“I don’t believe the most successful people are the ones who got the best grades, got into the best schools, or made the most money.”
—Ben Stein

Okay, that’s a stretch.

But:

There are those who say gun violence is primarily a mental illness issue — and according to a new study, Facebook activity reveals clues to mental illness.

Hmmmmmmm.

Ernie Kovacs was born this day in 1919. Here he is on What’s My Line?

LinkedIn goddess Donna Serdula alerts us to the fact that LinkedIn Answers is going away at the end of this month. I’m sorry to see the feature go, but I’m not all that surprised. I’ve often said it’s one of the best-kept secrets on LinkedIn: a good place for discussions, and a good way to help boost one’s SEO profile.

Unfortunately, LinkedIn Answers was crippled by two things: it was pretty much hidden on the LinkedIn landscape, and it was a magnet for countless irrelevant postings that were off-topic and spammy.

Something will come along to replace it, but ultimately I think what LinkedIn really needs are thematic professional communities that have moderated discussion boards — with experienced and engaged moderators who will delete the spam, keep people focused and on topic and facilitate worthwhile and constructive discussions.

I’ve been online since Prodigy was The Next Big Thing, and I can’t think of one worthwhile community in which I’ve been involved that didn’t involve some serious level of human moderation.

President Obama is being inaugurated into his second term (again) today. Here’s some interesting background reading:

9 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About the Inauguration (TIME)

10 Facts to share with your kids about the presidential inauguration (She Knows Parenting)

Ten Facts About Presidential Inaugural Cars, Some Of Which Are Lies (Jalopnik)

Inauguration Weather: 20 Fun Facts (Wunderground.com)

25 Fun Facts From Presidential Inaugurations Past (The Daily Beast)

Interesting Facts About Inauguration (NY Times)