Richard Osman has shed light on why airports sell books that are “bigger” than those found in regular shops. In a recent episode of The Rest Is Entertainment podcast, Richard and Marina Hyde explored the topic of “airport editions” of books, which are often larger in size. Richard, known for presenting Pointless and authoring the…
Karnataka Tourism Shines at IFTM Top Resa Paris, Strengthening Ties with Global Travel Trade – Travel Industry Today – EIN Presswire
Robert Calvert: Through His Work by Tim ForsterIndependently Published
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Robert Calvert was one of those artists with a touch of genius who didn’t receive the recognition he deserved while alive. His work has remained underrepresented since his untimely death in 1988, aged just 43. With Robert Calvert: Through His Work, author Tim Forster does his bit to redress the balance.
This book is not a biography as such, although we certainly glean an understanding of Calvert’s character and life within its pages. Rather, Forster guides us through his work as a musician, poet and playwright, against the backdrop of an academic analysis of the political and social upheavals of the period from the late 60s – late 80s during which the subject was active. As he puts it, the intention is to ‘…contextualise his art practice in a historically specific convergence of political, social and economic forces and to show the relevance of his art to contemporary society.’ In the process, the writer paints a picture of a man of great intelligence, prescience and integrity with a startlingly creative imagination to match.
Of course, much attention is paid to Calvert’s most recognised work as a vocalist with Hawkwind (and spin-off Hawklords), particularly in association with founder Dave Brock and with the creative input of Barney Bubbles. In many ways, he rendered the ‘space rock’ label rather inadequate as he used the band as a vehicle to explore various themes relating as much to earthbound matters as extraterrestrial, many of these concepts recurring throughout his solo work and writing. His moral compass was active from an early age as demonstrated by his refusal at the age of 17 to return with his parents to his native South Africa which, at the time, was firmly in the grip of the apartheid regime. His move to the counterculture hotbed of Ladbroke Grove in 1970 helped shape his attitudes and societal awareness, and his stances against war, imperialism, racism, capitalism and neoliberalism (amongst others) are evident throughout. However, should this all sound a little heavy, you only have to listen to the splendidly silly and Pythonesque hit Quark, Strangeness and Charm, to appreciate that Calvert possessed a fully functional sense of humour.
This is a book full of fascinating insights, especially for those who have had a passing interest in Calvert’s work without being aware of its full extent. The album Freq features interviews with striking miners, illustrating his support for the downtrodden workers (despite his intentions at times being misunderstood). His fascination with temporality, ‘the relationship/s of past, present and future,’ is studied in depth, and it becomes clear that he had a remarkable ability to foresee future events enabled by his fascination with current trends. As Calvert put it, ‘I always try to write about things that haven’t happened quite yet, but I’m quite sure will happen.’ Forster cites his regular references to androids in their capacity as worker and companion/lover in relation to current developments in AI as an example of his prescience. We also learn of the artist’s books of poetry, several plays, including the short Mirror Mirror available on YouTube, and his theatrical approach to gigs including his ‘Biggles of Arabia’ stage persona; ‘Mine’s an acting job really. I have to embody what the music’s about, which is, I suppose, heroic fantasy really.’ There is also plenty more humour on display, including the tale of 8,000 copies of Cricket Star by Robert Calvert and the First XI being dumped along with plans to distribute them outside grounds when the West Indies tour was cancelled.
Through His Work acts both as a scholastic study of Calvert’s art and a very readable guide for those eager to discover more about the man’s work and motivations. The book takes the form of a number of chapters which examine different aspects of his beliefs and his output; Ethics, Temporality, Politics, Collaborations, Theatre etc. This, as acknowledged by the author, inevitably leads to a degree of repetition simply because there are a number of common threads which run throughout Calvert’s career, but the same would also apply if a more linear approach were taken. More importantly, each chapter is informed by Forster’s forensic analysis of the subject matter (the extensive bibliography clearly illustrates the research involved) and brought to life by his insightful commentary. Small but perfectly formed, complete with a number of striking photographs, this is a book which does its subject justice and achieves its objective of presenting Robert Calvert as much more than just a singer in a rock band.
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All words by Robin Boardman. More writing from Robin on Louder Than War can be found at his author’s archive.
