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A new ultrathin conductor for nanoelectronics

​​As computer chips continue to get smaller and more complex, the ultrathin metallic wires that carry electrical signals within these chips have become a weak link. Standard metal wires get worse at conducting electricity as they get thinner, ultimately limiting the size, efficiency, and performance of nanoscale electronics.In a paper published Jan. 3 in Science, Stanford researchers show that niobium phosphide can conduct electricity better than copper in films that…

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Origins of black holes revealed in their spin, study finds

The size and spin of black holes can reveal important information about how and where they formed, according to new research. The study tests the idea that many of the black holes observed by astronomers have merged multiple times within densely populated environments containing millions of stars.The team, involving researchers from the University of Cambridge, examined the public catalogue of 69 gravitational wave events involving binary black holes detected by…

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World – 2025-2026 scenario: a conditional scenario, more than ever

Drawing the contours of the US (and therefore global) scenario requires making assumptions about both the scale of the measures likely to be implemented and their timing, depending on whether they fall within the prerogatives of the president or require the approval of Congress.As far as tariffs are concerned, Donald Trump's threats look like extreme pressure tactics. They call for an ‘intermediate’ scenario consisting of substantial increases, without however reaching…

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Gaining Real Business Benefits From GenAI: An MIT SMR Executive Guide

Topics How to Maximize the Business Value of Generative AI The promise of generative AI is value — higher revenue, streamlined efficiencies, and more innovative decision-making. Achieving this value isn’t easy. Maximizing it is even harder. This MIT SMR Executive Guide offers expert insights into the strategies needed to get the most out of GenAI. Brought to you by: More in this series subscribe-icon Subscribe Share Neil Webb There’s no…

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Massachusetts Pay Data Reporting Deadline Almost Here – What do Employers Need to File?

Seyfarth Synopsis: The Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development (EOLWD) has confirmed that employers subject to the new Massachusetts pay data reporting law will only have to submit their most recent EEO forms even though (in most instances) those forms do not contain employee compensation data. As we reported previously, Massachusetts recently passed new legislation that imposes pay transparency requirements on most employers and creates a regime –…

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2025 ACA Compliance Updates: Essential Insights for Employers

Quick Hits Starting with ACA reporting for 2024, employers and health insurance providers are only required to send Forms 1095-B and1095-C to covered employees upon request. Employers can distribute Forms 1095-B and1095-C electronically. Employers now have ninety days to respond to 226-J letters. Paperwork Burden Reduction Act The Paperwork Burden Reduction Act (H.R. 3797) amends the ACA by eliminating the mandate for employers and health insurance providers to automatically distribute…

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Sex differences in brain structure present at birth

While male brains tended to be greater in volume than female brains, when adjusted for total brain volume, female infants on average had significantly more grey matter, while male infants on average had significantly more white matter in their brains.Grey matter is made up of neuron cell bodies and dendrites and is responsible for processing and interpreting information, such as sensation, perception, learning, speech, and cognition.  White matter is made…

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10 Essential Leadership Tips for 2025

subscribe-icon Subscribe Share Nick Purser/Ikon Images If you want to be a successful leader in 2025, you might want to put the two C’s at the top of your list: communication and culture. Indeed, looking back at MIT SMR’s most popular articles in recent months, it’s striking how many of them focus on communication and culture. These two strengths are inseparable: An organization can’t have a strong culture without strong…

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Small Changes, Big Results: Research-Backed Tips for Living a Good Life in 2025‌‌

Think local and escape echo chambers‌ Todd Cort, Senior Lecturer in Sustainability; Faculty Director, Sustainability Program, MBA for Executives; Faculty Co-Director, Yale Center for Business and the Environment‌ In 2025, I anticipate that climate action will go local. Sometimes we rely on national governments too much to take on the “big challenges” like climate change. I expect that we will see another wave of local and regional efforts to “green”…

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How beauty players can scale gen AI in 2025

Beauty is no longer in the eye of the beholder; it’s at the fingertips of the generative AI (gen AI) prompter. Gen AI could add $9 billion to $10 billion to the global economy based on its impact on the beauty industry alone, and early movers have already begun testing the technology. But scaling these experiments will be challenging, given the velocity of gen AI innovation. The gap between the…

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Logged tropical forests are still valuable for biodiversity, study finds

A researcher measures a small mammal. Image credit: Ed Turner. Understanding how different aspects of tropical forests are affected by logging and conversion to oil palm plantations is important for identifying priority habitats for conservation and restoration. It can also help aid decisions on land use – for instance, whether a logged forest should be protected, restored, or allowed to be converted into a plantation. But up to now, most…

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Is India the Next Global Luxury Hub?

