Showing 1 - 10 of 31
Europe must build its own cloud
News, Robin Berjon, Published on 08/11/2025
» We tend to take for granted the infrastructure on which our economies and societies run -- until something goes wrong. Just ask residents of Spain and Portugal, who were suddenly faced with a total blackout last April, when a series of cascading voltage surges shut down their electricity grids. Both Spain and Portugal are now pursuing massive investments in strengthening their grids' resilience. But citizens should not have to wait until after a disaster strikes for their leaders to commit to investing in critical infrastructure, which nowadays includes cloud services.
When societies rise, fall, and face catastrophe
News, Antara Haldar, Published on 11/10/2025
» When the United Nations emerged from the rubble of two world wars 80 years ago, it represented humanity's most ambitious attempt ever to turn catastrophe into cooperation. But while the scarred world of 1945 had hope following the Allied victory, that optimism has since curdled. The UN today is underfunded, risk-averse, and paralysed.
Rethinking national prosperity through institutions
News, Antara Haldar, Published on 13/11/2024
» Each autumn, a telephone call from Stockholm launches one or a few scholars to international fame with the bestowal of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences -- a process that Irving Wallace dramatised in his 1962 potboiler The Prize.
Labour's win gives Britain a chance
News, Adrian Wooldridge, Published on 06/07/2024
» Ever since Rishi Sunak's rain-sodden announcement to call a general election on July 4, one question has hung over British politics: Will Labour win by a landslide or just a regular majority?
A good time to 'keep calm and carry on'
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 23/10/2022
» There is definitely a "shifting the deckchairs on the Titanic" feel to the situation in Britain at the moment. If recent political events had been presented as a soap opera script it would have been rejected for being totally unbelievable.
Can't beat question time in the 'bear pit'
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 06/02/2022
» While normally steering well clear of British politics I admit to having enjoyed recent live TV sessions of the UK Parliament. The weekly Prime Minister's Question Time (PMQ) held on Wednesdays is far more entertaining than any soap opera. Witnessing the verbal jousting as the PM attempts to side-step a withering grilling is sheer theatre. It is almost like being the accused in the dock at a court hearing.
In the wake of the not so great debate
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 04/10/2020
» While there might have been an element of entertainment in a perverse sort of way watching the US presidential candidates slagging one another off like squabbling children, these politicians still have a lot to learn in the art of insulting behaviour.
For some, it's all getting to be a yawn
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 26/04/2020
» One of the most common complaints arising from the current self-isolation is fighting off boredom. This is especially the case for kids, even though they have smartphones and other electronic gadgets with which to amuse themselves. I don't envy parents of young children.
If lost for words, you can try a bit of Latin
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 13/10/2019
» In the sometimes entertaining, but often mind-numbing, impeachment debate in the US, something we have been repeatedly hearing lately is the Latin expression "quid pro quo", signifying a favour given in return for something of equal value. Dropping a few Latin words has always been popular amongst politicians, possibly because they think it makes them sound smarter than us ignorant hoi polloi.
Of lords, ladies and gentlemen
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 22/09/2019
» Congratulations are in order to former Bangkok Post journalist Natalie Bennett who has been made a House of Lords peer and is now named Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle. Natalie, or rather Lady Bennett, who had been the leader of the Green Party for several years, was given this title in former prime minister Theresa May's resignation honours list last week.