In The News

Globalization and Science: A Speeded-Up Virtuous Cycle

Ramamurti Shankar March 28, 2003
In many academic disciplines, books, journals, and letters have long been the preferred ways of communicating over long distances. Thanks to the 'information revolution' facilitated by the internet, though, today the spread of knowledge around the world can happen almost instantaneously. In Physics and other branches of science, researchers and scholars are enjoying tremendous...

China Bars W.H.O. Experts from Origin Site of Illness

Lawrence K. Altman March 26, 2003
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) has now appeared in thirteen countries, with at least 487 known cases of infection. It is believed to have originated in China’s Guandong province, but Chinese officials are preventing World Health Organization (WHO) teams from investigating. There has thus been no independent verification of the number of SARS cases in China, whether cases have occurred...

American Bombs in Iraq Show Up Fractures in Europe

Shada Islam March 21, 2003
When the going was good, the European Union looked like a model of globalization. Fifteen countries appeared to have subjected their many historical, political and cultural differences to the altar of a united Europe. The European Union was emerging as the second superpower. But the bitter divergences among the EU members that have emerged over the American war against Iraq serve as a reminder...

Indonesia Must Integrate with World to Advance

Hans W. Vriens March 14, 2003
While many countries experience large inflows of foreign direct investment, Indonesia has a net outflow of investment monies. In two recent rankings, the country appeared at the bottom of the barrel in terms of economic integration with the world. Despite the elation of some Indonesian intellectuals at their country's de-globalized status, writes consultant Hans Vriens, economic...

Fawlty Globalisation

M.J. Akbar March 6, 2003
Providing space for economic refugees is the key to maintaining a balanced globalization. The countries that have best accommodated economic refugees, like the US and India, are the ones that also tend to benefit the most from the skills these individuals bring. But the worry is that countries want cheap labor while constraining the diversity that migration entails. Multi-ethnic India serves as a...

Food First or Trade First?

Vandana Shiva February 25, 2003
Implementation of the WTO’s trade liberalization rules marginalizes and hurts developing countries, says this opinion article in The Hindu, one of India’s largest newspapers. Trade liberalization is designed to eliminate tariffs and other barriers to trade, but developing countries cannot compete with foreign agricultural producers. The author further argues that developing countries should be...

An Illicit Paradise for the Motion Picture Buff

Richard McGregor February 18, 2003
The movie piracy industry, which accounts for the sale of almost all movies in China, has managed to succeed due to new technology as well as lax regulations. The ability of these companies to mass-produce movies at low prices and short time has allowed Hollywood movies, a major item of American cultural export to penetrate widely into China. Although the producers are currently losing money...