Risks to Bone Health in Treating Chronic Disease in Younger Patients; Secondary osteoporosis is a risk with celiac disease, cancer, reflux medicines and after bariatric surgery

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Risks to Bone Health in Treating Chronic Disease in Younger Patients

Secondary osteoporosis is a risk with celiac disease, cancer, reflux medicines and after bariatric surgery

LAURA LANDRO

March 3, 2014 7:16 p.m. ET

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Osteoporosis, a loss of bone strength that raises the risk of fractures, is one of the most common and crippling ailments associated with aging in women. Increasingly, it is striking younger patients who have a host of other medical problems. Read more of this post

Filed under Health

Longest, Darkest Winters Spark Odd Mood Boosters; Nordic Tricks to Fight Winter Blues: Special Headsets, Hilltop Mirrors

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Longest, Darkest Winters Spark Odd Mood Boosters

Nordic Tricks to Fight Winter Blues: Special Headsets, Hilltop Mirrors

JUHANA ROSSI

March 3, 2014 6:56 p.m. ET

Helsinki

Winter in Finland can be stubbornly long—and dark.

It is the type of weather than can make a person feel mentally sluggish and just plain blue. It can lead to the more serious seasonal affective disorder (SAD). It has spawned businesses across Scandinavia and Iceland to offer relief including some odder-sounding efforts. Read more of this post

Filed under Life

Through China’s Smog, Darkly; Beijing talks pollution control but not the political reform required

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Through China’s Smog, Darkly

Beijing talks pollution control but not the political reform required.

Updated March 3, 2014 6:26 p.m. ET

Chinese supremo Xi Jinping last week strolled through a popular Beijing neighborhood during the latest “airpocalypse,” as filthy grayish-yellow haze smothered the city’s streets. The Chinese leader mingled with locals, posed for cameras and conspicuously wore no face mask to hide from the smog. The message, per state-run Xinhua’s headline: “Breathing together, sharing the fate.” Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Video: Decoding the Indian Head Wobble

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uj56IPJOqWE

Mar 3, 2014

Video: Decoding the Indian Head Wobble

PREETIKA RANA

The idiosyncratic Indian head wobble — side-to-side like a pendulum — often confuses and amuses visitors to the country who ask if the signal indicates “yes,” “no,” or “not quite sure.” Now, a video claiming to decode what it means has gone viral on YouTube with over a million views in recent days. Read more of this post

Filed under Life

‘Deep value’ vs. ‘high quality’: Berkshire numbers rekindle debate

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

‘Deep value’ vs. ‘high quality’: Berkshire numbers rekindle debate 

R.B. MATTHEWS

Special to The Globe and Mail

Published Monday, Mar. 03 2014, 7:40 PM EST

Last updated Monday, Mar. 03 2014, 7:45 PM EST

R.B. (Biff) Matthews is chairman of Longview Asset Management Ltd.

Warren Buffett’s recent annual letter to shareholders reveals that, over the past five years, the increase in Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s book value was less than the investment return provided by the S&P 500 index. This has rekindled a long-standing debate between two schools of value investors. Read more of this post

Filed under Investing Process

After vacating Bangkok’s streets, Thai protesters look to courts

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

After vacating Bangkok’s streets, Thai protesters look to courts

Monday, March 3, 2014 – 18:36

Reuters

BANGKOK – Anti-government protesters in Thailand have retreated to a central Bangkok park, freeing up traffic after blocking big intersections for more than a month, but Thailand’s four-month political crisis looks no closer to a solution. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Berkshire prefers buying big businesses: Buffett on CNBC

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Berkshire prefers buying big businesses: Buffett on CNBC

3:17pm EST

(Reuters) – Conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N:Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) would rather keep buying big businesses than simply adding to stock holdings, company head and legendary investor Warren Buffett said on Monday. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Warren Buffett Defends Business Wire On HFT Issue

