Scientific "superstition": Microsoft and Facebook for success "days"-Microsoft, Facebook-IT information

University of Toronto recently, MIT, Harvard Business School has launched a study. Researchers investigated the world's biggest chip website Kickstarter all raised during the period from April 2009 to April 2015 publication project, project initiated by time and place and located around the United States holiday than one by one of the top universities (research, school holiday time for rest time).

Study found three:

First, during the University vacation, released a new audience raised on the Kickstarter project number to rise significantly. Project area where holiday student's professional background has a strong positive correlation: when Engineering College holiday, projects a significant increase in the number of science and technology when design schools holidays, art and design projects a significant increase in the number of the class. The researchers even found that snowfall will also promote new project – heavy snowfall will make schools take classes, students will have more time to rest.

Researchers noted that this conclusion from negative academic behavior study confirms earlier findings. Studies have shown that, would cause the task to complete, task execution is not smooth and error rate increased. During breaks, people from colleagues disturbed by the boss, you can concentrate on investment in innovation activities.

Second, during the University vacation, released a new audience raised on Kickstarter projects more complex. This complex has two meanings, the complexity of a collaborative team, another is the complexity of the project.

During the college holidays new all the team behind the project to be more da. The reason behind it is, when all participants have flexibility when blocks of time, easier scheduling coordination team.

The same time, these projects often require a longer delivery time. Researchers note that Kickstarter has implemented a policy change requiring design and technology classes to raise production of the project when it is published to provide a clear plan and the product model. This greatly improves the publishing requirements of the project. Researchers compared before and after the policy change both categories with 11 different categories of projects and found that holiday time, design and technology project number compared with other categories increased significantly.

Third, during University holidays, Kickstarter on design and technology projects tend to have a higher raise raise the target . In other words, these projects tend to be more valuable.

The researchers found, team size, delivery time and raising goals are mutually reinforcing. For example, during the holidays had a higher raise target projects, longer delivery time tends to have a larger team size. Although these 3 separate out strictly speaking are not a measure of complexity and value of accurate indicators, but together they explain in the holiday issue of project quality and usually publish the project quality is different.

So, let us consider two real case studies from Harvard.

In January 1975, Paul Allen showed Bill Gates January issue of popular electronics, both published in the magazine of the Altair 8800 computer after germination for the development of the idea of a programming language . Both took 8 weeks to develop the BASIC and sold it to the production company MITS Altair computer, earned the first bucket of gold. That same year, Gates dropped out of Harvard University business, and Allen has set up a Microsoft.

In January 2004, as a junior at Harvard University student Mark Zuckerberg started building a new social networking site, and named it "theFacebook". On February 4, the website official issue, the initial site at thefacebook.com. Told the campus newspaper at Harvard University Harvard red Zuckerberg acknowledged in an interview that stems from his development of Harvard students than on site Facemash, saying: "the Harvard internal everyone is discussing the possibility of creating a global face book. Schools spent two years do not have to do this thing, but I can do better than them, and I can do it within a week. ”

United States venture incubators Y-Combinator founder of the famous Paul Graham once said: "Microsoft and Facebook are initiated in January was not a coincidence. At Harvard University, January is reading month, will be closed during that time students review, preparing for the final exam. ”

In view of this, what he said makes sense. And in order to encourage enterprises to innovate and let employees work around the clock isn't the most clever thing, give them plenty of holiday may be more useful.

科学的“迷信”：微软和Facebook成功靠“天时” - 微软,Facebook - IT资讯

最近多伦多大学、麻省理工学院、哈佛商学院共同发起了一项研究。研究人员调研了全球最大的众筹网站Kickstarter在2009年4月到2015年4月期间发布的所有众筹项目，将项目发起的时间和地点与所在地周围美国顶级大学的放假时间一一比对（在研究中，学校放假时间即为休息时间）。

研究共有三大发现：

第一，在大学放假期间，Kickstarter上发布的新众筹项目数量显著上升。项目涉足的领域与放假学生的专业背景有很强的正相关关系：当工科院校放假时，科技项目的数量显著上升；当设计院校放假时，艺术设计类的项目数量显著上升。研究人员甚至发现，降雪天气也会促进新项目的产生——强降雪会让学校休课，学生们就会有更多的休息时间。

研究人员指出，这一结论从反面印证了此前学界的不少行为学研究发现。有研究表明，干扰会导致任务难以完成、任务施行不顺及错误率增加。在休息时间里，人们免于同事上司的打扰，则可以专心地投入创新活动中。

第二，在大学放假期间，Kickstarter上发布的新众筹项目更加复杂。这里复杂有两方面的含义，一个是团队合作的复杂性，另一个是项目实施的复杂性。

在大学放假期间发布的新众筹项目背后的团队往往更大。其背后的原因是，当所有参与者都有灵活机动的大块时间时，更容易调度协调团队合作。

与此同时，这些项目往往需要更长的交付时间。研究人员注意到，Kickstarter执行了一项政策调整，要求设计与科技类的众筹项目在发布时提供明确的生产计划和产品模型。这大大提高了项目发布的要求。研究人员比较了政策调整前后这两个类别与其他11各类别的项目，发现放假时间内，设计和科技类项目的数量与其他类别相比显著上升。

第三，在大学放假期间，Kickstarter上设计与科技类的众筹项目往往有更高的众筹目标。换言之，这些项目往往更有价值。

研究人员发现，团队规模、交付时间和众筹目标相辅相成。举例来说，放假期间那些有更高众筹目标、更长交付时间的项目，往往也有更大的团队规模。尽管这3个方面单独拿出来严格意义上来说都不能算衡量复杂性和价值的精确指标，但综合来看它们的确能说明在放假期间发布的项目质量与平时发布的项目质量有所不同。

那么，让我们来看两个来自哈佛大学的真实案例吧。

1975年1月，保罗·艾伦给比尔·盖茨看了《大众电子学》1月刊，两人在看到杂志上刊登的Altair 8800计算机后萌发了为之开发一款程序语言的想法。两人用了8周时间开发出了BASIC并把它卖给了Altair计算机的生产公司MITS，赚得第一桶金。同年，盖茨从哈佛大学退学创业，与艾伦成立了微软。

2004年1月，当时为哈佛大学大三学生的马克·扎克伯格开始着手构建一个新的社交网站，并将之命名为“theFacebook”。2月4日，网站正式发布，初始网址为thefacebook.com。在接受哈佛大学校园报《哈佛红》的采访时扎克伯格承认这一概念源自此前他开发的哈佛学生照片比对网站Facemash，并称：“哈佛内部人人都在讨论创立一个全球性脸书的可能性。学校花了两年时间都没有着手做这件事，但我可以比他们做得更好，而且我一个星期之内就能做出来。”

美国著名的创业孵化机构Y-Combinator创始人Paul Graham曾说过：“微软和Facebook都是在1月份起步的并不是一个巧合。在哈佛大学，1月是读书月，那段时间里学生们停课复习，准备期末考试。”

如此看来，他的话不无道理。而为了推动企业创新，让员工日以继夜地加班并不是最聪明的做法，让员工有充足的假期可能更管用。