In part, the stockmarket’s plunge reflects past complacency
Covid-19 sparks one of the fastest slides since the second world warFeb 28th 2020THE SPEED of the sell-off in global stockmarkets is remarkable. On February 19th the S&P 500, America’s main index, reached a record high. Little more than a week later, it has lost one-eighth of its value. The change in mood is astonishing.…
Will an attack on Turkish troops in Syria change the course of the war?
The battle for Idlib is raising fears of a big-power conflictIT HAD BEEN decades since Turkey suffered such heavy losses in a single day of battle, let alone a single attack. The air strike that killed at least 33 Turkish soldiers in Syria’s Idlib province on February 27th risks escalating a messy civil war that…
Official Alleges ‘Strong Sperm’ Can Impregnate Women In Swimming Pool
A Child Protection commissioner claims women could become pregnant from swimming in a pool with men that have “an especially strong type of male sperm.” Sitti Hikmawatty has triggered an uproar after she made an unverified claim during an interview last week with a local news site which led to pleas for her resignation. She…
Shimon the Songwriter-Singer Robot to Launch First Tour & Album
Shimon the robot has learned to dance, sing, compose his own melodies and write lyrics. Better still, he’s set to go on tour to promote his first LP. Shimon hones his craft the same way alike generative robots do – by being spoon-fed massive amounts of data from existent human exemplars. In this instance, that…
Digital twins of hearts could help diagnose and treat cardiac disease
IF YOU TRAVEL on a modern airliner, the chances are that each of the jet engines powering it will have a virtual copy residing in a computer on the ground. This copy, known as a digital twin, will be updated constantly with information from sensors that measure the engine’s performance and check for signs of…
Why active bond investors can beat the index when active equity investors can’t
Feb 29th 2020IMAGINE A WORLD in which the stockmarket has only two constituents: Gurgle, a firm that has risen quickly, and Genial Motors, a mature company. Both have 100m of shares outstanding, each worth $1. That gives the market a value of $200m. Further imagine that there are two investors of equal size in the…
Why America’s personal-saving rate is unusually high
Feb 29th 2020SAN FRANCISCONO WONDER advertisements implore Americans to spend, spend, spend. These days they are positively Swabian, saving a much bigger share of their post-tax incomes than they have done for most of the past three decades (see chart). This is more than just an economic curiosity. Many households’ savings end up in Treasury…
America and the Taliban prepare to sign a peace deal
AFGHANISTAN AND optimism do not tend to go hand in hand, so the mood of quiet anticipation around the country in recent days has been striking. Afghans hope that America and the insurgents of the Taliban, who have been fighting one another for more than 18 years, will sign a peace deal on February 29th.…
As delivery drones multiply, they may need to protect themselves
Feb 29th 2020INTERNET SHOPPING makes buying things easier, but has also led to the rise of a new kind of thief: the porch pirate. Porch pirates scour door steps for deliveries that have been made when a householder was out, and nab them. Sometimes, they will stalk delivery vans to do so. Residents of New…
An Australian legend may be the world’s oldest datable story
Feb 29th 2020ORAL MYTHOLOGY has tremendous staying power. The Klamath, a group of Native Americans who live in Oregon, tell tales of an underworld god called Llao who fell in love with a mortal woman and grew furious when she refused his advances. He emerged from a mountain to cascade fire down onto her village,…