Why economists get things wrong
By: BBC News Nov 19, 2019 Today, trust in economists is barely above that of politicians. “Economists are always saying on the one hand – but then on the other hand,” says Esther Duflo, professor of poverty alleviation and development economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). “That’s why people are always looking for […]
AI Talent in the European Labour Market
By: Linkedin Nov 18, 2019 Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a hotly debated topic, particularly in the context of its impact on the labour market and the workforce. These vital discussions are all too often based on assumptions and desktop projections rather than on concrete, objective data. New research from LinkedIn’s Economic Graph uncovers novel, evidence-based […]
Sexist and biased? How credit firms make decisions
By: BBC News Nov 18, 2019 Yet David was given permission to borrow 20 times the amount on his Apple Card than his wife was granted. The situation was far from unique. Even Apple’s co-founder Steve Wozniak tweeted that the same thing happened to him and his wife despite having no separate bank accounts or […]
Firefox’s fight for the future of the web
By: The Guardian Nov 17, 2019 Why do you choose the browser you use? Maybe you think it loads pages more quickly. Maybe it’s made by the same firm as your device and you think it’s more compatible in some way. You prefer the graphics, perhaps, or it just happened to be pre-installed on your […]
Can the planet really afford the exorbitant power demands of machine learning?
By: John Naughton November 16, 2019 There is, alas, no such thing as a free lunch. This simple and obvious truth is invariably forgotten whenever irrational exuberance teams up with digital technology in the latest quest to “change the world”. A case in point was the bitcoin frenzy, where one could apparently become insanely rich […]
This pension scheme has 8m members – and ethical savers do best
By: The Guardian Nov 15, 2019 It’s often said that paying into a workplace pension is a no-brainer, and maybe here’s the proof: early investors into Britain’s biggest auto-enrolment scheme have tripled their money in seven years. And those who chose the ethical fund have made the best returns. Figures provided exclusively to Guardian Money […]
Top 1% of earners in UK account for more than a third of income tax
By: The Guardian Nov 13, 2019 The top 1% of earners in the UK now account for more than a third of income tax paid to the government, following changes over the past decade that have left almost half the population exempt from making payments. In research underlining the dual nature of Britain’s income tax structure, the Institute for […]
Hologram-like device animates objects using ultrasound waves
By: The Guardian Nov 13, 2019 It may not rival the technology found in a galaxy far, far away, but everyone has to start somewhere. Researchers in Sussex have built a device that displays 3D animated objects that can talk and interact with onlookers. A demonstration of the display showed a butterfly flapping its wings, a countdown […]
Tech companies target your sanity
By: Axios Nov 12, 2019 Several of the biggest social media platforms are beginning to test changes that cut down on scorekeeping, discourage harassment and aim to improve users’ well-being. Why it matters: The unwinding of features such as public “like” counts could have a major impact on the multi-billion dollar businesses of social media companies, […]