We’d like to propose a candidate for our Economic Darwinism Award: Wendy Northcutt, creator and Web master of the Darwin Awards (www.darwinawards.com).
Northcutt’s Darwin Awards are given to people whose stupidity has removed them from the gene pool. Usually that means they killed themselves through some absurd mistake, although certain types of accidental dismemberment also qualify.
The act of stupidity can’t be commonplace, mind you. Falling asleep while smoking a cigarette doesn’t count; using a lighted match to see how much gasoline is left in a can might.
The awards began as a privately circulated e-mail chain letter, but have grown enough to fill a book.
Those who appreciate the macabre have praised the Web site: Innumerable self-appointed “experts” consider it one of the best sites, and it’s been used as filler by reporters in search of something to cover on slow news days.
Northcutt, who started out in academia and scientific research, now spends her time managing the Darwins and doing computer consulting.
She’s a candidate for the Economic Darwinism Award because, while she had the ideas of integrated marketing down pat – just about every other page of her book refers the reader to her Web site, which offers products to buy – she falls short on execution. You can’t actually buy the title (published by Dutton) on the site; you must link to Amazon.com.
Admittedly, the author is being paid twice for the book: she receives royalties and the affiliate kickback; nevertheless, she’d probably clear more with in-house fulfillment.
But what really qualifies Northcutt for the economic Darwin is that she left the job security of academia to be a computer consultant. Anyone check NASDAQ lately?
