

The N+1 Theory - cwan
http://www.avc.com/a_vc/2010/08/the.html

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twp
There are only three important numbers:

0 - when there are zero of something it is not possible

1 - when there is one of something then it is possible

more than 1 - when there are more than one of something then there is choice,
and the possibility of many, many more

What is interesting is the transitions between them: when zero becomes one the
impossible suddenly becomes possible, when one becomes two then suddenly there
are multiple possibilities and you have to wonder if there are more... The N+1
Theory, to link back to the original article.

Some interesting values, that will get really interesting if they change:

0 - number of confirmed alien civilisations

1 - number of planets known to harbour life

more than 1 - number of potential partners who could be "the one"

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te_platt
I once heard an Olympic gold medalist say "You can't go from practicing five
hours a day to ten, but can you go to five hours and ten minutes?"

Of course there are limits to everything. It's just not very often you are at
your limit.

~~~
mavelikara
I once heard the great South African batsman Barry Richards explain a similar
trick he used. When he first goes out to bat, he will tell himself "Look, I am
good enough to make 10 runs against any bowling attack in the world" - and he
would concentrate on getting those 10 runs only. Once he reaches 10, he'd tell
himself the same thing again, and concentrate on the next 10 runs. He made 80
first class centuries in his career.

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jscore
I couldn't figure out what to blog about, so I blogged about N+1...That's N+1!

~~~
fredwilson
nicely done.

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subbu
I want what all men want, I just want more. -Achilles

~~~
stcredzero
The problem is, that pretty much all men want more.

~~~
subbu
Apply this technique for exercise/yoga :)

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JacobAldridge
"Pure optimism sprinkled with tenacity" - that's a pretty good definition of a
start-up, when you think about it.

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phaedrus
In the Marines I was taught that there's always one more thing you can do to
improve your situation.

That's what I do when I'm stuck on a programming project or unsure where to
start: identify one thing that will improve the situation, and then do that
thing. Repeat until done.

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stcredzero
This sounds a lot like the "Even Steven" schtick from Seinfeld.

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llaxsll
I found a beer in the fridge! N+1

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harscoat
in my fridge, N-1 rules

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stcredzero
Somewhere in here is a song for long bus rides.

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aarp
N <= 38

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konad
I read of a similar scheme.

Whenever you think you have N copies of data you should consider you have N-1.

Here's why : Your work is on your computer and thumbdrive, one dies. Now you
have only 1 copy with no backup.

