EDITOR'S PICK TECHNOLOGY The Inherent Risks Of A.I. Key Takeaway: Leading scientists and technologists often make terrible predictions about the direction of innovation, leading to misalignments between a company’s economic incentives to profit from its proprietary AI model and society’s interests in how the AI model should be monetised and deployed. Focusing on the economic risks from AI is not just about preventing […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
EDITOR'S PICK SOCIOLOGY Why Is Free Time Still So Rare In Our Modern Productive Society? Key Takeaway: In the past, many economists assumed that people’s need for more stuff would eventually be met, leading to more free time. The 40-hour week is not the result of a personal calculation of costs and benefits but rather a result of a hard-fought political battle that culminated in the Fair Labor Standards Act […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
EDITOR'S PICK SOCIOLOGY The Maths Of Societal Collapse Key Takeaway: The author, a historian and complexity scientist, has been studying history for over a decade, noticing patterns in the past. They have been working on cliodynamics, a new field that uses statistical methods and computational simulations to understand how complex systems change over time. The Seshat: Global History Databank, a collection of over […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
EDITOR'S PICK PSYCHOLOGY SOCIOLOGY Why Do People Share Fake News? Key Takeaway: Misinformation is the top risk facing society over the next two years, with key elections in the US, UK, and other nations this year. Many people share political news online, with some sharing it by mistake. Around 20% of people report having shared a story they later found out was untrue, while around […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
BUSINESS & ECONOMICS EDITOR'S PICK STRATEGY The Hidden Costs Of Lay-Offs Key Takeaway: Businesses are facing rising borrowing costs and wage growth, affecting industries like advertising and retail. Redundancies can impact all employees, including those at risk, survivors, and management and HR teams. Decreased trust can lead to a toxic work environment, causing employees to question loyalty and commitment. Psychological stress can lead to increased absenteeism, […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
EDITOR'S PICK SCIENCE Can We Trust Science? Key Takeaway: A study has found that people who distrust science are not only not well-informed about the facts but also believe they do understand the science. This distrust is not just due to a deficit of knowledge, but also a lack of trust in the message and messenger. Research has shown that people who […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
EDITOR'S PICK PSYCHOLOGY SCIENCE How Christmas Music Brainwashes Us To Spend More Key Takeaway: Research shows that people worldwide are unaware of how what they hear affects their attitudes and behavior. This year, Tesco’s Christmas advert features OMC’s “How Bizarre” song, while John Lewis’s features a young boy raising a Venus flytrap to Andrea Bocelli’s “Festa”. Morrisons and Waitrose use 1980s hits, while Marks & Spencer uses […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
BUSINESS & ECONOMICS EDITOR'S PICK How Netflix Has Been Growing Itself Key Takeaway: Netflix, a streaming giant, experienced a decline in subscribers in 2022 due to competition from Disney and Amazon Prime. However, it has since rebounded, adding 8.8 million subscribers in Q3 2023. The company’s success can be attributed to its international approach, with over 70% of its subscribers coming from outside the US. It […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
BUSINESS & ECONOMICS EDITOR'S PICK ENTREPRENEURSHIP The Paradoxical Life Of Elon Musk Key Takeaway: Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, has a diverse career in space exploration, electric cars, AI, and social media. His biography, written by Walter Isaacson, covers events up to Space X’s unsuccessful Starship rocket launch in April 2023. Isaacson interviews Musk and uncovered newsworthy information, such as his Starlink satellite network’s crucial role […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
CULTURE EDITOR'S PICK PSYCHOLOGY SOCIOLOGY The Price Of Love: Hidden Costs Of Modern Dating Key Takeaway: The average American spends $120,000 on romantic activities, leading to a significant amount of “dating debt” among millennials and Gen Z. This debt accumulation is attributed to the desire to signal status and the persuasive retail marketing of luxury as synonymous with love. Luxury brands like Gucci and Tiffany use strategic marketing tactics […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Humility Is The Secret To Leadership? Key Takeaway: A study has found that humble leaders can become more promotable by growing others through a “humility route”. Human capital theory suggests that employees’ value can be enhanced by investing in their knowledge, skills, and abilities. Humble leaders focus on the learning and growth of their followers, creating human capital value for themselves. […] Written