Humanity is becoming increasingly aware of how we treat our planet. With more people experiencing the effects of climate change and global warming than ever before, the campaigns to protect the Earth are becoming more urgent. Earth Day has advocated for permanent, global change to save our planet for over 50 years. Named the planet’s largest civic movement, Earth Day has inspired several policies since the charity’s creation in 1970.…
A profile of a 3d head made of concrete that is sliced in half creating two separate parts. Pink neon binary numbers travel from one half of the a head to the other by a stone bridge that connects the two parts.You’ve read the think pieces. AI—in particular, the generative AI (gen AI) breakthroughs achieved in the past year or so—is poised to revolutionize not just the way we create…
In January 2023, Christopher Hill, the US Ambassador to Belgrade, was interviewed by the Serbian media; he stated that for him “the biggest disappointment was that things that I thought were decided a long time ago are still fresh in people's memory. When I came here last March, I was surprised that every day they remembered 1999. States, like people, need sustainability, but also they need to complete some things…
Noncommunicable diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease account for two-thirds of all deaths in Switzerland. The risk factors for developing these diseases are manifold, and include consumption of foods high in sugar, salt, and fat. By means of industry agreements, the private sector can play an important role in reducing excessive consumption and thus contribute to prevention efforts. In Switzerland, initiatives have been launched with manufacturers to combat…
Ingredients made with biotechnology could play an important role in the future of food—and they’re beginning to come to market. Over the past five years, $4 billion has been invested to develop novel ingredients ranging from mycelium proteins to animal-free eggs. These ingredients are made through fermentation to create proteins and fats that can function like conventional proteins, but they are animal-free and can be more sustainable. Novel ingredients offer…
22 March 2024Federico Maria Ferrara, Tom Hudepohl, Pamina Karl, Tobias Linzert, Benoit Nguyen, Lia Vaz Cruz[1]The Eurosystem is shrinking its balance sheet, which makes more government bonds available for purchase. The ECB Blog looks at how markets are adjusting to this new situation with regard to bond price volatility, liquidity and the impact on repo markets. Since mid-2022 the Eurosystem’s balance sheet declined by around €2,000 billion, or more than…
LONDON (March 21, 2024) - Seyfarth Shaw LLP announced today the arrival of partner Matthew Banham to the firm’s litigation department, further expanding the firm’s globally recognized white-collar and investigations practice. Banham joins Seyfarth from Dechert, where his practice focused on multi-agency and complex cross-border investigations and prosecutions with an emphasis on financial crime and contentious regulatory matters. "There is a tremendous need right now among our clients for expertise…
At a digital event for commercial customers and partners, we shared an update on how we’re empowering organizations to advance in the new era of work with Microsoft Copilot, Windows, and two new Surface devices that will start to become available in April. It’s been one year since we first introduced the world to Copilot for Microsoft 365, and data from our Work Trend Index research shows it’s already making…
If you’re looking for a fun way to spend time with your loved ones over Easter, why not explore one of Britain’s many impressive country houses? Discover the beautiful landscapes and incredible stories while enjoying brilliant Easter activities at these seven historical homes. 1. Dunham Massey, Cheshire Step into the 17th century in this gorgeous Georgian home and investigate their extensive collection of fascinating antiques, which reveal the history of…
Ethereum’s scalability end-game is all about rollups—potentially thousands or even millions of rollups, each one a mini-ecosystem or an application that is built on top of Ethereum’s bedrock of security. The ideas behind how this can work were first laid out by Vitalik a few years back in his now-famous rollup-centric roadmap post. Since then, other ecosystem players like zkSync, Optimism, and Polygon have extended that vision with roadmaps for…
Globally, we face major demographic shifts that offer both daunting challenges and transformational opportunities for the future. There are specific ramifications for workforce composition and service delivery in the public sector. In particular, communities are better served when organizations reflect their constituents, paying special attention to the changing needs and preferences of citizens. In the coming years, we will see a very differently shaped public sector. Long-term trends such as…
Howie and Harlan are joined by Yale health economist Zack Cooper to discuss his work on surprise medical bills and the impact of high healthcare costs on households, wages, and the economy. Harlan reports on Hippocratic AI’s efforts to develop AI nurses. Howie looks at the global effort to eradicate tuberculosis. Links: “Hippocratic AI banks $53M backed by General Catalyst, a16z, Memorial Hermann, UHS and other health systems” “Polaris: A…
The multidirectional geopolitical interests of regional and external players, which directly influence the difficult socio-political transformations in the region, keep us from being optimistic about the rapid transformation of the South Caucasus into a zone of peace – even if some document on the normalisation of relations between Baku and Yerevan has formally acquired legal status, Andrei Areshev writes. In September 2023, Azerbaijan restored military and administrative control over the…