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For years, San Diegans understood the environmental disaster that is sewage spilling from Tijuana into South Bay as a water quality problem. Experts in the emerging field of detecting how polluted water transfers bacteria, viruses and other bad stuff into the air have made it their mission to investigate the Tijuana River estuary. Whatever’s in the water can make its way into your mouth, lungs and gut, these scientists are saying. In other words, the stink that South Bay residents so intimately know could make you really sick. Now it seems the stakes of the border sewage crisis are incredibly dire. The environmental disaster was bad already for swimmers, surfers, public servants, tourism and sea life when it seemed contained to the coast. If the public sees this materialize as a toxic air pollution crisis as well, they’ll start to wonder: Is it even safe to live and work nearby? At a Sept. 9 press conference, scientists from San Diego State University and the University of California-San Diego revealed their findings that toxic gases like hydrogen sulfide and hydrogen cyanide emanate and spread from the Tijuana River toward nearby communities. Schools closed outdoor activities, and the county Public Health Department swooped in to verify their claims. The county couldn’t produce the readings the researchers found. So elected leaders told residents there was nothing to fear; the levels of these gases the county’s own experts measured weren’t enough to be considered a serious public health threat, said San Diego Board of Supervisors Chair Nora Vargas. The scientists later admitted their mistake, that their instruments were falsely reporting elevated levels of hydrogen cyanide, after the county challenged their results in a competing press conference on Sept. 10. A “Keep Out Of Water” sign in Imperial Beach on Dec. 4, 2023. / Photo by Ariana Drehsler The scientists dropped their messaging on hydrogen cyanide but still insist the levels of sewer gas – hydrogen sulfide – swirling around the river valley are alarmingly high and could be causing an array of health problems around the area – one even claimed that nearby goats had stopped reproducing because of it. Paloma Aguirre, mayor of Imperial Beach who considers the Tijuana River sewage crisis one of her top issues, continues to back the researcher’s claims, despite efforts by the County Public Health Department, California Department of Public Health and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to side with the county and diffuse alarm. She’s altered her messaging to the public on the sewage crisis. In January, Aguirre posted a video of herself next to the trash-filled river near the border showing viewers that trash, not just sewage, affects South Bay residents. In a post Sept. 14, after the press conference with the scientists, Aguirre again stood next to the river, this time, speaking through a pink and yellow gas mask. She didn’t respond to a request for comment on this story. That leaves residents with the difficult choice of believing a group of scientists and their mayor who says their air is toxic, or county, state and federal health officials who say it’s not. It’s akin to when the county copped out of closing beaches that failed water quality tests and instead rolled out a warning that left the public with another choice: Swim in water we say is unhealthy or not. The stakes seem much higher now, though. Enter Kim Prather, an atmospheric chemist from the UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, who’s been sounding alarm bells that people are breathing toxic gasses emitted by this tainted water. In a tweet, Prather said the levels of hydrogen sulfide she detected were “extremely high” and a “serious public health concern.” But that’s not what her data shows when compared to government standards for sewer gas exposure. After Voice of San Diego made an inquiry with Scripps, Prather released her initial findings measured from Imperial Beach. Her team took readings from 22 sites including one she’s dubbed as a “hot spot” on the Tijuana River where tainted water spills from two concrete pipes, mixes with air and sprays aerosols – small particles that become suspended in the atmosphere — and the focus of Prather’s research. Prather released the data under the condition we explain it has not been peer-reviewed, a step in the scientific process where other experts in her specialty evaluate the work before publication. The amount of hydrogen sulfide Prather’s research group measured in the air was below the thresholds the state and federal government cite as safe for prolonged exposure. In other words, the air quality doesn’t meet the standard for serious health hazards. Even Prather’s highest reading, when hydrogen sulfide reached its top sustained peak taken on Sept. 5 (about 958 particles of gas in 1 billion particles of air or .958 parts per million for one hour), the levels were far below established exposure standards (20 parts per million on average for one hour). Her instruments recorded some levels of hydrogen sulfide that were much higher, as high as 2,948 parts per billion, that persisted for a minute. When translated to the scientific units used by regulators, that’s about 3 parts per million. Again, under what regulators consider as safe even for a full hour of exposure. Prather argued those safety standards were developed to protect workers in occupations that regularly encounter hydrogen sulfide, not community-wide exposure. She pointed to how her measurements greatly exceed the exposure standard set by the California Air Resources Board or CARB of 0.03 parts per million per hour (or 30 parts per billion per hour). That