India’s luxury landscape is at a crucial juncture. With a booming economy, the world’s largest population and a dynamic, youthful demographic, the country has been dubbed the next luxury hub, especially at a time when luxury consumption in China is declining as spending softens. Is the centre of the world’s luxury market shifting from China to India, as a fast-growing appetite in goods such as high-end watches suggests? And, if so, how should brands approach…

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Portfolio rebalancing: investors’ safe asset substitution patterns

6 January 2025By Tsvetelina NenovaThis is the first post in our series featuring the work of the ECB’s 2024 Young Economist Prize finalists. Tsvetelina Nenova won with the research highlighted in this post.When returns on safe assets fall, investors move some of their money to riskier assets. This ECB Blog shows: US Treasuries are replaced by global bonds, while substitutes for Bunds are mostly from Europe. This effect is smaller…

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Piotr Owczarek: Can Human Creativity Exist Alongside AI’s Generative Potential?

  Prometheus's gift of fire to humanity ignited progress but came at a personal cost. Today, businesses face a similar crossroads with generative AI: harness its power wisely or risk unforeseen consequences. By: Piotr Owczarek As AI revolutionizes industries, what becomes of human creativity? More businesses of all sizes begin to adopt generative AI, changes in the workforce become apparent. Many jobs eliminated as automation in the fields of graphic…

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January 2025 Visa Bulletin: Key Highlights and Implications

By: Dawn Lurie, Mahsa Aliaskari, and Brooke Gary Along with the New Year, January 1st also marks the implementation of a new Visa Bulletin by the U.S. Department of State. Each month, the United States Immigration and Citizenship Services (USCIS) chooses whether it will follow the Dates for Filing Visa Applications chart or the Application Final Action Dates chart to determine when an employment-based and family-sponsored Adjustment of Status (AOS)…

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AI hallucinations in legal practice: risks, real cases, and solutions

Generative AI has rapidly entered the legal industry, offering tools for document drafting, legal research and case analysis. While these tools promise increased efficiency, they also present significant risks – one of which is AI hallucinations. These occur when AI generates content that appears plausible but is entirely inaccurate. In the legal world, using such inaccurate information can lead to serious problems, including presenting false facts or misinterpreting cases and…

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The Dollar System: The World’s Most Powerful Inequality Producing Machine

Let me explain. There is a huge literature on the dollar based IMFS, most of it based in the US and committed, contrary to all evidence, to celebrating its effective ‘public service’ to the world and to predicting its longevity. There is also a huge literature on financialization, and its harms. However, until my Geopolitical Economy of 2013, no one spoke of their intimate connection. I argued there, and in…

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Beyond normal: A year in review from McKinsey Talks Operations

At the end of 2023, the final McKinsey Talks Operations podcast of the year concluded that there was no such thing as normal for operations leaders. Looking back on the 12 months since then, it seems the sentiment holds true—both everything and nothing has changed. In this episode, hosts Christian Johnson and Daphne Luchtenberg reflect on four recurring themes from their discussions with McKinsey experts and industry guests: building resilient…

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2024 Year in Review – Hong Kong Employment Law

The year 2024 brought about notable changes in employment law in Hong Kong. This article provides a brief overview of the key developments that occurred over the past year and a look forward at the expected changes as we transition into 2025. For the full version of this article, please click here. 24 January: District Court reaffirms unauthorised absence as a ground for summary dismissal. Click here to read more.…

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From engines to algorithms: Gen AI in automotive software development

Companies in the automotive and industrial sectors are rewiring to become software-enabled enterprises. As in-vehicle software emerges as a critical differentiator, companies have started to reevaluate the role of software and overhaul their development approaches. Today, software serves as the backbone for advanced features and safety-critical functions while enhancing operational efficiency and propelling innovation. But software can also introduce organizational challenges, because underdeveloped software capabilities can result in start-of-production delays…