Since we first introduced Copilot to our earliest customers, we’ve been closely studying how people are using AI at work—what’s going well, where there are challenges, and what early behaviors can teach us about adopting and rolling out AI broadly. And we want to share what we’re learning with leaders who are looking to drive AI adoption with their own people. Up first: the findings we call “the 11-by-11 tipping…
While many economies are still struggling with high inflation there are signs that the pace is starting to slow, which could pave the way for interest rate cuts later this year. To reflect this, the OECD has lifted its 2024 global growth forecast by 0.3%, when compared to the end of 2023, to 2.9%. However, the international organisation warned that central banks should ensure underlying price pressures were “fully contained”…
Overall, this year’s #BeeWell survey results, which analysed data on young people from across all 14 Local Authorities in Greater Manchester, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton, found that young people are generally satisfied with their lives. However, there are noteworthy inequalities in life satisfaction, mental wellbeing and emotional difficulties across gender and sexuality. 41.2% of young people who identify as lesbian or gay reported a high level of…
A clinical trial to look at repurposing the UK-licensed medicine deferiprone for patients with the ultra-rare genetic disease neuroferritinopathy has launched today at the University of Cambridge.Neuroferritinopathy is a progressive and incurable brain disorder caused by changes in a gene that produces a specific protein - ferritin light chain protein. This change leads to the build-up of iron in the brain. The disease usually appears in middle-aged adults and causes…
The United Nations Women found that about 1 in every 3 women has been sexually harassed at work. 3 out of 4 of them never report it to a manager, HR or anyone else. Imagine a world where every woman is treated with the respect and dignity she deserves. Unfortunately, our reality falls short of this ideal. Instead, women face a multitude of challenges, ranging from verbal abuse to physical…
Alas, the world is on fire. And this fire is only growing. For some reason, it seems that we don’t have enough firefighters. But there are plenty of arsonists. When we look at what is happening in the modern world and reflect on the behaviour of its various elites, it seems that a significant proportion of them are in a state of permanent madness or hysteria, leading to the inability…
Consumers remain upbeat as retail sales in the main economies show steady growth, despite elevated prices (Exhibit 1). Growing sentiment in the US saw the Consumer Confidence Index (Conference Board) rise to 114.8 in January, up from a revised 108.0 in December. By contrast, consumer confidence in Brazil dropped to its lowest level since May 2023 but is still 5.0 points higher than in January 2023. US retail and food…
Stanford Medicine integrates AI-powered listening technology that takes notes for health care providers, allowing them to spend more time with patients and less time on administrative tasks. - By Hanae Armitage Technology that listens to conversations and takes notes allows allows health care providers to focus on the patient rather than on documentation. Clinicians at Stanford Health Care will soon have access to an AI-powered app that can securely listen…
Topics Column Our expert columnists offer opinion and analysis on important issues facing modern businesses and managers. More in this series subscribe-icon Subscribe Share Carolyn Geason-Beissel/MIT SMR | Getty Images Recent return-to-office (RTO) mandates like those at UPS and Boeing have a simple message: Come back to the office five days a week. CEOs cite productivity as a core reason for these proclamations, even in the face of employee resistance.…
On Wednesday, March 20, Seyfarth attorneys Rebecca Woods, Owen Wolfe, Lauren Leipold, and Puya Partow-Navid will present and Ken Wilton will moderate, the first session of the 2024 Commercial Litigation Outlook webinar series: Charting the Course: AI’s Influence on Legal Practice and IP Protection. Time of the event:1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Eastern About the Program Our esteemed panel of experts will explore the intricate intersections of AI technology, legal…
A recent survey reported by Professional Adviser revealed that 2 in 5 wealthy individuals have been the victim of financial crime. Of the 2,000 people with assets worth more than £250,000 who were surveyed, 41% of them reported they had been scammed, with more than a third saying they had fallen victim in the last six months. 20% of the victims lost money through investment scams, while 15% were defrauded…
Most laws in our country don’t tend to differ much between states. In fact, it’s probably accurate to say that a majority of states’ substantive laws don’t differ much at all even though sometimes it may not seem that way because of what the media tends to highlight. On the other hand, there are a few circumstances where states stand on opposite sides of the spectrum on a particular issue.…
Scientists found that farmed salmon production leads to an overall loss of essential dietary nutrients. They say that eating more wild ‘feed’ species directly could benefit our health while reducing aquaculture demand for finite marine resources.Researchers analysed the flow of nutrients from the edible species of wild fish used as feed, to the farmed salmon they were fed to. They found a decrease in six out of nine nutrients in…
This conversation is part of our AI Revolution series, which features some of the most impactful builders in the field of AI discussing and debating where we are, where we’re going, and the big open questions in AI. Find more content from our AI Revolution series on www.a16z.com/AIRevolution. CEO of Quora Adam D’Angelo discusses how building infrastructure for creators can democratize AI with a16z general partner David George. [01:07] Social networks…
