In The News

Revolution 2.0: Democracy Promotion in the Age of Social Media

Mark Sedra February 18, 2011
New communication technologies from the printing press to Facebook and Twitter don’t cause revolutions alone, argues Mark Sedra in an essay for the Globe and Mail. But fast means for distributing criticism and making plans can spur activism, particularly in promoting democracy. Social networking has emerged as the Web communication “medium of choice in the developing world, with those who are...

Huawei in Challenge to US

Stephanie Kirchgaessner, Kathrin Hille February 17, 2011
Social media sites – like LinkedIn or Facebook – make it easy for companies to find customers, employees, suppliers and more. But they also help regulators uncover troublesome connections. Such a case – with US regulators perusing LinkedIn and accidentally discovering that China’s telecom giant Huawei had purchased, without government review, interest in a California firm that makes cloud...

Can the Internet Tame Governments? – Part II

Borje Ljunggren February 11, 2011
The internet, so essential for the modern economy, is a bane for autocratic governments thin-skinned about criticism, whose minions strive to eliminate any dissident thoughts or deeds. Internet and cell phones were less widely available in 1989, and global observers can’t help but wonder if such communications might have thwarted China’s violent crackdown on student protests at Tiananmen Square....

Dictator-Proofing the Internet

Daniel Lyons February 9, 2011
To stop protesters from organizing and complaining, Egypt’s government shut down most of the nation’s internet services for five days, but not connections based on landlines or satellite dishes. Analyzing the shutdown’s successes and gaps, technology activists set out to develop alternative networks in nations like Jordan, Syria and Yemen, reports Daniel Lyons for Newsweek. He reports that the...

There’s No Stopping It

Nayan Chanda February 7, 2011
Internet and cell phones are essential tools for global business. Any attempt to cut the flow of communications invites anger, protest, confusion and embarrassing scrutiny, as it was discovered by the Mubarak government on 28 January. Egypt, hoping to hobble protesters and block international observers, ordered its internet providers to change gateway addresses and stop traffic. “The ploy failed...

China Takes Lead in Race for Clean Nuclear Power

Richard Martin February 2, 2011
In the race to develop new sources of green energy, China pursues research on thorium – more abundant than uranium – for nuclear power. “While nearly all current nuclear reactors run on uranium, the radioactive element thorium is recognized as a safer, cleaner and more abundant alternative fuel,” writes author Richard Martin for Wired.com. “Designing a thorium-based molten-salt reactor could...

We Have Your Number

Nandan Nilekani January 21, 2011
Trade, technology and other facets of globalization have delivered wealth to India. But distribution of benefits is uneven in the nation of more than 1.1 billion, on track to exceed China as the most populous. The World Bank estimates that more than 35 percent of Indians live below the poverty line, and despite rapid job growth, the informal nature of most work excludes large numbers of poor from...