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Advanced MRI scans help identify one in three concussion patients with ‘hidden disease’

Around one in 200 people in Europe every year will suffer concussion. In the UK, more than 1 million people attend Emergency Departments annually with a recent head injury. It is the most common form of brain injury worldwide.When a patient in the UK presents at an Emergency Department with head injury, they are assessed according to the NICE head injury guidelines. Depending on their symptoms, they may be referred…

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When Subordinates Sabotage You

Topics Column Our expert columnists offer opinion and analysis on important issues facing modern businesses and managers. More in this series subscribe-icon Subscribe Share Carolyn Geason-Beissel/MIT SMR | Getty Images Contrapower harassment, a seldom-discussed form of workplace harassment, turns traditional power dynamics on its head. This scenario, in which individuals with less authority target those in higher positions, challenges the notion that only those in power can be harassers and…

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Ninth Circuit Holds a Second Medical Opinion Is Not Necessary to Challenge an Employee’s Entitlement to FMLA Leave

Quick Hits In Perez v. Barrick Goldstrike Mines, Inc., the Ninth Circuit joined the Second, Fourth, Sixth, and Eighth Circuits in holding that an employer’s right to obtain a second opinion is permissive, not mandatory, under the FMLA. A jury may consider an employer’s nonmedical evidence in determining whether an employee had a “serious health condition” under the FMLA. Background In Perez v. Barrick Goldstrike Mines, Inc., the Ninth Circuit…

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AI Frontiers Lab: Collaborating to build technology responsibly

Microsoft Research is the research arm of Microsoft, pushing the frontier of computer science and related fields for the last 33 years. Our research team, alongside our policy and engineering teams, informs our approach to Responsible AI. One of our leading researchers is Ece Kamar, who runs the AI Frontiers lab within Microsoft Research. Ece has worked in different labs within the Microsoft Research ecosystem for the past 14 years…

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Leadership Lessons from the Vice Presidential Picks

This commentary originally appeared in Time. Having studied leadership across sectors for nearly a half century, I’ve found that power sharing at the top is often harder than delegation and execution down the hierarchy of command. Leadership partnerships across sectors that work well have a secret recipe—which Kamala Harris seemed to understand but which Donald Trump seems to have missed, given their recent selections of running mate. Barack Obama and…

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Building an engineering culture and resilient technology

The pace of change in technology has created many opportunities—and raised as many challenges. Overcoming the challenges to grasp the opportunities requires tools and processes that nurture an engineering culture, build stable foundations for resilient technology operations, and manage complex cloud costs. Driving this shift requires modern technology leaders to expand from their traditional role as “guardians of IT” to become closer partners with the business. So says David Pedreira,…

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BRP Cards Expiration and UKVI Account Factsheet – Action Required

In an effort to introduce a fully digital immigration system, the UK Government has announced that Biometric Residence Permits (BRP) and Biometric Residence Cards (BRC) will be phased out, and that as of January 1, 2025, they will no longer be in circulation. To address some concerns for employees and our clients, we have created the following Fact Sheet: All UK BRP/BRC cards have an expiration date of December 31,…

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Massachusetts Adopts Pay Transparency and Reporting Requirements

Quick Hits On July 31, 2024, Governor Maura Healey signed into law legislation requiring Massachusetts employers with twenty-five or more employees to disclose pay ranges. Employers with one hundred or more employees and subject to EEO-1 reporting obligations will be required to report aggregated wage data by race, ethnicity, sex, and job category annually as a supplement to the EEO-1 report to the state. Compliance failures could result in penalties…

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New OpenAI feature for developers launches on Azure

We are thrilled to announce the launch of OpenAI’s latest model, GPT-4o Next. We are thrilled to announce the launch of OpenAI’s latest model on Azure. This new model, officially named GPT-4o-2024-08-06, brings innovative features designed to elevate developer experiences on Azure. Specifically, the new model focuses on enhancing productivity through Structured Outputs, like JSON Schemas, for the new GPT-4o and GPT-4o mini models.  Azure OpenAI Service Build your own…

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The Rasht-Caspian Railway and the Cycle of ‘Combined Transport’ in the International North–South Transport Corridor

