trust is the bedrock of culture that holds everything together and fosters an environment where ideas flourish, relationships deepen, and collective goals are pursued with passion and integrity.

And I concur with what Hemingway says - "The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them."

And when that trust is broken perchance, it is still important to take the high road.

Pulse of Progress

Tales of Tech, Innovation and more

We often keep going back to Mother Nature to seek inspiration.

By observing and mimicking the intricacies of nature, scientists and engineers have been able to build interesting technologies. Robotics is an obvious example.?

The Czech playwright Karel ?apek coined the term “robot” in 1920.

In 1954, an inventor named George Devol created the first programmable robot arm called Unimate. It was created to handle tasks that were too dangerous for humans.

It was first used by a General Motors plant in 1961.

Science fiction came home in the early 2000s with Roomba - as a robotic vacuum cleaner.?

The progress in robotics has been nothing short of meteoric.

Today robots, powered by AI - are performing a variety of tasks beyond manufacturing and industrial use.

AI robot chefs, underwater robots, space robots, home companions, robotic guide dogs - every domain of our life seems a target for the coexistence of robots.??

Robotics and AI will create affordable choices for daily drudgery. How it might change our society is hard to envision. Will we one day prefer robotic company versus human companionship??

If you or someone you know is working on an interesting robot, drop a message at [email protected]. :)

#LifeLine

Book Recommendation

Tuesdays with Morrie?

Only a few books make a deeper impact than - this one. I read this book many moons ago, but often reflect on the wisdom within.?

Prof Morrie’s reflections capture - raw emotions stripped of trying to impress anyone, exposing the authentic core of human dilemmas.?

This book made it okay to allow us to experience our emotions and process them without adding filters to fit in and appease lenses welded by others whose opinions we place far too much importance on.

Tuesdays with Morrie is a book that makes us embrace our authentic selves and the difficulties of facing life acknowledging our fears and finding courage from within.?

May the force be with you,

Vani

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