Tortus Newsletter February 2010

February 17, 2010

A Mind-Blowing Story

The advancement of science, human knowledge, and your business happens many times in unusual ways and bursts. And sometimes because of the strangest events!

It was an ordinary weekday in mid-September 1848 in Cavendish, Vermont, and 25-year-old Phineas Gage was working at his job as a railroad construction foreman on the Rutland and Burlington Railroad. As foreman, one of his responsibilities was to set off explosive charges to clear large rocky areas to make way for the tracks. Gage, well-liked by his railroad coworkers and employer, was known as a hardworking and responsible fellow. Gage began the task of drilling a hole deep into a rock ledge, then inserting the dynamite for the explosion. Dangerous work, to be sure, but he was a conscientious and level-headed man, and he'd prepared these blasts countless times before.

But this wasn't one of those countless times before.

Phineas Gage became uncharacteristically distracted before he could plug the hole with the protective barrier of sand to force the dynamite down into the boulder upon ignition. He absentmindedly tamped the (non-existent) sand down into the hole with an iron rod nearly four feet in length, one and a half inches in diameter, and 14 pounds in weight. His tamp, acting like a flint as it made contact with the boulder, created a spark, and the dynamite ignited. With nowhere to go but out, the iron rod did exactly that. When the smoke cleared, it was noted that the tamp had gone cleanly through Gage's left cheekbone and exited through the top of his head. The rod was found lying on the ground over 100 feet away!

You would have thought Gage would have died immediately. He didn't. In fact, he was conscious and talking within a few minutes. The extent of Gage's brain damage was roughly the equivalent of a left frontal lobotomy. Amazingly, a few short months later, he seemed fully recovered and was able to procure a new job and resume his daily activities. The local physician, Dr. John Harlow, who was attending him remarked that Gage was "in full possession of his reason". A daguerreotype of Gage taken shortly after his recovery shows a man of physical vigor and a rugged handsomeness. But while the brain damage he suffered did not hinder him from working or going about the daily business of life, to his wife, former employer, and friends, it eventually became extremely clear that Phineas Gage was a permanently changed man. Continue reading...

Tortus Talk

We're Pleased to Announce Custom Marble Design's New Website!

Custom Marble Design, Inc., located in Agawam, Mass.,  has been providing professional custom bathroom and kitchen designs since 1989. Their wide range of products includes cultured marble, onyx and granite, solid surface products, natural stone, engineered stone and laminate. Visit their site today!

Upcoming Seminars

Are you Marketeching in 2010?

Wednesday, February 24, 2010, 9 to 10:30 a.m.

In this challenging economy, making your marketing dollars stretch is more important than ever before. Are your marketing and technology initiatives syncing to their potential? Learn how to stretch your budget by integrating your current marketing strategies with the technology of tomorrow.

We'll take a look at economical marketing strategies to publicize your organization's website and create an Internet-based marketing plan with elements such as social media, broadcast email, e-newsletters, paid advertising on the web, search engine optimization, building your email list, and more.

When Two Martinis are Not Enough

Thursday, May 13, 2010, 9 to 10:30 a.m.

Join us to learn how to utilize B2B applications with emerging technologies as a source of lead generation. Special Projects Manager Demma Rodriguez will explore:

• How the balance between business relationships versus technical knowledge has shifted
• How to differentiate when technology is innovative or disruptive
• How to utilize your established business intelligence to inform which technologies you use and which you do not
• Lead generation during a recession: the importance of who you know versus what you know
• The referral, and why solid business networks are more than just the two-martini lunch

Tortus seminars are held at the offices of Tortus Technologies in West Springfield, Massachusetts. Seating is limited (15 per seminar) and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Email us today to sign up.

Are You Smarter Than a Tortus?

This month's question: what item should you never put in the microwave? It's something that many people do every single day! Read the answer here!