Since the major part of Iran’s trade with Russia takes place with the western, more densely populated part of this country, including the cities of Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Kazan, Rostov and the North Caucasus, the main route of trade and transit between the two countries necessarily passes through the Republic of Azerbaijan. Given these circumstances, the lack of a direct rail route has had a very negative impact on the…

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Improving Access to Drugs: The Critical Role of Supply Chain Risk

Medical criticality refers to the clinical value of a drug. Life-saving drugs should always be considered high criticality (e.g. insulin, blood thinners, antibiotics for the treatment of sepsis, etc.), while drugs that improve lifestyle tend to be low in medical criticality. Other criticality factors include the number of people dependent on the drug and whether good substitutes exist. The other dimension, supply chain risk, captures the likelihood of mismatches between supply and…

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Gen AI’s next inflection point: From employee experimentation to organizational transformation

After nearly two years of debate, the verdict is in: generative AI (gen AI) is here to stay, and its business potential is massive. We’ve already witnessed an exponential rate of gen-AI-related innovation, which promises to accelerate automation and enhance productivity, innovation, and the quality of work, as well as the employee and customer experience. The companies that fail to act and adapt now will likely struggle to catch up…

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OFCCP Encourages Contractors to Use Apprenticeship Programs to Hire Veterans

Quick Hits OFCCP updated its guidance on protected veterans hiring obligations and affirmative action policies encouraging contractors to provide apprenticeship opportunities to protected veterans. OFCCP said protected veterans must be provided equal opportunity to participate in apprenticeship opportunities and that providing such opportunities can help contractors meet their obligations to recruit and hire protected veterans. The guidance comes after OFCCP set the national veteran hiring benchmark at 5.2 percent on…

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New Azure Data Box capabilities to accelerate offline data migration

Azure Data Box offline data transfer solution allows you send petabytes of data into Azure Storage in a quick, inexpensive, and reliable manner. Azure Data Box offline data transfer solution allows you send petabytes of data into Azure Storage in a quick, inexpensive, and reliable manner. The secure data transfer is accelerated by hardware transfer devices that enable offline data ingestion to Azure. We’re excited to announce several new service…

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The loneliest job? How top CEOs manage dilemmas and vulnerability

For many leaders, assuming the role of CEO is a key career goal and the culmination of decades of hard work. The CEO role is also among the most challenging and demanding positions in any organization—particularly during times of uncertainty and upheaval.About 100 CEOs have passed through the McKinsey Center for CEO Excellence (MCCE) leadership program since it launched in mid-2022 (for more information on the MCCE, see sidebar, “About…

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DHS Updates STEM Designated Degree Program List for 24-Month STEM OPT Extensions

Quick Hits DHS recently added Environmental/Natural Resources Economics to the STEM list of qualifying fields of study. More F-1 nonimmigrant students will be eligible for the twenty-four-month extension of their post-completion OPT. The STEM Designated Degree Program List is “a complete list of fields of study that DHS considers to be science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) fields of study for purposes of the 24-month STEM optional practical training extension.”…

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What the World Could Learn from America’s Immigration Backlash—100 Years Ago

Immigration will be a central issue in the upcoming US presidential election, just as it motivated the recent snap elections in France. After all, the number of migrants rose 27 percent to 281 million globally in 2020, compared with 2010, according to United Nations estimates. The number of individuals displaced by natural disasters could surge to 1.2 billion by 2050, according to the Institute for Economics and Peace. Beyond the…

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Protecting the public from abusive AI-generated content 

AI-generated deepfakes are realistic, easy for nearly anyone to make, and increasingly being used for fraud, abuse, and manipulation – especially to target kids and seniors. While the tech sector and non-profit groups have taken recent steps to address this problem, it has become apparent that our laws will also need to evolve to combat deepfake fraud. In short, we need new laws to help stop bad actors from using…

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Managing uncertainty in the silicon carbide wafer market

Over the past few years, silicon carbide (SiC) has emerged as an attractive alternative to silicon as a semiconductor base material because it offers improved performance, most notably realized in applications requiring high power. Although various industrial devices now incorporate SiC, the majority of emerging demand will come from applications in electric-vehicle (EV) powertrains in the form of metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs).In an October 2023 article, McKinsey estimated that the…

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Hybrid Work: Surprising Lessons From Gen Z