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The Post Office: an emblem of the UK’s relationship with the state, sliding into dystopia

The Horizon scandal, which led to the wrongful prosecution of hundreds of subpostmasters, has severely dented the public’s perception of the Post Office as an institution. Against this backdrop, branch closures are planned across the Post Office network. These further cuts to a system already struggling can only do further harm to the sense that well-resourced public services could and should play a central role in everyday life. In my…

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It’s Official: The EU Platform Work Directive Is Here

Quick Hits The EU Platform Work Directive took effect on December 1, 2024, but EU member states have until December 2, 2026, to implement it into national law and develop appropriate guidance for the classification of platform workers as independent contractors versus employees. The directive imposes obligations on digital platforms using automated decision-making or automated monitoring systems that go above and beyond the requirements of the EU AI Act. The…

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Remote-driving services: The next disruption in mobility innovation?

Self-driving cars once seemed beyond the realm of possibility, but they are now being piloted on city streets. Now another mobility innovation has emerged that could accelerate and complement autonomy: remote driving.By combining sophisticated communication systems with real-time video feeds, remote-driving systems can instantly convey information about road conditions, traffic, and unexpected obstacles to off-site drivers who can control the vehicle’s braking and steering (Exhibit 1). These systems can be…

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Software-defined hardware in the age of AI

Over the past two decades, the shift from fixed-function hardware to software-defined hardware has revolutionized industries ranging from networking to mobile communications. With software-defined hardware, developers can improve products and services by continually updating software rather than undertaking more costly and time-consuming hardware upgrades. Devices that were once rigid and task specific are now becoming programmable and flexible, allowing them to handle new tasks and demands. Despite the functional benefits…

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California Labor Code Section 132a—When Claims of Discrimination Are Brought Before the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board

Quick Hits California prohibits employers from discriminating against workers who suffer workplace injuries or who have filed or made known their intention to file a claim for compensation under an employer’s workers’ compensation insurance policy. Discrimination can include discharging, threatening to discharge, or retaliating against a worker in any manner for filing or making known an intention to file a workers’ compensation claim. Penalties for discriminating against a worker for…

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Getting on board with shared autonomous mobility

Shared autonomous vehicles (AVs) now operate in more than ten cities worldwide, including Beijing, Oslo, Phoenix, and San Francisco. More deployments are planned in other regions as AVs with level four capabilities—those that can handle most functions without human intervention—become increasingly sophisticated. While engineers have overcome many technological hurdles for autonomous mobility and continue to make strides, industry leaders should also address other issues—especially those related to the economics of these…

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Loneliness linked to higher risk of heart disease and stroke and susceptibility to infection

Researchers from the UK and China drew this conclusion after studying proteins from blood samples taken from over 42,000 adults recruited to the UK Biobank. Their findings are published today in the journal Nature Human Behaviour.Social relationships play an important role in our wellbeing. Evidence increasingly demonstrates that both social isolation and loneliness are linked to poorer health and an early death. Despite this evidence, however, the underlying mechanisms through…

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Greater Eurasia: Challenges and Hypotheses

To some extent, it is generally typical of the entire World Majority — the world outside the community of Western countries, united around one leader and professing common interests and values ​​in relations with the outside world. In turn, the countries of Greater Eurasia do not have comparable opportunities to consolidate their interests and strategic aspirations. There is no dispute that a certain competition is also present in other regions of the planet, including the West: for example, European states are now desperately fighting for…

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Seven Essential Hybrid Work Tips for Leaders in 2025

subscribe-icon Subscribe Share Carolyn Geason-Beissel/MIT SMR | Getty Images Leading teams in a hybrid work environment is still a relatively new science — and presents many types of challenges. Hybrid team leaders need to identify the best team norms around communication, refine the workplace culture to foster collaboration and community, decide on smart ways to manage accountability, and more. However, hybrid work also presents valuable opportunities for leaders trying to…

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How Jimmy Carter Lost His Job and Found His Mission: A Personal Remembrance

This commentary originally appeared in Newsweek. As the media has been blanketed with well-deserved praise for President Jimmy Carter’s noble life, it feels as though everything has now been said... but perhaps just not yet by everybody. While I didn’t serve in the Carter campaign or in his administration, for a dozen years—from 1989 to 2001—I worked with him on various projects after he left office. He wanted to expand…

