Headline: North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office Receives African American Civil Rights Grant from the National Park Service
North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office Receives African American Civil Rights Grant from the National Park Service jejohnson6
The North Carolina Historic Preservation Office has received an African American Civil Rights (AACR) Grant from the National Park Service to undertake an architectural survey of resources associated with the Civil Rights movement in northeastern North Carolina.
The $27,500 grant will support architectural survey documentation of up to 40 previously un-surveyed historic buildings and the update of records for 24 previously documented resources. The project will conclude with recommendations for buildings to be added to the state’s Study List, a prioritized list of resources that should be considered for the National Register of Historic Places, and recommendations for adding Civil Rights as an area of historic significance to the National Register nominations of six listed historic districts.
The project defines northeastern North Carolina as the region bounded by I-95, U.S. Highway 64, Virginia, and the Atlantic Ocean.
This project builds on an earlier project, also funded through the African American Civil Rights Grant program, that used oral histories and historic research to identify buildings now proposed for the architectural survey.
Across North Carolina between 1941 and 1976, thousands of Civil Rights protests and actions occurred in large and small communities. In many instances, white-owned newspapers did not cover these activities or relegated them to small notes on pages. As a result, oral history is often the best and, in some cases, only way to locate the sites and resources associated with this aspect of our history.
The northeast region was chosen because it is easily definable by highways and a state line, because its towns are relatively evenly spread across the region, and because the region includes Elizabeth City State University, a historically Black university.
Should this project document buildings eligible for the National Register of Historic Places for an association with Civil Rights, the State Historic Preservation Office will plan a third phase to nominate some or all of the eligible resources.
The project will begin in October 2024 and be completed by August 2026.
The AACR grant, funded by the Historic Preservation Fund, documents, interprets, and preserves sites and stories related to the African American struggle to gain equal rights as citizens. The 2008 NPS report Civil Rights in America, A Framework for Identifying Significant Sites serves as the foundation reference document for the grant program and for grant applicants to use in determining the appropriateness of proposed projects and properties. The final report will not necessarily reflect views or policies of the U.S. Department of the Interior, nor does the mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations constitute endorsement or recommendation by the Department of the Interior.
For more information about the project, please contact Sarah Woodard, branch supervisor for the National Register and Survey Branch of the North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office at sarah.woodard@dncr.nc.gov or 919-814-6573.
About the State Historic Preservation Office In North Carolina, the State Historic Preservation Office (HPO) is an agency of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. Kevin Cherry, the department’s Deputy Secretary of Archives and History, is North Carolina’s State Historic Preservation Officer. The HPO carries out state and federal preservation programs that assist private citizens, non-profit institutions, local governments, and agencies of state and federal government in the identification, evaluation, protection, and enhancement of properties significant in North Carolina’s history and archaeology. The HPO oversees the statewide architectural survey; administers the National Register of Historic Places for North Carolina properties; conducts environmental review of state and federal actions affecting historic and archaeological properties; provides technical assistance to owners in the restoration of historic properties, including those owners seeking state and federal rehabilitation income tax credits; provides grant assistance for historic preservation projects; provides technical assistance to local preservation commissions; and provides historic preservation education https://www.hpo.nc.gov/.
About the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) manages, promotes, and enhances the things that people love about North Carolina – its diverse arts and culture, rich history, and spectacular natural areas. Through its programs, the department enhances education, stimulates economic development, improves public health, expands accessibility, and strengthens community resiliency.
The department manages over 100 locations across the state, including 27 historic sites, seven history museums, two art museums, five science museums, four aquariums, 35 state parks, four recreation areas, dozens of state trails and natural areas, the North Carolina Zoo, the State Library, the State Archives, the N.C. Arts Council, the African American Heritage Commission, the American Indian Heritage Commission, the State Historic Preservation Office, the Office of State Archaeology, the Highway Historical Markers program, the N.C. Land and Water Fund, and the Natural Heritage Program. For more information, please visit www.dncr.nc.gov.
NEW YORK, NY, Oct. 14, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — On the occasion of Bitcoin’s 15th anniversary, renowned artist Frédéric Imbert unveils The Bitcoin Masterpiece, an innovative work that fuses art and technology. This limited edition collection consists of 99 pieces. The artwork pushes the boundaries of art while carving its place in the history of the crypto space.
The Bitcoin Masterpiece: An Artwork Reflecting the Bitcoin Revolution
An exceptional piece of art is set to leave its mark on the history of cryptocurrency. Frédéric Imbert, alongside his son Bastien Imbert, is preparing to launch The Bitcoin Masterpiece, a groundbreaking creation inspired by the Bitcoin logo, merging art with cutting-edge technology.
This work stands out with its sleek and sophisticated design. The carbon and aluminum frame, measuring 95 cm x 95 cm x 5 cm and weighing 12.8 kg, incorporates advanced electronic components. Using 146 glass displays and 217 low-pressure neon lamps, the piece lights up the Bitcoin logo second by second, through successive patterns, creating a stunning visual effect. Frédéric Imbert meticulously hand-assembles each piece in his Paris workshop, ensuring exceptional quality.
The artwork offers a dynamic and captivating representation of the Bitcoin universe. It incorporates several interactive elements, making it a living and evolving piece:
Progressive and random illuminations of the Bitcoin logo
Real-time display of Bitcoin’s market price, allowing for real-time tracking of its fluctuations
Presentation of essential Bitcoin-related data, providing an overview of the ecosystem
This fusion of art and technology transforms each piece into a gateway to the crypto world, while maintaining a refined aesthetic worthy of the most prestigious contemporary art pieces.
The Limited Edition for Enthusiasts and Collectors
The Bitcoin Masterpiece collection is available in 99 numbered pieces. Each piece, unique and customizable upon request, receives the artist’s meticulous attention. Its rarity, combined with artisanal quality and technological innovation, makes it a potential investment for art collectors and crypto enthusiasts alike.
Each piece is priced at 1 Bitcoin, reflecting the ambition of the project, its symbolism, and its deep connection to the leading cryptocurrency.
The Bitcoin Masterpiece will debut at an exclusive vernissage held at The Outpost, a private mansion in the heart of Paris’s 17th arrondissement. The event that will take place on October 23rd will mark the official launch of the collection.
The Visionary Artist Behind The Bitcoin Masterpiece
Frédéric Imbert, the creative mind behind The Bitcoin Masterpiece, is a renowned artist and engineer. Born in Monaco and based near Paris, he has distinguished himself for more than two decades by his ability to fuse art and science into unique contemporary creations.
His passion for electronics and intricate watchmaking is reflected in each of his works, which often incorporate rare and iconic electronic components. Imbert’s distinctive style is characterized by the use of vintage and modern parts, creating visual symphonies that celebrate the passage of time and pay homage to technological and architectural icons.
The Collection Backed by Esteemed Partners
The Bitcoin Masterpiece is already supported by several renowned partners in the crypto and digital art industries. These collaborations will help boost the artwork’s visibility and strengthen its position in the world of crypto art.
The Bitcoin Masterpiece represents the convergence of technological innovation and artistic expression. This creation by Frédéric Imbert offers collectors, cryptocurrency enthusiasts, and digital art lovers the chance to own a work that stands at the crossroads of these worlds. The Bitcoin Masterpiece is destined to become a symbol of the crypto era in the art world.
In the last ten years, some 20,000 or so academic papers have been published on the neuroscience of sex and gender. Perhaps you have read the media coverage of such papers, suggesting there’s finally proof that stereotypical abilities such as men being good at reading maps or women excelling at nurturing can be pinpointed in the brain.
Given the sheer quantity of output in this area, how can you tell what is really groundbreaking research, and what is an overenthusiastic application of hype?
Misleading spin is often blamed on university PR teams, non-specialist science writers in mainstream newspapers, or social media. But the source of deceptive impressions may sometimes be the research papers themselves.
For example, researchers may hyper-focus on a limited set of findings. They may fail to report that many of the differences they were looking for didn’t make the statistical cut. Or they may be less than cautious in discussing the impact of their findings.
Just as much as researchers need to be meticulous about the best methodology and the most powerful statistics, they need to manage the impressions they make when communicating their research. And, if they don’t, then the interested but non-expert reader may need help to spot this.
Magic: spotting the spin
My colleagues and I recently published a set of guidelines which offer just such assistance, identifying five sources of potential misrepresentation to look out for. The initials helpfully form the acronym “Magic”, which is short for magnitude, accuracy, generalisability, inflation and credibility.
For magnitude, the question is: is the extent of any differences clearly and accurately described? Take this 2015 study on sex differences in the human brain. It reported on 34,716 different patterns of functional brain connectivity, and found statistical differences between females and males in 178 of them.
Yet given that less than 0.5% of all possible differences they were measuring actually turned out to be statistically significant, they wouldn’t really be justified in reporting sex differences as prominent. In this study, they weren’t.
The next question is to do with accuracy. Are techniques and variables clearly defined and carefully used in the interpretation of results? It should be really clear how the study was run, what measures were taken, and why.
For example, a recent paper suggesting that the Covid lockdown effects had a more pronounced effect on adolescent girls’ brain structure than boys’ fell at this hurdle. The abstract referred to “longitudinal measures” and much of the narrative was couched in longitudinal “pre- and post-Covid” terms. Longitudinal studies –– which follow the same group of people over time –– are great as they can discover crucial changes in them.
But if you peer closely at the paper, it emerges that the pre- and post-Covid lockdown comparisons appear to be between two different samples – admittedly selected from an ongoing longitudinal study. Nonetheless, it is not clear that like was compared with like.
Don’t believe everything you hear about male and female capabilities. CrispyPork/Shutterstock
The third question has to do with generalisability. Are authors cautious about how widely the results might be applied? Here we encounter the problem with many scientific studies being carried out on carefully selected and screened groups of participants – sometimes just their own students.
Care should be taken to ensure this is clear to the reader, who shouldn’t be left with the impression that one or more sets of participants can be taken to be fully representative of (say) all females or all males. If all study participants are selected from the same single community, then referring to “hundreds of millions of people” in interpreting the relevance of the results is something of an overstatement.
The fourth category, inflation, is to do with whether the authors avoid language that overstates the importance of their results. Terms such as “profound” and “fundamental” may be misplaced, for instance. Remember, James Watson and Francis Crick merely described their discovery of DNA’s double helix structure as of “considerable biological interest”.
Finally, we should consider credibility: are authors careful to acknowledge how their findings do or do not fit with existing research? Authors should be up front about alternative explanations for their findings, or suggest other factors that might need to be investigated in further studies.
Suppose, for example, they are looking at the allegedly robust sex differences in visuospatial skills, which include things like visual perception and spatial awareness. Have the authors acknowledged research suggesting that the amount of time people spend on practising this skill, such as when playing video games, has been shown to be more significant than biological sex in determining such differences?
If gamers are more likely to be boys, that doesn’t necessarily mean their brains are wired for them – it could equally well be reflecting gendered pressures that make such games a popular, culturally comfortable pastime among boys.
The focus of these guidelines is on sex/gender brain imaging studies, but they could well be applied to other areas of research.
Post-lockdown surveys have suggested that the public has greater trust in what scientists are saying than they did before the pandemic. Scientists need to be careful that they retain that trust by ensuring that what they report is unambiguous and free from hype.
Hopefully the Magic guidelines will help them and their editors achieve this; if they don’t, then eagle-eyed readers, Magic-ally armed, will be on their guard.
Gina Rippon does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
In May 2023, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, embarked on a whistle-stop tour of European capitals to shore up support from his western partners in the run-up to Ukraine’s summer offensive that year. His tour was a relative success – the subsequent offensive less so.
Fast forward 18 months, and Zelensky has once again been visiting London, Paris, Rome and Berlin in search for western support. This time, he sought backing for his victory plan. But the odds now are clearly stacked against Ukraine on the battlefield. And Zelensky also faces an uphill struggle on the diplomatic front.
The initial plan for Zelensky and his allies had been to convene at a meeting of the Ramstein group. This is the loose configuration of some 50 countries who have supported Ukraine’s defence efforts since the start of the full-scale Russian aggression in February 2022.
With the US president, Joe Biden, scheduled to attend after a state visit to Germany, the gathering at Ramstein Air Base in Germany had been pitched at the level of heads of state and government. It was expected that there were to be some big announcements of continuing support for Ukraine.
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But with hurricane Milton scheduled to hit Florida, Biden was forced to cancel his trip. While Biden’s visit to Germany has apparently been rescheduled for October 18, 2024, the Ramstein meeting remains postponed.
This has deprived the Ukrainian president of the chance to pitch his victory plan to his more important allies. So he has been unable to get them to commit to the support that will be necessary to implement it.
Zelensky wants an accelerated path to Nato membership. He is also asking for a Nato-enforced no-fly zone over western Ukraine and more air-defence systems for the country to better protect its own skies.
Other key elements of the plan involve permission to use western-supplied long-range missiles against targets deep inside Russia, the delivery of long-range German Taurus ballistic missiles and significant investment into Ukraine’s defence industry.
Most of these demands are non-starters in western capitals. That much was already made clear during Zelensky’s recent trip to New York and Washington in mid-September.
The Ukrainian president managed to get his US counterpart to authorise US$8 billion (£6.12 billion) in further security assistance. But there has been no progress on lifting the restrictions that the US and other allies are placing on Ukraine’s use of western military aid against Russian territory.
The western alliance remains divided on this. And the US is particularly sceptical of its strategic value.
Similarly, the prospect of Ukraine joining Nato continues to be remote – not least as it would require the consent of all 32 current member states. The Slovak prime minister, Robert Fico, has openly stated that he will veto Ukraine’s accession to the alliance. His Hungarian counterpart, Victor Orban, is also well known for his opposition to Kyiv joining the alliance.
More damaging to Ukraine’s Nato aspirations, however, is a similar reluctance in both Washington and Berlin. This has been key in ensuring that the two most recent Nato summits in Vilnius in 2023 and Washington in 2024 only re-affirmed that “Ukraine’s future is in Nato” but failed to attach a clear timeline to it.
Kyiv’s allies need to double down – now
At the end of his meeting with the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, on October 11, Zelensky secured another €1.4 billion (£1.17 billion) worth of air defences, tanks, drones and artillery, to be jointly delivered by Germany, Belgium, Denmark and Norway.
But Taurus ballistic missiles – top of Kyiv’s shopping list – are not included in this package. While predictable, this was a major disappointment for Zelensky. As was the fact that he essentially walked away empty-handed from his meetings in London, Paris and Rome.
There is no indication that any of these major allies are likely to withdraw their support. But it is equally clear that they are not prepared to increase it decisively.