by Elsa Chan April 18, 2024April 18, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Did Ancient Scientists & Philosophers Believe In Aliens? Key Takeaway: In 17th-century Europe, there was a debate about the existence of life on other planets due to the transition from a Ptolemaic view to a Copernican view. This led to the idea that if we were more like other planets and moons close to us that revolved around the Sun, they were more […] Written by Philip Almond April 17, 2024April 17, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Discovering Your Money Attachment Style Key Takeaway: The current economic climate is particularly concerning for young people, who are often financially worse off than their parents. To overcome this, it is important to understand one’s financial attachment style, which can be secure, anxious, or avoidant. Attachment theory, influenced by childhood experiences and education, can help shape one’s relationship with money. […] Written by Ylva Baeckstrom April 9, 2024April 9, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
The Proven 5 Steps To Psychological Wellness Key Takeaway: Wellness culture, which claims to provide happiness and meaning, has been criticized for its superficial focus on superficial aspects like candles and juice cleanses. Psychological research suggests that long-term wellbeing comes from a committed pursuit of both pleasure and meaning. Martin Seligman’s Perma model, which breaks wellbeing into five pillars: positive emotions, engagement, […] Written by Ben Gibson April 8, 2024April 8, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
When Will Quantum Computers Actually Become Practical? Key Takeaway: Quantum computing, which uses entanglement to represent information, has the potential to revolutionize everyday life. However, the development of quantum computers has been slow due to the need to demonstrate an advantage over classical computers. Only a few notable quantum algorithms have been developed, such as the BB84 protocol and Shor’s algorithm, which […] Written by Adam Lowe April 4, 2024April 4, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Predicting China’s Economy In 2024 Key Takeaway: China’s leaders have declared a GDP growth target of 5% in 2024, despite facing economic problems and a property crisis. The country’s rapid economic growth has been attributed to market incentives, cheap labor, infrastructure investment, exports, and foreign direct investment. However, none of these drivers are working effectively. The government’s determination to deflate […] Written by Hong Bo April 3, 2024April 3, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
The Future Of Human Computing Key Takeaway: Neuralink, founded by Elon Musk, aims to implant a brain-computer interface (BCI) in people’s brains, allowing them to control computers or phones by thought alone. This technology holds the promise of alleviating human suffering and allowing people with disabilities to regain lost capacities. However, the long-term aspirations of Neuralink include the ability to […] Written by Allan McCay April 2, 2024April 2, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Rethinking Education Key Takeaways: The Industrial model of education that fueled the modern era and its dizzying reach did its job incredibly well. In his writing, Flynn illustrates study after study, spanning nations and decades, in which modern educational gift of abstraction โ a transcendent sign of intelligence, as we saw in Ravenโs Matrices โ has been […] Written by Anthony Fieldman March 2, 2022October 19, 2022 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
How China Is Transforming Its Economy Through Learning I highly recommend reading the McKinsey Global Instituteโs new report, โReskilling China: Transforming The Worldโs Largest Workforce Into Lifelong Learnersโ, which focuses on the countryโs biggest employment challenge, re-training its workforce and the adoption of practices such as lifelong learning to address the growing digital transformation of its productive fabric. How to transform the country […] Written by Enrique Dans February 1, 2021February 1, 2021 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Why Youโre Not Seeing Success With Influencer Marketing With the new year around the corner, now is a good time to re-evaluate your past marketing strategies and gear up for the year ahead. For some businesses, influencer marketing has simply not seemed to live up to its lofty promises of genuine engagement, credibility, and transparency. Some have claimed that it has been failing […] Written by Michael Tan January 14, 2021January 15, 2021 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
A New Philosophy of Business Iโm about to ask you to take a mental leap. For the next 8 minutes, suspend your notions of what a business is, and Iโll propose a new lens for you to look through. There are a lot of questions asked around what โcommunityโ means for business. โWhere should community fit in my organization?โ and […] Written by Empirics Asia September 5, 2018September 5, 2018 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked