Thursday, April 28, 2016
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Sunday, April 17, 2016
The Link Between Income Inequality and Physical Pain
The Link Between Income Inequality and Physical Pain
Why does economic insecurity hurt? The cause is likely rooted in human
psychology. When people encounter economic insecurity, they typically
feel a loss of control. A sense of control is one of the foundational
elements of well-being. When people lose this sense of control, their
body goes a bit haywire and responds to stimuli differently — displaying
weakened resilience and a lower pain threshold.
Why does economic insecurity hurt? The cause is likely rooted in human
psychology. When people encounter economic insecurity, they typically
feel a loss of control. A sense of control is one of the foundational
elements of well-being. When people lose this sense of control, their
body goes a bit haywire and responds to stimuli differently — displaying
weakened resilience and a lower pain threshold.
Friday, April 15, 2016
Thursday, April 14, 2016
If Work Is Digital, Why Do We Still Go to the Office?
If Work Is Digital, Why Do We Still Go to the Office?\
“Distance will die,” or so predicted British economist Frances
Cairncross, along with a host of social and media theorists, following
the spread of the internet in the 1990s. When every place is connected
instantaneously to every other place on the planet, they argued, space
itself would become irrelevant. At that point, we would not need offices
anymore: Why go to work when work can come to you?
The well-known prediction by U.S. professor Melvin Webber seemed
imminent: “For the first time in history, it might be possible to locate
on a mountain top and to maintain intimate, real-time, and realistic
contact with business or other associates” (Webber M.M., 1973).
Instantaneous communication with everyone else on the planet — even from
the summit of Mount Everest — would soon render traditional offices
obsolete.
History has charted a far different course. Today’s technology does
allow global and instantaneous communication, but most of us still
commute to offices for work every day. Telecommuting from our homes (let
alone Mount Everest!) has not picked up as much as many thought it
would. Meanwhile, lots of corporations are investing significantly in
new or renovated office spaces located in the heart of urban areas.
What early digital commentators missed is that even if we can work from anywhere, that does not mean we want to. We strive for places that allow us to share knowledge, to generate ideas, and to pool talents and perspectives.
“Distance will die,” or so predicted British economist Frances
Cairncross, along with a host of social and media theorists, following
the spread of the internet in the 1990s. When every place is connected
instantaneously to every other place on the planet, they argued, space
itself would become irrelevant. At that point, we would not need offices
anymore: Why go to work when work can come to you?
The well-known prediction by U.S. professor Melvin Webber seemed
imminent: “For the first time in history, it might be possible to locate
on a mountain top and to maintain intimate, real-time, and realistic
contact with business or other associates” (Webber M.M., 1973).
Instantaneous communication with everyone else on the planet — even from
the summit of Mount Everest — would soon render traditional offices
obsolete.
History has charted a far different course. Today’s technology does
allow global and instantaneous communication, but most of us still
commute to offices for work every day. Telecommuting from our homes (let
alone Mount Everest!) has not picked up as much as many thought it
would. Meanwhile, lots of corporations are investing significantly in
new or renovated office spaces located in the heart of urban areas.
What early digital commentators missed is that even if we can work from anywhere, that does not mean we want to. We strive for places that allow us to share knowledge, to generate ideas, and to pool talents and perspectives.
Why Retirement Is a Flawed Concept
Why Retirement Is a Flawed Concept
While we think of retirement as the golden age of golf greens and cottage docks, guess what they call retirement in Okinawa?
They don’t. They don’t even have a word for it. Literally nothing in
their language describes the concept of stopping work completely.
Instead, one of the healthiest societies in the world has the word ikigai (pronounced
like “icky guy”), which roughly translates to “the reason you wake up
in the morning.” It’s the thing that drives you most.
To put it another way: We don’t actually want to retire and do nothing. We just want to do something we love.
While we think of retirement as the golden age of golf greens and cottage docks, guess what they call retirement in Okinawa?
They don’t. They don’t even have a word for it. Literally nothing in
their language describes the concept of stopping work completely.
Instead, one of the healthiest societies in the world has the word ikigai (pronounced
like “icky guy”), which roughly translates to “the reason you wake up
in the morning.” It’s the thing that drives you most.
To put it another way: We don’t actually want to retire and do nothing. We just want to do something we love.
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
Friday, April 8, 2016
What the Left Gets Wrong About Scandinavia - Fortune
What the Left Gets Wrong About Scandinavia - Fortune
If you want to measure the effects of high government spending and wealth
redistribution, there are plenty of other examples to draw lessons
from. “Why not bring up Italy or France?” Sanandaji asks, referring to
two other large, but less robust, economies with large welfare states.
If you look at the years in which these countries built the wealth their
citizens now enjoy, it was long before leftist ideas took hold. For
instance, from 1870 through 1936, Sweden was the fastest growing economy
in the world. But after 1975—when the Swedish state began to expand in
earnest—Sweden’s economy noticeably slowed, falling from the 4th richest
in the world to the 13th by the mid 1990s.
And Nordic voters are starting to take notice. Scandanavian governments have been paring down the size of their governments.
If you want to measure the effects of high government spending and wealth
redistribution, there are plenty of other examples to draw lessons
from. “Why not bring up Italy or France?” Sanandaji asks, referring to
two other large, but less robust, economies with large welfare states.
If you look at the years in which these countries built the wealth their
citizens now enjoy, it was long before leftist ideas took hold. For
instance, from 1870 through 1936, Sweden was the fastest growing economy
in the world. But after 1975—when the Swedish state began to expand in
earnest—Sweden’s economy noticeably slowed, falling from the 4th richest
in the world to the 13th by the mid 1990s.
And Nordic voters are starting to take notice. Scandanavian governments have been paring down the size of their governments.
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