In The News

Philadelphia leaders take to Toronto to share and 'steal'

Yonge Street Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Greater Philadelphia Economy League Executive Director Steve Wray talkes to Flying Kite sister publication Yonge Street about his organization's Greater Philadelphia Leadership Exchange, which visits Toronto this week.

One the focuses of the Economy League is what it means to be a world-class region and what it would take for Greater Philadelphia to attain status as a world-class region. As we select places to go, we look for regions that are world class or striving to be world class. Clearly Toronto has attained the status in the global community as a city and region on the rise, as a global financial capital and as an international city. We thought there were a lot of lessons we could bring back to Philadelphia from Toronto that would serve us well.

Original source: Yonge Street

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Rendell, Daschle call for high-speed rail in Northeast

Politico Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Ed Rendell and Tom Daschle co-author an op-ed in Politico that maintains the Northeast is best-positioned for high-speed rail, which would make possible travel from Washington D.C. to New York City in less than an hour, as the Eighth World Congress on High-Speed Rail was held in Philadelphia last week.

Imagine what these trains would do for the Northeast corridor. Traveling from Washington to New York City (or Baltimore, Philadelphia or Wilmington) in less than an hour, downtown to downtown, would revolutionize business travel, making it easy to travel for a full day of meetings — and still have dinner at home.

In fact, the Northeast corridor is the only region of the U.S. with the ideal conditions for the SCMAGLEV system: high density, a number of large urban areas in relatively close proximity and demonstrated high demand for business, as well as personal, travel.

Original source: Politico

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Philly Startup Weekend winner SeedInvest seeking funding

Triple Pundit Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Recent Philly Startup Weekend winner SeedInvest is included in Triple Pundit's roundup of next-generation crowdfunding platforms.

Founder Ryan Feit said that following their win, he’s had a lot of people from the Philadelphia community reach out to him about investing and is in the process of seeking a round of funding. The site is still in the pre-launch phase but entrepreneurs and business owners can apply for early access.

Original source: Triple Pundit

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TechGirlz, StartUp Corps offering entrepreneurship, technology mentorship for youth

Inc. magazine Monday, July 09, 2012

Inc. magazine touches on Philadelphia's TechGirlz and StartUp Corps, both of which are offering summer programs for young people interested in technology and entrepreneurship.

One such camp, TechGirlz, begins Monday in Philadelphia. The camp, which is a collaboration with DreamIt Ventures and StartUp Corps, will give girls in 6th-8th grades a week of hands-on technology experience as well as a chance to develop business ideas under the mentorship of local entrepreneurs and developers. The goal is to get girls more interested in technology and start-ups early on to change the gender statistics in the IT industry.

Original source: Inc.

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Art Museum's 'Gauguin, Cezanne, Matisse' exhibit has imperfections, but worth pondering

The New York Times Monday, July 09, 2012

The New York Times comes down hard on the Philadelphia Museum of Art's current exhibit, "Gauguin, Cezanne, Matisse: Visions of Arcadia," but still sees value in the "mixed bag of 60 works by 25 artists."

The exhibition catalog is filled with excellent color reproductions of many great works not in the show, including Botticelli’s “Primavera,” Titian’s “Concert Champêtre,” Manet’s “Déjeuner sur l’Herbe” and Matisse’s “Bonheur de Vivre.” An exhibition displaying everything in the catalog would be a once-in-a-lifetime event and a richly illuminating meditation on the classic Arcadian myth of pastoral bliss and what it means for the modern world. But if you want to know what you will see in the flesh, you have to consult the thumbnail-illustrated checklist at the back of the book. Can you say, “false advertising”?

Original source: The New York Times

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Everything you ever wanted to know about Philly's opera scene

New Music Box Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Fresh off the 2012 Opera America conference in Philadelphia, New Music Box writes of a changing Philadelphia opera landscape that includes collaboration, new works and better education.

Over the past two seasons, however, the Opera Company of Philadelphia (OCP) made international waves when it presented two operas by the iconic German composer Hans Werner Henze and announced a plan to present ten new American operas in the next ten years. In 2011, they launched an innovative collaborative Composer In Residence Program, together with New York partners Gotham Chamber Opera and Music-Theatre Group, funded by a Mellon grant of $1.4 million over five years.

Original source: New Music Box

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Wharton's admissions director: Our alumni are as engaged as ever

Papalguy Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Despite removing alumni from the MBA interview process, Wharton's admissions director Ankur Kumar says alumni are as critical to the marketing effort as ever and also addresses other important changes in an interview with MBA site Papalguy.

The new curriculum change is going to increase that flexibility in three specific ways. Firstly, it’s going to increase flexibility in terms of timing in when students can start their electives. Historically, students have spent their entire first year taking their core curriculum and they start taking electives in the second year. Now, due to a reduced or pared down core curriculum, students can actually start to take electives in their first year and start on their pursuits around different academic subjects and interests.

