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My Journey of Reimagining Life, Love and Education

World Economic Forum: Top Stories – Oct 7, 2023

World Economic Forum (October 7, 2023) – This week’s top stories of the week include:


0:15 Start-up turns trees destined for landfills into products – Every year, US cities lose 36 million trees. They succumb to old age or disease or are felled to make space for development Much of this wood could be made into useful products but instead it’s turned into woodchips or used as firewood and 12 million tonnes end up in US landfills each year. To prevent this, Cambium Carbon partners with sawmills, arborists, and manufacturers to build local, circular supply chains. Wood destined for landfill is diverted and upcycled into siding, flooring, furniture and more. Cambium calls its product ‘Carbon Smart Wood’.

1:55 These solar panels work even on snowy days – A new coating causes snow to slide off panels ensuring they can generate power all year round. The coating was developed by a team at the University of Toledo. It can be easily retrofitted to existing equipment.

3:28 US women pay billions more for healthcare than men – Researchers at Deloitte analyzed data on 16 million workers with health coverage. They found women spend $15.4 billion more every year on healthcare than men,. That works out to a premium of $266 for the average womanor around 18% more than men. This discrepancy exists for all women of working age.

4:57 French supermarket launches packaging return scheme – Customers in 100 Carrefour stores can buy products in reusable packaging. They pay a small deposit which is refunded when they drop the empty packaging back at the store. This system is called Loop. It’s the brainchild of waste management firm TerraCycle

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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.

Museum Exhibition Tour: ‘Manet/Degas’ At The Met

The Metropolitan Museum of Art (October 6, 2023) – Stephan Wolohojian, John Pope-Hennessy Curator in Charge, and Ashley Dunn, Associate Curator, explore Manet/Degas. This exhibition examines one of the most significant artistic dialogues in modern art history: the close and sometimes tumultuous relationship between Édouard Manet and Edgar Degas.

Manet/Degas

September 24, 2023–January 7, 2024

Manet/Degas - Yale University Press London

Born only two years apart, Manet (1832–1883) and Degas (1834–1917) were friends, rivals, and, at times, antagonists who worked to define modern painting in France. By examining their careers in parallel and presenting their work side by side, this exhibition investigates how their artistic objectives and approaches both overlapped and diverged. Through more than 160 paintings and works on paper, Manet/Degas takes a fresh look at the interactions of these two artists in the context of the family relationships, friendships, and intellectual circles that influenced their artistic and professional choices, deepening our understanding of a key moment in nineteenth-century French painting. On view: September 24, 2023–January 7, 2024

Travel Tour: The Cyclades Island Of Milos In Greece

Tourister Films (October 7, 2023) – A tour of Milos or Melos, a volcanic Greek island in the Aegean Sea, just north of the Sea of Crete. Milos is the southwesternmost island in the Cyclades group. The Venus de Milo and the Asclepius of Milos were both found on the island, as were a Poseidon and an archaic Apollo now in Athens.

Plaka is the chief town in Milos. It is perched on the top of large rock, overlooking the gulf of Milos. No cars can enter the village because of the narrow spaces between walls and buildings. Motorbikes, mopeds and the like are the only usable vehicles.

Saturday Morning: News And Stories From London

Monocle on Saturday, October 7, 2023: A look at the week’s news and culture with Georgina Godwin. Also in the programme: Somnath Batabyal reviews the morning’s papers and Monocle’s Naomi Xu Elegant speaks to the founder of the Dili International Film Festival.

The New York Times — Saturday, October 7, 2023

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Strong U.S. Job Growth Shows Economy Is Defying Challenges

Employers added 336,000 jobs in September, almost double what experts had forecast and the biggest gain since January. Markets welcomed the report.

How Biden’s Promises to Reverse Trump’s Immigration Policies Crumbled

President Biden at the southern border in January. Mr. Biden’s handling of immigration has become one of his biggest potential liabilities, with polls showing deep dissatisfaction among voters about how he deals with the new arrivals.

President Biden has tried to contain a surge of migration by embracing, or at least tolerating, some of his predecessor’s approaches.

How Do Americans Feel About Politics? ‘Disgust Isn’t a Strong Enough Word’

Voters’ broad discontent with disarray in Washington transcends political parties, race, age and geography.

The N.Y.C. Subway Is No Longer Broke. Can It Buy Rider Happiness?

For as long as many New Yorkers can remember, the M.T.A. has needed more money. Now its budget is finally whole, and the pressure for good service is on.

Finance Preview: Barron’s Magazine – October 9, 2023

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BARRON’S MAGAZINE – October 9, 2023 ISSUE:

12 Picks to Play the Future of Healthcare, From Our Roundtable Pros

12 Picks to Play the Future of Healthcare, From Our Roundtable Pros

Weight-loss treatments aren’t the only big deal in medicine. Our 2023 healthcare roundtable explores the best investing opportunities.

Small-Cap Funds Are More Promising Than They Have Been in Years. Buy These.

Small-Cap Funds Are More Promising Than They Have Been in Years. Buy These.

