What's Emerging Mid- November 2021
A newsletter on interesting stuff that is emerging around the world so you can think about strategy
Introduction
Welcome to our mid-November newsletter for 2021
In the next few weeks, Paul will continue working with a council on their community vision and working on a value adding strategy for agriculture in Queensland. He will also be working with the AFL Players Association on their next strategic plan (with futurist Reanna Browne who is the lead consultant). Paul will also continue working in his role as advisor for foresight and strategy to Save the Children Australia He is also running a project on how to maximise the adoption of new irrigation technologies in the Dairy and Cotton industries via the use of Sense Maker narrative collection techniques. He will also be starting work on the new project with Vision Australia on their 10 year vision and strategic planning and working with a new client on developing a platform based strategy.
Paul will also be contributing on a pro bono basis to the Wyndham Youth Family Community Hub Project.
Please Contact Us if you want to talk about any of these approaches for your organisation or industry or want a presentation for your organisation or conference.
Stay safe out there. If you are in Australia we are about to start a whole new phase of the Pandemic and things might be a little tumultuous over the next few months.
The Emergent Futures Team
In case you missed it. The most popular link from the last edition:
The best free VPNs: Why they don't exist
If you're not paying for your VPN service, where is the provider getting the money to run it? The answer might cause you to lose some sleep.……Read more
What are we Writing About?
All current client work and presentations have been commercial in confidence so there is nothing in this section this edition. Go to our Home Page to look under our latest work for previous articles and presentations.
What’s Emerging
The Ocean Cleanup begins cleaning the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
The nonprofit global cleaning crew called The Ocean Cleanup, led by founder and CEO Boyan Slat, announced recently that it had reached viability of its ocean plastic-collecting System 002 technology and plans to begin cleaning plastic pollution in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Zillow, facing big losses, quits flipping houses and will lay off a quarter of its staff.
The announcement was a major strategic retreat and a black eye for Richard Barton, Zillow’s chief executive, who founded the company 16 years ago and has long talked about transitioning Zillow’s popular website into a marketplace. Last year, Mr. Barton predicted Zillow Offers, which made instant offers on homes in a practice known as iBuying, could generate $20 billion a year......…. Read more
Australia’s only working carbon capture and storage project fails to meet target
Chevron, an America-based multinational oil and gas company, was given a target by the WA government to capture at least 80% of the CO2 that would otherwise be released at its Gorgon LNG project. But the company has said it fell short of the target by 5.23Mt and will buy the equivalent amount in carbon credits while also investing $40m in unspecified “low carbon energy projects” in the state.….. Read more
Natural Disasters Can Set the Stage for Cyberattacks
An earthquake strikes a city in Indiana, causing chaos and destruction, sending emergency managers and first responders scrambling. Then the water system goes down, and everyone figures it’s because of the natural disaster. But it isn’t. It’s a ransomware attack by cybercriminals, who are taking advantage of the disruption to infiltrate the water system’s network.
The incident isn’t real, but it is a scenario played out as part of a three-day, full-scale cybersecurity drill in Indiana in August attended by more than 500 people, including Indiana National Guard members, first responders, health care providers and state, local and federal officials..…… Read more
Eco-friendly, lab-grown coffee is on the way
VTT’s coffee is grown by floating cell cultures in bioreactors filled with a nutrient. The process requires no pesticides and has a much lower water footprint, and because the coffee can be produced in local markets, it cuts transport emissions. The company is working on a life cycle analysis of the process. “Once we have those figures, we will be able to show that the environmental impact will be much lower than what we have with conventional cultivation,”….Read more
South Australia sets world record in solar generated electricity, says SA Power Networks
"Negative demand" events mean that, as a whole, the network managed by SAPN was a "net exporter" of power to the grid. The run of "negative demand" days began on Sunday, September 26, when supply outstripped demand for two-and-a-half hours. All events occurred on weekends, when overall power consumption is normally lower.....….. Read more
Researchers boost human mental function with brain stimulation
In a pilot human study, researchers from the University of Minnesota Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital show it is possible to improve specific human brain functions related to self-control and mental flexibility by merging artificial intelligence with targeted electrical brain stimulation.…. Read more
Are We on the Verge of Chatting with Whales?
An ambitious project is attempting to interpret sperm whale clicks with artificial intelligence, then talk back to them....….. Read more
Flying cars drag race in outback SA as testing for planned aerial grand prix continues
Two "flying cars" have gone head to head in South Australia's outback during testing for a possible high-speed aerial racing competition.....…..Read more
China’s Popular Electric Vehicles Have Put Europe’s Automakers on Notice
By selling battery-powered S.U.V.s and luxury sedans in places like Germany and Norway, China is striving to become a force in the global auto industry.....….….Read more
Electrically switchable nanoantennas could enable holographic video technology
Researchers at the University of Stuttgart in Germany have now introduced a completely new approach to realize such dynamic holographic displays, based on electrically switchable plasmonic nanoantennas made from conductive metallic polymers. This key element provides the missing technology to enable holographic displays at video rate, which would enable virtual conferences with a "real-life" feeling. The paper detailing this work has been published in the journal Science on 29 October 2021. …….Read more
AIRBNB Q3 REVENUE TOPS $2.2B IN RECORD QUARTER
Airbnb is reporting its strongest quarter ever in the third quarter of 2021, with revenue topping $2.2 billion – a 36% jump over the same pre-pandemic period in 2019.The revenue figure also beats Q3 2020 revenue of $1.3 billion by nearly 70% year-over-year....…. Read more
World's largest 3D-printed neighborhood to break ground in Texas
Scheduled to break ground next year, the project will feature 100 single-story houses "printed" on-site using advanced robotic construction and a concrete-based building material. Digital renderings of the neighborhood, unveiled last week, show rows of properties with their roofs covered in solar cells. The homes will each take approximately a week to build, according to firms behind the development...…Read more
Deep learning helps predict traffic crashes before they happen
To get ahead of the uncertainty inherent to crashes, scientists from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) and the Qatar Center for Artificial Intelligence developed a deep learning model that predicts very high-resolution crash risk maps. Fed on a combination of historical crash data, road maps, satellite imagery, and GPS traces, the risk maps describe the expected number of crashes over a period of time in the future, to identify high-risk areas and predict future crashes. ....……. Read more
Business Tips
How to survive a venomous snakebite — from a professional who's been bitten before
Paul: It is that season again and the active snake signs are up around the river where I walk the dogs daily. A timely reminder about how to respond to snakebite although the best way is to avoid them in the first place. I once had a brown snake slide over my knees while setting up a new telephone line to a farm site with a Telstra technician...…… Read more
Ask in person: You're less persuasive than you think over email
Research has found people underestimate the likelihood strangers will comply with their direct requests.……Read more
Breathing correctly can help you to relax, reduce stress and improve exercise performance
Paul: Through taking up Pilates after a back problem caused by trying to train up for the Ride Across Britain I have learnt the importance of good breathing technique...…. Read more
No Managers, More Leaders: The Leadership Legacy Of Zhang Ruimin
Change is happening in how companies are run. Here is a great example that is worth thinking about .……Read more
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