This was also evident during the visit to Kyiv of the new Nato secretary-general, Mark Rutte, on October 3. Rutte travelled to Ukraine within days of assuming the role to reiterate the continuation of the alliance’s support. But as symbolically important as this was, he merely confirmed what had already been agreed rather than announcing anything new.
The EU did marginally better. On October 10 it was announced the bloc was set to extend the training programme for Ukrainian troops until the end of 2026. The mission was launched in November 2022 and has trained some 60,000 troops to date. That’s about half of all Ukrainian soldiers trained abroad – and three times the number who received training from the US.
The EU’s overall aid to Ukraine now stands at €162 billion since the beginning of the war in 2022, compared to €84 billion from the US. Two-thirds of US aid is military in nature, and with almost €57 billion to date, it dwarfs the contributions by Germany and the UK, the two next-largest donors with around €10 billion each.
These are impressive numbers and there can be no doubt that Ukraine would have lost this war long ago without support from its western allies. Yet, the fact is that what Ukraine’s western partners currently provide is barely enough to prevent a Ukrainian defeat, let alone enable Ukraine to implement its victory plan.
Vladimir Putin has consistently raised his country’s war effort to meet any challenges presented over the course of the conflict. Unless the west doubles down on its support to allow Kyiv to do the same, not only will Ukraine not win this war, it is in serious danger of losing it.
The high-level meeting planned for Ramstein would have been the opportunity for the west to change gear decisively. Ukraine can only hope that its postponement, rather than outright cancellation, means its allies may yet step up to the plate.
Stefan Wolff is a past recipient of grant funding from the Natural Environment Research Council of the UK, the United States Institute of Peace, the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK, the British Academy, the NATO Science for Peace Programme, the EU Framework Programmes 6 and 7 and Horizon 2020, as well as the EU’s Jean Monnet Programme. He is a Trustee and Honorary Treasurer of the Political Studies Association of the UK and a Senior Research Fellow at the Foreign Policy Centre in London.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Renaud Foucart, Senior Lecturer in Economics, Lancaster University Management School, Lancaster University
This year’s Nobel memorial prize in economics has gone to Daron Acemoglu and Simon Johnson of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and James Robinson of the University of Chicago for their work on why there are such vast differences in prosperity between nations.
While announcing the award, Jakob Svensson, the chairman of the economics prize committee, said: “Reducing the huge differences in income between countries is one of our times’ greatest challenges”. The economists’ “groundbreaking research” has given us a “much deeper understanding of the root causes of why countries fail or succeed.”
The award, which was established several decades after the original Nobel prizes in the 1960s, is technically known as the Sveriges Riksbank prize in economic sciences. The academics will share the award and its 11 million kroner (£810,000) cash prize.
To explain their work and why it matters, we talked to Renaud Foucart, a senior lecturer in economics at Lancaster University in the UK.
What did Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James Robinson win for?
The three academics won the prize mostly for providing causal evidence of the influence of the quality of a country’s institutions on its economic prosperity.
At first glance, this may seem like reinventing the wheel. Most people would agree that a country that enforces property rights, limits corruption, and protects both the rule of law and the balance of power, will also be more successful at encouraging its citizens to create wealth, and be better at redistributing it.
But anyone following the news in Turkey, Hungary, the US or even the UK, will be aware that not everyone agrees. In Hungary for instance, cases of corruption, nepotism, a lack of media pluralism, and threats to the independence of the judiciary have led to a fierce battle with the European Union.
Rich countries typically have strong institutions. But several (wannabe) leaders are perfectly comfortable with weakening the rule of law. They do not seem to see institutions as the cause of their prosperity, just as something that happens to be correlated.
In their view, why does the quality of institutions vary across countries?
Their work starts with something that has clearly not had a direct effect on today’s economic prosperity: living conditions at the start of European colonialism in the 14th century. Their hypothesis is that, the richer and the more inhospitable to outsiders a place was, the more colonial powers were interested in brutally stealing the country’s riches.
In that case, they built institutions without any regard for the people living there. This led to low quality institutions during the colonial period, that continued through independence and led to bad economic conditions today.
All of this is because – and this is another domain to which this year’s laureates contributed – institutions create the conditions of their own persistence.
In contrast, in more hospitable and less developed places, colonialists did not take resources. They instead settled and tried to create wealth. So, it was in their (selfish) interest to build democratic institutions that benefited people living there.
The researchers then tested their hypothesis by looking at historical data. First, they found a “great reversal” of fortune. Places that were the most urbanised and densely populated in 1500 became the poorest by 1995. Second, they found that places where settlers died quickly from disease and could therefore not stay – while local populations were mostly immune – are also poorer today.
Looking at the colonial roots of institutions is an attempt to disentangle causes and consequences. It is also perhaps the main reason why the committee would say that even if this year’s laureates did not invent the idea that institutions matter, their contribution is worthy of the highest distinction.
Some have suggested the work simply argues ‘democracy means economic growth’. Is this true?
Not in a vacuum. For instance, their work does not tell us that imposing democracy from scratch on a country with otherwise malfunctioning institutions will work. There is no reason for a democratic leader not to become corrupt.
Institutions are a package. And this is why it is so important to preserve their different aspects today. Weakening even a little bit of the protections the state offers to citizens, workers, entrepreneurs and investors may then lead to a vicious circle where people do not feel safe that they will be defended against corruption or expropriation. And this leads to lower prosperity and more calls for authoritarian rules.
There may also be outliers. China is clearly trying to push the idea that capitalism without a liberal democracy can be compatible with economic success.
The growth of China since Deng Xiaoping’s reforms in the 1980s coincides with the introduction of stronger property rights for entrepreneurs and businesses. And, in that sense, it is a textbook version of the power of institutions.
But it is also true that Deng Xiaoping ordered the crushing by the military of the Tiananmen Square protests for democracy in 1989. China today also has a clearly more authoritarian system than western democracies.
And China is still much poorer than its democratic counterparts, despite being the world’s second-largest economy. China’s GDP per capita is not even a fifth of that of the US, and it is facing major economic challenges of its own.
Actually, according to Acemoglu, Xi Jinping’s increasingly authoritarian regime is the reason why China’s economy is “rotting from the head”.
What trajectory are democratic institutions throughout the world currently on?
Acemoglu has expressed concern that democratic institutions in the US and Europe are losing support from the population. And, indeed, many democracies do seem to be doubting the importance of protecting their institutions.
They flirt with giving more power to demagogues who claim it is possible to be successful without a strong set of rules that bind the hands of the rulers. I doubt today’s prize will have the slightest influence on them.
But if there is one message to take home from the work of this year’s laureates, it is that voters should be cautious not to throw the baby of economic prosperity with the bathwater of the sometimes frustrating rules that sustain it.
Renaud Foucart does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Just as calculators took over the tedious number-crunching in maths a few decades ago, artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming coding. Take Kyo, an eight-year-old boy in Singapore who developed a simple platform game in just two hours, attracting over 500,000 players.
Using nothing but simple instructions in English, Kyo brought his vision to life leveraging the coding app Cursor and also Claude, a general purpose AI. Although his dad is a coder, Kyo didn’t get any help from him to design the game and has no formal coding education himself. He went on to build another game, an animation app, a drawing app and a chatbot, taking about two hours for each.
This shows how AI is dramatically lowering the barrier to software development, bridging the gap between creativity and technical skill. Among the range of apps and platforms dedicated to this purpose, others include Google’s AlphaCode 2 and Replit’s Ghostwriter.
In another example of the power of these apps, an eight-year-old American girl called Fay built a chatbot that purported to be Harry Potter. She had it up and running in just 45 minutes, at which point it asked if she had heard the rumours about the Deathly Hallows and suggested they discuss it over a butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks.
For those that already know how to code, numerous AI apps have become incredibly helpful too. At the other extreme from the natural language coding apps described above, tools like Tabnine and GitHub Copilot act as intelligent assistants, predicting and autocompleting code as you type.
Alternatives such as Sourcery and DeepCode go a step further, offering real-time code cleanup, suggesting improvements and fixing vulnerabilities. New tools are emerging weekly, such as OpenAI’s GPT Canvas, a new GPT version designed to help with sophisticated coding. Many of these tools can also translate code from one programming language to another, say from JavaScript to Python.
The productivity gains that these tools offer are revolutionising the software industry. As many as 70% of companies have already adopted the likes of GitHub Copilot, with coders reporting that AI is enabling them to write software that is more reliable and bug free.
By removing the need to spend so many hours ironing out human errors, coders are able to spend more time focusing on higher value tasks such as designing system architecture and collaborating with colleagues.
It is also changing the game for university educators like myself as we race to keep up. We’ve been having to rethink teaching materials and also assessment methods, wrestling with how exactly to grade a student’s coding in situations where AI tools are doing much of the work.
Today’s limitations
As exciting as all this is, AI coding is still in its infancy. At this stage it can only help non-coders to build simple applications or games. It can’t yet oversee big complex IT projects by understanding the big picture in a way that a human coder would.
It can’t yet invent new ways to solve problems either, and is still more likely to lag in areas like, say, spacecraft navigation that require highly specialised knowledge.
Many tools also don’t write perfect code: a program will often work but won’t be efficient or secure enough for use in the real world. Similarly, AI tools don’t inherently understand the context of the data they process, so may mishandle sensitive information or perpetuate biases present in the data on which they were trained.
For all these reasons, in professional situations there’s still a need for a coder to make sure that everything is meeting the necessary standards. No doubt in future we may see AI coding tools designed to handle everything from security issues to highly specialised subject matter. Their ability to help non-coders to build apps will also only improve. For now at least, however, AI coding is still amplifying the skills of coders rather than replacing them altogether.
How to build your own game
All the same, it’s incredible what you can do with these tools as a non-coder already. Here’s a quick guide to making a simple platform game:
Step 1: Sign up for an AI tool: Create an account with, say, Cursor or AlphaCode 2 and follow the setup instructions. Depending on which tool you choose, you may need to do a quick install. You may also need to install a programming language such as Python, as well as a source code editor such as VS Studio Code 2 – the coding platform will keep you right on this.
Step 2: Start your game: Open a new project in the tool. Into the prompt, type: “Create a simple platform game where the platforms are made of sweet treats”.
Step 3: See what it’s like: Click “run” or “preview” to see what you’ve created (depending on which system you are using, you may have to do this in the source code editor). You should see platforms made of candy or cakes.
Step 4: Make some changes: Let’s say we change the main character into a parrot. Simply type into the prompt: “Make the avatar a green parrot”.
Step 5: Add features: Now type into the prompt: “Let the parrot be controlled by the cursor arrows, insert some sweets for it to collect and add a score counter for how many it has collected”.
Step 6: Test and tweak: Click “run” or “preview” again to test the updated game. Make changes by typing things like, “Insert a black crow that will chase the parrot around the screen. If the crow touches the parrot, freeze the screen and display a message in the middle of the screen saying ‘Too Bad!!!’”. Keep repeating these steps until you’re happy with the results.
Step 7: Get it out there: You might now want to share your game with friends or online via an app store. It must be said that AI coders are not yet doing this well, so you may find this trickier without prior knowledge. One option is to deploy the game online via a free platform such as Zeabur, as explained here.
Daniel Zhou Hao does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
The desire to have our own biological children is hard-wired into many of us. And the desire is often felt more keenly in those struggling with infertility. So the promise of a simple solution is hard to ignore – which may be why “the Mucinex method” is trending on social media.
Many women on TikTok are attributing successful conception to their use of the widely available cough and cold medicine Mucinex – or similar over-the-counter decongestant medicines containing the active ingredient guaifenesin.
Why would a medicine designed to relieve cough and cold symptoms help women get pregnant? During unprotected sexual intercourse, sperm are deposited at the top of the vagina. To reach and fertilise the egg, the sperm must first traverse the cervix, a small canal that connects the vagina and the womb.
The cervix plays a critical role in regulating the passage of sperm through its production of cervical mucus. During a woman’s menstrual cycle, the quantity and consistency of the cervical mucus changes, becoming optimal around the time of ovulation.
If there is too much mucus, or it is too thick, it can stop the sperm from reaching the egg. So, the idea goes that by taking Mucinex, a woman would thin her cervical mucus and make it easier for the sperm to reach the egg.
The rising popularity of fertility tracking apps has increased awareness of signs of the fertile window among users, including through monitoring of cervical mucus quantity and consistency. Once familiar with their individual signs, it follows that women who are trying or, indeed, struggling to conceive might start considering how to optimise their chances of conception in any given cycle.
A simple over-the-counter product such as Mucinex could well seem like a quick and simple solution with potentially more rapid results than dieting or a change in other lifestyle factors.
Not surprisingly, questions are being asked over the validity of taking Mucinex, or other guaifenesin-containing medicines, as fertility aids.
The fact is, there is scant scientific evidence proving that Mucinex can help with fertility. The most cited scientific study is from 1982 and was published in the journal Fertility and Sterility. Here, scientists studied 40 couples whose infertility was defined as being a “cervical issue”.
The women in the study were given 200mg of guaifenesin, three times a day starting on the fifth day of their menstrual cycle. By the end of the study, 15 out of the 40 couples had become pregnant, which some may see as supporting the use of guaifenesin.
However, as there was no group that didn’t take guaifenesin (a control group), it is not possible to attribute these pregnancies solely to guaifenesin.
In a separate case study, a man took 600mg of guaifenesin, twice a day, for two months. The study reported a dramatic increase in sperm production and motility. However, as this study was conducted on a single 32-year-old man, the researchers could not confirm that guaifenesin was the cause of the change.
It should be noted that Reckitt, the makers of Mucinex, said in a statement that Mucinex should “only be used as intended in line with label directions”. And that taking Mucinex for infertility “constitutes off-label use”.
Is there any harm in taking guaifenesin to conceive?
While no associations between guaifenesin and birth defects have been identified, there is still no solid data on how guaifenesin might affect embryo development.
For those seeking to become parents, the idea of boosting your chances with a widely available medication is understandably enticing. However, there is not enough evidence to support taking guaifenesin to improve fertility.
There are a range of other simple, lifestyle changes that have been shown to help with getting pregnant. These include maintaining a healthy weight and diet, reducing alcohol intake, giving up smoking and lowering stress. For those experiencing difficulties in becoming pregnant, the best, and possibly simplest advice is to talk to your doctor.
Adam Watkins receives funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council under grant BB/V006711/1.
Emma Lucas is a council member of the Society for Reproduction and Fertility.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Liam Lachs, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Climate Change Ecology and Evolution, Newcastle University
The authors working in their ‘coral nursery’ in the Pacific.Liam Lachs
Our research group has bred corals able to better survive marine heatwaves. Our work, now published in Nature Communications, shows that it is possible to improve coral heat tolerance even within a single generation.