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Warren Buffett Defends Business Wire On HFT Issue

by Mark MelinMarch 03, 2014, 1:50 pm

Buffett points out select HFT firms received information at the same time as major newswires, yet the real issue could be how they limited the secretive offering to only a handful of firms Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Some of Australia’s biggest resource companies could lose a major investor if Norway goes through with a plan to ban its famous sovereign wealth fund from investing in coal, oil and gas

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Norwegian wealth fund may ditch Australian resource firms

March 4, 2014

Peter Ker

Some of Australia’s biggest resource companies could lose a major investor if Norway goes through with a plan to ban its famous sovereign wealth fund from investing in coal, oil and gas. Read more of this post

Filed under Innovation

Nelson Mandela: lessons from a master negotiator

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Nelson Mandela: lessons from a master negotiator

Published 02 March 2014 18:08, Updated 03 March 2014 10:32

Harvard Business Review

Mandela had a noteworthy ability to negotiate calmly with his enemies at the same time that he was absorbed in a passionate, all-consuming struggle against them. Photo: AFP Read more of this post

Filed under Life

Uncertified ‘inadequate’ licenses abound in South Korea amid recession; Number of licenses surges 7-fold to nearly 7,000 in S. Korea

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Number of licenses surges 7-fold to nearly 7,000 in S. Korea

Yoon Jin-ho, Choi Hee-suk

2014.03.03 17:52:58

Uncertified ‘inadequate’ licenses abound in South Korea amid recession. The youth struggling to get a job, the employed people worried about job insecurity, and baby-boomers who have not prepared enough for retirement are flocking to win licenses, only to waste time and money.  Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

The battle of the taxi apps may soon end in China

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

The battle of the taxi apps may soon end in China

Staff Reporter

2014-03-03

The Shanghai Municipal Transport and Port Authority yesterday decided that from March 1, taxis will be forbidden from using taxi app services during morning and night peak hours. This could mark the end of the battle between China’s taxi app operators, China News Service reports. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends, TMT Trends

World’s first physical bitcoin store opens in HK

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

World’s first physical bitcoin store opens in HK

Staff Reporter

2014-03-03

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Asia Nexgen CEO Ken Lo at the opening of the world’s first physical bitcoin store in Hong Kong on Feb. 28, 2014. (Photo/Xinhua) Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Household debt – Korea’s Achilles’ heel

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

2014-03-03 17:21

Household debt – Korea’s Achilles’ heel

Gov’t urged to focus on supporting low-income people
By Kim Rahn
image001-7 image002
Debt is a big part of life for most Koreans. Many borrow to purchase or lease houses, start or grow businesses, or pay for their college tuition. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

How Messaging Apps Make Money

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Mar 3, 2014

How Messaging Apps Make Money

JURO OSAWA

While WhatsApp has so far kept its messaging service simple and free of advertisements, rival apps like Line, Kakao Talk and WeChat have been scrambling to find ways to make money through additional services like video games and official accounts for corporate users. For those apps, one big challenge is to make sure that those efforts to generate revenue won’t undermine their appeal as communication and social networking tools. Read more of this post

Filed under TMT Trends

When Start-Ups Don’t Lock the Doors; For new tech companies, developing features and acquiring users tends to be a priority over securing customer data, leaving them vulnerable to security breaches

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

When Start-Ups Don’t Lock the Doors

By JENNA WORTHAM and NICOLE PERLROTHMARCH 2, 2014

Young tech companies have a long list of to-dos. Signing up users and raising money are usually at the top of the list.

Much further down? Data security. That neglect has recently come back to bite many hot new applications and web services — and their users — and has them rushing to improve their products after breaches and holes were discovered. Read more of this post

Filed under TMT Trends

Learning From the Doers: Developing Country Lessons for Advanced Economy Growth

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Learning From the Doers: Developing Country Lessons for Advanced Economy Growth

Anusha Chari, Peter Blair Henry

NBER Working Paper No. 19934
Issued in February 2014
From 1980 to 1992, emerging and developing countries grew by 3.4 percent per year. Their annual rate of growth increased to 5.4 percent between 1993 and 2012. No such increase occurred for advanced nations, whose average growth from 1980-2012 was roughly constant (excluding the impact of the 2008-09 Recession). Developing nations turned themselves around by embracing discipline—sustained commitment to a pragmatic and flexible growth strategy. Three illustrations of discipline through the lens of trade, fiscal, and debt reforms in the developing world offer relevant, practical lessons for recovery in advanced economies and continued catch-up growth in developing nations.

