The Economist (March 12)
“Now after five decades, the end of Moore’s law is in sight.” This might not prove a bad thing as the quest for improvement will turn to more promising areas, such as the “deep learning” technology that recently beat Go legend Lee Sedol. “Huge performance gains can be achieved through new algorithms. Indeed, slowing progress in hardware will provide stronger incentives to develop cleverer software.”
Tags: Algorithms, Deep learning, Gains, Go, Hardware, Improvement, Moore’s Law, Performance, Progress, Promising, Software, Technology
Bloomberg (January 4)
“For the first year since 1989, foreigners sold Japanese stocks and missed a rally.” The TOPIX index gained 8.9% in dollars and 21% in euros, but overseas investors missed out on some gains by offloading more than 250 billion yen in Japanese shares last year. “The Topix capped a 9.9 percent gain in local-currency terms last year, its fourth straight annual increase. Combined with the yen’s resilience, that meant that the Topix outperformed the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index in dollars for the first time since 2008” and its “gain in euros was triple that of the Stoxx Europe 600 Index.”
Tags: 1989, Dollars, Euros, Foreigners, Gains, Increase, Japan, Offloading, Rally, S&P 500, Stocks, Stoxx Europe 600, Topix, Yen
Wall Street Journal (April 3)
“It’s fashionable to despair over American progress against cancer, but the reality is that every year medicine makes steady and durable gains…. The mortality rate fell 1.5% a year on average for all cancers from 2002 to 2011, while new cases of cancer dropped 0.5% a year over the same period.”
New York Times (November 16)
“Recent gains in controlling the Ebola epidemic in West Africa have been encouraging, but they offer no reason for complacency.” The situation is improving in Liberia, stable in Guinea, but worsening in Sierra Leone. To make further progress, donor nations need to “increase their contributions.” To date, Ebola has taken over 5,000 lives.
Tags: Complacency, Contributions, Ebola, Encouraging, Epidemic, Gains, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, West Africa
Financial Times (December 4, 2013)
“Beijing, in its dispute with Japan, risks repeating the errors of an earlier era that led to war.” Though war is not inevitable, the risk has risen in a manner eerily reminiscent of how Germany set tinder that ultimately ignited, propelling Europe into the First World War. “One wonders why the Chinese leadership thinks asserting sovereignty over a few rocks worth the risk. Yes, China may get away with it this time and the next, and the time after that. But each throw of the dice renews the risks. What gains can justify the possible losses?” With tension and mistrust rising and “for the sake of the longer-term interests of the Chinese people, Mr Xi should think again – and halt.”“Beijing, in its dispute with Japan, risks repeating the errors of an earlier era that led to war.” Though war is not inevitable, the risk has risen in a manner eerily reminiscent of how Germany set tinder that ultimately ignited, propelling Europe into the First World War. “One wonders why the Chinese leadership thinks asserting sovereignty over a few rocks worth the risk. Yes, China may get away with it this time and the next, and the time after that. But each throw of the dice renews the risks. What gains can justify the possible losses?” With tension and mistrust rising and “for the sake of the longer-term interests of the Chinese people, Mr Xi should think again – and halt.”
Tags: ADIZ, Beijing, China, Europe, Gains, Germany, Interests, Japan, Losses, Mistrust, Risks, Sovereignty, Tension, WWI, Xi
