The Economist World in Figures 2011 Edition -- by The Economist

 

— Originally saw at Gerd Leonhard’s blog

 

Tagged with:  

Analysis: In debt row, hints of emerging-economy crises — from Reuters by Pedro Nicolaci da Costa
WASHINGTON | Sun Jul 24, 2011 5:59pm EDT
Debt default. A ratings downgrade. Political deadlock. Such terms, once associated primarily with the developing world, now abound in the mighty United States.

 

Kevin Slavin: How algorithms shape our world [TED]

Description:

Kevin Slavin argues that we’re living in a world designed for — and increasingly controlled by — algorithms. In this riveting talk from TEDGlobal, he shows how these complex computer programs determine: espionage tactics, stock prices, movie scripts, and architecture. And he warns that we are writing code we can’t understand, with implications we can’t control.

Relevant to mathematics; shaping our world; ethics; media; culture; society;
computer science; technologies; stock markets/business; architecture.

$3 billion slated for Michigan start-ups through Pure Michigan Business Connect — from metromodemedia.com

Excerpt:

The recently announced Pure Michigan Business Connect initiative promises to leverage about $3 billion in seed capital and new revenue streams for Michigan-based start-ups, thanks to some local heavy hitters stepping up to the plate.

Reinventing the Technology of Human Accomplishment — by Gary Hamel; from the University of Phoenix Distinguished Guest Video Lecture Series.

From DSC:
No matter whether you agree with what Gary is saying or not, can you imagine if every lecture contained this type of team-based assistance in creating the motion graphics, recording the video, editing the video, executing proper sound design principles, etc.? Most likely such an endeavor would be more achievable/successful when producing content in a controlled, studio type of environment — and then presenting it online (vs. trying to do this in front of a live classroom/audience/face-to-face.)

Anyway, very powerful communication channels here! Excellent use of motion graphics to backup his message. A transcript with bolded headings and colored main points would be great too. By the way, wouldn’t it be cool for “call outs” to appear — somewhat in an augmented reality sort of way — when a main point was just made?!


Gary Hamel -- Reinventing Managment for the 21st Century

Description of video:
Watch Gary Hamel, celebrated management thinker and author and co-founder of the Management Innovation eXchange (MIX), make the case for reinventing management for the 21st century. In this fast-paced, idea-packed, 15-minute video essay, Hamel paints a vivid picture of what it means to build organizations that are fundamentally fit for the future—and genuinely fit for human beings. It’s time to radically rethink how we mobilize people and organize resources to productive ends. Here’s how we start.

This video is an excerpt from the University of Phoenix Distinguished Guest Video Lecture Series.

 

Sample screen shots:


 

 

 

 

 


From DSC:
Again, can you imagine the bump in engagement/attention spans if a faculty member could be backed up by these types of motion graphics!?

 

From DSC:
I realize that many of the for-profits are already using teams of specialists…but many others are not.

 

–Originally saw this at the
Higher Education Management blog by Keith Hampson

World Bank Virtual Economy report: Secondary markets worth $3 billion — from virtualeconomy.org by Vili Lehdonvirta; originally saw these two items at the Futurist Update

Also see:

Measuring the Net’s growth dividend
New McKinsey research finds that the Internet now accounts for a significant share of global GDP and plays an increasingly important role in economic growth.

Excerpt:

The Internet is a vast mosaic of economic activity, ranging from millions of daily online transactions and communications to smartphone downloads of TV shows. Little is known, however, about how the Net in its entirety contributes to global growth, productivity, and employment. New McKinsey research examined the Internet economies of the G8 nations (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States), as well as Brazil, China, India, South Korea, and Sweden. It found that the Internet accounts for a significant and growing portion of global GDP.

An extensive study by the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI)—Internet matters: The Net’s sweeping impact on growth, jobs, and prosperity—includes these findings…

 

The Net's Sweeping Impact On Growth, Jobs, and Prosperity -- McKinsey Global Institute -- May 2011

 

WorldFuture 2011: Moving from Vision to Action
…promises to be a fun, fast, and information-packed weekend, but have you considered taking a “deeper dive” into a particular futurist area at a preconference course.  These sessions, held on the Thursday and Friday before the opening General Session, take an in-depth view of important topics. Follow the links below to learn more and register for these sessions or luncheons.