Filed under Investing Process

What to watch for at the annual session of China’s faux parliament

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

March 2, 2014 5:06 pm

What to watch for at the annual session of China’s faux parliament

By Jamil Anderlini in Beijing

Each year in early March, thousands of delegates to China’s official lawmaking and top political advisory bodies gather in Beijing to rubber-stamp laws and policies decided by the country’s ruling Communist party. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Japan’s gamble with casino licences sets pulses racing

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Last updated: March 2, 2014 5:45 am

Japan’s gamble with casino licences sets pulses racing

By Jonathan Soble in Tokyo

At the Japan Casino School in Tokyo, students can train as blackjack dealers or take specialised English courses so as to better direct the world’s gamblers to place their bets. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

China’s mobile sector grows up superfast

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

March 2, 2014 6:28 pm

China’s mobile sector grows up superfast

By Daniel Thomas, Telecoms Correspondent

The bustling shopping streets of Shanghai drive home the image of a country glued to mobile devices, often at the expense of passers-by shouldered out of the way by workers hurrying past with smartphone in hand. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends, TMT Trends

Hasso Plattner, SAP’s software pioneer still sailing on; The chairman of the German group says steering change there is harder than setting it up

March 7, 2014 2 Comments

THE MONDAY INTERVIEW

March 2, 2014 4:11 pm

Hasso Plattner, SAP’s software pioneer still sailing on

By Paul Taylor and Chris Bryant

image001-6Database race: Mr Plattner has chosen to pursue his passion for sailing with smaller boats Read more of this post

Filed under TMT Trends

Web-Enabled Toothbrushes Join the Internet of Things; Devices Link to Smartphones to Record Brushing Habits

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Web-Enabled Toothbrushes Join the Internet of Things

Devices Link to Smartphones to Record Brushing Habits

SAM SCHECHNER

March 2, 2014 10:35 p.m. ET

Your trusty toothbrush is the latest household device to be connected to the Internet. Sam Schechner takes a look at two of the latest offerings and what they tell you about your oral hygiene. Read more of this post

Filed under TMT Trends

Li Ka-Shing Dismisses Talk of Retirement

March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

Li Ka-Shing Dismisses Talk of Retirement

Hong Kong Tycoon’s Flagship Company Gets Boost From Its European Expansion

CHESTER YUNG and TE-PING CHEN

Updated Feb. 28, 2014 7:09 a.m. ET

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Li Ka-shing’s appearances are among Hong Kong’s most-watched events. Bloomberg News

HONG KONG—Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing of conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa Ltd.0013.HK +0.86% said Friday he is still helming his corporate empire and has no plans to retire, despite increasing concerns about his health as he turns 86 later this year. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

In U.S. mergers, no one waits for this waiting period

March 6, 2014 Leave a comment

In U.S. mergers, no one waits for this waiting period

1:05am EST

By David Ingram

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Sometime soon, maybe in the next month or so, a federal judge is expected to decide whether the creation of the world’s biggest passenger airline, as envisioned by two companies and the U.S. Justice Department, was really a good idea. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Singapore sting: Sky-high prices are pushing locals to the edge of affordability; Some Singaporeans are concerned that more attention has been paid to attracting wealth than addressing their needs

March 6, 2014 Leave a comment

Singapore sting: Sky-high prices are pushing locals to the edge of affordability

Some Singaporeans are concerned that more attention has been paid to attracting wealth than addressing their needs

