World Economic Forum: Top Stories – Oct 21, 2023

World Economic Forum (October 21, 2023) – The top stories of the week include:

0:15 AI can predict your risk of Parkinson’s – RETFound was trained using 1.6 million retinal images which gave it a picture of a healthy retina. Then its creators added images of eyes from people with certain conditions. Our eyes are a window to our health. They’re the only place where doctors can directly observe capillaries, our smallest blood vessels, enabling detection of cardiovascular illnesses such as hypertension. Eyes are also linked to the central nervous system, giving an insight into neural tissue, too. The RETFound tool was best at picking up eye diseases such as diabetic retinopathy. On Parkinson’s, stroke and heart disease, it performed not quite as well but still beat other AI models.

2:08 These are the most detailed heat maps of our planet – They use imagery from a satellite called HotSat-1 which can detect heat and cold at a resolution of 3.5 metres. The satellite can precisely map the fronts of forest fires, detect and monitor heat islands in cities and measure the thermal efficiency of buildings. This information can drive more effective decision-making.

3:51 AI designed this robot in 26 seconds – Researchers from Northwestern University gave an AI a simple prompt. ‘Design a robot that can walk across a flat surface’. By the 9th iteration, the AI had successfully met its brief. The robot could walk half its own body length per second. The entire iteration process took just 26 seconds and it ran on a laptop.

6:26 Norway completed it’s largest rewilding project – It’s centred around Sveagruva, a 100-year-old mining town on the Arctic island of Svalbard. Norway decided to close the town and its mining operations in 2017 and return the area to its natural state, restoring biodiversity and the local ecosystem.

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The World Economic Forum is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business, cultural and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. We believe that progress happens by bringing together people from all walks of life who have the drive and the influence to make positive change.

Travel Tour Of Scotland: “36 Hours In Glasgow”

The New York Times (October 19, 2023) – Glasgow, Scotland’s largest city, crackles with character. It’s a hub of grass-roots energy where  art showsplant sales and film screenings pop up in tenement flatsrailway waiting rooms and disused buildings. 

Here is the itinerary:

Friday

Burrell Collection

People look at artworks on display in a museum with walls that are painted a dark teal. Framed paintings are at eye level, and larger geometric works hang in a row farther above.

3 p.m. Wander through woodlands to a world-class museum

Start your weekend at the Burrell Collection, a glass-roofed art museum that rises out of a meadow in the city’s southern Pollok Country Park like a vast, gleaming greenhouse. The 9,000-piece collection was donated to the city at the close of World War II by William Burrell, a Glasgow shipping merchant, and opened in this specially commissioned building in 1983. The free-entry museum reopened in 2022 after a six-year refurbishment of its red sandstone, glass and wood interiors. Though it is busy, the Burrell offers a peaceful immersion in an unmistakably personal collection, drifting from Degas and Rembrandt to tabernacles, tulip-motif textiles and ancient Chinese roof tiles. The tapestries are especially wonderful, including the palatially sized “Wagner Garden Carpet” made by master weavers in 17th-century Iran.

Saturday

Papercup

Diners inside a cafe sit at small wooden tables. On the wall is a large mural of a blue rose painted in the style of traditional tattoo art. A banner across the rose reads:

10 a.m. Grab a brekkie roll, then discover a Glaswegian jungle

If it’s not raining, take advantage of clear skies with a botanic stroll in Glasgow’s affluent West End. Grab breakfast at Papercup, a small and friendly cafe that has original period details, like egg-and-dart molding and an ornate ceiling rose. Try the brekkie roll with a sausage patty (£5), or eggs on toast with a side of vegan haggis (£8.50). From the cafe, wander to the Glasgow Botanic Gardens, either directly, along Great Western Road, or take the more meandering Kelvin Walkway down by the River Kelvin, crossing the blue, steel Botanic Gardens Footbridge to emerge into the scented gardens on the other bank. Enter the domed Kibble Palace, a spectacular glasshouse in which to explore a jungle of orchids, begonias and ferns, among other leafy treasures.

Hoos

The inside of a home goods store. Blankets, cushions, candles and more are on wooden shelf displays.