We did this using selective breeding: a technique used by humans for thousands of years to produce animals and plants with desirable characteristics. Selective breeding is how humans turned wolf-like dogs into St Bernards, chihuahuas and everything in between.
Now, selective breeding is being considered as a tool for nature conservation, particularly for coral reefs. The Coralassist Lab (of which we are part) and the Palau International Coral Reef Center have been working on coral heatwave survival specifically. Our latest results are the culmination of seven years’ work.
Marine heatwaves trigger mass coral bleaching and mortality, with 2023-2024 declared as the fourth global mass bleaching event. Assisted evolution methods — like selective breeding — aim to boost natural adaptation to buy time for corals under climate change.
Yet the improvement in heat tolerance in our selectively bred corals was modest compared to the intensity of marine heatwaves expected in the future. While selective breeding is feasible, it is likely not a panacea. We’ll still need to tackle the cause of mass coral bleaching by reducing greenhouse gas emissions in order to mitigate warming and give assisted evolution programmes time to take effect.
How to breed corals for heat tolerance
The first step was to determine the heat tolerance of many potential parent corals on the reef. Then, we chose specific individuals to breed two separate families of offspring, selected for either high or low heat tolerance. We reared these offspring for three to four years until they reached reproductive maturity, and then tested their heat tolerance.
Some of the selectively-bred coral at the nursery in the Pacific island nation Palau. Jesse Alpert
We conducted selective breeding trials for two different traits, either the tolerance to a short, intense heat exposure (temperatures 3.5°C above normal for ten days) or a less intense but long-term exposure more typical of natural marine heatwaves (2.5°C above average for a month). This enabled us to estimate the heritability of each trait, the response to selective breeding, and whether both traits have a shared genetic basis.
Selecting parents for high- rather than low-heat tolerance enhanced the tolerance of their adult offspring for both traits tested.
a) Overview of the experimental design and examples of (b) Acropora digitifera parents and (c) their offspring at the nursery in Palau. Coralassist lab
Heritability was roughly 0.2 to 0.3 on a scale of 0 to 1, which means about a quarter of the variability in offspring heat tolerance was due to genes passed from their parents. In other words, these traits have a substantial genetic basis on which natural and artificial selection can act.
However, even this level of enhancement may not be enough to keep pace with ever more intense heatwaves. Depending on climate action, the intensity of heatwaves is expected to rise in the coming decades by around 3°C-weeks per decade, faster than the enhancement achieved in our study.
Interestingly, corals selectively bred for high- rather than low, short-stress tolerance were no better at surviving the long heat stress exposure. With no genetic correlation detected, it is plausible that these traits are driven by independent sets of genes, and corals that are good at surviving the short sharp heat stress aren’t necessarily the best at surviving longer term marine heatwaves.
This would have important implications, as work like this would benefit from cheap and rapid tests that can effectively identify heat tolerant colonies for breeding. However, if these tests can’t predict which coral colonies will survive month-long heatwaves, it presents a serious challenge.
Coral fragments during a long-term simulated marine heatwave, with some remaining relatively healthy throughout (upper) and others bleaching (lower) or dying (not shown). Liam Lachs
Scaling up selective breeding
Since it is possible to selectively breed corals for increased heat tolerance, the next step is to conduct large-scale trials in the wild. This will likely require considerable numbers of selectively bred corals to be deployed, perhaps by directly seeding coral larvae on reefs, or planting corals reared in an aquaculture facility.
For this to work, outplanted corals must become reproductive themselves and contribute to the wild population gene pool. Doing this at very large scales will be challenging, but it may not be necessary to replenish the coral coverage of large areas.
Instead, it may be sufficient to create a network of fewer strategically located larval production hubs, containing selectively bred corals at high densities to maximise fertilisation success. These hubs would serve to seed other reefs and could provide further broodstock for targeted actions.
A lot more research and development is still needed, with many critical questions remaining unanswered. How many corals need to be outplanted to have the desired effect? Can we ensure there are no trade-offs that could compromise populations (evidence so far suggests this is not a large risk)? How can we avoid dilution of selected traits once added to the wild? How can we maximise responses to selection?
Given the pace of ocean warming, optimisation and implementation of assisted evolution will need to happen soon for them to have a chance at success, even if only on small scales. Above all, the survival of coral reefs still depends on urgent climate action.
Liam Lachs received funding from the Natural Environment Research Council ONE Planet Doctoral Training Partnership (NE/S007512/1).
James Guest received funding from European Research Council Horizon 2020 project CORALASSIST (725848). He is affiliated with SECORE International as a science advisory board member.
Adriana Humanes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
NASA’s Europa Clipper has embarked on its long voyage to Jupiter, where it will investigate Europa, a moon with an enormous subsurface ocean that may have conditions to support life. The spacecraft launched at 12:06 p.m. EDT Monday aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The largest spacecraft NASA ever built for a mission headed to another planet, Europa Clipper also is the first NASA mission dedicated to studying an ocean world beyond Earth. The spacecraft will travel 1.8 billion miles (2.9 billion kilometers) on a trajectory that will leverage the power of gravity assists, first to Mars in four months and then back to Earth for another gravity assist flyby in 2026. After it begins orbiting Jupiter in April 2030, the spacecraft will fly past Europa 49 times. “Congratulations to our Europa Clipper team for beginning the first journey to an ocean world beyond Earth,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “NASA leads the world in exploration and discovery, and the Europa Clipper mission is no different. By exploring the unknown, Europa Clipper will help us better understand whether there is the potential for life not just within our solar system, but among the billions of moons and planets beyond our Sun.” Approximately five minutes after liftoff, the rocket’s second stage fired up and the payload fairing, or the rocket’s nose cone, opened to reveal Europa Clipper. About an hour after launch, the spacecraft separated from the rocket. Ground controllers received a signal soon after, and two-way communication was established at 1:13 p.m. with NASA’s Deep Space Network facility in Canberra, Australia. Mission teams celebrated as initial telemetry reports showed Europa Clipper is in good health and operating as expected. “We could not be more excited for the incredible and unprecedented science NASA’s Europa Clipper mission will deliver in the generations to come,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Everything in NASA science is interconnected, and Europa Clipper’s scientific discoveries will build upon the legacy that our other missions exploring Jupiter — including Juno, Galileo, and Voyager — created in our search for habitable worlds beyond our home planet.” The main goal of the mission is to determine whether Europa has conditions that could support life. Europa is about the size of our own Moon, but its interior is different. Information from NASA’s Galileo mission in the 1990s showed strong evidence that under Europa’s ice lies an enormous, salty ocean with more water than all of Earth’s oceans combined. Scientists also have found evidence that Europa may host organic compounds and energy sources under its surface. If the mission determines Europa is habitable, it may mean there are more habitable worlds in our solar system and beyond than imagined. “We’re ecstatic to send Europa Clipper on its way to explore a potentially habitable ocean world, thanks to our colleagues and partners who’ve worked so hard to get us to this day,” said Laurie Leshin, director, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. “Europa Clipper will undoubtedly deliver mind-blowing science. While always bittersweet to send something we’ve labored over for years off on its long journey, we know this remarkable team and spacecraft will expand our knowledge of our solar system and inspire future exploration.” In 2031, the spacecraft will begin conducting its science-dedicated flybys of Europa. Coming as close as 16 miles (25 kilometers) to the surface, Europa Clipper is equipped with nine science instruments and a gravity experiment, including an ice-penetrating radar, cameras, and a thermal instrument to look for areas of warmer ice and any recent eruptions of water. As the most sophisticated suite of science instruments NASA has ever sent to Jupiter, they will work in concert to learn more about the moon’s icy shell, thin atmosphere, and deep interior. To power those instruments in the faint sunlight that reaches Jupiter, Europa Clipper also carries the largest solar arrays NASA has ever used for an interplanetary mission. With arrays extended, the spacecraft spans 100 feet (30.5 meters) from end to end. With propellant loaded, it weighs about 13,000 pounds (5,900 kilograms). In all, more than 4,000 people have contributed to Europa Clipper mission since it was formally approved in 2015. “As Europa Clipper embarks on its journey, I’ll be thinking about the countless hours of dedication, innovation, and teamwork that made this moment possible,” said Jordan Evans, project manager, NASA JPL. “This launch isn’t just the next chapter in our exploration of the solar system; it’s a leap toward uncovering the mysteries of another ocean world, driven by our shared curiosity and continued search to answer the question, ‘are we alone?’” More About Europa Clipper Europa Clipper’s three main science objectives are to determine the thickness of the moon’s icy shell and its interactions with the ocean below, to investigate its composition, and to characterize its geology. The mission’s detailed exploration of Europa will help scientists better understand the astrobiological potential for habitable worlds beyond our planet. Managed by Caltech in Pasadena, California, NASA JPL leads the development of the Europa Clipper mission in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The main spacecraft body was designed by APL in collaboration with NASA JPL and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The Planetary Missions Program Office at Marshall executes program management of the Europa Clipper mission. NASA’s Launch Services Program, based at NASA Kennedy, managed the launch service for the Europa Clipper spacecraft. Find more information about NASA’s Europa Clipper mission here: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/europa-clipper -end- Meira Bernstein / Karen FoxHeadquarters, Washington202-358-1600meira.b.bernstein@nasa.gov / karen.c.fox@nasa.gov Gretchen McCartneyJet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.818-287-4115gretchen.p.mccartney@jpl.nasa.gov
The newly operationalised Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) today announced the launch of first two of its initiatives– the Prime Minister Early Career Research Grant (PMECRG) and the Mission for Advancement in High-Impact Areas -Electric Vehicle (MAHA- EV) Mission.
While the PMECRG invites early career researchers to join the country’s transformative journey and contribute to the advancement of India’s scientific excellence and innovation, the MAHA- EV Mission is designed to build a robust research and development ecosystem for Electric Vehicle (EV) components particularly Battery Cells, Power Electronics, Machines, and Drives (PEMD) and Charging Infrastructure.
“As ANRF kickstarts its activities with the launch of two crucial initiative, both of them can play a transformative role in bridging the gap between academic research and industrial application, one of the key goals of ANRF. While PMECRG can boost the creativity, innovation, and excellence of early career researchers and accelerate India’s research-driven aspirations, the MAHA- EV Mission will support industry-aligned translational research in Electric Vehicles, an area of national priority,” said ANRF CEO, Professor Abhay Karandikar.
The operationalisation of the ANRF was initiated with the First Meeting of the Governing Board (GB) on September 10, 2024, which was chaired by the Hon’ble Prime Minister as the President of the Governing Board (GB).
The meeting discussed strategic interventions of ANRF which include global positioning of India in key sectors, aligning R&D with national priorities, promoting inclusive growth, capacity building, driving scientific advances and innovation ecosystem, as well as bridging the gap between academic research and industrial applications through industry-aligned translational research. The PMECRG and the MAHA-EV are the two first initiatives announced aligned with the discussions.
Prime Minister Early Career Research Grant(PMECRG)
The Grant is designed with a flexible budget and incorporates progressive initiatives to facilitate ease of research. It will foster high quality innovative research, enable researchers to expand knowledge boundaries, drive technological progress and contribute to positioning India as Global leader in S&T.
PMECRG reflects ANRF’s commitment to nurturing young researchers and by investing in early career researchers, it will help seed, grow, and foster a robust culture of research and innovation across India.
ANRF recognizes the pivotal role that early career researchers play in positioning India as a global leader in science and technology. By empowering these researchers, ANRF is committed to creating a vibrant research ecosystem that supports excellence and fosters groundbreaking discoveries.
Mission Electric Vehicle (EV) under Mission for Advancement in High-Impact Areas (MAHA) Scheme
The MAHA-EV mission focuses on the development of key EV technologies to reduce dependency on imports, promote domestic innovation, and position India as a global leader in the EV sector.
The MAHA- EV Mission is part of ANRF’s Advancement in High-Impact Areas (MAHA) program designed to catalyze multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary, and multi-investigator collaboration to tackle critical scientific challenges. It aligns with the government’s Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) vision and aims to accelerate technological advancement in key sectors that have a high impact on the nation’s future growth to create a global standing in the area.
Concentrating on three critical technology verticals– Tropical EV Batteries and Battery Cells, Power Electronics, Machines, and Drives (PEMD) and Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure, the mission will enhance domestic capabilities in the design and development of essential EV components.
It will strengthen competitiveness and position India as a hub for EV component development, driving global competitiveness and innovation. By accelerating the shift towards electric mobility, it will contribute to a greener and sustainable future.
The MAHA- EV Mission underscores ANRF’s commitment to fostering cutting-edge research and development that aligns with the nation’s priority areas and emerging technological frontiers.
By spearheading the EV-Mission, ANRF aims to build a vibrant R&D ecosystem that promotes innovation and collaboration across academic, research, and industrial sectors. This mission is expected to accelerate India’s progress towards a sustainable and technologically advanced future, contributing significantly to the government’s goal of achieving a Viksit Bharat by 2047.
Under the guidance of the Hon’ble Prime Minister, the foundation is set to implement numerous programs to bolster the country’s research ecosystem and accelerate scientific and technological advancements and the first two will serve as the initial steps for transformation of India’s R&D ecosystem.
Dr Jitendra Singh addresses 11th India Sweden Innovation Day; Calls for bilateral collaboration at multiple levels, including Govt to Govt, industry to industry and academia to academia
India climbing rapidly on innovation indices; In GII 2024, India ranks 1st among the 10 economies in Central and Southern Asia and 39th among the 133 economies: the Minister
Posted On: 14 OCT 2024 4:51PM by PIB Delhi
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Minister of State (I/C) for Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Space, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr Jitendra Singh has called for bilateral collaboration between India and Sweden at multiple levels. He said, Sweden is one of the global leaders in innovation. In Global Innovation Index (GII) 2024, Sweden ranks 2nd among the 39 economies in Europe and among the 133 global economies featured in the GII 2024.
Dr Jitendra Singh was addressing the 11th India Sweden Innovation Day (ISID) function. The theme for 2024 is “Accelerating Green Growth for Inclusive Transition”.
Informing the audience about the growth of the country in the field of innovation, Dr Jitendra Singh said, “India is climbing rapidly on innovation indices. In GII 2024, India ranks 1st among the 10 economies in Central and Southern Asia and 39th among the 133 economies, he said.
Similarly, on the other hand, the Union Minister noted that Sweden too is one of the global leaders in innovation. In Global Innovation Index (GII) 2024, Sweden ranks 2nd among the 39 economies in Europe and among the 133 global economies featured in the GII 2024, he said. He expressed hope that the country will certainly catch the top echelons of the world in the years to come.