Small-cap stocks continue to be overlooked. These funds have the edge to reward investors when they finally take off again.Long read

Why Booking Shares Could Rise 41% in a Slowing Travel Market

Why Booking Shares Could Rise 41% in a Slowing Travel Market

The travel website has high margins, low overhead, and lots of free cash flow. The current business has deep strengths in Europe and its rolling out new products.4 min read

A European Carbon Tax Is Coming. What It Means for the World.

A European Carbon Tax Is Coming. What It Means for the World.

With the tariff, climate policy is now being written directly into trade rules, forcing major industrial companies to expedite efforts to reduce emissions, shift trade patterns, or pay up.Long read

Revenge Travel Is Dead. What Comes Next.

Revenge Travel Is Dead. What Comes Next.

After two years of putting up with anything to visit must-see destinations, travelers are looking for more bliss, less stress.Long read

Reviews: ‘The Week In Art’

The Week In Art Podcast (October 6, 2023): The looted Ethiopian icon, AI copyright debate in US, and the end of China’s museum boom.

The Art Newspaper’s London correspondent Martin Bailey tells us about the Kwer’ata Re’esu, a European painting of Christ that became a revered icon in Ethiopia before being looted by an agent for the British Museum in the 19th century. Martin’s colour photographs of the work—which has been stored in a vault in Portugal—might help us to identify its maker and prompt new calls for the icon’s return to Ethiopia. On Monday this week, campaigners in the US staged an AI Day of Action, amid mounting concerns over the exploitation of artists’ work by corporations behind powerful artificial intelligence tools.

We talk to our reporter Daniel Grant about renewed calls for the US Congress to enact a law that would ban corporations from copyrighting art made by AI. And as China’s economy struggles, some museums in the country are closing or scaling down their ambitions. We talk to our correspondent in China, Lisa Movius, about how the end of the Chinese economic miracle has hastened the end of its museum boom.

Travel: A Tour Of Donji Stoliv In Montenegro

Arwin Tours (October 5, 2023) – Donji Stoliv is a small, peaceful place in the Boka Kotorska bay famous for its interference of mountain and sea winds mixed with 548 types of herbs that are suitable for lung diseases, particularly in the late spring and early autumn.

Small fisherman’s settlement from XIV century remained preserved over the centuries. It is located at the very sea shore. The pebble road will take you to Gornji Stoliv through the woods and olive groves.

A fantastic view over the entire Boka Kotorska will burst before you up there. Gornji and Donji Stoliv have around 500 inhabitants. The first camellia from Japan was brought by the Stoliv seamen in XVIII century. “Days of Cammellia” have been organized in the springtime ever since.

National Geographic Traveller – November 2023

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National Geographic Traveller Magazine (November 2023): The latest issue features features 49 unique experiences in New York City, reveals the winners of our annual Hotel Awards, explores Turkeys ancient Lycian Way and helps plan a campervanning adventure in Australia.

Also inside this issue:

Kenya: meet a new generation of Maasai taking safari tourism into their own hands.
Camargue: join the annual pilgrimage of Romani people to Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer.
Turkey: ancient tombs, lemon groves and mountainside villages await on the sun-drenched Lycian Way.
Australia: pack the campervan for adventures in coastal cities and national parks.
Stockholm: how the Swedish capital is shaped by the ebb and flow of the water around it.
Brighton: right here, right now, visit the original party town and fountain of counterculture.

Plus,long-distance bikepacking in North Wales; reimagining heritage tours in the US; savouring the flavours of Vietnam; unearthing the history beneath Belgrade’s streets; discovering the hotels near the new Ghibli Park in Nagoya; blasting off into space-inspired family experiences; Guadalajara’s hidden quarters; escaping to the country in the North York Moors; ushering in the Day of the Dead with season reads; and packing the essentials for cold-weather camping

Books: Literary Review Magazine – October 2023

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Literary Review – October 2023: The new issue features How Bond Was Born; Impressions of Monet; Inequality through the Ages; Adam Smith the Socialist, and more…

Ian Fleming: The Complete Man

Ian Fleming: The Complete Man eBook : Shakespeare, Nicholas: Kindle Store -  Amazon.com

Becoming James Bond By Nicholas Shakespeare

Anthony Powell, two and a half years older than Ian Fleming, remembered him as ‘one of the few persons I have met to announce that he was going to make a lot of money out of writing novels, and actually contrive to do so’. 

The Road to Giverny

Monet The Restless Vision /anglais: WULLSCHLAGER JACKIE: 9780241188309:  Amazon.com: Books

Monet: The Restless Vision By Jackie Wullschläger

You long for sublime artists to be sublime people. Or, if they’re bad, to be magnificently so. Possessing ‘a vanity born of supreme egoism’, Claude Monet ‘believed his art conferred a right to good living’ and that ‘his welfare must be … the immediate concern of others’, writes Jackie Wullschläger, chief art critic of the Financial Times. With great honesty, Wullschläger records her subject’s wearisome scrounging letters and his propensity for petty and often pointless mendacity.