Category Archive: 5.) The Economist

Good moos: cows could help the climate

Cows (https://www.economist.com/international/2024/12/12/what-has-four-stomachs-and-could-change-the-world?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners) produce far more milk in rich countries than in poor ones. Our correspondent explains how beefing up bovine productivity could feed more people and reduce...

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The club rules? India’s RSS

Is it a community-minded boys’ club, like the Scouts? A breeding ground for seething Hindu nationalism? A paramilitary puppetmaster of India’s governing elite? Our correspondent attends the annual bash of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. As Gulf countries diversify away from oil, their leaders are shifting their focus to science and innovation (11:03). And introducing our word of the year...

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Country of the year: The Economist picks

In the past 12 months, there has been no lack of news. Editors at The Economist have picked their way through the rubble to uncover some optimism: which country (https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/12/19/the-economists-country-of-the-year-for-2024?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners) has seen the greatest...

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Between Estonia and a hard place: NATO meets

At the icy border between Russia and Estonia, the anxieties of NATO member states are clear, our correspondent reports. Leaders there have been debating defence spending...

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Mass graves: revealing Syria’s horror

Ten days after the fall of Syria’s dictator Bashar al-Assad, the full brutality of his rule (https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/12/09/inside-bashar-al-assads-dungeons?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners) is being uncovered. Our correspondent travels to a site near Damascus, thought to be a...

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Why Putin is in an economic bind #Putin #Russia #Ukraine #geopolitics

Most central banks are cutting interest rates. But Russia has recently hiked them—to 21%. Why? Because Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine is overheating his economy

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Scholz fired: Germany calls snap election

After Olaf Scholz (https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2024/12/13/what-to-expect-after-germanys-confidence-vote?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners), Germany’s chancellor, lost a confidence vote in parliament yesterday, Germany is preparing for a snap election. Urban waste is a growing problem...

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Will Russian troops stay in Syria?

Since the fall of Assad’s regime there’s been speculation over the future of Russia’s presence in Syria. Our Middle East correspondent reports on negotiations that might mean Russia will be able to keep its military bases #syria #assad #middleeast #russia #geopolitics

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Off-side: Georgians reject new president

This weekend, the ruling Georgian Dream party elected a new president – but only one name was on the ballot. That sparked further street protests, as our correspondent reports. Why a new US administration will find it hard to cut costs at NASA...

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Minds blown: are we getting dumber?

Many adults perform worse (https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/12/12/can-you-read-as-well-as-a-ten-year-old?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners) in tests of literacy and numeracy than the average ten year old. And results have worsened in the past decade. Are our brains rotting? Russia’s economy...

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Intel in slide: a chipmaker on the ropes

Layoffs, suspended dividends, a share price in free fall, a chief executive hustled out the door: Intel is in a bad way (https://www.economist.com/business/2024/12/02/intels-troubles-deepen-as-its-boss-makes-an-abrupt-exit?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners). But America needs a chipmaking champion, so what...

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Could AI build cities in space?

Fast forward into the future, when building in space is normal, from huge satellites and spacecraft in orbit, to entire cities on the Moon and Mars. Could robots guided by AI make it happen? Video supported by @mishcon_de_reya 00:00 - Future of building in space 00:43 - Machina Labs 02:15 - Could we 3D print in space? 02:44 - Infrastructure on the Moon 03:25 - AI & robotics on Mars 04:41 - History of AI in space 05:41 - Challenges to...

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Bye, cell: inside a notorious Syrian prison

As Syrians awoke to a new era, thousands rushed to fling open the dark, filthy prisons (https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/12/09/inside-bashar-al-assads-dungeons?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners) where Bashar al-Assad locked up dissenters. Our correspondent followed along. The first of...

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Bringing up Bibi: Netanyahu testifies

For five years the prospect of a criminal prosecution has loomed over Binyamin Netanyahu. Today he becomes the first Israeli prime minister to testify as a defendant. A shocking fraction of master’s degrees confer no financial benefit—and may even leave degree-holders worse off...

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Peace from pieces: Syria after Assad

President Bashar al-Assad has been run out, his regime in tatters. As Syrians awaken to a new era, how can they put their broken country back together (https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/12/08/who-will-rule-syria-now-the-assad-regime-has-been-toppled?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners)...

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Ashes to Masses: Notre Dame’s stunning return

Many thought a five-year timeline was too ambitious. But even as France’s politics falls apart, it has managed to put the cathedral back together with aplomb...

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Michel shock: France’s government falls

An alliance of the far right and the left has sacked (https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/12/04/frances-parliament-fires-the-prime-minister?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners) Prime Minister Michel Barnier; out goes his budget and the government. Can President Emmanuel Macron find a stable path between...

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Are young adults refusing to grow up?

Are young people today stuck in their teenage years? In a book published in 2024, one author argues that they are. Is he right? Is Western culture stopping people from growing up?: https://econ.st/4fVw8Q1 Read more of our culture content: https://econ.st/4fWxIkH Sign up to our daily newsletter: https://econ.st/4gyhHCm

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Dark side of the Yoon: South Korea’s chaos

The country’s increasingly unpopular president, Yoon Suk Yeol, backed down six hours after his shocking move of imposing martial law. South Korea’s democracy has held firm...

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Talk to EU later: Georgia’s fiery protests

The country has been turning increasingly away from Europe and towards Russia—but a halt to EU-accession talks has sparked enormous demonstrations (https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/12/02/huge-anti-russian-protests-in-tbilisi-echo-ukraines-maidan?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners). Researchers know...

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