The wizardry of ChatGPT captured the world’s attention when it was released in 2022 and became the most successful product launch in history. Since then, AI companies and startups have attracted billions in new investments, and the technology has continued to dazzle. Consumer-facing AI programs can now compose love ballads—or fabricate realistic video of cowboys riding unicorns and shooting water pistols—from simple text prompts. There are uncountable reasons to be…
Satya Nadella, Chief Executive Officer, shared the below communication today with Microsoft employees. I want to share an exciting and important organizational update today. We are in Year 2 of the AI platform shift and must ensure we have the capability and capacity to boldly innovate. There is no franchise value in our industry and the work and product innovation we drive at this moment will define the next decade…
On 12 March 2024, the UK Export Control Joint Unit (ECJU) announced that UK export control regulations would be amended to introduce new controls on the export of emerging technologies and provide a number of technical updates. Implemented through the Export Control (Amendment) Regulations 2024, the amendments are set to come into force on 1 April 2024. The Export Control Order 2008 The regulations introduce new export controls on military…
As the agriculture technology (agtech) industry adapts to a new normal in fundraising—and a vastly different macroeconomic climate than in years past—investment opportunities are slowly starting to emerge. Instead of waiting on the sidelines for conditions to stabilize, strategic companies and financial investors can use this limited window of opportunity to make bold moves and gain a competitive advantage.Over the past few years, the agtech industry has faced a major…
ROn March 18, 2024, the Valdai Club hosted and expert discussion dedicated to financial settlements within the BRICS. Moderator Ivan Timofeev recalled that, according to the final declaration of the 2023 BRICS summit, the relevant departments of the member countries had to work out possible mechanisms for financial settlements. The talk was about creating a system that was not hostile to the West, but functional and protected from politicisation by…
Learn how to better support neurodiversity, as explained in this excerpt from the forthcoming book The Canary Code. Ludmila N. Praslova March 19, 2024 Reading Time: 12 min subscribe-icon Subscribe Share Carolyn Geason-Beissel/MIT SMR | Getty Images Jessica is an ace data analyst; her mind excels at seeing connections that others miss. For many years, she delivered outstanding work and supported her company with system improvement suggestions. And then her…
Quick Hits The NCAA March Madness men’s and women’s college basketball tournaments can be a distraction for employees that harms overall productivity. The rise of online sports betting has the potential to further increase the distraction of March Madness and raise concerns with gambling regulations and employer policies. From office pools to streaming games at work, employers are tasked with navigating the legal landscape to ensure compliance and maintain a…
The Microsoft Azure Container Networking team is excited to announce Retina, a cloud-native container networking observability platform that enables Kubernetes users, admins, and developers to visualize, observe, debug, and analyze Kubernetes’ workload traffic irrespective of Container Network Interface (CNI), operating system (OS), and cloud. We are excited to release Retina as an open-source repository that helps with DevOps and SecOps related networking cases for your Kubernetes clusters and we invite…
Common wisdom holds that oil and gas companies, electric utilities, and other industries known for their large carbon emissions generally oppose clean energy policies. Now, a study of corporate advocacy spanning 30 years reveals that many companies are more flexible than previously thought. When confronted with political, policy, and market conditions that necessitate change, well-known companies like Duke Energy, Exelon, and Dominion Resources have in fact supported climate-friendly regulation when…
In our day-to-day work at the Tuck Initiative on Workplace Inclusion, we speak with a lot of leaders across industries about just how much the modern workplace has changed in the past few years. Whether it’s a conversation about return-to-office policies, “quiet quitting,” the impact of generative AI, or employee burnout, it’s clear that leaders are navigating a lot that’s new. But for us, we’re deeply invested in a truly…
Revenue fraud—when a company artificially inflates its revenue to meet investors’ expectations—can wreak havoc on financial markets, which rely on accurate information to function properly. In recent years, scholars have attempted to improve fraud detection methods by using machine learning, statistics, and even vocal emotion analysis software, which analyzes the speech of corporate executives on earnings calls. Yale School of Management Professor X. Frank Zhang and two co-authors have a…
Beijing, Hong Kong and Shanghai – March 19, 2024 – Cooley was honored for its work on three Deals of the Year in 2023 by China Business Law Journal (CBLJ). The publication noted the firm for deals across three practice areas – including mergers & acquisitions, private equity financing, and life sciences partnering and licensing. Each year, CBLJ recognizes the best Chinese and international law firms in various practice area…
ChatGPT, a language program based on artificial intelligence, is currently causing quite a stir. The software delivers answers, poems or programming codes in the blink of an eye. It stands for a new type of hardware and software that not only replace humans in simple tasks but can also increasingly take over complex activities such as writing high-quality text (excluding this one, of course). In unprecedented fashion we are being…