What does Gen Z really want from hybrid work? This brief video shares advice for leaders on how to turn Gen Z’s preferences into overall culture improvements. MIT Sloan Management Review August 06, 2024 Reading Time: 1 min  subscribe-icon Subscribe Share [embedded content] Many stereotypes and anecdotes surround Generation Z’s supposed work styles: Maybe you’ve heard “They don’t like to work very hard” or “They don’t want to come into…

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Olympic Thrills to Patent Skills: Understanding Apparatus and Method Claims

This year’s Olympic Games have already been packed with compelling storylines.  These storylines include the somewhat controversial opening ceremony to Yusuf “hold my beer” Dikec winning hearts and the silver medal in pistol shooting, and Simone Biles clinching her tenth gold medal (with more possibly on the way).  Adding to the Olympic headlines, on August 4, USA’s Noah Lyles added to the Olympic headlines by edging past Kishane Thompson, from…

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OSH Law Primer, Part VIII: The Intersection of Employment Law and Safety Issues

The first article in this series provided a general overview of the OSH Act and OSHA; the second article examined OSHA’s rulemaking process; the third article reviewed an employer’s duty to comply with standards; the fourth article discussed the general duty clause; the fifth article addressed OSHA’s recordkeeping requirements; the sixth article covered employees’ and employers’ respective rights; the seventh article addressed whistleblower issues. In this, the eighth article in…

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How EdTech Firm Coursera Is Incorporating GenAI into Its Products and Services

Brian Kenny Since ChatGPT appeared on the scene back in the fall of 2022, newsfeeds have been flooded with claims that generative AI is going to change the world, so if you're suffering from a bit of GenAI fatigue, I get it, but even if it's not readily apparent to you in your day-to-day work, AI is steadily increasing its presence in a lot of workplaces. According to a CompTIA…

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China: the increase in US import tariffs is first and foremost a political issue

These measures come on top of a long list of tariff and non-tariff barriers imposed since the trade war broke out between the two countries in 2018. The Peterson Institute for International Economics, a research organisation, estimates that 66% of Chinese exports to the US were already subject to customs duties averaging 19.3% before these latest announcements. The signing of the Phase 1 agreement and the election of Joe Biden…

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The Downside of Employee Recognition

Employee recognition programs have long been touted as a key driver of engagement and retention. However, as organizations strive to create cultures of appreciation, it's crucial to understand that not all recognition efforts yield positive results. In fact, some well-intentioned programs can backfire, leading to unintended consequences that may harm employee morale and productivity. Let’s explore some of the potential pitfalls of recognition programs as well as innovative approaches to…

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‘Far from clear’ new Alzheimer’s drugs will make a difference at a population level, say researchers

Writing in Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association, the team from Cambridge Public Health argue that substantial challenges including the risk-benefit ratio, limited eligibility and high cost of roll-out will limit any benefits of these treatments.Alzheimer’s disease is often quoted as causing 70% of the 55 million cases of dementia worldwide, though the definition of what constitutes the disease is hotly debated. One characteristic of Alzheimer’s is…

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Beating ‘Not Invented Here’ Syndrome

Topics Frontiers An MIT SMR initiative exploring how technology is reshaping the practice of management. More in this series Andrew Baker/Ikon Images When I was managing director of the German subsidiary of U.S.-headquartered SC Johnson, I witnessed “not invented here” (NIH) syndrome in action. The larger company paid scant attention to an innovative air freshener product successfully launched by an Asian subsidiary, apparently due in part to bias toward innovations…

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A new way of thinking about the economy could help protect the Amazon, and help its people thrive

A group of conservationists from Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, the US and the UK say that current conservation and development efforts will never sustain or scale without systemic changes in how economies are designed.Despite extensive destruction of the Amazon in the name of economic development, Amazonian communities have seen little improvement in income, life expectancy, and education. The researchers have proposed a new model and associated policy changes that could…

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Start spreading the news: New York City travel and tourism are back

As the travel industry began to recover in 2021, we expressed our view that the enduring allure of New York would continue to draw visitors back to the city. That projection is well on track, as more than 62 million people visited New York City in 2023, representing 93 percent of 2019 levels. The city now expects to exceed prepandemic visitor numbers by 2025.Although travelers are back, their mindsets and behaviors…

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BRICS and the IMF Debt Traps. What Can the Contingent Reserve Arrangement Do for the Global South?

