http://naspinski.net/post/AspNet-vs-php--speed-comparison.aspx

No one likes to give a tip of the hat to Microsoft, but here is a good comparison of ASP.NET vs PHP. Most telling is this simple graph.

Chess is a good tool for learning analogously. It is a finite board where you can apply logic to different pieces in varying postions. It's a good forum to exersize tactics and strategy at the same time in a controlled enviorment. Some of those lessons are easily translated to real life.

• When playing, remember what your ulimate goal is.
  
  • In chess it's to check-mate the opposing king. It doesn't matter how many pieces you have to sacrafice to achieve the goal.
• Know how to play your pieces;
  • At times a knight is more valuable than a queen.
• Set up forks.
  • In chess postioning a piece where you are attacking two squares simultaneously is called a fork. You want to try to position yourself in real life in similarly open ended postions. (Leads to next to point)
• Sometimes position is more important than pieces.
  • Normally the player with more pieces is in the lead, but depending on the layout of the land, a handful of well played pieces is stronger than a abundance of strong, akwardly placed pieces.
• Watch out for pins/skewers.
  • A pin in chess is where you have an opponent positioned to strike a valuable piece should a less valuable piece of yours move out of the way. This pins the less valuable piece in place until you move your more valable piece to saftey.
  • In real life you simply don't want to have a dollar waiting on a dime. Set up positions where you have mobility and are not cornered.

There are many more lessons, these are just some that I was throwing out there right now. I may update this later.

In IT there is a concept of data resilience. If you have a system that goes down, how long will it be until you bring it back up.

I can't help but think that in a lot of ways, another dark age, or the burning of the library of Alexandria will never happen because it simply cannot happen.

Information is so entrenched in so many physical mediums, that the notion of destroying huge swaths of human accomplishment is now nearly impossible.

Well, barring some sort of doomsday cataclym or something.