standard is so low, says Amy MacPherson, a CARB spokesperson, because it’s the level people start to smell hydrogen sulfide. It gives local air regulators the ability to start investigating hydrogen sulfide sooner rather than when it poses a bigger public health threat, MacPherson said. “Hydrogen sulfide levels would have to be much higher (50 parts per million or more) to expect widespread health impacts,” she added. Still, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, the federal agency that sets safety standards for workers, notes that prolonged exposure to low levels of the gas (2 parts per million to 5 parts per million) could trigger nausea, eye tearing, headaches and loss of sleep or airway problems for asthma patients. That seems to be what Prather is trying to draw attention to. “It’s really important to listen to the community. So many eye, ear, nose, throat infections… skin infections… heart and lung issues, mental issues, the list goes on,” she wrote in an email. “(Hydrogen sulfide) is a great indicator of the presence of sewage (and industrial waste) but there are hundreds of other gases and aerosols. It will take longer for us to quantify those.” Still, public health authorities swiftly shut down her claims. “The county has not received any data that as of now indicates a public health concern,” Vargas has said. The levels of hydrogen cyanide were insignificant, and the hydrogen sulfide readings varied, she said, and “are not posing a public health hazard.” That set Prather off. So began a series of tweets on the social media platform X directed at Vargas calling her statements misleading, that public health officials were “twisting” data, and ignoring the health complaints of South Bay residents. County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Nora Vargas (right) speaks to members of the media at the County Administration Center in downtown on Sept. 27, 2023. / Photo by Ariana Drehsler “Woke up thinking I am really relieved I have published nearly 300 papers and am an elected member of many academies. If I wasn’t, the lies one supervisor has been telling to try and discredit me in order to dismiss our concerning air data in South Bay would have succeeded,” Prather tweeted on Sept. 12. Whether what the scientists found was portrayed accurately or not, the publicity they generated around the notion that water pollution can make its way into the air we breathe mobilized local, state and federal action. The county announced earlier this month the U.S. Centers for Disease Control would go door to door in South Bay neighborhoods to assess health impacts of the sewage. The county Board of Supervisors allocated $100,000 to provide free air purifiers to homes affected by odors. And the Air Pollution Control District is working on a public dashboard, akin to one that shows which beaches are too polluted for public access, to alert communities when air monitors show signs of noxious airborne pollution as well as add more air monitoring sensors around the Tijuana River Valley. What Scientists Know About Hydrogen Sulfide Hydrogen sulfide is a highly toxic gas but the threat it poses to human health depends on its concentration and distance to a population, says Wilson Rumbeiha, an environmental toxicologist at the University of California Davis. Rumbeiha studies the health impacts of hydrogen sulfide on people whose jobs put them in close contact with lots of it in a confined space. Crude oil and petroleum products mined from the ground emit the gas as does rotting organic matter, manure and sewage. Oil and gas workers, farmers working in animal confines (containers filled with many animals packed tightly together) and those maintaining sewage infrastructure or wastewater treatment plants are typically most at risk of serious harm. The gas at a high level of exposure impairs a cell’s ability to produce energy, Rumbeiha said, which at high levels of exposure can lead to seizures, coma and death. “That’s what makes it so toxic. It’s considered a metabolic poison,” he said. People can suddenly drop dead at high levels of exposure, a condition called “knock down,” meaning someone just collapses. What causes knock down isn’t well understood, however. High levels of exposure mean 500 parts per million and above (that means 500 particles of gas for every 1 million particles of air or 500 milligrams of gas for one liter of air). People with respiratory problems like asthma or COPD can be harmed more easily by the gas at levels of 50 parts per million and above, Rumbeiha said. OSHA says it’s safe for workers to be exposed to up to 10 parts per million of hydrogen sulfide on average over an eight-hour period. The catch is, the human nose smells hydrogen sulfide at very low, non-threatening levels, like 0.3 parts per million (the California Air Resources’ Board’s standard for when hydrogen sulfide can be considered a “nuisance”) even if the gas is far away. Ironically, hydrogen sulfide at high or dangerous levels causes the exposed person to lose their sense of smell, called anosmia. “When you smell it, chances are it’s not toxic,” Rumbehia said. Less understood is the long-term health impacts of hydrogen sulfide exposure even at low levels. There is evidence exposure, even at the OSHA standard, could compromise or irritate the respiratory tract so much so that a person becomes more susceptible to infections like influenza, Rumbehia said. Headache, nausea, sleep disturbances, cough – the kinds of health impacts reported by some residents in South Bay – are known effects of exposure, but researchers still don’t know why, he said. There’s no treatment for victims of hydrogen sulfide exposure, Rumbehia said, part of his interest in studying the gas.
