The above is a quote from Australia's National Parks and Wildlife Service alpine area manager Andrew Harrigan. According to this article, the approximately 60,000 climbers of the country's Mount Kosciuszko will soon be able to stop off at just over 7,300 feet to use the newly constructed (2006-2007) 'Loo with a View.' The outcome of a human waste strategy for the park (That must've been an interesting meeting.), the toilet is part of the 'Taking Care of Business' program. Warming the hearts of civil engineers everywhere, the toilet is designed to withstand 150 kph winds, and 'The septic tank will have enough capacity to ensure that the toilet can last more than six months without service.' Yeah. The hills are alive, with the sound of…whoops.

From the Archives: Weird Ideas That Work

Here's a few-year-old management program that needs to be noticed and revived:

We hold these truths to be self-evident: We recruit people who are quick on the uptake, people whom we like and need. We encourage coworkers to get along. We make decisions based on experience. Now flip those assumptions upside down. Hire slow learners, people whom you dislike and don't need. Encourage them to defy and fight with their managers and peers. Think of ridiculous things to do, and do them.

Robert Sutton, Professor of Management Science and Engineering, School of Engineering, Stanford University, says "What's weird is that people say that they want innovation, yet they can't depart from their deeply ingrained beliefs and practices about how to treat people, make decisions, and structure work." He continues, "A weird idea works because it trips discomfort. The idea is to flip from autopilot to mindful creation."

HR professionals: please note...

The best way to bring fresh eyes to any problem is to bring in new kinds of people. When it comes to innovation, no one is too weird for the room.

Also check out Sutton's bio and publications here. Seems an interesting, accomplished sort with good ideas. Hey, we can do 'weird' better than any society on the planet (except maybe for Canada, but they try too hard. It comes naturally to us, however). Let's capitalize on that weirdness. Outsourcing problem solved.

Microsoft Computer Analyst Wins Annual Bad-Writing Contest

Dan McKay was the shining star of San Jose State University's annual Buwer-Lytton Fiction Contest. According to this piece in the Washington Post, "The competition highlights literary achievements of the most dubious sort—terrifyingly bad sentences that take their inspiration from minor writer Edward George Earl Bulwer-Lytton, whose 1830 novel 'Paul Clifford' began, 'It was a dark and stormy night.'" English Prof Scott Rice said, "We want writers with a little talent, but no taste." Hey, this is lookin' better.

Here's the winning entry…

As he stared at her ample bosom, he daydreamed of the dual Stromberg carburetors in his vintage Triumph Spitfire, highly functional yet pleasingly formed, perched prominently on top of the intake manifold, aching for experienced hands, the small knurled caps of the oil dampeners begging to be inspected and adjusted as described in chapter seven of the shop manual.

Is that great stuff or what? Her plump, pouty lips were like freshly cured, elastomeric resin seals. Hey. I could do this.

Enjoy your weekend…