TREND REPORTS
(PDF) BCG - Operational Excellence in Retail Banking 2015
[Business]
2015/04/26 11:10
Creating Digital Banks with a Human Touch. Retail banks continue to adjust to a postcrisis environment of patchy growth, changing regulatory demands, and margin pressures. At the same time, banks are confronting a digital and data revolution that is disrupting their industry. Digital innovation is shifting the behavior and expectations of customers, who are increasingly eager for the convenient...
Butterfly Wings are the Key to Glare-Free Phone Displays
[Tech]
2015/04/26 11:09
Nature: Low-reflection wings make butterflies nearly invisible.Irregular nanostructures on the transparent wing of the glasswing butterfly prevent the reflection of light -- publication in Nature Communications -- researchers plan applicationsThe effect is known from the smart phone: Sun is reflected by the display and hardly anything can be seen. In contrast to this, the glasswing butterfly ha...
The Mariah Carey Business Model
[Business]
2015/04/26 11:08
How to be a pop star without new hits or successful tours.If you took inventory of Mariah Carey’s recent projects, you might conclude she’s desperate for money. In 2011 she hosted a three-night special on the Home Shopping Network, where she modeled cheap jewelry with as much gusto as Paula Abdul before her. In 2013, she followed Abdul again, taking her seat on American Idol. Earlier this yea...
(PDF) Mckinsey - Grow Fast or Die Slow : Pivoting Beyond the Core
[Business]
2015/04/26 11:07
Turbocharged initial growth is essential to surviving in the software industry. But what comes next? Here are four lessons so leaders can write their organizations’ second act.Software companies must constantly evolve and capture new growth opportunities or risk slowly declining into irrelevance. Only 3 percent of start-ups grow into companies boasting annual revenue of at least $1 billion.1 Y...
Mormedi's e-Cigarette is Designed as a Personal Accessory
[Design]
2015/04/26 11:06
Product design consultancy Mormedi has created an electronic cigarette, which they hope will become like a "personal accessory similar to a pen" for users.The e-cigarette, named the Treasurer-Vape, has been designed for Swiss company Nexvap. The battery-powered device produces a vapour that users inhale as an alternative to smoking cigarettes.Treasurer-Vape comes as a complete starter kit, feat...
(Video) UC Berkeley - Smart Bandage Detects Invisible Wounds
[Tech]
2015/04/26 11:05
Engineers at UC Berkeley are developing a bandage that uses electrical currents to identify early tissue damage from bedsores.A smart bandage that uses electrical currents and utilizes flexible electronics is being developed by engineers at UC Berkeley. The bandage is able to detect early tissue damage from bedsores while they are still invisible to the naked eye. It could be used by doctors sp...
Zirx Parks $30M to Build a Fleet of Valets
[Investing]
2015/04/26 11:04
San Francisco-based startup Zirx is looking to fulfill this desire for an increasing number of frustrated car owners, fueled by its announcement today that it has closed a new round of $30 million.Launched last June, the company offers a mobile app so weary drivers can signal their location. Zirx promises that an “agent” will arrive within minutes and park the car in a partner garage. If you...
Italian Company Hopes to Market Synthetic Eyeballs
[Design]
2015/04/26 11:03
Italian research studio Mhox's EYE concept could see a future where people replace their natural eyes with technologically-enhanced bioprinted ones.Imagine being able to see in black and white or with an Instagram-like filter, or to have what you see through your eyes transmitted wirelessly, simply by swallowing a pill. Or imagine having vision so sharp and accurate that your visual acuity is o...
(PDF) US Digital Ad Spend Hits New $49.5 Billion High In 2014
[Business]
2015/04/23 13:02
Digital advertising spend set a new record in 2014, according to the latest figures from the Internet Ad Bureau, rising to $49.5 billion in spend. The greatest segments of growth were in mobile and social, though search remained the biggest overall ad spend segment.The chart below from the IAB report released today shows the year-by-year growth since 2005. In 2013, overall spend was $42.8 billi...
Volvo Axes the Passenger Seat to Boost Backseat Legroom
[Design]
2015/04/23 11:36
The Volvo XC90 Lounge Concept removes the front passenger seat in favor of a multipurpose ottoman/storage/television/work tray. IT’S A TOUGH time to be a luxury automaker. The competition is fierce, and the swanky-feature arms race only seems to escalate. Massage seats, custom-designed sound systems, and neck warmers are no longer enough to stand out.Volvo’s latest innovation is a special, fo...
Debt Piles Up in Asia, Threatening Growth
[Investing]
2015/04/23 11:36
Countries borrowed a lot during the crisis, and kept doing so afterward.Asian countries borrowed heavily to maintain growth during the financial crisis, but couldn’t break the habit even as the global economy healed. Now they are feeling the hangover.Growth is slowing fast across the continent as consumers and businesses focus on repaying debt. Central banks have cut rates, pushing currencies...
Next-Gen Condoms Will Be Self-Lubricating, Biodegradable, and Skin-Like
[Tech]
2015/04/23 11:36
Researchers at University of Wollongong are working on a more pleasurable-feeling condom made out of the stuff associated with contact lenses.After receiving a grant of $100,000 last summer, researchers at the University of Wollongong in Australia are on a mission to create a new breed of condom. The grant, by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which funds innovative ideas that address ch...