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Open this photo in gallery:Neuroscientist and author Daniel J. Levitin.David Livingston/SuppliedTitle: I Heard There Was a Secret Chord: Music as MedicineAuthor: Daniel J. LevitinGenre: Non-Fiction/SciencePublisher: Allen LanePages: 416I recently spoke to York University ethnomusicology professor Rob Bowman. He had just celebrated the 10th anniversary of a double lung transplant. In his hospital bed as he waited for his new pair of breathers, he listened to the complete recordings of Aretha Franklin. Doctors told him that without the transplant he was days from death. He believes the Queen of Soul helped keep him alive.Open this photo in gallery:“I was on life support, with 21 tubes in my body,” he said. “I’m hooked up to a respirator – I can’t speak. I had Aretha going 24 hours a day for two and a half days until I got the transplant. I can’t say what the music did physically, but it helped me psychologically at least. And logic tells you that if you’re in a good space psychologically, it can only help you physically.”Books we’re reading and loving this week: Globe staffers share their book picksWhat Bowman intuited, Daniel Levitin explores scientifically in his vital new book I Heard There Was a Secret Chord: Music as Medicine, about how the connections between music and the brain can be harnessed for treating a host of ailments, from PTSD to pain, Parkinson’s disease, depression and cognitive injury.The book, titled after the first line to the Leonard Cohen song Hallelujah, follows up 2006′s This Is Your Brain on Music, a bestseller on the neuroscience of music. The American, who also authored The World in Six Songs and two other books, is a professor emeritus of psychology and neuroscience at Montreal’s McGill University. He’s also a musician who’s recorded his own albums and worked as a consultant on records by such artists as Joe Satriani, Steely Dan and Stevie Wonder.So, not lacking in bona fides – the man reads brain MRIs and music charts as easily as the rest of us scan the back of cereal boxes. He is as liable to quote Confucius as he is Ludacris; neuropsychologists and Joni Mitchell are in his circles.“Music affects the biology of the brain,” Levitin explains, “through its activation of specialized neural pathways, its synchronization of the firing patterns of neural assemblies, and its modulation of key neurotransmitters and hormones.”Levitin tells us that Hippocrates believed strongly that music could be used to treat a variety of physical and mental-health conditions. Most lay people are already familiar with Bob Seger’s ideas on rock ‘n’ roll’s ability to “soothe the soul.” The questions this book addresses are how and why. The answers are technical and complicated, but the author has a soulful touch and a way with anecdotes often involving well-known musicians (including Mitchell, Rosanne Cash, Bobby McFerrin and Keith Jarrett) who are afflicted with serious health issues affecting their abilities to perform.McFerrin, the Don’t Worry Be Happy star, has Parkinson’s disease, a brain disorder that causes unintended or uncontrollable movements. “Of all the uses of music as medicine,” Levitin writes, “none is more closely connected to biology than the treatment of movement disorders.” Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis, Tourette syndrome and Huntington’s disease have been shown to be responsive to music therapy such as drumming exercises.When it comes to depression and anxiety, the neural and biological mechanisms underlying music’s ability to reduce symptoms are “complex and not fully understood.” Possible explanations offered by Levitin and others include enjoyable music’s triggering of mood-lifting neurotransmitters such as dopamine, and music’s stress-reducing effects on the parasympathetic nervous system.The chapter on memory loss, dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and stroke is important. As the author points out, old people, not children, are our future. He writes that 55 million people have dementia worldwide today and with the world’s aging population – in Japan, more diapers are purchased for people over 65 than for people under 5 – cases will inevitably rise.Dementia causes agitation and anxiety. Chronic agitation, Levitin says, is one of the most pressing challenges for patient care in long-term care homes: “We’ve known for decades that music is just as potent as drug treatments for relieving anxiety, but getting it into clinics and care facilities has been a bumpy road.”But Levitin believes that bumpy road is getting smoother. He points out that there is work being done at Toronto Metropolitan University on developing a music-based treatment to help manage the neuropsychiatric symptoms of dementia, “pointing an arrow toward musical medicine for relaxation.”One of the book’s more fascinating anecdotes involves the late singer-guitarist Glen Campbell, who toured after his Alzheimer’s diagnosis. Though he didn’t know what city he was in, he had built up so much neural and cognitive reserve he was able to continue performing: “Even with half of his brain offline, he was still among the best guitarists on the planet.”A key point to the book is that music chosen by the listener is more effective at achieving a state of relaxation than music picked by others. In other words, there are no clinicians in lab coats deciding on dosages of Mozart and Motörhead. Aretha Franklin might save one person’s life; Frank Sinatra may help yours.There is more research to be done on music as medicine, but Levitin’s I Heard There Was a Secret Chord is a significant study of the subject. If it is not a eureka breakthrough, it is at least worth a hallelujah.
