Is tomorrow's technology already here?

by Lynda Nicolson, Marketing Manager, reading the Economist

I picked up a copy of The Economist magazine this week (I'm old fashioned that way, I do like a magazine) and as usual, was amazed at the quantity and quality of articles that leave me shaking my head in wonder.  Innovation is alive and well and it's astounding to read how it will affect our day to day lives. 
 
One recent study by academics at Oxford University suggests that 47% of today's jobs could be automated in the next two decades.

Forty seven percent ! 

Here are some more snippets from The Economist  issue 18-24th Jan:

Google Everywhere
By now, you've probably heard about Google buying Nest Labs for $3.2billion in cash. Nest make sophisticated thermostats and smoke detectors.

Why are Google interested in thermostats and smoke detectors you may wonder? 
 

What's the most common use for a mobile phone?

Not making calls, not texting, not accessing the internet or taking and sharing photos - can you believe the most common use for a mobile phone is TELLING THE TIME?

The mobile phone is 40 years old this month.  Martin Cooper made the first call on 3 April, 1973 in New York.   A fascinating article by Adrian Lee is full of facts and figures to make you stop and look back at your phone-using past.

How about being the most annoying person in the office today - test how much your friends & colleagues can remember.  Correct answers in our office were thin on the ground but produced plenty of hilarity.

1. What year did the first mobile phone go on sale in the US?
2. What year did the first mobile phone go on sale in the UK?
3. How much did a phone cost approx in UK when it first went on sale?
4. What year was voicemail first used?
5. What year was texting first used?   (Apparently you had to text via a PC in the early days)
6. What year was (clumsy) internet access first used?
7. What year was photo sharing first used? 

Read more for answers and a link to the full article.

 

Where do you look for business ideas?

At the start up stage of a business, innovation levels are flying high.  But once the business is established, it can be easy to get bogged down in day to day delivery and paperwork. 

How can you recapture the energy and creativity of your original idea generation to propel your business forward?   Where to even start? 

From Cakes to Computers via Universities....

From Cakes to Computers, lessons from the past on working with Universities

By Stephen Marshall, Knowledge Transfer Manager, Encompass

Catering company J Lyons and University of Cambridge 1949

Universities are a rich source of new ideas and expertise, and working with them can be highly beneficial for businesses.  The past few years have seen an increasing recognition of the importance of business-university collaboration, resulting in a number of publicly funded initiatives, such as Encompass, which is aimed at supporting small businesses in working with universities. 

However, collaboration between industry and academia is not a new phenomenon and there are many examples from history that we can draw upon for inspiration.

One industry sector that has benefitted enormously from university expertise is the computer industry.  A fascinating example of this is a project which dates back to the very start of the