Billionaires who Give Back: Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and their 'Giving Pledge'

Right off the top of my head, when asked about influential personalities whom I truly feel serve as role models for societal progress and the betterment of humanity, I think of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett - granted, there are many more people worthy of mentioning in my rather short mental list, therefore I went on to look for a longer one.

The Giving Pledge

Lo and behold - 'The Giving Pledge', an initiative to encourage the wealthiest people in U.S. to commit to giving the majority of their 8 (and above) figure wealth to charity - this is definitely one of the more intriguing list that I've seen - all the individuals on this list have made a conscious and personal commitment to improve the lives of other people and the society that they live in. Perhaps we're able to do something similar in Singapore (it's where I live), we're a rich country characterised by the biggest disparity in wealth among its citizens.

As of 2012, there are currently 69 billionaires on the list -

3 Entertaining and Insightful Videos (Storytelling, Music and Humour)

1) Andrew Stanton: The clues to a great story



Andrew Stanton is a screenwriter and film director at Pixar Animation Studio, he has many acclaimed works under his belt, they include writing for and directing 1) Finding Nemo, 2) WALL-E, 3) A Bug's Life and 4) Toy Story. In this engaging talk, Andrew shares what he knows about great storytelling - starting at the end and working back to the beginning.


2) Fun.: We Are Young ft. Janelle Monáe (ACOUSTIC)



I first heard We Are Young by Fun. on the radio, ever since then, I've been listening to this song non-stop. Fun. is an indie pop band from New York City - the group was started by Nate Ruess, the band's vocalist. The band's breakout hit would be their song "We Are Young" - it reached the top spot on Billboard Hot 100, and it's the only rock/alternative to reach number 1 (on Billboard 100) since Coldplay's Viva La Vida in 2008. Fun.'s unplugged version of "We Are Young" performed in this video is pure aural pleasure.


3) Elmo and Cookie Monster have some Adult Fun



What do you get when you put a Tickle Me Elmo and Cookie Monster together in a box? Unintentional adult humour, that's what! Thanks to this video, I will never look at Sesame Street characters the same way again..


Have entertaining and insightful videos that you would like to share? Post them in the comment boxes below!


By Herman Soh

Angry Birds Case Study: A Look into the Game's History, Success and Influence

Image Credits: The-Bambookazee

PopStudy is a segment where I provide you interesting insights and facts about the people and content that are prevalent in people's lives and have a widespread effect on the global community.

I'm pretty sure Angry Birds are to the Internet generation (born from the early or mid 1990s to the present) what Tetris is to my mum and dad (Gen Xers); given the amount of modern entertainment choices that we have now as compared to the relatively paltry number of handheld games in the past (Gameboy only had 5 games during its launch), the global pervasiveness of these furious digital avians in our lives is a remarkable accomplishment in brand building by Finnish company Rovio Mobile.

Quick Stats

1. Downloaded a total of over 600m times (Dec 2011)
2. 30m daily active players and 130m monthly active players (October 2011)
3. Shifting 1m toys and 1m t-shirts a month (Sep 2011)
4. New audiences in India, in Africa and all the emerging markets... add another 400 million together
5. Rovio had rejected a $2.25bn acquisition offer from social games publisher Zynga (Nov 2011)"

Angry Birds smashes half a billion downloads!

In light of the newly launched Angry Birds Space, I thought this might be a great time to discuss how this simple mobile game has managed to cement their place in popculture history; we'll also take a look at how Angry Birds has grown beyond the smartphone and made its way into the real world and our lives - all these in the span of 2 short years.


"Which came first, the Angry Bird or the Egg?"

How to Produce Audience-Centric Content and Get Your Work Seen (Part 1- Establishing Authority/Reputation)

This is an open letter to artists, singers, writers and all other individuals who produce content for an audience.

Hi readers, I've been getting quite a number of requests by people and groups who write in to me asking to be featured on PopConversation - first things first, thank you for taking the time to compose the message (this excludes those who use generic template solicitation letters); secondly, I would like to apologize if I never got around to replying you - I'm busy, PopConversation is a blog that I write for after I finish my 9-6.