It’s been another busy week for movies as we leave summer behind and enter the festival season. From first trailers for highly anticipated movies like Mickey 17 to filming updates and release date announcements, there’s been a lot going on and we don’t blame you if you missed some of it. If you’re heading for a cinema trip this weekend, you can still watch September’s biggest release, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, the sequel to Tim Burton’s beloved classic. You can also catch Kate Winslet’s biopic Lee and James McAvoy’s psychological horror remake Speak No Evil. If you’re staying home though, Netflix has some great additions too, and of course, you can check out the very best the streamer has to offer with our lists of best thrillers, best comedies, best horror movies, best action movies and best family movies. While you decide what you’re watching this weekend, here’s the biggest movie news you might have missed this week.Warner Bros.The first trailer for Mickey 17 dropped this week, featuring multiple Robert Pattinsons having an existential crisis in space.Bong Joon-ho’s sci-fi film, based on Edward Ashton’s novel Mickey 7, is set to be released on January 31, 2025. It was originally going to be released in March 2024, but it was indefinitely delayed after the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strikes affected production.The movie also stars Steven Yeun, Naomi Ackie, Toni Collette and Mark Ruffalo.NetflixThe Thursday Murder Club has officially wrapped!Netflix has shared a behind-the-scenes cast and crew group photo for the upcoming murder mystery film, based on Richard Osman’s beloved novel of the same name. The snap features many famous faces, with cast members Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley and Celia Imrie posing alongside the film’s director Chris Columbus. NetflixThe Witcher has set a return date on Netflix, but not as fans expect. A one-off event, The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep is an animated movie where Doug Cockle reprises his award-winning video game portrayal of Geralt of Rivia. It’s produced by The Witcher TV show’s creator Lauren Schmidt Hissrich.Netflix announced this week that the movie will launch on February 11, 2025. Following his Oscar win, Oppenheimer star Cillian Murphy is releasing a new Ireland-based film, Small Things Like These.This week we got a first-look trailer for the film, which is based on the bestselling short novel of the same name by Claire Keegan.Also starring Game of Thrones’ Michelle Fairley, Kin actor Clare Dunne and Emily Watson, the movie follows dad and coal merchant Bill Furlong, who questions the comings and goings of young girls at a Catholic convent close to his yard.StudioCanalPaddington Bear is going on tour in the UK and Ireland! Well, sort of. To promote the release of Paddington in Peru in November, this week Hugh Bonneville announced Paddington Visit, a series of hand-painted statues that will be situated at benches here, there, and everywhere.In a short announcement video, Bonneville said: “I am thrilled to reveal we are going to be unveiling a number of benches across the UK, all featuring a statue of our beloved bear.” BBC Studios/Caryn Mandabach Productions//BBCPeaky Blinders boss Steven Knight has revealed in which time period Netflix’s upcoming movie will be set. “It’s set in the Second World War and it’s really good,” Knight teased during an appearance at the Royal Television Society’s London Convention (per Deadline). Fans of the television series will know that Cillian Murphy’s character Tommy Shelby served in World War I as a sergeant major, and received medals for gallantry and bravery.However, viewers saw the long-lasting psychological effects the war had on Tommy, as he regularly suffered from nightmares and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).Cillian Murphy will reprise his role as Tommy in the big-screen follow-up to the popular BBC series. September 2024 gift ideas and dealsDeputy Movies Editor, Digital Spy Mireia (she/her) has been working as a movie and TV journalist for over seven years, mostly for the Spanish magazine Fotogramas.
Her work has been published in other outlets such as Esquire and Elle in Spain, and WeLoveCinema in the UK.
