07-23-2016, 09:38 PM
Turkey’s politics has always functioned like a pendulum: it swings from mosque to barracks, and back again. When it sways too near the mosque, soldiers step in and try to take it to the barracks. And when the pressure for secularism from the barracks becomes too great, the power of the mosques grows. And educated democrats, sitting in between these extremes, are always the ones to take a beating.
This is the biggest witch-hunt in Turkey’s history | Can Dündar | Opinion | The Guardian
In her book, Playing Dead: A Journey Through the World of Death Fraud (Simon & Schuster; $26), Greenwood peels the lid off a cottage industry devoted to helping people vanish. She tracks down Frank Ahearn, a foulmouthed New Yorker who claims to have helped more than 50 people disappear, charging them about $30,000 apiece. She swills Coronas with Steve Rambam, a cynical investigator who chases death fakers in the Philippines, where you can rent a corpse and hire locals to stage a mock funeral as evidence of your untimely expiration. She travels to England to meet John Darwin, who faked a canoeing accident in 2002 and collected more than £280,000 (about $371,000 today) in insurance benefits; and to Los Angeles, where she visits a woman who goes by the name Pearl Jr. who’s convinced that Michael Jackson faked his death and is now living secretly among us, waiting for the right moment to reveal himself.
A Look at the Weird, Wild World of Death Fraud - Bloomberg
India is taking it slow when it comes to growth, and it’s paying off. According to a new report from Nomura, India is the "biggest turnaround story" in emerging markets. Unlike the "typical emerging markets boom-bust cycle," India has been focusing on long-term, gradual GDP growth. It’s a slower method, but it’s more sustainable — and it’s working.
The ‘biggest turnaround story’ in emerging markets - Business Insider
IBM has given its investors a sign that Big Blue may finally be turning things around. Revenue increased for the first time in a key unit -- cognitive solutions, including its Watson artificial intelligence platform -- that the company has been touting as crucial to future growth. The results may signal that Chief Executive Officer Ginni Rometty is making good on her promise to shift IBM’s software and services offerings to match customers’ increasing appetite for cloud-based solutions. It’s been an uphill battle. Overall, sales have declined for 17 quarters in a row, while margins have also narrowed.
IBM Investors Cheer First Signs of Success for Big Blue Strategy - Bloomberg
Tour de France leader Chris Froome and his Sky team are among the most tech-savvy people in pro cycling. An example is Froome's use of non-round chainrings. Froome's rings are not branded — probably to avoid conflict with his team's sponsorship by Shimano, which supplies Team Sky with components and wheels — but they are made and patented by Osymetric. French mechanical engineer Jean-Louis Talo invented them. Osymetric USA claims the chainrings "let you achieve 7-10% more power" and that the "patented bi-cam design allows you to take advantage of the strongest part of your pedal stroke, giving you 7-10% more wattage without doing any more work." Froome has been riding these rings for a few years, so he must believe they give him an edge.