I'm writing this article in hopes that I'll be able to help you out - to aid you in creating content that more people will want to see, and to promote your works online more effectively to a larger audience - I'll provide you practical advise and pointers that I've learnt along the way in my efforts to grow PopConversation, through my experience with personalities in the entertainment industry and my background in marketing.

Of course it goes without saying that if your goal of producing content or performing isn't to get as many relevant people to look at it, then you can skip this article altogether - but then again, I never really believed the people who say that, I feel that everyone wants to be recognized for the good work that they do, but to each their own. Oh yeah, if you're only hear to read stories and watch videos, you'd find something here that you'd be able to apply to the other aspects of your life too, be it work or your hobby, so read on!


Audience-Centric Content

Ever since I made the decision to focus on writing about the subject him/her/itself and making it as interesting as possible for the mainstream audiences to read (I call it Pop-Writing, no prize for guessing how the term came about), I've seen a significant improvement in my site's traffic. When I first started blogging, I was rather fixated on getting my mug, name or brand out there alongside everything that I did or produced - there's nothing wrong with it except most of the time - if you're just starting out on something (perhaps a blog about food or a contemporary dance performance) - people don't really care who you are, what you do, or what you think about things - this is due to the following reasons (I'll only list one of them in this article) -


You're Not Established

More specifically, it means that you have yet to make a name for yourself in that particular area of expertise - people are not familiar with what you do and they don't trust you to give them a reliable answer/solution (think blog review) or satisfactory product (in this case, it might be a painting, or a song). I could go in depth as to why this is so but the short answer would be that many people are overloaded with information and at the same time, they're starved for time - it's much more convenient and efficient for them to fall back onto personalities or brands that they already know or trust.

It wouldn't be much of a guide if I only pointed out what you or your friends could be doing better - if you want to build a reputation for yourself or be readily associated with a particular discipline or area of expertise - you'll have to establish authority. You go about that in several ways -

PopList: 5 Clever Comedy Acts that will make You Laugh Out Loud

One of the best ways to kill time when you're surfing the Internet would be to watch something that makes you laugh - in my opinion, it's one of the most powerful psychological therapy - it makes you feel euphoric, you can administer it yourself, and it won't cost you a dime - I just realised that the 3 advantages I named for watching comedy acts can also be readily applied to pornography - save for the guilty feeling that sets in after.

"One of the many benefits of laughter and a sense of humor is that they buffer you against the negatives of life that could lead to depression... people who use humor to fight stress also feel less lonely and more positive about themselves." - http://www.everydayhealth.com/

And literally, without further ado, I present to you our first clever comedy act -



The comedian featured in the video above is Seth Macfarlane - he is an American actor and screenwriter, but you'd most probably recognize him from his voice - which you might find reminiscent of a popular animated sitcom called Family Guy - well that's because he's the producer and the voice actor of said sitcom :)

The Roast of Donald Trump is a great example of Seth Macfarlane's unapologetic and brazen style of comedy - he makes painful pokes at his subjects but they can't get angry at him because he's funny and most of it is true. This style of comedy - direct and in your face - is particularly popular in countries like America and U.K., where it's citizen strongly believe in their freedom of speech and are consequently not afraid to mouth off their real opinions and thoughts - in contrast, people in countries like China are more measured in their communications and the things they say - this can be attributed in large part to a country's culture and policies.

Here's another video that embodies the idea of clever comedy - it ironically features one of the biggest ignoramus -

PopShorts: The Wonder Hospital

The Wonder Hospital is a haunting animated film by Korean director Beomsik Shimbe Shim. The 11 and a half minute animation chronicles a girl's bizarre journey through a mysterious hospital that transforms the perception of physical beauty - her desire to change her appearance urges her deeper and deeper into the recesses of the surrealistic hospital where she finally lands herself atop the operating table.



The surgeons promptly got to work on her face - the scene of the operation was delivered in a whimsical fashion - there was no blood and gore but that didn't make the film any less unsettling to watch. Throughout the entire short, the girl would obsessively recollect the 'after operation image' that she had seen in a photobook - the pictures in it explicitly depicts an unhappy patient before his/her operation, and a confident post op patient, whose expression looks a little forced and unnatural.



While watching The Wonder Hospital, I couldn't help but wonder if Shimbe had created the film in response to the social trend in Korea - that is their people's worrying preoccupation with their physical looks and the prevalence of plastic surgery in the country.