She is also a published author, having written the essay Biblioteca Studio Ghibli: Nicky, la aprendiz de bruja about Hayao Miyazaki’s Kiki’s Delivery Service. During her years as a freelance journalist and film critic, Mireia has covered festivals around the world, and has interviewed high-profile talents such as Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal and many more. She’s also taken part in juries such as the FIPRESCI jury at Venice Film Festival and the short film jury at Kingston International Film Festival in London. Now based in the UK, Mireia joined Digital Spy in June 2023 as Deputy Movies Editor.
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Whether you’re striving for personal growth or professional success, going the extra mile can be key. Joining us on the latest episode of The Small Business Show, with insights from his newest book, Elevate Your Excellence: The Power of Doing Ordinary Things Extraordinarily Well, is Author, Speaker, host of the wildly popular podcast The Game…
Just about every entrepreneur has heard the phrase “business as usual” at one time or another. This common term is often used to indicate that operations or activities are continuing as they normally do, regardless of internal difficulties or external circumstances.
While a business as usual mindset could be viewed as an indicator of resilience, all too often it becomes a recipe for stagnation — one that keeps your business from achieving its full potential. And considering that 65.6% of businesses fail within their first 10 years, it’s clear that you can never rest easy and hope that everything proceeds “as usual.”
1. Business As Usual Is A Recipe For Complacency
One of the most basic reasons why you should avoid the business as usual mindset is because it fosters a sense of complacency — especially in companies or individuals who have previously achieved some measure of success.
Writing for Insigniam, Bruce Zimmer describes business as usual as a formula of “High level of past experience or success + Low level of generating possibility.” Glorying in the past and a previously established formula for success can make leadership extremely resistant to change. This is often accompanied by a fear of failure and the potential repercussions of any setback (even a temporary one).
As Zimmer elaborates, this creates an environment where “Business leaders do what they’ve always done. The company produces what it’s always produced in the same manner and with the same results. The chances of developing new revenue streams or cost-saving practices and other efficiencies are as low as worker enthusiasm and their inclination for innovation.”
This business as usual mindset stifles innovation. As companies become complacent and stagnant, this opens up opportunities for their competitors to pass them by. One need only look at examples like how Blockbuster passed on the chance to buy Netflix back in 2000 because they felt it was too niche of a business. We all know how that desire to maintain business as usual turned out.
2. Customer Attitudes Are Always Changing
One of the most important reasons why business leaders must avoid the complacency that comes with a business as usual mindset is the simple fact that customer desires and needs are always changing. What appeals to your target audience today isn’t necessarily going to work for them tomorrow.
A good example of this came from a recent conversation with Vito Sanzone, CEO of Promino. As Sanzone explained, “Consistent market research has helped us identify when we’ve needed to make changes to our products, such as updating packaging and improving flavor profiles. At the same time, we also have to pay close attention to growth in the market verticals that overlap with our protein supplement drinks.”
He continues, “In our case, understanding what is driving the search for alternative beverages is essential for learning what our target audience wants today. Adapting to customer interests affects everything from how we produce and market our products to the channels where we sell them.”
Beverages are just one thing, though.
For further evidence, consider the fact that the rate at which consumer attitudes can change is easily seen with technology, as well. According to Pew Research, only 35% of Americans had a smartphone in 2011, despite overall cell phone penetration of 83%. By late 2023, those numbers had skyrocketed — 90% of Americans have a smartphone, while 97% have a cell phone of any kind.
Such changes can drive other behavioral shifts, and businesses should always be prepared to adapt their processes, products and more accordingly.
3. Businesses Must Respond To Trends And Setbacks
A key benefit of going beyond the business as usual mindset is that it encourages leaders to develop a more proactive approach in addressing any of the possible challenges that a business could face.
As I’ve written about previously, Huy Fong (the famous sriracha sauce maker) has experienced significant challenges in finding a reliable supplier of red jalapeño chilis since it cut ties with its longtime partner Underwood Ranches. This feels like a situation where Huy Fong has been hoping a business as usual mindset would work with new suppliers, when in reality, they’ve dealt with a variety of challenges as they’ve struggled to adapt.
Clearly, a more proactive approach is needed in terms of vetting suppliers and managing these crucial business relationships if Huy Fong wants to turn things around.
Of course, a proactive approach can also make a difference in more positive areas as well. We’ve seen companies and their strategic partners proactively engage in ways to improve customer experiences or lessen their impact on the environment. These companies aren’t content with a business as usual approach that sticks with the status quo. Instead, they are looking for ways to innovate and improve by creating more value for their internal teams, partners and customers.