Speaking about the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi aiming at global benchmarks in research and innovation, the Minister said, “Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has already announced the net zero carbon footprint target of 2070 and therefore I think India and Sweden can cooperate and collaborate at different levels both government as well as non-government sector.” There is a bundle of scope for the two nations for joint research calls to collaborate on deliverable research, academia, innovation and industrial entrepreneurship, including startups.
Speaking about strides in the sector, Dr Jitendra Singh mentioned, “I am also proud to note that over the last ten years, under the patronage of Prime Minister Shi Narendra Modi, there has been a special impetus and high prioritisation as far as science technology innovation is concerned. India Today is it in a position to claim to be a frontline nation in different areas, for example the space sector we plan to send a human being next year, the first human mission indigenously developed by India, and at the same time next year we hope to send on Indian human 6,000 metre deep as a part of the deep-sea mission.
Research & Innovation have been the important aspect of the flourishing India Sweden partnership. The 11th edition of ISID reflects the ongoing importance & success of our ongoing partnerships. The continued presence of the Minister at the ISID inauguration since 2021 is a strong signal of the importance attached by India to its innovation partnership with Sweden.
Several Indian and Swedish government agencies partnering and jointly funding these calls (eg. DST, DBT). That includes extensive and growing research cooperation between Indian and Swedish universities. Leading Swedish universities like Karolinska, KTH, Chalmers and others have ongoing cooperation with leading Indian universities. This can be further strengthened by involving the private sector also.
In addition, several Swedish companies carry out R&D and innovation in India. Alkem Laboratories, which is pioneering the high-tech medical devices segment, has partnered with Swedish company Biosergen for clinical trials of fungal diseases. There is also growing cooperation between research, education, government and private sector in India, including vaccines, digital public infrastructure and defence.
Use of Technology & innovative solutions scaling up Development interventions in the country, Dr Jitendra Singh said, “India and Sweden are strengthening partnership in green technology through initiatives like LeadIT 2.0, focusing on low-carbon industrial transitions, sustainable energy, and smart transport.” This collaboration, highlighted at COP28, supports green innovations in sectors like steel, cement, and aviation, aiming for net-zero emissions by 2050.
Venus Mission – Sweden has officially joined ISRO’s Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM). The Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) are collaborating on a Venus mission. The Swedish Institute of Space Physics (IRF) will provide ISRO with the Venusian Neutrals Analyser (VNA), a lightweight and low-power yet highly effective energetic neutral atom (ENA) analyser.
India’s active participation in several international Mega Science projects – capabilities of Indian scientists, engineers and companies. Going forward, the Minister said, “India, an unmatched source for Innovation, R&D and Talent and there is huge scope for bilateral collaboration for scalable, cost-effective development solutions for energy and health challenges.”
The event was well attended by senior officials, innovators, industry leaders and academia of the both countries, which was also addressed by Vice Prime Minister and Minister for Energy and Enterprise of Sweden Ms Ebba Busch. Ambassador of Sweden to India, Mr Jan Thesleff also took part through video conferencing.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is getting personal. Chatbots are designed to imitate human interactions, and the rise of realistic voice chat is leading many users to form emotional attachments or laugh along with virtual podcast hosts.
And that’s before we get to the really intimate stuff. Research has shown that sexual roleplaying is one of the most common uses of ChatGPT, and millions of people interact with AI-powered systems designed as virtual companions, such as such as Character.AI, Replika, and Chai.AI.
What does this mean for the future of (human) romance? The prospects are alarming.
Better be nice to your AI overlord
The most prominent AI companion service is Replika, which allows some 30 million users to create custom digital girlfriends (or boyfriends).
While early studies indicate most Replika users are male, Caucasian and under 30, other demographics are catching up. Male sex robots have been in the making for some years. And they’re more than just vibrators with integrated jar openers.
For a subscription fee, users can exchange intimate messages or pictures with their AI partners. Over half a million users had subscribed before Replika temporarily disabled its “erotic roleplay” module in early 2023, fearing regulatory backlash — a move that users dubbed “The Lobotomy.”
The Replika “lobotomy” highlights a key feature of virtual companions: their creators have complete control over their behaviour. The makers of apps can modify or shut down a user’s “partner” – and millions of others – at any moment. These systems also read everything users say, to tailor future interactions and, of course, ads.
AI is coming to the physical sexbot industry too. Shutterstock
However, these caveats don’t appear to be holding the industry back. New products are proliferating. One company, Kindroid, now offers voice chats with up to ten virtual companions simultaneously.
The digital world isn’t the limit either. Sex doll vendors such as Joy Love Dolls offer interactive real-life sexbots, with not only customisable skin colour and breast size, but also “complete control” of features including movement, heating, and AI-enabled “moans, squeals, and even flirting from your doll, making her a great companion”.
For now, virtual companions and AI sexbots remain a much smaller market than social media, with millions of users rather than billions. But as the history of the likes of Facebook, Google and Amazon has taught us, today’s digital quirks could become tomorrow’s global giants.
Towards ethically sourced AI girlfriends?
The availability of AI-driven relationships is likely to usher in all manner of ethically dubious behaviour from users who won’t have to face the real-world consequences.
Soon, you might satisfy any kink with your AI girlfriend for an extra fee. If your AI wife becomes troublesome, just ask the corporate overlord to deactivate her envy module — for a price, of course. Or simply delete her and start fresh with as many AI mistresses as you like in parallel.
The way people form relationships has already been disrupted by dating apps such as Tinder and Bumble.
What will happen if, in the future, people looking for love are competing against perfect synthetic lovers that are always available and horny? Well, at least they’ll be able to create virtual replicas of those hot dates they didn’t land.
And for those who lack the skills to create their own virtual companions, there will be plenty of off-the-shelf alternatives.
An ABC investigation revealed the use of generative AI to create fake influencers by manipulating women’s social media images is already widespread. This is generally done without consent to sell pornographic content. Much of this content depicts unattainable body ideals, and some depicts people who appear to be at best barely of consenting age.
Another likely application? Using AI sexbot technology to bring celebrities such as Marilyn Monroe and Clara Bow back to life. After all, dead people cannot deny consent anymore.
The potential for emotional manipulation by inventive catfishers and dictators is alarming. Imagine the havoc if figures like Russia’s Vladimir Putin or North Korea’s Kim Jong-un harness this technology to complement their nations’ already extensive cyber-espionage operations.
Perhaps before long we will see corporations offering “responsibly sourced” AI girlfriends for the more ethical consumer – organically grown from consensually harvested content, promoting socially acceptable smut.
Society and the state must act now
With loneliness rising to epidemic levels — surveys suggest up to one in four people in OECD countries lack human connection — the demand for sexbots is only going to grow. Corporations will meet this demand unless society and the state set clear boundaries on what’s acceptable.
Sex and technology have always co-evolved. Just as prostitution is “the oldest profession”, porn sites are some of the oldest corners of the internet. However, the dystopian potential of sexbots for mass-customised, corporate-controlled monetisation of our most intimate sphere is unprecedented.
Users aren’t entirely blameless, either. There’s something vicious about replacing a real human being with a totally submissive lust machine.
Early studies suggest narcissism is prevalent among users of this technology. Normalising harmful sexual behaviours such as rape, sadism or paedophilia is bad news for society.
However, going after users isn’t likely to be the best way to tackle the issue. We should treat sexbot use like other potentially problematic behaviours, such as gambling.
As with other problematic behaviours where the issue lies more with providers than users, it’s time to hold sexbot providers accountable. As our links to AI are growing ever more intimate, there’s not much time to waste.
Raffaele F Ciriello does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
For the final part in a series of articles on the next pandemic, we’ve asked a range of experts what Australia got right and wrong it its response to COVID. Here they share their thoughts on the country’s COVID response – and what we can learn for the next pandemic.
Quarantine
The federal government mandated 14 days of quarantine for all international arrivals between March 2020 and November 2021. During that period, 452,550 people passed through the system.
The states and Northern Territory were given just 48 hours to set up their quarantine systems. The states chose hotel quarantine, while the Northern Territory repurposed an old miner’s camp, Howard Springs, which had individual cabins with outdoor verandas. The ACT had very few international arrivals, while Tasmania only had hotel quarantine for domestic travellers.
During the first 15 months of the program, at least 22 breaches occurred in five states (New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia). An inquiry into Victoria’s hotel quarantine found the lack of warning and planning to set up the complex system resulted in breaches that caused Victoria’s second COVID wave of 2020, leading to almost 800 deaths. A breach at Sydney airport led to the introduction of the Delta variant into Australia.
In the next pandemic, mistakes from COVID need to be avoided. They included failure to protect hotel residents and staff from airborne transmission through ventilation and mask usage. Protocols need to be consistent across the country, such as the type of security staff used, N95 masks for staff and testing frequency.
These protocols need to be included in a national pandemic preparedness plan, which is frequently reviewed and tested through simulations. This did not occur with the pre-COVID preparedness plan.
Dedicated quarantine centres like Howard Springs already exist in Victoria and Queensland. Ideally, they should be constructed in every jurisdiction.
Michael Toole
Treatments
Scientists had to move quickly after COVID was discovered to find effective treatments.
Many COVID treatments involved repurposing existing drugs designed for other viruses. For example, the HIV drug ritonavir is a key element of the antiviral Paxlovid, while remdesivir was originally developed to treat hepatitis C.
At the outset of the pandemic, there was a lot of uncertainty about COVID treatment among Australian health professionals. To keep up with the rapidly developing science, the National Clinical Evidence Taskforce was established in March 2020. We were involved in its COVID response with more than 250 clinicians, consumers and researchers.
Unusually for evidence-based guidelines, which are often updated only every five years or so, the taskforce’s guidelines were designed to be “living” – updated as new research became available. In April 2020 we released the first guidelines for care of people with COVID, and over the next three years these were updated more than 100 times.
While health-care professionals always had access to up-to-date guidance on COVID treatments, this same information was not as accessible for the public. This may partly explain why many people turned to unproven treatments. The taskforce’s benefits could have been increased with funding to help the community understand COVID treatments.
COVID drugs faced other obstacles too. For example, changes to the virus itself meant some treatments became less effective as new variants emerged. Meanwhile, provision of antiviral treatments has not been equitable across the country.
COVID drugs have had important, though not game-changing, impacts. Ultimately, effective vaccines played a much greater role in shifting the course of the pandemic. But we might not be so fortunate next time.
In any future pandemic it will be crucial to have a clear pathway for rapid, reliable methods to develop and evaluate new treatments, disseminate that research to clinicians, policymakers and the public, and ensure all Australians can access the treatments they need.
Steven McGloughlin and Tari Turner, Monash University
Vaccine rollout
COVID vaccines were developed in record time, but rolling them out quickly and seamlessly proved to be a challenge. In Australia, there were several missteps along the way.
First, there was poor preparation and execution. Detailed planning was not finalised until after the rollout had begun.
Then the federal government had overly ambitious targets. For example, the goal of vaccinating four million people by the end of March 2021 fell drastically short, with less than one-fifth of that number actually vaccinated by that time.
There were also supply issues, with the European Union blocking some deliveries to Australia.
Unfortunately, the government was heavily reliant on the AstraZeneca vaccine, which was found, in rare cases, to lead to blood clots in younger people.
Despite all this, Australia ultimately achieved high vaccination rates. By the end of December 2021, more than 94% of the population aged 16 and over had received at least one dose.
This was a significant public health achievement and saved thousands of lives.
But over the past couple of years, Australia’s initially strong vaccine uptake has been waning.
The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation recommends booster doses for vulnerable groups annually or twice annually. However, only 30% of people aged 75 and over (for whom a booster is recommended every six months) have had a booster dose in the past six months.
There are several lessons to be learned from the COVID vaccine rollout for any future pandemic, though it’s not entirely clear whether they are being heeded.
For example, several manufacturers have developed updated COVID vaccines based on the JN.1 subvariant. But reports indicate the government will only be purchasing the Pfizer JN.1 booster. This doesn’t seem like the best approach to shore up vaccine supply.
Adrian Esterman, University of South Australia
Mode of transmission
Nearly five years since SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID) first emerged, we now know airborne transmission plays a far greater role than we originally thought.
In contrast, the risk of SARS-CoV-2 being transmitted via surfaces is likely to be low, and perhaps effectively non-existent in many situations.
Early in the pandemic, the role contaminated surfaces and inanimate objects played in COVID transmission was overestimated. The main reason we got this wrong, at least initially, was that in the absence of any direct experience with SARS-CoV-2, we extrapolated what we believed to be true for other respiratory viruses. This was understandable, but it proved to be inadequate for predicting how SARS-CoV-2 would behave.
One of the main consequences of overestimating the role of surface transmission was that it resulted in a lot of unnecessary anxiety and the adoption of what can only be viewed in retrospect as over-the-top cleaning practices. Remember the teams of people who walked the streets wiping down traffic light poles? How about the concern over reusable coffee cups?
Considerable resources that could have been better invested elsewhere were directed towards disinfecting surfaces. This also potentially distracted our focus from other preventive measures that were likely to have been more effective, such as wearing masks.
We now understand COVID spreads predominantly through the air. Kate Trifo/Pexels
The focus on surface transmission was amplified by a number of studies published early in the pandemic that documented the survival of SARS-CoV-2 for long periods on surfaces. However, these were conducted in the lab with little similarity to real-world conditions. In particular, the amounts of virus placed on surfaces were greater than what people would likely encounter outside the lab. This inflated viral survival times and therefore the perception of risk.
The emphasis on surface transmission early in the pandemic ultimately proved to be a miscalculation. It highlights the challenges in understanding how a new virus spreads.
Hassan Vally, Deakin University
National unity
Initially, Commonwealth, state and territory leaders were relatively united in their response to the COVID pandemic. The establishment of the National Cabinet in March 2020 indicated a commitment to consensus-based public health policy. Meanwhile, different jurisdictions came together to deliver a range of measures aimed at supporting businesses and workers affected by COVID restrictions.
But as the pandemic continued, tensions gave way to deeper ideological fractures between jurisdictions and individuals. The issues of vaccine mandates, border closures and lockdowns all created fragmentation between governments, and among experts.
This doesn’t necessarily mean identical legislation across the country – this won’t always be appropriate. But a cohesive, long-term approach is crucial to ensure the best outcomes for the Australian federation in its entirety.
Guzyal Hill and Kim M Caudwell, Charles Darwin University
Adrian Esterman receives funding from the NHMRC, MRFF and ARC.
Michael Toole receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council.
Steven McGloughlin works with the Australian Living Evidence Collaboration and is a consultant for the World Health Organisation Health Emergencies Program.
Tari Turner receives funding from MRFF; NHMRC; the Victorian, WA and Commonwealth governments; and philanthropy.