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Future-Proof Jobs? AI in the Swiss Labor Market – 2025

Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to transform the world of work. Case studies show that AI applications, including the latest large-scale language models, can significantly increase productivity in professions such as customer service and management consulting. Swiss companies also seem to share this view. Investments in IT, communication and technology already account for 30 percent of all equipment investments by Swiss companies – more than during the dotcom bubble.…

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Hope Is a Skill We All Need to Practise

We're often warned against opening Pandora's box, a metaphor for unleashing a torrent of evils on the world. Yet, we forget an essential detail: Elpis – the spirit of hope – remained within the box. Even when the world seems consumed by chaos, hope endures.Throughout history, philosophers and leaders have celebrated hope as a powerful force. The ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu observed, “As long as we have hope, we…

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Political Positions of Potential BRICS Partner Countries: Voting in the UN General Assembly

To assess the foreign policy preferences of potential BRICS partners, it is interesting to look at their voting in the UN General Assembly. It is clear that their results should not be taken as absolutes, and the real political practice of states is not limited to voting results and is not determined by them. But these votes are also symbolically quite important, writes Valdai Club Programme Director Oleg Barabanov. The…

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System to auto-detect new variants will inform better response to future infectious disease outbreaks

The new approach uses samples from infected humans to allow real-time monitoring of pathogens circulating in human populations, and enable vaccine-evading bugs to be quickly and automatically identified. This could inform the development of vaccines that are more effective in preventing disease.The approach can also quickly detect emerging variants with resistance to antibiotics. This could inform the choice of treatment for people who become infected - and try to limit…

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New York Launches Initiative to Minimize Injuries Among Warehouse Employees

Quick Hits The Warehouse Worker Injury Reduction Program (WWIRP) applies to all employers that directly or indirectly employ at least 100 employees at a single warehouse distribution center or at least 1,000 employees at one or more warehouse distribution centers in New York. Effective June 1, 2025, the WWIRP mandates that all covered employers create and implement formal injury reduction programs that identify and minimize risks of musculoskeletal injuries in…

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2025 Lessons in Sustainability – Forging a Better Future

The year 2023 was named the hottest on record, and 2024 is on track to be even warmer. We are already feeling the impact of the climate emergency, but the problem runs deeper. Climate change is just one symptom of our planet’s health crisis. From resource depletion to social inequality, the challenges we face are interconnected and demand a comprehensive solution. Beyond the endeavours of any one company or community, sustainability…

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Rules of Reckoning

The global crisis that we are experiencing is aggravated by an intellectual crisis of world political thought. Nevertheless, people are inventive, and maybe AI will help, writes Valdai Club Chairman Andrey Bystritskiy. There is virtually no doubt that the problems of 2024 will reappear in full and even with reinforcements in 2025. One of the reasons for the protracted global political crisis in which we now exist is that the creative ability of modern political thought is clearly insufficient to offer a more or less realistic and digestible model of the…

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Managing Change in the Workplace – 2025

Business leaders today are juggling more than ever, from creating diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs to managing conflict in highly-charged environments. The brunt of the pandemic may be behind us, but its effects continue to ripple deep throughout today’s workplace. Even before the death of George Floyd and the start of the Black Lives Matter movement became catalysts for change, business executives were starting to recognize the case for…

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Ho Ho Oh No: 12 Employment Cases That Shocked in 2024

In the spirit of the season, we’re decking the halls with 12 unforgettable workplace mishaps of this year because who says the 12 Days of Christmas should only be about partridges and pear trees? 1. Age Discrimination: A windy workplace incident Lee Marsh, a manager at Birmingham City Council, was found guilty of age discrimination after an unusual incident involving a younger colleague. Marsh reportedly found it amusing to pass…

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Key State Laws Set to Take Effect on January 1, 2025

Quick Hits New state laws on paid leaves, discrimination protections, child labor, medical marijuana, and workplace safety are set to take effect on January 1, 2025. Employers may want to take note of these new laws and compliance obligations. California California has several laws set to take effect on January 1, 2025, including laws expanding protections against unlawful discrimination; prohibiting mandatory workplace meetings to discuss political or religious matters, including…

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