PopPersonality: Florence Welch

I first discovered Florence (Leontine Mary Welch) and the Machine while watching an episode of the Colbert Report, an American satirical late night television program, and it was right then I realized that the English siren had one of the most captivating vocals that I've ever heard -


Florence + the Machine - Dog days are over (Nobel Peace Prize Concert 2010)

The video above is not the Colbert Report, but it does feature the first song that I ever heard her sing (Dog Days are Over) and it accurately represents the sense of awe that I felt right from the moment she uttered her first note - I don't usually stick around to watch the musical segments that happens towards the end of talk shows - but I was spellbound by Florence's ethereal sounding voice so I sticked around for her entire performance and then some (on Youtube).

Intermission: Bear Dances to 50 Cent

It looks like a normal day at the zoo until a bear starts dancing to hip hop music. This video, uploaded by aptly named Youtuber EpicViral, has accumulated close to a million views as of 13 March 2012.



It's testament to the fact that any content that contains animals or children doing amusing things has a great shot at being a viral hit - and when you actually merge those two elements together, god forbid the shockwaves of cuteness you'd unleash upon the unsuspecting people of the internet, case in point -

PopList: 5 Entertaining Dubstep Performances!

My first encounter with dubstep music was through a viral video on Youtube by experienced dancer (of 17 years) Marquese Scott -

This video of him popping to Butch Clancy’s remix of 'Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People' has since become a Youtube classic. Like the 37 million viewers of the video, I was captivated by how the 30 year old Tunisian is able to translate electronic dance music into a visual spectacle.



PopQuiz: What is Dubstep?
Dubstep is a category of electronic dance music (EDM for short) that came out of South London, United Kingdom. The music is characterized by its boisterous bass lines and reverberant patterns composed of percussions, various sound clips and vocals.

I set out to look for more people who were translating dubstep music into remarkable performances - here are 5 of them which stood out to me -

PopProfile: COOP3RDRUMM3R

COOP3RDRUMM3R (real name Casey Cooper) is a 20 year old university student and drummer from the United States - he is able to skillfully transpose many genres of music (from dubstep to classical rock, pop to Christian praise) into some of the fastest and most skillful beats. Being a fan of Skrillex myself, I gravitate towards his covers of dubstep and electronic dance music and I personally find them to be the most impressive - it's not just because I like those tracks more - it's also because when Casey jams to Skrillex, he does so at a breakneck speed.



Casey Cooper prides himself on being a flexible and versatile performer - he believes that this trait is essential if one wishes to be a successful musician - to date, the Atlanta-based percussionist has performed in many different gigs, from comedy shows, rock shows, churches, to marching bands - he has also recorded a great variety of music.


Show me his Highlights!

A Short Case Study of KONY 2012

I'm always on the lookout for remarkable stories for PopConversation, my friends and readers message and write to me from time to time to share news and articles - one of the most recent topic that's been blitzing across the Internet and social networks is KONY 2012 - one of the biggest viral videos in recent years.



"Kony 2012 is an unlikely internet phenomenon. The 30-minute documentary about a despot Ugandan warlord has been watched more than 30 million times online in less than 48 hours... more than 21m times on YouTube and 11m times on Vimeo." - The Guardian


What is KONY 2012?

KONY 2012 is a half-hour documentary, produced by nonprofit organisation Invisible Children. The video is based on Joseph Kony - a Ugandan warlord responsible for crimes against humanity and the enslavement of more than 30,000 children - and it's the key component in Invisible Children's online vigilant campaign to arrest the guerrilla group leader by 2012.

"The aim of this video is to make Joseph Kony famous, “not to celebrate him, but to raise support for his arrest and set a precedent for international justice”. People will be made aware of Joseph Kony and the LRA of what they are doing to civilians." - Invisible Children, KONY 2012 Youtube video description


KON-troversy

Shortly after the massive fanfare surrounding the video (thanks in part to its dissemination through some of the biggest pop culture icons like Oprah, Justin Bieber, Rihanna, etc), a number of websites - 'Visible Children' and "The Daily What" - broke news that the video and its nonprofit organisation was not all that it portrayed itself to be.