Guzyal Hill, Hassan Vally, and Kim M Caudwell do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
A century ago, French writer André Breton published a manifesto that would go on to become one of the most influential artistic texts of the 20th century. Breton’s Manifesto of Surrealism launched a movement that transformed not only visual art, but also literature, theatre and film.
Surrealism drew on developments in psychology to herald a revolutionary new way of doing, seeing and being. It is, as art critic Jonathan Jones once noted, “the only modern movement that changed the way we talk and think about life”.
Surrealism also fundamentally changed the way we make art. Its cultural impact and legacy can be felt in, to pluck three random examples, the cinematic dreamscapes of David Lynch, the lyrical cut-ups of Bob Dylan and the monumental sculptures of Louise Bourgeois.
The term itself has entered our everyday lexicon. By the same token, some question its significance and aestheticmerits. Moreover, to borrow a couple of rhetorical questions posed by Mark Polizzotti in a book marking the movement’s centenary: “Does Surrealism still matter? Has it ever mattered?”
These questions are hardly new. They’ve been around since the movement’s inception – and continue to be asked in our historical moment of catastrophe. As Polizzotti writes:
young people of the 21st century could hardly be faulted for wondering what a bunch of eccentric writers and artists showing off their dream states could have to do with such pressing concerns as social and racial injustice, a faltering job market, gross economic inequities, the decimation of our civil liberties, questions of gender identity and equality, environmental devastation, education reform, or, once again […] the spectre of world war.
The answer, Polizzotti points out, is simple: “Surrealism engaged with all of these crises.”
While Surrealism started as a literary movement, it quickly evolved into a formidable platform for critiquing dominant sociopolitical inequalities and systems of oppression.
In both word and deed, the surrealists opposed warmongering and colonial expansion. They railed against religious dogma and championed the freedom of sexual expression.
Breton perhaps put it best in 1935. “From where we stand,” he said, while tipping his hat to Karl Marx, “we maintain that the activity of interpreting the world must continue to be linked with the activity of changing the world.”
WWI and meeting Jacques Vaché
Born in Normandy in 1896, André Breton was the only child of a policeman and a seamstress.
While studying medicine, Breton developed an interest in mental illness. He also had a passion for poetry. At an early age, he started exchanging letters with the prominent avant-gardist Guillaume Apollinaire, who coined the term “surrealism” in 1917.
André Breton, a founder of the surrealist movement, died in Paris in 1966. Wikimedia
Breton’s interests were disrupted when he was conscripted into the French army in 1914. During World War I, he served as a stretcher bearer, dealing firsthand with shellshocked soldiers. He also worked as a nurse in Nantes, France, where he met a wounded Jacques Vaché.
According to art historian Susan Laxton, the dandyish Vaché was in equal measure “disdainful and deeply cynical”, seeming to live “in a perpetual state of insubordination”. His unconventional approach to life and creativity had a profound impact on Breton’s thinking about Surrealism.
Vaché had little patience for most writers and artists. He was, however, a big fan of Alfred Jarry – best known for his scandalous drama Ubu Roi (1896). Jarry is frequently cited as an influence on Dadaism, an anarchic art movement that was developed in Europe in 1915 and led by Tristan Tzara.
The Dadaists thumbed their noses at convention and embraced chaos, irrationality and spontaneity. As Tzara explained, Dadaism was vehemently opposed to “greasy objectivity, and harmony, the science that finds everything in order”.
Breton was impressed. Keen to establish his credentials as an artist, he set out to build his own avant-garde coalition.
The rise of automatism
Enlisting Louis Aragon and Philippe Soupault, Breton set up Littérature. Running from 1919 to 1924, this review published many key surrealist works, including excerpts of Breton and Soupault’s book The Magnetic Fields (1920).
Drawing on Sigmund Freud’s concept of the unconscious, this groundbreaking collaboration marked the first sustained use of a practice called surrealist automatism.
The Magnetic Fields was written in secret over the course of a single spring week in 1919. The guidelines Breton and Soupault established for themselves were simple. They would engage in writing sessions that could last for several hours at a time – often inducing a state of shared euphoria – without any chance for reflection or correction.
The aim was to bypass rational modes of thinking and tap directly into the imagination, thereby producing a revolutionary new kind of poetry. In the words of art historian David Hopkins, this practice “was predicated on the conviction that the speed of writing is equivalent to the speed of thought”.
Following this breakthrough, Breton and the surrealists continued to refine the technique, pushing it further into new, untrammelled realms of creative possibility. With the subsequent publication of the Manifesto of Surrealism, Breton solidified the movement’s core principles. In it, he offers a definition:
Surrealism is based on the belief in the superior reality of certain forms of previously neglected associations, in the omnipotence of dreams, in the disinterested play of thought. It tends to ruin once and for all all other psychic mechanisms and to substitute itself for them in solving all the principle problems of life.
In other words, Surrealism was not just an artistic endeavour, but a philosophical stance that sought to radically rethink experience and existence.
One example of early surrealist filmmaking.
Elsewhere in the manifesto, Breton introduces the key surrealist concept of “the marvellous”. For the surrealists, the marvellous could be found in poems, paintings, photographs and everyday objects. It was experienced as a shock or jolt, a moment of recognition that allowed one to transcend the ordinary and glimpse the sublime hidden within the apparently mundane.
By rejecting traditional modes of understanding and embracing the unconscious, the surrealists attempted to upend the established order of things. They viewed automatism and the marvellous as ways to access deeper truths, free from the constraints of rationality which they believed had long dominated Western thought.
A movement transcending borders
The events that followed the publication of Breton’s Manifesto of Surrealism supported his claim, made during a 1934 lecture, that the movement had “spread like wildfire, on pursuing its course, not only in art but in life”.
Surrealism’s public profile expanded internationally, along with its adherents. Luis Buñuel, Frida Kahlo, Aimé Césaire, Lee Miller, Salvador Dalí and Leonor Fini are just some of the important figures who embraced the movement.
Salvador Dalí’s 1931 painting The Persistence of Memory is one of the most famous surrealist artworks. Salvador Dali
And as the raft of high-profileexhibitions currently taking place confirms, the surrealist spirit lives on, decades after the movement wound down. Unabated, the search for the marvellous continues.
Alexander Howard does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Headline: ESPRIT module for Lunar Gateway orbital outpost set for a significant upgrade
Thales Alenia Space and ESA sign contract amendment to extend and optimize ESPRIT module
Milan, October 14, 2024 – Thales Alenia Space, the joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), has signed an amendment to its contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) to develop the ESPRIT[1] communications and refueling module for the future Lunar Gateway orbital outpost. Worth €164 million, the amendment provides for extending and optimizing the ESPRIT module for which Thales Alenia Space in France is the prime contractor, in collaboration with OHB, alongside Thales Alenia Space in Italy and in the UK.
The ESPRIT module is composed of two main elements: Lunar Link[2] will ensure communications between the Gateway and the Moon, while Lunar View[3] will supply the station with xenon and chemical propellants to extend its lifetime. Lunar View features a pressurized volume with six large windows, offering a 360° view on the outside of the Gateway and the Moon, and will include a logistics area for storing cargo and supplies intended for the crew.
This amendment to the ESPRIT contract provides for a significant increase in the size of Lunar View, which will now span 4.6 meters and be 6.4 meters long, with a total mass of 10 metric tons (versus 3.4 meters, 3 meters and 6 metric tons initially). This evolution is the result of NASA’s choice to launch Lunar View alongside a crewed Orion vehicle aboard the SLS Block 1B launcher, which offers more lift capacity than the launch vehicle previously planned.
In particular, the extended Lunar View will:
• Provide more storage space (6.5 m3) on-orbit and accommodate up to 1.5 metric tons of cargo at launch, thus reducing resupply flights to the Lunar Gateway;
• Enable installation of two attachment points to accommodate the Canadarm3 mobile robotic arm system, supplied by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), for operations such as inspecting, maintaining or repairing the Gateway, assisting astronauts during spacewalks, handling science experiments in lunar orbit, or catching spacecraft visiting the Gateway;
• House the avionics suite equipment (computer, etc.) inside the module for easier maintenance and to avoid extravehicular activities if repairs are required.
These upgrades will require all of Lunar View’s subsystems to be adapted, especially the electrical power and avionics subsystems and the software and crew interface equipment.
Lunar Link is scheduled to launch in 2026 with the HALO module, while Lunar View is planned for delivery in 2029 for launch a year later, on the Artemis V mission.
“I would like to thank ESA for supporting our industry and renewing its trust in our company’s expertise,” said Hervé Derrey, CEO of Thales Alenia Space. “Thanks to the perfect complementarity of our competences in Italy and in France, we are proud to be contributing our know-how to the Artemis program and to the Lunar Gateway orbital outpost, which are set to push the boundaries of lunar exploration and pave the way for future crewed deep-space exploration missions, with Mars in sight.”
This contract consolidates Thales Alenia Space’s key role in crewed and robotic exploration of the Moon and deep space. The company is supplying critical systems for the Orion capsule’s European Service Module (ESM) and is currently developing two more pressurized modules for the Lunar Gateway: the Lunar International Habitat module (I-HAB) for ESA and the Habitation and Logistics Outpost (HALO) for Northrop Grumman. Thales Alenia Space has also signed a major contract with the Italian space agency ASI to launch the project to build the very first lunar Multi-Purpose Habitat (MPH).
Industrial contributions to the ESPRIT module
Thales Alenia Space in France is the program prime contractor. Thales Alenia Space in Italy is supplying the pressurized tunnel and windows and Thales Alenia Space in the UK is contributing to the chemical propellant refueling system, while OHB – as a main team member – is in charge of the mechanical and thermal subsystems for the non-pressurized parts of the module and the xenon refueling system. Thales Alenia Space in Belgium was selected after competitive bidding to supply the Remote Interface & Distribution Unit for Lunar Link and the Traveling Wave Tube Amplifiers. Thales Alenia Space in Spain will develop the S-band communication transponder and Thales Alenia Space in Italy the K-band transponder.
A cislunar orbital station
The Lunar Gateway orbital outpost is one of the pillars of NASA’s Artemis program to establish a sustained human presence on the Moon as a staging post for future interplanetary exploration missions. This program is an international collaboration between NASA (United States), ESA (Europe), JAXA (Japan) and CSA (Canada). The 40-metric-ton station will be assembled in space and placed in an elliptical lunar orbit. It will be equipped with a robotic arm and docking ports, and made up of habitation modules to accommodate long-duration crewed missions and provide electrical power, propulsion, logistics and communications. While not designed to be manned permanently, it will be able to support up to four astronauts for one to three months. Acquiring new experience on and around the Moon will prepare NASA to send the first humans to Mars in the years ahead, and the Lunar Gateway is set to play a vital role in this endeavor.
ABOUT THALES ALENIA SPACE
Drawing on over 40 years of experience and a unique combination of skills, expertise and cultures, Thales Alenia Space delivers cost-effective solutions for telecommunications, navigation, Earth observation, environmental management, exploration, science and orbital infrastructures. Governments and private industry alike count on Thales Alenia Space to design satellite-based systems that provide anytime, anywhere connections and positioning, monitor our planet, enhance management of its resources and explore our Solar System and beyond. Thales Alenia Space sees space as a new horizon, helping to build a better, more sustainable life on Earth. A joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), Thales Alenia Space also teams up with Telespazio to form the parent companies’ Space Alliance, which offers a complete range of services. Thales Alenia Space posted consolidated revenues of approximately €2.2 billion in 2023. Thales Alenia Space has around 8,600 employees in 9 countries, with 16 sites in Europe and a plant in the US.
Acting on specific intelligence, officers of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) busted a factory which was engaged in illegal manufacture of Mephedrone (a psychotropic substance under NDPS Act, 1985) located in the Industrial Area of Meghnagar, Dist. Jhabua, Madhya Pradesh in the early hours of 12-10-2024.
The operation resulted in the seizure of 36 kg of Mephedrone in powder form and 76 kg of liquid Mephedrone, worth Rs. 168 crore, and other raw materials and equipment. The factory, which was being illegally used for the manufacture of drugs, was also sealed.
Four individuals, including the director of the factory, have been arrested for illegal manufacturing and storing of Mephedrone.
The representative samples drawn out of manufactured drugs were sent to Forensics Science Laboratory for preliminary testing. The lab confirmed the presence of Mephedrone in the samples.
DRI busts a factory in Meghnagar, Jhabua, MP, and seizes 112 Kg of Mephedrone (a psychotropic substance under NDPS Act, 1985) worth Rs 168 Cr. Four persons, including the director of the company, arrested. pic.twitter.com/koYQXBNoXg
Source: United States Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore)
October 14, 2024
Washington D.C.—U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced a federal investment of $37 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to replace lead and copper water pipes across Oregon that have been known to cause serious health issues.
“The science is clear – there is no safe level of lead in drinking water,” Wyden said. “I am very grateful to see more than $37 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law ensure that Oregonians always have access to clean drinking water in our schools, homes, and places of work. This funding proves that investing in infrastructure means investing in the health and wellbeing of Oregonians for generations to come.”
“Oregonians in every corner of the state should be able to turn on their tap without fear of lead contamination in their drinking water,” Merkley said. “These federal funds will allow for the replacement of lead pipes around the state and improve our water infrastructure systems—a top concern I hear about in the town halls I hold in every county in Oregon. I’ll continue to do all I can ensure every community in Oregon and across the U.S. has reliable access to safe, clean drinking water.”
The federal investment is through the Environmental Protection Agency’s Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, and is intended to help replace all lead water pipes from Oregon’s water supply within the next 10 years.
Wyden and Merkley have long been champions for more resources to address aging water infrastructure. In May, Wyden and Merkley announced $5.5 million to replace aging water delivery infrastructure in communities across Oregon. In addition, the senators have supported water pollution monitoring and wastewater upgrade projects for communities and tribes across Oregon. As chair of the Energy and Natural Resources’ Subcommittee on Water and Power, Wyden helped lead a coordinated set of hearings last year on drinking water issues to identify the federal and state jurisdictional areas that prevent addressing aging water infrastructure.
Scientists have found a green and efficient chemical process for preparing amides directly from alcohol using a Covalent Organic Framework (COF) based photocatalyst that can revolutionize industrial manufacturing of pharmaceuticals and synthetic materials.
Amides are essential in chemistry, serving as key components in a wide range of organic compounds, including proteins, pharmaceuticals, and synthetic materials. Traditional amide synthesis methods often require high temperatures and harsh conditions, leading to significant environmental impact and inefficiency. These conventional approaches typically involve transition metal catalysts and generate substantial waste, prompting the need for more sustainable alternatives.
