Showing 1 - 8 of 8
Building infrastructure for the AI age
Oped, Diane Coyle, Published on 22/07/2025
» The London Underground, the world's oldest subway system, opened in 1863. Around the same time, London's modern sewage system was designed by civil engineer Joseph Bazalgette in response to the Great Stink of 1858, which brought parliament to a standstill. Planning far ahead, Bazalgette built the system to last 150 years. Only now, with the Thames Tideway project, is it being significantly expanded.
Welcome spell of fashionable weather
Roger Crutchley, Published on 19/01/2025
» By Thai standards the weather has definitely been on the chilly side in recent weeks. Or to use the correct meteorological term, it's been "a bit nippy" in the early morning and evenings.
Making a name for oneself in Thailand
Roger Crutchley, Published on 17/09/2023
» Last week's PostScript noted how the use of first names or nicknames in Thailand saves everyone a lot of trouble considering the long Thai surnames. However, this does not totally rule out misunderstandings. Many foreigners find their names pronounced in a unique manner, but that's all part of the fun of living in Thailand.
Cambodia and Laos in the regional mix
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 30/09/2022
» As geopolitical tensions from Russian aggression in Ukraine and the ongoing United States-China rivalry intensify, Southeast Asia will be hard-pressed to maintain peace and security. Despite their relatively small size, Cambodia and Laos are two countries whose political trajectories will shape regional outcomes. While Cambodia has consolidated domestic political power with dynamic economic expansion, Laos is looking like a regional laggard facing a deep debt crisis. As Cambodia moves forward, Laos is at risk of being left behind.
World cities and the climate-data collection gap
Oped, Robert Muggah & Carlo Ratti, Published on 21/01/2022
» With cities facing disastrous climate stresses and shocks in the coming years, one would think they would be rushing to implement mitigation and adaptation strategies. Yet most urban residents are only dimly aware of the risks, because their cities' mayors, managers, and councils are not collecting or analysing the right kinds of information.
Thailand's place in Big Pharma
Oped, Pasu Decharin, Published on 30/07/2021
» Names of medicines, vaccines and pharmaceutical companies have seeped into daily conversations. In the past, people cared so little about exact names of vaccines, injections or pills that they were given, not to mention details of manufacturer or even their locations. That has all changed thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has triggered a shift in medication-taking behaviours. Names of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies, most of which are concentrated in the United States, followed by China, Japan, and European countries, have become more widely known, with the most familiar being Roche, Novartis, Merck, and Bristol Myers Squibb.
Suffering a case of the whirlygigs
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 07/10/2018
» It was the unlikely setting of the US Senate Judiciary last week which has sparked considerable debate on what constitutes drunkenness. There were references to a "stumbling drunk", a "sloppy drunk", a "slurring drunk" and a "belligerent drunk". But there seems to be a certain lack of creativeness in these descriptions. Perhaps a little European influence would liven things up a bit.
Words don't come easy to millennials
Life, James Hein, Published on 23/05/2018
» Next time you're in a restaurant or where people gather in small groups, sit and watch for a while. Note how many of the groups are silent, all doing something on their phones. When you find such a group, note how long they go without saying a word to each other. There is an interesting behavioural shift occurring in the phone-enabled world where casual conversation skills are being replaced by surfing, messaging and instant posting. It won't be too long before the best way to find out what the person next to you is thinking is to live feed their Facebook, send them an SMS or Line message, or heaven forbid a tweet.