Preconference Courses
Thursday, July 7

Friday, July 8

 



Education Summit | Thursday and Friday, July 7-8
Education and the New Normal



 

Don’t forget to register for luncheon sessions before these special events sell out. Register online.

The “Pedagogy of Poverty” in the Learning Age — from NCTAF

Excerpt:

Test results. Student achievement. These are mainstays of the conversation about what education “reform” is trying to achieve. But are they useful proxies for teaching and learning?

Testing cannot be the sole aim of education because test scores don’t tell the whole story of what is going on in classrooms around the nation. Higher test scores do not equate to deeper learning, which goes beyond “competence” to synthesis and analysis across disciplines. And deeper learning is not a luxury in the learning age; it’s a necessity and a right.

 

From DSC:
We are all in this together – let’s find ways to help each other and to learn from each other.

Poll: No matter what their major, today’s college students getting hard lessons in finance — from WashingtonPost.com by Associated Press

WASHINGTON — In these tight times, college students are getting a lesson in economics no matter what their major. Students say money influences everything from what school they attend and what career they pursue to how quickly they complete their degrees — or whether they graduate at all.

Money problems, not bad grades, are the reason cited by most college students who have considered dropping out, an Associated Press-Viacom poll finds.

Recession-battered parents have less money to spend on their kids’ tuition. Jobs that used to be waiting upon graduation aren’t there anymore — consumed by the nation’s 8.8 percent unemployment rate. And college prices keep going up, as states struggle with budget deficits. Average tuition, room and board rose to about $16,000 at in-state public schools this year and $37,000 at private schools.

 

This disturbing trend in the United States will have far-reaching implications.

 

Addendum #1 – 4/18/11:


and

 

Addendum #2 – 4/18/11:
Finally, here are some potentially-effective ideas on how to fix Congress:

Congressional Reform Act of 2011 (If passed, this will eliminate many current problems).

1. Term Limits.

12 years only, one of the possible options below..

A. Two Six-year Senate terms
B. Six Two-year House terms
C. One Six-year Senate term and three Two-Year House terms

2.  No Tenure / No Pension.
A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office.

3.  Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social Security.
All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately.  All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people.

4. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do.

5. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise.  Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.

6. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people.

7. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people.

8. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/1/11.
The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen.  Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves.

Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career.  The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.

 


From DSC:
Here is an idea for a project-based learning assignment for Business, Economics, & Political Science Students/Faculty:


Your mission, if you decide to accept it, is to investigate and answer the following questions:

  • Can people on Wall Street affect the price of a gallon of gasoline?
  • If so:
    • How? How could they do that?
    • How much could they increase the price of a gallon of gasoline?
    • When do they make their move?
    • Are their any limits to what the folks on Wall Street can do?
    • How much are we paying — not to the companies actually producing and selling the gas — but possibly to those who work on Wall Street? (Who is making the $$?)

Find out. That’s your assignment. Then…

  • Once you determine those things and IF there should be a change in our systems…what are your recommendations for change?
  • Who would be involved in making this change? i.e. How could the average citizen get involved to help make positive changes?

 

This tape will self-destruct in 30 seconds…

On track for $1 trillion: Student loan debt greater than credit card debt — from GOOD Education by Liz Dwyer

student.loans

Last June, for the first time in history, Americans owed more on their student loans, a record $833 billion, than on their credit cards, $826.5 billion. The amount owed on student loans increases at a rate of about $2,853.88 per second, meaning we’re on track for total student debt to cross the $1 trillion mark sometime this year.

According to Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of FinAid.org and Fastweb.com, this increasing student debt has long term, macroeconomic implications for our society. He told NPR’s Marketplace that the amount of money students owe—on average, $24,000—is usually repaid over a 20-year time frame, which means

more and more students are going to still be repaying their own student loans when their children enroll in college. That may make those families less willing to borrow to pay for their children’s educations. It also means that they aren’t going to be as capable of saving for their children’s education or even for their own retirement.

The other insidious consequence of the debt is that students are less likely to purse nonprofit careers or work they truly enjoy.


© 2024 | Daniel Christian