Category Archives: Technology

Biomedicine, Magazines, Medicine, Reviews, Science, Technology

Technology Quarterly – The Economist (July 2023)

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TECHNOLOGY QUARTERLY (JULY 22ND 2023) – The most personal technology. Demand for, and expectations of, in vitro fertilisation are growing. The technology is struggling to keep up, write Catherine Brahic and Sacha Nauta.

In vitro fertilisation is struggling to keep up with demand

Developing the technology to change that is proving a difficult task

With the possible exception of Adam and Eve, all human beings born before 1978 were conceived inside a woman’s body. Today the world contains at least 12m people who started off in laboratory glassware. On average, four more are born every three minutes. That is a worldwide rate of roughly one newborn in 175.

IVF remains largely a numbers game

And plenty of clinics are taking advantage: the second of seven articles on the technology of fertility

Most healthy young couples seeking to get pregnant will try for a few months before they are successful. Those who are not will try for months more, or years, before concluding they need help and stepping into the waiting room of an ivf clinic. They often arrive in a state of acute emotional vulnerability, clutching at the hope that doctors will help.

Green Design, Reviews, Sustainability, Technology, Videos

World Economic Forum: Top Stories- July 15, 2023

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World Economic Forum (July 15, 2023) – This week’s top stories of the week include:

0:15 UK universities have a plan for AI – The guidelines aim to incorporate AI ethically into education and treat it as ‘an opportunity rather than a threat’. The UK’s 24 Russell Group universities are signing the principles.

2:07 This trolley can spot if you’re at risk of stroke – It has electrocardiogram (ECG) sensors embedded in its handles which screen you for heart irregularities as you shop. Researchers at Liverpool John Moores University fitted the sensors into 10 trolleys and rolled them out at 4 supermarkets in Liverpool, UK. Shoppers were invited to hold the handlebar for at least 60 seconds. If the sensor didn’t detect an irregular heartbeat, it lit up green. Over 2 months, the trolleys screened 2,155 people. They detected atrial fibrillation in 39 people who were swiftly able to book a cardiologist appointment.

3:50 Paris generates clean energy from Métro passagers – Energy firm IBERDROLA converted 6 turnstiles into mini-turbines at Miromesnil Métro station for 2 days last year. As each passenger passed through the turnstiles the turbines converted their movement into green energy. 27,000 passengers used the turnstiles. Each passenger generated 0.2 watts of energy. If scaled across the entire Métro system, which serves 1.5 billion passengers annually this technology could generate 136MW per year.

5:09 These sensors can spot stressed tomatoes – Their inventors say they can make agriculture more sustainable while increasing crop yields at the same time.

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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.

Analysis, Retirement, Reviews, Senior Living, Technology, Videos

Retirement Plans: How To Retire Better Financially

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Wall Street Journal (July 12, 2023) – Many retirees say they regret not focusing on more than just saving money to live out their post-working years. WSJ personal-finance reporter Veronica Dagher joins host J.R. Whalen to discuss.

Video timeline: 0:00 Difficulty mapping a retirement plan 1:01 What retirees wish they did differently 2:38 Relationships and retirement 4:43 Message for future retirees

Green Design, Reviews, Sustainability, Technology, Videos

World Economic Forum: Top Stories- July 8, 2023

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World Economic Forum (July 8, 2023) – This week’s top stories of the week include:

0:15 This is what CO2 emissions look like from space – This graphic shows CO2 emissions over Asia and Australia during 2021. It was developed by NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio. The orange ‘clouds’ represent CO2 from fossil fuel emissions. While the red clouds show CO2 emitted by burning biomass from wildfires, for example. As the year progresses, the fossil fuel emissions drift southwards, obscuring Australia.

1:25 India’s renewable energy revolution – The scale of economic growth in India is stunning. Its GDP grew by 7.2% in 2022-23, while electricity demand shot up by 8%. In the next few decades, its energy demand is set to grow more than in any other country. India has pledged to meet 50% of its electricity needs from low-carbon sources by 2030 and reduce energy intensity by 45% from 2005 levels.

