Next Covid proves we never know what’s coming next. Innovation is typically incremental, gradual, serendipitous & inexorable. Usually not from one eureka moment, but many trial-&-error experiments. Now is the time to try doing something different or differently; and using fewer, not more, resources. Going round in circles – but what goes round need not…
Category: N
Nemesis Instant nemesis due to Covid-19: Handshakes. Trust in the competence of elites. Belief in the self-correcting nature of markets. Faith in our readiness to deal with the unexpected. We should have been more sceptical. Like viruses, some practices, beliefs & narratives will simply die out. Others will mutate or become dormant, & may prevail…
Nonsense Spin doctors, trolls & conspiracy theorists spout nonsense. We can dismiss disinformation as hype & attention-seeking. But ignoring statistics, compiled with care & expertise, leaves us in the dark with no proper basis on which to make decisions – for business, health or government. Take nobody’s word for it. See through the hype Guessed the…
Nuisance Getting lots of nuisance calls? Don’t switch off your mobile phone! Scammers are targeting phones to steal money from bank accounts. They persuade your service provider to transfer your number to a new Sim, so your bank’s passcode for withdrawals goes to their phone, not yours. If your mobile suddenly has no service, ask…
Nose Spies have a nose to sniff out the most valuable asset, currently Covid-19 vaccine research. The land grab now is for intellectual property. State-backed hacking groups never really disappear. If a known espionage group is no longer evident, it just means they’ve become harder to detect. Guard the network perimeter, make users aware of…
Need Coronavirus: when we need people to comply, 2 ways work: Monitor them & punish those who break the rules. Or give them the facts, earn their trust, & they will do the right thing. Billions of people wash their hands – not because they’re being watched, but because they know it stops the spread…
Naughty “Naughty, but nice” – 1970s National Dairy Council slogan for cream cakes. One of the most popular British classics with tourists (& locals), the Cream Tea – collective name for warm scone, clotted cream, strawberry jam & tea – dates back to the 11th c in SW England. National Cream Tea Day on the…
New Year 2020 What will come up this year? A survivor mindset always helps: improvise, adapt & overcome. The only wrong thing we can do is to lose hope. The best & brightest feel part of something larger than just making money, & help to make the world a better place. Happy New Year! Guessed the Word? …
Night tube London’s night tube on Fridays/Saturdays lights up the economy by £360m; will be £1.54bn over 10 years. Supports >3,600 jobs & has >500,000 users. 2 peaks – revellers at 01:30 BST & workers at 04:00. Increase in demand since 2016 launch is double that of day time. Oxford Circus is busiest entry &…
Noiseless Electric vehicles are noiseless – & that’s a problem. A Vehicle Sound for Pedestrians (VSP) is needed so we step out of the way. EU & US rules require new electric cars to emit an audible sound at <18.6 mph. At higher speeds, the car’s low-pitched whistle (from cutting through the air) & tyre-on-road…