Researchers from S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, an autonomous Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), have introduced a novel method for synthesizing amides from alcohols using a Covalent Organic Framework (COF) as a photocatalyst under red light irradiation. This catalytic method can be helpful in chemical processes across various industries, including pharmaceutical manufacturing, materials science, and green chemistry – offering a more sustainable, efficient, and recyclable approach to creating vital chemical structures.
The advantages of this method include mild reaction conditions, high efficiency, excellent recyclability, and the practicality of red-light activation, which is less harmful and penetrates more effectively, making it suitable for large-scale applications. Additionally, the tolerance of COFs to various functional groups broadens their applicability to challenging substrates, such as secondary amides, which are difficult to synthesize using traditional catalysts.
The newly developed method uses the redox-active TTT-DHTD COF, which has been designed with high-density organic moieties, namely dithiophenedione, which is crucial for trapping photogenerated electrons (Scheme 1). This feature enables the COF to efficiently facilitate hydrogen atom abstraction reactions. The ability of the COF to absorb light across the visible spectrum, coupled with its narrow band gap, makes it particularly effective for generating excitons, which are essential for dehydrogenative coupling reactions. Upon red light absorption, the COF undergoes a photochemical reaction that generates excited states capable of initiating the dehydrogenation of alcohols, resulting in amide formation through coupling with amines. The process benefits from the stability and recyclability of COFs, making it a robust catalyst for repeated use.
The implications of this research are significant. In the pharmaceutical industry, this method could streamline drug production, reduce costs, and eliminate metal contamination. In materials science, it could enable the development of new polymers and materials with amide linkages, expanding the range of materials for various applications. Further research may optimize the COF structure for even better performance and stability, and scaling up the process for industrial applications will be crucial to realizing its full potential.
Scheme 1.Scheme of synthesis of amides using covalent organic frameworks as heterogeneous photocatalysts.
The development of the TTT-DHTD COF-catalysed method for sustainable and green amide synthesis marks a significant advancement in chemical catalysis. By combining mild reaction conditions, efficient light activation, and excellent recyclability, this approach addresses many limitations of traditional methods and paves the way for more sustainable and efficient chemical processes. As research progresses, the impact of this breakthrough could extend across multiple industries, driving progress toward greener and more effective chemical synthesis.
The 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics has been awarded to three US-based economists who examined the advantages of democracy and the rule of law, and why they are strong in some countries and not others.
Daron Acemoglu is a Turkish-American economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Simon Johnson is a British economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and James Robinson is a British-American economist at the University of Chicago.
The citation awards the prize “for studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity”, making it an award for research into politics and sociology as much as economics.
At a time when democracy appears to be losing support, the Nobel committee has rewarded work that demonstrates that, on average, democratic countries governed by the rule of law have wealthier citizens.
The committee says the richest 20% of the world’s countries are now around 30 times richer than the poorest 20%. Moreover, the income gap is persistent; although the poorest countries have become richer, they are not catching up with the most prosperous.
Acemoglu, Johnson and Robinson have connected this difference to differences in institutions, and they find this derives from differences in the behaviour of European colonisers in different parts of the world centuries ago.
The denser the indigenous population, the greater the resistance that could be expected and the fewer European settlers moved there. On the other hand, the large indigenous population – once defeated – ofered lucrative opportunities for cheap labour.
This meant the institutions focused on benefiting a small elite at the expense of the wider population. There were no elections and limited political rights.
In the places that were more sparsely populated and offered less resistance, more colonisers settled and established inclusive institutions that incentivised hard work and led to demands for political rights.
The committee says, paradoxically, this means the parts of the colonised world that were the most prosperous around 500 years ago are now relatively poor. Prosperity was greater in Mexico under the Aztecs than it was at the same time in the part of North America that is now called Canada and the United States.
More so than in previous years, this year’s winners have written for the public as well as the profession. Acemoglu and Robinson are probably best known for their 2013 best-seller Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty.(It has pictures and no equations.)
In May this year Acemoglu wrote about artificial intelligence, putting forward the controversial position that its effects on productivity would be “nontrivial but modest”, which is another way of saying “tiny”. Its effect on wellbeing might be even smaller and it was unlikely to reduce inequality.
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
This year’s award makes the cohort of Nobel winners a little less US-dominated.
Although all three are currently working at American universities, Acemoglu is from Turkey and the others are British. There is even an Australian link. Robinson taught economics at The University of Melbourne between 1992 and 1995.
Winning the prize is life-changing for more reasons than the 11 million Swedish kroner (about $A 1.5 million) the winners share. As Nobel winners, they will have a higher profile. Their opinions will be accorded more respect by most but not all.
The new winners might get the same treatment. Johnson has critiqued Trump’s proposal to raise tariffs. Acemoglu has called Trump “a threat to democracy”.
John Hawkins does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Good morning everybody. Thank you for inviting me to join you here today. It’s great to be back here at the Academia. It is my pleasure to join you for the 10th anniversary celebration of the Duke-NUS Centre of Regulatory Excellence (CoRE).
2. One of the advantages of having been to many gatherings and meetings, such as scientific meetings, academic meetings, government regulatory meetings, you start to have the ability to have a feel for the community. You have a little bit of a sense, if this is one of those places where tech startups are exchanging cards because everyone’s trying to introduce themselves. Or is this community of practice which has been together with deep respect, and a deep understanding of each other’s contributions in the academic, scientific, and policy areas. I was asking Professor John Lim earlier this morning: “How long have you all been together?” Because there is a palpable sense of a community of practice, of professionals with deep expertise who have met each other over many meals, over many years, and flown not just halfway around the world, but all the way around the world, to be together. I had that sense of privilege walking in this morning that this is a community of professionals who have been working together for many years and understanding the importance of the work that you do, the effect that you will have on our healthcare systems.
3. CoRE was established as an academic centre at Duke-NUS Medical School with support from the Singapore Ministry of Health (MOH), Health Sciences Authority (HSA) and Economic Development Board (EDB) to promote regulatory capacity development and innovation in Southeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific. Officially inaugurated in November 2014, this is the first Centre in the region that focuses on promoting regulatory excellence for healthcare regulators and industry. A panel of international regulatory experts forms the CoRE Advisory Board that oversees the governance of the Centre, many of whom are current or former chief officials of their respective regulatory agencies. Some of them in the audience today.
4. Over the past decade, CoRE has become an important player in Singapore’s healthcare landscape. You have made significant strides in advancing regulatory science, not only in Singapore but also across ASEAN and the Asia-Pacific. Through your capacity building, thinktank and advisory initiatives, CoRE has become a trusted partner in a wide collaborative network to actively coordinate and strengthen regulatory systems, comprising international and regional regulatory authorities, industry, non-governmental organisations and academic institutions.
5. The Centre also supports MOH and HSA in building up the healthcare regulatory ecosystem, and more recently, advocating the convergence of products and services regulation to enhance healthcare systems’ efficiency. By bringing together key stakeholders and fostering collaboration among healthcare regulators, CoRE has created a platform for the exchange of knowledge and best practices.
Future of Health – Digitalisation and Precision Medicine
6. As we celebrate these achievements, and there are many, we must also anticipate the challenges on the horizon. Singapore’s healthcare landscape is undergoing fundamental changes, driven by demographic shifts and our evolving healthcare needs. To meet these changes, we are embracing digital health and precision medicine technologies. We will innovate to improve population health and ensure the sustainability of our healthcare system. This shift in our healthcare regulations will also be needed to keep pace with innovation and to continue our commitment to patient safety and welfare. Our goal is to create a regulatory framework that acts as a catalyst for progress, not a barrier to it.
7. The challenges, whether it’s our demographic shifts, evolving needs, the tensions and trade-offs within our approach to what we do within the regulatory space, underscores the need for regulators to be innovative and also prudent. We want to maximise the benefits of new technologies and safeguard against the risks. HSA already regulates Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Medical Devices and MOH has issued the national AI in Healthcare guidelines. This is a space where you can see that there are potential significant transformative benefits just around the corner, but there are already extant risks that we need to safeguard against, to shore up public trust and to make sure these tools are deployed in the clinical spaces. And so we publish these guidelines and they lay out good practices for AI developers and influencers, and we’re revising this to account for newer technologies such as generative AI. We intend to provide unified guidance for AI developers, service implementers and healthcare professionals on the safe development of AI in healthcare.
8. With increasing use of precision medicine technologies, we may encounter ethical dilemmas in the potential misuse of genetic test information, for example, in insurance underwriting. To address this, MOH has worked with the Life Insurance Association to put in place a Moratorium on Genetic Testing and Insurance. It sets out specific protections over the use and disclosure of genetic test results, to prevent Singaporeans from being deterred from undergoing genetic testing which can be vital and useful for early detection, prevention and management of genetic conditions.
9 The challenges that I described transcend borders and they make international collaboration amongst regulators essential. Through exchanging best practices and developing partnerships for regulatory harmonisation, we can collectively have regulatory frameworks that are nimble, forward looking, and adaptable to rapid technological advancements.
Nimble and Forward-Thinking Regulatory Framework
10 MOH collaborates with agencies such as the European Partnership for Supervisory Organisations in Health Services and Social Care (EPSO) and HealthAI. We also collaborate with CoRE to strengthen training in healthcare services regulations with ASEAN countries.
11 CoRE is focused on advancing regulatory science and policy in healthcare, both domestically and regionally, through capacity building, thought leadership and fostering collaboration.
12 To grow domestic capability in healthcare regulation, CoRE has launched key educational initiatives, including the flagship Graduate Certificate programme in health products regulation covering pharmaceutical and medical technology regulations. It also supports regional capacity building through the Asian Development Bank Projects in the Greater Mekong Subregion. By identifying regulatory gaps and conducting in-country capacity-building workshops in Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Indonesia, CoRE is helping to shape more effective regulatory environments.
13 CoRE also facilitates joint initiatives research projects and roundtables for collaboration between academia, industry and international partners. One example is the CoRE Standards Development Organisation, set up in partnership with Enterprise Singapore, which manages over 60 Singapore Standards and Technical References in the biomedical and healthcare domains, ensuring alignment with global standards.
CoRE’s Role in the Next Decade
14 Regulatory innovation will play a part to shape the future of biomedical science and healthcare and delivery. The diverse topics covered at this conference – ranging from AI and digital health to healthy ageing and disease prevention – highlight the complexity of the challenges that face us. Working together, we can develop regulations that are robust, forward-looking and conducive to both access and innovation.
15 We have with us regulators from around the world, the Asia-Pacific region and Africa, alongside experts from the Ministry’s Regulatory Advisory Panel. Surely, with this brain trust that you have brought together, and the concentration of capability, expertise and experience, this professional community that has been working together to develop these big relationships, can effectively address these challenges and shape the future of healthcare regulation. Our partnerships will shape the next chapter of healthcare regulation, and so it’s my pleasure to declare this conference open.
NREL Empowers Next Generation of Globally Minded Scientists To Solve Global Energy Challenges
In the afterglow of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, it is worth remembering that athletic feats are not the only endeavors that resonate across international borders.
Shifting to clean energy means addressing some of the most difficult technical challenges the world has faced—making collaboration key. It means investing in our future leaders and providing them opportunities to encounter new ideas, develop new skills, and become globally aware scientists.
“Tackling the global threat of climate change will require a unified global effort, yet effective international collaboration remains as challenging as it is important,” said Steven Hayden, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) microscopist and postdoctoral-researcher liaison. “Diversity is a critical human strength. By exposing our postdocs—tomorrow’s leaders—to a variety of worldviews and collaborative methods, we foster the global community necessary to secure our collective future.”
At NREL, investing in postdocs and early-career researchers as global leaders starts by supporting them in attending international convenings, conferences, and summer schools. These are venues where they build professional networks, discover job opportunities, exchange ideas, and act as NREL ambassadors to the global energy research community.
This summer, NREL postdocs and early-career staff participated in multiple events around the globe, including in Italy, Indonesia, Singapore, and stateside in Golden, Colorado, just down the road from NREL’s South Table Mountain Campus. In some cases, postdocs were competitively selected to attend.
In Indonesia, RD20, an initiative among Group of 20 (G20) countries and regions to strengthen international collaborations among leading energy-research institutes, hosted its second annual summer school in summer 2024.
Jacob Cordell (left) and Alex Hill (right) pose in front of an Indonesian presidential palace, Bogor Palace, at the Bogor Botanical Gardens, which they visited during the 2024 RD20 summer school. Photo from Alex Hill, NREL
“This is an opportunity for graduate students, postdocs, and early-career researchers to get exposure to and even get involved with international research and development collaboration,” said NREL Associate Laboratory Director Bill Tumas, who sits on the RD20 action committee. “These events enable the next generation of our scientific workforce to gain an appreciation for the diversity of solutions and approaches for clean energy technologies.”
Four NREL postdocs and early-career researchers participated in the RD20 organization’s summer school in 2024. The next summer school will be held at NREL in 2025.
“We do world-class research, but going to the summer school made me realize that an integral piece of world-class research is interacting with the world,” said NREL postdoc Alex Hill, reflecting on his experience at the RD20 summer school. “I think that is something I want to try to take forward in my research: How can I engage community stakeholders more in the day-to-day operations of what I do?”
Postdoc Diego Soetrisno, another RD20 summer school participant, said that the opportunity reinforced the value of contextualizing one’s own fundamental research amid an ongoing global exchange of ideas.
“I did my Ph.D. doing really fundamental work, but there’s a gap between my fundamental work and context with the larger picture,” Soetrisno said. “This summer school experience has given me more understanding of the really large picture of decarbonization technology. But it is also trying to bring my work in context with other people’s work. Without that communication, my work would not be able to really influence other people.”
Below are short descriptions and lists of participants in international convenings this summer. Congrats to this year’s participants!
Barga, Italy—Electronic Processes in Organic Materials Gordon Research Conference
The Electronic Processes in Organic Materials Gordon Research Conference focused on advancing the frontiers of science by having participants present cutting-edge and unpublished research, prioritizing time for discussion after each talk, and fostering informal interactions among scientists of all career stages.
NREL participants:
Nick Hight-Huf, postdoctoral researcher
Bryon Larson, researcher
Max O’Connor, graduate student
Garry Rumbles, senior research fellow.
South Tangerang, Indonesia—RD20 Summer School
Photo from Alex Hill, NREL
The2024 RD20 summer schoolwas titled “Diversity of Knowledge on Decarbonization in Just Energy Transition Mechanism,” providing an opportunity for young researchers from G20 countries to deepen their knowledge and skills in the field of decarbonization. Event themes were broad, ranging from life-cycle assessments, circular economy, and smart grids to biomass resources, energy storage, and hydrogen production and utilization.
