Technology & Innovation — September 18, 2010

Third World Wealth

“In regions scarred by intractable poverty, innovative programs to build new sources of wealth through these four businesses are providing lessons for entrepreneurs.”

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“Animal feed in Zambia. Cookies in South Africa. Medical records systems in Botswana. Peanut processing in sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. In regions scarred by intractable poverty, innovative programs to build new sources of wealth through these four businesses are providing lessons for entrepreneurs hoping to create new markets and economic opportunity. In a paper titled, ‘Business Models: Creating New Markets and Societal Wealth,’ leaders of Wharton’s Societal Wealth Program outline the critical elements of entrepreneurial wealth building based on nearly 10 years of field research supported by Wharton alumni.”

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

A digital illustration of a human brain with blue veins and a glowing light at the top, set against a black background.

The Future

How Neuralink’s chief competitor is tapping into the brain without surgery

“Neurotech is not just about the brain,” says Synchron CTO Riki Banerjee, explaining how their tech can help with paralysis, brain diseases, and beyond.

An abstract illustration features a bell curve with red dots and a percentage labeled 49%. The background includes a monochrome portion of a face with wide-open eyes peeking below the curve.

Thinking

Everyday Philosophy: Bad at probability? That might be a blessing.

How black and white is your thinking?

Image of Earth set against a black background with the text "A Volatile World" in large white letters.

Why does it feel like the world is falling apart?

“We’ve engineered a volatile world where Starbucks is completely unchanging from year to year, but democracies are collapsing and rivers are drying up.”

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11 min

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with

Brian Klaas

Starts With A Bang

Ask Ethan: Do gravitons need to exist?

Electromagnetism, both nuclear forces, and even the Higgs force are mediated by known bosons. What about gravity? Does it require gravitons?

A close-up of a neoclassical building's facade with ornate carvings and columns, featuring an emblem at the center, reflects the grandeur often associated with the global elite.

The Present

A surprising share of the global elite went to Harvard

A survey of more than 6,000 of the world’s richest, most influential people shows that 9% of them attended Harvard University.

Up Next

Surprising Science

X PRIZE Winners Get 100 MPG

“The next X PRIZE competition, the Google Lunar X PRIZE, is offering $60 million to land a robotic rover on the moon and use it to complete certain objectives.”