Website Recommendations: GOOD.is

In line with the 2 website recommendation (TED.com and ArtofManliness.com) I made in the previous articles, I would like to introduce to you another notable website that's dedicated to stories and discussions of altruism and personal self improvement - GOOD.is.




What is GOOD.is?

GOOD.is wants to be a place where individuals, businesses and nonprofits gather to champion social causes and discuss social issues. The website, along with 3 similarly branded media properties, are housed under media company GOOD Worldwide, LLC - the group helps organisations promote their brands through campaigns with a social impact.


A Volunteer Day campaign organised by GOOD

Articles on GOOD.is revolve around a consistent theme of social awareness and responsibility; they have a penchant for featuring content deemed useful in helping society progress - one such socially conscious story would be -

The Next Time You Cut Your Finger, Save a Life
“I wanted to make it as fucking simple as possible to do something good,” he says. “I think a lot of people hear bone marrow donation and they think it’s going to be torture and that’s just not the case.”


More Stories Please?

Watch Physically Impaired People do Amazing Things!

Color me impressed - people are truly capable of anything if they put their mind to it - case in point, 23 year old New Dehli resident, Vinod Thakur, whose ability to bust b-boy moves despite being born without a full pair of legs is showcased in a recent video that has surfaced onto the Youtube charts - instantly catching my attention.



Vinod Thakur shot to fame after performing his breakdance routine on India's Got Talent 2 years ago in 2010; the self taught performer learnt his repertoire of spins, flips and belly flops entirely from watching videos of other breakdancers on the internet.

‘When I saw foreigners doing it on the internet, I asked myself, why can’t I?’ he said.

Considerably intrigued by Vinod's remarkable efforts to live a fun and fulfilling life despite his disabilities made me wonder - what other sports are people with lower body disabilities capable of doing? I'm pretty sure many of you know about wheelchair basketball, but I've found a variety of activities that really demonstrated the versatility of these strong characters and how they're able to overcome physical limitations to do what normal people do and even more.

Website Recommendations: TED.com

I've been following TED for quite sometime now, they've very engaging talks and their speakers touch on varied subjects in Technology, Entertainment and Design. After watching TED presentations, I feel intelligent, but I've been told that "feeling" is very much different from "being", to which I say, la la la I can't hear you.


What is TED?

TED was created in 1984 as a conference where people from the industries of Technology, Entertainment and Design got together for formal discussions of issues affecting their space.


Old photo of a TED conference in 2003; Image Credits: sbove's

Since then, the range of topics and matters discussed has expanded beyond it's original categories, in fact there have been quite a significant number of presentations that revolve around human psychology and sociology - these speeches might make you re-think the way you perceive some of your notions and beliefs.


Nobel laureate and founder of behavioral economics Daniel Kahneman reveals how our "experiencing selves" and our "remembering selves" perceive happiness differently.


What's so interesting about them?

PopShorts: Balancing Work And Play (with Capoeira)

PopShorts is a new segment on PopConversation where I share bite-sized stories on remarkable content that I discover; these content usually don't fit into the current big stories I'm working on but they're too good to pass up without making a mention or recommendation of it to my readers.



Our first PopShort features a well edited 2 minute clip starring the acrobatic Singaporean parkour practioners from Ashton's Movement Agency. I've highlighted these agile youths in a past article where they run, hop and somersault across urban installations - the whole process was served up in a highly entertaining 4 minute short edited by their skilled editor friend Chen Pin.



'Balancing Work and Play' is a refreshing piece depicting a relatable scenario of working a white collared job in the city, which can be a really dispiriting routine for many people. This video stands out because it presents viewers with a sense of freedom through movement - literally, with wild and energetic kicks and flips by capoeira practitioner Shahfir.

Chen Pin's timely use of slow motion and quick cuts makes his work engrossing to watch; he did a commendable job on the video and I personally can't wait to see his next production.




By Herman Soh

Action Sports in the First Person Perspective

These are some of the most engrossing videos that I've ever seen; they're short clips of adventure sports shot from the first person perspective and a number of them will even have you clenching real tightly on the handles of your office chair.

The videos in PopConversation's list of "Action Sports in the First Person Perspective" offers a genuinely refreshing angle to content that makes it difficult to avert your eyes and attention from it - read on and experience thrill and excitement without worrying about crashing into a wall, falling off a cliff and getting kicked in the head.