Can a fiscal and
monetary splurge reboot Japan’s recessionary economy? ¥200 trillion of public
works over the next 10 years, little talks on how to pay for it. Again, it
comes down to how well it’s spent. Urgent needs on deregulating the economy, opening
the country to international competition through free-trade deals, and
structural reforms still persist. [Note: Adam Posen thinks it’s a bad idea, and
I think the problem is largely judicial, social, and political rather than
economic]…Source 1: http://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21569435-can-fiscal-and-monetary-splurge-reboot-japans-recessionary-economy-keynes
How America’s
drinking habits changed since 2001: Juice and softdrinks -15%, beer -10%,
coffee flat (shocking), wine and spirits +20% (especially bourbon &
whiskey), and bottled water +55%. Conjecture is thanks to an aging and more
health-conscious population. [Note: Coke and cheap beer still killing it in
emerging countries]…Source: http://www.theatlantic.com/business/print/2013/01/how-america-drinks-water-and-wine-soar-cheap-beer-and-soda-crash/267153/
Briefing Facebook’s
graph search: You search “Japanese restaurants liked by my friends from
India” or “show me pictures of my friends and me visiting California in 2010”,
Facebook tries to return the results. 2 parts to the search, both built in-house.
1st part is the question of the user, parsed by natural language processing.
2nd part is the one that brings back the answers. [Note: audacious
and down-right spectacular]…Source: http://www.wired.com/business/2013/01/the-inside-story-of-graph-search-facebooks-weapon-to-challenge-google/all/
Source 2: http://gigaom.com/2013/01/15/a-really-tiny-explanation-of-how-facebooks-graph-search-works/
An opportunity in
health-related web start-ups: 8 in 10 Internet users say that their last
health-related search began at a search engine. 1/3 of U.S. adults, have gone
online to figure out a medical condition, 50% went on to see a professional.
70% of U.S. adults said that the last time they had a serious health issue they
got information, care or support from a doctor or health professional. 25%
people seeking health information have hit a paywall. [Note: Seriously
lucrative business. Who can seize this opportunity?]…Source: http://gigaom.com/2013/01/14/one-decade-later-80-percent-of-web-users-looking-for-health-info-still-start-with-a-search-engine/
Top risks in 2013: Per
World Economic Forum and Eurasia Group in no particular order: (1) chronic labor-market
imbalances, (2) the unforeseen consequences of climate-change mitigation, (3) rising
inequality and the fragility of the global economic system, (4) digital
wildfires and dis/misinformation-induced havoc, (5) Loss of antibiotics
potency, (6) Russia’s stalling energy industry and ailing kleptocracy. [Note:
In danger lie opportunities]…Source: http://www.economist.com/news/business/21569361-which-risks-loom-largest-businesses-2013-world-trouble
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