My mid-week morning train WFH reads:
• Microsoft’s new research finds an AI ‘paradox’ holding companies back. A new study of 20,000 artificial intelligence users in workplaces around the world concludes that the biggest barrier to getting real value from AI isn’t the technology or the workers themselves — it’s the ingrained culture of the organizations where they work. That “Transformation Paradox” is one of the central findings from Microsoft’s annual Work Trend Index, released Tuesday morning, which paints a picture of employees eager to reshape their jobs and organizations that aren’t really in a position to make it happen. (Geekwire)
• One Calf Shows Why Record Beef Prices Still Aren’t Coming Down: Pressures at every stage of the 18-month supply chain are expected to keep prices high at least through year end. (Bloomberg Free) see also It’ll be years before Americans get used to higher prices — and politicians can’t just wait it out: Consumers will eventually adjust, but in the meantime, they’ll keep punishing leaders who don’t act. The reference-point reset on the price level is permanent damage to political incumbents — left or right. Voters anchor on what they remember. (G. Elliott Morris)
• International Diversification Is Finally Paying Off: The dollar’s weakness has contributed to a long-awaited foreign-stock rally and reduced correlations with US equities—at least for now. After fifteen years of underperformance, ex-US is finally earning its keep. A useful reminder that ‘home country bias’ eventually gets a bill. (Morningstar)
• An AltView on Private Real Estate: Valuations seem high, but never mind. LFG!!!!! Still, confoundingly, private RE remains a default option for many institutions—until you pause and reflect. Higher fees reduce returns—and pay for seriously good propaganda A skeptical, well-sourced look at private real estate marks versus reality. Read it before your next non-traded REIT pitch. (AltView)
• ‘Microshifting’ puts a new spin on 9-to-5 schedules: The remote-era cousin to flex time. Whether it’s productivity gain or attention spread thin depends entirely on whose calendar you read. (AP News)
• China’s Big Bet on Wind Power Is Paying Off: An industrial policy of subsidies and import restrictions laid the foundations for China to become almost as dominant in wind turbines as in solar panels. While we argue about windmills causing cancer, Beijing is shipping turbines and printing electricity. The energy-transition gap keeps widening. (New York Times)
• Why Your Best Ideas Aren’t Original: Derek Thompson on the recombinant nature of creativity. Originality is mostly cross-pollination wearing a top hat. (Derek Thompson) see also Better Than Human: Why Robots Will—And Must—Take Our Jobs (2012): Kevin Kelly’s 2012 Wired classic on automation is more relevant than ever. The argument that robots replacing human labor is not just inevitable but desirable hasn’t aged a day. The rote tasks of any information-intensive job can be automated. It doesn’t matter if you are a doctor, lawyer, architect, reporter, or even programmer: The robot takeover will be epic. (Wired)
• Cannabis may make you remember things that never happened: Newer THC research on false-memory formation. Studies show THC can influence multiple stages of memory formation, shaping not just what we remember—but how accurately we remember it. As legalization expands, the basic neuroscience is finally catching up. (National Geographic)
• Brain scans reveal 3 ADHD subtypes, including a more extreme form: Researchers identified a more severe presentation of the condition marked by emotional dysregulation. New imaging research argues ADHD isn’t one thing but at least three — with treatment implications. Useful science journalism, low on hype. (Washington Post)
• Netflix’s ‘Lord of the Flies’ Adaptation Is a Harrowing Watch With a Stellar Young Cast: TV Review. Originally aired by the BBC before coming to Netflix in the U.S., the four-episode series doesn’t make any major changes to Golding’s potent allegory for the thin line separating civilization from savagery. A grimly faithful update of Golding. The young cast is the reason to watch — and the reason it’s hard to. (Variety)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business this past weekend with Lawrence Calcano, CEO and Chairman of iCapital, The firm is a fintech platform built to be the OS for alternative investments and complex products for financial advisors, wealth managers, and banks. The firm has over $1.2 trillion in active global assets on platform across 2,455 funds used by 123,ooo financial professionals.
Name changes as a bubble symptom
Source: Acadian
Sign up for our reads-only mailing list here.