There are even two new BRICS members in this situation: Ethiopia and Egypt, the latter of which, as well as being a BRICS member, is also a member of the NDB, which has another member, Bangladesh, in the same situation. Ethiopia declared a default on its debt services in December 2023 (US$ 31 million) and is being pressured by the Paris Club to guarantee a US$ 3.5 billion loan with…

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LLM to ROI: How to scale gen AI in retail

Once generative AI (gen AI) hit the mainstream, in late 2022, it took little time for retail executives to realize the potential in front of them. Mentions of artificial intelligence (AI) in retailers’ earnings calls soared last year—which was no surprise, given that gen AI is poised to unlock between $240 billion to $390 billion in economic value for retailers, equivalent to a margin increase across the industry of 1.2 to…

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Watching for the Next Economic Downturn? Follow Corporate Debt

What really fuels a boom-and-bust cycle in the modern global economy? It’s not always household debt, says a new paper that parses in-depth data across 115 countries. Instead, rising corporate debt may flash the clearest warning that a fiscal crisis is on the horizon. In recent years, experts focused on housing and household debt for good reason: In the United States, a residential housing loan collapse touched off the deep…

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Labour’s Proposed Tax System Overhaul

By Tahir Mahmood and Marco Malagoni | 05 Aug, 2024 The next budget will be held on 30 October 2024 and we are now preparing for anticipated changes. Today, Tahir Mahmood and Marco Malagoni discuss the potential tax changes. Labour has proposed a comprehensive overhaul of the tax system, with assurances that there will be no increases in income tax, National Insurance, corporation tax or VAT. However, changes are anticipated…

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How European consumers perceive electric vehicles

Electric vehicles (EVs) are no longer a niche business. They now account for 16 percent of new-car sales in Europe, up from under 1 percent in 2019. Despite the removal of purchase subsidies in certain markets, such as Germany at the end of 2023, sales have remained stable. Since the beginning of 2024, more than 875,000 new full battery electric vehicles (BEVs) have been sold across the continent.As EV growth…

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Astronomers uncover risks to planets that could host life

The discovery suggests that the intense UV radiation from these flares could significantly impact whether planets around red dwarf stars can be habitable.“Few stars have been thought to generate enough UV radiation through flares to impact planet habitability. Our findings show that many more stars may have this capability,” said first author Vera Berger, who led the research while based at the University of Hawai’i and who is now based…

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Confiscation of Russian Assets: Politics Versus Economics

Politicians in American partner countries are obviously concerned that a new wave of crisis of investor confidence, provoked by the United States, will spread to their jurisdictions. Former British prime minister Rishi Sunak has repeatedly called for countries “to be bolder” in the confiscation of Russian assets; however, the confiscation bill introduced in Parliament was rejected, and representatives of the House of Lords, the Bank of England and many British…

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2024 VETS-4212 Filing Platform Opens (Quietly) on August 1, 2024—What to Know

Quick Hits The 2024 VETS-4212 reporting platform will open on August 1, 2024. All 2024 VETS-4212 filings are due by September 30, 2024. Federal contractors and subcontractors with a single covered contact of $150,000 or more are required to file VETS-4212 reports. The same data can be used for both the 2023 EEO-1 and 2024 VETS-4212 reports provided conditions are met. While there have been some updates to the U.S.…

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Cal/OSHA Publishes Draft Workplace Violence Prevention Standard With Additional Proposed Requirements

Quick Hits Cal/OSHA released a revised discussion draft of a proposed workplace violence prevention standard for general industry (non-healthcare settings). The draft proposal includes definitions of engineering controls and work practice controls, and it would require employers to communicate with “authorized employee representatives” and employees regarding workplace violence matters. Comments on the proposed standard are due by September 3, 2024, and an advisory committee hearing will be scheduled later this…

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The Application of Personal Goodwill in Accounting Firm Deals

Accounting firm deals often involve complex tax issues, and it is important to understand their implications. If you have any questions on this article, please do not hesitate to reach out to the author or Russell Shapiro, who leads LP’s Accounting Firm Practice. As part of our ongoing series on tax issues for accounting firm transactions, this article discusses the benefits of utilizing personal goodwill in accounting firm M&A deals when appropriate. Personal…

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