3:00 This company is using lasers to beam internet to remote areas – Using chips and mirrors, laser signals are beamed over a distance of up to 20km. “This is as simple as a digital camera with a laser pointer. So you’re using a laser pointer to kind of transmit the data from one end to the other end. And then on the other end, think of the same digital camera, which is receiving the same laser beams and is able to decode it and then convert it into bytes.”

4:40 China will meet it’s renewable energy targets 5 years early – China is on track to hit its renewable energy target 5 years early. This rapid progress could limit global emissions faster than forecast. China is already a global leader in renewable energy, and its planned additions will increase global wind and solar capacity by almost 50% and 85%, respectively.

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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.

Analysis, Artificial Intelligence, Employment, Reviews, Technology, Videos

Technology Review: AI Vs White-Collar Workers

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Wall Street Journal (July 3, 2023) – Artificial intelligence doesn’t just make fantastical images. For white-collar workers, generative AI like ChatGPT can make jobs easier by creating drafts of documents or presentations.

Video timeline: 0:00 AI software 0:42 Why white-collar jobs? 2:01 AI and job cuts 3:52 What’s next?

Initial images, video and product designs could be taken over by machine learning tech. In fact, one report says nearly 4,000 workers lost their jobs in May to AI. Dropbox cut 16% of its workforce in part to invest more in the tech, while IBM sees a future where 30% of clerical work could be taken over by AI.

WSJ explains why AI may take some white-collar jobs – but also add new ones.

#AI #Layoffs #WSJ

Analysis, Magazines, Opinion, Politics, Reviews, Technology

REVIEWS: ‘Warfare After Ukraine – Battlefield Lessons’ (The Economist)

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The Economist – Special Reports (July 8, 2023): The war shows how technology is changing the battlefield. But mass still counts, argues Shashank Joshi.

Like the first world war, but with high technology

The war shows how technology is changing the battlefield. But mass still counts, argues Shashank Joshi

The latest in the battle of jamming with electronic beams

Jamming is knocking drones and missiles out of the sky

Read full report

Green Design, Reviews, Sustainability, Technology, Videos

World Economic Forum: Top Stories- July 1, 2023

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World Economic Forum (July 1, 2023) – This week’s top stories of the week include:


0:15 New blood test can detect 50 kinds of cancer – Experts say it could revolutionize cancer care. It’s called the Galleri test and it can identify cancers before symptoms appear. The UK National Health Service is testing it on 142,000 people. If successful, this trial will be extended to 1 million people next year. Doctors hope 5,000 cases could be detected early as a result. The Galleri test works by identifying changes in bits of free-floating DNA that leak from tumours into the bloodstream. #cancer #bloodtest #nhs #dna

1:36 5 exciting emerging technologies – The World Economic Forum has published its Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2023 Report. It draws on the expertise of more than 90 academics, industry leaders and futurists to discover the technologies most likely to impact people and the planet in the next 3-5 years. Which emerging technology are you most excited about?

3:17 This tablet is an innovation for the visually impaired – The Dot Pad lets visually impaired users play games and browse the web on the world’s first smart tactile graphics display. It uses AI to analyse images and split them into segments. Reproducing them on a tactile screen so blind people can read and interact with them.

4:58 Feminist economist dissects gender-neutral policies – Economic policies can either reinforce gender inequality, says Valeria Esquivel or help end it.

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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.

Innovations, Magazines, Previews, Research, Reviews, Technology

Preview: MIT Technology Review – July/August 2023

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MIT Technology Review – July/August 2023: ‘The Accessibility issue’ features Connecting climate change and the digital divide. A blind educator working to make images accessible to everyone. How the app meant to streamline immigration at the border may be making things worse. Plus regulating robotaxis, Metaverse attorneys, and the forgotten history of highway photologs.