Original source: Papalguy

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Local duo finds popularity of patents steadily declining among startups

TechCrunch Friday, June 22, 2012

RJ Metrics founder Robert J. Moore and local patent lawyer Leonid Kravets found that only one-third of a sample of 12,404 funded technology companies have applied for patents, a signal that startups are paying less attention to patents, reports TechCrunch.

Arguments about the value of patents have heated up over the past few years. Software patents in particular have come under increasing scrutiny from thought leaders in the start-up ecosystem, yet later-stage companies like Facebook continue to pay huge sums to acquire patent portfolios.

Original source: Tech Crunch

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Behind the B Corp 'badge of honor' with Mugshots, Workplace Dynamics

Entrepreneur Friday, June 22, 2012

Mugshots CoffeeHouse & Cafe and Workplace Dynamics in Exton are profiled as proud, eco-conscious members of the B Corp movement, reports Entrepreneur.

Mugshots owner Angela Vendetti says just making it through the extensive certification process is something to be proud of as an entrepreneur. "There are all kinds of questions about your waste policy and what you do for the environment," Vendetti says. "They ask about cleaning products and energy, everything from what you offer your employees to how you consider your neighbors in the decisions you make."

Original source: Entrepreneur

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American Revolution Center's "historical" design plans draw mixed reviews

Art Info Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Art Info weighs in on plans to overhaul the American Revolution Center's Museum of the American Revolution at Third and Chestnut.

Saffron is one of several critics and locals who see Stern's conservative Georgian reproduction to be a lost opportunity for Philadelphia. Her criticism comes up against the cheers of neo-traditionalist advocates, who argue that a "historical" style is appropriate for a building that will not only house historical artifacts but also abut landmarks dating back one, even two centuries. However, as Hidden City Philadelphia writer Nathaniel Popkin points out, the Revolution museum's surroundings are sprinkled with buildings from various time periods: the neighboring First Bank of the United States boasts a grand neoclassical façade, and the Merchant Exchange Building is likewise a tribute to white stone and Renaissance-era tectonics. Also nearby are twinned cast-iron high-rises and other buildings that visibly embrace the advent of glass-and-steel construction.

Original source: Art Info

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Penn School of Medicine research isolates important gut bacteria

New Scientist Tuesday, June 19, 2012

A David Artis-led team at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine finds the immune system may be more sophisticated than originally thought in controlling important gut bacteria, reports New Scientist.

The discovery opens up new ways to treat diseases aggravated by bugs that escape from the gut, says Lora Hooper of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.

"This work has uncovered some truly exciting new insights into the role of innate lymphoid cells in the gut, showing that they function like border collies that keep intestinal bacteria from escaping to other parts of the body," she says.

Original source: New Scientist

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Philly, a tech scene where you'd never think to look

Fast Company Friday, June 15, 2012

Fast Company cites Philadelphia among 15 tech scenes in places you'd never think to look (although it's really not that unlikely, is it?).

What's changing? Resources, such as coworking spaces, incubators, and investment dollars, are dripping into the area. And perhaps for the first time in recent memory, young people are moving to Philadelphia.

Original source: Fast Company

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Comcast renews investment in DreamIt Ventures minority-focused entrepreneur program

TechCrunch Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Comcast Ventures renewed its investment in startup accelerator DreamIt Ventures' minority-focused entrepreneur program in Philadelphia and New York, DreamIt Access, reports TechCrunch.

DreamIt and Comcast Ventures, the venture capital arm of Comcast Corporation, first partnered on DreamIt Access in May 2011, announcing at the time a $350,000 fund to give five startups in the Philly 2011 program an extra infusion of capital (These included ElectNext, Kwelia, MetaLayer, ThaTrunk and Qwite, whose founders are African-American, Asian, Hispanic and Indian.) Later, the investment was formalized into a year-long minority accelerator program called DreamIt Access.

Original source: Tech Crunch

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City's latest restaurant openings in South Philly, Center City

Zagat Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Zagat touches on the recent debut of three Philadelphia restaurants, including Miss Rachel's Pantry, The Industry and Honeygrow.

On Fridays and Saturdays, guests can reserve a spot at the dozen-seat farmhouse table in Miss Rachel’s Dining Room, where a $45 prix fixe tasting menu of homestyle veg-friendly fare will be served at 7 PM each weekend night (1732 W. Passyunk Ave.; 215-798-0053).

Original source: Zagat

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How Philly's efforts to eliminate food deserts could spread nationally

Washington Post Monday, June 11, 2012

The Washington Post digs into Philadelphia's effort to drive availability and consumption of healthy food, which "could steer the course of American food policy."

Philadelphia’s study, distinct in scope and scale, may deliver a breakthrough.

The city has, in many ways, been the epicenter of American efforts to improve food access. Of the country’s 10 largest cities, its population is the lowest-income, and it has higher obesity rates than New York City and Baltimore. It’s home to The Food Trust, a nonprofit that has risen to national prominence as an advocate for increasing food access for low-income Americans.

Original source: Washington Post

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