China spends over $500 billion to expand high-speed rail

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China is planning some serious upgrades to its public transportation system in the next few years. By 2020, the country hopes to have increased its high-speed railway coverage by 18,650 miles. The project will cost an estimated 3.5 trillion yuan, or about $503 billion USD. Not only will the population be more mobile, but the rails will significantly cut down on carbon emissions and air pollution.
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The energy storage startup is transforming a $100 billion market

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The energy storage industry has grown to become a $100 billion market, projected to reach $250 billion by 2040. This massive valuation is due, in part, to more than 50% of consumer energy bills being attributed to peak hour charges. Noticing the need to make energy usage more affordable and efficient, paired with a passion to improve the planet, one entrepreneur launched a company aimed at transforming the way we use energy.

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Think exponentially and better predict the future

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We humans aren’t great predictors of the future. For most of history, our experience has been “local and linear.” Not much change occurred generation to generation: We used the same tools, ate the same meals, lived in the same general place.

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Can automation create newer, better jobs?

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As the fourth industrial revolution, characterized by smart factories and digital manufacturing, makes its presence felt globally, there is an upsurge in handwringing about the notion that technology will eliminate human jobs.

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Will farming be fully automated in the future?

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Driverless tractors that can follow pre-programmed routes are already being deployed at large farms around the world. Drones are buzzing over fields assessing crop health and soil conditions. Ground sensors are monitoring the amount of water and nutrients in the soil, triggering irrigation and fertiliser applications.

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Let’s print a mountain range in 3-D

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Futurist Thomas Frey is in town to talk to a Greater Des Moines Partnership breakfast Friday. I caught up with him by phone to discuss how our metro is likely to change as disruptive technologies pile up. By the time we were done, I had half-jokingly asked him if Iowa could 3-D print a mountain range, a much-wanted perk here in the flatlands.

Futurist Thomas Frey predicts farming drones, driverless streets

What will Iowa’s farms look like when the combines and tractors drive themselves?

How will Des Moines’ banking and insurance sectors fare when supercomputers run financial markets?

Where will Iowans live when a self-driving car can take them anywhere with the tap of a smartphone?

These are the kind of questions Thomas Frey ponders.

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Cash is on the verge of extinction in these countries

My dad, a former Wall Street trader always advised me “cash is king” and to “hold on to it” when the economy gets tough.

But in the Netherlands, cash is definitely not getting the royal treatment. In so many places, it has simply ceased to be recognised as legal tender. More and more Dutch stores, from upscale health-food store Marqt to my local baker and bagel shop, take pin — or debit — cards exclusively. Some retailers even describe going cash-free as “cleaner” or “safer”.

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Six Global Banks Lead Standardizing Global Payments via Blockchain

Starting a modern payments network underpinned by Ripple and supported by rules and governance for global settlement.

Ripple, which earlier this month completed a $55 million Series B financing round, has announced that a number of global banks are joining forces to establish the first interbank group for global payments based on distributed ledger (blockchain) financial technology.

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