The future is disabled

Looking down a neighborhood street where a man in wheelchair has crossed with wife and daughter.

We need to take steps toward a more inclusive future—one that we all can inhabit.

“Technology,” wrote the late historian of technology Melvin Kranzberg Jr., “is neither good nor bad, nor is it neutral.” It’s an observation that often doesn’t stick with people as they think about technologies related to accessibility.

The iPad was meant to revolutionize accessibility. What happened?

a tiny person in the center of a maze protruding from the screen of an iPad

For people who can’t speak, there has been depressingly little innovation in technology that helps them communicate.

A piece of hardware, however impressively designed and engineered, is only as valuable as what a person can do with it. After the iPad’s release, the flood of new, easy-to-use AAC apps that LoStracco, Shevchenko, and their clients wanted never came. 

Green Design, Reviews, Sustainability, Technology, Videos

World Economic Forum: Top Stories- June 24, 2023

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World Economic Forum (June 24, 2023) – This week’s top stories of the week include:

0:15 Can granny flats solve the housing crisis? – Granny flats are an extra residential unit beside a main house. They’re known by many names, including backyard homes and in-law suites. They’re often small but have their own kitchen, bathroom and entry. Their official title is accessory dwelling units, or ADUs. ADUs are more sustainable because they increase housing density without demolishing existing neighbourhoods to construct new homes.

1:54 This educator is changing the way Palestinian kids learn – Aref Husseini founded Al-Nayzak, an educational charity, in 2003. He believes the traditional Palestinian education model is broken. It’s based, he says, on memorizing facts and passing exams and it’s no longer fit for purpose “So all the skills needed for analyzing this content, for critical thinking, for innovation, for creativity, unfortunately, it’s still missing in the general educational system. There are many initiatives, informal initiatives here and there, but still the system is not producing what we need for flourishing our economy.”

5:34 5 Things to know about the energy transition – Bringing green rail freight one step closer. The zero-emission trains can reach 90km per hour and the hydrogen tanks hold enough for 24 hours of shunting operations.

7:12 IKEA is retraining its call centre staff as interior designers – An AI chatbot answers nearly half of customer inquiries. But rather than losing their jobs, call-handlers are reskilling to offer advice as part of IKEA’s interior design service. Customers pay for a video call with a design adviser who can order floorplans and other design tools to help them. 8,500 call-handlers have made the leap to design advisers since 2021.

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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.

Green Design, Reviews, Sustainability, Technology, Videos

World Economic Forum: Top Stories- June 17, 2023

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World Economic Forum (June 17, 2023) – This week’s top stories of the week include:

0:15 How to solve the global rice shortage – Every day, more than half the world sits down to a plate of rice. A shortage could harm the food security of billions of the poorest people. But if scientists and farmers can solve this problem it would be great news for the climate, too

2:24 How El Niño will affect your weather – El Niño is a climate pattern in the Pacific Ocean and a new phase of it has just begun. Normally, Pacific ‘trade winds’ blow from east to west, pushing warm water away from South America towards Asia. Cold water rises in its place, regulating temperatures and drawing up nutrients for marine life from the ocean depths.

4:17 This fabric blocks mosquito bites – Researchers at Auburn University used a programmable 3D-knitting robot to create a weave that has a ‘chainmail effect’ at the microscopic level and which does not create openings as it bends. It also has enough holes for air flow to keep wearers cool in hot countries.

5:56 Indonesian poachers restore coral reefs – Marine scientist Syafyudin Yusuf is leading the efforts. Together, his team has restored 12 hectares of corals . Just 15 years ago, only 2% of the region’s original reefs remained undamaged. Local fishers used explosives and chemicals to stun or kill fish, making them easier to catch. “We needed to live and survive, but the chances of getting a decent job aren’t good, and the only job we knew of was that, that’s how we began bombing the reefs.”

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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.