12 p.m. Browse Scandi home goods and woolly Scottish knitwear

Glaswegians have an appetite for sustainable shopping and for secondhand goods of all stripes. Hoos, next to the Botanic Gardens, stocks chic Scandi home goods, while the Glasgow Vintage Co., farther along Great Western Road from Papercup, has a thoughtful selection of second-hand Scottish knitwear alongside show-stopping coats and dresses from the 1970s. Up the hill on Otago Street, above Perch & Rest Coffee, Kelvin Apothecary sells a nice range of gifts including handmade Scottish soaps and wooden laundry and cleaning tools. In the cobbled Otago Lane is the chaotic Voltaire and Rousseau secondhand bookshop, with teetering, vertical book piles. Unlike many Glasgow shops, this store isn’t the most dog-friendly, because of the resident cat, BB, who supervises from his perch at the till.

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Travel: A Tour Of Joruri-ji Temple In Kyoto, Japan

Yurara Sarara (October 21, 2023) – Joruri-ji Temple, located in the “Kyoto Infused with Tea” region, is a temple of the Shingon Ritsu Buddhism (Nara sect) that holds 4 national treasures and 9 important cultural properties.

According to the records of the temple, the temple was opened in 1047 by Yoshiaki Shonin and enshrines the “Yakushinyourai,” the Buddha who can cure all illness. The name of the temple is said to come from “Joruri,” the realm where the Buddha lives.

The main hall of Joruri-ji is particularly long with nine Amida Buddhas enshrined inside. During the Heian period about 30 such nine-body Amida temples were built around Kyoto, but Joruri-ji is the only temple that still exists. Both the main hall and nine-body Amida Buddha are designated as national treasures.

*The Nine Amida Buddhas sitting statues are being repaired two at a time over a five-year period from July 2018.

Saturday Morning: News And Stories From London

Monocle on Saturday, October 21, 2023: Charles Hecker and Georgina Godwin discuss the Rafah border crossing opening in Egypt, turmoil in the US House of Representatives, the UK’s by-election results and hibernation season in Japan.

Plus: Monocle’s Isabella Jewell explores the Horniman Museum’s new exhibition on the history of tea, followed by a tasting of some unusual brews.

The New York Times — Saturday, October 21, 2023

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Promised Aid to Gaza Is Stalled by Wrangling, as Conditions Worsen

Tents for displaced Palestinians in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, on Friday.

Israel, Egypt, the United Nations and others are still working out the details of delivering food, water and medicine, as Israel prepares a possible ground invasion.

Biden Requests $105 Billion Aid Package for Israel, Ukraine and Other Crises

The Biden administration formally asked Congress for $105 billion in emergency funding on Friday, including $10.6 billion in military support for Israel.

The conflict in the Middle East has given President Biden a path to approving Ukraine aid that otherwise might have remained stalled.

Passion for Palestinian Cause Had Faded, but Violence in Gaza Reignited It

The Israeli bombardment of Gaza, in retaliation for a deadly Hamas attack on southern Israel, brought a new outpouring of support in the Arab world for the Palestinian quest for a state.

Republicans Vote Out Jordan as Speaker Nominee, Continuing Chaos in House

House Republicans will meet again on Monday in an effort to find a new speaker from among a flurry of new candidates.

Finance Preview: Barron’s Magazine – Oct 23, 2023

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BARRON’S MAGAZINE – October 23, 2023 ISSUE:

Brokerage King Charles Schwab Won’t Be Dethroned. Here’s Why.

Brokerage King Charles Schwab Won’t Be Dethroned. Here’s Why.

For some advisors, the move to Charles Schwab from TD Ameritrade didn’t go smoothly. Chances are, they’ll stick around anyway.

How to Play Investors’ Growing Interest in Bonds

How to Play Investors’ Growing Interest in Bonds

Asset managers’ shares are cheap, and the companies could benefit from an upturn in investment flows. Sizing up BlackRock, T. Rowe Price, and more.Long read

Making of a Mortgage Giant: Loopholes and Nonprofits

Making of a Mortgage Giant: Loopholes and Nonprofits

The Change Company was touted as a community-development leader. It became the country’s largest provider of exotic mortgages.Long read

Crypto Is Lobbying Congress Hard. It Wants More Than a Bitcoin ETF.

Crypto Is Lobbying Congress Hard. It Wants More Than a Bitcoin ETF.

The crypto industry wants laws passed that clarify how it will be regulated.Long read

Why Rising Home Prices Aren’t Always Good for Retirees

Why Rising Home Prices Aren't Always Good for Retirees

Home equity accounts for almost half of the median net worth of homeowners 60 and older.4 min read

Athleisure Is Bigger Than Ever. Here’s How to Play It.

Athleisure Is Bigger Than Ever. Here’s How to Play It.

Apparel that straddles athleticwear and loungewear has become Americans’ de facto uniform. Here are the companies best positioned to profit from it.Long read