Blogs and Opinions
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This Berlin office is a glimpse into the future
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
Employees will not need a key to get into the office of the future when it opens in Berlin this year, featuring ample meeting space, plenty of copy machines always stocked with paper along with high-quality air processed to maximize worker health and minimize sick time.
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How a mosquito ‘birth control’ could be key in the fight against malaria
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
Scientists in the United States said on Tuesday they had taken a major step toward developing a “mosquito birth control” drug to curb the spread of malaria and other killer diseases blamed for hundreds of thousands of deaths a year.
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The Mona Lisa is falling apart. Here’s how AI could save it
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
Next time you’re in a museum or art gallery, observe each painting a little more closely. You may notice cracks on the surface of the canvas, especially if the painting is very old.
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Automation will change the world of work – but probably for the better
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
Much has been written about the “future of work,” and much of it makes for gloomy reading. Study after study predicts that automation will upend entire industries and leave millions unemployed. A 2013 paper by two Oxford professors even suggested that machines could replace 47% of jobs in the United States within “a decade or two.”
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We can’t future-proof technology. But here are 5 ways to forward plan
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
We know that the technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution are drastically changing our world. This change is happening at a faster rate and greater scale than at any point in human history – and with that change come significant challenges to the ability of our public institutions and governments to adequately respond.
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How to create a more purposeful capitalism
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
One year ago, BlackRock chairman and CEO Larry Fink wrote a letter to 500 CEOs asking them to rethink their sense of purpose. “To prosper over time,” he wrote, “every company must not only deliver financial performance, but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society.”
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Why sustainable packaging is good for profits as well as the planet
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
Although sustainability is increasingly a priority for consumers when making purchasing decisions, with packaging often central to a product’s visual appeal for purchasers – many businesses are yet to sufficiently prioritize sustainability and circularity when considering design, use and disposal of packaging, with the majority of packaging still single-use and non-recyclable.
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On climate action, Europe must learn from its digital mistakes
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
When digitalization began to gather pace two decades ago, Europeans failed to embrace its potential. The political narrative too often cast it as a threat to jobs. By contrast, US firms grasped the opportunity. Now they dominate the digital economy, while Europe struggles to keep up. We must not make the same mistake when it comes to climate action.
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Humans wanted: why automation won’t kill off your job
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
A quantum of change is coming. As the age of automation takes hold, both young people entering the workforce and those already established in their careers are fretting about the rise of the machines.
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Digital technology can cut global emissions by 15%. Here’s how
Tuesday 15th of January 2019
The time for action is now.
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Why the ocean holds the key to sustainable development
Monday 14th of January 2019
It is only 12 years until 2030, the deadline for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The world has set itself an ambitious task. To reach the SDGs we will have to produce more from the oceans. We need the oceans to provide more food, more jobs and more energy. And we must maintain its capacity to regulate the climate and support biodiversity.
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Brands can be a force for good and for growth. Here’s how
Monday 14th of January 2019
“What if…?“ It’s a provocative question because it stretches our minds. But the bigger challenge is taking action – which may be why, despite the ongoing rhetoric and good intentions on improving societal issues such as gender equality and sustainability, progress continues to be glacially slow.
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AI isn’t taking our jobs – but it is changing how we recruit
Monday 14th of January 2019
The rapid growth of artificial intelligence (AI) in professional software development has forced a reboot of Moore’s Law. That famous software industry axiom, coined by Intel co-founder George Moore, predicted that the number of transistors that would fit into an integrated circuit would double every year, thus enabling more computing power on ever-smaller processors.
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Dear France… President Emmanuel Macron writes an open letter to quell ‘yellow vest’ unrest
Monday 14th of January 2019
President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday kicked off a three-month national debate he hopes can quell the “yellow vest” unrest with a letter to the French in which he pledged to listen to new ideas but stuck to his core economic reform agenda.
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Financial inclusion in India is soaring. Here’s what must happen next
Monday 14th of January 2019
“Poverty is the deprivation of opportunity”, said economist Dr. Amartya Sen. Financial inclusion gives the financially weak the chance to change their economic circumstances and lead better lives.
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These are the 10 most in-demand skills of 2019, according to LinkedIn
Monday 14th of January 2019
Are you looking for a fresh start in 2019? Maybe you’d like to get fit? Learn a new skill? Or change career?
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How the diaspora is helping Venezuela’s migration crisis
Monday 14th of January 2019
Huge migration crises are typically caused by war or natural disaster, as we have tragically seen in Syria, Afghanistan, Myanmar and South Sudan.
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Cooking with numbers: lessons from a food economist
Monday 14th of January 2019
Japanese cuisine and statistics are two of my passions. And while I rarely indulge both at once, there’s a common thread: there are, in both, any number of ways to slice and dice things. Some of these ways are basic; others, much more refined.
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How can we produce enough protein to feed 10 billion people?
Monday 14th of January 2019
Accessible, affordable, healthy and sustainable protein is critical to human nutrition and economic development.
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More people are experiencing severe food allergies than ever before
Monday 14th of January 2019
The recent inquest into the death of Natasha Ednan-Laperouse from anaphylaxis after eating a Pret A Manger baguette she was unaware contained sesame, could lead to a change in labelling legislation. Indeed, a recent investigation found that undeclared allergens were present in a quarter of foods sampled. But a more fundamental issue needs to be addressed: why are more people experiencing severe food allergies than ever before?
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Why being an introvert could actually help you network
Monday 14th of January 2019
Learning how to network effectively is an invaluable skill to have when it comes to discovering job opportunities and making career connections to get ahead. But such socializing doesn’t come easily to everyone. In her new book, former communication executive Karen Wickre offers introverts advice on how they can build long-lasting relationships to enhance their careers. She was an editorial director for Twitter and a senior media liaison at Google, among other jobs. Wickre, who describes herself as an introvert, recently joined the [email protected] radio show on Sirius XM to talk about her book, Taking the Work Out of Networking: An Introvert’s Guide to Making Connections That Count.
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This is the world’s biggest mental health problem – and you might not have heard of it
Monday 14th of January 2019
The early years of the 21st century have witnessed a worldwide epidemic of poor mental health and related illnesses. But while depression is the condition most will associate with mental health issues, and the leading cause of disability worldwide, it is not the number one mental health concern people face.
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Robots will soon be a necessity but they won’t take all our jobs
Monday 14th of January 2019
In the future, robots will be ubiquitous but they will not take everyone’s jobs. Advances in the field should pave the way to a future in which robots and humans can work together with ease.
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Why Victorians feared modern technology would make everyone blind
Monday 14th of January 2019
From concerns over blue light to digital strain and dryness, headlines today often worry how smartphones and computer screens might be affecting the health of our eyes. But while the technology may be new, this concern certainly isn’t. Since Victorian times people have been concerned about how new innovations might damage eyesight.
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This is what government debt looks like across the globe
Monday 14th of January 2019
Over the last five years, markets have pushed concerns about debt under the rug.