爱因斯坦曾说过，哪怕再聪明，思考再长的时间，但如果不亲自打开手表检视，就永远都不会明白它的工作原理。他所说的是如何理解宇宙万物，这个问题我们得留给物理学家。但我在此要强调的是，这个道理同样适用于商业领域。作为旁观者，我们研究一家公司或一个行业并不难，但若要真正厘清它们的运作内幕，就必须亲自深入公司或行业的内部。因此，我们推出本期专题报道，深入三家公司内部，探索它们真实的的运转情况。

    首先，让我们从全球汽车行业昔日的王者丰田汽车公司（Toyota）开始。两年前，丰田还是业界的霸主。但之后，这家公司遭遇了一连串的危机，此后声势大不如前。汽车行业权威艾利克斯•泰勒三世远赴纽约、洛杉矶和日本丰田市进行调研，撰写了报道《丰田幼主吹响汽车霸主回归冲锋号》，详细阐述了丰田的回归大计，分析了丰田极有希望如愿以偿的原因。

    如果想研究营销领域的未来图景，再也找不到比俄勒冈州比弗顿耐克公司（Nike）总部的杰里莱丝大厦更合适的地方了。信息科技革命颠覆了传统的营销方式，其变化之深刻很少有其他行业可以相提并论。互联网市场研究公司eMarkerter称，在线广告将于今年首次超越平面广告。在《耐克营销新招解密》（Nike's New Marketing Mojo）一文中，斯考特•森德罗维斯基亲赴耐克公司杰里莱丝大厦调研，阐明了耐克因何削减广告预算【今年耐克将不会在超级碗橄榄球比赛（Super Bowl）期间投放电视广告】、公司的营销重心将放在何处（Twitter、Facebook和手机)，以及这一切对我们意味着什么（意味深长）。

    现在，再让我们把目光投向信息科技革命中心硅谷正南600英里处。又一批有望改变世界的新兴公司正在那里茁壮成长。天使投资人罗恩•康威对这些公司的投资力度无人能出其右，但他在硅谷之外却鲜为人知。如果想了解今日的硅谷，就先得了解罗恩•康威。《财富》杂志（Fortune）的米格尔•赫尔夫特对他和他的投资模式进行了详细介绍。

    一旦了解了手表的原理，就会发现其实它并不如想象的那么有意思。然而，探析丰田、耐克和SV Angel投资公司如何运作不仅相当有意思，而且还十分重要。

    译者：李玫晓/汪皓

    Einstein observed that no matter how smart you are, or how long you ponder, you can never be sure how a watch works unless you look inside. He was making a point about understanding the universe, which we'll leave to physicists and just note that it's the same with business. We can easily study a company or an industry from the outside, but we'll never really know how it works until we get inside. That's why, in this special package of articles, we're presenting examples of the classic deep Fortune story, going inside three companies to see how they really work.

    Start with a dethroned king -- Toyota (TM), colossus of the global auto industry until just two years ago, when it was humbled by a confluence of crises. In "Toyota's Comeback Kid," auto industry authority Alex Taylor III reports from New York, Los Angeles, and Toyota City, Japan, explaining exactly how the quondam king intends to regain its throne and why its chances look good.

    If you want to see into the future of marketing -- and you do -- there is no better place to look than Beaverton, Ore., specifically the Jerry Rice Building at Nike headquarters. Few fields have been disrupted by the infotech revolution as profoundly as marketing. Online advertising will exceed print advertising this year for the first time, says the eMarketer research firm. In "Nike's New Marketing Mojo," Scott Cendrowski reports from inside the Jerry Rice Building on why Nike (NKE) has slashed its ad budget (no Super Bowl commercial this year), where it's putting its marketing muscle instead (Twitter, Facebook, your phone), and what it means for the rest of us (lots).

    Now proceed 600 miles due south to the heart of the infotech revolution, Silicon Valley. A new generation of potentially world-changing companies is being spawned there, and the man who invests in more of them than anyone else is Ron Conway, a figure little known outside the Valley. It turns out that to understand how Silicon Valley works today, you need to understand Ron Conway. Fortune's Miguel Helft explains the man and his methods.

    How a watch works, once you figure it out, isn't all that interesting. How Toyota, Nike, and Silicon Valley work is extraordinarily interesting and more. It's important.