ROB O’BRIEN

TUESDAY 04 MARCH 2014

Singapore’s super rich are always on the lookout for new playthings. At a jetty near the Changi Airport over the weekend, a vehicle called The Humdinga – a cross between a Hummer and a boat – was launched in a display for local media. The amphibious car is designed for disaster relief and policing, but some of the city state’s wealthier residents are eyeing it as an alternative to another Ferrari 458. The chance to bypass traffic by dipping into the waterways to reach the office, golf course or their yacht, is pretty alluring. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Beijing Signals New Worry on Growth

March 6, 2014 Leave a comment

Beijing Signals New Worry on Growth

Economic Growth Forecast Is Unchanged From Last Year at 7.5%, but Leaders Show New Concern on Reaching Goal

MARK MAGNIER

Updated March 5, 2014 2:08 a.m. ET

The Chinese government maintained the country’s growth target at 7.5% for the coming year. But as City University of Hong Kong professor Joseph Cheng tells Deborah Kan, concerns over steady growth are mounting. Read more of this post

Filed under Macro Trends

Bernanke Finally Reveals, In One Word, Why The Financial System Crashed; Bernanke received at least $250,000 for his appearance. Or, in other words, more than he was paid for one full year as Fed chairman

March 6, 2014 Leave a comment

Bernanke Finally Reveals, In One Word, Why The Financial System Crashed

Tyler Durden on 03/04/2014 23:32 -0500

Now that Ben Bernanke is no longer the head of the Fed, he can finally tell the truth about what caused the financial crash. At least that’s what a packed auditorium of over 1000 people as part of the financial conference staged by National Bank of Abu Dhabi, the UAE’s largest bank, was hoping for earlier today when they paid an exorbitant amount of money to hear the former chairman talk. Read more of this post

Filed under Life

Bitcoin Claims Its First “Real” Victim; the 28-year-old CEO of Singapore-based Bitcoin exchange First Meta has been found dead.

March 6, 2014 Leave a comment

Bitcoin Claims Its First “Real” Victim

Tyler Durden on 03/04/2014 20:45 -0500

[UPDATE: Tech in Asia has updated the article to emphasize that suicide is only suggested and not certain]

The last few weeks have been dismally littered with two things. The virtual losses of virtual wealth from virtual currency speculation and the very real losses of very real humans with very real senior financial services positions. Sadly, as NewsWatch reports, tonight sees the two trends converge as the 28-year-old CEO of Singapore-based Bitcoin exchange First Meta has been found dead. The exact reason that may have led to the suicide is not known, and whether the Police have concluded that the cause of death is suicide is also unofficial. Read more of this post

Filed under Life

Heading toward the caregiving cliff; As the nation ages, experts are concerned that family caregivers won’t be able to meet demand

March 6, 2014 Leave a comment

Heading toward the caregiving cliff

WRITTEN BYRichard Harris

Perhaps the most memorable moment of President Obama’s State of the Union address in January was when he introduced Sgt. First Class Cory Remsburg. Nearly killed by a massive roadside bomb in 2009 during his 10th deployment to Afghanistan, the Army ranger was found facedown in a canal. After nearly three months in a coma and dozens of surgeries, Remsburg — who was blinded in one eye — tried to acknowledge the standing ovation on Capitol Hill by standing up. But he needed help. At his side was his father, Craig, who lifted his son from his seat. Once up, Cory flashed the cheering crowd a thumbs-up. Read more of this post

Filed under Life

Paper Business Cards Live On, Defying Technology; Actor Damon Wayans Promotes an App to Let Users Share Contacts Phone to Phone

March 5, 2014 Leave a comment

Paper Business Cards Live On, Defying Technology

Actor Damon Wayans Promotes an App to Let Users Share Contacts Phone to Phone

RYAN KNUTSON

March 2, 2014 7:53 p.m. ET

Actor Damon Wayans last week in Barcelona, where he was promoting an app that lets users create and share digital business cards. Ryan Knutson/The Wall Street Journal Read more of this post

Filed under TMT Trends

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