Such efforts put businesses on the cutting edge of changing trends, while also helping them develop the skills to respond to potential challenges in a more agile and effective manner.
Going Beyond Business As Usual
Business as usual can be a dangerous mindset for your business — one that ultimately undermines your growth efforts and allows your competitors to pass you by. As you develop a proactive approach that is never complacent and always looking for opportunities to change and improve, you will be better positioned to achieve lasting success in your niche.
George Clooney pranked ‘Wolfs’ director Jon Watts by telling him Brad Pitt would “never” agree to be in the movie.The 63-year-old actor revealed he managed to get the filmmaker, 43, to stay up “all night” rewriting the screenplay to the Apple Studios thriller-comedy after he jokingly told Watts he had to “work [on his] pitch a little better” if he wanted to get Pitt on board for the project.The ‘Ocean’s Eleven’ star told Variety: “I messed with [Watts]. I told him he’s never going to get [Pitt] … He stayed up all night because I said, ‘You have to work your pitch a little better.’”Despite the prank, Pitt, 60, insisted both he and Clooney “loved” the first draft of the screenplay when they read it.He recalled: “Jon Watts came with this idea, This was the first draft, which never happens. We both loved it. He didn’t tell us which character we were supposed to play [but] somehow, we knew.”The picture follows a professional fixer (Clooney), who is hired to cover up a high-profile crime, before a second cleaner (Pitt) arrives at the scene and forces the two lone wolves to work together.As the night progresses, chaos ensues for the fixers in a way neither expected.The film was initially going to head straight to Apple TV+, though it was announced in August that it would be getting a limited theatrical run in the U.S. from 20 September before it hits the streaming platform a week later.While Clooney is glad the movie is coming to the big screen, the actor admitted he wished the picture “was having a wider release”.Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, the ‘Batman and Robin’ star said: “We’re happy it’s getting released at all.”Obviously we wish it was having a wider release and we’re trying to figure these things out as we go. This is a revolutionary time in our industry so it’s taken a moment to get through it, but we’ll get through it.”
Chief Scientist Demetris Skourides participated in the inaugural AI and Web Festival Summit held in Dubai on September 11-12, according to an announcement released on Friday.This leading global event attracted over 6,800 participants, including representatives from 20 global enterprises and 20 government entities, as well as top venture capitalists, emphasising its significance as a hub for innovation in AI and Web3 technologies.
Skourides served as a panellist in a session titled “Enhancing Public Sector Efficiency,” where he shared the stage with notable officials, including Younus Al Nasser, CEO of Dubai Data and Statistics Establishment at Digital Dubai, and General Khalid Nasser Alrazooqi, General Director of AI at Dubai Police.
During the discussion, he stressed the transformative potential of AI in public sector operations, noting that it can automate routine tasks, enhance decision-making, and improve public service delivery.
“AI holds the potential to revolutionise public services,” Skourides stated, according to an announcement released on Friday.
The Chief Scientist highlighted how technologies such as predictive analytics and AI-powered chatbots could significantly improve citizen experiences.
He also introduced the upcoming pilot of Cyprus’ digital AI assistant, set to launch by the end of 2024, as a key initiative for more efficient government services.
Moreover, the chief scientist also outlined ongoing AI pilot projects within his office, which focus on automating document processing and summarisation, thereby reinforcing Cyprus’ commitment to public sector innovation.
Skourides also addressed the importance of data management and governance in AI, citing successful frameworks from the UAE that ensure transparency and security, which are essential for building public trust.
Skourides drew parallels between Cyprus and UAE initiatives, noting the UAE’s Ministry of Happiness and the Happiness Meter as models for improving citizen satisfaction.
“These success stories serve as benchmarks for our own strategies,” he said.
Skourides also underlined the need for a comprehensive AI governance framework that prioritises ethics and security while complying with EU regulations.
“Data is the new oil, and AI is the new energy,” he said, referencing a necessity for open and explainable AI platforms to fuel growth.
It should be noted that the summit serves as a premier platform for leaders in AI and digital economies, facilitating collaboration and innovation in the sector.
During his visit, Skourides also engaged with key figures such as Khalfan Belhoun, CEO of the Dubai Future Foundation, and Anusha Dandapani, Chief Data & Analytics Officer at the United Nations International Computing Center, discussing the importance of AI in digital innovation.