NREL participants:
Anthony Burrell, research advisor
Birdie Carpenter, researcher
Jacob Cordell, analyst
Randy Cortright, research advisor
Alex Hill, postdoctoral researcher
Prashant Saini, postdoctoral researcher
Diego Soetrisno, postdoctoral researcher
Bill Tumas, associate laboratory director.
Golden, Colorado, USA—International School for Materials for Energy and Sustainability 2024
Photo from Dave Ginley, NREL
The International School for Materials for Energy and Sustainability 2024—another annual event—brought together Ph.D. students and postdocs to review and actively discuss/debate state-of-the-art and future perspectives for materials as they can be applied to energy generation and storage for a sustainable global energy infrastructure.
NREL participants:
Zachary Binger, postdoctoral researcher
Sakshi Gautam, former NREL postdoctoral researcher
Tito Mboweni, former South African Reserve Bank Governor, Minister of Finance, and Minister of Labour was arguably one of the country’s most consequential economic policymakers and drove several significant economic
reforms.
He began his career in government as Minister of Labour in President Nelson Mandela’s 1994 administration. As the first Minister of Labour in the new democratic South Africa, he took several steps to improve the relationship between business and labour.
Among these were major legislative reforms, including the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, Labour Relations Act, Mines Health Safety Act and the NEDLAC Act, designed to improve cooperation between different “constituencies” – labour, business, and government.
He was appointed as the Eighth Governor of the South African Reserve Bank in
1999. In this role he introduced inflation targeting and presided over the first monetary policy committee meetings. This substantially modernised the Bank’s approach. For instance, Mboweni introduced a monetary policy statement outlining the reasons for the Bank’s decisions. These were televised, bringing new transparency to the conduct of monetary policy. Before this, the bank’s targeted monetary policy aggregates, and its communications, were made through printed documents.
Monetary Policy Forums took monetary policy to many parts of the country, bringing a new openness and engagement between the Bank and ordinary South Africans.
He held the position of Governor until 2009. But his legacy endures. The South African Reserve Bank is highly regarded across the world, with an inflation rate that is firmly within the target range and well-anchored inflation expectations.
As finance minister
Shortly after Cyril Ramaphosa was inaugurated as President of the Republic of South Africa in 2018, the then Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene resigned. The President appointed Mboweni as Minister of Finance in October 2018.
Mboweni made three consequential decisions in South Africa’s economic policy
trajectory.
The first was the decision, in 2019, to freeze government wages from 2020. He was alarmed by the rapid and unsustainable increase in government wages. Together with slowing economic growth, this led to a fiscal position that was deteriorating at an alarming pace. The wage freeze ultimately started the slow return to the fiscal rectitude that had been the hallmark of the period of government before Jacob Zuma became president in 2009.
The second, also in 2019, was the publication of a paper on economic growth. It was known officially as “Economic transformation, inclusive growth, and competitiveness: Towards an Economic Strategy for South Africa”.
Other recommendations of the paper are being followed, including those for rail, telecommunications and ports.
The third was the introduction of a comprehensive response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This included a significant expansion of the grants system, with a Social Relief of Distress grant pegged at R350 per person per month. Research by the NIDS-CRAM initiative, led by Dr Nic Spaull of Stellenbosch University, has highlighted how the grant positively affected millions of people’s lives.
Enduring legacy
It is difficult to think of any other economic policymaker who has left such an enduring legacy.
Stellenbosch University awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2010 and appointed him Professor Extraordinary of Economics from 2002 to 2005 . He was a frequent participant at Bureau for Economic Research conferences. There, his engaging speaking style made him a popular drawcard.
His love of red wine and engaging conversation made him a popular visitor at the university. In 2010, he spent time at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Studies as part of a research group working on the global financial crisis and its consequences for democracy.
This is an edited version of a tribute published by the Bureau for Economic Research, Stellenbosch University.
Roy Havemann is a senior economist at the Bureau for Economic Research where he leads the Impumelelo Economic Growth Lab. He was previously at the National Treasury where, amongst other things, he was Tito Mboweni’s speechwriter.
I am delighted to be here with you today, at this wonderful location, visiting this wonderful country – one of the cradles of world civilisation and culture.
The Reserve Bank of India is currently celebrating its foundation 90 years ago. My heartfelt congratulations to all members of staff on this anniversary! Last year, Indian real-time payment systems processed about 129 billion digital transactions.[1] This means that 84% of electronic payment transactions took place in real time. During the same period, only about 19% of electronic payments worldwide were real-time transactions. In my view, this is impressive evidence of the excellent work the RBI has accomplished over the last few years.
Payment systems and their cross-border interaction are also an important topic at this conference. This is because cross-border payments are an integral part of our globalised world. Historically, from the Renaissance to modern times, correspondent banks have acted as the bedrock for cross-border payment transactions.[2] However, even today, transferring funds by means of correspondent banking is often slow, involves many steps and may result in high and non-transparent fees.
Moreover, in the last two decades, correspondent banking has been subject to a downward trend, mainly due to increasingly strict compliance requirements. Between 2011 and 2022, the number of active correspondents decreased by roughly one third, while the value of cross-border payments increased by almost 40%.[3] Obviously, this is an alarming trend in terms of market competition.
To some extent, technical progress might be able to compensate for a tighter correspondent banking market. In particular, in the last decade, a number of FinTech companies have provided new opportunities to streamline cross-border payments using innovative methods like blockchain and digital wallets.The FinTech revolution focused on private money. However, it now appears there may be another revolution on the horizon – this time involving payments in central bank money: the introduction of central bank digital currencies (CBDC).
In my talk, I would like to address CBDC developments with a particular focus on cross-border payments. First, I will outline some general points about the potential impact and benefits of the introduction of CBDC for processing cross-border transactions. Second, I will aim to highlight this topic in the context of the Eurosystem’s work on a digital euro – the envisaged European retail CBDC.
2 CBDCs and cross-border payments
Given that there are correspondent banks and FinTechs working on digital innovations as well, let me begin with a question. What would be the additional benefits of CBDCs in the area of digital payments? The introduction of CBDCs would facilitate a setup of new infrastructures for digital payments. On the one hand, this makes high initial investment necessary. On the other hand, once a CBDC is established with its new infrastructure, it could catalyse broad improvements in payment systems, including cross-border transactions – by introducing new message standards and shorter process chains, for example.[4]
Starting on a green field may be one major advantage of CBDCs. Experience shows that, in particular, implementing common standards is not an easy task. Take ISO 20022, for example.[5] The International Organisation for Standardisation proposed this common standard for financial messages in cross-border payments in 2004. It will be probably more widely used in payment systems on a global level next year – 21 years after the initial proposal. This period feels even longer when you think of all the innovations that have taken place in the meantime – the first iPhone was presented in 2007, the concept of a decentralised blockchain in 2008.
However, to be able to reap the benefits for cross-border payment, interoperability between CBDCs must be ensured early on. To this end, central banks should already begin to consider the best ways for interaction in the planning phase. In my view, we have a historic opportunity to vastly improve cross-border transactions by making different CBDCs interoperable from the very beginning.
Indeed, a number of projects are already researching the best ways of making CBDCs interoperable. For instance, the Bank for International Settlement (BIS) Innovation Hub in Singapore and a number of national central banks in the Indo-Pacific region set up Project Dunbar to explore how a common platform for CBDCs could enable cheaper, faster and safer cross-border payments.[6]
I am strongly in favour of a multilateral approach in this area, because this best serves the interests of all participants. If central banks proceed in a largely unilateral way instead, we not only risk inefficiencies, but also undesirable interferences. Consider a scenario in which a CBDC is made available for holders abroad in a unilateral way. In such a case, we could see currency substitution or appreciation pressure for the domestic currency. Also, the balance sheet of the CBDC emitting central bank could strongly expand. A knock-on effect may be that domestic monetary policy in countries that suffer from increased currency substitution becomes less effective. By contrast, a multilateral approach including reasonable holding limits could mitigate these risks.
Meanwhile, the RBI has made valuable contributions to the topic of retail CBDC. The digital rupee based on blockchain technology was launched on 1 December 2022. It is issued by the central bank and distributed by commercial banks. As I understand it, the RBI intends to tap the potential for using CBDCs in cross-border payments as well.
3 A digital euro: The cross-border dimension
In the Eurosystem, we expect a digital euro to be launched in just a few years’ time. The primary goal of a digital euro is meet the domestic needs of the euro area. To some extent, however, this goal already includes a significant cross-border dimension. Let me explain what I mean by that. A quarter century on from the introduction of the euro, there is still no single pan-European solution for digital payments when people go shopping in stores or online. This means there is a risk that traditional cashless payment solutions offered by private European payment service providers will not match customer needs.
To be fair, some euro area Member States have successfully implemented innovative digital solutions in the area of payments – I am thinking, for example, of the online payment system iDEAL in the Netherlands or Bizum Wallet in Spain. However, such payment solutions by themselves usually only function within national borders. Promising initiatives have been underway in recent years to widen the scope of these solutions. For example, iDEAL was successfully acquired by the European Payments Initiative, a company founded by several European banks and financial services companies. This initiative seeks to create a truly pan-European payment solution in the near to medium term.
This shows that the European payments sector has made meaningful progress; however, there are challenges further ahead. International payment providers, particularly those offering credit card schemes, still heavily dominate the European market for payment services – and even more when it comes to payments abroad.
A digital euro would be a major step forward in this context. It would provide a standardised digital means of payment for day-to-day transactions throughout the euro area. Despite the need for a more integrated payment system, we are determined to prevent the Eurosystem’s footprint in the European financial system from becoming too large. We are therefore planning to issue a digital euro, but not to distribute it. This means that banks and other payment providers should assume the role of the CBDC interface between the Eurosystem and the customers.
The euro area currently consists of 20 Member States, each of which has its own banking system with its own unique features. Against this background, I am sure you can imagine the overall complexity of our task. Therefore, our current focus is on making the digital euro accessible for all users within the euro area. We are investing great effort in our work on this, and we are constantly explaining what we do and why we do it, not least because a number of people are sceptical of CBDCs.
Once we have accomplished a digital euro for all users within the euro area, it will, in my view, be worth considering making it accessible to users outside the euro area as well. Rules for geographical access to a digital euro will be set down in legislation. If European legislation allows, access to a digital euro can also be granted to consumers and firms in the Member States of the European Economic Area outside the euro area. Selected non-EU countries can be included as well.[7]
Ideally, the D€ would be interoperable with other CBDCs from the very start, for example, for person-to-person payments or commercial payments from or to firms outside the euro area. However, this is currently a vision for the future, since, as already mentioned, we first have to overcome numerous challenges to establish a retail digital euro that works within the euro area.
4 Concluding remarks
Let me conclude. So far, CBDCs are newcomers to the world of payment systems. We can only estimate how large a role they will end up playing in payment transactions. This is all the more true when it comes to cross-border payments.
The scepticism about CBDCs in many quarters is not uncommon for many technological innovations. For example, in the early 1980s, “computerphobia” was a widespread phenomenon.[8] This took a wide range of forms, even fear of physically touching a computer or feeling threatened by those who worked with them. Today, this may seem very strange to us. Computers have since become an essential day-to-day tool for us.
And so we will continue our efforts to implement CBDCs. I am confident that this will ultimately make our payment systems better, faster and more efficient.
Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh interacts with students from J&K on Bharat Darshan tour; He advises them to imbibe new technologies and learn about new StartUp avenues for better future
Posted On: 13 OCT 2024 6:25PM by PIB Delhi
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Minister of State (I/C) for Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Space, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr Jitendra Singh today hosted a luncheon interaction with students from Jammu & Kashmir. These children are in Delhi under Bharat Darshan programme of Government of India, which is being conducted by the Jammu and Kashmir Police.
Dr Jitendra Singh was impressed with their inquisitiveness, observation skills, IQ level and advised them to imbibe new technologies, learn about new StartUp avenues and get acquainted with new developments in different segments of society, especially science and technology, biochemistry, artificial intelligence and space technology. He urged students to use their smartphones to attain information and knowledge.
He spoke about different schemes of the Government of India, including Pradhanmantri Vishwakarma Yojana, which would help them in acquiring and enhancing the skill of their forefathers.
The Minister informed them about women-run self help groups in J&K who are working on doubling apple yield and increasing the shelf life of these. He also informed about the Purple Revolution benefitting the youth of J&K who not only grow lavender but also distil perfume and oil out of it thereby earning handsomely.
Dr Jitendra Singh asked children to request their teachers to reach them with new perspectives and incorporate new ideas in their teachings. He also requested J&K Police officers, part of the troupe, to organise such workshops for the teachers that would be beneficial for the students.
There were around 70 students along with seven officials of the J&K Police. Around half of them are from the families of those who were killed in action. These students first went to Bengaluru where they visited among others Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum, Bengaluru. The tour began on October 09, 2024. They are travelling by air and will fly back tomorrow.
Making another stride towards making India global leader in economy and frontline player in ensuring greener, cleaner planet, Minister Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurates India’s first Demonstration Facility for Biopolymers in Pune The Facility exemplifies how technological advancements in bioplastics can lead to economic growth: Dr Jitendra Singh
India’s Bioeconomy grew more than $150 billion in 2023; expected to achieve $300 billion by 2030: the Minister
Posted On: 13 OCT 2024 6:20PM by PIB Delhi
Making yet another stride towards making India a global leader in economy and a frontline player in ensuring greener and cleaner planet, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Minister of State (I/C) for Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Space, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr Jitendra Singh today inaugurated India’s first Demonstration Facility for Biopolymers in at Jejuri in Pune from New Delhi today. The facility has been built by Praj Industries.
Addressing the audience, Dr Jitendra Singh said, “This ‘First-of-its-kind Demonstration Facility for Biopolymers in India’ is a pioneering effort in developing indigenously integrated technology for the production of Polylactic Acid (PLA) bioplastic. This marks a pivotal development for India’s commitment to sustainable solutions. This demonstrates India’s resolve to transition from fossil-based plastics to eco-friendly alternatives, crucial for addressing the global plastic pollution crisis.”
Speaking about India’s advancement in the field of science and technology, he said, “India has emerged as a highly alluring destination on a global scale, propelled by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s visionary endeavour to establish the country as “Atmanirbhar”. Our Bioeconomy has grown more than $150 billion in 2023, and is expected to achieve $300 billion by 2030.”
The emphasis on Green Growth in the Union Budget (2023-2024); Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision to make India a ‘Net Zero’ carbon economy and ‘Lifestyle for the Environment (LiFE)’ launched by the PM in October 2022. This will also enable dual goals of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ and ‘Make-in India’ with a foundational focus on biosafety, ethics and inclusive growth. He emphasised that the Union has approved the BioE3 (Biotechnology for Economy, Environment and Employment) Policy of DBT. The BioE3 Policy is an important step forward towards sustainable growth in the backdrop of climate change, depleting non-renewable resources and unsustainable waste generation.
Dr Jitendra Singh further said, “India now ranks 12th in the world in biotech and 3rd in Asia-pacific. We are the largest vaccine manufacturer and the 3rd largest Startup ecosystem,” adding, the Biotech ecosystem in the country is emerging at a rapid pace with the setting up of 95 bio incubators and increasing numbers of Biotech Startups. The Biotech Startups have experienced remarkable growth, increasing from just about 50 in 2014 to over 8,500 in 2023. The rise of Biotech Startups is pivotal for our future economy. These efforts place India at the forefront of the global bioplastics movement, showing the world how biotechnology can contribute to a cleaner, more sustainable future.
Speaking about the partnerships between industry, academia, and government, he said, it is crucial for translating innovative ideas into real-world solutions and fostering innovation through research and development. This facility symbolises a new chapter for India’s bioeconomy. It showcases our ability to lead in technological innovation and offers a sustainable pathway to reducing Environmental impact. He concluded by saying, “It is time for broader synergy among all professions to achieve the “Amrit Kaal” goals over the next 25 years for advancements in the biotechnology sector which underscores India’s potential as a global player in the field.
Tito Mboweni, former South African Reserve Bank Governor, Minister of Finance, and Minister of Labour was arguably one of the country’s most consequential economic policymakers and drove several significant economic reforms.
He began his career in government as Minister of Labour in President Nelson Mandela’s 1994 administration. As the first Minister of Labour in the new democratic South Africa, he took several steps to improve the relationship between business and labour.
Among these were major legislative reforms, including the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, Labour Relations Act, Mines Health Safety Act and the NEDLAC Act, designed to improve cooperation between different “constituencies” – labour, business, and government.
He was appointed as the Eighth Governor of the South African Reserve Bank in 1999. In this role he introduced inflation targeting and presided over the first monetary policy committee meetings. This substantially modernised the Bank’s approach. For instance, Mboweni introduced a monetary policy statement outlining the reasons for the Bank’s decisions. These were televised, bringing new transparency to the conduct of monetary policy. Before this, the bank’s targeted monetary policy aggregates, and its communications, were made through printed documents.
Monetary Policy Forums took monetary policy to many parts of the country, bringing a new openness and engagement between the Bank and ordinary South Africans.
He held the position of Governor until 2009. But his legacy endures. The South African Reserve Bank is highly regarded across the world, with an inflation rate that is firmly within the target range and well-anchored inflation expectations.
As finance minister
Shortly after Cyril Ramaphosa was inaugurated as President of the Republic of South Africa in 2018, the then Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene resigned. The President appointed Mboweni as Minister of Finance in October 2018.
Mboweni made three consequential decisions in South Africa’s economic policy trajectory.
The first was the decision, in 2019, to freeze government wages from 2020. He was alarmed by the rapid and unsustainable increase in government wages. Together with slowing economic growth, this led to a fiscal position that was deteriorating at an alarming pace. The wage freeze ultimately started the slow return to the fiscal rectitude that had been the hallmark of the period of government before Jacob Zuma became president in 2009.
The second, also in 2019, was the publication of a paper on economic growth. It was known officially as “Economic transformation, inclusive growth, and competitiveness: Towards an Economic Strategy for South Africa”.
Other recommendations of the paper are being followed, including those for rail, telecommunications and ports.
The third was the introduction of a comprehensive response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This included a significant expansion of the grants system, with a Social Relief of Distress grant pegged at R350 per person per month. Research by the NIDS-CRAM initiative, led by Dr Nic Spaull of Stellenbosch University, has highlighted how the grant positively affected millions of people’s lives.
Enduring legacy
It is difficult to think of any other economic policymaker who has left such an enduring legacy.
Stellenbosch University awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2010 and appointed him Professor Extraordinary of Economics from 2002 to 2005 . He was a frequent participant at Bureau for Economic Research conferences. There, his engaging speaking style made him a popular drawcard.
His love of red wine and engaging conversation made him a popular visitor at the university. In 2010, he spent time at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Studies as part of a research group working on the global financial crisis and its consequences for democracy.
This is an edited version of a tribute published by the Bureau for Economic Research, Stellenbosch University.
Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh interacts with students from J&K on Bharat Darshan tour; He advises them to imbibe new technologies and learn about new StartUp avenues for better future
Posted On: 13 OCT 2024 6:25PM by PIB Delhi
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Minister of State (I/C) for Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Space, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr Jitendra Singh today hosted a luncheon interaction with students from Jammu & Kashmir. These children are in Delhi under Bharat Darshan programme of Government of India, which is being conducted by the Jammu and Kashmir Police.
Dr Jitendra Singh was impressed with their inquisitiveness, observation skills, IQ level and advised them to imbibe new technologies, learn about new StartUp avenues and get acquainted with new developments in different segments of society, especially science and technology, biochemistry, artificial intelligence and space technology. He urged students to use their smartphones to attain information and knowledge.
He spoke about different schemes of the Government of India, including Pradhanmantri Vishwakarma Yojana, which would help them in acquiring and enhancing the skill of their forefathers.
The Minister informed them about women-run self help groups in J&K who are working on doubling apple yield and increasing the shelf life of these. He also informed about the Purple Revolution benefitting the youth of J&K who not only grow lavender but also distil perfume and oil out of it thereby earning handsomely.
Dr Jitendra Singh asked children to request their teachers to reach them with new perspectives and incorporate new ideas in their teachings. He also requested J&K Police officers, part of the troupe, to organise such workshops for the teachers that would be beneficial for the students.
There were around 70 students along with seven officials of the J&K Police. Around half of them are from the families of those who were killed in action. These students first went to Bengaluru where they visited among others Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum, Bengaluru. The tour began on October 09, 2024. They are travelling by air and will fly back tomorrow.
Surgeon Vice Admiral Kavita Sahai, SM, VSM assumes charge as Director General Medical Services (Navy) on 14 Oct 24. The Flag Officer was commissioned in the Army Medical Corps on 30 Dec 1986.
An alumnus of the prestigious Armed Forces Medical College Pune, she has specialized in Pathology and super specialized in Oncopathology from the prestigious AIIMS, New Delhi. She has been Professor and head of Dept, Lab Sciences at AHRR and BHDC. She has also been Professor at Dept of Pathology, AFMC, Pune. Prior to assuming charge as the DGMS(Navy), she was the First woman Commandant of AMC Centre & College and O i/C Records. She is the first woman officer to be elected as Col Commandant of Army Medical Corps. She has a special interest in Medical Education and was awarded prestigious Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER) Fellowship for advancement of Med Education from Philadelphia, USA in 2013-14.
In recognition for her distinguished Service, the Flag Officer has been awarded the Sena Medal in 2024 and Vishisht Seva Medal in 2018 and has been Commended by the Chief of the Army Staff twice in 2008 & 2012 and the GOC-in-C (WC) in 2010.
National Centre for Good Governance Commences Two-Week Training for Civil Servants from BIMSTEC Nations and Maldives National Centre for Good Governance reaches key milestone with First-Ever Training Program for BIMSTEC Civil Servants
Posted On: 14 OCT 2024 2:42PM by PIB Delhi
The National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG) has commenced the first Mid-Career Training Programme for the civil servants of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) countries, alongside the 34th Capacity Building Programme for civil servants from the Maldives. This two-week training programme is being organized from 14th October to 25th October 2024 in Mussoorie and New Delhi. A total of 36 civil servants from BIMSTEC countries, including Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Nepal, and Bhutan, are participating in the programme. Additionally, 35 civil servants from the Maldives are participating in the 34th Capacity Building Programme. The participants are serving as Divisional Secretary, Additional District Secretary, Deputy Chief Secretary, and Assistant Commissioners, Director, Council Executives representing key ministries from their countries.
Shri V. Srinivas, Director General, NCGG and Secretary of the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), jointly inaugurated the training programme and welcomed the participants. In his address, emphasized the programme’s objective to enhance the skillsets of civil servants by addressing the evolving landscape of administrative reforms and the critical role of digital governance. He noted that the training would focus on citizen-centric governance models, which aim to bridge the gap between government offices and the people they serve, thereby improving public service delivery.
During the programme, Dr. AP Singh, Associate Professor, NCGG and Course Coordinator for Ist Mid-Career Training Programme for the Civil Servants of BIMSTEC Countries gave detailed information about the National Centre for Good Governance and the milestones achieved by the NCGG over the years. Dr BS Bisht, Associate Professor, NCGG and Course Coordinator for 34th CBP for Civil Servants of Maldives gave the overview of the programme.
Under the second phase of the programme, the participating officers from BIMSTEC countries and the Maldives will visit key institutions and projects, including the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy, the Smart City Project and ITDA, the Smart School in Dehradun, the Haryana Institute of Public Administration, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), and the National Science Centre. Additionally, they will visit the Maruti Udyog Limited and visit the iconic Taj Mahal.
The BIMSTEC programme is being coordinated by Dr. A.P. Singh, Associate Professor and Course Coordinator, Dr. M.K. Bhandari, Faculty and Co-Course Coordinators, Shri Sanjay Pant, Training Assistant, and Ms. Monisha Bahuguna, YP. The 34th Capacity Building Programme,is being coordinated by Dr. B.S. Bisht, Associate Professor and Course Coordinator, along with Dr. Sanjeev Sharma, Faculty and Co-Course Coordinator, Shri Brijesh Bisht, Training Assistant, NCGG along with the NCGG capacity-building team.
Mayor announces record investment deals in London so far in 2024 despite global economic downturn and uncertainty
In 10 months, London has already seen nearly £10m more invested than in previous years
Three tech businesses that Sadiq met in New York announce further investment plans in the capital
International investment across the capital has created nearly 10,000 jobs for Londoners in industries of the future such as technology, life sciences, and the green sector in the last five years
The Mayor is attending the International Investment Summit bringing together policymakers and business leaders, as the Government drives forward its national mission for growth
Today, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced record-breaking investment deals worth more than £100million for Londoners so far in 2024 – bucking the global trend – as he attends the Government’s first International Investment Summit to drive forward the national mission for economic growth.
The Mayor has confirmed that three tech businesses whom he met on his recent trip to New York to bang the drum for London have further plans to invest in the capital. Indian IT giant Mphasis, which opened a new London office in September – has expanded its UK presence over the past year and will look to double its business over the next three years. Constant Contact, a digital marketing and automation platform that has helped millions of small businesses and nonprofits globally, will announce its official launch into the UK in the coming weeks. Financial technology company MoonPay, which builds payment infrastructure for crypto, is working with London & Partners as they look to invest and expand further in the capital.
The deals done in partnership with London & Partners, the growth agency funded by the Mayor of London, have seen companies from China, Europe, India, and the US invest in the capital in the last five years, with 543 companies creating nearly 10,000 jobs for Londoners in industries of the future such as technology, life sciences, and the green sector.
This year has so far seen more than £100m in investment deals for Londoners at a time of global economic downturn and uncertainty. In 10 months, London has already seen nearly £10m more invested than in previous years. This includes companies such as Recursion – a US biotech company that uses advanced technology like machine learning and robotics to speed up the discovery of new treatments for complex diseases – opening a new office in the ‘Knowledge Quarter’ in King’s Cross, joining Microsoft and Google DeepMind in rapidly expanding the fast-growing life sciences sector.
One of the Mayor’s 10 key priorities is the new London Growth Plan, with a target of helping to create more than 150,000 good jobs by 2028 and increasing living standards for Londoners. The new growth plan aims to grow London’s economy, so we can improve the lives of all Londoners, drive London’s green transition and support prosperity in London and across the country. Sadiq is also investing £380m a year into skills, careers, and employment activity to ensure that Londoners get the skills and support that they need to progress into good quality jobs. Grow London Local is a free service supported by the Mayor of London giving small businesses access to in-person and digital support to help grow.
Today’s International Investment Summit marks a key moment for Mayors and other leaders who were held back by the previous government to work hand-in-hand with the new Government. Sadiq will work in partnership with the new Government to drive forward investment in the capital, promoting London as one of the world’s best cities in which to invest and do business, and to deliver the change London deserves, helping to create more well-paid jobs and opportunities for Londoners.
Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, said: “I’m proud that in 10 months London has already had a record-breaking year for investments – proving that our city is one of the best in the world to start and scale a business. My message is that London is open: open to business, open to investment, and open to new and fruitful partnerships.
“London is home to fast-growing sectors at the innovation frontier like life sciences, AI, deep tech and climate tech, as well as a world leader in financial and professional services, digital technology and creative industries like film, TV and gaming, and the experience economy.
“I am delighted to be attending the International Investment Summit, as we work with the new government to forge new partnerships, reset relationships and seize the opportunity to secure the long-term investment for London and continue building a better and more prosperous city for everyone.”
Laura Citron OBE, CEO of London & Partners, the growth agency funded by the Mayor of London, said: “We all know that London is a brilliant place to grow a business. But with competition from other cities hotting up, we can’t just expect investors to come here.
“That’s why we’re out fighting for every win. We target the most exciting, innovative companies and give them a world-class concierge service to invest in London.
“We hold their hands every step of the way. That’s why London is bucking the global trend with record levels of investment despite a tough market.”
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “Mayors up and down the country are working with us on our pro-growth, pro-business, pro-worker economy and these investment deals in London are the jewel in the crown.
“This is just the beginning. We’re showing what can be achieved when we work together to give global businesses the certainty they need.”
Nitin Rakesh, CEO and Managing Director, Mphasis, said: “We are thrilled to expand our operations in London, a city that aligns with our vision of innovation and growth. We extend our sincere thanks to Mayor Sadiq Khan and the supportive London ecosystem for their constant support.
“London, a global hotbed for technology development is an ideal location for Mphasis’ latest innovation centre. Our centre highlights Mphasis’ commitment to delivering cutting-edge, AI-powered threat detection and response services for our clients. We look forward to strengthening partnerships and driving impactful innovation from this hub.”
Keith A. Grossman, President of Enterprise at MoonPay, said: “The UK is well-positioned to drive innovation in Web3 and fintech. Since opening our flagship office in London this July, we’ve been impressed by the city’s exceptional talent pool and the support from partners like London & Partners and Mayor Sadiq Khan. We’re eager to expand our team in the area and expect to have over 100 employees by next year.”
Frank Vella, CEO of Constant Contact said, “Small business has long been the engine that drives the economy, and London has long been a hub for small business innovation. We are proud to support this entrepreneurial spirit. By investing in London and the UK, we aim to empower small businesses with the tools and resources they need to market their businesses online, helping them reach new heights and contribute to the growth of local communities. Our commitment is to fuel their potential and foster a robust ecosystem where small businesses can succeed.”
